Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1912-11-02

iowa WHer was raised and COntinu
ed to reside until maturity and as to
the general conditions prevailing dur
ing the earlier years In that section
my recollections are most vivid.
The early settlers OF my boyhoOd
period were largely the original home.
steaders who came from every section
OF our as well as foreign cou
tries, and who biazed a way far in
advance Of railway or water Transport
tation facilities. "
In the earlier years the only facil
tiles for marketing the produce raised
at that time "a a long distance away
and the farm improvements were nee
e~ssarlly crude, being almost wholly
log houses, straw barns, and granar.
les, and the farming equipment was
composed OF the most commonplace
and necessary implements which
would be looked at today as wholly
inefficient.
In Pioneer Lays.
Farm valuable Il negligible quaint.
ty. The sole problem of the earlier
settlers was not the idea of the &C
cummulation of wealth or property
but a mere existence and livelihood,
aud this was a serious problem.
Practically the only source OF reven.
ne of the early pioneers was in the
marketing of wheat and this cereal
was raised in large and successful
quantities for the first few years, after
which complete failures required for
successive years through blight, rust,
chinch bugs and grasshoppers. Con.
tinued efforts at raising wheat pul
the early farmers in a worse condi.
ton as al easily be inferred from
the fact that interest on small short
time loans were enhanced to two per
cent per month on sums borrowed and
extremely hard to secure at those
rates.
Diversified Farming a Necessity.
The people Of that section could
readily see that wheat was a complete
failure and had to be abandoned and
new sources Of e would have
to supplant the old condition of things.
There were no dairies or dairy pro.
duets to sell, no stock worthy Of men.
ton was raised ald corn as we'll as
some of the other feeding cereals was
practically an unknown quantity.
A general movement was inaugural
ed for the general Investigation OF
farming and the first step was the at.
tempted raising Of coral in small tracts
which was c~Onsummated with very
discouraglng results FOR the first few
years and this vas also more or less
true of some OF the other grains and
grasses until it vas discovered that
the country was adapted for the rails.
ing of almost anything successfully
with the exception of wheat, and to.
day that portion Of the Mississippi val.
ley is practically without a peer in
any section OF the country.
Every portion of the United States
with which | have an acquaintance
has at ene time or another passed
through very much the same critical
and crucial period of development I'M.
I'll established on lines consistent with
the adaptation of the country. The
growth was at first slow but perma.
nent.
The Experimental Period Over.
The people Of North Dakota have
passed the pioneer stages and also
through the educational and expert.
mental period and we have now dis.
covered what Il state Is especially
adapted for and have learned rather
d~elinquently to our regret that the
production OF wheat as a prime source
of revenue is by far the meanest and
most uncertain resource of our com.
%monwealth. We have learned that
wheat and flax raising Is at best only
a partial success from year to year
and the same is true in the produc.
ton and marketing of any cereal in
its crude and u%ndigested form. We
have been gaining in wealth even by
a %prodigious loss by marketing the
raw produce.
The experience of the last few years
has waged a campaign of education all
over the state and the transition to
the period of diversification is not only
marked but rapid. There is a general
tendency towards the raising of cat
tie, hogs, sheep and dairy and poultry
products as the leading features and
the experience and demonstrations OF
The past few years have proven what
our state Is especially and abundantly
adapted for.
1t is beyond cavil that we have
passed through the period of exper.
imentation and the campaign Of edu
cation for better and general diversi
fed farming which is being relentless
ly waged and we have just learned
hat our state is as rich and wealthy
In natural resources as any of our
sister states.
The Result Of Evolution.
We have sufficient coal deposits to
supply the whole Of the United States
for the coming Ave hundred years If
all the other mines beyond our con.
fines were wholly closed down. 1t is
easily mined, b%riquetted, and placed
en- the market at a low cost to the con
sumner and it's qualities for the produc.
ton OF heat, gas and steam are vel!
established.
We have inexhaustable banks Of the
finest white clay suitable for the man
ufacture Of the highest grade Of orna.
mental and structural brick, pottery
and the most handsome china dishes.
his clay in itself will in time prove1
to be an enormous, vsluaole asset to
our state when it's manufacture is
hOrolirh1v dnyn1Onod
Our brick is shipped to all the large