The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-05-26
THE FAIR AT KENT.

The people of the White River valley
are preparing to hold county fair at
Kent the first week in June, probably be-
ginning on the third and ending on the
sixth. There will be trials OF speed be-
tween horses of good reputation, an ex-
hibit of blooded stock, a display OF agri-
cultural productions, with the usual minor
features of a complete country fair. A
special day will be given for strawberry
festival, which it is proposed to make
unique. 1t is not expected that the farm
ers of King county will be alone in this
project. From the adjoining county Of
Pierce there will be fine representation
and large attendance. Seattle and Ia
coma are also expected to contribute
largely to the attendance, and it is conf
IDENTIFY believed that the affair will be one
of the most popular social occasions of the
whole year in this section of the state.
1t is good sign when the farmers of the
country come together in an enterprise Of
this kind. 1t shows that the agricultural
interest of Western Washington, and par
ticularly of the White River valley, is
gaining strength, and that it is coming
to proper sense Of its own i'm
portance. Occasions of this kind have
very great value, not only in their social
aspects, but in the practical lessons gained
by each farmer in attendance. Competi-
ton in production is just as important
for the farmer as for the manufacturer,
and nothing stimulates it more than
exhibits like this to be made a. Kent.
1t is not very long ago since it was
supposed that there was no farming land
in Western Washington. The general
idea was that the country was wholly
valuable for it's timber, and that when this
was cut off, the land would be worthless
till in the course of half century or more
it should grow another crop of trees. But
time is proving what the few sturdy pio-
neers maintained all along, namely, that
the Puget Sound country was an ex-
ceptionally good field for miscellaneous
agriculture. While from the nature of
things the country Is not adapted to the
production of cereals and other crops
which require wide areas, it is capa-
bic of much more important uses. The
soil is especially adapted to the production
Of fruit, hops, onions, potatoes and q
variety of garden truck, and therefore
may be farmed proftably in small subdi-
visions. The conditions are such that a
vast amount of labor may be proftably en-
gagged upon very small tract. Five acres
in the White River valley devoted TO hops,
or fruit, will, with equal expense of labor,
yield more value than one hundred
acres of wheat land in the famous
Willamette valley in our neighboring
state of Oregon. We believe the time is
not very remote when the aggregate value
of the annual agricultural product of the
western half of Washington will exceed
the aggregate value of the annual agricul-
tural product of Western Oregon.
If this is TO be il must come through the
intelligent development of farming re-
gion relatively very much smaller. Our
farmers must learn to make the
most of the conditions which make the
cultivation of small areas specially profit
able; and there is nothing that win lead 10
this result more certainly than frequent
assemblages for discussion. and frequent
comparison of products. The fair at Kent
should be the beginning of a movement
that will give to the farming interest of
Western Washington the advantages
which come 10 intelligent cooperation.