to the owners. This was a good card for the "Selkirk;" she had all that she could carry, at very good prices. Mr. Kittson had to put the "International" into general trade, and in June she was duly advertised as a common carrier.

In 1867, I had bought the interest of Messrs. Burbank and Merriam in the Minnesota Stage and Express business; and asssociated with me was Mr. C. W. Carpenter, who had been our confidential clerk since 1856. As soon as was practicable in 1871, I fitted out my tent and team, to inspect the route from Georgetown to Winnipeg, for the purpose of locating stations and bridges, in preparation for stage service. Winnipeg I made a contract to carry the mail to Pembina for the Canadian Government. Our agent, Mr. Proctor, had the bridges, stations and everything in order, and the first fourhorse stage arrived in Winnipeg September 11th.

Events of interest and importance continued to follow, one upon the heels of another, during this summer, among which we remember the editorial excursion, consisting of the most prominent men of the day in the newspaper world, Messrs. Bayard Taylor of the New York Tribune, Charles A. Dana of the New York Sun, J. C. Evans of the New York World, E. C. Bowman of the New York Herald, Lieut. Gov. Bross of the Chicago Tribune, and Mr. J. H. Harper of Harper Brothers. They went from St. Paul to Morris by the St. Paul & Pacific railroad, and thence by stage to the steamboat running to Winnipeg, where they were hospitably received and entertained, our counsul doing his best to make them at home.

The telegraph line was extended to Winnipeg; the Northern Pacific railroad was completed to Moorhead; and the last brigade of Red River carts disappeared from this State. Immigration continued to pour into Manitoba, and building and trade were very largely increasing. The first Parliament was held during the winter of 1870-'71. Claim settling and town building were active along the river in Minnesota and Dakota, and our hopes of twelve years ago began to be realized.

The navigation opening in 1872 disclosed the fact that all the boats were under the management of Mr. Kittson and were called the Kittson line. The large immigration made. the demand so great for provisions that several of our people fitted out flatboat stores and traded down the river until their

goods were sold, then sold their boats, and returned by stage to make another venture.

Logs from the Red Lake river pineries were run to Winnipeg and sold to saw mills. Some of our neighbors will prob ably remember some events that occurred while visiting Winnipeg in the log trade. The stage began running daily from Breckenridge to Winnipeg; immigration during 1873-74 continued about as in the preceding year, although still increasing.

The only thing that occasioned remark was an intimation that the great steamboat monopoly was charging outrageous prices for transportation. This kind of feeling made itself manifest in the summer of 1874. The merchants of Winnipeg induced some gentlemen of the Red river, in Minnesota, and probably some of our fellow citizens of this vicinity, to organize a new company, to be called the "Merchants' Line." The residents of the United States were the corporate authority, as they could form a bonded line for the transportation of merchandise to Winnipeg. The management was also in the hands of American citizens, but the money to build two nice boats was mostly furnished by merchants in Winnipeg. The carpenter work, as far as possible, was done in Cincinnati, Ohio, and sent by rail to Moorhead; the machinery was built in Minneapolis; the capital was $50,000, with authority to increase to $100,000.

The steamer, "Manitoba," made her appearance in Winnipeg on May 21, 1875. The "Minnesota" arrived on May 23. They appeared to be very nice boats for the trade and were welcomed by the merchants in Winnipeg with great satisfaction. Red river is narrow and very crooked, and that two lines of boats could not run on it with safety was proved by an accident that happened June 11th, when the "International" and "Manitoba" came in collision and the "Manitoba" was sunk. She was soon raised and in the line again, but this accident was the beginning of trouble. Some of the stockholders did not feel satisfied with the management; and dissatisfaction continued until the steamers "Manitoba" and "Minnesota" stopped running. The "Manitoba" was seized for debt, in Winnipeg, and the "Minnesota" was taken possession of in Moorhead. A committee was sent to St. Paul to investigate

and report; upon their return, it was reported that the business was in a bad shape, and that the boats would not run again that season. Finally Mr. Kittson bought out the control of the boats, and in 1876 they were run in his line.

The grasshoppers in the summer of 1875 were perfectly terrific, but disappeared when they were big enough to go. This was the last of the scourge that had been with the people of Manitoba constantly since 1864. August 20, 1876, I was in Winnipeg. On my passage down, I had constantly watched for signs of the coming of grasshoppers, and thought I had seen some stray ones in the sunlight. I called upon Mr. A. G. B. Bannityne, and asked if there was any information about their coming this season. He said, "No," and remarked, "this is the latest date they have ever come"; but as he made the reply, he cast his eye toward the heavens and saw three large hoppers just above our heads, and they fell on the pavement at our feet, but they were the last; no more came.

The farmers had no seed to sow, and nothing to speak of was raised in 1876. In the winter of 1876-'77, Gov. Morris asked where he could get some seed wheat for the settlers to sow in the spring. I replied that the Munger Brothers, of St. Paul, had about 12,000 bushels of wheat at Caledonia on our stage road, which I had inspected on my way down, and informed him that it was the best lot of wheat I had ever seen. It weighed sixty-four pounds to the bushel. The Mungers. sold him this lot of wheat; and when you hear of fine grades of wheat in Manitoba, you will remember where they got their seed. In 1876 some hay and probably about 50,000 barrels of flour were imported into Winnipeg.

The Kittson Line had been reorganized and was called the Red River Transportation Company. The principal boats of the line were the "International," Capt. Painter; the "Minnesota," Capt. Timmens; the "Manitoba," Capt. Alex. Griggs; the "Dakota," Capt. Seigers; the "Selkirk," Capt. John Griggs; and the "Alphia," Capt. Russell.

The St. Paul & Pacific Pembina branch had been extended to Crookston, and was put in operation in the summer. The steamboat freight and passenger business, and river and stage trade, were correspondingly diminished as to distance, al-. though their volume was continually increased. In the sum-

mer of 1877 the railroad was extended to Fisher's Landing, down the Red Lake river toward Grand Forks. The ceremony of driving the first spike on the Pembina branch of the Canadian Pacific railway took place at St. Boniface station grounds, on the 29th of September, His Excellency, the Governor General of the Dominion, Lord Dufferin, taking part and being the chief spokesman of the occasion.

The Minnesota Stage Company had learned in the past what railroads meant for them, and early in the season had opened a new road from Bismarck to the Black Hills, building bridges and stations, again committing their fortunes to the chance of Sioux depredations, for another fifteen years of arduous service.

The immense immigration that came to the Red river, both north and south of the international boundary, and the crops that were being shipped from their very productive fields, gladdened the hearts of those who had chosen their future homes upon the banks of the river. The Indian troubles had passed away; the troops had gone west of the Missouri or had been disbanded; quiet, peace, and prosperity covered the land; and, as "all things come to those who wait," the last act to make the joy of the people in the Red river valley complete occurred on Dec. 2, 1878, when the track layers joined the rails of the St. Paul and Pacific and Canadian Pacific, at the international boundary line. This made it apparent to all that commerce and civilization had come to the valley of the Red River of the North.

NOTE -My grateful acknowledgment is due to Mr. Alexander Begg's "Ten Years in Winnipeg" for assistance in fixing many dates of incidents referred to in Manitoba, R. B.

LAST DAYS OF WISCONSIN TERRITORY AND

EARLY DAYS OF MINNESOTA TERRITORY.*

BY HON. HENRY L. MOSS.

Officers and Associates of the Minnesota Historical Society: At the request of your committee, that I should address you on this occasion, as to the events and actors during the early territorial days of Minnesota, I submit the following review of the times, fifty years ago, around which cluster some of the most important and interesting events of our history. The brief time, in connection with business duties requiring my attention, has precluded my giving the careful examination of records and data which I should much desire; and if perchance errors occur in my statements, a defective memory is the apology.

By an act of Congress approved by President Polk March 3, 1849, the territory of Minnesota was organized; and thereby a government was established, having the usual powers existing under a representative republic, namely, the executive, judicial, and legislative. The executive consisted of a governor and secretary. The judicial department comprised a chief justice and two associate judges, all of whom, together with the district attorney and marshal, were appointed by the Pres ident. The legislative department consisted of nine members of the "Council," and eighteen members of the "Assembly," to be elected by the citizens of the territory.

Soon after his inauguration, March 4, 1849, President Taylor appointed for governor Edward G. McGaughey, of Indiana, who failed of confirmation by the senate, which was then in * An Address at the Annual Meeting of the Minnesota Historical Society, Jan. 13,