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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (July 1, 1883)
July, 1883. 150 THE WEST SHORE. AGRICULTURE. The cre age of hops being somewhat larger than it was last year, the total cropwill be about the name. The season is a little earlier than usual, and the vine are now in full bloom, IVking will begin late in August and continue for about six weeks. In Puynllup valley there will be em ployed from 6,000 to 7,000 Indians, of both sexes and all ages, representatives of the various tribes of Western Washington. Our exchanges are dropping into the office one by one, admitting that their gloomy predictions of a general failure of the wheat crop in the Wil lamette valley have not been realized. The desire to prophesy disaster is one of our strongest attri butes. Many people are so constituted mentally that it is a positive pleasure to them to slowly wag their heads and overcast the future with gloomy clouds. They seem to have no hope of sunny days to conic, nor remembrance of those that have passed. To a degree this is true of the majority of mankind. Especially is it true in the agricultural world. A little too much rain or a little too much drouth, hot weather, cold weath er, wind, and the score of causes that affect the crops, plunge the farmer, merchant and editor into dismal forebodings, unwarranted by the facts and unsupported by the results, Oregon and Washington have suffered much from croakers the present reason. In February, owing to a few weeks of weather the severest ever known in this region, but moderate indeed when compared with that inflicted upon the stales further cast, much of the fall wheat was winter-killed for the first time in many years. Immediately the cry went up that the whole wheat crop was destroyed, our news papers published statements that were telegraphed over the world, and the impression became gen eral that there would he a total failuie of crops in Oregon and Washington. The result was, that in few weeks intelligence was received that many shipowner 1 who had intended sending their vessels to our ports for wheat cargoes this fall, had dispatched them on long voyages to othei puiti of the world. The direct result is, that with 1 large surplus of wheat on hand, the pros pects for shipping it arc lar from encouraging. It was soon discovered that much of the fall wheat supposed to be killed was in good condition. During the fine weather in March many fields were resown, and a huge acreage of spring wheal was put in during the next two months. Then came the long dry spell, as refreshing to our evil- longued prophets as it was supposed to be parch ing to the grain. Not content with the injury done by their injudicious repoits earlier in tin season, the papers again declared that the fall wheal would not make half a crop, while the spring lowing would make no crop at all. Even the Walla Walla region, whose wheat had passed the winter in excellent condi.ion, was not spared but it was asserted to be suffering so severely from t lack of rain that but a partial crop could be hoped for. Now, what are the facts in the case? In the Willamette valley harvest is progressinr-. and the farmers find pretty generally that the drouth has affected severely only that portion of we spring wheat that was put in the ground very late in the season. Of such there is about half a crop, instead of a total failure. Of the earlier prtnj toviag, ttatrt is at least a two-thirdi crop, and many fields are showing from seventy-five to ninety per cent. The fall wheat is harvesting nearly a full crop. The same is true of the Ump qua and Rogue river valleys, and of the whole region west of the Cascades generally. The con dition of the crop east of the Cascades is best told in the following extracts from the papers of Umatilla, Walla Walla and Columbia counties. The Dayton Chronicle says : "William Parker brought in a bunch of wheat grown on his place, at the head of Whetstone hollow, that is very fine. The field will yield thirty-five bushels to the acre. Joseph Crawford brought us some fine specimens of his grain, grown about three miles from Day ton, on the ridge between Mustard hollow and Pal it creek. The heads are very large, and are filled with plump, heavy grain. It will probably go nearly forty bushels to the acre. William Nick son also brought in two samples to-day, that are magnificent. The heads are long, well filled and plump. One stool, raised from a single seed, contained 130 straws, not all producing heads, however. The grains grown on the stool were counted, and showed that they were 700 in num ber, all from a single seed." The Umatilla Ex- ammer says : Near Alkali, Weatherlord Bros. have 1,000 acres of fall wheat, which will average twenty-five bushels to the acre. This is on the land along the Columbia that until recently was con sidered valueless for growing grain." Another reports that, "The 200-acre field of wheat, just outh of town, belonging to Mr. Moorehouse, yields a little over fifty bushels of wheat to the acre. His barley averaged forty bushels to the acre, Messrs. Reese, Jones & Co. had about 850 acres of wheat on their new celebrated " Margin Ranch," on South Cold Spring. The yield was thirty, forty and fifty bushels to the acre, on the lifferent fields, making a splendid average." Still another says : " In Greasewood and Vansycle the yield on summer-fallowed land, which was sown in the dust before the fall rains, will average from Unity to forty bushels per acre. North of Pendleton, on high table lands, few summer-fal (Owed early-sown fields will fall much below forty bushels to the acre. Kail-sown barley is also turn ing out well. Down Butter creek and in the Wells Spring country, the yield will be about twenty bushels to the acre. That country is new and this is its first crop. After everything is sum- med up, one thing is established beyond a doubt : Early sown fall grain, put in on summer-fallowed hind, can not fail in Umatilla county. Spring sowing is a speculation that can not be relied on." The final conclusion in regard to fall and sprine grain, is equally true f the whole region east of Hie Cascades. Hut little spring wheat is now Diit in there, except on new farms, or by those who were unable to sow in the fall. The estimate of 200,000 tons to be shipped from that great wheat empire this tall, proves now to be none too laree. though it was made early in the season, when everything was promising and before the croakers became so unduly inspired by the dry weather. EST MJORE certainly hopes that our coun. try and city press will, in the future, refrain from indulging in such mournful predictions. Thev can do no good, and are certainly productive of evil. Not only do they infuse false notions into the minds ol people abroad, but they are condu cive to a stagnation in business, by inspiring u.uesmen ana tne people generally to expect the proverbial "hard times" that follow a failure of crops in any locality. With the most unpropitiou, season, both winter and summer, that Oregon and Washington ever experienced, we have a larger surplus than ever before for exportation, and this ought certainly to encourage us to wait patiently until alter the harvest before we advertise our selves as a failure, and are then compelled to un dertake the difficult and unpleasant task of con. tradicting ourselves. " STOCK. Foreign capital controls the largest stock ranches in the country, occupying vast ranges in Texas, Colorado, Nebraska, Wyoming, Dakota and Mon tana. It is estimated that $30,000,000 of Eng. lisn capital were invested in the cattle business in America last year. Agents of several large En glish and Holland companies are now in the west buying up water privileges, and the probabilities are that this year foreign investments will beu large as last. The Marquis de Mores, a French nobleman, has gone into the sheep business on an extensive scale in the Little Missouri country, that portion of Western Dakota popularly known as "The! Bad Lands." In addition to large bands tended by his own herders, it is his plan to entrust smaller bands to the custody of settlers, who will look after them and take for their pay 1 certain proportion of the increase and wool. In this way many settlers will, in a few years, be possessed of bands of sheep without having paid out a dime. It appears to be an arrangement mutually beneficial. Several heavy stock transfers have recently been made in Montana, which indicate accurately the status of the business. J. C. Brenners, of Phila delphia, purchased the Horse Prairie ranch, with the cattle and horses, for $70,000. The cattle sold for $30 a head, and the horses for $60. The Northwestern Montana Cattle Company purchased one band of 7,000 head of cattle for $235,000 and another band of 4,000 head on Sun river. This is a Helena company, which already owns 14,000 head of stock, and contemplates (till further extensive purchases. From $7,000,000 to $10,000,000 are invested in cattle, horses and sheep by citizens of Helena. By far the heaviest transaction of that kind in Montana was the pur chase, early in July, of 12,000 head of cattle from Davis, Houser Co., for $400,000. The pur chasers were Kohrs & Bielenberg of a two-thirdi interest, and Stuart & Anderson one-third. Kohn & Bielenberg own a controlirg interest in 25,000 head of cattle, and stand at the head of the stock business in that territory. The movement of young ca'.tle from the east to stock the western ranges has been very great thii year. The Minneapolis Tribune says: "Twenty car-loads of young breeding cattle left the transfer yesterday for the Villard Cattle Company at Milei City. They were from Garden City, MinnesoU. Two car-loads leave the transfer for Livingston this morning, and forty car-loads are en route from Fort Dodge to Montana points. The business of shipping breeding cattle to .Monlana is growing rapidly, and the Northern Pacific reports that over 200 car-loads are now in transit from varioul points, Minnesota, Illinois andMowa. The entire ihipmenti westward this year are estimated at 35,000 to 40,000 head. Of the young stock ihh Pd ot aboat forty can be ahipped la a car, but