Catholic Colonization in Minnesota Part 5

The official report, when published, may differ slightly with the above, but not to an extent to make any alteration necessary.

We are informed that, in several instances, land giving wheat for the last twenty years, without being fertilized or manured, produced in 1877 over twenty bushels of wheat to the acre; a fact creditable to the land, but very discreditable to the farmers engaged in such _land murder_.

While Minnesota has, without dispute, established her reputation as a great wheat producer, and the dangers which always lie in wait for the growing crops are perhaps less here than in most of the other western States, still it must not be supposed that we can expect to be always free from them. If we had any such idea it would have been dispelled by our experience the past season. Never since the State was organized was there a finer prospect of a magnificent wheat yield than we had during the months of May, June and the first half of July, 1878. It was not that the general crop was good, but one could not, in a day's travel, find one poor looking field; but just as the wheat was within a few days of being fit to cut, a fierce, hot sun, lasting a week or so, came and wilted up the grain, so that the crop lost materially in quality, weight and measure.

Yet this evil had its compensating good. Our corn and potato crops were very fine, so that our farmers have learned a lesson in the value of having diversity of crops as a leading feature in their farming system, and be it remembered that without system there is no successful farming.

The following statement is taken from the immigration pamphlet, issued by the Minnesota Board of Immigration for 1878:

OATS.

Oats is peculiarly a northern grain. It is only with comparatively cool atmosphere that this grain attains the solidity, and yields the return which remunerate the labor and cost of production. The rare adaptation of the soil and climate of Minnesota to the growth of this grain, is shown not only by the large average, but the superior quality of the product, the oats of this State being heavier by from three to eight pounds per bushel than that produced elsewhere.

The following is an exhibit of the result for the several years named:

No. bushels Average yield Year. No. acres sown. produced. per acre.

1868 212,064 7,831,623 36.00 1869 278,487 10,510,969 37.74 1870 339,542 10,588,689 31.02 1875 401,381 13,801,761 34.38 1877 432,194 16,678,000 37.75

The following is a statement of the product of oats in Minnesota, compared with that in the other States named:

Average Bushels to per acre. each inhabitant.

Ohio, average of 11 years 23. 9.17 Iowa 28.30 17.80 Minnesota 37.70 23.88

CORN.

The foregoing exhibits abundantly sustain the extraordinary capacity of Minnesota for the production of those cereals which are best produced in high lat.i.tudes. Our State is often supposed to be too far north for Indian corn. This is a great mistake, founded on the popular fallacy that the lat.i.tude governs climate. But climates grow warmer towards the west coasts of continents; and although its winters are cold, the summers of Minnesota are as warm as those of Southern Ohio. _The mean summer heat of St. Paul is precisely that of Philadelphia_, five degrees further south, while it is considerably warmer during the whole six months of the growing season than Chicago, three degrees further south.

The products of the soil confirm these meteorological indications.

The average yield of corn in 1868 was 37.33 bushels per acre, and in 1875--a bad year--25 bushels. In Illinois--of which corn is the chief staple--Mr. Lincoln, late President of the United States, in the course of an agricultural address in 1859, stated that the average crop from year to year does not exceed twenty bushels per acre.

These results, so favorable to Minnesota as a corn growing as well as wheat growing State, will surprise no one who is familiar with the fact established by climatologists, that "the cultivated plants yield the greatest products near the northernmost limits at which they will grow."

COMPARISON WITH OTHER STATES.

A comparison with other States affords the following exhibit:

Bushels per acre.

Ohio, average of nineteen years 32.8 Iowa, average of six years 31.97 Minnesota, average of nine years 30.98

POTATOES.

The average yield in Minnesota and other States is here shown:

Bushels per acre.

Minnesota, average for five years 120.76 Iowa, average for five years 76.73 Ohio, average for nine years 74.55

HAY.

Among the gra.s.ses that appear to be native to the soil of Minnesota are found timothy, white clover, blue gra.s.s and red top. They grow most luxuriantly, and many claim that they contain nearly as much nutriment as ordinary oats. So excellent are the gra.s.ses that the tame varieties are but little cultivated. The wild gra.s.ses which cover the immense surface of natural meadow land formed by the alluvial bottoms of the intricate network of streams which everywhere intersect the country, are as rich and nutritious in this lat.i.tude as the best exotic varieties, hence cultivation is unnecessary. The yield of these gra.s.ses is 2.12 tons to the acre, or 60 per cent more than that of Ohio, the great hay State!

SORGHUM.

The cultivation of the sugar cane is fast becoming popular among the farmers of Minnesota, and one Mr. Seth H. Kenney, of Rice county, claims that it can be made more profitable than even the wheat crop. The syrup and sugar produced is of the finest character, possessing an extremely excellent flavor. An acre of properly cultivated land will yield from one hundred and seventy-five to two hundred gallons of syrup, worth seventy cents a gallon.

FRUITS.

The following short extracts are taken from a paper written by Col. D.

A. Robertson, of St. Paul, a scientific amateur fruit grower; one thoroughly conversant with the subject on which he writes, and to whose disinterested labors in this branch of industry the State owes much:

"There is no doubt that Minnesota will become a great fruit State, because wherever wild fruits of any species grow, improved fruit of the same or cognate species may be successfully cultivated. The indigenous flora of Minnesota, embraces apples, plums, cherries, grapes, strawberries, raspberries, currants and gooseberries. We may, therefore, successfully and profitably cultivate the improved kinds of all these fruits. The conditions of success are only these:--experience, knowledge and perseverance.

"All kinds of Siberian Crab apples, (which are valuable chiefly for preserves,) including the improved Transcendant and Hyslop, are perfectly adapted to our climate; and flourish in almost every soil and situation where any other tree will grow, and also produce great crops.

"At our State Fair at St. Paul, in October, 1871, there was a magnificent display of home grown fruits, which would have been creditable to any State in the West. Among the numerous varieties of excellent fruit exhibited in large quant.i.ties were the following:

"APPLES.--d.u.c.h.ess of Oldenburg, Red Astracan, Saxton or Fall Stripe, Plum Cider, Fameuse, Haas, Jefferson County, Perry Russet, American Golden Russet, Yellow Bellflower, Ramsdale Sweeting, Geniton, Lucy, Winona Chief, Jonathan, Price's Sweet, Westfield, Seek no Further, Sap, Wagner, Winter Wine Tay, English Golden Russet, Dominie, St. Lawrence, Pomme Gris, Ben Davis, Sweet Pear, and about thirty other varieties."

RAILROAD AND POPULATION STATISTICS--HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION LAW IN MINNESOTA:

TABULATIONS FROM COMPANY REPORTS.

LENGTH AND LOCATION.

_The Railroads of Minnesota, with Termini and Lengths in this State, on June 30, 1876._ ========================================================= Name of road. Abbrev.

---------------------------------------------+----------- Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul-- River Division a Hastings and Dakota Division b Iowa and Minnesota Division c Iowa and Minnesota Division, Branch d Iowa and Minnesota Division, Branch e Chicago, Dubuque and Minnesota f Central Railroad of Minnesota g St. Paul & Duluth h Minneapolis & Duluth i Minneapolis & St. Louis j Northern Pacific k St. Paul & Sioux City l Sioux City & St. Paul m St. Paul & Pacific, First Division--Main Line n " --Branch o " --St. Vincent Extension p " " q " " r St. Paul, Stillwater & Taylor's Falls s " --Branch t " --Branch u Southern Minnesota v Stillwater & St. Paul w Winona & St. Peter x Winona, Mankato & New Ulm y ===================================================================== Road abbrev. Termini. Miles.

-----------------+-----------------------------------------+---------- a From La Crescent to St. Paul 128 b " Hastings to Glencoe 75 c " St. Paul to Southern State line 127 d " Mendota to Minneapolis 9 e " Austin to Lyle 12 f " La Crescent to southern State Line 25 g " Mankato to Wells 40 h " St. Paul to Duluth 156 i " Minneapolis to White Bear 15 j " Minneapolis to Sioux City Junction 27 k " Duluth to Moorhead 253-1/2 l " St. Paul to St. James 121-1/4 m " St. James to southern State line 66-1/4 n " St. Anthony to Breckenridge 207 o " St. Paul to Sauk Rapids 76 p " Sauk Rapids to Melrose 35 q " Brainerd, 4-1/2 miles south 4-1/2 " a point 12 miles S. of Glyndon to r a point 28 miles N. 104 of Crookston s " St. Paul to Stillwater 17-1/2 t " Junction to Lake St. Croix 3-1/4 u " Stillwater to South Stillwater 3 v " Grand Crossing to Winnebago City 167-1/2 w " White Bear to Stillwater 13 x " Winona to western State line 288-1/2 y " Junction to Mankato 3-3/4 +---------- 1978

Since the publication of the report of the railroad commissioner as given above, showing 1978 miles of railroads in Minnesota; there have been 216 miles built in 1877, and 350 miles in 1878--total, 2544 miles now operated in the State. In 1862, we had but ten miles of railroad in Minnesota; in 1878, sixteen years afterwards, two thousand five hundred and forty-four miles.

This past year, the St. Paul & Pacific Railroad has extended its line to the British Possessions in Manitoba, connecting with a road there and giving us direct railroad communication with the vast country lying north of us; while the Southern Minnesota, the Hastings & Dakota, the St. Cloud branch of the St. Paul & Pacific, are extending their lines, like arteries, through the heart of the State. In much less than ten years, Minnesota will have the most perfect railroad system on this continent.

POPULATION.

Number.

Population in 1870 439,706 Population in 1875 597,407 Population in 1877 750,000

HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION LAW.

We are proud of the Homestead Law of Minnesota. The State says to its citizen: you may be unfortunate, even culpably improvident, nevertheless you and your family shall not be left homeless or without means to enable you to retrieve past misfortunes or faults.