The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1908-02-21
CHANCE FOR FARMS
Northern Minnesota Offers All Kinds OF
inducements For Farmers
Homeseekers Can Profit By Following the Advice of
Mr.. Hartley

worth SIS double cord. Poplar and
Balm of Gilead and other inferior
i timber down to three inches, and
straight, fluids market at S. double
cord on track for the same uses. Then
all dead cedar and pine, which is not
too much decayed. can be put into
mine logging, commanding about
$3.50 a s.x-foot cord, this price will
increase. Green cedar can be sold for
poles and posts, generally at good
prices, though the market for cedar
poles is not active at present. Cedar
] euce posts measuring down to two
and one-half or three inches at the
top can be marketed.
"Three years ago there was no mar
tket in this region for poplar. Today
it is selling, as have said. for S. a
double cord. Some tracts of poplar
which have heretofore been con-
sidered valueless are in good demand
and will yield from $50 to $50 an acre.
| the timber delivered on track. Then
there is usually few scattering pines
on these lands which will bring from
SI4 to SIC per 1000, and IL long enough
for piles they command more. Piling
has sold in recent years for as high as
S25 per 1000, board measure.
eff the settler locates on tract of
prairie land he must first purchase
lumber at high prices to erect his
dwelling and out-buildings. Here in
a timbered country the settler can
readily build his dwelling. barn, hog
pen and chicken house out of logs
which he has at hand. With small
expense for shingles, sash and doors
and flooring he can construct dwell
Ing far more comfortable than that of
tile average prairie settler. Good
water may be had by little labor.
This country is filled with game, and
it is estimated that there are l1,00O
lakes in Minnesota north of the
Northern Pacific and Lake Superior,
and with scarcely an exception they
contain an abundance of food fish.
Fuel to make the settler comfortable
in his house is merely bY-product of
the clearing of the land.
at is true that there are some
swamps in this region, but the settler
need not be afraid of them. With
little labor he can drain few acres of
swamp, and every acre of land thus
redeemed will yield crop that will
equal the value of wheat crop of 20
acres Of prairie land,
''As to markets in this region /
think that the housewives of Duluth
and the range towns could better
answer that question. l think that
we are paying IS cents bushel for
potatoes and carrots in Duluth, and
they are higher in the range towns.
The lands have discussed when once
cleared will, without any fertilizer,
produce an average of 800 bushels of
potatoes or 500 bushels of carrots to
the acre. I think that rutabagas
were worth 35c tor 45c a bushel on
track in that region last fall,
and these lands will yield 500 to 800
bushels to the acre. Milk and cream
shipped from points on the Great
Northern road to range towns yield
to the farmer an average of 20 cents
gallon the year round, and would now
yield "a cents.
"If the settler has any cattle for
sale he can put them in fair condition
with feed raised onshis land. and find
ready market with the butchers of
neighboring towns at prices better
than can be obtained by the prairie
farmer who ships to Chicago, as the
butchers of the range towns buy their
meats of the Chicago packers. Eggs
and poultry are in, good demand at
high prices in that region, There are
many wild meadows along the creeks
aud swamps which produce superior
quality of blue joint hay, and all land
in this region will produce good tame
grass. And except on occasional river
bottoms, in the drift south of the
Mesaba range, the land is generally
free from stone.
"There is not today what may be
called farm between Cloquet and
,Bemidji, distanceof more than 100
miles. so that there Is reason why
the first settlers should not be able to
locate close to depot or siding, where
market for timber and the products
of the farm may be reached easily and
cheaply. Along the piece of Great
Northern road have described are
two paper mills, and other mills
which afford asubslantial market for