The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1896-07-24
FROM THE PALOUSE
Great Changes in the Methods
Of Agriculture.



Cczfax. July 1--Tne three yearS 3cse
past have brought momsntOuD chAnoe9
IN the character OF Agriculture under9ak-
en- and accomplished In the PA,oueo ooun-
try. The Beginning OF <hess chsneso cane
IN the fall u iSs& when In the ntdzt OF
raised IN Eastern Washington. & lppx
continued drixsiine rAia set In which
ruined fully one-shird ef the crdu and
rendered at least half Of the rsusaiuaer
unmarRSetabie. Al intervals Of clearer
weather during the fall and early winter
heading and shrsshing crews fought stub-
herniy with the eienene1 - save the
grain. but . large proportion cs the crop
finally harvested was 50 badly injored
ss not 90 pay the thrsshtne I'M 4Ao
sall was 20 wet that little plewing or
seeding was done and The following W1ueo9
was one or 4,scouraxemens. almoos enc -
suffering.
But inspired with che courage ehaa Nsas
men 20 seek their fortunes In . nav
country and once there to exert crew
resource TO win ssccess, tho farmers en-
tered the next ycar upon the work OF
retrieving their fortunes An waD tie
Inevitable result number Of tne weaker
ones were distances In the struggle eA1
became hands only. The most uaaeNs9
effect. however. was not the leseentug of
thu number OF small farms but the atnain-
fishing acres OF the larger ones. AZ rule
the men who failed In business on account
OF the wet season were the faru1orAsof
large areas who had staked thelr entire
capital and credit upon = Angle year,
hclding land under heavy mestgagee and
farm implements unpaid for Bue W1en
spring came in 1894 farmers whe had
lost nearly all of their crops went 90 ano
plowed under grain that harvested - fine
wcaid have yielded forty bushels e tho
acre. meanwhile retaining tn1o)lhlr UPON
their memories the lesson taunht ~ tho
season. Another oenefit hsouUht 4bdht
ny the seeming dire calamity WAS tina
introduction In the country OF the hog
raising industry on large scales While
wheat was bringing 50 TO 70 cents . BUSH
ell ana new lands produced forty - etxty
bushels per acre no ether industry was
needed to make farming prettabio huai-
ness. But with this failure and stick
Of Goa bushels OF damaged wheat on
hand the farmers sought ~ . way TO
get some return for this loss thu business
OF pork raising. Immediately hos boom
set In and the farmers bidding against one
another sent up prices beyond the point
where they could long remain. This con-
dttion soon remedled Itself. however, and
the hog business became firmly establish
"a as an important factor to every we'll
rtK0kAtt4 Gaieu4o country x&11us axto ua8
since yielded the farmers OF Whitman
county hundreds Of thousands of dollars.
Where in 1890 ana 1ese Thousands Of pounds
OF pork and bacon came to Washington
from the Eastern states. now train loads
OF hogs 60 the other direction.
This was not the only branch Of dfver-
siied farming that that impressive lesson
taught. The Eastern Washington farmer
learned TO no longer trust 10 wheat alone,
1t had fooled him once and he - too
sharp to be fooled twice by the Same
trick. Oats and barley were given more
attention than before. Alfalfa and other
grasses were expersmentcd With. tho
garden acreage was Increased ana ths
poultry business trebled In three years.
The Palouse country. that produced 5000
oos bushels of wheat In asec. ard 100000
bushels In isaa (fhe year the crop was
ruined), fell beiew 100000 bushels IN 1874.
and to less than 1000. 900 bushels last yea.
and each year has seen more at tho
crop fed at homo and devoted - more
profitable purposes than shtpping. while
each year the energies Of the farmers
have been moro andsmors largely turned
20 thu production OF other crops
The potato crop last lear wns the iareest
one ever raised and proved to b
profitable one. FLAX, which had received
little or no attention IN previous ysases
was raised by the acre.
years ago was unknown here ID the cTearn-
cry business At present there are six
creaneries In the county, handling milk
from over 100 cows and fifty customers
and turning out go pounds OF butter dti.
iy. Some OF these are run on tho cooper
alive plan. the customers owning ana OPP
Grating them. which method has been pro-
ductive OF excellent financial results. 9th
ers are managed az individual plants, buy
ing and paying for the milk consumed But
In either case the customers have become
moro prosperous through the opportuni-
ties Afforded By their establishment.
Meanwhile the methods of wheat rais-
ing have been very much changed. The
very best work and most careful atten-
ton must be given 20 the business X any.
thing Ia made producing wheat 1T 30 cents,
thu prevailing price for eighteen months.
Tho wet season. before mentioned. which
was partially duplicated tho following
year, has caused the farmers 70 partially
discard the header as a harvest machine
and adopt ths binder as more convenient
method. and allowing the grain to BE- cut
at least a week earlier and avoiding the
necessity or stacking H.. thus giving tho
rain q chance to ruin II. This dispIacc-
ment, however. has only been In the later
and rainier parts OF the county. Combined
headers and threshers arc used In some
sections gang piows have becems uni
versaI except where they are giving way
the wheat yield win fan somewhat below
the average. having been more seriously
injured by hot weather and winds than
usual. Instead OF an average crop Tor
the county Of Twenty-Five bushels per acre
an former years have produced the pre-
ent crop win probably reach about eixh-
teen bushels. some Of that not being hrst
grade grain. But there are other crops 10
fall back on, and the Paiouse country IL
assured Of prosperity that drives away
the arguments of tho prophets OF cs1lam-
fty. The acreage Of bearing orchards has
Increased 10 per cent. tn three years and
viii almost double In three more Trees
this year are loaded down with fruit. the
crop. except that Of peaches, which II not
quite no 10 the average. being the largest
eyer known Conditions are changing. but
the people. ever alive TO their own inter-
esfs. are changing with the conditions ana
ara adapting themselves more perfectly
70 the changes consequent upon the trans
Formation OF q new lard into prosperous
AGRICULTURAL community.
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