MINNESOTA. 



511 



financial regeneration of the class." It has 

 adopted by-laws for its regulation, one of the 

 principal among them being " Not to meddle 

 in politics." Its members are distributed into 

 Granges located in the several sections of the 

 State. As some of the Granges, upon the an- 

 nouncement of the Anti-Monopoly Convention 

 to be held on September 2d, appointed dele- 

 gates to represent them in it, which was in 

 contravention of the by-laws referred to above ; 

 the chief of the association reminded them of 

 their duty, and to the penalty attached to its 

 infraction, by issuing the following circular 

 letter: 



STATE GEANQE or MINSKSOTTA, 1 

 WIHONA, Mira., Augiut 8, 1873. ) 

 To Subordinate Grange* of Jiiirom of M-utbandry of 

 the State of Minnesota : 



It lias come to my knowledge that certain Granges 

 in tliis jurisdiction have appointed delegates to a 

 political convention to be held at Owatonna on the 

 2d day of September next. I deem such action not 

 only unwise, but in direct violation of the funda- 

 mental law of our Order, and that it subjects the 

 Oranges so doing to the clanger of a revocation of 

 their charters. 



Individual patrons are under no restrictions what- 

 ever in their religious or political conduct. County 

 councils are not recognized as belonging to the 

 Order, or subject to its laws. We lay no claim to 

 any control whatever over so-called Farmers' Conven- 

 tions. But Granges of Patrons of Husbandry are 

 prohibited by the law which gives them existence 

 from engaging in either religious or political action 

 or discussion. This prohibition is imposed for the 

 best and wisest of purposes. It is our only safe- 

 guard against sure and speedy destruction. Upon 

 obedience to this law depends our very existence as 

 an Order. 



It is with profound regret and mortification thnt 

 I have witnessed this departure from our cherished 

 principles. Juntas success is within our grasp, and 

 our labors are about to be rewarded by an abundant 

 prosperity, are we to forget our mission and barter 

 away our beloved Order tor a mess of political pot- 

 tages? Are we to lose sight of the grand objects 

 before us the social, intellectual, and financial 

 regeneration and elevation of our clans, which should 

 make our Order perpetual for any considerations of 

 temporary advantage, or of doubtful expediency ? 

 Patrons, let us stand firm to our principles. 



I call upon the offending Granges to retrace the 

 false steps taken ; to recall their delegates elected 

 to the convention above named, and reconsider their 

 resolutions. I call upon the Granges in this juris- 

 diction " to conform to and abide by " the consti- 

 tution, rules, and regulations of the Order, and to 

 refrain from all political action or discussion. 



GEO. J. PAESON8. 



The Democrats and Liberal Republicans of 

 Minnesota met on the 24th of September, at 

 M. I'nnl, for the purpose of holding a joint 

 State Convention to nominate a State ticket. 



The delegates, numbering above 250, met 

 at the appointed place and time, but made no 

 nominations. 



The chairman of the Committee on Resolu- 

 tions then presented tlie following report, 

 which was adopted : 



Soaked, That the Liberal Republican and Demo- 

 cratic parties in State Convention assembled, willing 

 to forego all party predilections for the general wel- 

 fare, and to join with patriotic citizens of all parties 

 to rescue the State and nation from their great peril, 



deem it best, in the present emergency, to make no 

 nominations of a strictly party character, but rec- 

 ommend all Democrats and all Liberal Republicans 

 to yield a cordial support to the nominees of the 

 Owatonna Convention. 



The same chairman of the Committee on 

 Resolutions also offered the following : 



Retained, That we are in favor of a tariff for 

 revenue to the General Government only. 



Hetolvtd, That we are in favor of a return to 

 specie payments at the earliest practicable day. 



Heeoh'ed, That we are in favor of an honest ad- 

 ministration of the State and General Government. 



One of the delegates offered additional res- 

 olutions, as follows: 



Retched, That we are opposed to the doctrine that 

 the people have alreadv forfeited the right to con- 

 trol the rates of travel and transportation on the 

 railroads of the State, and we denounce any such 

 doctrine as pernicious in principle and ruinous in 

 practice. 



Resolved, That we are unalterably opposed to nil 

 laws and policies whereby any advantage is given 

 to one citizen over another; and to that concentra- 

 tion of great wealth under unjust laws in the hands 

 of powerful corporations which now threaten the 

 existence of our free institutions. 



The farming interest appears to be the 

 greatest of all in Minnesota. Twenty-three 

 years ago, the whole cultivated land of the 

 State amounted to 1,900 acres; in 1870 it 

 was 1,863,316 acres; of this over 1,000,000 

 acres were in wheat. The average production 

 per acre is high, being of wheat, in 1868, 17.9 

 bushels for the whole State, against 9.95 in 

 Iowa, and 11.38 in Ohio. It is thought that 

 this average will hold good for a number of 

 years. The steadily proportional increase in 

 the number of land-owners and improved 

 farms has also been very great. In 1864 the 

 land-owners numbered 50,805 ; in 1869, 73,- 

 121 ; while the number of improved farms 

 advanced from 23,787 to 45,740 within the 

 same period. 



Concerning the wheat-crop of Minnesota in 

 1872, the following report submitted on March 

 3, 1873, to the Board of Trade at St. Paul, 

 says : " Your committee, to whom was re- 

 ferred the matter of ascertaining the amount 

 of wheat in store at various points in this 

 State, together with shipments, nnd the prob- 

 able amount yet to come forward, beg leave 

 to submit the following report : Total amount 

 stored, 3,310,000 bushels. 



SHIPMENTS. 



To Milwaukee, wheat 5.500,000 



ToChicago, wheat 2,500.000 



ToDulnth, wheat 1,000,000 



To St. Lonis and other points 1,000,000 



To all points, In flonr S.500.000 



Total shipments 15,810,000 



In hands of fanners 8,190,000 



Total snrplns 19000,000 



For seed and home consumption 6,000,000 



Total crop of the State 25,000,000 



" The amount in store is from official 

 sources. Your committee believe, upon careful 

 inquiry, that of the amount reported in store, 

 about 5,250,000 bushels, or fully two-thirds of 



