The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1904-04-26
LAkE-TooMB coMPANY's SCHEME
A FAILURE.
OUT LOSING VENTURE
Huge Enclosure on Indian Reservation
Proves Too Expensive in
Many Ways.

out from Belle Fourche, the Lake
Toomb company, which a little over
a year ago removed it's herds from
Custer county for the purpose of pas
turing them on a huge tract OF land
leased from the Sioux Indians of the
Standing Rock agency, has not found
the change very profitable and wishes
itself out a bad job. When the com
pany removed it's Montana holdings
it gave u the statement that the
free range had become too over
crowded to make grazing here any
longer profitable, and that in future
it would confine it's principal opera
lions to the Dakotas, with special
reference to the leased pasture, con-
tanning something like a million acres,
held under a five years contract with
the interior department. Although the
lease had been obtained and it's terms
were satisfactory to the Indians, some
of the eastern friends of the noble
red man" took occasion to go to Wash
ington and sought to have the lease
set aside, claiming that the Indians
were being defrauded because OF the
small price to be paid by the cattle
company-3% cents an acre, with the
privilege to the Indians of keeping
their cattle in the enclosure.
Of course, the company resisted,
and with effective results. but now
it wishes the Indian Rights associa-
ton and the other Bostonians would
take it's contract from off it's hands,
and that, too, with about three years
more to the life of the lease.
Cost Too High.
Under the terms made. with the in
terror department the company OBJ
ligated itself to fence the tract with
a good, substantial wire fence, all
government at the expiration of the
lease, the company to receive nothing
for them. The rental, a fixed charge,
with the enormous cost of the fence
and other betterments, have proved
too severe a drain, and instead of
the big profits expected the COM
pany finds itself a loser. The invest
ment, it must be remembered, is not a
permanent one, but representative of
the actual cost to the company of the
pasture for the limited number of
years that it is under it's control.
When the company decided upon
the change much interest was mani
tested by the other large outfits, for
it was an experiment to be closely
watched. Predictions were made that
the Indians would follow their natural
bent and give the company all posi-
BILE trouble by setting fire to the grass,
stealing it's stock, and in other ways
This proved to be a wrong
expectation. The company says that
the Indians did all they could to help
along, for they seem to have real
lied that they had a good thing"
Many have worked for it as cowboys
and in performing other work, but for
all that the company has decided to
close out and quit as soon as possible.
Are Not a Success.
Fenced pastures" said a represen-
tative of the company to a man to
whom he was relating their expert.
ence, for the purpose OF running
large punches of cattle are not a sue
cess. We thought otherwise, but this
winters business has been very I'M
Cattle have drifted and
fences have failed to hold them. When
ever they broke out we were put to the
necessity of Turning them back, and
this necessitated working them at an
season, when they were
poor in flesh and weak and could not
stand it. Small pastures may be
practicable, but large fenced enclo-
sures are not"
While the company claims that the
losses during the winter were COM
light on it's pasture, the
damage it sustained is still very great,
owing to the waste of money and mate
rial in putting up immense quantities
Of hay. "The trouble was" said Mr..
Toomb, chat during storms stock got
away from the hay and died before we
could roundup and drive it back. We
had figured on no loss at ALL"
Eggs For Sale.
Pure Barred Plymouth Rock eggs,