The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1905-06-01
SAVED TO THB UNION BY WHEAT.

his employ for twenty years. and they
were getting too old to be valuable to
the Hudson's Hay company AZ peit get
ters.s The factor could not afford to
pension his hunters. and he was too
kind hearted to let them starve. no he
profit by their services, and at the same
time provide them with n means OF
livelihood.
The Russian company. operating In
Alaska. needed wheat. and by contract
with Count Baronoff. representative OF
the Russian authorities at Sitka. DIR.
McLoughiin made an arrangement
supply OF wheat In exchange for
trapping privileges. He gave his old
hunters seed. and allotted them land.
and the veteran woodsmen set about
raising the crop on what became known
~ French prairie. a few miles south
OF Portland. on the Willamette river.
The trappers proved good husbandmen.
and when the whitman party reached
Vancouver In September. 1855. Mrs.
whitman recorded I'm her diary that the
wheat crop would amount that season
to 1000 bushels. The quart OF wheat
which, according to Parkman. Marcus
whitman had carried across the plains
and the mountains. and which. accord
Ing to the same authority. was the first
TO be planted In the Oregon country.
was not needed. The Whitman party
got seed wheat from DIR. Mclaughlin.
The FIRST American TO raise wheat iu.
Oregon was John Ball. OF LansingburG.
n. Y. Ball taught school at Vancouver
for DIR. Mclaughlin In the winter OF
1s33-'3<. and In the spring borrowed
seed wheat OF the factor and raised
a crop. which he sold 10 DIR. McLouEh-
lin. returning then TO New York on
the passage money which his wheat
crop had earned for him.
The blg-heartedness OF DR.. McLough-
lin. which saved the Oregon country
to the union. cost him his position an
The early American emigrants arrived
At Vancouver penniless and without
supplies. To each DIR. McLoughiin
made this proposition: Il will lend
you as much wheat AZ you think you
can plant. and when you get In your
crop you can pay me back" II was a
generous proposition. and the settlers
always accepted IL. Hut tho Hudson's
hay company. which knew. N did its
factor. that settlers ruined the fur
trade. heard OF the arrangement. and
In lst5 DR.. Mclaughlin was forced TO
resign.
The statistics from the department of
commerce and labor showing that more
wheat ID shipped from Portland than
any other city I'm the United States are
doubiy interesting when we consider.
the difiiculties under which the early
exporters struggled. The frst ship
ment OF -four was made I'm 1885. when
n cargo was sent TO China. but the
first expectation OF wheat occurred In
1855. and the investor lost his for
tune In the venture.
Wheat was a drug on the market:
the people could raise more OF IL than
they could use. IL occurred to one
Joseph Watt that I'm this circumstance
lay the opportunity for fortune. He
chartered n sailing vessel. loaded her
with wheat. and shipped the cargo 10
New York by way Of Cape Horn. When
the vessel arrived. the grain buyers
thought. from the large size OF the
kernels of wheat. that the cargo
had either been tempered with. or
had suffered damage I'm the long voy-
age, and they refused To accept
a.. They were unwilling to believe that
such large kernels could grow any
where.