i 



\0 The Agricultural Ueiourees of Canada. 



wntt^r h' had a largo kitchen gardrn, in which some Bph'ndid moloiis 

 wero grown in the open, without any shelter. He had threshed 2,2<)0 

 bushels of wheat from 107 acres, and 1,500 bushels of oats from 33 

 acros. The nearest station to his farm is eight miles off. Near the 

 farm w(^ saw a self-binder cutting hay, which was afterwards put up in 

 stooks. It was prairie grass, about 5 ft. in height. Between this 

 farm and Belmont, a roadside station, the land was poor, the soil being 

 light and full of alkali. 



From Belmont our party divided into two, one part 

 An Icelandic visiting the Icelandic settlement, wh'ch has proved 

 Settle mtnU a success. The Icelanders make good settlers, being 



hardy, quiet, and steady workers. 

 As we got near to Glenboro' the land improved, and we 

 Glenlxyro*. could see on each side large stacks of wheat ready for thresh- 

 ing. We spent the evening at Glenboro', and next morning 

 — the ir)th — visited several farms about three miles off, farmed mostly 

 by young men who in this country had failed to pass their examinations 

 for'admission into one or other of the learned professions. They had 

 good houses, and appeared to be comfortable. They, however, com- 

 plained that the harvest had been most disappointing. Up to about 

 a fortnight before the wheat was cut the prospects were most 

 encouraging. It appears that this district had suffered considerably 

 from the drought. Hot winds came and ripened the grain too suddenly. 

 When it was cut the grain fell from the ears and was lost — in some 

 cases from a third to one-lialf. In some of the fields I c(»ild see that 

 the ground wa.s thickly covered with wheat. The wife of one of those 

 men who complained was a lady who had been brought up in a large 

 English town. We next visited the " Farmers* Elevator." This had 

 been put up by a number of farmers who were not satisfied with the 

 treatment they had received from the owners of the other elevators— a 

 company of corn dealers, and the Ogilvie Milling Company. 



At Souris, which was our next stopping place, there 

 Souris District — are three Welsh farmers, whom we visited. Two are 

 Welsh Farmers, brothers from South Wales, whom we found after 



some difficulty, as they had gone with a party of 

 their neighbours to shoot "prairie hens." That was the second day 

 of the season, and they had made a " bag " of 30 brace. I could not 

 help contrasting my own country and this. In ours, the farmer feeds 

 the game, sees it growing, and then the landlord, or someone else who 

 pays the landlord for the right, comes and enjoys all the fun and all the 

 profit ! These brothers have a farm between them of 960 acres. They 

 came there with small capital, and now are looked upon as two of the best 

 and most successful farmers in the district. One of them contested an 

 election for a seat in the Legislative Assembly. He did not succeed, but 

 he very nearly ousted a man who had been in possession for many years. 

 1 asked their views upon the question of Welsh settlement in the country. 

 They were of opinion that to start a settlement of new-comers would be 

 a questionable process. Rather they advocated the individual settling 

 of Welshmen in established districts, .where they could get the help and 

 the advice of the old sett.^ers. We also visited the other Welshman, a 

 native of North Wales. Before coming to Canada he had been a 



