778
WEST SHORE.
CHENEY AND VICINITY.
Less than a dozen years ago there was notning w lnuitme
Cheney ifl the site of a state normal school that is expected
to be opened for the reception of students the coming fall. The
, o wvul nublic school and four churches. An electric
i In lUnu 6 r
the building of a town where Cheney, Washington, now stands. .g arrangecl for, and water works are also
The country was very sparsely settled. There were no rail- fiupl)y comiDg from a 8mau iafce a short diB-
roads and not much demand for a trading center. The ap- nortnwar(i 0f the town. These enterprises show
proach of the Northern Pacific led to the laying out of a town hftye aith the cityt n cievator, with a
on the divide between the Big Bend and the Palouse countries rf 4Q buBheiBj and a large flouring mill handle the
early in 1881 and it was called Cheney, in honor of Hon. Ben- marketed at Cheney. A creamery has been
jamln P. Cheney, of Boston, who was then in the Northern Pa- t in operation this feason, and its success is
cilic dire derate. The new town was made the seat of justice . . . d (wo veekJy newBpapergi
- - . . 1 ! .1 OODUlCUi mw . "
of Spokane county nd or tw0 or tnree yearB 11 enJyea 8 r8Plu
growth
Th. ia a von attractive ooenine for a eood hotel at Chenev.
The railway company erected the finest passenger accommodation8 of town are limited now, owing
and freiuht stations on the Idaho division of that line-indeed,
the finest in the state to accommodate the large volume of
business that developed at Cheney. There was more business
done at Cheney six years ago than at any other station on the
road between Helena and Portland. Spokane Falls began its
growth and the county seat was removed from Cheney to that
point. Then Cheney retrograded for a time, but as settlers con
tinued to come into the country and improve the land the in
dustrial and commercial equilibrium was restored and the town
again progressed. During the past year it has been unfortu
nate in the maU-r of losses by fire, more than $75,000 worth of
property having been consumed within that period. This is a
heavy loss in a small city and it test) its recuperative power.
But the iople of Cheney are undaunted and are courageously
repairing the damage. The city was never on a better footing
for progress than it is to-day. Its speculative life may be said
to have ended when the county seat was removed. Since then
the region has become vastly richer, railways have been built
through it, and the farms and stock ranches yield a support
that wilt warrant preparations for a steady and substantial
growth.
Cheney does not claim to be a mining town, nor a lumber
ing town, nor a fishing town. But it does claim to be in the
center of one of the richest agricultural sections of the webt.
It is on the main line of the Northern Pacific railroad where
the Central Washington, leading from the heart of the Big
Bend country, joins it. It is sixteen miles southwest of Spo
kane Falls, and in a country differing greatly from that imme
diately surrounding Die inland metropolis. A rather imper
fectly defined coulee, down which the railroad passes, is mod
erately timbered with a belt of pine about seven miles wide.
On the western edge of this strip, on a gentle slope to the east,
is Cheney. To the west lie the rolling hills of the Big Bend.
to the work of the unfortunate fires that have occurred there.
Unless some practical hotel man soon seizeB the opportunity
the citizens will erect a hotel. Steps have already been taken
in that direction.
Cheney has a population exceeding 1,500. It is 2,300 feet
above the sea and in a climate that is as healthful as any that
can be found. Its healthfulnesB is so marked that it is attracting
many people who are in search of healthful and pleasant resi
dences. It will doubtless become a suburban home for many
people doing business in Spokane Falls. The distance is not
too great to traverse night and morning when the traffic will
warrant the running of suitable trains. The homes of Cheney
are neat and comfortable, and great pains are taken to keep
their surroundings cheerful and beautiful. The streets are
graded and lined with good sidewalks. There is not the dearth
of trees in Cheney that marks so many western cities. Many
new buildings are being erected thiB year from brick and lumber
manufactured at home, and provisions are made for preventing
such disastrous fires as heretofore occurred. Cheney offers
advantages that are different f rom those of most western towns,
and it is worth the while of any one looking for farms or
delightful homes to examine the merits of that locality. The
people are intelligent, industrious and enterprising. Still much
closer tillage of the soil would produce correspondingly greater
results, and a few lessons in this respect from eastern farmers
would be of great benefit.
HAULING IN THE NET.
Salmon fishing on the Columbia is at the lowest ebb this
year it has reached for many seasons. At the beginning of the
season there was a conflict between the canners and fishermen
on the subject of the price of fUh, the lattef demanding $1.25
Eastward beyond the timber is the famous Palouse country, each and the former offering but 75 cents. This lasted nearly
Prosperous farmers are tilling the soil on every side of the two months, during which time the large catches of fish made
town. Still there are large areas not at all improved. The by a few independent fishermen and by the JUh wheels indi-
wlld land bears a heavy growth of bunch grass on winch cattle cated an unusually large run of salmon. Finally, late in May,
feed the whole year. a compromise was effected at $1.00, and the fleet of fishing
If farmers and dairymen looking for locations in the wwt boats began their season's work. Only about 800 boats are on
would go to Cheney and examine the surrounding country, the river, however, being less than one-half the usual number,
insiead of flocking to the booming cities or to the timber region, many fishermen having groe and not so many boats being put
they would be better suited with the country and would aid out by the owners as in former years. Canneries have not
materially in the development of those interests that give real P16 l',e Musi preparation in the way of cans, and the result
stability. The land is rolling, the soil rich, Btrong and easily 1? at th,7 are not prepared to handle all the fish that even
tilled. There is plenty of timber at hand for use on the farm S w7l 1 LTr&l !i?-at8 CaQ Jhe 9olumSa Z
andforfuel A good quality of water is obtained in ordinary -ittffi
wells. The land drains Iteelf, and the natural moisture is sufll- ieay.y- The engraving on the first naire shows two fishermen
cient lor all crops. Considerable of the acreage within a few "aulinK m eir ntt and, incidentally, whatever may be in it,
miles of Cheney Is as yet unimproved, though there is no gov K nfZSnS i""! ,homew"dl.with their day's catch. Nets
ernment land in that vicinity. The price, of real estate, both TtJJ Tt lSt
in town and in the country, are more reasonable than are usu- MW, great care is exercised in handling it ; and as soon as
ally found in localities having the advantages which this sec- r? 1")rmen have returned to the cannery to deliver their
tion presents. eaTulIy BPread net out upon drying racks, so
l00 800n ruUea conBlaut moirture.