Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1891-06-06
IN DEFENSE OF UTAH.

| Nv bbI ENNE VT tlAn.
The Troy 7imss not long ago quoted
ifom the Washington Critio an item
reading
secretary. nusk, Uncle Sans able
| ssfleultnrh editor, received q barrel u
| 1tlh potatoes the other day a. samples
| from . Yield Of ni7 bushels 20 the aere,
He pfonuuncos them ofexcoliont quality.
~ y evident that Utah II not ~ small
ligion.
Upon the Pacific coast Utah potatoes
have Tor many years enjoyed a high
reputation. They are never hollow
aud are always white aud mealy. I
never ate bettcr In the Fast or In the
prairie states, and many carloads are
exported TO San Francisco every tall.
The prevalent idea that Utah IA de.
voted chiefly 10 growing young Nor.
mons is not borne out by facts. Gradual.
ly for twenty years Mormon families
have been decreasing In numbers, and
as long agoas 1871 n plurality Of wives
was becoming unpopular In that terri.
tory.
A FERTILE PROVINCE.
When Utah was thought NJ 10 be
organized into territory the mengrc
item Of 5000 was deemed by the
United States government the sum.
total Of IL value. The country was
considered an alkall waste, sterile and
valncless, but even then II contained n
population Of 10000 people who had
proved that Irrigation alone was
Necessary 10 turn the desert into a gar
den. In lss3 Utah raised i,G0O,0O0
bushels Of wheat, Teg, 900 bushels Of
oats, a0j, 900 bushels Of harley, 1885,
900 bushels VI corn, ga, 900 tons Of hay
and 100000 bushels of potatoes. Her
tillablc soil IN that year reached 2i5,
900 acres, valued at from s25 10 800
pof acre, all ~ u watcrcd by artificial
Irrigation. Utah now sustains u pof.
ulation u over 90, 100 persons, besides
exporting much produce.
FURTHER FIGURES.
The dairy products Of Utah for 1854
were $50, 600 gallons Of milk, 100000
pounds ofbutier aud 10, 900 pounds Of
CHEESE. In 1858 the pioneer wooden
mil Of the Pacific coast was established
In Salt Lake valley, aud la 1883 Utah
numbered ten wooden mills, seventy
i've flour mills, 100 saw mills, eighteen
furniture factories, twenty BOOT and
shoe factories, a iiourlshlnR silk factory
and seven machine shopsand foundc'
ries, from the latter Of which was pro.
duccd In that year 500, 1000 worth Of
castings from native ore, which 4
found In great variety and purity. II
ia estimated that there nrc In the ter
ritofy 60,UDO,O01 tons OF Iron ore above
or neat the surface, with lodges ap'
parcnily incXhaus,lblc, extending
deeper.
COAL AND PRECIOUS METALS.
In 1854 the leglslaiurcof L tab Offered
81 900 10 any resident who should
open n vein Of coal no, lees than
eighteen Inches thick where II could h.
pfofitAhly worked aud within forty
miles ot Salt Laku CITY. since then,
up 10 1850. there were surveyed In the
territory 10000 acres % coal lands,
and In issa II was estimated that there
were 5000 square miles Of coal land
IN Utah. In 1890 the output OF coal
was 10000 tons. Of tho precious
metals there IN an almost incx haustlbl,
supply In Utah, ~ there IL along tn,
whole extent Of tho Rocky mountain
range. The latest date ut which
statistics are nj hand II lssS-ntnfly
ten years ago. Between 1870 aud 1855
there were produced from Utah minei
81, 1850, 900 IA gold, si5, 5p0, 252 IN silver,
s23, a..'O, 900 In lead aud $500, 900 Ia cop
PET. Tho yield has been largely In
creased slnc. the latter date.
OTHER RESOURCES.
In 1890 Utah produced 10000 tons OF
salt, which IL bat bagatellc In com
paIlron with her supply Ia sight. Utah
has soap factories aud candy factories
which supply Idaho, Montana,
Nevada, Wyoming aud Arizona, rock,
salt by billion tons, marble works
using only native marble, showing
every color from puro whit. 10 Jcl
black, sulphur and asphalt mines
cement factories and bcct.sugar fac,
tories aud many other home-indusiric,
| INtNtH Ntb NV AAN
condition. All this means constant
aud persistent industry IN we'll NJ the
kcenest business enterprise. And tho
dependence Of all IN upon agriculture
where every foot ofground upon which
a crop Ia grown must be watered BY
lulgailng canals and ditches.
oSCE A 0REAT DEsERr.
fourly.four yean ago tho valley OF
Great Salt Lake was n fagc.bIush dis
irict thirty miles long by twenty broad
where no spear OF grain had evei
grown and no white man dwelt. al
was no garden Of the hemlspherel
upon which tho pioneers gaxsd on
that memorable July morning" say
local historian In speaking Of tho hd'
vent Of the Mormons therein. "Asid,
from the scenic splendor, which WA
indeed glorious, magnificent, Their,
WAS little 10 invite and much 20 repo