The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-08-25
SIX YEARS HENCE
Bear Lake Valley as 1t will be
in 1895.
A CLUSTER OF PRETTY TOWNS.
The Buthwell Canal Scheme 90 The True
Story of the Bear Lake Monster,
Taken on the Spot

I DISTINCTLY remember having passed
through Bear Lake valley about the mid
die of August, 1889, just six years ago
AT RANDOLPH
[ remarked the improvements; several neat
private residences were being pushed to
the finish, home brick and native lumber
forming the main materials; small canals
were being dug to conduct the waters of
Bear river to these vast tracts of semi
desert lands, which include nearly the en-
tire country round about this place; but
the grain crops were slim, making business
dull and money scarce, on account of scare
ity of the globes better half water. Not
withstanding all of this, the people of
Randolph lived, constantly keeping shin
ing light before them that ''better times
were coming"
Passing over several miles of arid lands,
then gaining the heights eight miles away
to the north, which in every sense of the
word is the tops of the mountains, / ratified
down through steep, rough, narrow pas
sages for some seven miles, when the CANON
spread and drove into the very heart of
LAKE TOWN
IL. s..
remember, showed a far more profitable
yield The people of this town seemed to
be rustlers, if you can Judge anything from
handsome residences, pretty orchards and
gardens, good crops, and from their repre-
sentative in the co op., who is a rustler
from the word go. Expense and labor
have not been withheld in order to con-
struct miles of canals, hundreds of yards of
which had to be built of solid rock to en-
able them to pass tortorous curves and
rough places. This showed enterprise
Leaving Lake Town, the road skirts that
beautiful body of clear, fresh water, Bear
Lake, for some ten miles, which brought
me to that coy little place called
GARDEN CITY.
The strip of tillable land between the lake
and the mountains, at this point, is very
narrow. leaving little room for expansive
farms. / remember, when passing through
Garden City in 1882 a beautiful piece of
tall, golden grain with four scare crows
stretching their long, ominous arms to the
four winds, as body guard, That wheat
must have been precious.
viii say, before l forget it, that at the
time l refer to, the grain throughout the
valley was all ripe most having been cut,
bound and shocked with the self-binder.
Cook Brothers store was Just in its in
fancy at Garden City.
All along my route | made il a point to
sound the people concerning their motor
ious Bear Lake monster. OF course, |
preached the subject to the lady clerk at
Cook Bros. store. Her ideas are some
what milder than most of the store-keep-
ers, so ] will give them first. When ques-
toned, she replied: ''Oh, no; I haven't
seen the monster for some time-the only
one l ever saw was a string of ducks, or
some boys or girls in bathingn
Continuing, soon passed over the Utah
Idaho line, and directly reached
FISH HAVEN.
This was a charming retreat for pleasure
seekers; the sandy beach washed by the
warm waters Of the lake, made bathing
superb, and the gigantic cottonwood trees
formed cool shelter at midday. If Won
catch Uncle Sam snoozing, you could launch
a boat at this place, pull out few rods and
have little exciting time with the willy
trout.
Five miles farther through fields live
with stock, and also many men busy har-
vesting and cutting their beautiful patches
of alfalfa,
ST. CHARLES
was reached. This was one of the most
thriving towns of the valley, and is at pres
fourishing condition. Edward Pugmire
the genial and the gay, who makes friends
wherever he goes, managed the coop,
adam" Wilcox, as some people enjoy put
ting it, was also working up paying bust
ness in general merchandise, while William
j. Cleal did a rushing trade in the boot and
shoe line. St Charles is at one end of the
lake and Lake Town at the other. The
people, generally, were in high spirits, and
good health prevailed.
At st. Charles, met Mr. Boutwell,, a
brother TO the great Box Elder canal
schemer. This gentleman was stopping in
this vicinity in order to mingle with the
people AMI Danish any idle notions or ideas
that existed concerning the proposed Bear
Lake reservoir. Every stream in the val
ley had been located and recorded by the
canal company, giving rise to the belief
that there was going to be great water
monopoly. But the object of this was to
protect themselves from blackmailers who
might sneak in, gObble the surplus water,
and compel the canal company to pay fab
ulous sum for it, that their enormous reser-
voir might be supplied. Mr.. Boutwell, is a
man of too broad views to attempt to take
these streams of water from the people
when they have secured them by prior
usage. Because of such foundationless
rumors, rabid communication was sent to
the Idaho officials, hasty action taken, in
correct statements and resolutions dis
patched to Washington $50 said Mr.. Both
well), and Immediately came orders from
there that Bear Lake and all land within
two miles Of it was reserved for govern
ment purposes. 1t was thought that Mr.
Boutwell, and company were going to jump
the whole valley and most of Idaho it APP
peared. But these times have passed; Idaho
officials were misled, and the government
saw its mistake and drew out of the petty
NEEDLE. Next came
BLOOMINGTON,
a sleepy little resident town in 1889, but
which has since been spread over, swal-
lowed up and lost in Paris, which was then
only a country town of 1,000 but has since
more than doubled its population.
Fifteen minutes drive brought me to
PARIS,
which then supported a number of good
business houses. The Bear Lake Mercan-
tile Co., the Coop, c. H Wright mil
inery and furniture store, two shoe
shops, two butcher shops and two harness
shops, included most of the business estab-
lishments The Southern Idaho Independ-
enI grew up and blossomed out weekly
Business was very fair in every depart
ment, the greatest drawback being the large
amount of negotiable scrip then issued by
most of the houses. II was in the latter
part Of 1889 that the anti-scrip party
formed head in Paris. 1t grew so rapidly
and its mouth and Jaws became so cavern
GUS and irresistably strong that all the
paper was consumed, and row such thing
~. - Il