Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1905-05-11
SALEMITE
APPRECIATES
HIS TOWN
AFTER SEEING MANY STATES
SINGS OREGON'S PRAISES
What a Little Comparison Viii
Do for Our State


started on trip for the east write
a very interesting letter to friend
from which The Journal is allowed to
make some excerpts. Among other
things he says, writing from South.
ern Pacific train somewhere south Of
Los Angeles:
"You may have heard about earn.
ing your bread by the sweat of your
brow, but IL is somewhat new TO write
letter with the sweat rolling over
my body as IL is today. Talk about
frying that would be cool. This is
entirely too hot for an old Oregonian,
and I would not come down here again
for big money, except that business
calls me this way. l never knew be.
fore how near heaven Salem was or
even the entire Western Oregon, and
when some Of those half-fried people
come out to the Portland fair, / think
there will be many little side plan
made, for returns TO the garden spot
of the world. l run across great
many who are going, some renting their
homes for the summer, to visit the
Lewis and Clark fair. / had thought
on former trips that ] saw a few places
which impressed me rather a per cent
or two above Salem, but the further
/ get on this trip, the less the percent.
age sets, and Salem has several to the
good now.
"The only trouble with Salem and
surroundings, il there is any trouble
at all, is good roads, that's all. / have
noticed on his trip that the sections
which are the most prosperous, the cit
les and towns which have grown most,
are those which have good country
roads and good streets. These two
propositions are the first requisite TO
double the Salem population. We GER
tainly have the beauty, yards, lawns
and opportunity for parks which can't
be surpassed anywhere. / know this,
for ! have been at many Of the places
recently where the chief boast of the
place is, beautiful homes and parks. -
In another paragraph he writes' "I
am writing this letter on a beautifully
paved street. Street ears up,to.date,
and everything fine which 20 years ago
when | visited here at nearly the same
spot, was far out in the country, but
now there are houses Of all kinds, and
business is several miles beyond. After
investigating the surroundings | can't
see what maintains the place and there
are dozen better places around Sa'
lem than are here, but before | for
get, street ears are the thing, you can I
have too many. They make. business,
they make town. When a town gets
too many, the companies will quit of
their own accord, but very few ever
quit, and as long as the street ears
run, there is money in circulation and
general prosperity. Loop lines are
very successful and great population
builders.
~ am going to take shingle now
and scrape the perspiration off my
body and try to get into my clothes,
and hunt a cool beer joint for one
schooner, so good bye. Start tonight
for Chicago"
In later letter from Chicago this
same gentleman writes; "The situ-
alton here is simply terrible, was
obliged to do little shopping yester
day and happened several times TO-
get into places where things looked
serious AS | write, a newspaper extra
comes into the hotel. Headlines take
up nearly the entire page-I mean the
type is nearly the size Of the page,
announcing the situation is at a crisis.
The strikers are using explosives. And
as l finish the sentence a long string of
wagons are passing my window with
equally as long string of policemen
guarding them. The drivers are sup
piled with clubs and reyolvers in their
pockets. Occasionally you will notice
a driver dodge missile of some sort,
but you can't tell where it comes from.
IL may come from the top of the build
ing or out of some window, but you
can't find the miscreant himself, /
never realized before what an artif-
cial life the great part Of city people
live, have sometimes thought West
ern Oregon slow, but l now realize
more than ever that the Salemites are
the real ivers who enjoy life, and
those city people merely exist, yes
hardly exist, they evaporate away
here In the short time have been
here, l find in conversation how num-
bers of people who deplOre the life
tkaxg ara anu.naIIaN "a live x.hna khav