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Prospects for Oregon's Success Pictured by One Who Knows h
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TIIE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE: JANUARY T, 1911".
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IMITATION of r preamble to th fol
lowing story of Oregon the writer d
Blres to state, as he has by letter to
many acquaintances, that previous arti
cles which have appeared la Th Bn
have been simply a statement of facts.
I
not embellished 'by flowing rhetoric
alias hot air, and this article is of like kind.
, Yet, while the saying of Oregonians that this la
the "land of opportunity" is strictly true, It Is equally
true that "all Is not gold that glitters," even la this
region of glittering possibilities. Take for lastance
the climate. On the Paclf lo coast blizzards and elec
trical storms are practically unknown; there are no
very severely cold days in winter and never any torrid
summer nights;' In short the weather, as a rule, la
delightful. Yet,' "the rain, It ralneth every day"
some days, yea some weeks and there are time
when it is no trouble to believe that once upon earth
It rained forty days and forty nights. During the
winter months, very frequently, the days are dark
and gloomy and when It Is not raining the weather
man Is making signs, or possibly false motions, that
nolsture Is liable to descend at any moment. This
weather la liable to give the pilgrim from Nebraska
the "blues" and make him forget that probably, away
back home, the mercury is out of sight while the
.prairie sephyrs are chasing each other at an aviator's
. yalt around the corners of the houses.
Several Kinds of Climate.
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Properly speaking this state has more climates
than one. To begin with there is eastern and western
Oregon, the dividing line being fixed at 121 degrees
west longitude. On the west, the coast counties have:
the most equable temperature, ,1.0. degrees below zero
being the coldest ever recorded, while the zero point
Is very seldom reached. These . counties have the
heaviest rainfall and the growing. season is upwards
of 150 days long.
The Willamette Valley lies between the coast
range and was the part of the state which, by the
wonderful beauty and unusual fertility, first attracted
particular notice and it was here the first permanent
settlements in the state were made. ' It contains more
than 6,500,000 acres of rich agricultural land; the
highest recorded temperature is only a little over
100 degrees Fahrenheit, snow seldom falls and the
growing season averages about 225 days In the
year.
Farther south are two other important valleys,
the Umpqua and the Rogue River valleys, the latter
locality ' having recently achieved fame through the
favorable advertising given it by Its superior quality
of epples and other fruit. The mean annual tempera
ture of this region is about the same as that of the
, Willamette' valley, for although farther south the el
, evatlon is. generally speaking, greater, thus equaliz
ing the climate. '
If a person -Is seeking a dry climate with abund
ance of sunshine, It is to be found to perfection in
,- central and eastern Oregon, where there Is little or no
tumidity and the air is as clear and pure as the
roost typical ozone of earth.
Soil is Very Prolific.
The , next .question asked would be what can be
raised aU4 .how much?
' In certain sections of Oregon the production of
bop is of-the utmost Importance, In favorable years
contributing a large share of the farmers' Income
and affording manyvwomen and children pleasureable
and profitable employment. .-The hop picking season,
tf the weather be favorable. Is a veritable picnic for
this class of people. If the price be reasonably good
the- crop .is profitable and In no section of the world
can , a. better grade of hops be produced than oi the
northwest; Paclfie coast. ' '
In an early day the Willamette valley and other
like parts of the state were famous for the large crops
ot wheat and other small grains produced, but of late
years the land has become too valuable for horticul
tural purposes to be devoted to agriculture. When
the growing of apples, pears, prunes and other like
fruits bring an Income to the producer of 11,000 and
-upward per acre, grain must take a "back seat." for
even the best of grain crops at the highest prices can
Cot approach this record.
At the prese&t time the eastern two-thirds of
tae state suppliee
most of the wheat and meat pro-
duclng animals.
In this part of the state Is still to
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TYPICAL
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be found wide range for ljve stock and vast but fer
tile tracts where the gang plow and the steam
thresher may be employed to good advantage. '
Great Fanning Prospect.
Prof. James Wlthycombe, director of the United
States government experimental station at the Ore
gon Agricultural college, gives it as his opinion that
eventually, when properly utilized, Oregon will yield
fSOO, 000,000 annually. lie opines that while grain
and live stock are at present the major productions
of the eastern section of the state. Irrigation farming,
dairying and horticulture will soon be the principal
industries of this region, and further states that he
believes that ultimately horticulture and dairying will.
be the two great agricultural Industries of the entire
commonwealth and advises a person selecting a new
site for a farm to be certain that a portion of It Is
adapted to fruit growing. Prof. Wlthycombe again
advises the new comer to provide himself with a good
dairy herd and a flock of poultry, as these can be
made to support the family while the fruit trees are
growing and the farm is being brought to a state of
perfection.
Poultry raising In the northwest is one of the most
profitable Industries. For this the eastern section
offers the most Inviting field. Here wheat, the prin
cipal foodstuff, grows In abundance, and Is lower In'
price than elsewhere In the state. Alfalfa, one of the
best green feeds, la successfully grown, while oats and
barley yield heavily.
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Hog liaising and Dairying. .
The raising of hogs Is one of the industries that
is sadly neglected. The statements of other writers to
the contrary notwithstanding, this Is not7 and never'
will be a corn producing region. The nights, even
in the midst of summer, are too cool for the maturing
of the corn plant and perhaps this Is one reason why
the raising of swine has not been more industriously
prosecuted. Nevertheless, the fact remains that no
branch ot the live stock Industry offers better re
turns and more certain profits than breeding and
fattening pigs. There Is grown In this region a
field pea which yields an abundant crop and Is said
to be as good as corn to feed and fatten hogs.
As naturally as, in the corn belt, the hog follows
the horned brute, the subject of dairying follows that
of raising swine; yet, perhaps, the more fastidious
would have placed the dairy first and consider, that
my arrangement resembles setting the cart before the
horse. Oregon, especially the western section. Is the
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cow's paradise. A mild climate combined with lux
uriant growth of grasses which remain green prac
tically the whole year round, make the m lid-eyed
bovine "as happy as a big sunflower." Despite the
fact that Oregon is extensively engaged In the pro
duction of butterfat, the records show that' at cer
tain seasons of the year 75 per cent of the butter used
In the Pacific northwest is shipped to this region
from east of the Rocky mountains.
It Is not necessary In this state to have an ex
pensive herd of thoroughbred ' cattle to engage in
dairying. The poor man with half a dozen cows of
average quality can make a nice profit, especially if
he has a cream separator so that the skimmed milk
can be red to tne pigs ana calves, lor tne cost or
ket,plng the cow w,n D0 prBctica.lly nothing, since
they can subsist on the rough brush land.
To use a slang expression, it is when the subject
of fruit Is broached that Oregon shines, and perhaps
No Use Feeling Blue
Oh, I like to hear a feller who will whistle at his
work,
I like to hear a worker who will hum a little tune,
Ef a feller's got some muBlc, why he ain't so apt to
shirk;
He kin change a bleak De'cember into mild and
merry June.
What's the use o' feelln' blue;
There Is sunshine here fur. you.
Life Is mostly what you make It, make It meller-llke
an' true;
Care will often run away,
Ef he finds you're feelln' gay.
Open up your music, brother, an" by thunder, let it
play!
There's enough uv gloom an' sorrer uv the kind that
hex to be.
Lots uv it's imaginary; you kin whistle it away.
When you see of trouble skulkin' In the lots behind
a tree
Let him see you're merry hearted; put your record
on an' play. '"-
What's the use o' feelln' blue;
- Natur's happyllke an' true.
Help the world to be more cheerful an' 'twill do the
same fur you;
Blue Is all right in the sky,
All right In the maiden's eye
But don't git It in your system; It will kill you by an'
by.
Jo Cone In New York Sun.
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IWHHHJI!M.!'lH!JJPi!BM
THIRD CROP OT" j&IIjALEA. TAKEZ-
the state Is -better known for its superior apples and.
other fruit than for any 'other reason. Not only In
the United States, but In England, Scotland and'
other parts of the old world Oregon fruits take the
highest rank. The section of the state known as'
Hood River stands at the', head of the class, with the
Rogue River valley a close second. Small fruits, too,
grow In abundance and are most delicious. Two
crops of strawberries Is nothing unusual.
As may easily be imagined, and It seems almost
superfluous to mention it, garden truck flourishes
like a green bay tree. Potatoes grow literally like
weeds, four to six hundred bushels to the acre being
no unusual yield. The festive potato bug and the
blight, common In eastern states, are here unknown
and if one is too lazy or busy to dig the crop in the
fall, spuds may be allowed to remain In the ground
all winter without fear of damage.
"Onion growing is profitable In the middle west,"
some one has said, "but it is more remunerative in
Oregon."
Three hundred dollars per acre does not make the
northwestern man's eyes bulge out nor make him feel
particularly like a bloated aristocrat, for it is no un
common thing to receive this amount of income from
an acre of onions.
Cauliflower, cabbage, turnips, peas, beans, celery,
tomatoes, asparagus, beets, parsnips, radishes, let
tuce, spinach, squash and pumpkins grow here to
perfection.
The average reader know that previously
much the larger portion of Oregon and other north
western territory was covered by heavy timber and
that the lumber industry was and is to this d'sy the
leading one of many sections of this part ef the
United States. Important as is this fact In a general
way it Interests but to a very limited extent the man
from the middle west, who knows little and cares leas,
about merchantable timber. But to one feature of
this industry I desire to call particular attention,
namely, that lumber bills for Improvements of what
ever nature In Oregon, do not make a bole in the
bank account they do in Nebraska. One can build a
nice, comfortable house at very low figures compared
to Missouri river prices; hence there are few farmers
in this vicinity who sre not well housed and have
good barns for their stock.
Good Hunting and Fishing.
There came In my mall today a letter from
an old newspaper man of Nebraska enquiring as to
whether there was any game or fish to be had in the
Pacific northwest. In Oregon, instead of throwing
your hook into a murky stream and waiting for a
nibble you creep up to the edge of the bank and
nutetlT casting your bait, see the gamest of fish llt-
erally grab your fly. almost before it ha touched th
water, making off with it amid hi fellow, who ac-
tually appear eorry they were not caught.- The lake
TWO CBQF3
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ZZT - ESNTOir COZOTTT
and stream of the Pacific northwest are one of th
most delightful features of this region of beautiful
scenery. Fed by the perpetual snows from lofty
mountain peak the streams run pure and cold over
pebble covered beds between banks of greenest ver
dure, leaping, laughing, singing to the sea.
The southern part of Oregon is not the only lo
cality In the northwest where game and fish are
plenty, for, compared to the middle west, every lo
cality furnishes in season an abundance of good sport
for the true sportsman.
Omaha has her Ak-Sar-Ben, Kansas City ber
Priests of Pallas, New Orleans her Mardi Gras, but
Portland ha ber Rose Festival, which from nature'
standpoint surpasses them all In beauty and spectac- ,
ular display. It is an annual event which occur la
June, the leading rose month of the yeaiy although i
in Oregon they bloom until December. Last summer
the festival was held from June 6 to 11 inclusive, end
was a solid week of floral pageants by day, mytho
logical, allegorical and historical at night.
Roses Used by Millions.
It is useless to undertake to say how many mil
lions of roses were used in these parades and words
are entirely inadequate to express or illustrate the
beauty of these exhibits. Portland has more than
one thousand miles of roses, which if placed side by
side would reach from the Columbia river to the
Southern part of California. Washington's birthday,
when many of the readers of The Bee are doing their
level best to keep warm by a hot fire, is Rose Plant
ing day in Portland and the citizens, Inspired by clvlo
pride, do cot pass it idly by but continue to increase
in large numbers these beautlfters of nature.
If the reader is contemplating a visit to the Pa
cific northwest for pleasure or for sight-seeing and
land viewing with the idea of investment combined,
the latter part of May and the month of June Is the
time of year to give one the impression that not even
the Garden of Eden could hold a candle with Oregon.
There are affiliated together and known as the
Oregon Development league, 109 towns and cities out
side of Portland, each having an organized commer
cial body with duly elected officers. Each has a lit
tle piece to speak and a nicely illustrated booklet to
give away, while all are pulling together for the good
of Old Oregon.
In conclusion allow me to utter a word of warn
ing. Don't put off until two or three years from now
what you should do in the very near future. Ore
gon is today "the land of opportunity," but it is JuBt
stepping or the buzz wagon and in a short time will
be out of sight, for if we mistake not the speed limit
will be busted higher than a champion aviator (Gil-
roy' kite U no longer In it) and there will be many
a man in mourning because he did not heed th
buzzltg of The Bee and govern himself accordingly.
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