MON

CHAPTER XXI.

MONTANA-1805 TO 1889.

ONTANA TERRITORY was first explored in 1805, by Lewis and Clarke, under the direction of Thomas Jefferson, then President of the United States. Until 1854 it was included in that vast region of the United States known as the unorganized or Northwest Territory. In 1854 territorial rule was provided for, and Montana was then a portion of the territory of Nebraska, continuing thus until 1864, when Congress established the territory of Montana, with the present area, and supplied a government similar to the present form.

At the last session of Congress provision was made for Montana to become a state, and active preparations are now in progress to conform to the new order of things. The area of this magnificent territory is 146,048 square miles, or 93,491,200 acres. It is bounded on the north by British America, west by Idaho, south by Wyoming, and east by Dakota. The surface is generally mountainous; the Bitter Root and Rocky Mountains are in the west, the Little Rockies, Little Bear, etc., in the east, the Highwood in the North, and the Spoonbill range in the southern portion of the territory. Less than one-fifth of the territory is adapted to agriculture, two-fifths for stock. raising, and the balance is valuable for the precious metals there found.

Montana ranks first in the Union as a precious metal producer. The value of the annual output now approaches $40,000,000. A poor quality of coal is found in portions of the territory, sufficient for focal consumption, but not valuable as a shipping commodity, owing to its slacking soon after it is exposed to the air. Most of the mountains are covered with a dense growth of pine trees, valuable for lumber and fuel. The territory is well cupplied with rivers, the Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers furnishing navigation within the limits of Montana of over 300 miles each during most of the year, and, nearer their source, supplying an unlimited water power, which will ultimately be utilized for manufacturing purposes, etc. There are several other smaller rivers carrying a large volume of water, but whose descent precludes any idea of navigation. The waters from all these streams can be diverted from their natural course and used for irrigation purposes. It is believed that before many years Montana will be culti vating her millions of acres of agricultural lands, and, by means of

irrigation, bring the culture of field crops up to the highest state of perfection. Wheat, oats and other small grains are naturally adapted to the soil and climate of this territory, which stands next to Colorado in the yield per acre of these cereals, Colorado being first in the United States.

In 1886, Montana produced from 890 acres, 22,000 bushels of corn, valued at $14,300; from 88,896 acres, 1,509,000 bushels of wheat, valued at $1,131,750; from 56,774 acres, 1,987,000 bushels of oats, valued at $1,095,850; from 3,144 acres, 72,000 bushels of bariey, valued at $32,120; from 4,253 acres, 451,000 bushels of potatoes, valued at $405,900; from 139,650 acres, 152,048 tons of hay, valued at $1,596,504; total value of field products $4,274.424.

January 1st, 1888, the territory ontained 192,881 head of horses and mules, valued at $9,899,631; 31,132 head of milch cows valued at $884,149; 934,500 head of oxen and other cattle, valued at $17,948,007; 1,265,000 head of sheep, valued at $2,658,398; 22,289 head of hogs, valued at $150,898; a total of 2,445,802 head of live stock, valued at $31,561,083, which, added to the crop value for year previous, makes a grand total value of farm products of Montana, January 1st, 1888, of $35,835,507.

Montana's traffic is now very largely with the south, east and central portions of the Great West, and should exhibit more interest in the grand improvements to commerce contemplated by the action of the great Denver convention, in August, 1888, and perpetuated through the means of a permanent committee appointed at that time known as the Inter-State Deep Harbor Committee.

WY

CHAPTER XXII.

WYOMING-1806 TO 1889.

YOMING was first explored by Clarke, in 1806. It was upon the occasion of the return of the famous expedition under the charge of Lewis and Clarke, Lewis returning by the route pursued by the explorers, when going west. The year previous, Clarke, with a small party, recrossed the Rocky Mountains at a point considerably south, and encountered the source of the Yellowstone River in Wyoming. He embarked on the waters of that stream and floated down to the juncture of the Yellowstone and Missouri Rivers, and there joined Lewis on his home trip, they returning east via the Missouri River.

Wyoming was in the vast unorganized Northwest Territory until Nebraska Territory was organized in 1854, when it was included within that political organization. Afterwards Wyoming was attached to Washington, then a portion of Utah, Idaho and Dakota, and was only organized as a distinct territory in 1868, and then embraced its present area, 97,883 square miles, bounded by Montana on the north, Dakota and Nebraska on the east, by Colorado and Utah on the south, and on the west by Utah and Idaho.

The following from the Secretary of the Territory, S. D. Shannon, is a brief synopsis of the territory's resources, etc.:

"Wyoming is the youngest of the territories, excepting Alaska, having been organized under an act of Congress, passed July 25th, 1868. It is 365 miles long by 274 miles wide, covering an area greater than all the New England States combined. The general appearance of the country may be described as mountainous, with valleys, bold bluffs, foot hills and broad rolling plains. There are mountains covered with everlasting snows, deep canons and gorges and elevated plateaus or natural parks, like the great Yellowstone National Park. Of the entire area, 62,645,120 acres, more than 10,000.000 are covered with timber, and 15,000,000 acres are capable of being successfully cultivated; but the greater part of Wyoming is adapted to grazing. The mean elevation is about 6,000 feet above the sea level, the extremes ranging from 3,400 feet to 14,000 feet. In most of the valleys, in order to obtain crops, it is necessary to irrigate the land. The soil is of various qualities, but usually a rich loam covers the valleys and plains.

"Farming, however, is carried on only to a limited extent, the chief industry being stock raising. At the present time there are

nearly 2,000,000 cattle, 1,000,000 sheep and 100,000 horses and mules, worth in round numbers $50,000,000. There are 5,000 miles of irrigation ditches in Wyoming, by which 2,000,000 acres of land have been reclaimed from their desert character. The Territorial Engineer estimates that fully 4,000,000 acres more can be made productive by the ordinary means of irrigation. If the aid of Congress or the state can be secured in the construction of great storage basins or reservoirs, the area of farming lands can be increased several times their capacity under present conditions. Coal in vast quantities is found in almost every county, varying from four to forty feet in thickness. There are engaged in this industry alone 2,000 miners, the product of whose labor in 1888 amounted to 1,455,220 tons of coal, worth $4,365,720. One-third of this amount was paid in cash to the miners for taking out the coal. Wyoming contains mountains of iron, vast deposits of soda, gypsum, salt, sulphur, copper, lead, tin, mica and other minerals, also, marble, granite, sandstone, mineral paint, fire clay, kaolin, graphite, cinnabar and magnesium. Gold and silver are found in many places. Very extensive oil basins of petroleum exist in Central and Northern Wyoming, and must soon prove of great value. With the exception of coal, hardly any of the mineral wealth of Wyoming can be said to be developed. But the extension of new railroads throughout Wyoming will surely bring great changes in these undeveloped regions and give a wonderful impetus in increasing its wealth.

"According to the census of 1880, Wyoming had a population of 20,789; the present population is variously estimated between 75,000 and 100,000."

Mr. Shannon omits in the above any allusion to the petroleum possibilities of the territory, which industry promises to be Wyoming's most valuable resource. We therefore quote from the territorial geologist's reports (L. D. Ricketts, geologist), as follows:

"Few have any conception of the broad-spread occurrence of oil springs and indications now made known by active prospecting. It is found in numerous escapes in Uinta County near Hilliard and Fossill; in Fremont County, near Lander, in Dutton basin, and on the Stinking Water River; in Carbon County, along the base of the Rattlesnake Mountains, on Salt Creek and the South Powder; in Johnson County, on the South Powder and No Wood Rivers; in Crook County, at various points bordering the foot hills of the Black Hill Range and Bear Lodge Mountains.

"The three wells sunk on the Popoagie, in Rattlesnake district, all struck oil. At this place there is a small oval valley surrounded by abrupt, often precipitous, hills, over which, at various points he found oil and gas escaping. A good flow of oil was encountered in each. These wells, which varied in depth from 350 to nearly 800 feet, were cased and supplied with valves to prevent the oil from escaping, but

owing to the great gas pressure a large leakage cannot be preventeda pressure so great that, upon suddenly opening the valves the oil spurts up like some black watered geyser for 75 feet in the air. After the pipe thus clears itself, the steady flow of the oil is assumed which, it is variously estimated, will aggregate from 600 to 1,000 barrels per twenty-four hours.

"In color this oil is black. When fresh it contains a very large amount of absorbed gas. It will yield both illuminating and lubricating oil of excellent quality when distilled, and a residue which will be used as fuel for steam making just as the residuum from the Colorado refineries is used under the boilers at the Leadville shaft.

Precious metals have not been mined to any considerable extent as yet, the prospects, however, are exceptionally flattering, and at no distant day it is believed Wyoming will rank high in the production of gold and silver.

The agricultural production of 1886 amounted to $1,284,895 from 100,888 acres. January 1st, 1888, the territory contained 1,865,075 head of live stock, valued at $29,420,909, according to the United States reports, the actual returns to the territorial aud it ornearly doubles that amount, as is stated in Secretary Shannon's report herein quoted.

Wyoming has evidenced considerable interest in the Inter-state movement for deep harbor facilities on the Gulf coast of Texas, and is excellently represented on the permanent committee, appointed at the Denver Convention, by Hon. Francis E. Warren, now Governor of Wyoming; Hon. Joseph M. Carey, delegate to Congress, and Hon. F. J. Stanton, all of Cheyenne.