80 GUIDEBOOK OF THE WESTERN UNITED STATES. 
marine origin. Next is a formation (Judith River) which in many 
places carries coal beds and was laid down on the land or in shallow 
lakes. It is soft and mostly light colored, but at a distance it can 
not be distinguished from the overlying Bearpaw shale. 
At Huntley the Northern Pacific is joined by the Kansas City line 
of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, and the two systems 
use the same tracks from Huntley to Billings. Pryor 
Creek, which is crossed by the train soon after leay- ~ 
ing Huntley, was named by Capt. Clark for one of 
his party. West of the creek the railway is at the 
foot of a precipitous bluff of greenish sandstone, in 
places thick bedded, which is the upper part of the Claggett forma- 
tion. This underlies the Judith River formation and from the fossils 
that it contains is known to have been laid down in the sea. Thus, 
under the influence of the great Pryor Mountain — = and 
lower rocks are in turn brought to the surface. the bluff — 
the sandstone rises until near milepost 220 it can be seen on the left” 
(south) just capping the highest hills. The rock underlying the sand- 
stone is not exposed here, but it is known to consist of soft shale, the 
lower part of the same formation. Where it is crossed by the line 
of the railway, the valley is broad and the slopes on either side are 
smooth and gentle. 
West of the open part of the valley just described the hills close 
in on the river, especially from the south, until it seems as if the 
stream would be blocked, but on close approach it is apparent that 
the water has cut a narrow passage through what appears to be a 
barrier across its path. The railway is crowded close to the bank 
of the river, and west of milepost 223 hillside cuts show that the 
constriction of the valley is due to a thick bed of coarse sandstone 
(Eagle) which crosses the river nearly at right angles and dips 15° 
or 20° to the east. Immediately west of this outcrop the railway 
crosses Yellowstone River to the broad flat upon which the town of 
Huntley. 
ation 3,038 feet. 
Population 1,746.* 
Billings is situated. As the train 
river the Eagle sandstone can be 
enters the yards just west of the 
seen on both sides of the valley. 
reclamation act, and full particulars may 
be obtained at Huntley from the project 
manager. The cost of the water right is 
$30 an acre, payable in 20 annual install- 
ments without interest, and there is an 
the land. 
The climate is healthful and the soil 
fertile, producing abundant crops when 
watered. Cereals and alfalfa are the 
principal crops, but the growing of sugar 
beets is becoming profitable. There is a 
sugar factory at Billings, and an increased 
acreage has been put into beets each 
year. 
Probably no section in the West has 
experienced the freedom from speculators 
enjoyed by the area under the Huntley 
project. Asa result, this is to-day one of 
the most prosperous and up to date com- 
munities in the Northwest. Its progres- 
sive spirit is shown by its centrali 
graded schools, its churches, the steady 
substantial growth of its towns, and its 
clubs and cooperative 
