Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1879-09-19
Some Favorable Changes.

ago, that Washington Territory was
wholly dependent for breadstufi.
and dairy products upon Oregon
and California. Indeed, butter and
cheese were largely imported from
the Atlantic States by the steamer
routes, long after tie completion
Of the continental railroad. Old
residents have not forgotten the taste
and smell of Isthmus butter; sooner
would they forge. their mother
tongue than the aroma of that high
priced product of other days. There
were rot a few men at that time
who spoke as if they thought the
numbering and mineral resources of
our Territory constituted its chief
dependence for all time to come.
Blu. the sequel has already shown
and is still showing how widely their
crude and narrow ideas differed from
the truth. We were told q few
days ago, by grain and flour deal
er, that this year, for the first time
in their history, the mills at Turn
water nave not been obliged to i'm
port wheat from Oregon and Cali
fornia to carry on their legitimate
business. If we are correctly in
formed, there have been over six
thousand bushels of new Thur,ton,
Lewis and Chehalis county wheat
brought to Tnmwater Co be couyelt-
ed into -four.
1t has already been stated that the
three counties above mentioned wi II
have q large surplus of grain of all
kinds, after roservino enough for
home consumption and seeding pur-
poses; condition of things which
never existed before the present
year.
What has been said of these three
counties is equally true of many
other portions of Western Washing
ton. In proof of this, itmay be not
ed that the steamer .4iaSkn did
not come to the upper Sound, on her
last trip for the reason that more
than a full cargo of wheat awaited
her at lower ports; wheat which has
been harvested, this year, from the
rich valleys and tide-hats, supposed
only short time ago, to be waste
lands. 1t is safe to say that, taking
the whole of the Sound country to-
gether. the acreage sown to grain
this year is, at least, twice that all
told, of of any previous year. Sew
eral grain-shipping depots have been
established, this yeal on the North
ern Pacific Railroad, at points once
supposed to be only fitted for wood
ing way stations. All these devel-
opments are new things in our his
tory and speak loudly in our favor for
all time to come. To maintain a
few years ago, that Western Wash
ington could ever become a grain
producing country was an evidence of
bad judementifn not of unsound mind,
and the man who could utter such
d sentiment was truly fearless and
out-spoken citizen. Some adventur-
ers went so far as to say that when
the Sound country was shorn of its
forests, the land from the Straits of
Fuca to the Columbia river would
represent dreary waste, and on
account Of the currency of such
opinions, the early traders considered
that it betokened bad policy to be-
come so far identified with the coun-
try as to purchase and own in fee sim
pie the worthless land.
But how completely have the tables
been turned within the last decade
Now, by common consent, the land
is good enough for anything and no
man is ashamed to own we'll Sc
lected quarter section. 1t is Just
rebuke to old-time croakers to see
with what avidity the released rail-
road lands have been sought after by
purchasers from all over the country,
Oregon and California not excepted.
Thus the good work of substantial
developing and improvement is going
on, and mems minds are quite as
radically changing. The recent es-