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About Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 17, 1909)
lite JtA ftv il in-i is ipi Efl tm it. a ii r M WAX V: VOL. XXV. GRANTS TASS, JOSEPHIXE COUNTY, OREGON.FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1909. No. 23. 5 ' 'at Hi GRANTS PASS A BUSINESS CENTER ' JiANY FACTS RELATING TO ITS PROSPERITY AXD GROWTH i THE ROGUE RIVER DISTRICT Its Many Natural Advantages Are Apparent to All Observant Visitors. Grants Pass has a water front which affords opportunity for the use of gasoline launches, row boats And canoes. It is the only city in the Rogue River valley that has these very desirable advantages. Grants Pass has nine church edifices, and has a number of other 'religious organizations which have cot yet had opportunity to build churches of their own. The per centage of church communicants a" cordlng to population is greater here than any other city on the coast. Grants Pass has three grammar echools, built of brick, and a high school. The enrollment is 925 and there are employed a superintendent and 26 teacuers. The educational advantages are In every respect most excellent and many people se lect Grants Pass as a residence be cause of the reputation of Its public echools. Grants Pass will soon have enough alfalfa and other hay grown under Its own ditches on the Applegate and Rogue river to supply forage for the city, mines and farms and large quantities for shipment to other points. Irrigation Is revolutionizing 'the forage question. Grants Pass lumber market Is supplied with the product of thirty five sawmills which send to this cen ter annually more than twenty mil lion feet of lumber for manufacture and shipment. Grants Pass has around It (50,000 acres of fruit lands, 20,000 of whic h ere now being put under a perfect ystem of Irrigation and as many more acres will be supplied .with ; "-water within the next three years. Grants Pass has near it 15,000 Acres which have been cleared and planted with grapes, apples, pears and other fruits within the last two years and as many more acres will he cleared and planted during the next two years. Grants Pass has two large box fac tories which manufacture for the frtilt trade of Southern Oregon and California, two large sash and door factories and two extensive lumber yards which handle all kinds of building material for a rapidly ex panding district. Special Large Aisortment of CHINA Cake Tin tea Salad Dishes Cups and Saucers Covered Sugar Howls Vegetable Dishes Creamers aii nt the lOc ea. 0110 l'ric''' IS g i 1 1 Grants Pass Is a city of about 6000 inhabitants and is a commercial center for several flourishing min ing districts, large lumber interests and extensive fruit and farming sec tions, besides extensive fishing in terests. Grants Pass has a vineyard near It which contains 65 acres of bearing grape vines and these are of the choicest varieties. This fruit is shipped to the great markets of the east in carload lots. More grapes are raised In this vineyard than in any other of the same size on the Pacific Coast. Grants Pass is an Important city on the Southern Pacific system which receives and ships large quan tities of freight of all kinds, supply ing the needs of a vast inland terri tory, accessible only from this point, which trade Is very extensive and constantly increasing. As a railroad point it Is one of the most Important on the line between Portland and San Francisco. Grants Pass has never had what Is commonly called a boom but has enjoyed a continuous growth for many years. It Is fast becoming a city of beautiful homes and fine business blocks. Contracts will be let within the next month for the paving of the entire business center with bitnllthlo pavement and it Is the Intention to extend this pave ment many blocks during the next year. Grants Pass has an electric light ing system which Is in every respect equal to that of any other city In the state and the cost at which light, h ar ciiumltil k quite as low, and the result Is that the system is nonulnr fid everybody uses this kind of light. . Grants Pass has an uo-to-date tele phone system such as Is found onlv In prosperous municipal centers. Fortunately within the last year the company resolved to improve the system and make It In every respect worthy of this progressive city and Orants Pass enjoys the advantage of the best telephone service to be found anywhere. Grants Pass has a water system which supplies the entire city with water for domestic purposes at a nominal expense and next year Irri gation water for gardens, lawns and small fruit farms within the city limits will be furnished by the Josephine County Irrigation & Power company by a system of cement pines. The general Irrigation will add greatly to the beauty of the city at a very moderate expense. Heavyweight Wrestler Here. Leo Rockier, of Minneapolis, Minn., on a month's vacation from his reirnlnr duties, arrived In (Iran's Pass Thursday and will spend poiii- time looking over the mining section. Mr. Rockier Is a heavy weight wrestl er and Is anxious to meet any one In the state In a wrestling match. He will back himself for any rea sonable amount, and enough to ninke It Interesting. He Is a finely built man. welching 190 pounds on the mat, and a trained athlete in the best of condition. New Arrivals The House FurnIsher FOREST FIRES NOW RAGING ROGUE, RIVER VALLEY IS NOW ENVELOPED IX SMOKE VALUABLE TUBER LOST Supervisor Anderson Talks About Destructive September and October Fires. The Bmoke of great forest fires burning north of this city fairly fills the Rogue River valley and hides the mountains on every side. The sun is veiled and when it shines at all its color Is deep red with a car mine shading. There have been days and nights of this weather un til we are ready to call for a change. At the present writing the wind is from the west and there is every in dication of rain, which, if it comes, will put out the fires. M. J. Ander son, the supervisor of the Siskiyou forest reserve, has been out for sev eral days giving directions to the fire fighters, returning Wednesday night. When seen by a representa tive of this paper he talked interest ingly, not only of the present fires, but of those which have occurred in the past. He said: "This is the second season for many years that Oregon has been un fortunnte enough to have September forest fires and the southwestern part of the state alone Is now a suf ferer. (Though California is still burning.) "Nearly every year July and Aug ust show more or less smoke, but in these months It Is not every fire in the woods that does serious Injury to standing merchantable timber, and for this reason many persons who have seen a burned area where brush and debris have been clenred by fire, without Injury to the large trees, are led to believe that It would be perfectly safe to annually set fall fires. ' "If the old Inhabitants will search their memory, or their record-?, they will discover that the famous fire of Oregon took place In September or October. "The disastrous fire of 1902 near 'ortland, that destroyed Bridal Veil, iiusltig such terror and some loss of life, and destroyed some of the Columbia river timber In Oregon, was a September (Ire, and there has never oocn a similar season since that time until the present, and, as I have said, this is really only local. "The great fires of the 00's that burned the vast forest from Bun don south to the California line (an area of probably 20x100 miles) are shown by all records to have been In September and October, though full details about these fires are hard to iecure. I am not scientist enough to say Just why fires are more disastrous late In the season; but I do not be lieve It Is altogether the result of the dry condition of the ground and un derbrush. During the past two weeks I have paid particular atten tion to the way a September fire at tacks green trees, and am lead to believe that after the growing period Is over and the season's growth more firm, the wood is more In flammable. One thing is certain, 'hat the pereentagp of green mature nine and fir being ruined by the large fire Is much greater on the ame area than has resulted from fires In the snme vicinity, and simi lar timber, In past years. "There Is another peculiar thing about late fall fires that Is not robnbly recognized by the casual observer. It Is well known by fire flKhters In the woods thnt the bent I time to put up a fight Is In the even- In? or early morning. This Is be cause, as a rule, forest fires begin to (lie down about 4 p. m. and do not J revive until 9 or 10 a. m. This falls !ln late fall forest fires, though It would seem that roo nights would j make the burning hours chorter. In late fires, and the Inter -the more marked (especially In heavy timber). the fiercest burning Is from 9 at the fire is dormant it Is from early morning to noon. "The largest single fire I know of in Southern Oregon this season is on Cow Creek and its tributaries near West Fork station. This fire has now a boundary of probably over S miles. It Is burning in private tim ber and a force of Forest Service men, under H. B. HIllls, have suc cessfully kept It outside the boun daries of the Siskiyou forest. The odd sections burned belong to the O. & C. R. R. and the rest of the timber belongs to private parties. This fire hat done great damage. many claims valuable before the fire would not now pay to cut. This, like every great fire, struggled along for days in a way that made it look harmless (especially so late in the season), and could have been put out by a few men, but it later took nearly a hundred men working day and night to save the railroad build ings and mill property near West Fork, and thousands of dollars worth of timber close to the railroad Is ruined. This fire Is rumored to hnve been set by a careless hunting camp fire. "There is now a large fire burn ing south of Waldo. It Is In charge of two experienced Forest Service men, J. A. Gasiln and M. M. Lewis, with a crew of fighters. This Is supposed to be mostly private tim ber owned by Grants Pass people. The scant reports received are that it is a very stubborn fight and Is in keeping with my experience with late fall fires. "Wllllnms Creek has been the scene of several large fires, and the cost of these has been considerable In tho aggregate, but the damage done has not yet been great on ac count of the area being largely brush lands. "The const side of the Siskiyou range hns been remarkably clear of fires up to the last report (last week). The only fire set was sighted by Ranger Walter J. Jones, of Cres cent City, and R. A. Dean, of Grants Pass, who made so successful a twiAity mile ride that the fire was extinguished and the firebug ran down and had made confession be fore he had created smoke enough to really make It worth while. It Is likely he will be taken before the U. S. court at Portland Inter. "Nearly all the large fires of this season, at least, have started outside the government forest boundaries and by days of neglect became so large beforo It became apparent they would endanger the Siskiyou and thus make It possible to use govern ment funds, thnt the fk'ht to control was much greater. There should not only be a strict enforcement of the present slate fire law, but a lib eral appropriation to rare for these outside fires by paying a patrol force similar to that of the government. Fire wardens without salary will never protect the timber interest of the t ate." Pilgrimage No, 3. The pilgrimage of the members of the Commercial Club and business men of Grants Tass to the Williams, Provolt and Murphy districts of Josephine county will take place next Wednesday, September 22. The committee on arrangements consists of T. P. Cramer, H. C. Bobzeln, Jim Gibson and Secretary Andrews. All business men desiring to accompany this excursion should make the fact known to some member of the com nlttee. This section of the county Is one of the most Interesting and the good people there are famous for their hospitality and good cheer, therefore, a largo party Is "Tpected to partake In thlH pilgrim age. The many fine orchards, fields of alfalfa, dairy ranches, etc., Including the creamery, are all matters well worth the Inspection of the boosters of Josephine county. Fred Mermen returned Tuesday nlnht from Teller, Douglas county, where he has been for the past six weeks ranking a survey of govern merit lands. He was assisted In the work by Dun Mcl'nrlarid, W. M Harvey and Karl Allen, all of Grants I'as, The latter, not yet having enough of the mountain nnd wild erness. Is remaining for a few days with his kodak, gathering some of the many Interesting scenes. Mr Mcnsdi will leave In a few days for Deer Creek, where he has a small fraction of n townslto to subdivide under the ntie contract. RAILROAD FACTS AS THEY ARE TRANSPORTATION BUSINESS IX THIS PART OF OREGON THAT EASY MOUNTAIN PASS A Tribute to the tang-Headed Rout ing Meu of the City of Medford. The Pacific & Eastern has let a contract to the Porter Brothers for the construction of an extension of thnt road from Its present terminus at Eagle Point to Butte Falls, a dis tance of 18 miles. This contract was signed on Saturday of last week and on Monday Johnson Porter of the above noted firm appeared In Medford and went over a part of the proposed line of construction. Some of the newspnpers have been trying to mnke it appear that (he Hill In terest has taken tho Pnclflc & East ern, but this was mero supposition; almost anything in the way of rail road building is grasped now'-n-dnys with avidity and a pausiblo story Is easily made for the gullible public, John R. Allen, who controls this little road, says that eventually It will be extended to Crnter Lake nnd that the only connection It has Is with the Southern Pacific at Med ford. Tho Medford Mall on Tues day published an Interview with Johnson Porter which gives the situ ation as he sees it. Here is what he says: "Work on the Deschutes railroad Is going ahead as fast as It possibly can and we are well sntlsfled with the progress. We are placing on men as fast as the engineers can cross section tho work, and that nt present Is all that Is worrying us. Ev erything else progresses smoothly and we hnve had no trouble so far with getting supplies nnd tools to work with. Our teamsters are the best In tho country and although tho roads are dangerous and steep In places, yet we have had no trouble. Called To Portland. "I left the engineers somewhere near the terminus of tho proposed Deschutes rond nnd hurried over to Crater Lnko to look nt the country. Here I was caught by a telophono message telling mo to come to .port land as quickly as possible. I have traveled from Crater Lake hero as fast as an automobile can go arid I am tired out. . Has No Significance. Yes, we have taken a contract to build tho Pacific & Eastern, but that doesn't signify anything, as we do construction work for any person or concern. We will have dirt flying here with In a week, as all our outfit Is on the way here now. We were In a good position to take thjs contract as we had some of our outfit In Port land which we were not going to use on tho Deschutes for some time, and we did not want It Idle. I am called to Portland on some urgent business nnd will not stay In Medford tonight, but will go on as soon as I ran leave. Some one of us will bo hero next week to gel things to move as quickly as possl hie." In the past this valley has been unrortunato enough to be in tho grasp of tho Harrlman system, but at the present time there Is a ray of hope. Harrlman Is dead, and It Is possible that tho new manager will see the necessity of developing this country and thus prevent rival cor poratlons entering the field, If the Orants Tnss Commercial Club will now take up this mntter of rallrond building there Is a chance to Interest parties In the construe Hon work, Tho time Is ripe and If we do not get n rnllroad It will be our fault. Call the attention of rail road men lo the situation and tho great opportunity of building a const line, Do not say to yourselves and your neighbors thnt these rallrond men know the conditions and will build when the signs come right without any urging. That Is neither good business or good logic. Capi talists are constantly looking for rallrond investments and if you have all the facts in shape and will sub mit them there is at least a chance to succeed. If no effort is made, of course, we will get nothing and in fact deserve nothing. What is the railroad committee doing? We hope these gentlemen are busy. We have waited for Harrlman long enough, now let us go after some one else. Bo prepared to furn ish all the information that will be required to show that a road built to the coast will pay; that is, will have tonnage. Please, gentlemen, get up and do something and it will astonish you how easy it will be to find someone who has the means, the ability and tho disposition to build the road we so much need. Medford is to be congratulated for its persistence in this mntter. It will undoubtedly have a railroad, but to get to Crescent City It must build by way of Grants rasa. From an article published In the Oregonlan of last. Sunday we clip tho following: "From nn authoritative source it was learned yesterday that two avail able routes, providing excellent grade, were discovered across the mountain range. Some years ago rnllroad surveyors on a roconnots sance. worked southwestward from Medford and found a satisfactory route to tho Pacific Coast, terminat ing nt Crescent City." This Is hot air pure nnd simple. No such route from Medford has ever been found for the very good reason thnt there are mountains of high al titude to cross and theso must be tunneled at a cost of millions ' of dollars. Yet we must say that the article from which this clipping was nken nnd which was republished in tho Observer this week, was one of the best newspaper attempts at booming we have seen for many a day. It wns well calculated to de ceive even the elect. That is one of tho things that Medford can do to perfection. It hns a system of news paper exploitation thnt is equaled by few towns in this or any other stato. It knows the Importance of employing printers' Ink, nlso how to welcome strnngers nnd to put them to work booming their city and the orchards which surround It. They are not snubbed and kept out in the rain because they have not lived there a long time, Note Its wonder ful article on Its orchards published the Oregonlan of September 5. Tho next article, tho one above men tioned, appeared Sunday tho 12th. l,ook out for more next Sundny. This sort of thing makes Medford talked of nnd believed In. The long-bended turn who plan this newspaper work nre full of en terprise and will bring about rall rond construction, In fact, (here Is only one thing they, with nil their faith, cannot do and that Is to re move tho mountulns In their path to Crescent City. The Courier hns no deslro to In jure Medford, but facts are facts. Tho Pacific & Eastern will bo ex tended nnd this will bo of no little ndvantago to our neighboring city. Medford will have railroads, and for Its spirit, of enterprise It dosorvea them. Tho place Is full of men of brond minds with senso enough to hang together In all matters that relate to the welfare of their place. In this respect they can glvo Grant Pass a few pointers, and If we are wise we will accept them. Grants Pnsg has mnny resource!, such as lumber, minerals and a great distributing commercial center and a rapidly growing fruit industry which, by tho aid of Irrigation, will soon rival any other fruit growing district In Southern Oregon. Not only hns It Irrigation, but It hat many thousands of acres of the best lands to be found In any country. Yen, there will bo a rnllroad built, for Oregon is In the swim now and rallrond building Is In order, but builders of these modern conveni ences always go through natural pnsseg, In fact, when necessary rival Interests will fight for theso natural advantages as the Harrlman and Hill Interests hnvo been doing. No rail road builders will go 40 miles oat of Ihelr way for tho sake of running up against two or three mountains which require million dollar tunnels" ench. Tho routo from Grants Pnse" to tho sea Is an rnsy gmdo between mountains and every mllo of tho way there hns Taluablo tonnage for rnllroad. S ho- right to 3 or 4 In the morning, and If f I