sentences:  The principal export from the Red River settlements was fur, but as the colony passed from a subsistence economy to one producing more than could be consumed locally the agricultural surplus was also sent south by ox cart.The imports were more varied; originally they were seed, spices, and other staples, liquor, tools, implements, and hardware.In midcentury the buffalo herds declined, and traffic in furs began to be replaced by the produce and needs of settlers.