Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1883-10-10
WOOD RIVER.
HER ADVANTAGES GRAPHICALLY
DESCRIBED.

Her Mineral Wealth, Agricultural Fa.
cflfties, Social Features, Etc, as Told
by the Receiver Of the HALEY Land
Office.
correspondence Oswego (Kas.) Independent. |
HALEY is on Wood River, about rs
miles from where its waters flow into
the Snake river. 1t is small stream.
no larger than the Labette at or near
Chetopa. But, o! the clear, cool
water that rushes down this small
stream, which has descent of 20 feet
to the mile, is 80 grand, that to one
who is accustomed to the sluggish
streams OF Southern Kansas, whose
waters are green with filth and skum,
cannot hell but admire the country
for even the pure, cold water; and
when we stand and gaze upon this
pure, sparkling water as it rushes
down over the hundreds of cataracts.
we feel as though we could drink al.
ways and never have enough. The
fish that are found in all these streams
are very nice; they are the mountain
trout. 1t is pleasure to catch these
spry little fellows, and is no less a
pl asure to eat them when they are
properly served on the table. But l
be eve | was speaking of HALEY
We ], Haley is a little wooden town,
only two years old, regularly laid out,
but built up oflog houses, box houses,
few neat frame buildings, and some
brick and stone structures. A new
and magnificent courthouse is now un-
der construction at cost of $4,000.
"A three-story hotel, about the size of
Abbott House, OF Parsons, is nearly
enclosed, and many small dwellings
are in course of erection.
Now let me give you a few prices
OF both necessaries as we'll us luxu-
rles. 1t you start out with your mar.
ket basket to provide for dinner YOU
will be required to pay for Irish pota-
toes 3 cents per pound, sweet potatoes
10 cents per pound, beef % cents per
pound. and although the market is full
OF fruit, yet the prices run as follows:
Fears 20 cents per ponnd, green ap-
pies 10 cents per pound, grapes rs
cents per pound, tomatoes % cents
per pound, peaches rs cents per
pound. There is no nickel change
here, and rarely ten-cent piece is
seen or used. Punched coins 90 all
right, and Mexican as we'll as trade
dollars as good any. am told that
whisky at the bar is - cents drink.
! merely throw in this last bit of in.
formation for the benefit of some of
our Owego friends who have been talk
ing about coming up here.)
There is an immense amount of
business done here, as hundreds of
mining camps procure their supplies
Mt Haley, this being the end of the
Wood River Branch of the Oregon
Short Line Railroad. Hundreds of
of bullion and ore are
shipped from here to Omaha for smelt-
ing and refining. 1t is no unusual
thing to see at the freight depot | 900 ,,
bars OF silver stacked up awaiting
shipment; nor to see ten or fifteen Il.
mule teams hauling bar silver from the :,
smeIters to the depot. There are ,
plenty OF lawyers here, plenty of doc
tors, and superabundance of loaf t
rrs. laboring men are in demand at 6
IS per day. Mechanics have been '
quite busy and in demand, but work Y
IS now IA little slack. Carpenters oct
"a per day, stone and bricklaycrs S. f
per day, painters So per day, and q
brlckmakers from 81 to S. per dav.
Now | will speak of the surround
ny country that is tributary to Hal
ey. and which will contribute to the
building up of small city here in
he near future. First, the mineral
country is one vast succession of
mountain ranges with here and there p
small fertile valley, through which Il +,
'agon-road runs, over which supplies Il
re hauled to the mines and mineral Ia Ia
rought from the mines. And then m
rom these small fertile valleys dozens Is
+ narrow gulches reach up IN various y
'rections whore often a wagon.road .
annot be constructed, hence the
ack mule and the train are brought
ITO use. 1t is somewhat amusing to
fresh kansan to see them load up Ii, Il
csc trains of pack mnles. Box s
canned goods, kegs of nails, -
egs OF whisky and every conceivable
llng is tied on the backs of these
nimals and one after another they
ring out forming line mile in
'ngth' and they thus freight goods \
'r hundreds OF miles up narrow DO
n'ches and over mountain passes to tn
he various interior mines, and on re. -,
'rn bring bags of ore to the smelters
There Is no end to the mineral in Nal
us country. have visited several wi
the popular mines near HALEY and SO,
have seen million dollars worth of H.,
q at one sight. There are hundreds