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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 1, 1883)
October, 1883. THE WEST SHORE. 249 that the Northern Pacific will puih a branch through tome pus in the Rider Root mountains and down the Clearwater to t.tvitnn give a most cheering outlook fur old Shoshone, which will cause the recusant old tramps, who left her so lung ago to fight her battles alone, to wish they had remained to share her good (otlune. Boise Stales-man. BRITISH COLUMBIA. SPALLUMCHEEN VALLEY. The Inland Sentinel recently published an ac count of a land hunting trip in that portion of the province above Yale, from which we condense the following i There arrived in April last a party of young men from the provinces of Mani toba and North West, who sent out two of their number in search of land for twelve settlements. Leaving Yale on the twentieth of April and hav ing traveled through about 175 miles of country, they arrived on the 30th at Grand prairie, which was the first valley of any account there they found about 1,300 acre of raitie land, slightly timbered, unoccupied; this land requires irriga tion, which could be easily accomplished at it is very level and has a plentiful supply of water In a creek that flows down one tide) at (hit place there it quite a settlement with six good farms well under cultivation and which carry consider able stock. Passing on the nest place, about ao miles, it Salmon river valley, which It very fine, but the land apparently It all taken up by settlers, with the exception of one or two pre-emptions, slightly wooded. Six or seven miles further on Is the Spallumcheen valley, which it by far the best and largest in the country) the valley it well set tied up, there not being one piece of choice land now available. In the valley there it a saw mill which b now capable of turning out several thou sand feet of lumber per day. Mere they were able to find a considerable tract of land adjoining the Indian reserve and extending to the Salmon river valley, about two miles from the Swllunv cheen valley, on to settlement, consisting of about 3,500 acres of prairie land slightly timbered with douglat pine, which will not require a great deal of clearing. These parties intend la Jointly fence, clear, build houses and make homes workine the land to the best advantage. These men are a desirable class of settlers being all me chanict, and men who have farmed more nr leu in Manitoba, but who have been driven hence in search of a mora genial climate and a country where farming may be carried on with some de gree of pleasure and not subject to the long, severe cold weather, excessive beat and moaquetiies without number. Lei us now add a word or two about the climate of the country! The winter varies from six to twelve weeks, during which time about two feet of snow falls, and the glass has been known to go as far down as 45 below aero, with no wind. The cold snaps eeldom but more than two or three days, while the remaining part of the winter is very tnoch like the old eemn try. In the sumtter it is hot during the middle part of the day, sav from II to J o'clock, before and after which lime It la pleasant cool nighti and mornings, being able 10 sleep comfortably with rour blankets. No Irrigation It required and yields are abive the average. The crarntry there abounds with gam of all kindt and to the sportsman cannot be surpassed, there being cari boo, moose, deer, iattridge, blue grouse, prairie rhlrkrn, heaver, bean, mountain shrcp anil jj.utj, together with a large vatiety of other animals and a beautiful selection of small birds; fish are plen tiful. The land in this part of the countiy is like most parts ol llrilish Columbia, limited, but there is considerable timlier land, which will soon no oubt be taken up by settlers, and after one or two years of lalmr lie able to make very comfort able and profitable hornet for themselves. The country Is very thinly settled and need hardly say there is a good demand for the gentler set and married persons, who will be most heartily received by the now residents In that district, and eveiy inducement will be held out to them by the settlers, At Spallumcheen they were kindly Invited In see the Nicola country with a view to settlement. The Nicola district is more like civiliratlon as there is a plentiful supply of the fair sex and many families, with the finest climate In the whole of HritUh Columbia, with very little win tcr and sometimes no snow at all, and when It does it only remains a very short lime on the ground. As a stock raising country It cannot be excelled, but for agricultural purposes it is not so well adapted, there being considerable labor and trouble attached to raising gtain for even home consumption, on account of irrigation. The bunch gra there it in much greater quantities than any other place, and the way in which the cattle fatten on it is astonishing. AGRICULTURE. Corn has never been a staple product ol this region, chiefly, however, because our farmers preferred to cultivate wheal, For a numlwr of years it hss been claimed thai the Walla Walla region, meaning in general terms the whole Southeastern Washington, could and Uion proper cultivation would produce abundant ami excellent crops of corn. That this is a fact would apiar from the following statement of the Waittburg lima : "J. C. Arnold last Wednesday morning brought to the 'lma office tome of the finest corn we have ever seen in this county. The ear are 14 inches in length and contain 14 rowt of grain all perfectly matured. It would conqiare favorably with corn produced in the famous corn producing state of Illinois. And the tlrangett thing it that this corn was planted in the dust and grew and matured without irrigation or drop of rain. Mr. Arnold also laid, not on our table, but the floor, a sweet potato squash which la slouch 1 it measures 4 Incites In length tail weiuhsit nounds. It also grew In the "desert region" without Irrigation or a drop ol rain. anybody in any count 7 can beat such productions we would like to know who of where. The estent af the great western stuck ranges, ike number of young cattle that have been this year driven upon them and the value of eat tie on the various ranges, la thus summarised from the Chicago Jrnl: The extensive grating court tries of the west comprise Texas, New Mesico, he Indian territory. Western Kansas, Wetter Nebraska. Colorado, Wyoming, Easier Utah, Western Uakota, Montane and portion of N vada and Oregon, a stretch of etmnlry ever 1,000 ilea north and Mia, Vf 1,000 exiir iu ana west. Into Ikes gratis gruatwl appears from the investigations of Messrs. Irwin, Allen A of Kansas City this year Missouri sent 55,. OOO OIW UllJ Uu ci-u!.l !,vifn mi.l tuos 1 I lie eastern half of Kansas about ooo; Iowa about ,ouo; Minnesota, 15,000; louislana, 10,000 1 Mississippi, 10,0001 Tennessee, 5,000; KlorlJs, 5.0001 Illinois and Kentucky, 5,0001 and driven into Tcsas, New Mexico and Aratnna from Old exico, about JVooo. Oregon and Washington sent into Montana, Wyoming and Itakola, fully 10,000. And Into this same country about to,. 000 young thomugh-hrcd and high-grade bulls were tent from different eastern and middle states. The cost of yearlings from Missouri. owa, Kansas and Ncbiaska was from $15 In $11 per head 1 two year olds, $15 to $jR r head. rum Arkansas and further south the prices per head was from $ In $6 less, owing to the qual ity! and from Old Mexico $10 was a good price ir yearlings, $11 for I s, $10 to $18 fur 3't and cowt with calves $11 to $15. The price of stock cattle in diff. rent western localities are now as follows! Southern Tetas, $10 to $11.50 per iead Northern lesas, Indian territory, Arlnma ml New Mexico, $15 to $lX, owing to Improve ments; Western Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming and further north, from $10 to $J5 per head ow ing to quality ami Improvement, tirade bulls cost from $48 to $00 pet head for year lings $00 to $75 fur two year uldsi Ihoenughhrtdi (rum 100 tn Jjoo, owing to strains of blood, J. K. Muran of Moran prtlile called al this office on Tuesday and deposited on our table samples of apples grown on his farm which for sire, weight, soundness and freedom from all blemishes can hardly be surpassed In any part of this or eastern countries. Knur varieties, lUld win, Spltienlwrg, Newton I'ipln and Wine sap, were anion the applet raised by Mr, Moran, and no one variety appear In eaiel the others In points of excellence and perftrtlon. Mr. Moran ha been a resident of Moran prairie foi thirteen years, and hss experimented in fruit growing for the last ten year. II tayt he never hat lost in apple tree from other cause than the gnawing of . the pocket gopher, and he consider ll settled that the raising of this fruit can ami will I made a profitable business In Spokane county. Mr. Moran has experimented with the peach, peer, plum and prune fruit tree, and hat succeeded beyond his eipecltllont tn obtaining good result from each. Indeed there It no question about any of these fruits escrt the peach. He bat had the peach tre In bearing fr a number of years, ami hat had hit trees to loaded with hull a lo Uek down. Hut the cold of but wlaier, which proved to disastrous lo peach Iree In the Walla Walla valley and elsewhere, kllUd Mr. Mutant , He is not diicutirtged, however, ImI thinks the peach can be cultivated In many ttf. able kcalltie In this pari of Washington lent, tney. What oar friend ha wsccrssled In doing on Moeta prairie can be done elsewhere, and no farther evidence la requited lo prove Ihi a nara. fa! frail growing rgioa.--Hpokne Kail Ckrtui- lit. An lncfled comny has been formed, with a capital Muck of $ HO, 000, lo operal Ihe flouring mill of I'rewutt, W. T., and Isaac's asdl at Walla WalU. These mill are fitted p with ruder machinery bar enti tartar lag lwr by the palestl pnav.
