Bemidji Daily Pioneer Newspaper, March 25, 1907, Page 1

{E BEMIDJI DATILY PIONERS NU\IBEE\ 283 V()LUV[}. 4. BEMIDJ1, MINNESOTA, MONDAY EVENING, MARCH 25, 1907 TEN CENTS PER WEEK HON. HALVOR STEENERSON DID EXCELLENT WORK Took Prominent i'art in Enacting General Legislation of Great Importance to Entire Country.---Also Did Work of Especial Benefi HON, HALVOR Congressman, Niuth Congressional District. Hon. Halvor Stesnerscn, who represents is coungressional district ab the national capital, is in the city from Creokston and will remain here for several days, conducting some cases for clients in distr court. Congressman Steenerson an immense amount of the session of ¢co sutly adjourned, and e Crookston Times says of his labors: The first session of the 59th! Congress convened on the 4 h- day of December, 1¢ t con tinued until the 30th of June 1906; the second conve on the 3rd of Dec. 1906, and expired by limitation of law on the 4th of March 1907, did | work at S rece In addition to tuki ia general legislation e of great m)porL nce tothe country, such as regulation of railroads and corporations, pure food law, removing the tax on denatured alcohol and the new araliza- tion and immigration laws. Me, 1 Steenerson has a record for special work accomplished of great importance to the district and country at large, As a member of the committee on postoffice and post roads he was the first to agitate the aboli- tion of special railway mail sub- sigies to railroads in the south and southwest This subsidy of $167,000 per year had ar escape at the first w‘mon preseunt congress, h by only or against thi mittee at the pr sufficient to appropriation bill and for the first time siuce the railway mail service was established this item has disappeared from the bill. He was also the first io advo- cato the red on of railway mail pay upon the voutes where the traffic was dense and where it had been demonstrated by overwhelming evide that the railway mail pay is ive. Mr. Steenerson Iscactive in support of the increase of compensabion to rural and city mail carriers, railway mail clerks and postoffice clerks, which in- crease will go isto effect on the 1st day of July next. [0)3 special Linterest to this dis- trict is his advocacy of federal aid to reclamation of swamp and overflowed lands by drainage. He introduced several bills lock ing to the appropriation of the nt session was out of the proceml; of all the remaining! public lands outside of those de voted to irrigation to form a drainage fund to be used as a revolving fuud in reclaiming swamp lands. These measures | met with opposition, especially from the irrigation states who believed that it mightlead to an encroachment upon their rccelam- ation fund, and the seccretary of the interior refused to recom- mend the measures in the Congress. Not despairing, how- jwork and su -|{more than 1,000,000 acres and last t to This District. STEENERSON, the insertion of an item in the Indian Appropriation Bill aj pro priating $15,000 for a survey of {the swamp and overflowed ceded Indian lands with a view to re- clamation by drainage and with 2 view to determining whether or not such reclamation would be pyacmcabls and whether the cost could not be added to the price charged for the land. This bill was passed on the 30th day of June 1906, and with- in sixty days ther aafter the geo- logical sury undertook the yed some 400,000 acres of the ceded Indian lands to the north and east of Thief River Falls. A report was made upon this survey strongly favor- the cost of the improvement could easily be recouped by rais- ing the price of the land which is now subject to homestead mostly at $1.25 per acre. The report was sent to the Secretary of the Interior who transmitted the same to Congress with a recom mendation Lhat a sufficient appro- priation be made, estimated at $1,080,000, which money was to be reimburseable out of the aug- mented price of the land. On the sirci gth of this report and recommendation an additional $10,000 was appropriated in the current Indian appropriation bill for the completion of the sur- veys and it is believed thata strong case will be made in the next congress for an appropria- tion to construct the necessary works. The scheme will reclaim render the same suitable for set- tlers. Under the law of the first session of this congress giving this drainage appropriation, authority was granted to with- draw the land with a view to raising the price in order to pay for the contemplated improve- ments and Mr. Steenerson secured the insertionofa clause in the present Indian Appro- vriation bill restoring these ceded Indian lands to entry subject, however, to any future charges for drainage surveys such opening of the lands to entry wiil soon be received at i the land office. Mr. Steenerson for a general drainage whereby a revolving fund will be established to be used to cncourage drainage generally and this movement is receiving |a great deal of agitationand sup- port throught the whole coun- {try. in promoting more liberal pens- ion legislation, the ing the project and showing that | & and drainage reclamation works | g {and it is expected that notice of expects to continue the agitation | @ act |3 Steenerson took an active part | § resuit of |8 of the service pension bill giving every soldier who served in the Civil War thatis over 62 years old a pension of $12.00 a moanth; over 70 years $15,00 and over 75 $20 00 regardless of any disabil- ties. He has also promptly aided all soldiers in establishing their claims to increase and at no time has so many of these applications been favorably con- sidered. In addition to thisdur- ing the Congress just closed a total of 16 special pension biils to soldiers who were totally dis- abled from taking care of them-| selves and whose allowance ub- der the general laws was 1nsuf- ficient. Iu relation to local or special bills may be mentioned bills authorizing the building of a bridge for the Soo railroad across the Red Lake River and the Red Riverof the North, and of a pontoon bridge for the vil- lage of Oslo; alsoa bill author- izing the construction of a dam across the Red Lake River for water power purposes 12 miles northeast of Crookston and two bills for power purposes across the Mississippi in the vicinity of Bemidji, also the so-called “‘Steenerson Act” for an addi- tional allotment for the Chip- pawas of the Mississippi on the White Earth reservation also authorizing the platting of the village of White Earth, and the appropriation of $50,000 for the construction of a public building at Crookston. When Mr. Steenerson assumed the office four years ago there were eight rural routes in the 9th district and today there is 158 routes in actual operation, with complete county rural ser- vice in Ottertail county and one about to be established in Clay and Becker counties. In addi- tion to this numerous star routes have been extended so that the improvement secured in the mail service has been commen- surate with the rapid advance of the district population: As is well knowa, in Jauuary last, President Roosevelt was induced to issue a drastic order preventing the issuance of fin- al receipts ‘m all land entries and pracmcally stopped the oyperation of the land laws. As soon as attention was called to the order, ‘especially in the Times, to the great hardship re- sulting from this action, Mr. Steenerson called on the Presi- dent bad several conferences with him andon the 12th of Fe- bruary secured a modification of the order so as to exclude from its operation the five year home. stead proofs and all proofs upon ceded Indian lands, which prae- tically cover all the land proofs in Minnesota. Mr. Steenersonalso tookactive interest in the ocause of tariff revision, holding that'the party was committed to revision of the tariff at once. and tried tosecure the call of a caucus to consider the question of an exjra session with a view to revising the tariff. He was also active in opposi- tion to ship subsidy and epposed it to the last making a strcng speech on the subject, in settlement District Courf. Pat Lyon, indicted by the grand jury on the charge of larceny, was arraigned this morning, and through bis attor- ney. D. H. Fisk, demurred to the indictment. The court sus- tained the demurr, and the case will be resubmitted to the grand jury. Lyon is charged with stealing a quantity of beef, sev- eral bushels of potatoes and a miscellaneous collection of junk rom a lumber cemp near Kelli- her. poor farm and inspect the county jailand court house to- morrow and after making the usual report adjourn. This will be the longest grand jury ses- :\udi ‘The grand jury w111 visit theI sion in the county for several jyears. The case of the Namakan Lumber Co. vs. Rainy River { Boom Co., was called this morn- ing, C. J. Rockwood of Minne- apolis, appearing for the plain- tiff and Halvor Steenerson and Chas. Loring of Crookston for the defendent company. The suit is the outgrowth of an at- tempt of the boom company to leavy charges for booming and sorting several million feet of logs belonging to tha lumber company, three years ago, on the Rainy River. The plaio- tiffsscontend that under a treaty with Great Brittan, the Rainy is an international stream, and that the boom company had no right to string its booms across the river, or interfere with their driving of logs or collect any chargas therefor. There are three other similar cases -pend- ing but the outcome in the case on trial will probably settle the others, so far as this court is concerned. It is expected that case will reach the jury some time to-morrow. Will Saw June 10. Bert Munson and Charles | Kinkele, who are interested in the Leech Lake Lumber com- pany, passed through the city this morning on their return to Walker from a “still hunt” in the north countryalong the line of the M. & I. railway, where they had been purchasing timber for their company’s new mill at Walker. The mill at Walker is nearing completion, and Messrs. Munson and Kinkele state that t he plant will be in readiness to saw logs by the 10th of June. M. B. A: Card Party. The M. B. A. Lodge will give a card party at the I. O. O. F. hall Saturday evening, March 80, to which they extend a general in- vitation to their friends to be present. EXPOSITION Clothing House OF\‘ GENTLEMEN’S which was the passage at the ever, Mr. Steenerson secured { 1 last session of Congress of the § EASTER APPAREL Unrivalled Dis- play of B. Kuppen- heimer’s. Overcoats Suits, and Raincoats Universally conceded to be the finest ready for seiv'ce apparel ob- tainable. fitting Distinctive styles, superb qualities, exclusive collection of fabrics, every concelvable model that is correct and that a gentleman could wish for, for business or dress, is shown here in excellent variety at $15, $18, $20, $22, $24, $25 Spring Overcoat and Cravenette Special Men’s * spring overcoats and cravenettes, cut in stylish form fitting fashicn, in neat light and dark gray and fancy Scotch ef- fects, hand made garments worth to $20, special price. $15| DRAINAGE CONVENTION 'HELD AT GRAND RAPIDS Enlhusmsllc Meeting of Those Interested in Welfare of Northern Minnesota, Held Saturday.---John Aber- crombie Delive Grand Rapids, Minn, March 25'—(Special to the Pioneer.)—A district meecting of the S:ate Drainage Lesgue was held Satur- day afternoon in the court house, presided over by J. S. Gole, sec- retary of the league. A com mittee composed of J, S. Gole,! A. M. Greeley and A. J. Mc- Guire was appuinted to press the needs for drainage of Itasca and Koochiching counties upon the state drainage board. The meeting was large and enthusias- tic. The most important address was made by John Abercrombie, president of the State Drainage League, who said in part: “What is the reason to. be now adduced to justify fervent andi favorable action respecting the pressing demand to push system- atic drainage as a factor in the obligatory work of “state devel- opment?”’ Isit: That the millions of acres of public lands, said to lie waste and unproductive within our state, be speedily reclaimed to make footing and provision for a suitable ard sufficient im- migration, it being conceded that the brawn and thrift of the tens- of-thousands of such are in- dispensable to us in the task of uplifting our commonwealth to that summit of enduring pros- perity which our waiting re- sources promise to’ pirnacle for us. Alsois it: That suitable and suflicient betterments be made for many who were units in the corps of a former immigration, so that it may be tolerable for them to cling to the holdings H | which they took up in hope and good faith among us, rather than emigrate. And that the making of a home—under the same old star—be ready at hand for pur- chase by any of the sturdy stock of the fathers who stood the brunt of the battle of building our state and bejeweling it with cities; and not that such—stuff whose worth has been proven— should have resort to emigrate| rather than to remain to emulate the grit. of their progenitors. If the answer is in the affirma- tive, a reason is adduceda which ought to beget implicit confi- dence, full sympathy and vigor- ous abetment from all sources. However, the affirmative implies a double thought, immigration on the one hand and emigration on the other—a flowing in, and a flowing out. This double thought is not assuring to a state’ s am- bition to encompass a teeming| and prosperous population. It savors too much of the character of an open tube, as free to dis- charge at the one end as it is to receive at the other. Let us glance at emigration from Min- nesota, Last fall Mr. Jobn A. McKay, a hustling real estate man of 30 year’s standing at Alexandria, in Douglass county, who about ten years-ago added a Canadian government land agency to his general practice, informed me from his records, tbat up o October 1st, 1906, he had for- warded to Western Canada over 1600 persons who took with them $387,028 in cash and effects. The locality that suffered this loss his Alexandria for its -center, and a sweep of about thirty-five miles. That the Canadian agent | by a railway line. rs «n Address. be was always met with the re- buff: “Itis alla bcg vp there.” I questioned Mr. McKay as to whether the lauds of the out- goers were not taken up by in- comers. He replied, ‘“very sel- dom”; that when sold they were purchiased by old settlers. He expressed the opinion that if sufficient and suitable canals had been dug, ten years ago, reclaim- ing the black-uuck swamps of Northern Minnesota he could have sent, to our north ' country, at least from 70 to 80 per cent of that which has passed through his bands for western Canada. But, Mr. McKay’s return does nob represent the entire emigra- tion from his district. ~There were private Canadian land con- cerns which operated through other agencies, over his territory: the result of their labors I do not know. The country is placarded to a finish with the advertisements: “Western Canads,” “Texas” and so forth. Vacant ‘‘Northern Minnesota® is unheralded—unknown to its own State—Why? Locally, we have glanced at the emigration phase—present with us as an exact science. Let us now glance locally at the Immigration phase. Neither time nor spice will permit us to cover our rnorth country, wholly. Let us go to the heart of Itasca’s wilderness—to the heart of the twenty-five mile swamp— toT. 168 N K. 26 W. (the neigh- borhood of Margie) and what shall we find? One third of the township taken up and occupied, even before the United States government had stret:hed a chain fo subdivide itas public land; and long before a shovel of dirt had been cast up to cross it And, the re-. maining two thirds—16,000 acres —vacant, with no signs of future settlement. On the U. S, deputy surveyor’s rough field plat of this township there appeared thirty-seven small black squares each donat- ing a squatter’s shack on the north one third, but the south was bare ofany such conven- tional signs. Why? Because the former pre- sents some little footing for man, and the latter none, as itisa swamp in one piece. Had it been as the former of the incomers, then, for land, it, too, would have been occupied, throughout, The jnorth oue-third consists of the summit and slopes of moraine, rising cut of the ocean of bog; broken with marshes, hemmed in by beaver dams. But it is down on the south two-thirds— the 16,000 acre vacancy—where fertility is slumbering. When the Minnesota & Inter- national Railway company dug culvert pits at intervals across it, I observed for nine and ten feet dowa from the surface it was veritable black muck —a compact of the decayed vegetable matter of former forests—and where more shallow of muck,and its bed could be seen, it lay on gocd clay or gravel, impregnated with the elements of plant food. I observed it was not a quak- ing bog, but’swamp stiff enough that the railway company could set up a five or six-foot bank— from borrow pit; lay track and run trains, without there being a adjoining him to the northeast had sent away more than he. It is noticable that these agen- cies creep well up into the region of our state’s waste lands. Also, that during these nire years he had been interested in some good dry lands in northern Minnesota, stick of corduroy intentionally laid on the naked surface under the fill. It is cut by the south branch of the Sturgeon river, with its small feeders which are gradually gnawing their way back to the water—logged di- vides. The surface-slope over fland had called the attention of ' many of his clients to them, but its moss-covered surfaceis from Continued on last page.