The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1910-10-28
HOLE IN THE GROUND
ONLY WILL BE LEFT.
This is What This Man of Wealth
Says of the Black Hills Of
Sout.. Dakota.

{COrn Palace: Ihere are Two SOurC-
es of wealth in South Dakota, the
soil and climate--that is this side of
country has been exploited of its
mines and there is nothing left but
holes in the ground, this side of the
state will be raising corn and wheat
and alfalfa. This side of the state
will have the perennial mine that
will yield more and more with each
succeeding year."
One can hardly read the above
statement and credit it to James J..
Hill. He appears to be densely ig-
ncrant Of the true wealth of the
Black Hills country. While it is true
that the mining of gold is great
feature in the way of production of
wealth in the Hills, the gold mining
| proposition is but small portion
of the vast and varied resources that
are in the Hills and the country ad-
jacent to the Hills.
The Black Hills are full of gold,
mica, copper, iron, limestone, gyp-
sum, shale and many other valuable
and useful things. Mr.. Hill ought to
break away from his environments
in the grain and grass regions and
come out to the Black Hills, and look
around. Here he will find corn,
wheat and alfalfa grow as well as in
the eastern part of South Dakota
He will find great empire that is
vastly better than any he will ever be
able to build.
The Black Hills country will con-
tinue to develop and the people who
are here now, or who will cast their
lot with us in the future, are con-
tent to let the country speak for it.
self. They have no jealous regard
for the eastern part of the state;
they are proud of the whole state,
but consider the Hills the fairest spot
in all the blessed domain of South
Dakota.
Only few years ago, we can re-
| member the time we'll, bull-trains
carried the freight into the Hills and
passengers were brought in by stage.
Later we were blessed with one rail-
road which carried in freight tri-
weekly. Today the Chicago & North
western, Chicago C Milwaukee and
the Burlington are running two or
more daily freight and passenger
trains each.
1t is safe to say that no country
on earth has been built up to equal
the Black Hills in the same space of
time. We have two state education
al institutions, one located at Rapid
City and the other at Spearfsh. and
ST. Martins academy at Sturgis. In
Meade county alone we have 1852
public schools. Farming land in
Meade county is worth up to seventy
five dollars per acre. Only two weeks
ago an 160-acre farm, thirty-five
miles from the railroad, in the east
Tern part of Meade county, sold for
$33 per acre.
During this dry season, the driest
in many years, we have good yields
of wheat, oats, alfalfa and other
small grains and vegetables. T. j.
Williams cut his alfalfa on his Spring
Creek ranch, three times and receiv-
| ed better than ton to the acre at
each cutting. Robert Hansen thresh-
ed his wheat about month ago
which Yielded PIX bushels per acre.
Silas Richey, six miles north of Stur-
gis, threshed Tuesday, receiving the
same yield as Mr.. Hansen. This
wheat tested ga pounds to the bush.
ell. Mr.. Ecklin. just over the hill
from Sturgis, received 40 bushels OF
oats to the acre which weighed 40
pounds to the bushel Jack. Evans
had in about IL acres of potatoes on
his ranch north Of Sturgis that yield
ed 400 bushels to the acre. T. J.
/ Williams tells us that Mrs. Williams
raised crop of onions that went 400
bushels to the acre. All other grain
and vegetables are reported to have
yielded about the same proportion
None of these crops were raised or
Irrigated land and during the driest
season ever known to the Black
Hills.
I II Mr.. Hill would go to the trou.
bic to visit us and look over the
country, flour mills, grain elevators
and other enterprises. he would learn
that the Black Hills country, instead
of being in danger of becoming a
barren hole in the ground, is one OF
the most permanent and prosperous
! agricultural and stock raising coun-
tries known.