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I RESOURCES,
PEOPLE,
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STATEHOOD.
BY
FRANK S. CHILD.
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NEW YORK.
THE BAKER & TAYLOR COMPANY.
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Price 25 Cents.
p 656
.C53
Copy i
SOUTH DAKOTA
Resources— People— Statehood,
THE GLEANINGS OF A JOURNEY THROUGH
THE TERRITORY
-BY-
FRANK S. CHILD.
NEW YORK :
THE BAKER & TAYLOR COMPANY.
MDCCCLXXXVIII.
In Eitch»
Wis. Hi«t.So«»
CONTENTS.
I. Country, Page 5
II. Resources, ...,-- 16
III. People, 27
IV. Cities, 42
V. Statehood, S3
VI. Conclusion, 65
Copyrighted 1S88,
By Fra^'k S. Child.
THE COUNTRY.
We were reading with keen interest speeches and
narratives that concerned Dakota. The work or the
play of Congress seemed a thing of mockery and
humiliation. Then it occurred to us that we turn us
Dakota- ward and spy out the land. We would
measure for ourselves the worth and promise of the
Territory. We would set the words of friends over
againsc the words of foes, and then pronounce upon
them by the aid of such knowledge as we could gle§in
through personal investigation. The heralded pros-
perity of Dakota interested us. The throwing open to
settlers a share of the Sioux Reservation interested us.
The earnest, persistent struggle for Statehood interested
us. So we hastened to the Dakota land.
We found Dakota. It is emphatically a " findable "
country. The immensity of its landscape appalled us.
The extreme north insists that four hundred and thirty
miles shall mark the distance from the extreme south.
The east is separated from the west by three hundred
and eighty-five miles. The area of Dakota is one hun-
dred and fifty thousand nine hundred and thirty-two
square miles, or ninety-six million five hundred and
ninety-six thousand four hundred and eighty acres.
d South Dakota :
That means that you can pack all New England, Ohio,
New York into Dakota and then take some eight or
ten Districts of Columbia and fill in the chinks. When
we faced this fact, necessity forced us to restrict our
observations to South Dakota. And this task proved
too large for us. The Black Hills were not visited
and many parts of the land were " done " with un-
satisfactory haste.
South Dakota alone is text for endless discourse. It
is like putting out to sea, this pressing one's way
through the billowy vastness of the illimitable prairies-
Gentle undulations break the monotony of the land.
Luxuriant grasses, glistening grains — they make their
swift and graceful responses as the winds touch them
with the impulse of summer. The distant smoke
which hovers near the horizon for a time and then dis
appears in the cloudless sky, seems like the welcome
witness to some approaching steamer. Wave upon
wave makes tumultuous way towards us. The very
song of the winds has the tone of the sea gale. But the
delusion vanishes. Occasional farm houses, herds of
cattle, conspicnous school buildings, barns and stacks
of produce, they remind the traveler that it is a home
land through which he makes his I'ourney. When we
pierce these great, productive sections, and drive miles
upon miles through the gleaming fields, we forget that
trees neither give us shade nor adorn the landscape.
The splendor and opulence of growing grains fill the
mind with such large thoughts of harvests that trees
Its Resources and its People. 1
and hills and villages are forgot. They would obstruct
the boundlessness of prospect and the vision of riches.
Now what kind of soil is it that gives such bounty to
the Dakota farmer? The question led the National
Department of Agriculture to subject samples of soil to
careful analysis. The chemist gives us the result of his
study and this result may be popularized in these
terms : First characteristic, Dakota soil has remark-
able adaptability for imbibing and retaining moisture.
Second characteristic, Dakota soil contains large
quantities of silica in a soluble state, and is therefore
especially favorable to the raising of cereal crops.
Third characteristic, the percentage of clay makes the
soil the best of wheat soil, since clay supplies potash
and absorbs and retains phosphoric acid, ammonia,
potash, lime and other plant foods. Fourth charac-
teristic, the soil carries an abundance of phosphoric
acid. Fifth characteristic, the soil holds a large amount
of nitrogen. Sixth characteristic, the soil shows a good
percentage of organic matter ; this not only increases
the water holding power and enables Dakota to stand
long droughts unharmed, but it also furnishes necessary
food supply to vegetation. Dakota is surfaced by a
rich, dark, alluvial loam with varying depths. Under-
neath is a valuable clay subsoil. The supply of soil
constituents is inexhaustible. Sand and clay are
mingled according to those right proportions that make
the soil swift to absorb the rainfall and easy to undergo
pulverization. The subsoil is not less fertile than the
8 South Dakota :
top soil. Winter frost and spring warmth operate to
the perpetual fertilization of the upper soil. This deep
imprisoned moisture carries a burden of helpful con-
stituents when it works its slow way to the surface.
" This soil is something wonderful, " says the editor of
the United States Medical Investigator. " Nature has
pursued a conservative course toward Dakota, enabling
her to hoard her wealth. * ^ ^ There is
no region that I know of with so generally rich a soil.''
The fertility of the land bases the prosperity of Dakota.
That portion of the Territory east of the Missouri, and
south of the forty -sixth parallel, is under general culti-
vation. The smoothness of the landscape is sometimes
broken by ranges of low hills, or the coursings of rivers,
or the bright surface of small lakes. The mirage
plays many a trick with the traveler. Some far away
town seems builded upon the shores of the broad lake.
And the water is high, for the very buildings seem
floating upon the surface. But one draws nigh the
town and the waters vanish in the clouds.
When one has familiarized himself with the land,
yielded to the quiet fascination of the mighty prairies^
measured the productiveness of these smooth, rich acres,
counted the days of sunshine, drunk deep draughts of
the invigorating air, then one pardons the treeless
aspect of the countr}^ and one regards with leniency
the busy play of the winds. At the same time any
small discontent that may suggest itself is tempered
and assuaged by the conviction that a change in these
Its Resourses and its People. p
respects already marks the lower part of the Territory
and such change will gradually extend through the
central portion of the land. The success which marks
tree culture in Kansas, Nebraska and the Yankton
district of Dakota indicates what time and work may
do for other portions of the prairie country. And
when the trees are grown, the winds will meet with
perpetual resistance and discouragement, while rain
will get such gentle wooing that Dakota will receive
the unstinted irrigation of the clouds. Well-tilled
lands, frequent groves, multiplied settlements, concen-
trated enterprises will soon convert Dakota into a
mighty empire.
The climate itself will prove the ally of prosperity.
Portions of this middle west are scourged by hot south
winds. We were touched by them as we journeyed
some hundreds of miles down the interior. They sweep
over the plains with irresistible fury. They wither and
scorch the harvests. They plague and discourage the
farmer. But these winds have lost their riotous vicious-
ness when they skim the Dakota fields. Their long
journeys have robbed them of the power to injure. And
when the evening comes they rest with the sun and
give people, harvests, cattle cool, restful nights.
Dakota lies in the same latitude as several of the
great rival States of the Union. Minnesota, Wisconsin,
Iowa, New York, they range with Dakota. The
isothermal line is an imaginary line passing through
sections that have the same mean annual temperature.
10
South Dakota :
This line goes westward from Harrisburg, Cleveland
and Chicago, and then diverges northward through
St. Paul, passing along the upper part of Dakota-
Scientific observers tell us that the entire northwest is
tempered by the "Chinook winds " which travel from
the Indian ocean through China and Japan across the
Pacific into Washington, Montana, Dakota and con-
tiguous States.
The air is dry and freighted with ozone. Through
the winter the thermometer occasionally marks 40
deg. below zero, but such cold is exceptional, and its
severity is mitigated by the absence of humidity.
Here is a table showing the monthly and annual mean
temperature for fifteen years, of Dakota, Minnesota,
New Hampshire. The cold average favors Dakota
— a fact that is surprising and suggestive:
u
05
S
d
'u
>^
>.
M
3
be
u
1
a
1
a
1
a
Oj
c8
►-5
g
<
^
•-3
CO
o
O
o
0)
S
O O
o
o
o o
o
o
o
o 1 o
o 1 o
Dakota
6.8 12.9
24.2
42.5
56 7 65.8
71.8
69 6
58.8
45.7i27.7
15.6 41.5
Minnesota
3.2 10.2
'20. b
38.5
52.8 68.0
66.2
65 8
56.0
44.1
25.5
11.6 38.1
New Hampshire
6.1 8 8 9.6
20.1
34.2 44.3
46.7
47.2
42.6
30. »
17 2 11.3126.5
We found the people frank and communicative when
the winters were discussed. There seemed to be no
desire on their part to deceive the traveler or pervert
the truth. But Dakotaians believe that facts will right
many erroneous and absurd impressions that concern
their cold weather. So they insist that the facts be
Its Resources a7id its People. ii
distributed for the enlightenment of their fellow citi-
zens. We copy a table showing the temperature in
Dakota for six months each year, (October to March,)
through fourteen seasons:
1880-1 18.0°
1881-2 26.8
1882-3 21.1
1883-4 19.6
1884-5 20.6
18«5-6 24.0
1886-7 17.9
1872-3 25.5=
1873-4 22.0
1874-5 15.0
1875-6 19.5
1876-7 20.8
1877-8 32.0
1878-9 23.9
1879-80 23.7
Mean average for fifteen years 21 . 8°
During the winter of 1886 and 1887,taking December,
January, February, there was total snowfall in Dakota
of 47.8 inches ; New York had a snowfall of 55.7 inches ?
Connecticut a snowfall of 60.5 inches ; New Hamp-
shire a snowfall of 86. inches. These statistics fairly
illustrate the winter conditions cf Dakota. In respect
to mean winter temperature, amount of snowfall and
bright, clear days, Dakota has precedence among vari-
ous competitors. During the year 1886, Dakota had
three hundred and two days that were described by
observers and statisticians as fair or clear. There were
only sixty-three cloudy or stormy days. This state-
ment seems incredible. We have been prejudiced
against Dakota. The length, severity, gloominess and
havoc of its winters have been described with such
iteration that it is hard to correct the dismal impression
and yield to the force of truth. The U. S. Signal
office furnishes the following table:
12
South Dakota
Cloudy
Days.
Clear
Days.
Fair
Days.
Total.
Dakota
Nebraska
No.
62.9
67.0
81.8
83.7
97.3
103.4
103.3
109.1
118.0
118.8
128.0
138.1
139.5
130.8
135.3
153.5
163.6
No.
136.7
134.0
132.2
135.0
106.0
115.4
113.3
96.8
93.3
106.2
103.0
94.5
93.3
90.4
83.1
76.1
79.3
No.
175.4
174.0
161.0
146.3
161.8
147.3
148.4
159.1
153.7
140.0
134.0
143.4
143.3
143.8
146.6
135.4
133.3
No.
Rhode Island
Kansas .
Minnesota
Illinois
Connecticut
Wisconsin
Iowa.
lv'365!6*'
Pennsylvania
Massachusetts
Indiana
Maine , .
Ohio
Michifjan
New York
New Hampshire
It is the universal testimony of the inhabitants of the
Territory that the rigors of winter are exaggerated to
such a decree that gross injustice is done the country.
Investigation proves that storms are more frequent,
suffering more severe, snowfall heavier and dark days
more numerous in various parts of the north and west
and east than they are in Dakota. This is a conclusion
to which observation, statistics and personal witness
force us. The north-west winds that come down from
the country laden with fine particles of snow or ice —
these cause the suffering and disaster that occasionally
give opportunity for harsh strictures upon the storms
of this northern interior. But the people are emphatic
and unanimous in their statements that a real blizzard is
a rare thing. Numerous residents in the Territory insist
Its Resourses ajid its People. jj
that the storm of February 12th, 1888, is the only severe
storm that has visited the Territory for years. This
year has been marked by unprecedented disturbances in
great storm centres. The whole country has suffered.
And when it occurs that New York city itself is
fitormed, isolated, starved, buried, paralyzed, over-
whelmed by force of hostile elements, it behooves us
to be quite charj^ of censure and criticism concerning
blizzards. Not only is the New England snowfall
larger, and the New England sky cloudier, and the
New England winter colder, but our very blizzard is
determined to surpass the trumpeted storm of the great
north-west,and claims preeminence in respect to strength,
cruelty, havoc. The truth is that atmospheric condi-
tions to day are marked by singular transitions. The
country is passing through phenomenal changes. New
England climate is not the same that it was fifty years
ago. And the north-west territory is experiencing
changes. The climatic modifications of the north-west)
however, are favorable to comfort, health, enjoyment.
It is an open question if such statement be true con-
cerning the climatic changes in the east.
One speedily learns that it is not climate which an-
noys the citizens of Dakota. Climate is a part of the
Dakotaian's capital. The ozone of the air acts with
healing efficacy. Dakota is a kind of illimitable,
generous sanitarium. It is physician for many a
broken, discouraged man. The climate woos the man
into strength, energy, health. It is the monotony of
14 South Dakota :
tireless winds that taxes the patience and good cheer of
the people. The winds rest during the night, but they
are jubilantly active during the day. And yet the
people make no complaint. They get accustomed to
the winds. It is a part of the Dakota life. The an-
noyance is soon forgotten. And when the trees are
multiplied as they are through the Yankton district,
and the whole country has had breaking the force and
persistency of the winds will be lessened. Time will
modify their temper and vexatiousness. The winds will
be reckoned chiefly as loyal carriers of invigorating
oxygen.
The water of Dakota deserves special notice. Water
is an important factor in the development of any
country. Dakota has many lakes and rivers. The
water surface of the Territory is reckoned at 1,400
square miles. The rainfall of the country increases
annually. The average rainfall for the five months of
April, May, June, July and August through a period of
seven years has been 14.89 inches. But it is artesian
wells that make Dakota's water privileges especially
notable. These wells are operated all through South
Dakota. Yankton has twelve or fourteen of them.
They yield an immense flow. The pressure is so great
that the water is carried through the streets and into
the houses. The pressure is so great that heavy ma-
chinery is successfully operated. A six-inch well in
Yankton, recently completed, furnishes power to the
machinery of a pressed brick manufactory. The well
yields 1,800 gallons per minute — giving a pressure
Its Resources and its People. 15
equal to thirty-three horse power. The well at Huron
gives a pressure equivalent to a hundred horse power.
The cost of sinking these wells is not so great that their
use is impracticable. Their rapid multiplication evi-
dences their worth, utility, profit. Twenty-nine coun-
ties in the Territory have already used artesian wells.
The system is destined to take important part in the his-
tory of the country. At the session of the Territorial
Legislature in 1887 a law was enacted which provides for
the construction and support of artesian wells in town-
ships and cities by an assessment upon the property
holders and residents. The character of the water
used for drinking and cooking purposes varies in
different parts of the country. Some residents prefer
cistern water. Various mineral substances give
tone to the great share of the well water. Dr.
Duncan, of Chicago, notes especially the restorative
properties of the Dakota waters. For many weak-
nesses and diseases he writes that they rival the famous
springs of the east. The water problem has been
satisfactorily solved for Dakota. We remember that
not only has the soil marvellous powers of moisture re-
tention, but the rains themselves are graciously en-
larging their precious ministry.
And this is the Dakota land— level, stoneless, afflu-
ent, profitable— making good response to the court-
ship of the farmer, witnessing to the benefits of large
cultivation and industrious conquest— a land that
shall prove the matchless farm land of the fair great
west.
DAKOTA RESOURCES.
The products of the soil are numerous. Wheat
makes first claim upon us. In respect to quantity of
wheat, Dakota leads the States. One-thirtieth part of
the Territory was sown to grain in 1887. An acreage
of 3,818,752 yielded an average of 16|- bushels of
wheat to the acre. The crop amounted to 62,553,499
bushels. This was a gain of some 70 or 100 per cent,
over the yield of the preceding year.
The soil itself is especially adapted to the raising of
wheat. It abounds in those constituents that are com-
pacted into the bread grain. Dakota climate favors the
prosperity of this valuable cereal. The heat of
summer and the cold of winter — the moisture of
earth and the invigoralion of air — contribute their
help and impulse. The very seasons seem arranged
with a view to the superlative merit and prodigal har-
vest of the grain.
But it is not only quantity of wheat that is note-wor-
thy ; quality of wheat is an important factor. The Da-
kota grain reveals a dryness and richness of albuminoids
that give it the first rank in the market. The Bureau
of Chemistry of the United States Department of Ag-
Its Resources and its People. 17
riculture has analyzed the various wheat products of
the country. " Dakota wheat," says the report " makes
a flavor richer than any other." Experiment proves
that a bushel of Dakota wheat will make more bread
than a bushel of wheat from any other section of the
country and that this bread contains a larger percentage
of the materials which nourish the human body, than
the bread made from any other wheat. The Dakota
wheat is all of the spring varieties. The farmer there-
fore evades certain perils to the crop that are mcident
to the raising of winter wheat.
This Dakota wheat also brings a larger price than
any of its competitors. It is worth from five to ten
cents more per bushel than any other wheat. It rules
the market. The drift of conversation in Minneapolis
and Duluth is in the direction of Dakota wheat. It
seems to bear the closest relation to all trade and enter-
prise. And this same grain that commands the high-
est market price is raised at such low price of produc-
tion as to discredit all wheat culture in the eastern
States. The average land investment of the Dakota
farmer is the small sum of $5.90 per acre. The New
York man reckons his land at $46 an acre ; the Ohio
man at $44 an acre. Here is striking disparity.
Then the work of cultivating the eastern farm is a
larger and more expensive thing. Taxes and interest
put the Dakota man at another advantage. The com-
parative results are easily stated. The Dakota farmer
distances his New York competitor and drives him out
i8 South Dakota :
of the market. It is the inevitable issue. The east
cannot compete with the west when it comes to the
question of profitable farming.
But this same Dakota wheat is now transported to
the centres of trade at small cost. This is another im-
portant factor. Duluth will speedily become the great
wheat market of the world. Some eight or ten railroads
already centre in the " Zenith City." Some ten other
roads are under process of construction. Some ten other
roads are projected and will doubtless emerge into vis-
ibility within five years. And this great network of
railroads reaches through Dakota and brings the Terri-
tory into close communication with the water-ways of
the east. Duluth is from 200 to 350 miles nearer Da-
kota than Chicago. Wheat is shipped from Duluth
at a great saving. The whole cost of wheat transpor-
tation from Dakota to Buffalo will soon be reduced to
15 cents per bushel, says a prominent dealer. Here
we note a tremendous saving to the Dakota farmer
and a mighty impulse to the wheat culture of the Terri-
tory. Railroad transportation of wheat to the east
costs nearly three times as much as water transporta-
tion.
The wheat crop of Dakota brings a magnificent and
substantial income to the farmers. And yet wheat cul-
ture is simply making its small beginnings in the
Territory. When the land is all put under cultivation —
all put under thorough, scientific cultivation, the yield
will become enormous. Dakota will feed the nation
Its Resources and its People. ig
with bread and grow opulent while gladly meeting
the necessities of man.
But such emphasis is put upon wheat that one well
nigh forgets how the Dakota lands yield diversi-
fied crops. Sioux City, Iowa, built her Corn Palace in
the autumn of 1887. It was an ingenious, beautiful,
suggestive structure. As an artistic triumph in corn
it proved memorable. And it served the purpose of
directing attention to this important centre of agricul-
tural traffic. But Sioux City borders upon Dakota
and its immense supplies of farm produce are partly
gleaned from the Dakota fields. Corn itself is becom-
ing a characteristic crop of the Territory. The Sioux
Oity Corn Palace was in part a matter of homage to the
Dakota prairies. Three years have witnessed a marked
change in respect to the work methods of the Territorial
farmers. When Dakota was first advertised by its re-
markable wheat harvests, men gave no thought to other
crops. It was all wheat. The opinion prevailed that
it was a one crop country. The risks incident to a one
crop country were boldly faced and the development of
the Territory was rapid. But the American farmer
•carries his wits with him. He is born to make shrewd
experiment, and when corn was planted and the corn
acres were multiplied, it was discovered that if corn
was not king, corn stood near the throne. The har-
vest of 1887 yielded some 25,000,000 of bushels. This
is a larger corn crop than that of New York or Min-
20 South Dakota :
nesota, or South Carolina, or twenty-two other of the
States and Territories.
The quality of the corn is excellent. Analysis
shows that it is especially rich in albuminoids and
nitrogen. The soil and the climate are both agreeable
to the cereal. The average yield is forty bushels to
the acre.
Flax is another crop that promises well in Dakota.
The yield for 1886 was 3,844,788 bushels. The seed
is the only part that is utilized to-day, but the time
will speedily come when shops and factories will work
the fibre into marketable form. Paper, cordage, lin-
seed oil, paints, cloth, twine are consumed in large
quantities by the people of Dakota. These articles all
come from the east. When Dakota learns to manu-
facture them herself the flax crop will become a very
profitable investment.
Eye, oats, barley and buckwheat are also the pro-
ducts of the Territory, although their cultivation is a mat.
ter of recent trial. The rye crop of 1887 was 316,586
bushels; the barley crop 6,400,568 bushels; the
buckwheat crop 97,230 bushels, and the oat crop 43,-
267,478 bushels. Oats yield a harvest varying from
sixty to ninety bushels per acre. Rye averages from
thirty-five to fifty bushels per acre. Dakota comes near
to taking the lead in respect to oats. One farmer related
to the writer, how in 1882 he sowed a ten acre patch with
oats, and reaped 730 bushels for his harvest. As the
Its Resources and its People. 21
oats sold for 33 cents per bushel he got a return of
$24.09 per acre for his work.
The vegetables of Dakota deserve notice. The
size, quality and abundance of the garden products
astonish the stranger. Potatoes grow to an enor-
mous size. They yield from 150 to 300 bushels per
acre. People show potatoes that weigh six pounds.
This year the farmers of Dakota have supplied many of
their neighbors with this season's vegetables. Indiana
itself has used Dakota potatoes. The crop is always
sure, say the farmers, the quality of the potatoe
being the finest. Its superiority will get it good
market in the east, so that the better price will
pay the cost of transportation. Onions yield from 400
to 800 bushels an acre. Turnips, peas, beans, carrots,
parsnips, lettuce, radishes, melons, cauliflower and
beets are raised with good results. At the Territorial
Fair, in Mitchell,in 1887,cabbages were exhibited which
weighed between thirty and forty pounds. Pumpkins
were exhibited which tipped the scales at 200 pounds.
It would appear that the vegetables do not propose to
be outdone by the vastness of the Territory. They will
show the ambitious western spirit and excel the east
after a fashion that matches the immensity of the Terri-
torial field.
The native grasses of Dakota are nutritious and
abundant. Hay time does not signify to these people
the same work that it does to the eastern farmer.
The prairie supply of hay suffices for everybody,
c
22 South Dakota :
The hay crop of 1887 reached 2,500,000 tons. Large
quantities were exported. The task of cuttinoj and
stacking the hay is done whenever the farmer finds the
time to turn from the harvest duties. Often the stand-
ino" grass furnishes nourishment to cattle all through
the winter. "Cattle come" out of the Bad Lands in the
Spring," writes E. Y. Smalley, " as fat as though they
had been stall-fed all winter." Timothy, millett, alfalfa
flourish in the Territory. In fact, native grasses and
imported grasses yield bountiful returns, and make
Dakota a desirable land for dairy purposes.
Sugar beets give admirable results. Scientific men
propose to encourage that profitable industry. If sugar
can be made from this product of Dakota soil, the sugar
interests of the countrj^ may receive very important
modification. Experiment will determine the matter.
Fruit culture is in its infancy, but enough has been
done to show the fine possibilities of soil and climate in
the raising of numerous fruits.
Dakota is destined to become a famous stock country.
The lay of the land, the invigoration of the climate,
the growth of succulent grasses, the general adapta-
bility of the country to herds and dairies, indicate
Dakota as a promiseful stock region. The cattle busi-
ness is yet in the incipient state. People have been
so controlled by the wheat interest that they have not
adjusted themselves to the fact that stock will give
good profits among them. The live stock that was
reckoned for the year 1887 is valued at $43,195,229.
Its Resources and its People. 2j
This is no mean showing for an industry that has just
made its beginning. The past seven years has in-
creased the live stock of the Territory by an invest-
ment of more than $36,000,000. Dakota already sur-
passes thirty States and Territories in the extent and
and largeness of her cattle industry. The great pork
packing establishments of Omaha and Sioux City and
Minneapolis draw immense supplies from Dakota
Pork packing is a business that will soon employ
thousands of men in the Territory itself.
" I will challenge any man," a prosperous farmer of
•Central Dakota writes us, " to show better horses, cat-
tle, sheep, in the States than we have raised here in
Spink county." And our observation sustains this
farmer's statement. There are millions of acres of na-
tive forage interspersed through the Territory. Hogs
thrive upon it through the summer and autumn. The
large corn harvests are easily converted into swine's
flesh when the need of such food comes. Nearly 500,-
000 hogs were fattened in the Territory in 1886.
Cattle are observed scattered all along the prai-
ries. The dry and even weather of the summer favors
the health and vigor of the animals. The luxuriant
grasses afford fat nourishment. When it is time to
sell the herd the beef packing establishments gather
them into their sheds. The farmer's task is done and
his cattle are converted into dollars. But not all cat-
tle are disposed, of according to this summary fashion.
Milk, butter and cheese are now staple commodities of
24 South Dakota :
the Territory. Here and there you observe creameries
and cheese factories. Every farmer has his company of
animals (small or large as the case may be). It wit-
nesses to the general character and diverse products of
the farm work. The perils of failure are lessened to
such degree that one now feels good assurance of live*
lihood and profit whatever turn may be given to affairs
by peculiarities of season.
One is also pleased to see the frequent flocks of
sheep that appear in various parts of the Territory.
This is new business. There were few sheep in Dakota
seven years ago. The brief experiment in raising sheep
has been eminently successful. As the facts are
scattered among the farmers there will result a notable
increase in the number and size of the herds and the
product of the wool. " I do not believe there is a
better country in the world for sheep," remarked an
enterprising farmer who had made good success with
his flocks.
As we travel through the Territory and observe the
swift development of these various agricultural in-
dustries, we are profoundly impressed by the great
possibilities of the field. There are only 75,000 acres of
the "Bad Lands" in all the Territory. These " Bad
Lands " afford nutritious pasturage to great droves of
cattle. Dakota, we learn, has less waste land iu
proportion to its size than any other State or Territory in
the Union. As we follow the trend of life, measure
the force of work, reckon the opportunities for ex-
Its Resources and its People. 2^
pansion, ponder the opulence of nature, we are in-
spired with an indomitable faith in the future greatness
of this majestic Territory.
But the resources of Dakota are not confined to
agriculture. Dakota is emphatically and preeminently
an agriculiural land, yet there must inevitably come a
development of other resources that shall prove helpful.
Brick making, paper making, broom making, wagon
making, flour mills, feed mills, iron mills, planing
mills, woolen mills, saw mills, shingle mills, glass
factories, paint factories, sash and door factories,
foundries, marble works, packing houses, we observe
all these industries, and although they are yet infant
enterprises, they represent a capital of $11,000,000.
Dakota will do a large part of her own shop work, give
her time to develop the business. The home supply of
raw material is so large and the home consumption
reaches such enormous proportions that economy and
thrift will force the Dakotaian into manufactures.
There are the mines of the Territory. They signify
work, population, trade, wealth. The country west of
the Missouri as well as a good part of North Dakota
contains a rich deposit of coal. The soft variety is
especially abundant. While inferior to anthracite, it
nevertheless will supply the people with cheap, good
fuel. In the neighborhood of the Black Hills there are
immense deposits of coal. It is said that the Great
Sioux reservation is especially rich in this mineral.
The time will soon come when Dakota will heat herself
26 South Dakota :
by her own treasured fires. The gold and silver pro-
ducts of the Black Hills are important contributions to
the resources of the Territory. The Homestake mine
has paid dividends to the amount of $3,84:3,750 ; the
Father de Sraet has paid dividends to the amount of
$1,125,000 ; numerous other mines have yielded
fair profits. Railroads will ^ive a tremendous im-
pulse to the careful and profitable working of the
various ores that are prodigally scattered through the
Black Hills. Tin was discovered in 1883. Time will
reveal the importance of this discovery. Other valua-
ble ores are found. One is safe in prophesying a
prosperous future for this part of Dakota. A country
that will yield nearly $34,000,000 worth of gold and
silver in a period of ten years, and that combines with
her mining interests a fair share of agricultural and
trade interests, gives unequivocal promise of greatness.
We get a good interpretation of Dakota's substan-
tial resources when we note the financial condition of
the Territory. The wealth of Dakota exceeds $350,-
000,000. (Computed by Territorial ofiicials.) The past
seven years has noted an annual increase of $40,000,-
000 in the real values of the Territory. Farm improve-
ments, immigration, the building of houses, construc-
tion of railroads, reveal the secret of such property ex-
pansion. Railroads pierce the land at the rate of a
thousand miles per year. This year the immigration
is computed at one hundred thousand people. The
various trade centres of the different counties show an
Its Resources and its People. 2^
unprecedented activity and growth. The land itself
promises a wealth of harvests that has stimulated the
farmer into the larojest hopefulness. In 1875 Dakota
school property was valued at $25,000. Twelve years
expand these figures into $3,000,000. In May, 18S7,
Dakota issued bonds to the amount of $400,000, bear-
ing four and a half per cent, interest. These bonds
were sold at a premium of more than half of one per
cent. Dakota now places her securities at a rate of
interest lower than that ever obtained by any other
Territory. The financial soundness of Dakota com-
mends her bonds, her character, her products, her
people.
DAKOTA PEOPLE.
It IS a delicate matter when one has sojourned among
the people of a new land, to speak candidly and judi-
ciously concerning individuals and classes. But the
people have made Dakota the prosperous land which we
have seen. And the people deserve a share of study
and remark in connection with such noble task. One
is speedily impressed with the fact that the people are
young. It is a land where all affairs seem conducted
by men who are rugged with the strength of first man-
hood. The west itself is exuberant and masterful
through this sovereignty of stalwart and ambitious
youth. The farms are pioneered by young men. The
churches are builded by young men. The banks are
managed by young men. The stores, the shops, the
schools, the railroads, are run by young men. Law,
politics, medicine, religion, they all centre in young
men. And it is neither to the discredit of the young men
nor to the discredit of work, trade, profession, that we
say it. The nine hundred young men who faced Fred-
erick Barbarossa on the plains beyond Milan, and
won the day for Milanese independence, did a work
that symbols the possible achievement of youth
when their strength and enthusiasm centre upon life's
tasks. Young men pursue the course of nature when
Its Resources and its People. 2Q
they join themselves to these western conquerors and
go forth to subdue the land. There is something
peculiarly stimulating in this association with invin-
cible manhood. Imagination is a loyal servant through
the days of youth. And one needs imagination to push
one's way through some of the labors that appeal to the
western settler. The old house was probably guaided
by oaks and elms and maples. Their shade soothed
the body when the summer days grew warm. But
Dakota trees are largely objects of the imagination.
Give them time and they will grace the new made home
and sing their gentle monotones to the inmates. To-
day, however, one must imagine their grace and music.
And so with various creature comforts that administer
to the contentment of age. Young men see these things
in their mind's eye. A little tarrying upon time and
the mighty prairies shall give the people ample shade,
tempered breezes, refreshing showers, all the amenities
of the former life. There is precious refreshment to
the Dakota citizen in this subtle ministry of the im-
agination.
The traveler meets few men who have passed the
age of fifty. The prime of life gives its unforgetable
stamp to the development of the land. And it does
not appear that these people lack wise counsel and
good balance. They show sense, practicality, purpose-
fulness, toned by the vastness of the landscape and the
invigoration of the air.
We note the courage of the Dakotaians. It may be
JO South Dakota :
that the ruggedness of the winters does something for
them in the making of courage. The rough usage of
a bh'zzard is undoubtedly conducive to a spirit of
brave and stubborn resistance. A repetition of March
12th, 1888, in New York, may serve the same general
end through the east. When one has withstood such
an assault of the elements it sometimes quickens inta
vigor certain qualities of mind that are essential to the
successful life. These Dakota people manifest a cour*
age that gives character to plans, labors, experiences.
" Are you not timid, living away from neighbors here
in the prairie," we say to the farmer's wife. And she
replies, " we are only a mile or two miles from such a
house. The school is near. Neighbors grow more
common. We have nothing to fear. Harm never
touches us. We are not annoyed by tramps. We
scarce ever see an Indian. They stay upon their re-
servations." Such is common testimony. But there
are many transactions that require courage. Work,
privation, econom}^, discomfort, it takes courage to
face these things. So it occurs that the faint heart
fails and returns to the narrowness and the discontent
of the east.
Dakota people are alert to the demands of the day.
Their energy is attributable in some degree to the
stimulation of the climate. They agree with Napo-
leon that the dictionary does not contain the word
" can't." The Dakotaian is always ready to say with
Frederick of Prussia, " I dare to do the impossible.'^
Its Resources and its People. ji
And when you think of it, it appears that their
achievements have been along that line. There are
nearly five thousand miles of railroads in the Territory
to-day. And the roads are pushing through the farm
districts in all directions. The settlers are not obliged
to caravan their way to their new homes. The cars
distribute them along the very land that they propose to-
till. The old time pioneer life is foreign to the present
settlement of Dakota. It was the general opinion
when the Territory was first advertised that wheat was
the only crop congenial to the soil. This was a thing
that demanded investigation. It was not long ere ex-
periment proved the generous character of the soil and
its adaptability to the interests of varied farming. The
meagre water suppl}^ annoyed the settlers. They
studied the nature of their farm grounds and learned
that the moisture of summer and winter was retained
with unexampled persistency, so that the bugbear
drought was driven into exile. Still, the moisture of
the deep soil did not signify precious streams of crys-
tal water. They therefore pierced the earth with arte-
sian wells until great strong volumes of the desired
fluid pushed their way through the earth's surface and
carried blessings to the land. But it does not matter
what the demand ; these people show the enterprise to-
meet it. There is nothing in the way of practicable
achievement which they will not master, give them
time to do it. And they pursue their course with such
an air of quiet, equable self-confidence that the traveler
J2 South Dakota :
is shamed into faith. As you meet these people you
feel the throb of a swift, earnest, aggressive, trium-
phant life, and how cordial these lively people are!
We made our first entrance into Dakota through
Watertown. It was a gray and misty morning. The
fields were wet with recent rains. The landscape
presented a sobriety and melancholy that did not
conduce to good cheer or light-heartedness. As the
train drew near the depot we saw throngs of men. The
city was a-throb with tumultuous life, and when the
train stopped we were greeted with the resonant,
exultant strains of a brass band. The grayness of the
morning and the melancholy of the landscape were
forgotten. We had read that when men visited this
new west the people were bound to make favorable
impression upon them. We had even read that
when men sought this new west with an eye to business
and development they were greeted by brass bands.
But we had always thought such stories apocryphal,
and here was the plain fact which our skeptical mind
had disputed. The band played with all the expression
and enthusiasm that it was possible for them to put into
their interpretation of " Hail to the Chief." We were
touched by the spontaneity and the cordiality of such
unexpected greeting. And then just as the contagion
had communicated itself to us and we were preparing
to pass a vote of thanks, we discovered that it was a
political convention that had been thrust upon us and
we withdrew into the obscurity of our small company
Its Resources and its People. JJ
and again thought upon the grayness of the morning
and the melancholy of the landscape. Nevertheless the
people do greet one with a happy heartiness that is all
their own.
Can it be that the genial play of Dakota sunshine
incarnates itself in the person of its people? Driving
through the endless fields of wheat, corn and oats we
hailed the farmer and discussed his work. That does
not satisfy the man ; we must go into the house ; we
must share his modest hospitality; we must measure
the profit and the satisfaction of a 1,000 acre Dakota
farm. It was the same spirit of good cheer, large
fellowship, happy welcome, whether we journeyed in
the cars or tarried at the hotels or mingled with the
people in their houses. The newness, the largeness,
the importance of their tasks give them a certain fine
spirit of comradeship. They want to share their
responsibilities with their fellows. They want
to divide opportunities among their associates.
Kivalry itself among them seems generous and true
hearted. One necessarily finds a great deal of personal
competition among the people who make these new
communities. But the bitterness and harassment of
feud and quarrel have not yet dimmed the youth of
the fair land. The large productive charity that
features the literature of the New Testament makes
forceful appeal to the free life of the West. Its
adaptability to the anomalous conditions of society is a
very suggestive fact. Dakota is favored with a wealth.
J4 South Dakota :
of fair and cloudless days. Weather will thrust itself
into the moods, features, enersjies and characters of
men.
It were a matter of course to remark the intelligence
of these people. They publish 352 newspapers. This
number exceeds the number published in twenty-four
different States of the Union. Intelligence were palpa-
ble in the very fact that these people have sought this
fertile land and chosen it as the home-place. New
York farms represent an average investment of $46
per acre. Dakota farms represent an average invest-
ment of $6 per acre. The Dakota acre will surpass the
New York acre in productiveness. And the New
York markets, by the help of water-ways, serve the
Dakota farmer when he sells his produce. These set-
tlers of South Dakota, are predominantly American.
They came from all the eastern States. They repre-
sent the best families of the land. It is not frontier
pandemonium that one finds in Dakota. The people
bring books, pictures, pianos with them, — all the acces-
sories of refinement and education. Their small homes
are filled with the evidences of mental culture. The
magazines, the reviews, the newspapers, are conven-
iently at hand. Dakota life seems to sharpen the wits
of these people. There is just enough adventure con-
nected with a migration westward to spice the life, and
give it a healthful invigoration. The mind becomes
active, observant, efficient. And the innumerable
'questions that concern life when the community passes
Its Resources and its People, jj*
through its formative season, call into activity the
faculties that might otherwise lie quiescent. One
could not but notice the extent of general information
and the accuracy of statement revealed through gen-
eral conversation. People have the feeling that they
must do their own thinking in Dakota. It may be
that some of the pioneers chose the Territory for a
home with that very purpose. The conservatism and
the conventionality of the East depressed them and
trammeled them. Here they have the freedom of the
prairies. And they can put this thought into the
plastic conditions of this fresh life. It not only gives
men satisfaction, but it fosters mind-power, this taking
share in the making of the State. Circumstances were
important factors in determining the sturdy, indepen-
dent, noble type of our Kew England ancestry. And
circumstances contribute their strength to the worth
and character of the Dakota people.
The Territory is marked by a significant patriotism.
Many thousands of our soldiers have chosen Dakota
for their home-making. We meet them on everj^ side.
And sometimes it is a pathetic sight. It is farming
under difficulties when the man has only one arm to
help him, or when infirmity makes the days uncertain
and distressful. You see these people scattered through
Dakota. They fought the country's battles, and they
accept the country's dole of land and bread. There is
no charity about this thing. It is meagre, petty pay-
ment for a service that saved the integrity of the
jd South Dakota : -
Union. And these same soldiers, who braved death
for their countrj^, who carry wound scars that stamp
them with the honorable insignia of patriotism, are
disfranchised. They take no part in the peaceful ad-
ministration of this Government. They pay their
taxes, submit to distant domination, and endure the
shame and contumely of voiceless, helpless insignifi-
cance. It speaks well for the loyalty of the Dakota peo-
ple that they pursue a dignified, straightforward course.
Hope is strong in the hearts of these citizens. They
carry with them positive assurance that the future shall
bring them unstinted prosperity. These people have
observed the trend of events. They have measured the
promises of the years. Disappointment may touch them ;
circumstances may vex them, but their unfaltering faith
in the country, and their indomitable reliance upon them-
selves, make them triumphantly hopeful. Foreigners
have not settled largely in South Dakota. The native
American has impressed the country with his unique
character. And as you move among these people, you
confess to an atmosphere of prosperity that seems to
brood above the very land and give its healthful impulse
to the tiller of the soil as well as the citizen of the town.
It is delightful to tarry with people who make per-
petual distribution of ffood cheer, large faith, cordial
spirit, happy zeal. It is worth the journey to this
Dakota land — a few days' association with such large-
ness of plan, enthusiasm of progress, magnitude of
achievement. It was the saying of the old Greek poet,
Its Resources and its People. j'jr
Epaminondas, that " the gods sell for labor all good
things." These modern Dakotaians give fine emphasis
to the classic maxim.
One does not look for many charitable, religious and
educational institutions in a country that has just been
subdued. These witnesses to advanced civilization are
things of slow growth. Nevertheless, we found them
in Dakota. The zeal of these people is especially
noticeable when vou discuss reform, education, relior-
ion. Various institutions for the amelioration of suf-
fering and the reformation of the depraved have been
founded and supported by the territory. Asylums,
penitentiaries, prisons, are conducted on the plans that
approve themselves to the intelligence of the people,
and their work bears very favorable comparison with
neighbor States. It is a suggestive fact, however, that
the percentage of criminals confined in the peniten-
tiaries is the smallest of any State in the Union, being
only 1 to 2,263 inhabitants.
Church work shows an energy, an aggressiveness,
an enthusiasm that touch the observer to the quick.
A great task is laid upon the various missionary socie-
ties. The new towns demand church privileges. They
have not had time to do much in the way of public
improvement ; private affairs have occupied their first
days. But the church necessity presses itself into the
heart. The people ask the help of their Eastern friends.
The Missionary Society sends its men. The field is
canvassed, a loan is made to the young church, a
jS South Dakota :
modest edifice is erected and the town is strengthened
by this compact and visible expression of the religious
sentiment. The villages and the cities all have their
churches. They are among the first signs of a genuine
liome life. These modest beginnings contain the potency
of great, vigorous organizations. Speedily growing into
self-support, they operate with tremendous power in the
shaping of the people into worthy character. And
still the work does not keep pace with the demands of
the day. It is the season of supreme opportunity.
The church as a precious factor in the moulding of these
new, sensitive conditions is welcomed and cherished.
But the missionary societies seem blind to the magnifi-
cent fields that stretch before them, or is it the
people of the east who fail to measure the importance
of the formative period, and so give small contributions
to these societies that plant and foster young churches ?
These western workmen who direct church affairs show
a zeal, earnestness, self-denial, enterprise that fill the
traveler with admiration and inspire him with hope ;
nevertheless, their tasks expand with such speed and
attain such vast proportions, that discouragement
sometimes perils their devotion and threatens to stare
them out of countenance. Men drive their thirty and
forty miles on the Sabbath, preaching morning,afternoon
and evening, ministering to three and sometimes four
congregations, conducting Sunday schools, organizing
neighborhood meetings, planning the prosperity of
churches. And these herculean labors are performed
f Its Resourses and its People. JQ
with a good cheer and an enthusiasm that give happy
witness to the worth and meaning of such labors. But
it is something that must be dinned into the ears and
pushed into the hearts of our eastern people, that now is
the accepted time. This new west may be wrought into
a strength, merii, beauty of Christian civilization that
shall make it the very paradise of the Republic. Will
the church do it ? Make generous, triumphant response,
wise and loyal citizens of this great country !
Dakota's educational institutions are numerous and
progressive. The public school system advantages the
the Territory after a noble fashion. We observed three
handsome district school houses a short distance from
Redfield that cost some $4:,000 (the three buildings).
Four thousand public schools are scattered through
the prairies.
Dakota surpasses eight States and all the Territories
in school population. She employs a greater number
of school teachers than sixteen of the States. She
has more school days than eleven States. The
value of her school property exceeds that of thirty-
three States and Territories. She enrolls a larger per-
centage of the children in her schools than any other
State or Territory, with the exception of Connecticut,
Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire and
Ehode Island. Each township has 1,280 acres set
apart by the United States Government for the sup-
port of public schools. These lands are available
when the Territory attains statehood. As the lands are
40 South Dakota :
valued approximately at $5,000,000 according to
the Commissioner of Immigration, the sale of these
lands would give the largest school fund belonging
to any State. At the present time the nearly $2,000,-
000 devoted to school work is annually raised by tax-
ation and the people bear the burden without com-
plaint. These public schools keep abreast of the times.
The methods of instruction and the class of text books
denote that teachers are well trained and thoroughly
posted. Special instruction is here given concerning
the nature and effects of alcoholic drinks and narcotics,
although nearly sixty counties have banished the
saloon and illustrate local prohibition.
Higher institutions of learning are established in dif-
ferent parts of the Territory. The various sections
will soon have their own academies and colleges, so
that a thorough education is possible to any industri-
ous, ambitious youth. There are seven Territorial in-
stitutions and fourteen other colleges and academies.
Handsome buildings have been erected by many of
these schools. We could not visit them, but we met a
number of the men who have the leadership in educa-
tional affaire, and the reports which they gave us
showed the usefulness and the influence of the insti-
tutions. Yankton College has done an excellent work.
The President, Doctor Ward, is a man of rare ability,
one who does not restrict labor to academic halls, but
shares loyally in all public enterprises. President
Ward has invested a large amount of personal labor in
Its Resources and its People. 4.1
the numerous affairs that concern the prosperity and
character of South Dakota. The University at Vermil-
lion enters heartily into the work of the day. The in-
stitution gives fine promise of State service under the
leadership of its popular, energetic President. Red-
field College is a school that has recently been founded
in Redfield, Spink county. The location is good and
the opportunities of service are numerous. Its Presi-
dent shows great zeal in his task of organiza-
tion. The building recentl}^ erected for the use
of the institution is one of the handsomest edifices
that we saw in Dakota. Like other new schools
established in the Territory it illustrates the thrift, en-
terprise, self-sacrifice, intelligence of its loyal founders
and benefactors. Men make no happier or profitabler
investment of their money than in the solid construc-
tion and thorough organization of such institutions.
Redfield College, Grotan College, Sioux Falls Univer-
sity, Pierre University, Dakota University, Yankton
College — they all deserve the large bounty and the
cordial support of eastern and western friends. These
institutions are vital to the mental vigor and moral
health of the Territory. College graduates are numer-
ous in Dakota. They are alive to the significance of
higher education. They propose that this broad com-
monwealth shall source its future greatness in the
large intelligence and the regal merit of its people.
DAKOTA CITIES.
An eastern man uses the word city with diffidence
when he refers to the larger towns of the Territory.
People who are accustomed to villages of 10,000 in-
habitants, like Stamford, Ct., or 15,000 inhabitants
like Saratoga Springs, do not easily adjust their speech
to the western conditions. But the matter rights
itself after one gets familiar with the situation. A
man must visit Duluth, Minneapolis, Kansas City,
Omaha, Sioux City, and other places that have made
their history during the last five or fifteen years. He
must glean statistics, study territory, measure trade
possibilities, remark the ultimate centre of immigration.
When this has been done with faithfulness, he has
data for judgment in respect to cities. The slow^
staid, ancient, monotonous movements of the New
England farm districts are not characteristic of western
life. Dakota abounds in " rustlers." And we are
prepared to say " city " when we describe these busy^
workful, energetic, thriving, wonderful towns.
The thing that first impresses us when we get good
understanding of the thing is the reasonableness of the
claim to cityhood. Dakota is an immense Territory.
It is rapidly passing under the sway of the farmer. Well
nigh seven hundred thousand people make Dakota their
Its Resources and its People. 43
home. Such tremendous influx of settlers necessitates
the building of cities. There are fifteen or eighteen
towns that lay just claim to that name in the Ter-
ritory. And that is a small number for a great State con-
taining 150,000 square miles of land. Now, these cities
are all small. They are young. They have not had
time to gain a large population. They have never been
marked by sporadic, high-pressure, abnormal develop-
ment. Mining towns spring into existence in a day,
and then die almost as quickly. Mining districts do
not conduce to health and vigor of city growth. The
fever and uncertainty connected with the business im-
part their own peculiar features to the towns. But
these Dakota cities are the inevitable results of agri-
cultural prosperity. In the first place, we observe
that the rapid development of the country necessitated
trade centres. The farmer must have a convenient
post where he can obtain supplies, transact the necessary
business of food, clothes, implements, stock. As the
districts became settled, the trade centres grew in im-
portance. Five years make these trade centres verita-
ble cities, although their population may not have
attained great numbers The character of the place is
civic. Its relations to the country are civic. The at-
mosphere is civic. Banks, stores, hotels, factories, of-
fices, shops, newspapers, activities and enterprises, all
tend to give the trade centre a city worth and promi-
nence. The territory which these places drain is enor-
mous. Counties that exceed some of the eastern States
44 South Dakota :
in size contribute all their business to a city such as we
have described. The amount of business transacted as-
tonishes the traveler. Two dry goods stores situated in
one of the newest of these places (a town that does not
yet call itself a city,) did a business last year that a
mounted to $40,000 each. These figures indicate the
trade possibilities of the Dakota trade centres. It is a
matter of necessity that each section of the country
build such a town to centralize its interests.
The railroad corporations are swift to interpret this
need. When they pierce the land they plan these oc-
casional centres. With an eye to their own prosperity
they establish a town, making large grants of land to it,
encouraging the settlement of the place, giving gener-
ously to the erection of public buildings and doing
many things to multiply the attractions of the centre.
The railroad corporations have transformed the great
west into an industrious, energetic, profitable country.
These corporations enhance the value of their own
property and enlarge their business at the same time
that they prove allies of the tradesmen and farmers in
the great task of making a rich and prosperous com-
monwealth. These cities become railroad centres.
Take such a place as Aberdeen. The Milwaukee, St.
Paul, Chicago road, the Northwestern road, the Mani-
toba road, the Aberdeen & Bismarck road meet each
other here. This illustrates the condition. When
one road has entered a thriving central town other
roads are compelled to push for the same place. These
Its Resources and its People. 4.J
€orporations show remarkable shrewdness and fore-
sight in such matters. And the men who direct their
affairs have impregnable confidence in the future im-
portance of these elected cities. In frequent conversa-
tions with railroad officials, we were profoundly im-
pressed by their mighty faith in Dakota's greatness.
Pivotal points — -that is what the railroads make these
cities. The roads diverge from them in all directions.
They are rapidly cutting the landscape into small sec-
tions. They transport the commodities of life to the
very door of the farmers, and then take in exchange his
wheat, oats, potatoes, corn, cattle and butter.
These central cities are also county seats. The
public offices and buildings must be located where
they are convenient to the people. Trade centres and
railroad centres have decided the question of con-
venience. The county business therefore adds its
strength to the prosperity of the favored cities. Pro-
fessional men are naturally attracted to these places.
They observe opportunities such as are rare and
promiseful. Education gets an impulse that signifies
thorough work and broad culture. The various
advantages that pertain to the life of aggressive cities
are common to these nascent Dakota towns. We
recognize their right to sisterhood among the cities of
the land. " How large are your city limits? " we said
to a citizen who spoke enthusiastically concerning the
'growth of his town. " Three miles square," was the
reply. " Is not that pretty large territory for you ?"
4^ South Dakota :
'^Noj" he said. " We have well nigh spread over all
that space, and in a short time we shall be obliged to-
stretch the city limits." The truth of it is, these cities
grow with such vigorous rapidity that a stranger is-
incompetent to discuss the merits of their case.
Dakota is an agricultural Territory. It is farm
work that explains her marvellous prosperity. Nev-
ertheless, there are splendid opportunities for the de-
velopment of manufacturing interests. Such a vast
country must do a good share of its own shop work if
it proposes to manage its affairs with economy. Mill-
ing is a business that will grow into good proportions
in these cities. There are already one hundred and
fourteen flouring mills in the Territory. Farm work
is done by machinery. The amount of farm machinery
sent annually into Dakota is enormous. It represents-
a great amount of money that is sent out of Dakota.
A fair share of such implements will be made in the
Territory itself ere many years pass. Kailroad shops
give employment to many men in the cities. The
brick yards, the broom factories, the feed mills, the
tow mills, the carriage shops, the wood shops and other
manufacturing establishments are making good begin-
nings. But mechanical and factory industries are not
thoroughly established. The cities are alive to the
demands of the hour. They will now give special en-
couragement to these enterprises, but the immediate
necessities of the farmers and the task of building up
trade have so engrossed the people that manufacturing
Its Resources and its People. 41
interests have not received the support and gained the
impetus that shall be given to them in the future.
As we pass from town to town we remark the next
step in the regal prosperity of Dakota. The cities
must foster manufactures. Such a course will fill them
with industrious, intelligent artisans, give strength and
stability to the city institutions, supply the home con-
sumption of many valuable products, enlarge and stimu-
late the circulation of money and share very generously
in the prosperity of the commonwealth. Aberdeen is
well located for purposes of manufacture. We do not
mean that it has water power. These Dakota cities —
the most of them — must depend upon steam or elec-
tricity or artesian wells for motive in machine work.
But Aberdeen commands a wide section of country,
and the railroads make it a centre. Trade flows easily
to it, the influx of people is large and continuous. The
city shows a liveliness, an enterprise, a persistency, a de-
cision that commend it to men of like instincts and pur-
poses. The activity among the builders is remarkable.
Private houses, business blocks, railroad shops, public
edifices, they are all in process of erection and still the
demand outstrips the supply. Watertown, near the
eastern boarder of the Territory, has a location that is
especially attractive. The monotony of a level country
is avoided by the gentle rise of low hills on the one
side and an undulating, elevated landscape on the
other. There is just enough diversity of surface to
rest and please the eye. The city gathers into its
48 South Dakota :
limits the central plain and the neighboring elevations.
The broad, straight streets press their way into the
prairies or run their course down to the low shores of
the modest Big Sioux river. Here one notes the same
air of brisk trade and enthusiastic enterprise. Hand-
some residences rise in various parts of the city. The
lawns will be neat and trim and shaded when time
gives full encouragement to man's workmanship. But
people feel that they can afford to wait, and one for-
gives the crudeness and the freshness of the work
when we measure the promise of the future. Shaded
streets and beautiful lawns — they are the precious
fruition of«years. Watertown is less than ten years
old. Yet it has reached proportions that give perfect
assurance of its permanent character. The finest bank
building in the Territory adorns one of the streets of
the city. And we were surprised to see many hand-
some stores, offices, blocks, buildings, giving the place
an appearance of worth, stability, progress that might
well be the envy of eastern cities. It will not be long
ere the wholesale trade will gain a foothold in this
energetic town. A vast country is tributary to Water-
town. Its growth will necessarily be rapid during the
next decade.
One of the attractions here is Lake Kampeska. A
beautiful piece of landscape stretches between the city
and the lake. As one stands upon the elevation north-
ward one observes the gleaming waters in the distance.
We drive through three miles of undulating verdure,
Its Resources and its People. 49
and then we rest on the pleasant shores of Kampeska.
Jutting cliffs, ample fields, fringes of trees, occasional
cottages, such is the narrow bordering of the lake, but
great broad lands of living green give the ampler fram-
ing to the beautiful retreat. Kampeska is destined to
give delightful prominence to Watertown. The motor
line in process of construction, which will connect the
city and the lake, promises to make a summer resort of
large proportions and wide fame. Add trade activities,
railroad facilities, manufacturing interests, and Kam-
peska enjoyments, and the sum will be a large, flour-
ishing, important, attractive city named Watertown.
Some sixty miles west the traveler finds Redfield, the
county seat of Spink county. Several railroads make
the place a centre. The usual elevators are constructed
at the stations. The trade of a large section of country
locates itself here. Stores, banks, offices, hotels,
churches, county buildings, good schools, water works,
flour mills, creamery, wood-working establishment,
they all serve the town and give it the pleasant appear-
ance of prosperity. We visited many farms in the
neighborhood of Redfield. As we discussed lands,
harvests, investments we gained fresh knowledge con-
cerning the matchless advancement of this country.
It is one of those things that cannot be obstructed, the
ultimate pre-eminence of Dakota as the agricultural
autocrat among the States. The record of bank transac-
tions through the autumn astounds the unsophisticated
New Englander. Money channels itself through these
^O South Dakota :
institutions with such a continuity and largeness of flow
that one gets the impression that it is minted in the
very fields. Eastern capital wedded to western indus-
try yields its splendid harvest. The amount of bank-
ing business transacted by one National bank in Eed-
field would be creditable and noteworthy for many
cities of the east.
One observes similar characteristics as Huron, Mitchell,
Pierre, Madison, Chamberlain are visited. Business
moves with briskness and enthusiasm. It is not
speculation. Agricultural and trade sections are not
favorable for speculative purposes. Values are even
and reliable, with a healthful movement in the way of
appreciation. People who buy land here testify unani-
mously to the profit of the investment, since lands are
rising in value. And people who buy city property
with discretion are equally secure in respect to ample
profits. City real estate has doubled in price
during the last two or three or five years. It is
matter of necessity. South Dakota is bound to
grow. Immigration besieges the Territory. The
impulse of development is irresistible. Improve-
ment, industry, expansion, settlement — they all en-
hance the worth of property, and contribute their share
to security and stability. Huron has many substantial
buildings, and considerable wealth is located in the
city. Many handsome private residences give a cer-
tain home appearance to the place that commends it to
the traveler. Streets are lighted by electricity, as are
Its Resources and its People, ^i
the streets of Aberdeen and Watertown. Water is
?upplied by a strong-pressure artesian well. Street
railway, railroad shops, pork-packing house, flour mills,
oil storage tanks, and various industrial establish-
ments, give the city a prosperous business appearance.
The schools and the churches of Huron are doing ad-
mirable work. In fact, this is characteristic of Dakota
towns. One notes the same thing in Yankton. Peo-
ple are alert to material prosperity, yet they put
strong emphasis upon school and church. Yankton
has an appearance of age as compared with her city
competitors. Numerous shops and public institutions
give employment to a large company of men. The
streets — many of them — are adorned with shade trees.
One has the feeling that Yankton may be further east
than some other Dakota cities. And yet age will
modify the temper and appearance of all these impul-
sive, palpitant cities. One ought not to say one word
to their disparagement. Sioux Falls is one of the live-
liest towns in the West. Its trade has developed with
marvelous rapidity. And it is forcible illustration of
the manufacturing possibilities of the Territory. Flour
mills, stove works, packing houses, wood shops, crack-
er factory, foundries, broom factory, bottling works,
cooper shops, carriage shops, creamery, cheese factory,
brick yards, cigar factories, and various other factories
are all in successful operation here. The city has the
telephone system, street railways, gas works, water
works, electric light plant, some fourteen or fifteen
^2 South Dakota :
churches, several educational and Territorial institu-
tions, an opera house, fire department, and county
buildings. The people themselves are thoroughly
alive to the interests of the city. They propose to en-
large their enterprises, to increase their trade facilities.
And their zeal will bring them rich reward. Sioux
Falls will soon attain the proportions of a robust city.
Men and opportunities are the two prime factors in the
making of great cities. Dakota has the men — men of
faith, spirit, sagacity, perseverance. Dakota has the
opportunities — opportunities that history scarcely para-
lels. Dakota will have large cities — prosperous, opu-
lent, well-governed, progressive. And these cities will
bear close, intimate relations to the development and
importance of Dakota.
STATEHOOD.
Dakota is majestic in its proportions. It spaces one
hundred and fifty thousand square miles. As we cut
it into acres, it takes eight figures to denote the result.
Dakota gives us 96,596,480 acre lots. The landscape
seems illimitable. Such vast dimensions tax the mind
unto weariness. AVe want to think of Delaware or
Connecticut for a moment, in order to rest us in our
fatigue. It takes ten Denmarks to make one Dakota.
We will think of little Denmark as a brief and happy
respite.
The productiveness of this land matches its magni-
tude. The harvests seem limited only by man's capac-
ity to till the acres and garner the increase. Wheat,
rye, oats, flax, corn, barley, vegetables, flourish after a
regal fashion, while flocks of sheep and herds of cattle
add their precious contributions to the prosperit}'^ of
the land.
These level, fertile, mighty acres invite the sover-
eignty of man. The rightful masters take possession.
It is a large company that is distributed through Dakota
The statisticians bade us write that the round num-
ber to-day was nearly seven hundred thousand people.
It is a population which exceeds the population of any
other Territory. It is a population that exceeds the
^4 South Dakota :
population of Nevada, Delaware, Oregon, Colorado,
Florida, Khode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire,
Nebraska, and probably West Virginia, Connecticut
and Maine. We may count Dakota number twenty-
two among the States and Territories, in respect to
population.
We visited these Dakota workmen. We met them
in the field, in the home, in the shop, in the store.
We traveled with them through the Territory. We
examined their schools and institutions. We went
into their churches.
We used every opportunity to study the people and
measure their worth. These people impressed us with
their manliness, their intelligence, their energy, their
thrift, their adaptability, their patriotism.
It is an Anglo-Saxon host which greets us in South
Dakota. When these young people get some infusion
of other life, it is swiftly assimilated, so that the
Anglo-Saxon spirit remains characteristic. And we
Anglo-Saxon men are great sticklers for independency,
right of representation, self-government, home rule.
Is it a strange thing, is it a presumptuous thing, that
these hundreds of thousands of educated, enterprising,
patriotic men meet in general convocation and demand
just recognition ? For five years have these people
pressed their suit. Nevada, with her dwindling popu-
lation of some 60,000 people, sends her representatives
to Congress. Dakota, with her more than ten times
larger population, knocks importunately at the door of
Its Resources audits People. j'j'
•Congress, and gets a gruff answer to her appeal. The
people of the Territory we found terribly in earnest
concerning this important matter. It is the supreme
question of the hour. They meet in frequent assembly
to discuss their course of action. Tradesmen meet.
The learned professions meet. Farmers, bankers
meet. They agitate this question of inalienable rights.
We were profoundly moved by the intensity of feeling
manifested. First it is one section of the Territory,
then it is another section of the Territory, then it is the
whole Territory convening with this same just end in
view — the achievement of Statehood. All classes
■chorus a great desire, urgency, passion, for Statehood.
These people represent the thrift, the spirit, the man-
hood, the worth of New England, Pennsylvania, Ohio,
New York, Indiana, and other States. These people
pushed westward moved by that impulse of empire that
seems native to the American heart. And the nation
says to each loyal, ambitious citizen of this Territory,
*' Thou shalt not vote." Do these people live in the great
Republic ? Put that question to them when the tax-
gatherer visits them. " Thou shalt not vote," says the
nation, "but thou shalt pay thy taxes or be put up
at auction." This is the condition in which a great
host of Anglo-Saxon people, born freemen and suf
fragists, live and suffer and struggle.
We were quickened into sympathy with these peo-
ple. They are peaceful, law-abiding citizens. They
hold the interests of the Republic as most precious.
S^ South Dakota :
They flame with enthusiasm when national holidays
remind them of great achievements. But they have a
practical, personal waj of interpreting their own inter-
ests. The continuance of Territorial rule signifies op-
pression. Public affairs are conducted after a fashion
that does scant justice to various sections and industries
and interests. The people have no voice in deter-
mining certain questions that pertain to their prosperity.
When individuals are defrauded and when their rights
are denied, we were told that any appeal to the courts
was a matter of infinite patience and uncertain issue.
There are six judges given to the whole Territory.
Civil cases await trial 3^ear after year, so that men have
learned that it was more profitable to suffer in silence
than put their cause into court.
The continuance of Territorial rule signifies misgov-
ernment. Ofiicials are not responsible to the people.
They do not represent the thought, purpose, spirit of
the people. A citizen of Connecticut suddenly trans-
ferred to California would not be competent to take
charge of that great State and conduct its affairs ac-
cording to the will and mind of its citizens. It requires
residence, observation, experience to fit men for posi-
tions of public trust. With the best intentions, men
who are strangers to these Territorial conditions often
make such mistakes that irreparable injury is done.
That is the claim made by the citizens of Dakota — a
claim that appears substantiated by their strong array
of facts.
Its Resources and its People. 57
Continuance of Territorial rule signifies retardation.
The Territory is hampered. What action the local
Legislature may take is so restricted and curtailed by
national law or official veto that the citizens have small
opportunity to shape public affairs. The formative
condition of Dakota suggests many matters that require
wise delibcation and judicious adjustment. The citi-
zens are compelled to adjourn the settlement of such
matters. They have not the power or the opportunity
to legislate for them. Any local expression of wish or
purpose is quite likely to get faint recognition when it
reaches the "powers that be." When we think how
the innumerable details of self-government are left in
this inchoate state, we are forced to confess that these
people are miserably cramped by circumstances.
The people first demand a division of the Territory.
They are very strenuous concerning this matter. Divis-
ion will gain them better government. The present
capital is Bismarck. It is a long and tedious way from
Yankton, Chamberlain, the Black Hills and other parts
of the Territory. The business that is transacted at
Bismark seems quite foreign to these distant sections.
If any local matter presents itself, the people say that
they are likely to fail in getting a just hearing. Their
local interests are forgotten by the time they are trans-
ported to the distant capital. There is a certain un-
likeness between North Dakota and South Dakota
which helps to jeopard each other's interests. Legisla-
tion which favors the upper tier of counties may prove
j<y South Dakota :
quite harmful to the lower tier of counties, and vice
versa. Legislation which is essential to the southeast
may have no importance in the northwest. The Ter-
ritory is vast, cumbrous, diversified as to interests, di-
vided as to activities. Two States will solve the diffi-
culty. Division is imperative.
Division will g^ive them stronger government. The
people are left to their own independent course con-
cerning many affairs. They will find strength in co-
operation. When the State takes public matters in
hand, they move with the strength of the State behind
them. The individual merges his share of help in the
oneness of the body politic. Little opportunity then
for that personal envy or opposition which is some-
times observable when public improvements and enter-
prises revert simply to individuals. The heartiness of
general co-operation gives strength to expression of
community and State life. The spirit of zealous self-
help becomes universal. There is a vigor and impulse
to public work that magnifies the worth of the
State at the same time that it fosters and develops
State power and influence.
Division will give the|peoplea more just government.
It is a wise thing for people to watch closely the men
that perform public tasks. A government of the peo-
ple, for the people, by the people, is the kind of gov-
ernment that we Americans want. Such a govern-
ment has justice as one great factor. But you do not
find that sort of thing in ponderous Dakota. The peo-
Ifs Resources and its People. jp
pie want to govern themselves, and they want to do it
on a scale, and after a method, suited to their con-
dition. So thev demand a North Dakota and a South
Dakota. The 7th Standard parallel has already been
emphasized as a division line. North of it we find the
University of North Dakota, south of it the University of
South Dakota. In the north is a Normal School, in
the south a Normal School. In the north they locate
a penitentiary, in the south they locate a penitentiary.
When the north has an insane asylum then the south
must have an insane asylum. Division is declared by
the election of the people, by the exigencies of circum-
stances, by the characteristics of the two sections, by
the demands of strict justice, by the events of the past
fifteen years, by the laws of traffic and communication,
by the organization and operation of political, educa-
tional and religious associations.
Statehood, therefore, means convenience of govern
ment to the people of Dakota. We met delegates to
a Territorial Convention as we journeyed through the
country. They came long distances. They made just
complaint. One delegate was obliged to travel one
thousand miles in order to attend this meeting. Now
people in the west are not critical in respect to miles.
A trip of three hundred miles or five hundred miles is
a mere jaunt; but when it comes to a one thousand
mile journey for the purpose of transacting a little
home business, these people point to the injustice and
burdensomeness of the thing. Statehood means con-
do South Dakota :
venience to South Dakota. It means an accessible
capital, a central State gov^ernment, a legislative
body whose members shall hold vital communication
with their constituents. There was a time when
Rhode Island must have two capitals to accommodate
her people. Dakota, containing well nigh one hundred
and fifty times the number of acres put into Rhode
Island, must satisfy herself with one capital. The
Connecticut legislators can tarry at the capital in
Hartford until Saturday afternoon at four o'clock: and
then hie themselves home to spend Sunday with their
families. Some of these Dakota legislators would be
compelled to spend the large share of every week upon
the railroad did they try to imitate the domestic ex-
ample of their Connecticut brothers. People wish to
hear their representatives make their great speeches.
People occasionally wish to see those honorable bodies
of citizens named the Assembly and the Senate. It
does the farmer, the merchant, the preacher, the la-
borer, the physician, the teacher good to come into
contact with these men who represent our intelligence,
wisdom, ability, merit. We eastern people make
periodic visits to our capitals. We observe public
proceedings with closest scrutiny. We approve or
disapprove the course that legislators take with a frank-
ness and a vigilance that insure us satisfactory legis-
lion and sound, acceptable government. Our capitals
are convenient They are next door to our numerous
cities. And we reap great benefit from such nearness.
Its Resources and its People. 6i
Now South Dakota brethren feel the necessity for
iust that nearness and neighborliness. They want their
capital where they can visit it without making a
journey of seven hundred or a thousand miles. They
want their capital where they can enjoy the eloquence
of their orators and observe the drift of affairs and-
share the spirit of great occasions without too large
an expenditure of time and money. A State govern-
ment centrally located serves the people. Courts ade-
•quate to the proper adjudication of causes — compe.
tent, representative men who devote their time to the
protection and encouragement of individual and State
interests — they are a great convenience. Dakota de-
mands such convenience.
Statehood signifies economy. When the homes of
the people are near to the government, the expenses of
travel are insignificant. The people hold intimate rela-
tions with their public officers and the machinery of State,
and the cost of close association is comparatively small.
It is a fact that two small States are governed at less
expense than one large State. The same largje Terri-
tory, divided into equal States, will have public affairs
<jonducted with better economy. But the emphasis
which men put upon this economic phase of the ques-
tion is measured when it is observed that the people
have little or nothing to say concerning taxation and
expenditure. Strangers and pilgrims take these mat-
ters in hand. As their personal interests are not in-
volved, the public money cannot have the same mean-
62 South Dakota :
ing to them. The citizens of Dakota annually pay
hundreds of thousands of dollars of internal revenue;-
they pay hundreds of thousands of dollars of postage ;
and yet they are not permitted to say anything as to
the spending of these taxes. " No taxation without
representation !" Is not that the old-time cry of liber-
tv-lovers? And yet here is a host of American citizens^
almost seven hundred thousand strong, sustaining such
grievance and ignominy I These people support various
public institutions. They support them loyally. They
never grudge their dollars. Bat this money is distri-
buted by men under Federal appointment. The peo-
ple cannot designate any commissioner. The public
schools of the Territory are famous. They will stamp
Dakota with their own peculiar merit. These public
schools, constantly increasing in number and expense,
representing a cost of nearly $2,000,000 for 18S7,
are supported by taxes levied upon the uncomplaining
people, while millions of acres of land, assigned the
Territory for the purposes of school support, lie idle
and profitless, since the lands cannot be sold until
Dakota gets admission into the sisterhood of States.
Men can generally manage their own business better
than any neighbor. It is safe to say that States know
their own needs, and are competent to conduct their
own affairs, better than any neighbor State. Dakota
stands ready and solicitous to prove it.
Statehood signifies multiplied prosperity. " We
heard it iterated and reiterated that thousands and
Its Resources and its People. 6j
tens of thousands of people will make Dakota their
home when Statehood is realized. There is a certain
disgrace and discouragement in the present condition of
things that influences many proud, ambitious people.
This migration into political dependence, helplessness,
disfranchisement, has features that annoy and harass
the free-born, intelligent, patriotic, self-governed
American citizen. A man makes a sacritice that is-
something more than sentimental. It is sacrifice that
means personal humiliation, political obliteration, na-
tional exile. This is thoroughly un-American and re-
pugnant. Nevertheless, thousands of our best citizens
have submitted to this sort of thing. They have sub-
mitted to it because they believed it a temporary con-
dition. They have submitted to it because they put
confidence in the national sense of justice and the na-
tional pride of spirit. But these abused, neglected men
now feel that Statehood is vital to their prosperity.
They alone are competent to foster and interpret State
interests. They alone comprehend the issues at stake.
It is time that they had the full conduct of their own
a£fairs. There are 23,000,000 acres of public land now
subject to entry. The great Sioux reservation will
prove fresh and powerful stimulus to immigration.
It is important that Dakota choose her public servants,
and elect her local servants, in order that the great
task of shaping the people into a strong, cohesive,
symmetrical body politic be thoroughly and perma-
nently and satisfactorily achieved.
64 South Dakota :
Statehood will multiply prosperity. It is the testi-
mony of business men. The State would speedily set-
tle questions which concern the enlar2:ement of trade.
Men refuse to peril fortune in great enterprises when
the laws of the land do not afford them wise protection.
Certain industries have not been planted in Dakota,
because capitalists found the Territorial conditions un-
favorable. Men who believe that South Dakota will
gain admission as a State within the next few months
are making expression of such confidence by the large
investment of money. The opportunities for such in-
vestments are rare and rich with promise. It just
needs this one factor of State autonomy, when trade,
immigration, capital, expansion will make such record
as shall outstrip all recent, notable progress and give
Dakota her merited eminence and power. Ireland is
one-fifth the size of Dakota, and Gladstone says, " Give
her home rule !" But Ireland does not easily affiliate
with Great Britain, and Irish blood retains its character-
istic tone and impulse. Dakota — the fair, great land —
is peopled by our brothers. We are kinned by fam-
ily relations, and social relations, and trade relations,
and money relations, and Christian relations, and na-
tional relations. Do we need some Gladstone to trav-
erse this Republic and say, "Give her home rule?"
Nay. Dakota will submit her righteous cause to the
American people.
CONCLUSION.
The Dakota days stretch themselves through many
hours. We did not rise early in the morning so that
we could measure their length, but we were told it was
daylight a little after two o'clock. The evenings have the
sun's illuminations until eight o'clock or later, and we
were able to read the newspaper at half-past nine o'clock
without gas or lamp. The twilights, who can forget
them ? They linger into the night and depart with
such reluctance that we did not try to tarry upon their
going. Nevertheless, the days were not long enough
for us to see and to do the things which we had planned
The company of friends, with all their liberal help and
wise method and practical guide-work could not show
us all the treasures and enterprises and institutions of
South Dakota. But we gleaned wearilessly during the
hurried weeks, and our loyal associates added their
sheaves, so that we returned east with such harvest of
facts as we present through these pages. We express
hearty thanks to the Commissioner of Immigration, to
various Territorial officials, to several College Presi-
dents, to many bankers, real estate agents, merchants,
farmers, railroad men, teachers, editors, laborers, com-
mercial travelers, who gave us valuable information,
and shared in showing us the land.
•66 South Dakota :
And now we turn ns toward the future. What
prophecy do we find written in the narrative of South
Dakota's achievement? The railroads have just begun
their unique tasks. When Dakota has the railroad fa-
cilities that serve Illinois (as have them she will), it will
make 30,000 miles of iron service. The railroads are
growing in all directions. One thousand miles per year
is the estimate of a financier. That will soon increase.
And this railroad expansion signifies the swift and
thorough development of the country. Immigration
is continuous and unprecedented. It disperses all
through the Territorj^ The trains we saw doing a
-constant work of distribution. But the great Sioux
Reservation will prove fresh and powerful stimulus to
■the regular and methodic plans of immigration. This
Reservation, which will be opened for settlement in the
autumn, containes more than 26,000,000 acres of excel-
lent land. A part of this immense tract will speedily
be subdued by the pioneer. It means an enormous in-
flux of people. Then the east gets nearer to the west.
Now that we have traversed this great interior, we ob-
serve that it is quite nigh to our seaboard markets.
Railroad transportation is quick and easy. Water
transportation is cheap and serviceable. The staple
farm products of the west compete successfully with
the farm products of the east, and the west will certain-
ly distance her competitors. This midland section of
Jthe United States is a country that fosters all home-
making. We journeyed through Kansas, Nebraska,
Its Resources and its People. 6^
Iowa, Minnesota, and we were agreeably impressed
with the home character of the people. Dakota, Ne-
braska, Kansas, they make one affluent, illimitable,
productive plain. Such farm possibilities run riot with
the imagination. No class of men show better judgment
and keener foresight than our bankers. They pro-
nounce with unequivocal unanimity upon the destinies
of this land. In 1880 Dakota had twenty-four banks.
Their capital was stated as $513,579. In 1887 the
banks had multiplied into two hundred and niiity-nine
with a capital and surplus of $8,142,587. Add to this
the business of fifty-one loan and mortgage companies
and there is shown a capital of $11,293,981. Dakota
has more banks than twenty-eight of the States. These
institutions transact a business that witnesses to the
thrifty, workful, enterprising character of all concerned.
The investment of eastern capital in South Dakota
proves very lucrative and satisfactory to the investor
*' Never was the confidence of the money men of the
east more solid," says Theodore Koosevelt. At the same
time this money is good servant to the people in the work
of improvement and expansion. As we think upon the
promise and destiny of this fine portion of the Repub-
lic, we share the great assurance of the people. A
prosperous, majestic commonwealth is the inevitable
issue of the years. The self-denial, discomfort, struggle
of land conquest will be ended, and the splendid re-
wards of an opulent and cultivated country may make
bountiful compensation for all labor and investment.
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