758 



UNITED STATES OP AMERICA. (MONTANA.) 



The insane are provided for by contract at the 

 rate of 65 cents a day, and the State convicts at 

 45 cents. The number of patients in the insane* 

 asylum averages 500, of whom about one-fifth 

 are women. 



Deer Lodge Prison had in April 463 convicts, 

 about 100 more than in the previous year. About 

 20 were women. 



The number of inmates at the Reform School, 

 at Miles City, was 94, of whom 82 were boys and 

 12 girls. The report details the expenditures of 

 $21,998.47 for 1901 and $22,522.11 for 1902. 



Militia. There are 34,000 men liable to mili- 

 tary service. The infantry regiments of the Na- 

 tional Guard consist of 2,613 men. The State ap- 

 propriation is $10,000. 



Railroads. The State is credited with 127 

 miles of new track in 1901, and 53 during the 

 first six months of 1902. The valuation of the 

 roads for taxation is somewhat more than $30,- 

 000,000. 



The Capitol. The new Capitol was finished in 

 January and was formally accepted and dedicated 

 July 4. The contract price of the building was 

 $289,893; the actual cost to the contractor is 

 given as about $420,000. 



Industries and Products. The value of the 

 principal mineral products of the State in 1901 

 was estimated as follows: Gold, $4,802,717; sil- 

 ver, $18,334,443; copper, $36,751,837; lead, $498,- 

 622; total, $60,387,619. 



Probably the silver is estimated at coinage value 

 by the Government rate of $1.29 an ounce; fig- 

 ured on the average market price, the value 

 would be less than half that given in this esti- 

 mate. The preliminary estimate of the Director 

 of the Mint for the production in 1902 gives Mon- 

 tana's gold product as in value $4,134,365, and 

 silver, $6,890,000. 



The report of the United States Geological Sur- 

 vey for 1901 shows that Montana produced in 

 that year $90,000 worth of sapphires. Nearly all 

 these stones were mined in the Yogo fields, in Fer- 

 gus County. The value of the sapphires mined 

 in Montana exceeded that of any other precious 

 stones mined except turquoise, whose value 

 amounted to $118,000. 



Rubies are found in the State, but none have 

 the deep color of the Oriental stone. 



New deposits of corundum have been found in 

 Gallatin County. 



According to statistics gathered by Commission- 

 er Ferguson, there was a falling off in the produc- 

 tion of coal in Montana in 1901 as compared with 

 1900. The total production was 1,442,569 tons. 



There arc, according to the latest estimate of the 

 survey, 32,000 square miles of coal-bearing forma- 

 tions in Montana. 



There were 33 accidents in the coal-mines in 

 1902, of which 7 were fatal. The whole number 

 of fatal accidents in mines was 35. 



The total value of the stone quarried, including 

 plaster of Paris and other by-products, was $470,- 

 142, compared with $302,194 the previous year. 



There are 20 breweries in the State, employing 

 about 256 men, with a capital estimated at 

 $1,271,000. The amount of beer manufactured 

 was greater than in any other vear, the number 

 of barrels being 163,283. 



A table of industrial statistics for 1900 gives the 

 value of the manufactured products of Montana 

 at $48,000,000. 



The report of the State Board of Stock Commis- 

 sioners shows that in 1902 the State produced 

 151,986 beef cattle, of which 92,000 head were 

 shipped to points out of the State. 



Montana excels all other States in wool-grow- 



ing, the clip having been about 33,000,000 pounds 

 this year. 



The farms of Montana, June 1, 1900, numbered 

 13,370, and had a value of $62,026,090. Of this 

 amount, $9,365,530, or 15.1 per cent., represents 

 the value of buildings, and $52,660,560, or 84.9 

 per cent., the value of land and improvements 

 other than buildings. 



Lands. The wooded area in the State is about 

 42,000 square miles. The records of the State 

 Land Office show a remarkable increase in the 

 sale and lease of State lands. The State's hold- 

 ings now amount to 2,020,977.73 acres. Of this 

 amount, 304,814.24 acres are timber land, showing 

 an estimate of 892,297,000 feet of taw timber; 

 65,693.03 acres are classified as agricultural, and 

 the remainder of 2,650,470 are classified as grazing 

 lands. 



From the leased land the State received the 

 annual sum of $186,553.52. The school lands un- 

 der lease exceed 1,350,000 acres. 



Reserves. By proclamation, Aug. 16, the Pres- 

 ident created 2 additional forest reserves in Mon- 

 tana, to be known as the Little Belt mountain and 

 the Madison forest reservations. A large amount 

 of land is withdrawn from public entry, and the 

 Government will undertake to protect many mil- 

 lions of feet of timber on the land from the rav- 

 ages of fire. The Little Belt mountain reserve in- 

 cludes timber land in the range of mountains 

 bearing the same name, situated in a portion of 

 Meagher, Fergus, and Cascade Counties, and is 

 quite close to Helena. The Madison reserve lies 

 almost wholly in the county of that name, ex- 

 cepting a very small portion which laps over into 

 Gallatin County. The Lewis and Clarke reserve 

 contains 4,572 square miles. 



Legal Decisions. By a decision of the United 

 States Supreme Court, the antitrust laws of many 

 States are pronounced unconstitutional. The ru- 

 ling applies to all that make exceptions in favor 

 of any class or classes. 



The law of the Legislature of 1901 extending 

 the operation of the statute of limitations upon 

 accounts from three to five years has been declared 

 invalid because it never passed the Senate, though 

 it was signed by the President of the Senate and 

 by the Governor. 



The antigambling law was attacked, but was 

 upheld by decision of the Supreme Court. One 

 of the test cases was in regard to a slot-machine. 



Political. An election was held in November 

 for an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, a 

 member of Congress, State Representatives, am' 

 local officers. 



The Socialists were first in the field with a Stab 

 ticket. Their convention was held at Bozeman. in 

 July. W. F. Cameron was named for Associate 

 Justice and George B. Sproull for Congro-. 



The resolutions called for an eight-hour amend- 

 ment to the Constitution, and one prohibiting 

 blacklisting, an employers' liability law, the ini- 

 tiative and referendum, and woman suffrage: <'\- 

 pressed sympathy for the coal-minors of Pennrfl 

 vania; and said regarding fusion: "That tln^S>- 

 cialist party can never recognize, unite, or alliliat j 

 or fuse in any way with any other political party. 

 That any candidate on our ticket must refn-f t!i ' 

 indorsement of any other political party, licraii-? 

 it insinuates our acceptance of their platform. 

 We call upon the State membership to expel at; 

 once any member who proposes compnmii-i m in- 

 eion." 



There was dissension in the Democratic part." 

 this year. Senator Clark and F. . \ii-n-tu- Ilfin/ 1 

 hciiii: at the head of the two factions. Tin- < 'lark 

 faction gained control of the State convention! 





