The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1899-08-17
FERTILE SAN JUAN
In An Article to His Home Paper, DIR.
Martin Speaks Highly Of Our

!
Martin Speaks Highly Of Our
| County.
We find in one of our exchanges, tn,
Minneapolis lKansas) Messenger, a vel
written article signed by DIR. w. T. Mart
in, our popular dentist, describing his re-
cent trip over the west, and among Other
things good word for San Juan county
After speaking of his trip through Kan.
sas, Nebraska. Texas, Colorado, Mexico
California and Oregon, he has the follow
ing to say:
Zone day some one suggested that ]
might find some pleasure in a trip to the
San Suan Islands. This is a group OF
about twenty small islands, the largest
being about 8 x 25 miles in size. located in
Puget Sound, between the Straits of San
Juan de Fuca and the Gulf of Georgia,
and were once an object of controversy be
tween England and the United States. !
am enjoying myself here hugely and have
made up my mind to locate here perma-
nently, having opened an Office at Friday
county, located on beautiful bay on the
north shore of San Juan island. I am
much pleased with the many people /
have met and find them above the average
when it comes to their socibility and de-
sire to entertain all who come their way"
Speaking of the country he says, sit is
made up Of hills and beautiful valleys,
the latter very fertile, and the people raise
large crops of wheat, oats, barley, pease
hay. GLOVER and timothy,) field peas, also
an abundance of sheep, butter and eggs,
poultry of all kinds (the finest have ever
tasted). Large salmon canneries are To-
Gated here. which are now running full
blast and will put up an enormous pack
this season. The country reminds me of
eastern Pennsylvania, excepting that it is
located in the ocean,"
1.-The hunting is good. We have quail,
ducks and deer, and have enjoyed my
self much at this sport, although as yet 1
have not happened to get deer"
Friday Harbor is ten hours ride by
steamboat, from Seattle, and about eight
hours ride from Whatcom, and we re-
when no boats run. The islands are all
heavily wooded, but the fertile valleys
have been cleared and are cut up into
small farms surrounded by rail and split
picket fences. Wild berries are plentiful,
particularly strawberries, black berries,
red and black raspberries, pink berry
which is known here as salmon berry,
elderberries and gOOSeberries. Apples,
pears, plums, cherries etc are raised in
abundance and reach the very highest
stage of perfection. One of the principle
industries is growing and drying prunes.
Peaches are also quite plentiful"
'They talk here sometimes about the
wind blowing, but came from Kansas,
and it makes me laugh, for it seems to me
like calm. This being so much farther
north than Kansas 1 expected to hear of
severe winters. They all speak Of last
wilter as terrible, and their coolest
weather was 2O0 above zero. AS l thought
of our 30 below, concluded could stand
it,"
"There is great wealth of wild flowers
and the prettiest MOSES and FERNS"
SIT rains nearly every day, in winter,
but the rains are short, light showers, and
soon clear away"
"ralk about potatoes, say, they are i'm
mensc. l have seen some where one of
them would make meal for good sized
family.''
"Of course my first duty was to visit
the lodges, and am delighted with them.
The Rebekah lodge is one of the incest
have ever visited and am much inter-
ested in their work."
The editor of the paper then adds the
following: All of the Doctors friends
here, which means about everybody in
the county, will be pleased to know that
he is nicely situated, and will hope that
his health, which now seems to be pretty
well recovered, will continue to be good,
and that prosperity will attend him al
WAYS