THE MORNING OREGONIAN, MONDAY, ' JANUARY 1, "1900.
hre being several fine mills located
le line of raiway and In favored
ea The flour manufactured dur- J
year will reach 50.000 barrels.
(jL-s enjoy a good local trade, and
Ltcnslvely to China and Japan.
Imanufacture of lumber Is not an
mt factor. There are millions of
good, merchantable timber yet
sig end each locality has Its mill.
ire but fewinllls, however, "which
export more or less. The finished
annually amounts to 12,000,000
following statistics fairly represent
mty:
icres 463,660
acUit'vatlon, acres 81,000
production, annual tmshels.. 6ou,w
Lnnual bushels 600,003
and rye, annual bushels..... 20.000 t
nay raised eu.ouo
Is corn raised 4,000
; and cheese, lbs. for market.. 600,000
eggs sold 3o0,ouo
flour manufactured w.mo
of hOD3 raised J.000.000
h potatoes 500.000
onions 1W.W0
anDles . o.000
land plums 13.000
pears s.uiw
of grapes 150.000
of strawberries 60.000
lof cured bacon.. 500.000
suds of wool produced 50,000
jnacr manufactured, feet i2.wu.wu
lers and breeders generally are ap-
fec.atlng the value of raising standard-
sd stock, and this county can now-
past of excellent dairy herds as compared
ilth those of five years ago. The An-
goat has become a great factor in
c ass, as he provides a high-priced
ftp and acts as undprgrowth destroyer as
le.l In horses, breeding has lately been
'ned to registered Percherons and
pdesdales. The latest assessment gives
ie following summary of stock totals:
lorses 3.S51
itt.e 6.675
"ep and Angoras 6,555
.Le z.i2
BOwing to the unprecedented demand,
i-Ies of stock during the year Just closed
ive been large for butchering purposes.
freezing for dairy purposes, however.
:ceed that for the block.
to the count 's surface, there is the
Willamette valley formation plain.
Uley and hill. Numerous small streams
ford plenty of water. Railway facilities
j-e good, the Southern Pacific tapping
coanty with two lines the Portland-
srvallis branch and the Portland-Sheri-
m Jne.
he population is now about 16,000, but
jutle that number could at once find
ip.e room for farming and dairying.
Iiere are thousands of acres awaiting de-
tfopraent. The old high values for farm
pnds have disappeared, and the man
iith modest means can find a home here
Ilthout requiring a fortune. Perhaps 100
families have settled here during the
ist year, the purchases being 40 and S0-
pre homes in the main, cleared and
rt'y cleared.
.sboro, the county seat, with a popu-
Itlon of about 1400, and Forest Grove,
ie seat of Tualatin academy and Pacific
diversity, population 1200, are the coun
ts chief cities. Each has water works
id e1ectrlc lights, and each is connect-
with Portland by good wagon roads
id by rail. Nearly one-half of the farm-
le population can make Portland, with
load, and return, In a day, tnus In-
krlng a sure market for diversified farm
jducts The county school work Is
blcndldly organized, and much of this
doubtless due to the fact that the Pa-
ific university, one of the oldest and
seats of learning. Is an institution
Bithln the county.
raking into consideration its soil, Its
iools and Its closeness to the North-
lest metropolis, Washington county pre-
Ints splendid attractions to homeseek-
tS. Jj. -fl- J-UiNl.
Jlsboro, Or.
I8
WASCO COUNTY.
Dalles Receives Shipment of
"Wool From Four Pacific States.
Tosco county originally comprised a
itory considerably larger than all our
Iwly-acqulred possessions In the Pacific
included all the country lying between
Columbia river and California and be-
leen the Rocky mountains on the east
Id the Cascade mountains on the west.
lit of It have been carved almost the en-
state of Idaho, several large counties
"Wyoming and 13 counties In Eastern
regon. Ana yet It may be mentioned, as
illustration of the rapid changes that
ie works In a relatively short period.
sre lives not far from The Dalles, In
! -vigorous and healthy age that can
iely be called old, a man who was
constable of all this territory when
was simply a precinct of Clackamas
Runty. The county Is now limited to
lout 2S40 square miles In the extreme
Srthwestern part of what is known as
stern Oregon and of this area about
square miles are in the Warm Springs
Han reservation. At a rough estimate,
Scut one-third of the county proper Is
kered with timber, chiefly yellow and
-e pine and red and yellow fir, with
slcnal patches of tamarack and cedar.
le rest of the county Is principally roll-
prairie and level plains. Intersected
the Deschutes river and its tributar-
and the tributaries of the John Day,
Mch form numerous valleys of amazing
ti ty and beauty.
?he soil on all the higher levels is of
Ilcamc origin. It is remarkably rich in
the essential elements of plant food,
lIJs moisture with remarkable tenacity
Id is almost as easily worked as an ash
ip. Twenty-five jears ago, the entire
country was covered with bunch-
liss, and cultivation was attempted only
fa-vored spots along the alluvial bot-
rs. The few and scattered settlers were
:ost exclusively devoted to the raising
horses, cattle and sheep, and many
rtously doubted that the bunchgrasa
'Cs would ever have any value for the
jilact-on of cereals. The experience of
ire than a score of years has demon-
.ed bojond cavil that these lands
r.k high among the richest grain lands on
continent. A total failure of crops
never been known in Wasco county.
id after, in many cases, twenty years of
tcssant sowing to wheat, and in spite
a short period of unfavorable weather
e tire galn was maturing, the wheat
itput for the past season was the largest
r known. Lands that have never had
cunce of artificial stimulant, when
?por y cultivated and sown in the fall
1c C- tly early to get a good start he
re "r.e winter frosts, can be safely
r.tcd on to yield from 30 to 40 bushels
wv.eat to the acre and oftener 40
she.s than 20. The average yield of fall
winter wneat lor the past season
I am assured, fully 25 bushels to
acre". Wheat ranks as the great staple
iduct of the county, and the Industry
capable of considerable expansion, es-
.a y in outlying districts, where better
.ties are had for hauling It to market.
irley and oats yield abundantly, but
dcra do they more than meet the local
land The wheat crop of the nast sea-
probably exceeded 1,250 000 bushels.
le vaLey lands, where irrigation Is pos-
ie reward tne husbandman with phe-
enai crops of timothy, clover, alfalfa.
its and vegetables.
"Wasco Krnlt Unexcelled.
ilts and berries of all kinds grow
pe to a perfection reached In only few
ces on the continent. The largest ap-
at the world's fair, with the whole
t'ted States competing, were raised
a ehort distance of the county seat
Fsco county, and in every competing
It of the fruits of the Pacific North-
st Wasco county has nractlcallv carried
atl the honors there were to carry. A
Ida! and a diploma granted by the
rld's fair commissioners, testify that of
the apples exhibited at the big fair
le were superior In flavor and texture
ithose from Wasco county. One of the
test and most prosperous fruit belts In l
the county is Hood Elver valley. Its re
sources are described in another column
and need no remarks here. From Hood
River eastward, for a distance of 40 miles,
the country on both sides of the Columbia,
to a distance of three or four miles back
from its banks. Is unexcelled for the pro
duction of peaches, grapes, apricots and
all the more tender fruits and vegetables.
Here the night temperature, during the
ripening season, is higher than that of any
other district north of California. Here
berries and garden vegetables mature two
weeks earlier than In any other part of
the Northwest. The cherries of this sec
tion were Justly mistaken at the world's
fair for peach plums, and an old and ex
prienced German winemaker has often as
sured the writer that the grapes raised
here are equal to the best he has ever seen
in the Rhlneland. No estimate of this
year's crop of fruit in The Dalles' dis
trict is available. It is only certain that it
fell below the average, for the grape and
peach crop, in common with that of the
whole country, fell much below the aver
age. The estimates for last year showed
that the shipments from The Dalle3 of
apples, pears, prunes, strawberries, black
berries, dried fruits and garden vegetables
realized to the producers the snug sum of
$110,000.
Stock Interests HIcMy Prosperous.
The sheep and wool industry claims an
important place in a record of the re
sources of Wasco county, although the
business la slowly being restricted by the
encroachment of the agriculturist. The
number of sheep in the county, accord
ing to the report of the county stock in
spector, is 166.S5L The wool clip for the
past season was rather lighter than
usual, on account of an unusually pro
tracted and severe preceding winter, hut
reached, notwithstanding, the neighbor
hood of 1,250,000 pounds. The price, how
ever, was more than 25 per cent above
that of 1SSS. and It Is doubtful if the
sheepmen of Wasco county were ever
in a more prosperous condition than they
are at this moment. Wool that in the
panicky times of 1S93 to 1S97 was hard to
market at 5 to 8 cents a pound sold read
ily at from 11 to 15 cents. Stock sheep
that were a drug in those years at $1 25
a head are now worth more than double
that sum.
The cattle business has materially di
minished since the practical disappear
ance of the bunchgrass and the opening
of the ranges to cultivation. The total
number of cattle in the county can hard
ly exceed 10,000. Their value may be
Judged from the fact that on December 1
local butchers were paying from $3 60 to
53 75 per hundred for range steers, and
contracts for early spring delivery have
been made at 55 25 to $5 50. With steers
at $40 to $70 a head, mutton sheep at $3 50
to $5, and wool at 15 cents a pound, the
stockmen of Wasco county lose little
sleep worrying over beef trusts and com
binations of buyers.
The lumbering business has Just begun
to receive the attention It deserves.
Wasco county has over 800 square miles,
or more than 500,000 acres, of timber lands.
But the larger portion is Included in the
forest reserve, or is not available by any
existing method of transportation. The
trees are almost exclusively coniferous,
and they are equal to the best of their
class In the world. Hitherto only three
or four small mills In the neighborhood
of Hood River have cut lumber for ex
port, but during the past year the Lost
Lake Lumbering Company, a firm of
wealthy capitalists from Minnesota, who
own a large body of timber in the Lost
Lake district, have erected a mill at the
confluence of the Columbia and Hood
rivers, with a capacltly of 250.000 feet a
day. The Hood River Lumbering Com
pany, another concern backed by large
capital, has completed a boom at the
mouth of Hood river, and has started a
steam logging outfit on their 3000 acres
of virgin forest near the head of Hood
River valley. The logs will be driven to
the mouth of Hood river, where the com
pany contemplates the erection of a mill
of 250,000 feet capacity, besides supplying
logs to other mills along the Columbia.
E. W. WInans contemplates the erection
of a large mill near the forks of Hood
river, which will make a specialty of
cutting railroad ties. Devenport Bros,
have two smaller mills In the same neigh
borhood, from whence they flume their
lumber to the Columbia These include
all the export mills In the county. They
find a market in Eastern Oregon, Utah
and other Rocky mountain states, as well
as in states bordering on the Missouri
river. A dozen smaller mills scattered
over the county supply the local demand.
Extension of Railway Lines.
Wasco county has within its boundaries
or along its borders sufficient water
power running to waste to drive the ma
chinery of a nation. Not to speak of
the Columbia river, which bounds the
county for nearly 60 miles on the north,
we have the Deschutes, which discharges
probably more than 500,000 cubic Inches
of water per second, "and Hood river,
which discharges 120,000 cubic Inches per
second. Along the banks of these rivers
there are scores of ideal sites for mills
or for the generation and transmission of
power. The beautiful falls of White
river, a little over 20 miles on an air
line from The Dalles, have power suffi
cient to drive all the machinery In the
county, and are as available as if spe
cially placed there for that purpose.
Irrigation, chiefly for domestic pur
poses and for gardening and berry cul
ture, has contributed much to the wealth
and comfort of many sections of Wasco
county. Hood river valley has three ir
rigating systems, which were built at a
cost of $50,000 The Wamic settlement has
three ditches, that furnish water for the
purposes just named, for probably 100
families. Juniper Flat, a fine body of
level land in the southern part of the
county, of about 150 square miles in ex
tent, has long and anxiously waited the
completion of a half-finished canal that
was originally Intended to flume lumber
to the Deschutes, besides furnishing
water to the settlers. Work on this canal
was suspended during the panic of 1893,
on account of the failure of its construc
tors, but It Is understood that the set
tlers have inititaed legal proceedings to
enforce Its completion or have the char
ter of the company foneited, in order to
the completion of the .work by a syndi
cate of the settlers. For the benefit of
Eastern readers of The Oregonlan, It
may be said that Tvater is never used in
Eastern Oregon to Irrigate cereal crops.
The best grain is Invariably raised on the
uplands, where irrigation is neither prac
ticable nor desirable. Even the Irriga
tion of fruit trees is seldom resorted to,
and Is generally considered of doubtful
expediency. But garden vegetables and
berries and timothy and alfalfa meadows,
when judiciously supplied with water,
yield enormously, while the beautifying
of the homes of the settlers with shade
trees Is best accomplished through a lib
eral use of water.
Much desultory work has been done to
Improve our public highways, but much
remains to be done. The air is full of
rumors of railway projects, and before the
ides of May have come the Columbia
Southern will have extended itb line
through Sherman county to the new town
of Shanlko, In the southeastern portion
of Wasco county, and 60 miles from the
county seat. The same company has sur
veyors In the field locating a line from
The Dalles to Tygh valley, by way of Du
fur and Kingsley that will tap all the
great wheat belts of the county. Still an
other road, intended to bring The Dalles
into connection with nearly all Southeast
ern Oregon, is earnestly talked of. This
line is to follow the Deschutes and tap
Crook county at the mouth of Trout
creek, a few miles west of Cross Keys,
Provision has been made for a preliminary
survey, and before this appears in print
the surveyors will be in the field. If this
road should be built, besides the immense
tiaffic it is certain to control from exist
ing industries, it will open to settlement
the extensive stretch of tableland south
of the Warm Springs Indian reservation
known as the Agency plain, which in
cludes a territory of unbroken wheat lands
two - thirds as large as all Sherman county. J
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fcsff W - - , AtBfc SP B M M ILM AiT M - i . JSP
IheTkaww tsftihe-CbumiaSotrfher&L
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$aw 18 jSL-T fvr 1 n i Jul
The line would also tap the rich gold
mines recently discovered In the neighbor
hood of Trout creek. Crook county, and
might one day extend southward to Cali
fornia. Companies Delving for Coal.
The little that can be said of Wasco
county's mineral development Is big with
promise. The Ideal conditions for the ex-,
lstence of coal In the neighborhood of The
Dalles have long been noted by geologists
and men skilled In this particular line of
mineralogy, and the numerous cropplngs
that have been discovered during the past
SO years have placed Its existence beyond
a reasonable doubt. Three companies, each
amply provided with means, are making
earnest efforts to settle the question. One
of them has been at work for nearly three
years, and Is at present tunneling into a
mountain near the railroad track at Crate's
point, but the reticence of all concerned
bars any report of progress. The last to
engage In the work are Seufert Bros , the
well-known cannerymen. who have leased
the lands of B. F. Laughlln and started
a diamond drill to work on the bank of the
Columbia. These gentlemen, who have
turned everything they have touched dur
ing the past 20 years Into gold, assure the
writer tl.at they will continue the work
they have begun until success crowns their
efforts, or they are convinced there isno
coal to be found, or, at least, not fqund
in paying quantUes.
The only authentic discovery In the line
of the precious metals during the past year
Is located about 30 miles south of The
Dalles, a little east of Mount Hood. Seven
quartz ledges and 60 acres of placers have
been located. The surface rock assays ?56
to the ton in gold, and the placers, al
though undeveloped, are very promising.
The Hood River Gold & Silver Mining
Company, composed of capitalists of The
Dalles, own the discoveries, and will com
mence extensive development work on
them In the spring. Extensive beds of
very pure silica abound In the Mosler
neighborhood. Numerous carload lots have
been shipped, at various times, to Port
land, and thousands of tons could be sold
In the East If satisfactory rates could be
obtained. While boring for coal near The
Dalles some time ago, the diamond drill
went through 40 feet of magnetic Iron.
W. R. WInans reports having discovered
a large body of cyanlte or cyanite quartz
near the forks of Hood river. The rock
splits and break "true." Is of dark'-blulsh
color and takes a polish like granite. It
Is said to be finely adapted to dimension
work, as well as mantels, monuments and
similar uses.
Best Year in "Wasco's History.
It is possible that 100 or 200 families have
been added to the population of the county
during the past year, but no data is ob
tainable, and these figures are only a
vague guess. The largest Immigration
has been to the fruit belts, where consld
erable government land Is still obtainable.
Very little good agricultural land remains
open to settlement, and of the fanners
who are here, far more are inclined to
buy the lands adjoining them than to sell
their own. Hence, the lands that have
changed hands during the year have gen
erally been purchased by resident farmers
rather than by outsiders. The Wasco
county farmer knows enough to hold on
to a good thing when he has It There
is no time, however, when good, desirable
farms cannot be obtained at from $5 to 510
an acre, a price still out of all proportion
to their value under intelligent cultivation.
Unimproved fruit lands can often be had
at the price quoted for agricultural lands,
but good fruit farms, with trees in full
bearing, cannot often be obtained for less
than from $50 to $100 an acre.
It may help a stranger to form some
Idea of the profits to be derived from the
smaller products of a Wasco county farm .
If we quote the retail price that prevailed j
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on December 1 at The Dalles market:
Creamery butter, 30 cents a pound; choice
dairy, 25 cents. Eggs, 30 cents a dozen they
have averaged 25 cents for the year.
Dressed chickens, 15 cents a pound;
dressed turkeys, 17 cents; dressed ducks,
65 to 75 cents; geese, $1 GO to $2 each. Po
tatoes, 75 cents a sack. Cabbage, 2 cents
,. pound. Onions, Vfi. cents. Honey, 15
cents a pound. Apples, SI to $1 50 a box.
Pork (live weight) 4 cents a pound.
After deducting from these prices any
reasonable profit for the merchant and
middleman, and calling to mind the prices
already quoted for beef, mutton and wool,
Is it any wonder that when the writer
asked the Hon. Robert Mays, county judge
of this county, and extensively engaged
in farming, stockralslng and merchandis
ing, what should be told The New Year's
Oregonlan as to the prosperity of the
county during the past year, his answer
was: "Tell The Oregonlan It has been the
most prosperous year the people of Was
co county have ever known"? The only
shadow on this picture is the present low
price of wheat, which, however, Is in
no 'sense ruinous, as the cost of raising
wheat is only from 25 to 30 cents a bushel,
and what is over this is profit. The
Wasco county farmer Is not selling his
wheat at 47 cents, for the very sufficient
reason that he Is able to hold it in hope
of a better price. Wasco county farmers
were never much in debt, and Releases of
mortgages for the year, although relative
ly large, make no Important showing, but,
as Indicating their confidence in the pres
ent and hopefulness for the future, It may
be told that of every 10 mortgages given
by farmers, nine of them are ' for the
purchase of more land.
The crop prospects for 1900 are unusu
ally bright. We have had unusually
heavy rains. The ground is thoroughly
soaked, 'and fall wheat in many places
stands from six to ten inches high. The
grass on every hill Is greener than It ever
was known to be, and all kinds of stock
go into the winter In prime condition.
Taking It for all In all it would be hard
to find a more desirable climate than that
of Wasco county. A more healthy one Is
to be found nowhere. From S. L Brooks,
special weather observer for The Dalles
district, we learn that the mean averago
temperature for the past 24 years was 52.9,
the mean maximum 62 2, and the mean
minimum 42 2. So far this fall the ther
mometer touched 34 only once, on the night
oft November 22. The snowballs are In
bloom in The Dalles gardens and tomato
plants and other tender vegetation are
scarcely yet (December 1) affected by the
winter frosts. On Thanksgiving day (No
vember 30) the writer picked a big
bunch of delicious white muscat grapes,
that were hard and fast on their parent
stem, in the garden of a neighbor. The
climate of Wasco county is remarkably
equable. Summer glides so Imperceptibly
into the lap of winter and winter In turn
into summer that the dividing line between
the seasons can hardly be traced. We have
only two seasons, the wet and the dry.
But the wet season Is not wholly wet,
nor the dry season wholly dry. The cold
of winter is of short duration, and the
heat of summer is never Injurious, and
seldom oppressive. We have no sunstrokes
and few frostbites, and, with abundant,
vigorous and health-giving breezes from
the Pacific, neither cyclones, tornadoes
nor blizzards nor anything even remotely
allied to them. The average annnal pre
cipitation at The Dalles is about 16 Inches.
In the great wheat belt south , of The
Dalles it Is about 20 inches, while In the
Hood 'river valley, which lies nearer to
the summit of the Cascades, it Is 35
inches.
Progress of Tlie Dalles.
Tho county seat Is The Dalles, which
has a population of about 5000. It te pleas
antly situated on the south bank of the
Columbia river, 88 miles by rail from Port
land, and 212 miles from the river's mouth.
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It derives Its name from the "Narrows"
a little east of the city, which obstruct
river navigation eastward. The O. R. &
N. Co. gives the city connection with all
points east and west, and a fleet of pow
erful and beautiful steamers belonging to
The Dalles. Portland & Astoria Naviga
tion Company, and chiefly owned by the
people of The Dalles, gives the city the
benefit of terminal rates and river compe
tition to Portland and all points west
ward. Tho mercantile establishments of The
Dalles would do credit to towns of 10 times
its population, and a very large wholesale
and retail business Is done with the In
terior. The town has unsurpassed ware
house facilities, and, through Its bankers
and merchants, abundance of capital to
utilize Its naturaf advantages. It Is the
best wool market in the Northwest, and
handles more wool direct from the grow
ers than any town In the United States.
This will appear no empty boast when It
Is said that from 6t000,000 to 8,000,000 pounds
are annually shipped here from first hands
and find a market here. Wool is shipped
to this market from tho state of Idaho on
the east, from Washington on the north
and from counties In Eastern Oregon that
border on California. And yet, strange as
it may 'appear, there Is not a woolen mill
nor scouring mlll nor mill of, any kind to
work on this Immensity of raw material
within the limits of the county.
The school facilities of The Dalles are
unsurpassed, apd the benefits of a good,
common sphool education are obtainable
everywhere in the county. The larger re
ligious denominations are well represented,
and there are few districts that do not
enjoy the privilege of a weekly service.
The people are peaceable, law-abiding,
contented and industrious, and In Intelli
gence and culture, according to their sta
tion, will not suffer in comparison with
those of any other district on the conti
nent. HUGH GOURLAY.
The Dalles, Or.
IfEW TOWN OF SHANIKO.
Southern Terminus of Columbia
Southern Railroad.
Shanlko is the name of a new town In
the southeastern part of Wasco county,
near what was long an Important sta
tion on the main wagon road between
The Dalles and Canyon City, known as
Cross Hollows The name is not Indian,
as might be supposed, but is the Ameri
canized patronymic of a former honored
German resident named Scherneckan,
whom his neighbors, In defiance of all
Teutonic orthography, persisted In call
ing by the name adopted for the new
town. Shanlko has as yet no place on
any map of Oregon. The townsite com
pany was only Incorporated a couple of
months ago. too late to do more than
grade a few of the principal streets be
fore the winter frosts and prepare for
laying the foundation for a pumping sta
tion for the water works. But the pre
diction is confidently made that before
The Oregonlan publishes its annual for
190i Shanlko will be the liveliest town of
Its size, or of any size, in Eastern Oregon.,
Shanlko Is in no sense a boom town. It
is the child of necessity. Certain lines
of business are bound to go there, and
the townsite Incorporators,, most of whom
have large and conflicting interests else
where, have simply yielded to the inevi
table and determined to follow the busi
ness to Its new home. To any one ac
quainted with the topography of Eastern
Oregon it is not necessary to state that
the lines of communication, whether by
rail or wagon, almost of necessity follow
certain well-defined routes. Thus for all
time past the bulk of all the traffic be
tween the 'interior of Eastern Oregon and
the head of navigation on the Middle Co
lumbia has been carried over two, wagon
roads that meet at Bakeoven, a few miles ;
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west of Shanlko. From thence to The
Dalles, a distance of 50 milesr one single,
expensive tollroad carried the bulk of all
the traffic of a territory nearly as large
as the states of Vermont and New Hamp
shire. That the future traffic of all this
territory will find its. meeting-place at
Shanlko Is beyond any reasonable doubt.
The town will be the southern terminus
of the Columbia Southern railroad, and
as the extension of this road farther Into
the Interior would be enormously expen
sive and will not be Justified for many
years by any certain hope of Increased
traffic, Shanlko will, in all probability,
long remain the terminus. Everything
that men and money can do 13 being done
to have the road completed to Shanlko
by the end of March, and the contractor
has bound himself in a $50,000 forfeit to
have It completed by the first of May.
At the earliest possible moment In the
coming spring, materials of all kinds will
be hauled to the townsite and the erec
tion of necessary buildings pushed with
all vigor. The railroad company will erect
a substantial depot and general office
buildings, besides car and repair shops,
roundhouse, coal bunkers and sajidnuuse.
It is estimated that about 30 dwelling
houses will be needed for the employes of
the railroad company alone. The Shanlko
Warehouse Company, composed of D. M.
and J. W. French, the well-known bank
ers, and W. Lord and B. F. Laughlln.
capitalists, of The Dalles, and W. H. and
H. A Moore, bankers, of Moro and Gold
endale, have already let the contract for
an Iron and steel warehouse, in size SO
by 300 feet. The size of the warehouse Is
Justified by the fact that fully three
fourths of the wool and general merchan
dise heretofore handled at The Dalles will
be handled here. This means an annual
aggregate of 5.000.0000 6,000,000 pounds of
wool, and anywhere- from 2.000,000 to 3,000,
000 pounds of general freight. The Shan
lko Townsite Company, composed of the
gentlemen already mentioned and E. C.
Pease, of Pease & Mays, of The Dalles;
A. E. Hammond, chief engineer of the Co
lumbia Southern, and F. T. Hurlburt,
cashier of the Arlington National bank,
of Arlington, Or., have arranged to erect
here the largest stockyards north of Oak
land, Cal. Of the 5000 cars of livestock
annually shipped from Huntington and
Ontario, not to speak of hundreds of car
load lots shipped from The Dalles, Ar
lington. Heppner and Pendleton, It is ex
pected that 3000 carloads will be shipped
from Shanlko. All roads from the great
stock ranges of the Interior lead to Shan
lko. For hundreds of miles south the
country Is open, and water and grass are
everywhere abundant. Besides, Shanlko
Is the natural, and In most cases the only,
shipping point for all Crook county, all
Western Grant county,' Wheeler county.
Northern Lake and Malheur, and South
eastern Wasco, and It is no unimportant
thing to say that there is never so much
as a single tollroad leading to the town.
One of the largest general merchandising
concerns in Eastern Oregon will have a
branch house here and several other
large concerns contemplate making Shan
lko their headquarters. Pease & Mays,
of The Dalles, who do an enormous busi
ness with the Interior, will make Snan
iko their future headquarters for this
trade, and among the first buildings to
be erected will, be an Immense Iron and
steel structure to accommodate their busi
ness. It Is altogether probable that all
the larger business concerns of Antelope,
an Important trading point about six
miles distant, may move to Shanlko for
self-protection, just as the business of
Cross Hollow3 20 years ago moved to An
telope for the same reason. A substan
tial brick bank building is among the
earliest improvements contemplated, and
a bank will be established with abund
ance of capital to handle all the business
certain to he concentrated there. The nu
merous springs of pure, living water at
Cross Hollows will be used to supply the
town with abundance of water, and tha
townsite company has already contracted
for a 60-horsepower engine, boiler and
pump, with a capacity of 400 gallons per
minute. The receiving system at the Hol
lows, half a mile from the townsite, will
have a capacity of 100.0CO gallons, and the
distributing system a temporary capacity
of 50,000 gallons. The same power will bo
used to supply the town, with electric
Ught3.
Among the numerous natural advan
tages of Shanlko, not the least important
is the fact that It is less than a score o
miles distant from the Trout creek gold
and sliver mines, that are to be reckoned
among the most promising on the Pacific
coast. The Oregon King mine, that re
cently changed hands at $100,000, not long
since shipped three carloads of ore to the
Tacoma smelter, which, after paying for
smelting and freight charges over 70 miles
of wagon road and about 300 mlle3 of rail,
netted to the owners $2S a ton, or $166 a
ton, gross. Another mine in the same
neighborhood has rock that assays $90 to
the ton in gold and 420 ounces of silver.'
A3 a railroad terminal, Shanlko reaches
farther Into the interior of Eastern Ore
gon than any other town. It will need ex
tensive hotel accommodations, livery sta
bles and feed yards, and the men first on
the ground with these necessities are cer
tain to have all the business they can at
tend to. To meet the demand that 13 sure
to arise for feed for freight teams that
will load and unload here, the ware
house company has purchased nearly all
the surplus hay In Sherman county.
The town Is laid out Into 30 blocks of
12 lots each. 50x100 feet. The business
streets are 100 feet, and the residence
streets SO feet In width. The site Is on a
plain that slopes gently toward the north
east, in line with the prevailing winds.
It Is about 2500 feet above sea level, and
commands an extensive view In all direc
tions. From any part of the town eight
perpetual snow peaks are visible, namely:
Mounts Rainier, Adams and St. Helens,
In Washington, and Mounts Hood. Jeffer
son and the Three Sisters, in Oregon. No
accurate data of the climate and tempera
ture are available, but old settlers assure
tho writer that the thermometer seldom
touches zero, that the winters are usually
short, and, on account of exposure to the
warm Chinook winds, snow seldom lies on
the ground for more than a few days at
a time. The moderate elevation of the
townsite secures It against oppressive
heat in summer, and. with abundance of
pure air, the be3t facilities In the world
for drainage, and abundance of pure,
cool, living water, Shanlko ought to make
an Ideally healthy town. Keep your eye
on Shanlko. Nature has done everything
in its power to make a prosperous town
there, and the owners of the townsltei
who are numbered among the richest men
In Eastern Oregon, will do the rest.
YAMHILL COUNTY.
Immigration, of 1SOO the Larcest
Since tho County Was Settled.
Yamhill county, like most of her neigh
bors, experienced. In 1S99, a most excep
tional year. The spring opened late, but
with bright prospects for an enormous
yield of grain. A large crop matured,
but with It came rain, which vastly les
sened the opportunity to reap and thresh
the crop, and the result was much grain
damaged. A freezo, in February, prac
tically annihilated the budding prune, one
of the largest factors of the fruit indus
try. The crop of hops was excellent and
was reasonably well harvested, though
some damage was done by rain. The po
tato crop was unexampled, but about one
third of It yet remains in the ground, and
may not be gathered until spring.
The crop of wheat Is estimated by the
best judges at 1.000,000 bushels, two
thirds of which Is believed to be still In
the possession of growers, who are hold
ing for better prices. The hop crop is
estimated at 5000 bales, of which about
one-fifth ha3 been sold. Fifty thousand
pounds of mohair was produced In Yam
hill county last year. This is a growing
Industry. The product commands a prlea
ranging from 25 cents to 35 cents a pound.
The goat thrives in Yamhill county, and
Is very useful in the clearing of land.
The county ranks among the first in the
state in the number of goats. The wool
clip last year was 250,000 pounds. Of this
amount, Mr. Hendrlck. the veteran ware
houseman of McMlnnville, bought 100.000
pound3.
Larsreat Immigration la .Yamhill's
History.
The county can record the largest immi
gration In 1S99 that It has ever had In
any single year since It3 earliest settle
ment. At least 200 persons entered its con
fines from Eastern states. The Increase
has been quite general In the county.
Some say that their attention was first
drawn to the state and to Yamhill county
by reading the New Year's Oregonlan of
1S99.
The unusually heavy rains Interfered
with fall seeding, so that probably not
more than one-third the usual acreage
has been sown. This will largely in
crease the spring acreage.
Yamhill Is pre-eminently an agricultural
district. Nothing so emphasizes thl3 fact
as the large stocks of farm implements
kept in all the towns, and the great
amount and variety purchased by the
farmers each year. McMlnnville. tho
county seat, has six of these stocks Yam
hill also has large timbered districts,
whose splendid specimens of fir sweep tho
cobwebs from the sky. The large mill
ing firm of Jones & Adams does an an
nual business of 1,000.000 feet of lumber,
while eight to a dozen other mills add at
least a second million.
Building in 1S99 was principally confined
to residences, and the gain has been con
spicuous and substantial In the larger
disappointment is felt by many
at the failure to complete tho construc
tion of the government locks In the Yam
hill river at Lafayette, that McMlnnville
might thereby be placed at the head o
navigation all the year around. This
Is a consummation devoutly wished dur
ing 1900, nothing now remalnlrg to be
done except the construction oi a dam.
The rainfall for the year, by months,
up to December 12, was:
January f.2R
February
March
April
May -
Juno - -TO
July ?
September - 2.SG
October S
November lc
December, to 12th - 3j60
Total 58 H
This 13 an excess over 1893 of about 13
inches.
Demand for Mannfactnrinc Enter
prises. Tho great need of the county is man
ufacturing Industries. We are long on
raw material and short on skilled labor
to eat the products of the farm. This ia
largely true of all Oregon. We need fac
tories and canneries to convert the over
production and ship to other markets in
manufactured form what we now ship
out raw. to be returned manufactured,
with freight rates added. A3 has been
aptly expressed, we thu3 "corrode our
viscera" with freight rates. The Star
mills, of McMlnnville. have just completed
filling an order of 7000 sacks of flour, to
be shipped to Japan, and are grinding
on a new order. Other mills of the county
are shipping .to foreign countries. They
have the machinery and the wheat, and
labor does the rest. It only proves what
may be done In other lines to take advan
tage of the opportunities for trade with
the Philippines, China and Japan. Cured
meats, canned goods in great variety,
dried prunes and other fruits, hops and
hop products, sugar and woolen goods are
just as practicable of preparation hero
aa flour and lumber, and only lack tha