News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1900-09-12
PARKWAY OREGON.

to W. 81. Stone written by bis nephew,
Homer C. AtwelI, a graduate of Peo-
pies Academy, class of 1881 =
FOREST GROVE, OREGON, Aug s, 1900
When l left Omaha, which was a
foolish move, / located in Olympia,
capital of Washington, and became
attorney for the Building Loan Assoc
citation andfor the Union Pacific rail-
way. | built a house and otherwise
invested Among my ventures was a
bunch of coal lands which several of
us invested in, including Judge of
the State Supreme court. We organ
lied coal company and was made
President. The city was booming.
The State began the erection OF a
million dollar capitol building and
expended $150,00O on the stone
foundations, covering something like
an acre. Then the financial crisis
came and the bottom fell out OF ev-
erything. The foundations of the
capitol were abandoned and remain
80 to this day. The city lost half its
population. Real estate could not
be sold for quarter of it's value. |
lost pretty heavily and as the law
business fell off with everything else
| got out and came down here.
| bought a ranch two miles from
this place on which there was prune
orchard of ten acres started and set
to work planting more trees. now
have 40 acres in prunes and winter
apples. I took a position 10 the col
lege here, the Pacific University,
where | have taught Latin, Greek and
German for the past five years. Il
send catalogue. also copy of "Univer-
sity News.") Two years ago built
dryer, or evaporation we call it,
costing $1,000 and cured my crop of
prunes, which was large, packed in
20 pound boxes. Last year the crop
was almost failure and this year |
have about a third of crop, but |
propose to hang on as long as the
trees live unless get good chance
to unload"
The ranch is very prettily situated,
three snow capped peaks of the Cas-
cade range being visible from the
front porch. go out often and dali
ly in summer. | have recently been
appointed postmaster here and shall
discontinue my teaching. The office
pays a salary of $1400 and 5000 for
assistant. My wife will be my assist
ant and we shall begin work Oct. LIST.
II | were asked what items of Yer.
mont life | most miss | should say
maple sugar, corn bread, snow and
ice. No hard wood NAPLES grow west
: of Michigan and Ohio. We have
many soft wool varieties and they
make beautiful shade trees; oaks are
also abundant. The predominant
tree is Douglass fir, somewhat like
Vermont spruce and they grow very
large.
The other day mill ten miles away
sent to town q board six inchss Ss-afe
and 70 feet long wiJnOu q mot in it,
and that is nothing unusual We
went up on the hills few days ago
on picnic with some Omaha visitors
and found a tree which five of US
could not reach around by touching
hands, and have seen macy larger.
Cedar is also abundant in the hills.
The nights here are so cool that
corn never gets beyond the roasting
ear stage, which accounts for the alb
sence of corn bread, hasty pudding
and hominy, all dishes dear to the
heart of my boyhood. Wheat takes
the place of corn as food for all an
imals. 1t is the staple product.
Next come oats, potatoes, hay, hops,
fruit-prunes, apples, pears, cherries,
plums, grapes and berries; sheep and
goats. Not much account made oil
hogs, though | have 40 head on my
40 acre tract.
Farmers are beginning to curtail
their wheat fields and engage more
, in stock raising. We seldom have
snow here in western Washington
and Oregon, and when it does come
it lasts but few days. Twice since
= | came to the coast, in '91, have
seen more than a foot of snow and it
,, lasted from two to three weeks. Us.
,, ually the grass is green all winter,
: ground never freezes more than an
inch, and rarelyat all. The oaks and
naples do not shed all their leaves
until new ones start in the spring
Instead of snow and ice, we have rain,
rain, rain, and it's necessary conse.
qnent-mud. | never wear an over
!, coat, but | do wear an umbrella, and
sometimes wish | had two. Thesum-
mers are ordinarily dry, very dry,
, and as dusty as the winters are mud.
dy. For the past two years, how.
ever, we have had considerable rain
/, in the summer.
! Forest Grove is 26 miles south
! vest of Portland, the largest city oil
!, the Pacific coast north of San Fran
cisco, and sea port although $50
from the sea. 1t is II miles up the
willamette which empties into the
Columbia and the latter into the
ocean. The ocean tide Gibbs and flows
at Portland and the largest ocean
i, vessels load and unload at its
! wharves. River steamers navigate
the Willanettesouth as far as Albany
and up the Columbia for several hun.
dred miles. The Southern Pacific
! from California, the Union Pacific
y n L