The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1908-07-15

The Horticultural Editor of The
Ranch finds it absolutely necessary
to make a new departure. For many
years, by reason of his connection with
the press, he has received many let
ters making inquiries about the North
west. These inquiries have been an
swered at the expense of much time
and labor. But the time has come to
call a halt. The burden is too great,
and these inquiries must go unan-
swered or be answered in some other
way. From this time on there will be
a department in this paper in which
these inquiries will be answered.
Those who want to know what the edl-
tol of this department has to say about
such things can get them by subscrlb-
ing for The Ranch. This is not done
merely to gain subscribers to this pa
Der, but it is forced upon the editor
by the necessities of the case.
want to give an illustration of how this
burden piles up.
June 10, 1908, there appeared in the
Christian Herald of New York a state
ment relative to my fruitgroWlng in
Washington. | was not consulted about
the article, and many of the state
ments are inaccurate, but the letters
began to come in, sometimes as many
as seven a day, and [ fear that the
end is not yet. These letters are from
perhaps one-half of the states in the
Union, sometimes as many as half
dozen from the same state. l could
not answer these letters, as their writ
ters wish to be answered, in less than
ten days by working ten hours per
day. AS a business transaction,
would not answer them as they should
be for SIS. l am busy man and am
feeling my advancing years and can
not do this work.
Perhaps l ought to republish this
statement from the Christian Herald,
point out it's inaccuracies and then
proceed from time to time to answer
these inquiries. Here is the state
ment from the Herald: "At Zillah,
Wash. lives retired clergyman, the
Rev. F. Walden. He is one of the up
builders of the Northwest in the most
practical sense. He came to Zillah
a little over ten years ago, bought
few acres of land for song and
planted apple trees. He was in search
of health and wished to do something
practical while saving his own life, so
he chose the outdoor work of foster
ing the growth of big apple orchard
After seven years of delightful, health
restoring life in his orchard, he
thought he could sell out for profit.
He asked $4,000 for his place. But
that season not a buyer appeared. The
fruit on his trees that season yielded
the sum of $4,000. 1t is needless TO
add that the Rev. Mr. Walden at once
withdrew his orchard from the mar
ket. He has since made from $12,OOO
to $4,000 a year from his trees. The
surprising thing is that now it requires
only two months of his time to harvest
end market his apples, thus permitting
him to spend the remaining ten
months in Seattle, in close touch with
the people, among whom he is dong
Christian work. What he most values
in his experience in the Northwest
is the fact that there he not only
found health, but learned the JOY OF
living close to the soil and getting
living from the SOIL"
This is a pretty story, and SO far
as I can see it lacks but one thing,
and that is truth. l never went there
for my health-went there seventeen
wears ago-did not buy "a few acres"
but bought 80 acres at first and have
increased my holdings up to over 2oO