March, 1883.
THE WEST SHORE,
5
to Niagara, are but twenty miles distant, and will I from the Yellowstone country, to be ground into I and iis prospective county teat is Billings, a (own
be sought by many tourists in their visits to the I fertilising powder.
great attractions of the Coast. The present name The assessed valuation of the territory in tSSj
of the post office is Naples. was 321,319. 13, an Increaseover the prwH-
Owyhce county, says the Avaliiiuk, lies in liie ing yeai of $9,170,51 J. 7a.
southwestern corner of the territory, with Snake The population of Montana has increased 38
river for its northern boundary. It was organized annually for the past four years. The prospects
some eighteen years ago, but subsequently it was are that this rate will lie improved upon in 1883.
divided, Cassia county being taken from it. At mngi sniipa 16,179,818 U.S. of freight dur-
the time the county was organised, but few per- ; f di , ,,
sons thought of agriculture or cattle raising in Thrce-fourths of this were cattle, sheep and wool.
this section, un tne contrary iney were an iook-
ing for rich placer mines and quartz ledges, the
An election will occur in Jefferson county July
of 400 buildings and a permanent population of
a.ooo.
Llvlikluu luu already a population of 1,500,
It will In the Junction of the branch road from
the Northern I'acific to the National Park of the
Yellowstone. It la owned by the railroad com.
pany, and is growing with giant strides. In Xeb.
ruary 159 lots were sold for $54,760, The total
sales to the first of March were $93,030. The
company has contracted for 3,000,000 bricks, for
building its round houses.
I'he Crow reservation, o which a small portion
n iui 1 mi piu.Ki inn us ... .mu. ...v , anentl I )cate the c )unt scat I h viw. i.m , , nimun mhui immun
former of which were found in the creeks and 1 ' ".,,' .. ' . . . ' was recently ceded to the government, li thus
, ,. , ... , , ... . . I Radcrsburg and Boulder City are the contestants. I '
gUll I ICS aCttUIII IIUMI m s a4. essva
mountains, and the latter on the mountains them- The people of the territory are agitating the
selves. As time passed new settlers came, and question of forming a stale constitution prcpera
instead of devoting all their time to mining, try c!siUn to the Union. It has now a
looked around the country to see if there were population of more than 135,000.
anv agricultural lands to be taken up. It is Extensive beds of lime rock have been discov.
needless to say that the creek bottoms afforded ered near Lake Tend d'Oreilte. This Is a valua
good ranches, and the best lands were located, ble discovery where lime is so much needed as it
It was soon demonstrated that Sinker, Catharine, is along the line of the Northern Pacific.
Reynolds, Jordan, Cow, Castle, Lonetree and ynj, mvtt valley offers superior inducements
Boulder creeks had land lying on each side suit- for a woolen or paper mill. The water power Is
able for farming. Subsequently it was learned I eKcellent, and the crude material necessary for I cultivate them. Yet the progress of settlement
that the lands of Bruneau river would produce in Industrie, .lumnds In unlimited nusmliv. civilisation up the south side of the Yellow.
., .,:,:, : rnrn nd veiietaliles of all stone valley is stoped a. by a Chinese well. On
large quantities, grain, corn and vegetables ol all (Qwn q( mn u
kinds. The ranchers collected about them some nu, of ,he Norlh,rn pKinc ln Western Montana, ginning, of active little towns. The as rings
stock, and while they slept their stock increased , (j ,(ca(eJ o) , Wt f. whic) mu KUe( ,d the plowman sings, and the music of Industry
rapidly. Cattle men hearing of the excellent by , ynch ,n Mj c A k ,
ranges lor siock, 11 was or.ven nerc .n .ge ....- Missoula, distant ninety miles.
- -
Custer county, Montana, U the largett county
I In the United States. Its area Is 36,000 su,uaie
miles. It is larger than the slates of Vermont,
New Hampshire, Maisachusctta, Connecticut
Delaware and Rhode Island, combined.
O'Kecfe Canyon, on the edge of the Flathead
and by those driven through by eastern buyers, reservation, is the coining successor of Wecksvllle
nd ratile from Nevada. We think we can safely anu uasr v.nance. naioons, siorcs, noieis, resiau-
.. ih.i n,vh. U not onlv a cood farming, but I rants, construction camps ami headquarters, all of reservation is particularly objectionable, because
' ' ' " . . I . .1 . 1 .1 I 1. L.- I.. If il.. r...inl. 1... 1.. I
ol settlement.
hers, until to-day there are probably more cattle
in Owyhee county than in any other of the terri
tory. The summer range for cattle is almost
inexhaustible, every hillside furnishing a luxuriant
growth of bunch grass. The winter range is not
so good as it was in years past, having been eaten
out by the large numlers of cattle in our county,
described)
Stretching for two hundred miles along the
bank of the Yellowstone river, anil reaching back
about fifty miles into the country, is the reserva
lion of the Crow Indians. I he tribe numbers
alxiut 3,000 souls. They live In the southwestern
coiner of their vast domain, near their agency,
where they have a lew corn tields and potato
patches, unce or twice a year they go oil in a
body to the mountains to hunt game. They are
mainly supported by the government, and are
consequently latv, thievish, and of no account.
Very rarely do they as much as camp upon the
fertile river liottoms never do they attempt to
tilts the air. Un the other bank all Is silence and
solitude. A white settler In the west can gel but
too acres as a homestead, and then only on cm
dition of living uHin It and cultivating it. For
every man, woman and child of the Crows there
are over 3,ooo acres set apart, or 10,000 acres to
a family, with no condition of occuincy or culll.
vat nm. liive the Indian his rights, we say, but
do not let him monoiollie the anil. He ought to
be made to woik for a living like other people.
The Indian reservation system la the worst sort ol
land mnoMily, It keeps Industrious settlers oil
Irom vast traclsol tortile soil, nl which the Indians
themselves make no sort of ue. The big Crow
. I .!..- 1.. I . .
taken in connection with our mines, makes it one "e siniw i pee.
of the most desirable counties for persons coming! For the year 1883 Montana esjiciidcd $117,'
to Idaho in search of homes, to settle in. The I 357.96 uxin her public schools, (lie total number
climate in the valleys is pleasant and healthful 1 of children entitled to school privileges being
during both winter and summer, and the school 1 11,309. Let no man espect to lind a "howling
lacilities are good.
MONTANA.
Boieman will build a $15,000 school house this
year.
A grand hotel, to cost $125,000, is projected
in Helena.
The Yellowstone National l'aik Improvement
Company has been organised under the laws "I
New Jersey, with a capital of $3,000,000, lis
incorporelois Include Kufus Hatch, K woe Conk
ling, On. James A, Williams of Boston, K. T.
Merrkk of Washington, Kred. Church, the dis
tinguished painter, J. II. Houston, ('resident ni
I be I'acific Mall Steamship Company, Aaron Van
derpool, Judge John K. Brady, Samuel Walter'
wilderness" or nothing but liark-wnods scllle-
ments, when he goes to Montana.
Report has been received of the discovery of a
wonderful cave in the vicinity of Maiden, while
sinking a shaft on one of the quarts leads. It Is
ss yet unexplored, ami Is said to contain several I ,.,..,,,,. ., ,Jwi ...
apartments on whe wall, quarts and crystal. inJ w( knowB , m rf h
glisten. A tunnel will Us. arted ur.her .lown to T.e office,. .,. , kufu. Hatch, l',n.
tap the cave, and when completed we will hear r - ,. . , . .... Vi,....-.i.
The Utah and Northern nas just compieieo more aoow ruese ...... vn.moen. .I,,,,,, C. K, yuincy, Treasurer. The park U
fine depot at Stuart. The total vote of Montana In 1K81 was 13,318, 6j,jj diuKntlims, ami ha an area ol
Missoula county has 51,925 acre, of Improved divided among the countlee as follows Beaver. j, j mth M j,jj.,orjo acres, ami lies
land 6,341 horses, and 9,90 sheep. head, 1, 161 Choteau, r7 Custer, 3,8-j Daw- mf,y ,, Montana ami partly In Wyoming. On
Two township of that portion of the. Crow lh" ''-i "",U iht Uft,h Uu ,CO","n ,u ',"
Jion cXi to the government, have been W,tn"n given by OmgreM, Sevret.ry of th.
reservation ceoeo g , a;? ; Sinxti , 7hj , m, ,cw,, , iht Un innM,
surveyed. Sliver Bow, 3,563. A glance at the map will twl) dollar, per acre, for a per lod of ten years.
A woolen factory is o be built at the falls ol how lmU ,h lmMt coualy CM, b U((cU ,lA, hU hat j
the Missouri, a short distance below the mouth of . hu crrg(eiJ ht cou()y u mmu , qMt(lc , , mi ny
Sun river. Yellowstone out of the upper end of Custer and falls. Al the caplraiion of the lease, or termimv
White Sulphur Springs If calling (or a large part of Callatln. It embrace the country lying tlKt by (silurt to comply with it provision, the
dry goods house, to meet the demands of trade In between the Yellowstone and Musselshell, above government la to purchase all improswsaent al a
that section. the Big Horn and below White Heaver creek. appraUesl value The company shrewdly selected
Beffalo bones are being shipped to St. Louis Tksj Nortbem Pacific Uaswaes) st fioa cad lotad, ssaall tracts in the tnasedula Beliboinood of (J