100 



above the level of the sea. Comparing' these with the altitudes of the 

 other Territories, we fiud the difference much greater than woukl be 

 anticipated. For this purpose I give here the elevations of a few points • 



Feet. 



Albuquerque, X. Mes 5, 032 



Santa Fe, X. Mex C, 840 



Denver, Colo 5, 300 



Green River, at tlie railroad crossing, ^Yyomiug 6, 140 



Salt Lake City, Utali 4, 350 



The Humbolt Sink, Utali.. 4,017 



Fort Laramie, Wyo 4, 519 



Sweet Water River, at Independence Rock, Wvo 5. 998 



Soutli Pass City, ^Yyo 7,857 



From this we see that even the lowest point of the Great Basin near 

 the "Humboldt Sink" is 1,126 feet above the mouth of the St. Eegis de 

 Borgia, and 733 feet above Fort Owen. This very important fact in re- 

 gard to the physical geogTaphy of this Territory will serve as an expla- 

 nation of its comparatively mild climate, notwithstanding its northern 

 latitude. 



Probably none of the sonthern and central ranges reach the line of 

 perpetual snow. Those in the extreme north are unexplored. It is 

 said that glaciers flow from some of them. 



The western or mountainous portion of Montana is interspersed with 

 many fine valleys well adapted to agriculture and stock raising. The 

 principal forests of the Territory are in this section. 



Tbe most dense and continuous bodies of timber are found on the 

 western flanks of the main range, and on the Cabinet, Cceur d'Alene, 

 and Bitter Boot Mountains, which are contiguous to it, or form the 

 boundary line between Montana and Idaho. These forests, which ex- 

 tend to eastern and northern Idaho, are the most extensive and valu- 

 able of any in the Bocky Mountain region. They guard the sources of 

 many important streams, and furnish timber supplies for an adjacent 

 treeless territory of wide extent. Their careful conservation is of the 

 greatest consequence. 



The forests of Montana are composed mainly of Yellow Pine {Finns 

 ponderosa) ; White Pine [Pinns flexilis^ Finns albicanlis and Finns mon- 

 ticola), Lodge-Pole or Tamarack Pine {Pinus Micrrayana) ; Bed or Yel- 

 low Fir (PseHr7of.s?//7a DongJasii); White or Balsam Fir (A&/es (jrandis); 

 Cedar {Til ny a gigantea and Jnniperns Yirginiana) ; and Yew {Taxns hrevi- 

 folia). The Yellow Pine and Bed Fir predominate, forming the bulk of 

 the forests at the lower altitudes. At higher elevations are found the 

 White Spruce, Tamarack, and Balsam. 



The deciduous species most worthy of mention are the Cottonwood 

 {FopnJus moniJifcra and F. angnsfifolia) ; Balsam Voi^\ar (F. haJsa mi- 

 /era)', Aspen {F. trcmnJoides)', Box-Elder {Xegundo aceroides) ; and 

 Mountain Maliogauy {Ccrco-carpns ledifoUns). 



Yellow and White Pine, and White Spruce are the principal timber 

 trees. The first named is the largest and most useful, and furnishes 



