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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (April 1, 1889)
THE WEST SHORE. ily for a .id- rang of pwJncti and for be exercise ,j last in evrm on the d,ff,rent branches of farm ...ik. TUdiMKUc..lontiBIlporUoniof tLi. aMion. t l-i.g drain.! by the D-sChutes, How itK ibb, the sound, and the Chi-hali.. flowing into Cray's UrUr, with their numerous tributaries. The rainfall is wAvnU; and the region U not eubject to summer drouth. , In the valb-ys a good deal of attention la being given to hop railing. The soil and climate are pe culiarly adapt! to the. production of hops and H is one of th tii'Mit profitaWo crops that can be raised. Th yield is Urge and quality of the finest. This is growing to lo one of Ihe mt imjmrtant agricultural products of the sound country and the region about Olympia is constantly increasing its hop interests. M1 of the fruits of the Pacific northwest can be grown surct-Mfully, though as yet fruit raising is not dcvrlojHvl to a very great extent This industry, however, has nuad lxyond the experimental stage, and it is known to a certainty that such fruits as ap ple, pears, plums, prunes, aches, grapes and ber ries jirld abundantly and with less than the ordinary hsxird of such products. There are no jjests to de stroy the trees or injure their fruit Post-vernal frost or winds do not Mast, nor do scorching suns of sumrarr wither, the. half-matured prtxlact Trees tro vigorous and the fruit is unsurpassed in size and flavor. There are many gixxl openings for orch ardists in the country southward from Olympia, and tho market that is developing makes that branch of industry one of the most profitable that can bo en gaged in. The growing of grain is now an important part of th farming which the settlors of the interior crry on. The uitiis of the pwilo and of their sWk made grain aud hay their chief crops from the Uginuing, and there has not yet been a very great change in thn ratio of production in this respect Most of the wheat is turned juto lUr by tho local mills for homo consumption. The exerts of grain aro very smalt. IM cn. and vegtabh-s of all kinds in more than sufficient quantities to supply the local domand. are grown. Dairy ,,n jucU are IW for which this country vm particularly K and dairying is r.pidly growing in importance A levy growth of succulont grass is natural to the land and grcrn UJ i. obtainable tmy The .Wk Intent, of that tion are not divorced fnm the other tranche of agriculture as they are on some of the great rang, cut of tho mountains. Ev. Urely on he wild land aU-ut the tum. For Uf parses thoy are driven out U,marU on Ut,thu mkbg an important s ource of revenue to the fa n " The earliest settlers engaged in raising cattle for beef from the first and quite a reputation for choice meat has been established by them. This industry is especially profitable in conjunction with general farming. The great thing that has retarded the progress of that region in its agricultural, mineral and commer. cial development is the lack of suitable facilities for reaching market, which has existed up to the present time. There was no incentive to extensive produc tion, hence, no production except for local needs. Under such conditions anything like a full develop, ment was, of course, impossible. The railroad con nection which Olympia now has a narrow gauge line to the Northern Pacific, at Tenino junction does not offer the advantages of a standard gauge system, this is one of the reasons why other roads are being built now. The resources of the country will not longer be confined, and are demanding the recogni tion to which their merit entitles them. So transpor tation facilities are being provided that will encour age the development of every resource and enlarge the field of operation for every industry. The rail road under construction from Port Townsend south ward to transcontinental connection will pass through Olympia, and the projected road to Gray's harbor will be a valuable feeder to the city, as well as a boon to the country through which it will pass. Manufac turing will be stimulated because the raw materials may be easily obtained and in sufficient quantities to employ large amounts of capital. The raw and man ufactured articles of commerce from farm, mine and factory will increase in value and importance as the means of transportation between the points of supply and demand cheapen. The provisions now being made to supply this necessary factor of industrial growth show that the people are awakening to a re alizing Benso of their situation, and are resolved to improve to tho utmost the great advantages the city possesses. There are many opportunities at Olympia and in that vicinity for those seeking a new country and are willing to take hold and utilize the advantages that present themselves. In the present state of affairi in that region all that is needed to bring out iU wealth and make it count for the profit of the people is intelligently-directed industry. The weary yean of waiting which the pioneers had to endure are past Everything is now ready for rapid progress and the field is au attractive one for both capital and labor. Tho country is new ripe for development With the enterprising Bpirit that is abroad in the west this re gion could hardly fail to experience a rapid growth, veu if there were no special reasons why it should mjoy more than tho average prosperity.
