The Daily state register. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1870-1872, 1871-12-23
WAGES IN OREGON.

We take the following interesting
summary Of business prospects IN
Oregon from the Ireka Union, whose
present editor has recently returned
from a two years residence IN that
State and Washington Territory. 1t
is fair statement of the condition Of
affairs in the interior. Portland is
of a different order generally pos
sessing a thrift and energy unknown
TO the old towns of the interior:
We do not seek to depreciate Ore
con. for We love her magnificent rlv-
ors and emerald hills. and honor her
bin-lcarteI men whose hospitality Is
- bouutcOus as the showers that
have kept famine aloOf from her
plains. But we do claim that the
only men who need emigrate there
are men who lind all the avenues Of
.employment closed to them here.
JnskilIed labor finds liberal renu-
meration there because an INTRUDER
from the outside world has come in;
in the person Of Ben Holiday, who
is building a railroad that shall one
dav bring Shasta of the icy crown.
near unto Hood Of the sulphury nos
trils: and he, this daring lnterloper,
wants white labor. lie employs
Chinese only when forced to, by the
scarcity of white men. But, with
the single exception of the city OF
Portland. skilled labor is but poorly
renumerated. Journeymen carpen-
ters. blacksmiths and saddlers. scarce
" ever get over sixty dollars per
month and their board, while here
any really good workman command
prices twenty-five per cent. above
the ordinary Oregon standard. As
for that portion of Washington Ter
rit0rv living about Puget Sound, Its
importance is all prospective, and no
good grounds exist for the sudden
appreciation Of property IN that sec
ton. The farmers OF Oregon have
found the building of the railroad a /
lever that has aided in the raising OF
prices Of all sorts of produce, thirty
per cent. but they are not willing to /
allow that advance to so beyond their
own circle. They expect blacks
miths and wheelrights to work Just
as cheap as they did when -four was
four dollars per barrel. 50 with
merchants living along that portion
of the Willamette river now traver-
sed bv the railroad, which in former
times was only accessible by steam
boat about four months IN the year
They Will not increase the wages OF
clerks because they say that railroad |
freight on their goods IS higher than
steamboat freight, hence they can
not afford it. They omit to mention
that they are no longer compelled to
buy and ship goods enough IN Feb
ruary, March and April to last all
the rest of the year. Now the rail-
road is complete through the entira
length of the Willamette Valley, and
a merchant can carry Just as big
stock of goods with twelve Thousand
dollars capital as he formerly could !
with thirty thousand. Look what
saving in the way of interest that IS.
If vcu follow no avocation but that
Of 4 clerk. don't go there; you will
find no end Of competitors there
ready to work for half what you
would expect to get. Sixty dollars
and find Yourself. is over the aver
ace outside Of Portland. SO we say
to all who are making anything over
a living here, " stay where you are.
You have time enough to go to Ore
gon five years hence, unless you go
there to farm it, There is no farm
ing country to surpass it on the Pa
citic coast. and none to equal it for
grazing purposes in the world. But
you will find a great many disadvan
fages to offset these gains. You may
not be able to educate your children
as they should be educated. The
public school system is fifty years