Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1883-12-23

yrsr-- vspowpxNCE Posi- IsrELLI0KNCBR.j
AxaBNg, Or, Dec. 9, 1888.
Is. was written just alter our arrival
It Salem. Our stay at Stem gave US
n opportunity to interview the city
wirsch is the capital Of the State and
,lseated on the Willamette river. fifty
sfszoc miles south of Portland. The
eo~n is situated on a level prairie. |
rutfiug timber land and some brush
had is seen to the north and east OF
txe river. The town is well laid out,
streets 100 feet wide and present a
neat appearance. The business of
shs place is mostly Of local nature.
However, there are three large honr-
inr mills with a capacity OF 1909 bar
rsSs per day and considerable trade
is carried on in supplying other
markets with -four. Several fine
sracai buildings ornament the town
ard considerable interest is paid to
esf1cation. In company with mute
friend. Mr.. Jacob Browner, we at
taGded a mute school, where we
fsy.nd % mutes in attendance. The
exercises of writing composition and
sssn readi2g were interesting. The
wisele school repeated the Lords
urayer in concert in the silent Ian
s.wage SO peculiar TO the deaf and
duuab. Rev. Mr.. Knight is the prin-
cs,se and Mrs. Scott, of Ohio, a mute,
Is bead teacher. The asylum for the
Insane has just been completed, and
the inmates, some 400 in number, re-
ssaved from Portland to their new
szuariers. 1t is fine brick building
mat cost about $500, 900. The State
capitol building is also Il fine struc-
tyre, and when finished will cost
half million dollars. The court
nause IL building presenting an i'm
posing appearance and built at cost
x,F $4,000 The Opera block cost
about 100000 A half dozen or
znore churches point their spires hca-
senward beneath which the people
xorship. The population Of the
place is about 5000.
This section of the west has been
settled for over forty years, which
.scceunts for the absence of certain
masses Of society so noticeable in
newly settled sections. The caste of
society is similar to that of the old
ze1fied States There is not that bus
Ile and hurry and extravaganza in
business circles SO common in our
avn State, Colorado The people
10th in town and in the country have
settled down to regular routine of
business. take life smoothly. calmly
and pleasantly, being satisfied with a
good living and pleasant surround
fngs. This conservative mode of life
may owe its origin in measure to
!1are fact that this country is only
few feet above ocean level, and the
absence of that Overplus of eiec.rici.
~ and areal atmosphere that makes
The people OF high altitude so rest
tess, impetuous and persevering, even
6ey0nd prudence many time. Colo
RADIO has an altitude of four to ten
ttapsaud feet above this section of
Oregon.
a drive of twenty miles west of Sa.
lem across the country gave us an OPP
paStunity to see considerable of the
. cnuntry. This valley, the William.
este, extends in \ northern and south.
era direction from the Columbia riv.
ar 10 the California mountains, dis
rsancc Of 175 miles. The Cascade
mountains border on the east, the
Coast range on the west. The valley
hes 4 width of from 20 to 40 miles.
The northern end Of the valley is
principally timber, and lies rolling,
rough and ragged as you approach
the mountains. Some of it very rich
and some Of it very poor. Further
south the country changes. and we
como to a variety of gently rolling
hills ard level country divided into
] prairie ana wood land. Such is the
s4seatien over which we visited in our
ramblings across the the country east
of Salem.
f'he prairie lands are mostly level,
very productive and easilyicultivatcd.
The Lmber lands are covered with
an underground OF pine and oak
brush, and over much of the timber
I'd section growth of heavy fir tim
hex is found which to remove requires
considerable expense and labor We
and some fine farms opened to those
{ sisn6ered sections. The large timber
lis fellcd by boring and burning and
yke immense trunks are divided into
sections in the same manner and then
piled and burned. The grubbing of
rho underground is done mostly by
lhAnds of Cinnamon who go from
place TO place taking jobs at from 50
10 SIS per acre for simply grabbing.
We ere told that to get these heavily
{ iimbered lands into a good state OF
scE:tivation il will cost from $15 10
500 per acre To do SO. The prairie
Lands are the most productive, and
have been in cultivation now from
thirty to forty years. The farms are
tasstly enclosed and divided into
fields By the use of the old fashioned
worm rail fences We noticed one
farm with unusually high fences, the
Ssxsis laid up over eight feet high. We
anquirei Of genial driver why this
tAan built such an unnecessary high
fence. he told us the owner of the
farm said he had done 1t to keep out
proachers and women. tits needless
% say he is an old bachelor aud an
! iron band infidel. An cvolutionist,
possibly, that originated withou a
saother and genius Ia human form
without u soul. Such men, We trust,
1re few and far between.
There has been one drawback to
the prosperity of this country and
that was the large tracts Of land DO
mated 70 the first settlers of this
part of the Union. Il seems
UacIe Sam thought 1t would require
. good BALTIC get any of his children
10 como and settle up the country, so
he agreed to let every settler who
eAaac here forty or more years ago
have mile square of land and as Il
was unsurveyed. they could take II
In any shape they pleased. The old
pioneers came flocking In aud took
up {" blanket" claims. picking out all
tSs< rhnice land Altar the vnvorc