Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1883-10-20
WOOD RIVER.
4ER ADVANTAGES GRAPHICALLY
DESCRIBED.
Her Mineral Wealth, Agricultural Fa.
cilities, Social Features, ETC., as Told
by the Receiver Of the HALEY Land
Office.

W VIC NctciVcT VI the uallcy LanO
Office.
Correspond nee Oswego (Nas.) 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 I.abctte at or near
Chetopa. But, O! the clear, cool
water that rushes down this small
stream, which has descent of % feet
to the mile, is so grand, that to one
who is accustomed to the sluggish
streams OF Southern Kansas, whose
waters are green with filth and skum,
cannot help but admire tie country
for even the pure, cold water; and
when we stand and gaze upon this
pure, sparkling water as it ruslcs
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 Il pleasure to catch these
spry little follows, and is no less a
pl assure to eat them when they are
properly served on the table. But |
be eve ! was speaking of Haley.
We ], Haley is a little wooden town,
only two years old, regularly laid out,
but built up Of log houses, box houses,
few neat frame buildings, and some
brick and stone structures. A new
and magnificent courthouse is now I'M
der construction at cost of $40, 900.
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 few prices
OF both neccssaries as well as lux,-
ries. Ii 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 pounob beef % cents per
pound, and although the market is full
OF fruit, yet the prices run as follows:
Pears 70 cents per pound, green APP
pies 70 cents per pound, grapes p
cents per pound, tomatoes % cents
per pound, peaches - cents per
pound. There is no nickel change
here, and rarely tcn-cent piece is
seen or Used. Punched coins 90 all
right, and Me xican as well as trade
dollars as good as any. am told that
whisky at the bar is % cents drink.
Il 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 herc)
There is an immense amount of
business done here, as hundreds Of
mining camps procure their supplies
at HALEY, this being the end of the
Wood River Branch of the Oregon
Short Line Railroad. Hundred, Of
carloads of bullion and ore are
shipped from here to Omaha for smolt-
ing and refining. 1t is no unusual
thing to see at the freight depot 900
bars OF silver stacked up awaiting
shipments; nor to See ten or fifteen -
mule teams hauling bar silver from the
to the depot. There are
plenty of lawyers here, plenty Of doc
tors, and superabundancc of loaf
FRS. l.ahoring men are in demand at
b per day. Mechanics have been
quite busy and in demand, but work
is now little slack. Carpenters oct
s. per day, stone and b,ickayers s,
per day. painters 50 per day, and
brickmakers from 81 to IS per day.
Now | will speak of the surround
ing country that is tributary to Hal
ey. and which will contribute to the
building up Of small city here in
the near future. FIRST, the mineral
is one vast succession of .
mountain ranges with here aud there
| small fertile valley, through which a
Nagon-road runs, over which supplies
ire hauled to the mines and mineral
brought from the mines. And then
rom these small fertile valleys dozens
If narrow gulches reach up IN various
directions where often wagon road
cannot be constructed, hence the
back mule and the train are brought
nto use. 1t is somewhat amusing to
fresh kansan to see them load up
hese trains of pack mules Boxes
II canned goods, kegs of nails,
Kegs of whisky and every conceivable
hing is tied on the backs of these
and one after another they
tring out forming line a mile in
ength, and they thus freight goods
or hundreds OF miles up narrow
.ulchcs and over m, uutain passes to
he various interior mines, and on re-
urn bring bags of ore to the smelters.
There is no end TO the mineral it.
his country. | have visited several
# the popular mines near HALEY and
have seen million dollars worth of
re at one sight. There are hundreds J
t these we'll developed mines and i,
here are thosands of prospects that
ill make as good mines as these pop