Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1898-11-24
A Letter from Out West
EoRr cor11Ns Nov

FORT COLLINS, Nov 10, '89
Ed. yournal:-I will try and write
some for your excellent paper con-
corning this great country. At first
it seems so different from Iowa
that one hardly knows what to say
or think. They soon asked me what
thought of the country. I told
them it looked nice but 1 would not
know what to do to make living,
and how they laughed; it looked so
strange with no cornfields and no
hogs but they have the alfalfa and
the sheep instead. Alfalfa is Won
derful plant peculiarly adapted to
this soil and climate and yields
three or tour crops year if prop
erly irrigated. It requires an
abundance of water in the summer
but will not bear it in the winter; if
they want to kill it they can irrigate
1t IN the winter and let it freeze and
that will kill it. It is fed mostly to
lambs shipped in from New Mexico
and some from California, Oregon
and Wyoming at cost of $3.50 per
head and are fed by the farmers in
lots from 800 to 1000. They are fed
Nebraska corn twice day at cost
OF 81 cents per hundred and after
grain they hope to make about one
dollar per head for their labor
which makes it very nice bust
ness but there are some disag reea-
BILE things about it the dipping be-
ing one; in order to rid them of all
traces of scab they are driven up
long narrow chute one behind
another as thick as they can walk
and are slid off one at a time into
tank of hot dip Of lime and sulphur
and swim about thirty feet through
it; this is generally repeated in
about ten days, then they pass in
sPection in the Chicago market
Billy Drake, an old neighbor boy
from Polk county, owns dipping
plant and feeds four thousand 1
helped him dip fifteen hundred one
afternoon and it took us about three
hours and it takes eight men to
keep it running. From ninety to
one hundred thousand pass 'thro
his plant in year and about twice
that number are fed in this valley
which is known as the Poudre riv-
er valley.
Next in order / must speak of the
fruit industry. The trees bear young
and do not grow so large as in Iowa
and the fruit is more dense and
compact in fibre. | have seen a
cherry orchard of one half an acre
from which $500 has been realized
in one season and it is no uncom-
mon thing for strawberries to bring
$3OO per acre; they are kept bearing
for six weeks by irrigation and sell
as low as five cents per box; apples
are worth 2 cts per pound at present
and potatoes one dollar per sack of
120 pounds.
Third, last and greatest 1 will
speak of the mountains, which must
be seen to be appre ciated. Tongue
cannot express, pen cannot portray,
art cannot picture the beauty and
grandeur of the Rocky Mountains.
As one wanders through glade and
canyon there is two thoughts seem
uppermost in ones mind concern
ing the handwork of nature, the CIV
erlasting Hills" on one hand and
the frailty and insigni6cance of
man on the other. We visited the
highest mountain in this region
known as "horsetooth," so called
rom the great gaps and fisures in
its rock crowned summit which is
10000 feet above sea level and II
miles climbing. Forty miles dis
tant we canseeLong's Peak 14OOOfeet
above sea level in land of perpet-
ual snow and daily storms, while
down in the valley with us the sun
shines nice and warm. On this
mountain a girl froze to death on
| the tenth of last September. She
had been on every high mountain
in the United States this season ex-
cept this one and she was determin-
ed to go. She had guide with her
but storm came up and she was
so chilled she could not walk and
| the guide could not carry her and
went down after wraps. When he
returned she was dead and so she
sleeps victim of more grit than
judgment.
And now lest l weary your read
ers / will close by wishing the
JOURNAL force and it's army of
subscribers success and health and
that all may be permitted 70 enjoy
Thanksgiving and strive to be wor-
thy of those priceless boons, peace,
freedom, prosperity and religion
l remain as ever,
]. H. BISHOP.
Fort Collins, Colorado.
Frank Basham is home from his