Cottonwood report. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1893-1901, 1895-03-08
.cAMAs PRAIRIE. !.
Its Climate And Resources.

When one speaks of Idaho,
the Imagination ordinarily pic
lures a country which IS two
thirds mountains and one-third
arid waste which can only be
cultivated by the, aid of irriga-
ton. There is. 9 very large a.
mount of truth in that picture,
and yetiit is not the whole truth.
Hi. Central Idaho there is in
a,compact body nearly two mil
lion acres of therfnest agricult-
ural land to befound in'the Uni
ted States. IT has deep, black
soil, lies at an elevation of about
three thousand feet above Che
sea level, is well watered by three
large rivers and their tributaries,
has such .a. suAiciency of rain
that there never has been a fail
ure of crops; it is prairie land,
intespersed with heavily wooaed
hills, and is surrounded by lofty
mountains which are clothed
with a virgin forest Of magniti-
cent timber. Protected on the
| East BY the Bitter Root Noun
\ tains, it escapes thescold wihds
of Montana; on the West the
1 Cascade and Coast Ranges shut
| out the dannpness Of the Pacific
4 Coast, The air is dry, pure and
bracing, the climate mild and e.
| quable the'wa,er soft and health
4 full and found in abundance at
depthsof ten to twenty feet. The
short winter, often sharp and
with pfentyiof snow, is followed
by spring, summer and fall
which are delightful. Wheat, oats
and barley are staples, wheat
| yielding thirty to sixty bushels
per acre; potatoes $50 bushels to
the acre; other root crops il pro-
| portion, Thehardier fruits flour
ish. The native bunch grass
provides abu undant range for
stock both summer and winter.
Timothy once set never runs out.
and alfalfa produces fabulorsly.
Immense numbers of hogs, cat
tie and horses are raised with
very little trouble or expense for
feed and shelter, hog raising be-
ing particularly safe and prof
table, as diseases are unknown,
and there will always be an ac-
tive demand for the entire sup
ply from local packers and ship;
pers. Large numbers Of fatted
cattle are driven out each season,
over 100000 being paid out at
J Cottonwood alone by drovers for
cattle and hogs during 1894.
Lands are still cheap; improv,
ed, $1,000 to $4,000 per acre
unimproved, $3.50 $500; Gov.
: ernment land for the homestead
ing. The mountains which sur
round this platea u are rich II
gold. Already from 1000 tt
10000 miners are at work dig
. ging for the yellow metal, ano
: their number will increase yea
by year as the exceeding rich
:, ness of the ore becomes NOR
widely known. These miner
draw their supplies from tn
towns and farms of the plail
and pay cash for them. Lon
lines Of pack horses laden wit
food and necessaries of minin
life climb. the mountain trail
,. leading from plain to mine. Al
: that this country needs to max
, it one of the garden spots is MOI
people and more capital,
= But where is it? Look on you
map for Idaho County. Th
Northern part of Idaho Count.
Idaho, usually called the Grei
Camas Prairie, together wit
Nez Percez, forms the great Gel
: trail plateau of Central Idaho, an
\ il the land referred to. Joine
!. to it, like fingers to the palm
= the hand, are many smaller pl
teats running toward the cent
l. of Idaho County, and oyer in
Shoshone County. The Mort
= ern half of this plateau has hit
erto been shut out from settl
ment because it was the n
n Percez Indian Ressrvatio
- Thes indians, who for TWEEN
= years have lived peaceable live
F. acquiring the arts of civilizatio
90. and now about eleven hundr
/ in number, have accepted Ian
) in seyeralty, selecting their loo
the ton largely in body on t
moi moi Clearwater River, in the extrer
and Northern part of Nez Perc
lore County. The whole Central al
on, Southern portion of the coun
viz; will be thrown open to hon
steaders in the summer OF lS'
y The Government will then p
M. these Indians $650,00O in cas-
sses ond each wear for twenty yes