The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1902-09-19
FROM THE WEST.
Interesting Letter From Former Resi-
dent, DR.. E. ]. Davis.
Weiser. Ida, Sept. 8, 1909.

uenI, Ur. {. J. UaVlS.
Weiser. Ida., Sept. 8, 1909.
Editors Free Press: Herewith I en-
close you dollar for renewal of sub
scription to The Free Press Time
does not in the least lessen our inter
est in Mankato, Blue Earth county
and Minnesota. and it's because of
the fact that we have so many warm
personal friends there, especially in
Mankato. We have found that The
Free Press covers the field nicely in
its pers 0nal mention and current
events transporting there, hence is a
welcome weekly visitor at our home.
We followed closely every step taken
by the promotion of your proposed
street railway and electric lighting
plant, most of whom we had known
intimately for long time, and like
you felt sorely disappointed when the
proposition failed when apparently SO
near consumation. The saddest part
to us was that you were checked in
your efforts to establish a much
needed industry by one whose father
made his wealth in Mankato and was
always one of our most liberal and
public spirited citizens.
1t is now two years since we left
our old Minnesota home, moved to
Idaho and located in Weiser. and can
truthfully say that as time moves on
our fondness for the people here, the
city and state grows stronger. AS a
partial reason for this am pleased to
be able to say that we have all enjoyed
good health and have been reasonably
successful in our business venture.
Two years is long enough time to en-
able one, if at all observing, to form
some definite conclusion as to the
merits or dement's of the locality that
he is living in. 1t may seem odd to
many of my former farmer friends to
learn that farms here under the irriga-
ton system are as small as ten,
twenty, thirty to forty acres. 1t is
true that many of the ranches (all
farms here are called ranches) are
from eighty to 100 acres. They are
not fruit ranches but are used to raise
alfalfa and small grain and are gener-
ally owned by sheep men. In Min
nesota the ordinary farm contains
100 acres and the tendency is to make
them larger all the time. In an irri-
gated community extensive farming is
possible and of course is the most
profitable. Here you are required to
invest in but few acres instead of
many Not only is investment that
much smaller but your taxes are that
much less. An acre here under irriga-
tion will produce about three times as
much as three on an average This
means saving of two thirds in seed,
that much less ground TO pillow, Guilt
vate and harvest, When it comes to
hay twenty acre field here will pro-
duce as much as hundred acre field
there. Alfalfa is the most nutritious
grass that | have ever seen. Ranchers
sell it to sheepmen and sells readily
for from 81 to So a ton in the stack.
1t is worth a whole lot to be free
from worry on the rain or drouth
proposition, also, billiards. and cy-
clones. Under irrigation the rancher
is independent of million dollar
rains that seldom come and does not
lie awake nights wondering whether
or not there will be harvest. Gil
matte conditions, character of the
soil, etc., make the valleys about
Weiser naturally adapted to fruit rails
ing, consisting of berries of all kinds.
cherries, peaches, pears, plums,
prunes, apricots and apples. Owing to
a lack of good market and other
causes which [ will refer to later, for
some of them there is not as much
grown as predict there will be in the
near future. | consider this good
point for a cannery, there being none
nearer us thanOgden on the east and the
hills to the west, four hundred miles
either way. 1t could be in operation
most Of the time from May to Novem-
ber If there was one established here
it would be the means of inducing
ranchers to engage more extensively
in fruit growing because they would
then have a home market for their
products, moreover, the manufactured
goods of the plant would find market
near home. We have already drier
here but it only partially covers the
field. Most of the fruits shipped are
sent to Montana and eastern points, /
yet a market is found for some in
Baker City and La Grande, Ore,
hundred miles west, also, at the
Meadows and the mining camps in the
northern part of this county Our
fruit growers have no confidence in
commission men, many having been
badly feeced by them, will cite one i
case as an illustration. Lucien Will
kins. formerly jsnitor of the Mankato
high school, owned fruit ranch at
Ida., informed me that he
placed his prune crop in the hands of
. Boise commission man. He shipped
and sold them in the east. In time
Luce received word from bank at
Caldewll to come and get his money
out didn't get enough to pay for the
boxes and help for picking. No won
Ter that he sold his ranch the first
chance he got and went back east.
Another difficulty with which they
nave to contend in shipping is the
nigh freight rates. especially individ-