| Show three divisions affording great chances for settlement ranching wheat growing and mixed farming the old romans used to say that aul was divided into three parts aso is the canadian north west bauls divisions were political hose of the western canada prairies are created by the unerring hand of nature the first D v s on chiefly because of the elevation of the country the absence of large akes and rivers and the operations aft the chinook or pacific ocean winds which readily cross the rock a mountains in southern alberta through gaps and passes the sou h portion of the canadian brov inces is regarded as somewhat and and less fertile than other portions of country although this has been a prevailing idea inthe past it has been left for settlers who have invaded his district within the past two or thre years to prove that splendid crops of grain can be grown on the land while there are no large lakes or rivers in this whole country there are numerous fast running streams fed the year round by melting snows in the mountains furnishing an abend ance afi the coolest and purest katr the best for beast as well as man englishmen and americans in the western territories are bringing in their herds as fast as they can and leasing or purchasing land in lots from 1000 to acres from the dominion government an idea of the growth of the industry will conever be gathered from the fact that in there w ere but 41 head of cattle shipped and sold froin the ranches these figures ran to in 1900 and to in 1903 averaging 40 per head for the owners but it takes a great many ranchers and a large number of cattle to cover an area of acres the area available foi ranching in the canadian north west it is not at all necessary that large investments should be made at the outset many men commenced with email capital and small herds and lave worked themselves into large berds and great w balth there is still in the country plenty of for those who desire to go and do like amse the second part the second part of the canadian prairies embraces the great wheat growing belt of the country which la easily a halt larger than any other in the world it includes about acres As it is comparatively eutree of broken land large lakes and rivers about acres of it can be brought under the plow ing a farmer on every half section acres it can comfortably locate farmers or 4 of an agricultural community the terri tordal governments reports show that in 1903 there were raised 16 bushels of spring wheat off acres an average of 19 86 bushels per acre off acres of oats there grown bushels an av of bushels per acre 9 acres produced 1 bush els of barley 24 65 to the acre and S acres produced 83 bushels of flax seed 9 03 to the acre As but 1 acres or a ittle bet ter than one per cent of the entire wheat growing area of the territories was under crop a little figuring shows that 13 per cent of the entire country nader wheat will raise the bat great britain annually requires from the outside countries it is a eairly safe statement to make that in twelve or fifteen years the canadian ries will be s ip plying the entire demands of the mother country throughout this entire belt there is an enormous length of railway mile age branches are radiating in every direction from the bruni s until they scarcely leave a grain field more than six or seven miles from a road and hey are all required for in the fall and early winter the sight of the trains passing to and from the eleva ora at the railway depots makes the entire country look like one hive of industry in 1880 there were but few white settlers in the entire country outside of those connected with the hudson bay company s posts and scarcely a dallai s worth of anything outside of buffalo hides exported till 1883 twenty years ago and now the country has a white population of over scalf a million the immigration of 1903 toeing 40 pel cent of the num frer being americans brought over by the representations of their country men who preceded them in settlement large quant ty of free homestead lands there Is et a large quantity of government land for homestead ng in this country and as in ever thing else the early bird catches the worm those who come first are arst served when it is preferred to purchase railway or oti er company lands they can be got at from a per acre up this section cannot be better closed than by showing hat is made by wheat grow ng in this district the average from the first of operations is twenty bush els per acre breaking Bie aking tt e prairie as first plowing is called is of arse an exceptional as when it is orce done it is done tor all time tl Is costs about 3 0 O an acre after the 1 ing plowing and seeding harvesting threshing and marl eting all expenses combined amount ta about 25 per aci e that is if a man likes everything done it will cost him per acre if he does the work himself he is earning wages while producing at that figure now as the average yield is twenty bushels and the average price 60 cents 12 per acre the difference beewen the re suit and cost 6 75 is the profit of grain growing year in and year out in the great wheat belts of the cana dian prairie country it a man has a half section of land and puts half of it acres under wheat which is a very common occurrence he makes 1080 on wheat alone and should make it he Is a capable farmer enough out of other crops sale of cat tie dairy and other products to liepp himself and family the year round be sides the third div s on the third division ot this yeat auntry lies to the north of the wheat belt between it and what Is 1 jovn as the forest country As w heat grow ing implies the raising of all cereals that can profitably be raised in the country the remaining branches of mixed farming are dairying and the blaising of farm stock it must not be supposed that dividing the prairie in this way is saying that any one alon of the country possesses better oil than another tor such is not the case all districts are equally fertile but the topography and climatic influx ances etc differ as well as the condl t ons for production ranching and 1 growing are carried on quite successfully in this northern zone but it Is found more profitable to corn bine all the features of the industry an authority on the subject has stated that agriculture in any country rever reaches the maximum of de until the farmers engage at east proportionately in dairying though the surroundings must always ce termine the extent to which any feature of the industry may be prosecuted da ry ng in the territories creameries and cheese factories are to a arge extent under government control and as such are working well in manitoba they are largely a matter of private enterprise and the reports from that province they must be giving absolute satisfaction to the patrons and promoters it a settler s farm Is not specially adapted to extensive crop 1 ing or if seasons or other conditions are against the proper development of large crops be has always plenty of pasture and an abundance of native hay for winter teed A small sum of money buys a couple of cows and he can soon be in possession of a fine herd of dairy cattle and the same may be said of swine and poultry markets the mining districts of british columbia which consume an im mense lot of dairy products are close at hand and always afford a good market for butter cheese pork poul tr and eggs when in the future that country is overstocked great britain offers as now a ready market tor whatever may be produced taken to all in all the canadian northwest s the country for the man acquainted with or willing to learn any branch of farming in the industry with a few years of care and enterprise be can soon consider himself and his family in easy and comfortable circum stances |
