The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1908-11-17
Mr.. HILLS SPEECH.

49,
vegetables and other products OF the
soil in this valley are wonderful. I am
glad l have had a chance to meet
you, glad / came here and if l owned
any land in this valley l would not
dispose of it unless l knew where l
could get some more or some better
for the same price,"
Mr.. Hills remarks caused great en-.
thusiasm among the business men and
he was listened to with rapt atten-
ton. They seemed to feel that the
great railroad magnate fully appreci-
ated the wonderful resources Of this
great valley and we're gratifed.
A Vast Empire.
I'VE have seen more wealth and rich
er land today than since we left the
irrigated sections of Washington"
said Mr.. Hill by way of introducing
his remarks. "And in Washington
they have rich land, but it is a limited
empire compared with the vast terri.
tory of producing land you have here"
He said that the public land which
was free to entry was rapidly being
taken up and it would be but a few
years until there would be but little
Of it left. Valuable land, where a man
could 60 and make his livelihood with
nothing to assist him but his hands
and his brains, had already been taken
up, he declared, and now the public
land still vacant was mostly such
as would have to be reclaimed by irri.
cation, and the individual man was
seldom in a position to take it up and
build his own irrigation plant.
What the Land Produces.
The time is coming, said Mr.. Hill,
when every acre of available land in
the nation will have to be occupied.
He declared that If the ratio Of in
crease in population continued for the
mex AZ years, by 1850 the United
States would have 20S, 100000 people,
where now it has about 80, 0OO, 900. He
showed how it would utilize all the
land at the present rate Of produc-
ton to produce the food and necessi-
ties required by such a vast popula-
ton. In 1882 he said this nation
raised 400, 900, 900 bushels Of wheat
and exported between 170,0 900 and
LIS, 900, 900. Twenty-Five years later in
1907, he said, the country produced
.634, 900, 900 bushels Of wheat, or while
the country was increasing its popula-
ton Ga per cent it was increasing its
grain production but Is per cent.
No Cheap Wheat.
This, he said was one of the things
that had caused him to believe that
there would never again be any cheap
wheat. He said that wheat would
bring 81 per bushel and he looks for
it to go to $1.25 per bushel. He cited
figures to show how the expectation
OF wheat during the past rs years had
decreased to about one-ffth of what it
formerly a He told how the high
price of wheat last fall had caused the
farmers to sell their product to be
shipped abroad and then recited how |
in Minneapolis, less than six months
after the harvest the price of wheat
was higher than in Chicago or in New
York. He used these illustrations to
show how the demand for grain was
Increasing and how it would increase
the value of property by increasing
the value Of the farm products.
Valley Of Billings Land.
Land in the Yellowstone valley
in the vicinity OF Billings he declared
was easily worth 5000 per acre. at
is an easy matter" he said, "for every
acre on a well cultivated farm to pro.
duce crops that will yield a profit of
at least $40 per acre. That is 10 per
cent interest on 5000 with the best
security that you can get. There is
no security better than the land.
There are few places where you can
get as high interest as Z per cent.
III l owned an acre Of land in this
valley, I would not part with it unless
! knew that I could get a better acre
somewhere else.
"Every acre OF land in this valley
is worth at least 5000. It should not
be sold for less for it will nav
good returns on that amount"
Work Of Agricultural Colleges.
Nj. Hill spoke a few words in favor
OF the agricultural colleges of the dit.
ferent states, commenting on the work
they are doing and urging that the