THE MORNING OREGONIAN, TUESDAY, JANUARY 1, 1901.
I
the formation of the country ls suited to
the construction of large reservoirs.
Art article on agriculture would not be
complete without a congratulation to tha
O. R. & N. Co. for Its work in reclaiming
the "sands along its line. In the hope of
providing farmers and stockmen with
grasses and forage plants that will fur
nish food under conditions of light rain
fall, the company has been conducting
experiments at several places along its
line for over two years. As a result;
there are six varieties of grass which,
tests have -proved will thrive on the sandy
soils of the Inland Empire. These are
brome grass, bunch grass, blue grama
grass, Turkestan alfalfa, Australian
salt bush and rrhlte sage. These
will take the place of the native
bunch grass, which has been eaten
down and tramped out by cattle, and
much country now considered worthless
will be reclaimed. Areas windswept at
all jseasons of the 5 ear and as hot as a
desert in Summer, will again be carpeted
with green, and under the new conditions
stockralslng for market will Increase and
an Impetus will be given to dairying.
This work has been conducted under the
supervision of Colonel R. C. Judson.
The Climate of Oregon.
The climate or weather conditions of u
single city or town are often difficult to
describe for readers living in an entirely
different climate to understand and thor
oughly realize the attractiveness of the
climate written about. As a rule only
the pleasant things are told, the disa
greeable being forgotten or passed over.
The" following brief resume of Oregon's
ollmate is based on the official Govern
ment records. The reader should thor
oughly understand the geographical and
physical conditions of the state before
a study of the climate is undertaken.
' Oregon Is In almost the extreme north
western corner of the United States. The
northern portion of the state is as far
north as St. Paul, Toronto and Portlana,
Me. It has a coast line of nearly 400
miles. It extends between 4 degrees ot
latitude, the 42d and 46th, and between i
degrees of longitude, the 117th and 124 th.
It has an area of 96,000 square miles, or
about El, 000,000 acres. If each acre were
-H
VALUE OF OREGON'S AGRICULTURAL PROD
UCTS IN 1900.
Product
'Wheat, bushels
Corn, bushels -
Oats, bushels ...,...;....
Hay, tons
Potatoes, bushels ,
Wool, pounds
Hops, pounds
Barley and. rye, centals.
Mohair, pounds
Vegetables, hemp, etc. .
Total
capable of supporting one-tenth the pop
ulation that some European countries do,
the population would be several millions.
As it is, the population Is less than half
a million The state has an area equal to
the combined area, of the six New Eng
land States and New York included. The
Immensity of the state in area, should, be
kept in mind.
Physical Features.
The state possesses many of the phys
ical features found in Pennsylvania. It
has three well-defined ranges of moun
tains, the most western being the Coast
Range, the second the Cascade Range, ana
the third the Blue Mountains. The two
former extend from north to south, the
latter from, southwest to northeast Tha
.
Coast Range Is a continuation of theOlym.
pic Mountains of Washington The range
Is from 10 to 50 miles from the ocean,
with a height of from 1000 to 3000 feet
East of the Coast Range from 0 to ICO
miles Is the Cascade Range. It has an
elevation of from 1400 feet upward, ob
taining its maximum height on Mount
Hood, 11,225 feel high. About 165 miles
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GEMSRAXi VIEW OF A WILLAMETTE VALLEY STOCK FARM. THIS IS ONE OF THE FINEST TARMS ON
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south of the Columbia River are the Cal
apoolas, connecting the Coast and Cas
cade Ranges. South of the Callpoola are
numerous mountain ranges, connecting
with the two main chains. The BlueMoun
talns, really spurs of the Cascades, are
in the northeastern part of the state
They extend into and form a portion of
the mountain chains of Idaho. East ot
the Cascades and south of the Columbia
River Valley is an undulating plateau,
having an elevation of from 1600 to 4000
feet. Between the Cascade and Coast
Ranges the country has an elevation lees
than 1000 feet in the largest alley, the
"Willamette, and also in the valley on the
south, the Umpqua. South of this latter
valley Is the Rogue River Valley, with
an elevation of from 1000 to 2000 feet. West
of the Coast range are many small "val-
Quantity.
Value
15,000.000
2S2.547
3,583 0)32
1,506 316
1,545,069
20,000,000
16,000,000
1,100 000
187.500
5 8,640.000
141,273
1,361,663
10.544,212
494,614
2.600 000
2,140,000
825 000
51362
600,000
$27,198,024
leys and "pockets" of from 100 to 5000
acres.
Great Variety of Climate.
"Within the State of Oregon one may
find a cold region, where frost occurs al
most every month of the year, or a mlla
region, where frost In midwinter seldom
occurs. Tho lofty mountain peaks have
perpetual snow, while the country west
of the Cascades rarely enjoys a sleigh
ride, and snowballs for the joupgsterb
are rare. The section west of the Coast
Range has rainfall enough to make moss
grow on trees In this region the rainfall
amounts to from live to eight feet a
year, yet fruit, grain ard grass can no
where be found to be more luxuriant
Between the Coast and Cascade Moun
tains the rainfall amounts to from 25 to
A HERD OF ANGORA GOATS. WILLAMETTE VAIiLEY
EO inches, Increasing from the California
line northward. East of the Cascades
the rainfall amounts to from 9 to 24
inches, the average for the section being
about 14 inches. The year is divided Into
two seasons. Summer and Winter. Sum
mer begins about June 1 and extends to
September 1. During this time little, or
no rain falls. The first rains of Winter.
THE FARMS NEAR NORTH
as a rule, begin In September, but up to
the middle of November fair weather la
more common than rain From this tlm.
to the middle of March the rear rainy
season prevails.
Rain falls west of the Cascades and
rain or snow east of them From March
the rainfall rapidly decreases until June,
when the dry season again prevails. Dur
ing the rainy season there is considerable
fair weather, and it is unusual if outdoot
work Is suspended for over five consecu
tive days at a time The crops of Ore
gon, the low death rate, the lowest In tho
United States, the rich, highly colored,
perfect and great fruit yields, demon
strate the desirable climate that 13 to be
found In Oregon Snow falls east of thtr
Cascades In amount from a few Inches to
several feet, but It does not remain on
the ground for any great length of time,
owing to the warm southerly winds which
almost Invariably follow a cold or snow
period. These warm winds are known by
the name of "chlnook winds," and are
produced by what Is scientifically called
dynamic heating. They will cause a rlso
In temperature of from 20 to 40 degrees,
and owing to their dryness, quickly melt
the snow and dry the earth. If It weru
not for these Chinook winds, a large part
of the northwestern portion of the United
state would be unfit for agricultural pur
poses They so Influence the climatic
conditions that a large portion of the
otherwise bleak and barren country Is
made. Into an Ideal farming and stock
country. It Is due. In a very great ex
tent to these chlnook winds, that the
temperature of this section Is as mlla
as It Is, and also It Is the reason that
this Is an Ideal stock country. There are
no blizzards, no severe snow storms and
when Bnow does fall, It remains but a
comparatively short time on the ground.
Snowfall is always welcome to the stock
man, for the balmy breeze soon follows,
the snow Is melted and green food on the
ranges Is more plentiful and nutritious
than before the snow fell The rigorous
climate of Idaho, "Wyoming, Montana and
adjoining states Is not experienced In
Oregon, hence the superior advantages
that this state offers to the stockman.
The snowfall of "Winter, east of the Cas
cades is as welcome to the farmer and
miner as to the stockman The snow
falling on the Fall-sown wheat Insures
the crop for the following vear. The snow
melting makes water for the miner
0er the greater portion of the country
east of the Cascades 60 per cent of the
annual precipitation is in the form of
snow. This Is a wise provision of Nature,
t-
for the moisture occurring during the pe
riod when little evaporation takes place,
the snow, when melted, goes Into the soil,
there conserving all the moisture so nec
essary to the crops of the next season.
The precipitation Is, as a rule, well dis
tributed throughout the various months
of the year. The dry season Is not so
called because there Is absolutely no rain,
e o
YAMHILL, OREGON, ARE NOTED FOR
but because In a comparative sense there
Is none There Is always sufficient pre
cipitation along the coast and over the
mountain portions of the state to insure
good crops There never has been a crop
failure In any portion of the state, though
in the semi-arid counties especially ti
portions of Wasco, Sherman. Gilliam,
Morrow and Umatilla Counties, there have
been jears when the yield of grain has
been materially reduced, owing to In-
sufficient moisture In favorable seasons
FARMERS HAVE INVESTED THOUSANDS
wheat yields of from 40 to 60 bushels per
acre are not uncommon, and whole sec
tions will yield from 32 to 40 bushels pet
acre In unfavorable years, the yield la
ruduced to from 8 to 20 bushels per acre.
This latter yield Is a good one for many
states, but a poor one for Oregon.
Rainfall Is copious along the coast, but
that condition makes It an Ideal region
ilium oy u j. Hicks, Portland.
THE PACIFIC COAST.
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THEIR THOROUGHBRED SHEEP.
for dairying- products and timber. In
this section grass Is green and growing
every month of the year, and with im
proved communications with the markets,
great development in dairying will result.
The Willamette Valley, is usually spoke
WHEAT AT MORO AWAITING SHIPMENT
of as the "Garden Spot of the Wond,"
and it has well earned Its name The
alley contains about 5 000,000 acres of
land and In it there can be grown and
1 successfully produced anything that will
I grow In the temperato zone. The soil 01
OF DOLLARS IN GOATS IN THE PAST FEW YEARS.
the valley, as In the greater portion of
the state west of the Cascades, Is a veg
etable mould, produced by the decaying
vegetation of past ages. The Umpqua
and Rogue River Valleys, on the south,
are peculiarly fruit sections, though
grain, grasses and other products grow
to perfection Timber is plentiful In all
sections, from the summit of the Cascades
westward to tide water.
The great valleys east of the Cascades
are the Columbia River Valloy, the Valley
of the Snake, Grand Ronde Valley, Pow
der Rive?, Deschutes, John Day, Hood
River and numerous smaller vallejs
found along the many streams and riv
ers. These valleys are Ideal In richness,
only requiring sufficient water to make
them bloom as the rose The great devel
opment In the immediate future will be
In the country east of the Cascades. Ss
tems of irrigation are being extended,
arid water rights, with a sure supply of
water can soon be given to many thou
sands acres of land, which heretofore ha
produced nothing but sagebrush. Grain
will grow and leld good crops with an
annual precipitation of from 14 Inches and
"upward, but fruit, hay, hops and a thou
sand and one other products require mote
moisture, and this Is gradually being
supplied by means of irrigation. The va
rious rivers, draining the country east or
tthe Cascades contain a vast supply of
-water, and a large percentage of this
water, which n8W flows to the ocean,
ian be utilized for irrigation with the
jexpemiiture ot only a small sUm of money,
.a small sum when compared with th
benefits that will accrue.
The temperature of Oregon 4 mild. Th
country west of the Cascades seldom has
.zero temperature, and even 20 degrees
above zero Is rare. Winter succeeds Win
rter when 10 degrees below the freezing
point Is extreme cold. "In the City of
Portland few j ears occur in which during
200 hours of the year the teirfperature
ronrVipc nr falls tiplnw thA frpMlnr nntnt
KEast of the -Cascades zero temperatures
occur very" Winter, with few exceptions.
The periods of cold are short, lasting
rarejy over 10 days, apd usually they are
followed by the balmy chlnook, changing
Winter in a few hours- to delightful
Spring. The Summers arc not warm. The
temperature will rise to 90 degrees every
year west of the Cascades and to 100 de
grees east of them, but these warm pe
riods are not oppressive. With the
warmth of Summer the air becomes dry;
the warmer It Is the smaller the percent
age of relative humidity In the air. The
dryness ot the air allows the moisture
on the body to evaporate, which produce
a cooling of the body and prevents"
the debilitating effects of the heat
The proximity of the ocean produces the
well-known land and sea breeze, so that
&
Photo by I. J. Hicks, Portland.
the nights are always cqoL- The same
covering for the bed Is used in many pot
Mans of the state for Summer as for
Winter. The degree of heat In Summer
and cold in Winter is mild In both cases,
neither doing Injury and both assisting
Photo b W. A. Raymond, Moro, Or.
TO PORTLAND FOR EXPORT TO EUROPE.
In their way to cause prolific production.
There Is an absence of Injurious frosts
from May 1 to October 1. Frosts rarely
do Injury to fruit bloom in Spring, In
fant mnr. ,rie Tiroillrl ha VtAnnflnlal fn it
would save the expense made necessary
to hand prune the fruit from tho trees.
HOMES IN MORROW COUNTY.
Lott Priced Lands Offered to the Set
tler. Other things being equal, the homeseek
er can in no other part of the world find
lower-priced lands than in Morrow Coun-
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THOROUGHBRED SHROPSHIRE SHEEP IN THE WILLAMETTE VALLEY.
4
ty.' Semi-arTd lands may bo bought -with
perfect title as low as GO cents an acre.
In the farming and stockraising region
unimproved and improved places may b
bought at from 12 60 to 17 an acre. A
place of 1000 acres, embracing both bench
uii R Br
and bottom lana", with running water And
right on the railroad, is offered at 1$ an
acre. Homeseekers can find anything:
they want free homesteads, rough ranch
es, sheep camps or well-Improved farms
with perfect title. Along and near the
Columbia River Morrow County has a
stretch of land on which tha rainfall la
not very heavy. With water upon It In
sufficient quantities this- land will pro
duoo abundantly. Without water It fur
nishes free range to considerable stock.
These lands are open to homestead or
desert land entry, and some day Irriga
tion will make them bloom and blos
som. HeRpner is this season handllne 100.000
bushels of wheat, of which tha flouring?
mm nas Dougni 3u,wu Dusneis. This wheat
is mostly raised in the Eight-Mile and
Hardman country, West of Hepner. Tho
main farming belt of Morrow lies 'clear
across the county to the north of Heppnor.
The county, this year has produced 900,000
bushels of wheat The land farmed is ail
plateau or slope, entirely free from
timber and undergrowth, making farming
easier than In many other localities.
The Heppner Hills country Is a fine ono
for grazing. Nutritious bunchgrass
grows luxuriantly, and on it all. kinds
of lives f Jo 1: f-d apd fatten, eseclally
th& sheep. Here U the home of tho
sheep. He thrives. Iht are 300,000
sheep In Morrow County. Lt Spring
95,000 were Bold and taken East nd this
Fall 30 000 changed hands locally and
remain In the county. In Morrow County
last Spring ewe bands raised on Increass
of 100 per cent average, as it was a very
favorable season. Other seasons they
, .ut. ?,
will average EO per cent, which shows
that this Is the home of the sheep.
Heppner Is a great wool center. At
present the warehouses contain 2,500,000
pounds, w hlch growers are holding for an
advance. Well up toward a million
-Photo by I J. Hicks, Portland.
pounds of woo Is brought to Heppner ev
ery year from adajacent counties on tho
south, and here the dealers coma to In
spect, buy and snip It
Coal, gold and silver have been found
in tho southern part of Morrow County,
but no practical development work has
as yet been done. A steam or electrio
line built along Upper Willow Creek woula
tap a large body of fine timber. At pres
ent Heppner and Morrow County depends
Photo b I J. Hicks. Portland.
'i
for fuel cm wagon hauling" for 18 miles,
from the Blue- Mountains, or on wood
brought by rail from the Cascade Moun
tains, 130 miles away.
J, W. REDLNGTON.
Heppner.
SEEDS"
..BEE AND POULTRY SUPPLIES.
Morth western Agents
MANN BONE CUTTERS
PORTLAND SEED C.
135 Front Street, Portland, Oregon.