The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1893-03-02

OF 1t would be fed six and some OF II
seven months. We have then one and q
half tons per head, or u total OF $1,000
tons OF alfalfa needed to take care Of two
thirds OF the beef consumed in the Puget
sound country during one winter.
SHEEP.
Two hundred head Of mutton sheep are
butchered daily; 5000 head per month,
thus six months consumption aggregates
$4,000 head. The average time of feed
ing the entire baad would be three
months. At five pounds day per head
it will take 5000 tons Of alfalfa hay to
feed the mutton sheep used in west
ern Washington.
The state of Washington does not pro-
duce enough hogs to supply its own peo-
pie with fresh pork. We draw our supply
from all OF the Pacific northwest and
during certain seasons even go back TO
the Mississippi valley for II. It now
takes $500 head Of hogs month to sup
ply fresh pork to the Puget sound popu-
lation. No place in America can raise
hogs more cheaply and with less liability
to disease and more certainty OF market
at a good price than the Yakima valley.
About 30 900 hogs year would be drawn
from this valley to supply fresh pork to
the sound couRtry. Hogs must be fed
every day In the year. There is no out
side range as for cattle and sheep during
a certain season. Counting then the
alfalfa necessary for nine month pasture,
April to December, and the amount to be
put up as hay for feeding stock hogs
through the winter, il is not unreasonable
to calculate on 10000 hogs using annu-
ally 10000 tons OF alfalfa. The present
price OF pork would give the Yakima hog
raiser cent pound, live weight. The
average price for years past has been
about All cents or over. All our pork
packing and curing establishments in
this state are obliged to ship in from the
corn states, principally from Omaha,
Nebraska, the entire stock they use.
The total amount OF hams, shoulders
and sides shipped into this state and
cured here or sent here ready for market,
amounts to hundreds of tons per annum
As state We cannot grow corn success
fully. The only exceptional localities
being the warm valleys of the Columbia,
Snake and Yakima rivers. II the great
grain fields of eastern Washington could
produce any forage plant upon which
stock hogs might pasture. then hog rails
ing would be profitable there, as pork
could be fattened for market on wheat or
barley. But to be compelled to raise
hogs on threshed grain with no other
pasture than grain stubble for about one
or two months each year the business has
not sufficient margin Of profit to ever
amount to much. But on Yakima irri-
gated lands all the conditions are chang
ed. We do grow number one quality
OF corn and the yield runs from As to IS
bushels per acre every year, with no pos
sibility of failure. The other localities
that will produce it are so limited in area
that thew cut no figure in this connection.
Both the Columbia and Snake rivers run
in deep canyons and it is only small bars
or pockets that offer any opportunity for
farming. There is very little water for
irrigation purposes, only occasionally a
little spring or creek, coming out OF the
hills. Then, too, that land is generally
used for orchard purposes, being valued
at from 800 to 5000 an acre in raw
state and even more ii it is any where
within reasonable distance OF railroad
station.
The stock cattle of the Yakima will
number at least 10000 to $1,000 head.
With hay at $3.50 ton no stock man
will take the chances OF hard winter
and let his stock go on the range. A
reasonable estimate of the hay that would
be used to feed snch stock is 10000 tons.
The Cascade mountains afford an ideal
grazing country for sheep. Cool weather,
clear pure water, great variety OF mountain
grasses, weed, shrubs, ETC., carries the
sheep through from May to October, in
inclusive, in excellent condition, free
from all diseases incident TO a less perfect
range. With alfalfa at $3.50 ton l00,-
600 head Of stock sheep would be fed
every winter for three months on an
average. This would use $1,000 tons Of
hay. After the shearing and Landing
season sheep would be taken back into
the mountains. The warm dry climate
of the lower part OF the valley make il a
perfect location for the Landing season.
Is there danger Of over-production
No. Because there will always be de-
mand for all that car be raised. Alfalfa
is the least profitable of all our staple
and tested crops. Hops and fruit each
pay an income to the investor very many
times larger than the net profit on alfalfa.
While alfalfa yields $l9.to $40 an acre net,
hops will show from $3.50 to 5000 m acre
net profit as an average for 20 years, and