East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1904-10-19

Jersey City, n. j., Oct. 16-(Editor
East oregonian. )-On May 10 last, 1
left Oregon to make my business
home in New York. 1 determined. on
starting, to learn to what extent Ore
gon is known in that section of the
United States called "the East" and
the result of my investigations is here
| stated:
During five months l have travelled
about 5000 miles. l have visited
Minneapolis, st. Paul, Chicago twice,
Detroit, Cleveland, Indianapolis twice,
Pittsburg twice, Philadelphia three
times. Buffalo, Albany, and the dis
tance from New York to Chicago has
been covered three times. have
also spent many days in New York
city, and in the large cities near New
York. During all of this travelling 1
have enjoyed conversation with a
great many business men and fellow
travellers.
To my statement that i came from
the Pacific coast, they have all re-
piled. invariably and instantly, "Oh
yes, from California" l counted the
number of times that reply was made
during the first three months after
leaving Oregon. and the number was
1888.
Since then l have not continued the
count, but 1 have been surprised and
panied that not single one of the
thousands Of Eastern men l have
met and conversed with. appeared to
know that Oregon was on the map,
hut every one instantly said: "Oh, yes,
from California" when I mentioned
the Pacific coast.
California Widely Advertised.
Lately I have been investigating
the "why" of this seeming lack of
Oregon's existence. Here, again, is
the result: l find California literature
everywhere. Railroad advertising
land company booklets, city souven-
IRIS, fruit statistics, and the fruits
themselves, but nothing from Ore
gon, or almost nothing.
l have diligently hunted through
many daily papers looking for Lewis
and Clark fair advertising, or news.
or any information. and with a single
exception, and then for only one
Sunday issue of the Newark, N J.,
News, have l been able to find a line
or even a word about the fair.
Oregon Fruits Not Known.
I have visited several of the largest
groceries in Newark, 25O.00O popula-
tion, also in Elizabeth. 10000 popu-
lation; Jersey City. 100000 popula-
tion; New York about 100000.
looking for Oregon prunes and other
Oregon fruits, and the invariable and
unhesitating reply has been that they
never heard of Oregon prunes.
I have, however ordered eight
boxes from a friend in Oregon and
they will be placed on the tables of
eight well known men living in New
York and New Jersey. for I am de-
termined that SOMEONE within my
circle of business and personal friends
must be able to say that they" have
heard of Oregon prunes. and have
tasted them and found them good.
Pendleton Blankets Known.
/ have still further pursued my in
vestigations relative to Oregon pro-
ducts in the East. My latest effort
has been to discover. IL possible, some
of the excellent products of that
great state advertised in the Eastern
magazines and other high class pub
lications such as the Ladies' Home
Journal, Saturday Evening Post, and
others.
I have found one glorious. conspic-
uous exception to the discouragingly
monotonous failure, and this single
shining example is the Pendleton
Woolen Mills, with their well con-
structed, beautiful advertisement for
the Oregon Indian robes manufac-
tured at Pendleton.
Hurrah for Pendleton and her en-
terprising woolen mill and the In
dian robes! have found two of the
robes in families living on Staten Is
land and in Jersey City, and 1 felt
from my beloved Oregon. 0 sent
both robes East myself to these fam
lilies for Christmas presents some
years ago. I wish 1t were possible to
send more of them, not especially to
just make presents, but to let more
families, back here know of at least
one Oregon product.
What's the Matter With Oregon?
But what's the matter with Ore
gon, anyway? Why have thousands
of well-posted, bright business men
in nine of the largest and most veal
thy Eastern states said to me, "Oh,
yes; from California" Why is there
no advertising of the Lewis and
Clark fair. Why cannot Oregon pro-
ducts be found in the big Eastern
stores? Why does nobody know of
the wonderful Oregon? Not because
she is SO far away. That isn't a good
reason. California is just as far, but
everybody knows of California.
At the st. Louis fair your neighbor-
ing state of Washington distributed
100000 magnificent souvenir books,
not cheap stuff, but a beautiful book
that any one would take home and
read and look at many times and
ponder over. How many did Oregon
distribute at the st. Louis fair? To-
day received a folder done in most
artistic effect advertising the Spokane
fair this fall. And I have Just learned
that thousands of these folders have