The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1880-11-26
SAVE ME FROM my FRIENDS.

4
tered, and built himself a house.
brought in stock, cleared and fenced
some land round, and has prospered,
until his possessions, as he fattered
himself they were, spread over the
whole land aul he dreamed it was all
his own. His eye ranged over the
wide prospect, and from the river to
the mountains he saw no land but
his, and his cattle pastured at will.
He troubled not his soul about title,
for said he, have built and own the
road and the bridge; possession is
nine points of the law; no one can,
no one shall, venture to settle and
crowd me out of my domain.
But the country is good, and open
to settlement, and the first conner
has to endure to see neighbors come
in, take up their homesteads, divide
up the free range, and share with
him the enjoyment of the land.
There are two ways in which he
can take it. The FIRST is, thank God,
infinitely the more usual in the great
free United States. The new conner
is welcomed-he finds lodging and
help with the first settler. A free
hearted and generous hospitality is
offered him. He is shown the boun-
daries; the best spot for the new
house is pointed out; hay and seed
is lent him; the supplies are freely
shared. The first settler smothers
the instructive jealousy he feels at
what seemed at first a trespass on his
rights; he calls to mind the society
and companionship he will get; he
thinks of the church and school that
will now be possible he dwells in
his mind on the better market open.
ing for his surplus products; :he re
joices that the country will be built
up, for in it he has fixed his home,
and be glories in its progress.
A churl deals differently. He turns
his back on the new conner in the
road, and closes on him the door of
his house and barn. Sullenly he
broods over the solitary lordship now
gone forever. The very sight of his
new neighbor raises his unholy anger.
He dislikes the look of his face; he
ridicules his belongings; he rejoices
in every fall and disappointment he
meets; he glories in the news that
his wheat is rusted, his potatoes dis
eased, his COW dying, his sheep hav-
ing the scab, his children sick. He
will do all he can to daunt and dis
courage him; he will misrepre>ent
the country to him, and run it down;
if he can he will bring his distant
creditors down on him. In every
way he will strive to drive him away
on his road, and will not breathe
freely until he has seen the last of
the white cover of the wagon which
bears away the intruder to more
hospitable spot.
Which of these two parts does
Portland play? But no, we recall
the word. Many of Portland's citi-
zens, we know, have the manliness,
the magnanimity generously to desire
the growth, development and pros
perity of our whole State. They
have a noble pride in seeing others
recognize the value of the country
they have made their home. Let
Oregon flourish is their motto as well
as ours, and they stop not to jingle
the dollars in their pocket and think
if there will be one the less if other
cities prosper, If other stores be built,
and commerce thrive in other streets
than theirs. Unfortunately for them
they have allowed people of kin to
the jealous and greedy settler to
usurp the place of spokesman and
representatives; and thus they are
judged by. the INSCRIPTIONS outpour-
ings which disgraced the Oregon
Senate in the person of the President,
and have recently been aired in the
columns of the Oregoniaa.
On the 10th inst. the Oregonidp
published the report of an interview
between one OF their representatives
and Mr.. /. S. Polhemus, the engineer
who has just surveyed the Yaquina
bar and bay. What is there IN the
account o.justify the malicious sneer
at "all who had hoped to see Yaquina|
Bay prominent sea port ?" Is our
hope and confidence to be treated as
a shadow which has necessarily faded
away now that light has been thrown|
on it2 Are we to put all by on the
bidding of paragraphist? Is not
this very report, even when present
ed in the yellow light of the Oregon
ia,a, a strong Justification for all The
effort made for the improvement of