AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[October, 
Minnesota, are still offered at very moderate figures, 
though we are told that the subject of advancing them is 
now under advisement. At this writing, Sept. 10th, they 
can be had for from two to eight dollars per acre, ac¬ 
cording to locality, the average price being four dollars. 
Railroad bands. 
These lands consist of alternate sections in a strip of 
country one hundred and fifty miles long and forty 
miles wide, and extending twenty miles each side of the 
railroad. During this month of September, as we have 
passed over them, these lands present a beautiful ap¬ 
pearance, being undulating here and there, skirted with 
timber, and deversified with miniature lakes and streams. 
The train leaving Chicago at nine o’clock, A. M.. 
reaches Kasota, Minn., (515 miles), early in the morning. 
Here we exchanged the sleeping car for a car of observa¬ 
tion, (a caboose comfortably fitted up), moving slowly, 
and from the lookout affording a magnificent view of the 
country through which we were passing. Crossing the 
beautiful Minnesota River twice, and through an old 
settled country, w'e, at the end of a thirty miles run, 
reached New Ulm, the scene of the terrible Indian mas¬ 
sacre in 1862. We are now in the vicinity of the railroad 
lands. Fourteen miles further brought us to Sleepy Eye, 
another thriving village, named after a noted Indian 
chief, whose log cabin can still be seen from the car. 
Forty-six miles further brought us to Tracy, from which 
point one branch of the railroad runs nearly due west 
to Huron and Pierre, Dakota, and the other runs north¬ 
west to Watertown, Aberdeen, and Redfield, Dakota. 
The land grant extends along the northwest line. 
Those wishing to secure Government lands should push 
on towards Huron. Those wishing to purchase railroad 
lands should stop here at Tracy, and visit such lands in 
Lyon and adjacent counties. This is an excellent wheat 
district. Alter slopping here for a few days, push on 
northwest, being sure to stop at Marshall, a most thriv¬ 
ing, growing village. Then proceed northwest to Wa¬ 
tertown and Redfield, then south to Huron (see map), 
and back east again to Tracy. This trip will enable 
you to see the best of the railroad lands for sale. 
There was opened during the second week of Sep¬ 
tember a new branch of this railroad system, extending 
southeast from Iroquois (see map), twenty miles cast of 
Huron to Hawarden, thence to Eagle Grove. This road 
opens up a new region where there is considerable ex¬ 
cellent land. Those who desire cheap farms should in¬ 
spect these lands. While there are no free or rail¬ 
road lands along the route, cheap lands car. be bought all 
through this region. Perhaps intending settlers can find 
what they desire here without going further into Dakota. 
Cheap Government hands for the million. 
If, however, following the vast throng, they should de¬ 
cide to go further west in Dakota, they will find beauti¬ 
ful Government lands, which they .can homestead, pre¬ 
empt and secure under Soldier’s and Tree claims. Of 
course, the lands lying adjacent to the railroads in 
Dakota, have all been taken possession of before this. 
For example, from Huron to Pierre, a distance of one 
hundred and nineteen miles by rail, every acre is now 
owned or held under some claim, whereas less than 
eighteen months ago the whole country was Govern¬ 
ment land, open to settlement, under Homestead, 
Pre-emption, Soldier, and Tree claims. We should 
say, as a general thing, that you must not expect 
to now obtain land under any one of these claims, within 
ten or fifteen miles either side of a railroad, unless you 
buy out some other person’s claim,which is very largely 
done. You will, however, find good lands outside of 
this limit, north or south; for example, in Sully and 
Potter counties, north of the line of the railroad, on 
which we are now moving, there are some very good 
Government lands. Then there are good lands in Wal¬ 
worth, Edmunds, Campbell, McPherson, Emmons, 
Logan, and other counties to the north of them, which 
are yet to be surveyed by the Government, and will be 
brought into communication with the outer world by the 
branch of the Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad, now 
being built through portions of them, from Aberdeen to 
Bismarck. We have not space to indicate these counties 
on the map. They lie, however, west and northwest of 
Ordway, which place is designated on the map. 
Rapid Transformation Scenes. 
We passed over the country from Huron to Pierre 
during the second week of September. The long train 
of cars was filled with people from the Middle and 
Western States, who flocked out at the various stations 
like people going to a country fair. A year or more ago 
the stations were simply side tracks for the railroad; 
now there are flourishing villages at each one of them. 
For example, Huron, eighty-nine miles west of the 
Minnesota line, which had no existence two years ago, 
now has two thousand population, two daily news¬ 
papers, five banks, and any number of brick and wood 
edifices. Proceed westward another eighty-nine miles, 
and, where a year ago there was unbroken prairie, 
you now find the village of Blunt, with a 
large population and an Opera House, accom¬ 
modating six hundred souls. Just as a curiosity, 
and to show the readers of the American Agriculturist 
how this unknown country, so to speak, is quickly trans¬ 
ferred into a new world, we reproduce from our notes as 
wc reached each one of them some comments regarding 
the villages strung along the railroad like beads on a 
thread, from the Dakota line to the Missouri River, a 
distance of two hundred and eight miles, it being under¬ 
stood that the oldest of all these places has not been in 
existence much over two years. Preston, six hundred 
and nineteen miles northwest from Chicago, and forty- 
six miles west of the Minnesota line, a dozen houses 
on a very level prairie. De Smet, thirty houses, good 
level prairie, good school-house, and a large lumber 
establishment. Iriquois, thirty houses, good depot, and 
good school-house. Cavour, a small squad of houses, 
prairie, somewhat broken in the vicinity. Miller, one 
hundred houses, level prairie. Lawrence, built on rolling 
prairie. Highmore, nicely painted depot, and large 
warehouse. Harold, rolling prairie to the south. 
Move Slowly and Cautiously. 
What we have said of this portion of Dakota doubtless 
applies to other portions further south and north. We 
have described this region of territory, because it is the 
one which we have passed through. We are told that 
the same rush of immigrants which prevails here, is to be 
found along the line of the Milwaukee and St. Paul 
road, extending south across the territory to Cham¬ 
berlain on the Missouri River. So far as we have been 
able to determine, the soil is rich and fertile, producing 
fine crops of wheat, corn, rye, and other cereals. The heavy 
frost, which produced so much damage during the nights 
of Friday and Saturday, September 7th and 8th, did not 
do much damage to the crops here. Indeed on the Mis¬ 
souri slope, that is in the neighborhood of Blunt and 
Pierre, little or no damage occurred. At the same tims 
it is well for those looking towards this region of the 
country, to remember that the winters, as a general 
thing, are cold, and that there are other drawbacks con¬ 
sequent to new countries. 
As before stated, if you wish to purchase lands of the 
railroad, you can buy them in Western Minnesota 
at moderate figures—lands specially adapted for wheat. 
The rush has been to the Dakota Territory, right over 
these lands, because immigrants could secure free lands 
in this Territory. If immigration continues to be as 
large during this autumn and next year as it has been 
for the past eighteen months, it will not be long before 
both South-western Minnesota and all of Dakota, 
adapted to agricultural pursuits, will be populated. 
Large Pay for Little Work. See Premium List. 
