The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-01-26
CONDITIONS CUT WEST.
s. l.. Moore Tells of observations
on His Trim,


General Freight Agent L. S. Moore of the
Northern Pacific. returned yesterday from
three weeks trip through the West going
as far as the different towns and cities on the
Pacific slope. Here Mr.. Moore. who. by the
way, Is quite traveller, is one OF your OBJ
serving people, and never returns home with
out having seen some new and interesting
things on his travels.
For one thing. he attended the annual con-
ventfon Of the Northwestern Fruit Growers
association, at Portland. Jan. II, II and Is,
at which the fruit interests of Oregon, Wash
lngton Northwestern Idaho and Vancouver.
B. c.. were represented; in fact all the Pacific
coast states. well considerable of the
Canadian territory. Mr.. Moore finds much
progress being made in the methods of grow
ing. picking and packing, and increased acre
age OF the various sorts Of fruit raised. The
prices were not especially high this year, ow-
ing to the keen competition from California
1ruit at time when financial conditions were
not the hest
Mr.. Moore says the KIondike fever has sure
enough taken strong hold the citizens of
Seattle, Tacoma. Portland, and shows itself
first in the mad desire to purchase outfits
The men i'll those cities, he says, are nearly
Wiid with excitement. the windows filled with
hlondike outfits, etc. AS showing the feeling
Mr.. Moore describes how wealthy Montanian
and an equally wealthy friend from Washing
ton purchased an English bottomed passenger
and freight boat worth in the neighborhood
OF Sl26,OOO insight, unseen, and by means of
cable dispatches to parties in Japan, where
the vessel was. The boat being unable to
ply OWING 10 nCr cGDStruc Ion, D5tWeen Amer
lean and Canadian ports. will fly the Ha-
waiian flag, and is capable of carrying l 900
passengers and 2,G90 tons of freight The
Seattle citizens are. according to the freight
man. the most enthusiastic OF all the coast
people, and have advertised their town until
II IS really the channel for the traffic While
some estimates put the number of prospective
miners at from 100000 to 200 900, the hotel
Keepers say they look for between 10. 600 and
5O,OO0O people by the middle of summer
Both the Skaguay and Dyea trails are open
and Mr.. Moore learned while in the West
that nearly every day men came through from
lawson in twenty-three days on an average
The half-constructed tramways are he says
covered with snow, and IL will not be earlier
than May before the work of completing
them can be resumed.
Along the line of the road Mr.. Moore found
a number OF new industries being started
Money has been actually subscribed for the
establishment of beet sugar factory at LIE
Grand, Or. the most of the money coming
from Portland merchants. In Montana, he
says, bids are asked for a canal fifty miles
long in Yellowstone county, tributary to the
town OF Billings. This canal means that
within short time there will be opened up
IN Montana some %. COO to 30 900 acres of as
good agricultural land as can be found. This
Iahd mas heretofore been given over to bunch
grass used for grazing, where, after the ditch
is punt and water turned on wheat barley
ana oa's may be grown and some dairying
ahc poultry work may be done with profit.