The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1905-12-01
GETS GOOD PRICES
Timber Sale Held.by State Audit-
or Iverson.

largest and most satisfactory sales or
timber on state lands ever held i'm this
and adjoining counties was conducted
at the court house at Duluth by State
Auditor S. G.. Iverson Friday. When
sale closed Friday noon mixed timber
to the value of 500, 447.75 had been dis
posed of to Duluth aud outside buyers.
Possibly little more than half the
timber appraised by the state for sale
at this time was sold and when the
figures are compared with the total
appraisal of $36.S37, the good prices
that the timber brought at an auction
can be readily seen. In most instanc-
es the selling price ran on the APP
praised value OF the timber and In
several cases the bidding was exceed
ingly lively.
About seventy-five persons attend
ed the sale, the largest attendance
that state land or timber sale has
had in this county in many years.
The timber sold this morning COM
prised few scattered tracts of pine,
but was mostly tmarack. spruce and
cedar, suitable for wood ties, posts
and poles. The appraised value OF
the pine was between S. and Sc per
1000 feet, but most all of it sold above
the appraised figure, except in cases
where it was rather remote and diff
cult to get out.
Some of the bids for the pine were
run up to high figure, not so much.
it was claimed, because of the value of
the timber itself, but because it is To-
Gated close to and adjoining other
large pine tracts where logging opera
tions are under way, and it Is worth
something to the operator to secure it
and keep other buyers from in and
cutting up or interfering with his
roads and work.
The tamarack ties were appraised
for about5 cents each, the cedar posts
for one cent each, cedar poles from 10
cents to so cents each and the spruce
at so cents cord.
Mr.. Iverson will be in Duluth again
April next, when he will offer for
sale about SO, 900 acres of cutover lands
in this part of the state to actual SET
lers, on the easy payment plan.
This sale will be continuation Of
the big farm land sale that the state
inaugurated last fall, and it is expect
ed that it will be one OF the largest
attended and most important sales Of
any thus far had. In some districts
in which sales have already been held
for the past twelve to sixteen years,
somewhat similar to those of last fall,
the lands have been pretty well picked
over, but it brought excellent prices.
In the Duluth district the lands have
not yet been picked over, and the first
buyers will have splendid opportun-
itY to get the best lands at fair figures.
Judging from the results so far had,
the state auditor predicts that the
Duluth sale will be one Of the most
successful in the point of attendance,
the amount of land to be disposed Of
and the price to be secured by the state.
The lands will be sold at public auc-
ton to the highest bidder. Fifteen
per cent of the purchase price only
need to be paid down at the time Of
sale, the balance may run for forty
years at 4 per cent annual interest, il
desired. The state gives perfect title.
The sales held this past fall have
demonstrated the success Of the pres
ent plan of selling the lands" said
the state auditor, what we want in
Minnesota is M re settlers, more
people to develop the unused lands.
This sale of state lands on the INSTALL
ment plan catches just those people.
1tgets the actual settlers. not the land
spectators. Conditions are very much
different now than they were in olden
times when the speculator bought up
whole townships and held them.
THE total acreage Of state farm
lands sold this fall was $4,000 acres.
All this went to about 800 persons.
which is an average OF sixty-five acres
to aperson. This is, to me, one of the
most gratifying features of the sale.
'The land sold averaged the state
S7.72 per acre, the highest price that
it has received in any one year, with
one exception. A large number of
forties sold for between $40 and 1923
per acre.
"About 80 percent OF the buyers
lived outside the counties in which is
located the lands they purchased,
while about 10 per cent Of the buyers
came from other states, from North
Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Illinois
and Wisconsin"