Crook Couiity Journal
COUNTY OFFICIAL PAPER FOR CROOK COUNTY
VOL XVIII $1.50 YEAR
PRINEVILLE, CROOK COUNTY, OREGON, THURSDAY, AUGUST 13, 1914.
Entered at the poitofflM t Prinorill
Grtxon, aeeond-clM matter
NO. 38
Father and Child '
Are Badly Burned
A (Ire, caused by the exp1unin of
a cohI oil lamp, burned the Frank
Cowan building at Lamonta one
night lutit week! and almost caused
the death of Mr. Cowan and his 4-months-old
baby. The building
was used an & store, postofllce and
residence. M. F. Cowan, father of
Frank, was up at different times in
the night and had left a lamp burn
ing in his room on the second floor
while he went down to the first
floor. While gone the lamp ex-
ploded, setting the room on fire
and the flumes spread so rapidly
Mr. Cowan Jr., whoso sleeping
room was on the same floor, was
abut off from the stairway. He
was soon overcome by the heat and '
smoke and became unconscious
When Mr, Cowan fcr.. discovered
the fire he ran to the stair door and
when the door opened Frank and
baby fell out onto the floor. How
thev got down the stairs will never
be known. They were both badly
burned but not seriously. The
baby's burns were mostly on the
top and buk of the head, w hile the
father's body was burned all over.
The mother was away at the time
of the fire to a relative's home near
by.
The loss is estimated at lietwcen
$7000 and 18000, the only things
saved being a trunk with the
stamps in it and the account books
- 1. .1 . ! , 1. ...
There was no insurance,
The Cowana were brought to
Prineville and are being cared for
at the home of Mr. Cowan's sister,
Mrs. Carl McGhee. They are
getting along a well as could be
expected considering everything.
Pardon Refused;
Mother Collapses
Mrs. Martha S. Mcpherson, form
erly of Crook county, collapsed in
the reception room of the executive
office lust week when informed by
Governor West that he could not
pardon her son, and had to be es
corted to an outgoing Oregon Elec
tric train by Miss Fern Hobbs, pri
vate secretary to the executive, and
Nicholas Haas, supply clerk under
Secretary of State Olcott. The son,
I)gan McPherson, was convicted
several months ago in Crook county,
and recently the supreme court
affirmed the conviction. Pending
the appeal he gave bail, and the
mission of the mother yesterday was
to plead with the executive and save
her son from having to -occupy a
felon's cell. After listening to her
pleading the executive informed
her that he could not grant a par
don, and escorted her to the recep
tion room.' Unable apparantly to
bear up under her grief and disap
pointment she collapsed. With this
hone abandoned, McPherson must
be taken to the penitentiary to serve
his term.
A Visit to "Willowdale
Ranches" on the Ochoco
"Willowdale Ranches," owned by
M. It. Biggs, and two miles east of
Prineville In-the Ochoco valley, are
two of the finest ranches to be
found any where in the state of
Oregon. The ranches contain 720
acres, 400 acres in the upper and
320 acres In the lower one, the
Henry Cram place separating the
two. The greater part of thi? 720
acres is ihdor cultivation. The
Ochoco runs through "Willowdale
Ranches" and furnishes plenty of
water for irrigation. On the lower
ranch along the county road is an
eighty of wild meadow grass which
is just as level as a floor and re
quires no cultivation except to run
a drag over it in the spring of the
year to level down the bumps made
alfalfa. Sloughs which were sixty
and eighty feet wide, a half mile
lng and six to ten feet deep have
been filled up by cutting down high
knolls and dragging the soil into
these places until they are on a
level with the surrounding ground.
Mr. Biggs will keep on working
this land until he has his place so
level he can irrigate the entire field
without digging ditches through
his land, all that will be necessary
will be to raise the headgate in the
main ditch and the water will take
care of itself, thus saving the ex
pense of keeping extra men for ir
rigation purposes. As soon as the
second crop of alfalfa is harvested
a man is put to work with a drag
leveling the alfalfa fields and keeps
finds a home on the Biggs ranches.
The first animal we were shown
on reaching "Willowdale Ranches"
was the celebrated Mammoth regis
tered jack, "Debs," the best jack
in the state of Oregon. Three
years ago Mr. Biggs went back to
his home state (Missouri) to pur
chase- some tine stock and he
searched the entire state for a suit
able jack. Finally he found the
one he was looking for, paid 12000
for the animal and as he was load
ing him on the cars to bring him
home he was offered 500 more
than he paid for
fused the offer.
"Dick" Biggs in a horse or mule,
The owner of this jack is just as
proud of this homely, long-eared
nnii uui no rc-
You can't fool
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Above we are showing a cut corn grown in the county can
of the beautiful silver cup offered seen in the premium list.
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The Mammoth Registered Jack, "Debs," (3517), WUlowdale Ranches
Sunday
School
Picnic at Grove
About 300 people attended the
picnic given by the Christian Sunday
achool and church at Gulliford
Crove last Sunday, Country people
and town people met for a good old
fashioned picnic like they used to
hold at the grove years ago. Every
body put their lunches together and
there was enough to feed twice the
number 'present. After Sunday
school Rev. Ramsey delivered a
sermon, and at 3 o'clock he spoke
to the people again. Everybody had
a good time and met old friends
they had not seen for a number of
years
by the stock pasturing on it while
wet. No one passes this particular
spot without remarking of its
beauty, especially tourists from
other parts of the country. To the
back of this eighty and along the
creek is grain and alfalfa hay. As
pretty oats and barley as was ever
. , . .. 1 .!...
grown is oeing narveien wcic
now.
The writer visited "Willowdale
Ranches" the first of the week and
while being driven over the fields
got out to ' inspect the oats and it
was six inches above her head and
so thick another stalk could not
have found room to come through
the cround. " Back of this oats
were a few acres of barley in the
sheaf and as fine a lot of barley as
was ever grown anywhere by any
body. None of this barley is sold
but most of it is ground and fed to
the stock on the ranches. Mr.
up this work until the frosts come
in the late fall. He is a staunch
believer in thoroughly cultivating
vour land if you expect good re
turns. When the
dying out and not doing as well as
it should he goes to work and
ploughs it up and sows this piece of
land to gran for two or three years
then sets it to alfalfa again and in
this way he gets a ffine stand
while if he kept alfalfa on
the same ground year in and year
out the yield would be small and
scarcely worth the cost of harvest
ing. This is the mistake, so many
of our farmers are making by not
ploughing up their alfalfa fields
occasionally and rotating crops. It
costs" a lot of money to carry on
farming as it is done on these
ranches, but in the outcome it
oavs. When the whole 720 acres
are leveled up ana unaer cuiuva
critter as he is of any of the rest
We suggested a
Biggs has some fine alfalfa. In tion and the place enclosed with a
fact, the greater part of the ranches good substantial hog-proof wire
is set to alfalfa. "The only kind of fence, then the expenses will keep
hay for us to raise," said Mr.
Biggs, "if we understand how to
grow it ana Know wnen me proper
time comes to harvest it."
The upper ranch is two miles
above the lower place. This place
was purchased of the Combs estate
three years ago. A lot of work has
been done on this land during these
three years and in a couple of years
more it will all be leveled up and
the greater part of it sown to
dropping off gradually and finally
the profitable side of the ranch will
come in sight and Mr. Biggs, before
he realizes it, will be an independ
ent rancher and will have a ranch
known far and wide as one of the
best in the whole Northwest.
,.Not only hay and grain are
raised but the finest mule3, horses
and cattle that money can buy are
found here. It is a well known fact
that nothing but a pure bred animal
of his fine stuff,
change of name, but the owner
said. "It isn't the name that
alfalfa begins counts in a mule."
Next we visited Rex Golden
in his stall. A beautiful pure bred
American Saddle Horse: as well
bred as any saddle horse in America
"Rex Golden" is a nephew of
'Great Rex McDonald," the great
est show saddle horse that ever
lived. This horse has attracted
more attention than any other horse
ever brought to Crook county
Everybody stops to take notice as
the "proud stepper" goes by. This
horse was also purchased in Mis
souri three years ago, the price
paid was f 1000. There are a num
ber of fine colts on the ranch from
this horse and they are all beauties
the pick of the bunch being a beau-
tiful brown colt which was named
for one of our popular Crook coun
ty girls Florence Waldron
There are also a number of
draft Shire horses, the accompany-
ing cut being the sire of most of
the young stuff. This stallion was
imported by Jack Edwards of the
the B. S. & L. Co., of. Haycreek
and he has left some tine progeny
around Pnneville, his colts winning
many of the blue ribbons at our
county fair. "Willowdale Tom,
is a beautiful 3-year-old bay stallion
with white markings, good size and
by the Northern Pacific Railway Co.
for the best exhibit of grains and
grasses in sheaf a.tbe-wing!
Crook county fair. " We look for
quite a competition for this splendid
cup as it is valued at foO.OO and
shows the interest the railroad
companies are taking in this far
western country.
The Northern Pacific, while not
entering this immediate territory,
is and has heretofore taken a deep
interest in the development of this
vicinity and has shown it by its
splendid special premiums offered at
our fairs, and our fair association
feels grateful for its aid in this
manner, as should every resident of
the county.
Other railroad companies are
offering fine special premiums. The
Great Northern is offering a fine
silver cup for the best individual dis
play of grains, grasses and vege
tables. Also the O-W. R. & N. Co's
special prize for the best exhibit of
Many of the officials of these rail
way companies have made arrange
ments already to. att"! tse com'rr
fair. The "fair managers are already
getting things in shape and every
thing bids fair to have the best fair
the county has ever had. A goodly
number of horses are in training at
the grounds for the races.
County fairs are becoming the
gathering places for country folks.
They meet their friends there and
there they see the result of their
friends' best work and effort. At
the county fair they hear the best
speakers and come in contact with
the best the community can produce.
There is wholesome and healthful
entertainment. There are the edu
cational features. , There are all the
things that people gather for, and
no family can do better for a little
outing than to attend the county
fair.
Crook County High
Begins Mon. Sept. 14
The first semester of C. C. H. S.
begins Monday, September 14. The
tuition is free and all young people
of Crook county are invited to at
tend. All students desiring assist
ance in securing board and work will
please write to me. I will not
promise to find what you want, but
promise to do my best. There are
hundreds of young people in the
county who are eligible to attend
and would if it were not for the
finances. Therefore any citizen of
Prineville who can help a boy or
girl by providing work for board,
etc., surely has a duty to perform.
There are plenty of students in the
county. Help me get them and keep
them here. Please notify me if you
have a place for some one.
H. C. Baughman.
Continued on page 5.
Residence Propeity for Sale.
Good house aud barn, lot 120x140 ft.
Inquire at this olllce. 8 13 tf
,
For Sale or Trade
One Mowng Machine, one new
Wairon Box, one Potato DiitKer.
Prineville Feed & Livery Stables, 6-11
You need the Journal, $1.50 a year
-U
Dairymen to Hold
Meeting Saturday
Professor Fitts, specialist in dairy
ing and stockraising in the exten
sion division of the Oregon Agricul
tural College, will be with County
Agriculturist Lovett the most of the
week beginning August 17th, in
the interest of the dairy industry of
this section. .
A meeting will be held in Prine
ville at Commercial Club Hall next
Saturday, August 15th, at 2:00
o'clock. They hope to hold meetinga
in other localities and to visit a large
number of dairymen, one of the ob
jects being to interest the men with
cows in the organization of a cow-
testing association for the pnrpose
of weeding out the poor cows and
improving the production and profits
of our herds. Drop Mr. Lovett a
line at Redmond if you are inter
ested. WANTED: Second hand goods, furn
ituie, stoves, ranges, beds, etc., any
thing in the second-hand line. Will pay
cash or trade new goods for same. The
Racket Store, Prineville, Ore, Located
at the J, F. Morris old stand, '