The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1892-04-28
SOMETHING ABOUT WASHINGTON.

SOHEIHINb WASHINGTON.
have received so many letters asking for
information concerning the agriculture and
resources of this State that thought it might
be well to write an article for The NATIONAL
TRIBUNE, which will benefit all. / will begin
by describing my section Of the country,
which / call home, and which comprises the
southern half of Lincoln County. the south
western half of Spokane County, the eastern
half Of Whitman County, and tho whole of
Douglass and Adams Counties. This section
has been gradually going dry for the last ten
years, and there are lakes here which we're
supposed to be bottomless ten years ago that
are now dry. Ten years ago the grass in this
section was over knee-high all over the coun-
try now if it attains the hight of six inches it
ia something wonderful. Tie district I have
laid off is strictly a stock-raising one and can
never be made anything else. I suppose I
should have said something in regard To its
size sooner. It is about 80 miles vide by
about 100 long, reaching from the Spokane
River on the north to the Columbia River on
the west and Snake River Oh the south.
There are somewhere between 400 and 600
farmers in this section. and they are just natur-
ally starving to death, one can apty say, "a
they can raise nothing to speak Of During
the Summer of 1890 they had very fair crop
ard sold it for about 30 cents bushel sacked.
the sacks costing 10cents apiece. Hence. after
paying for tho thrasl,ing, which is five cents a
bushel, and the heading, which is about seven
cents bushel. they net about % cents on the
bushel, to say nothing of their own labor.
A.
ing hands. etc. In 1891 the crop was total fail
ure, the farmers not even getting their seed
back, to say nothing of other experiences The
crop of 1889 was also total failure.
There is nothing in the dairy business here
There does not seem to be any butter quail
ties in the grass, aud another thing is that the
grass dries up about the 1st of July Stock |
is awful cheap this Spring. Good cows can be- |
bought for from $40 to $25. Horses weighing
1 200 pounds can be had for $50 Sheep are in /
the best demand Of any livestock, and they
bring 81 per head. A hog is almost a novelty |
here, the seasons being too short to raise corn,
hence their scarcity. Chickens are plentiful, /
but they do not do extra well. Mules and /
girls are in the greatest scarcity.
The soil here is very light; in fact, it is so |
light that person driving along the road on 3 |
still Summer day cannot see his horse ahead of |
him. This whole country has at some previous |
lime been burnt. The surface is about equally
divided between rolling hill-lands and lava
beds The lava-beds form very broken canyons,
which run in every direction. This rocky
country makes the very best of grazing land
when not oyarstoclsed. The sheep have pretty
much killed the grass out here. They are
aised quite extensively and are herded in
locks Of about 5000 each. They are harder on
range than any other kind of stock 1t is not
much what they eat, but their hoofs are SO
harp that, so many running over the range,
hey soon kill the grass.
The rainfall is very light We generally get
ONE rain in March and April, few showers
n the latter part of May, and some about the
ST of August. Then we got no more until
November, when it rains more or less until
Winter sets III. We never get any Of the
eayy showers here that they get over the
Their side of the mountains. The reason Of
his is that the highness of the mountains in
ercepts all low rain clouds, and the rain
hoy carry is left on the other side. The little