The Kalispell bee. [volume] (Kalispell, Mont.) 1900-192?, 1900-06-22

apples, pears, plums and cherries. It is
estimated that in four years from now
there will be shipped from Flathead val
ley 400 carloads of apples annually. On
the shores of Flathead lake peaches,
grapes and prunes are raised. AS this
is a new industry for this portion of the
country, it has not been demonstrated
which varieties are especially adapted to
this soil and climate. Professor Shaw of
the Minnesota state experiment station
says:
This tendency to a preponderance in
fruit and seed production would seem to
characterize every class of plants. To
illustrate, it may be mentioned that
eight strawberries were recently picked
in a garden not far from Columbia Falls
which together weighed pound. The
writer counted 266 beautiful plums on a
small tree growing in a garden in Kalis-
pell which had been planted out the
previous year, From garden hard by
a pea vine was taken which had on it
1872 pods. There were 20 branches grow
ing from the one stem. examined the
vine with jealous care to make sure
that the stems all grew from the same
root. Had l not counted the pods, l
would have been 10th to credit the state
ment that it bore 1872 pods. Since the
world began, where was ever such an
other pea grown?'
The state of Montana being largely
mountainous and cattle range, there is
but little agricultural land. This gives
the Flathcad valley the advantage of a
splendid market within her own boun-
Diary, although wheat is shipped to Min
ncapolis, ut a cost of "a cents per bushel;
that is, the price here is "a cents per
bushel less than that paid at Minneapo-
lis. Last year the wheat growers real
!zcd 55 cents per bushel here and in 1898
$l.D per bushel, and farmers raised
enough in the one crop lin 1889 to pay
for their farms. Land is now selling
| from $40 to $D per acre, according to
location, improvements and quality of
the soil, etc. The soil is a black sandy
loan of great depth, being deposit
from the Flathead river. 1t seems to be
inexhaustible, as it is cropped yearly
and no fertilizer is used. There is prac-
tically no government land, except tim
Der land, the valley being we'll settled
up. Considerable of the land was taken
up by early settlers, who were not farm
ers, but who mortgaged their farms to
make living, while they hunted and
tishcd for pastime paying ut the rate of
, per cent per month for the privilege.
This of course could not continue indef-
nitely and most of these were forced to
sell, the remainder holding on until the
present time and, not being industrious,
are now ready to part with their farms
and so to some newer country.
The farms in the valley are now being
purchased by practical farmers of large
experience, most of them coming from
Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota and the Da-
lzotas.
While this is an ideal dairy country,
that business is not carried on very OK
tensively. There is only one regular
creamery in the valley. However, there
are four farmers who have separators of
their own. All the butter made here is
consumed in the valley and near by
points. The average price of butter is
25 cents per pound the year round
There are no silos in tho Flathead val
ley. There are no stall fed beef cattle
in the county, although the demand for
beef is always great. This would be a
very paying industry if properly handled
as the mild winters and the enormous
forage and root crops that can be raised
would reduce the cost to minimum.
The climate is all that could be de
!. sired. In summer the thermometer
never registers above 50 degrees in the
shade while in winter the lowest regis
ter known was 10 degrees below zero
and for not more than three days, the
| VI UilC COluSoU WCttUIICI DclIH
above zero, and laborers working in
their shirt sleeves most of the winter
The air in winter is SO dry that wher
the thermometer is ut it's lowest point
one does not feel the cold as would bt
the case on the coast, where the atmos
phcre is damp. The elevation of tht
| y.llav ic ahouf sBllrlD faat
The principal city and county seat is
Kalispell, which has population OF
1000.
We have spoken especially of the
! farming interests, but numbering and
mining are great industries, which are
developing fast and are creating a great
market for the agricultural products OF
the valley.
Kalispell is the end of passenger and
freight division of the Great Northern
railway, and here is located round
i .h