The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1906-01-15

dear? BY the price per acre we would
have to pay for such lands? II that
is all, then l could send people to parts
of Washington where lands can be
bought for 25 cents per acre. But
COW could not live on forty acres OF
such land. The fact is, such lands
are dear at any price. What settles
the value of land is what it will earn
for it's owner above all expenses. l
know some small farms near North
Yakima that could not be bought fo1
less than $1,000 per acre, and l con-
slider them cheap at that, for they
will net the owners an average of S10O
per acre, and that is ten per cent ON
the investment, with no likelihood OF
depreciation in value. Now, it is well
known that there are millions upon
millions of money in our country that
can be had for and 5 per cent II the
investments are secure. Ihere are
irrigated farms that will pay 70 per
cent on an investment of $500 per
acre. Such lands are cheap.
Yes, man with an average degree
of enterprise can make a good living
and lay up money on twenty acres.
Many are doing that now and some
living on one-half that much land are
doing we'll There are some fve-acre
farms near Kennewick, Wash, that
are yielding their owners substantial
support. So much depends on the
surroundings and the kind of crop
that is raised that it is hard to answer
these questions satisfactorily. There
is but one safe answer to give to these
inquiries, and that is: Come and
see."
I am unable to answer all these in
quiries Not long since I answered
several of these inquiries by writing
personal letters and paid the postage.
informed the persons that by send
ing SO cents for The Ranch they could
learn more in one year about this
country than 1 could write in dozen
ordinary letters. Not one ever
answered me. So it seems they did
not want my advice so very badly
after ALL
Benjamin Curry, of Olympia, Wash,
writes under date of December IS as
follows: Il have just read what you
have to say in The Ranch of Novem-
Der Is, and am very much pleased with
it. What you say about the mislead-
ing statements in regard to apple
growing is SO true. But what I start
ed to write you for is to ask if you
would furnish me twigs enough to
make 100 scions of the Rome Beauty?
Would they do we'll here? What
would you charge me?" Mr.. Curry
will see from statements in the last
issue of The Ranch, as well as the
present issue, what experienced fruit
growers in the Sound country say
about the Rome Beauty. Judging by
this testimony l should say that it will
not do we'll where he lives. We could
furnish him the scions, but think he
would do well not to try the Rome
Beauty unless on very small scale.
AS to furnishing scions of any kind
of trees we have in our orchards,
wish to say this: We do not seek this
kind of business. 1t is quite trouble
to cut and properly label, tie up and
take to the express office bundle of
scions. If you cannot get them any
where else we will furnish such as we
have, thus put up and delivered to the
express company, for one cent apiece,
but will not fill an order for less than
twenty-five.
Speaking again of these exaggerated
reports, l wish to say that they are
far too common. Recently l read an
advertisement of a fruit company in
which an estimate was given of what
could probably be made in such an I'M
dertaking, and am quite free to say
that if the estimates were cut in two
and only half the gains were expected
they would be too large. The person
who claims we can expect a uniform