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About The Ontario Argus. (Ontario, Or.) 1???-1947 | View Entire Issue (May 13, 1915)
70 THE ONTARIO PUBMSHKD EVERY THURSDAY Eatere.1 in the postoffic at Ontario, Oregon, for trariF mlsoioii throngh the nail as second-class matter. W. C. MARSH Civic Pride. Maybe Galveston couldn't have helped growing and thriving, but certainly the Galveston spirit had a lot to do with its marvelous developement. It is fourteen years since the great Gulf storm "destroyed" the city and killed Rambles of a Visitor (Continued from page 1) the tract and planted the treed, and it is he thnt ha nursed them nlong, until now, at their second year, it would be difficult to find n more uni form orchard, cnniddcring the nice. Efficiency! Indeed efficiency of the highest degree has been necessary to the success of the entire undertak ing. Efficiency of the men who are aupplying the finances; efficiency of the man who ii personally in charge of the undertaking; and effii lency of every man, beaut and living thing on the place. A half dayit' visit to the place Iciivcm one somewhat bewildered. There is ao much to ate and comprehend. You wonder how it could nil be built in two yean. A fine green lawn around the house; good nizc roue hushes just ready to bur t into bloom; n climbing ARGUS roae considerably higher than a man's head; the house, as modern a five room bungalow an you will find any where, equipped with out-door sleep ing porches, stationary shower bath, modern hath room, septic tank, cab inet kitchen including cooling cabinet; a well f feet deep from which a one and one-half horse power gasoline en gine pumps pure, cool water for do mestic purposes; a 111 gallon pres sure tank in an outdoor cellar which forcea the water into the kitchen and bath room; a modern laundry house; permanent dog kennels; a hot bed which supplied the table with fresh lettuce, green onions and radishes all last winter; modern chicken houses with south sun fronts; a large flock of pure blood White Wyandotte chick ens; a flock of bantams kept for the purpose of supplying delicious indi vidual bakes for home use; a well equipped blacksmith shop; a good burn which wus built so that it could - . Or0 o, 1 rd .dA co"rdS 4 o a Ztk o a x& ,. I aa ob. Qooo 0 n-u THE ONTARIO ARGUS, THURSDAY, one-fifth of its inhabitants. Since that catastrophe Galveston has nearly tripled its population, and has multiplied its busi ness activity until its foreign trade is now the second largest in the United States. In 1913 it exported more American goods than Boston, Philadelphia and Baltimore together -with one-seventh of their popu lation. If all the people of the second Ameri can seaport were dropped down into the first -which is to say, if all the Galveston ians were precipitated into the midst of Manhattan Island -they wouldn't cause even a transitory blockade on Broadway. But if they stayed there, New York would soon find out that something had happened. That is the spirit that makes cities grow. Some cities will grow in a desert or on a mountain top. Others will starve in the Garden of Eden. It all depends upon who lives in them. eventually be turned into an apple packing house; one of the finest gar dens in which there is an ample sup ply of strawberries, gooseberries, raspberries, blackberries, dewberries, currants, sour grapes and California grapes, besides thrifty beds of all .kinds of vegetables; these are only a few of the details of the big undertaking-sort of side lines, as it were, to the primary idea that of a modern commercial orchard. And of course they are all essential to the success of the project as a unit. Two distinct ownerships of land comprise the four hundred acre or chard. Morton Barrows of the law firm of Harrows, Stewart & Ordway, 'of St. Paul, Minn., owns 240 acres of the orchard, and L H Ordway of the firm of Crane & Ordway, plumbing Jobbers of St. Paul, owns 160 acres. A peculiur feature is that Mr. Ordway has never seen the place. He pur chased the land upon the recommend MAY 18, 1915. ation of Mr. Barrows and he has never been here to look over his hold ings. The Barrows land was pur chased from the Oregon & Western Colonization Co. A county road sep arates the two ownerships. But in reality it is all one big orchard. Trees on both places were planted at the same time and the same scheme of (alternating the different varieties has I been followed out on both places. While the primary object has been I to build a commercial orchard, yet jdue regard has been given to changes I that future years might bring. And if it should ever become desirable to cut the place up into smaller tracts, I it can be done. For the entire four 'hundred acres was laid off in forty 'acre tracts, and on each forty there is planted thirty acres of apples and ten acres of Italian prunes. The ap ples are divided into four varieties as follows: Ten acres to Rome Beauty; eight acres to Winesap; six acres to Jonathans and four acres to White Winter Pearmains. On each forty acre tract this percentage has been carefully observed. On the Barrows 'tract there is a hill comprising ninety 'acres. This land is above the irriga tion ditch. The reclamation of this I part of the place has not yet been to- tally accomplished. Just this week the work of clearing the sagebrush haa been completed. But this work has been left to the last for the reas on that on the hill will be planted Italian prune trees, and these bear fruit in four years, while the apple trees require an age of about eight years before they will produce a full crop. In order to irrigate the ninety acre hill tract, it will be necessary to pump water from the ditch to a height of about fifty feet. A modern electric pumping plant for this pur pose will be installed. And the whole tract will be planted to prunes for the reason Ulat prune trees require very little water, and can be irrigated cheaper than any other kind of fruit. Before the prune trees commence to bear a modern four tunnel dryer will be built to take fare of the crop. In speaking of the prune crop, Mr. Mahan expressed surprise that there were not more prunes grown here. Mr. Mahan lived in the Willamette valley before coming here. Ho spoke of the fine prune crops raised there, and the good prices which the brought to the growers.. "But this is a far more favorable country in which to grow prunes," he continued. "The fall season here is nearly always dry, and is ideal for drying prunes. Much more so than in the Willamette valley where the fall season is always rainy and wet." As we sat on the front porch of the pleasant little home and looked out over the growing orchard, it was al most impossible to believe that only two years before, this was a sage brush waate. The transformation brought about in two years is almost wonderful. And yet, looking out be yond the rabbit-tight fence there is more sagebrush more land in its na tive state and producing three thriv ing growths sagebrush, jackrabbits and squirrels. The wonder really comes that such land is allowed to re main idle so long. You wonder why it was not brought under cultivation long ago. Why it has not been made to produce, and yield up untold prof ita. And that thought brings one back, with a start, tothe question of financial profits on the land which is under orchard. In opening up the subject of investment and profit, I asked Mr. Mahan when the orchard would produce its first full crop. "When the trees are eight years old," he answered. "And what will the Investment be at that time," I asked. "I don't know what the first coat of the land was," he answered, "but allowing a fair value for it, the total investment will be about $400 per acre.'' "Will there be any profit from the output of the orchard at iti eighth yeai " I asked. M . Mahan smil.-.l. "I expect to clear a profit of about $40,000 from the eighth year or p," he answered. A few moment: .'flection brought forth more pertiner. questions. For there arc many th I that ordinar ily enter into th. .i'ing of a fruit crop. Weather i .tions. drouths, pests, markets all tl N things must be considered wht i I In the truit business. Mr. Ma the questions in their i. . conditions," he stat id "are something which ni man can JoMtatt. Possible lut irost and cold spells might come. In this country dun I frOB N h i- radnetd to a mini: happen. But tlni. ar oeMMiul way.-. to combat even bwt Siniil. -poi.. have provi.i -ur. wftil .n cold . frwti d i i" with ev.r y. ar. kx I am i, wor rytag about danger from this MOTM. "lrounl.t. of I'nur-i', cannot ha. D ii' tl is tountr rything is ir .1 I. Whenever we wunt it to rain we just opin the head-gate irrigation ditch. P be taken into com- i. I. -ration, und to im possible danger 1 hav. ,1, t. .1 .. K. COPE, tli- "iilv PrMtieal Tailor in Ontario, is thf only Prtotioal l'lacf to imy a rail made to jroutofdtf Suits made to order from $15.00 to $50.00 The only RiliibU and Prompt Cleaning and Proofing in the C'itv. E. COPE TWO ROADS, WHICH WELL YOU TAKE? WET xJl STA1T OB the ROAD TO PROSPERITY today The first nuleatoa is a BANK ACCOUNT. It ia a check against extravagance Read the autobiography of any 0f oar groat oapUiw of industry and taanoe. Invariably, cloae to the opening paragraph, ho will tall of hia FIRST BANK ACCOUNT. It waa the ftrat miltatauo in kit ROAD TO gUCCXSS! . The Ontario National Bank deal of study. These things can all he overcome and are no longer a serious menace to an orchard. "As to markets," he continued, "we shall do our own marketing and there) is little to be feared from 'off mar kets." This explanation of the mnrkets, however, was not satisfactory. Tho ! fruit growers of the country have juct it mM a. experienced an on marxei year. Many fruit growers did not receive enough for their product to pay for the wooden boxes in which it was ship Pto But he explained away this ob jection. "The producer," he said, "must mar ket his own product. He must attend to the actual selling of it. He must not only grow his fruit, but he must pack it, load it on the cars, and take it to market himself. This will solvs the market question. You state that laat year waa an "off" year, and that fruit growers all over the country lost money. That is true, but it was not necessary. In tho Grande valley of Colorado, I own a ten-acre tract upon which there is an apple orchard of six and one-half acres. I have thia orchard rented, or rather I have a man in charge of it, and we divide the cost of the place equally and also divide the profits equally. Last sea son we had four cars of apples on the place that were fancy apples and iliese were packed according to the stand ard method and the man In charge of the place took them to market himself. He found a good market In Iowa where he sold direct to th" con sumer. The other apples on '.I-1 place were sold in bulk. When all the ex penses of the season were paid, and after I had paid out of my share, all of the taxes, I had left Just $885 clear profit. That is the solution for 'off J markets," he finished. This brought to memory the fact that the product of a large Ontario orcherd the Boyer orchard waa marketed in this manner last season. Mr. Boyer went to Texas and spent the winter profitably and pleasantly in marketing his apples. He sold direct to the retuilers something like twelve cars of apples. And when he returned this spring he stated he was well sat isfied with the prices he had re ceived. Mr. Mahan has many ideas on the culture and care of orchards which he has studied out and in each inst ance has i artfully udhered to the practical, lie t laims it Is the sheer Mf) to n to grow field cropa between the ir..- of a bearing or chard. "Take alfalfa for ImUmm," -aid. "Alfulfu requires irrigation ut times when the trees lo not, and to irrigate the alfalfa injur. - the t'ruit. The result is thiit the trees produce ovi-i- tin, RMtthy appl.-s that will not keep wi , and ure deficient in flavor. I find that it is impractical fct even vari.tie.- of apples, for each va riety nu: I. irriiratol differently to pi. Ii.;-. th.- I.. -t results." lie sUys that blight is due to im proper irrigation, und is not spread by - as is the common belief. Moore Hotel Blk. 1frTD