Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1890-02-21
AN INTER VIEW WITH A. r.
PARKER.
Uhat He Has to Say about the
Weather, Crops, Cattle,
Mines and Politics
of LGdho.


Audsio NEE hEoo, dIllFcu VII
the steamer from the Cascades
Saturday evening, having come
in on the first train over the
Oregon Short Line along with
200 other passengers, who were
delayed by the washing out of
the railroad bridge across the
Boise river at Caldwell, and by
a similar accident to the bridge
over the Weiser river. In
conversation with an Oregoaian
reporter, Mr.. Parker said:
With these exceptions, which
caused three days delay, the
ShortLine is in good condition,
and no further trouble in the
way of blockades need be an
ticipated. The winter has been
very protracted and severe in
Southern Idaho,and Mr.. Parker
was informed by cattlemcn in
that country, that the loss Of
live stock will be at least 10
per cent, most OF which would
have been saved, but for the
scarcity of hay caused by the
drouth of last summer.
In Northern Idaho, the win
ter has been less severe. but
more snow has fallen than in
the Southern part of the terri
tory. The loss of cattle in the
northern counties will be very
light, and Portland butchers
will. Lind an abundant supply
of the primest bunch-grass
beef in Idaho county. The
snow in the mountains aver
ages fifteen feet deep, and the
placer miners will have plenty
of water this season for the
first time in four years. 1t
has been a great hardship for
the people to be deprived of
mail facilities through the re
peated railroad blockades, but
they have accepted the sit
uation with chcerfulncss, know
ing that the companies were
fighting against fate.
The quartz interests of the
territory are assuming prom
inencc and it seems destined
that Idaho will soon be the
heaviest bullion producing
state in the Union. The great
est copper camp in the world
lies all untouched in the Seven
Devils country, in Washington
county, while in the Elk City
basin, recent discoveries have
developed the existence of a
gigantic zone of concentrating
ore that astonishes all who see
it. Butte capitalists are
already interested in this new
camp, and a company was re-
Gently organized in Pomeroy to
operate on the same belt. The
new camp lies principally on
Deadwood mountain, in the
forks of the Crooked and
American rivers, but it has al
SO been traced through to Elk
City, where good deal of de ?
velopment work has been done
lately, notably on the Buster,
the Redstonc. General lIarri-
son, Blue Dragon and other
lodges. Elk City is an old
placer camp, but its quartz in :
terests are bound to eclipse its
palmiest days as bullion pro-
Queer. The Buster min one
half mile from Elk City, has
rich ore in sight, with a larger
and stronger ledgc-fo fourteen
feet wide-than any other
mine in Idaho.
| am Of the opinion that the
decision of the supreme court
of the United States affirming
the validity of the Idaho test
oath, will hasten the admission
OF the territory as a state. In
common with other men OF
both parties, | have fought a
hard fight for the repeal of
the oath on the ground that it
infringed upon the r. ligious
beliefs of IA large and worthy
class of taxpayers in Idaho
territory, and as the 'test
oath" was incorporated into
the constitution of the propos-