The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1906-09-28

c. n r. has a large amount of the
steel laid on the line north to Mani
toba and will, understand. take out
the wheat crop of this year, which Is
a heavy and good one. The company
Is also at work on the road to White
Whale lake. which line will be con-
tinued through to the Yellowhead
pass. as the main line of the C. N. r.
AS Is we'll known. there has been quite
race for the pass. the general I'M
preston in the country being that
some arrangement will he made by
the government so that all the roads
can use it. At the east entrance to
the pass there are IL number of hot
springs which are highly valued and
which are already spoken of as Il Sec
ond Banift. In addition to the sur
veyors of the C. N. r. and the G. T.
F.. engineering parties of the Great
Northern are at work between the
coast and the mountains and are sup
posed to be striking for the Yellow
head pass from the west, but of this
| could not say
The Indians have told ME that Just
beyond the Yellowhead there is a val
ley, which is the garden OF all the
great west. In this valley the wild
crabapples grow, and imagine it is
another such as the well-known Ber-
kelley valley of British Columbia,
which, although 1t has not yet been
surveyed. has been all taken up from
the coast by squatters. There is no
doubt that some of the finest fruit
land in the world Is awaiting settle
ment in these regions.
THE district in which We are living
is directly west of Edmonton, and we
anticipate that the line of the G. T.
P. will pass somewhat south of us and
the c. n. R. a little farther SOUTH
Suitable for Colonies.
What sort of country would yours
be for an all-British colony, such as
went to the Saskatchewan" was
asked.
There could scarcely be more ia
vorable opportunity for the introduce
ton of an all-British colony than that
which Alberta offers. The great diff
ficulty in Saskatchewan was in the
absence of the material for the build
ing, of fences. barns and houses, and
in the lack of fuel. All of these diff
ficulties would be avoided by the col
onists in Alberta. In our country,
If a settler wants a new farm build
ing, he can build it without cost in
a week. All he needs to do is to cut
his poplar logs. notch them, put them
In place. plaster the building with
mud, and the job is done. For winter,
the fuel is right at hand. All the land
that is needed can soon be cleared in
succeeding winters without great diff
ficulty as the timber is not heavy.
When sawmills begin to be built, the
settler can have the heaviest timber
sawn and utilize 1t for the erection
Of a better class of farm buildings.
The soil is very fertile. the rainfall
is sufficient, and there is no reason
why the man who begins the work
with no capital but his strength and
health. should not succeed. Nothing
would please me more than to aid
in taking an all-British colony to
some point in the western portion of
Alberta and placing them on some of
the vacant lands lying idle there. At
Lake st. Ann for instance, there is
any amount of land, which in a few
years will be reached by a railway,
which is as attractive as anything
in the world. If you want to go far
Their west you will find something just
as good or even better. The wild
grass of the foothills found to be as
good for my horses as oats and hay.
The horses in winter would scratch
the snow from this grass and, eating
it, would cover from seven to ten
miles more day than they would on
the prairie grass further west. This
grass of the foothills does not grow
to great height 1t is not more than
nine or ten inches but it seems to
be singularly' full of nutriment.
The Peace river country is the best
of all in the country and when the
railroads go through it, you will see
towns spring up that would surprise
you. This is a large country, 200 or
300 miles square, and will make
homes for a very large number of
colonists. 1t is not possible to reach
it yet owing to the absence of good
roads. A region like Lake St. AIMS
is preferable because there is a good
road to the point which is to be
reached. The lake is only about one
hundred miles from Edmonton, while
the British trekked 200 miles to
Lloydminster. There is already much
business done at ST. AIMS in furs and
fish and there is considerable trading
done at Wild Horse valley, where
there is postoff1ce and a trading
post. The valley was named, may
say, from the circumstances that a
number of horses escaped from a half
breed in the vicinity some years ago
and became wild. There is quite a
bunch of the horses now, but they are
in the regions to the north of the
valley