Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1894-10-08
MONDAY. OCTOBER 8. 1894.
ACROSS THE CONTINENT.
NO g..

OreRonians have proven maScOps vi
hoOdoos to this part Of Dakota. since
June q there has been no rainfall here.
There had been none since 1894 except
about an inch in April The territory
spoken Of is a belt about forty miles
wide and extending from the Missouri
river to Minnesota. All Of South and
nearly all Of North DAkoks were ario
this year. In addition to this droutb
the hot spells came early and often
Before the deluge Of rain June Z7,ther'
was a period Of two weeks Of cooking.
scalding atmosphere, 80 to 1lO' iD tbs
shade, with a hard hot wind. Tbs
grain and grass were burned q dead ren
and that beatty weed, the Rissia'
thistle, which 1 will describe later, wa
getting ia its deadly devastating wori
On the poor show Of crop that wa
possible under the unfavorable condi
tions that prevailed. For instance, th'
DAkOtas have been renowned az The
great fax producing regions. Th'
thistle and the drouth wiped out
total crop Of probably hundred Nil
lion bushels. The returns will not
equal the seed that was put in, and
farmers here talk Of fax as an agricult
uraI impossibility until the thistle
passes away. When that will be no
one can tell.
TERRIFIC RAIN.
The rain Of June q will linger long
in the memory Of Dakotans. 1t came
on in the afternoon, and increased TO
torrents such as we read of, as taking
place on the Hymalayan peninsulas of
Southern India. 1t was no Oregon
mist. At Glendale. eighteen miles
west of this point, almost seven inches
Of rainfall were recorded at the govern
ment station, (6.97.) The earth before
the rain was In a parched condition.
Great deep cracks were opened across
meadows. The soil was perfectly dry
to depth OF ten or twelve feet. Crops
were as dead as vegetation could be
and still stand in the fields. Flax was
from two TO six inches high. All other
grain had a good stand but was
scorchod dead. At places over foot
OF water must have fallen, and after
the rain water stood in great lakes from
q mile TO two miles wide, and one to
tea feet deep. The only fax that was
saved was where the water flooded low
places before the heavy rain beat II
down. All other fax was virtually
beaten into the soft pliaOle soil. Gar
den truck, vines of all kinds, corn,
what little fruit there was, old and
young poultry,grsin warehouses, barns,
residences, school houses, farm machin-
e-y, even wells, were blown down and
blown up. 1t was not cyclone. The
rain came IN cloud.bursts. The wind
came from all directions. The rain
helped out the hay crop. But that was
all; It ruined everything else In the
way Of profitable crops.
A wINDFALL FOR DENTISTS.
A driven well seventeen feet In the
ground near Oakes, was pulled up by
the wind and carried quite distance.
Two women at Port Emma, were ex-
changing neighborly gossip, when the
storm struck them. They were rudeIy
sepa rated, thrown on the ground,
drencbed with rain, and when they
they were rescued one OF them had lost
new set OF teeth, whether by wind or
water II is not stated. Women are dis
posed 10 rail at Oregon rains, but that
patient much-abused state has never
shown up disturbance Of the elements
equal 10 this, that made business for
the dentists by setting the wOmens'
back teeth ahoat.
sOME COLD FACTS.
All iun aside, between the dTOutb,
the cloud burst, the RUSSIAN thistle pest,
thla section Of Dakota IL nearly desli-
iuie Of farm crops, Liberal estlmetes
here put the yield of wheat NJ al aver
age of three aud one'half bushels pcs
acre, as against twelve bushels 10 fair
year, But ihsTs has not been = crop oi
that nlEe sayed since 1891, Ia the ited
River valley there was . big Yield, bul
that 10 only . garden patch u these
two prairie empires There 10 not q
bualel 10 the aore u nas, Barley aud
oals ylelfsd eight " ien bushels pe'
aofe, but 40 great average " ellhef'
Cora thai got ~ sas faiI crop = fs~
seTes hsfe and there,
pHE Aua6lAh THIsIth,
THIS wssd pssl % lhe lsgFoF " Ds
k0is, snd Will 10 tbs pgoblsls " asn
onlluge lu ~ sTld RRd ssapi'Agld
wlndy pIslTis slaiss, a looks = good
deal llks aasebgusb ~ > dlsispes, hal y
ss snnual, ngewlss fsom Hssd u eels
loose fl0n ihs lsp Ioei, A ils nisl lsll
lfasl and eoes l0lllpg evsF ille plsliisA'
lsaglna ~ msglaa jplnls hila neea eeFg
sloas lls ssg, u sH pllphig, silphl