The Miller sun. (Miller, Hand County, S.D.) 190?-19??, 1906-07-25

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farming ianQ east Oh the NlSsOuTl ana
the Black Hills in the extresne western
portion. Between these two regions
lay a vast uninhabited plain. Cattle
men occupied Ii with their herds.
They industriously spread the ii:for-
nation that It was good for nothing
else. South Dakota was cut in two by
this reservation" as 1t has always
been called. A journey through two
outside states was necessary to get
from one portion to the other. Now the
gap Is being filled as by magic. Five
thousand families have gone to make
their homes on the new lands within
the last year., and the LAND offices are
overrNn with applications for Claims.
The region, comprising all Of South
Dakota west of the Missouri except
the corner occupied by the Black
Hills, contains some 10000 square
miles. an extent o. country three
fourths as large as Ohio, three-sev-
enthS the size of Iowa. Two. and
probably three, lines Of railroad will
soon be running trains across It, and
ranch lines are already projected. 1t
has air idle for a quarter of q GEN.
fury for want Of railroad facilities.
Now 1T Is coming into its own. Instead
OF being a barren waste it is found to
contain. fine farming land. A large
part of the and can be farmed with
profit as it lies. In other sections the
country lends itself readily to irriga-
ton projects, and the intensified farm
ing under this system will contribute
enormously to the wealth of the
state. The possibilities of the new
section Of the state are as yet but par
TALLY known, but enough has been set
tied to make Ii certain that the great
central portion Of South Dakota has
a future before It,, that it is sure to
become one Of the important sections
OF the state. South Dakota from now
on will be one solid state. The great
central section will be an element of
strength instead Of weakness, and
will tend to draw the two older por-
tons into closer sympathy rather than
divide them as it has done in the past.
The home making in the TRANSMITS
souri, region is the biggest thing for
South Dakota that has come to pass
In the last twenty years.
AS an indication of the material de-
velopment of the western part of
South Dakota for the past year the
records of the land offices at Pierre
and Chamberlain at the close of the
fiscal year make a good showing. For
these two offices homesteaders took up
for the year 1890 900 acres besides
that which was taken In the way of
soldiers and reservoir declarations,
which amounted to 74,720 acres in
the Pierre district, and probably more
in the Chamberlain district. The fig
ures Of the business of the Rapid City
office are not at hand, but will be
somewhat less than the Pierre district,
with a probable total Of million n a
half acres of public do
main in this state disposed of through
the different filings of the fiscal year.
The business of the Pierre Office was
not heavy until about October Of last
year, when 1t was definitely known
that the Northwestern road would
extend to the Hills, while the Cham
berlain office secured the rush of bust
ness from the Milwaukee extension,
beginning early in the year. The de-
tailed record of the business of the
Pierre office for the year shows 1920
homestead entries, taking up 409,477
acres; SO inal homestead proofs, CIV
ing title to S,636 acres, of a cash value
Of 1 2,465.19. In the Pierre land dis
trict there is a total Of 5,265,600 acres
Of land, of which 2,209,039 acres are
included in Indian reservations, Of
which 1,162,500 acres are in Arm
strong County, $4,000 in Dewey
County, 274,000 in Schnasse County,
1883 acres in Hughes County, and
$4,000 in unassigned territory. The
amount OF land is 2,187,07S acres, and
there are yet 850,433 acres open to
filing in the districts outside of In
dian lands. OF this Stanley County
has S3S,119 acres, Lyman 10,S0S acres,
Sully $40 acres and Hughes 766 acres.
The finding Of the dead body Of
Henry Anderson in the road near An
telope Creek recently, probably indi-
Gates a death caused by heat and over
exertion. a party of men came from
Omaha to Presho on a promise Of en-
ployment which was not forthcoming
when the party arrived. When II was
found thai no railroad work was to be
obtained, Eve Of the party started to
walk to Pierre, a.trip of forty five
miles across the prairie. The temper
AZURE was about 90, an 4 the supply Of
drinking water found along the road
was limited and not very refreshing
when secured. The party left Presho
about 6 O'Clock in the morning, and
at different points along the road
three of them dropped out at ranches,
and only two made the trip through.
Anderson was one of the three who
was compelled to stop, and at the
ranch where he stopped, showed signs
80 oANN. ~D.,blA h,,t he ia &c. r.
Pierre only TO drop dead in the road
way. Efforts 20 find friends or rela-
tives were not successful. and the re-
mains were buried by the authorities
If Stanley County.