The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1908-06-10
FECHTER & RUDKlN GET
NORTHERN PACIFIC CANAL
viii Water Thousands of Acres of
Land In Vicinity of kcnncwick
lis An Immcncc Proposition.

be watered and developed within the
next few months is the latest news
in real estate circles, says the Ken
newick Reporter. This is the result
of deal reported to have been
closed in Seattle on Monday whereby
the title of the Northern Pacific irri-
CATION canal, together with several
thousand acres Of adjoining land, is
to he transferred to Fechter & Rud-
kin of North Yakima. The rumor
has been current on the streets of
this city for several days but con-
firmation Of the report has been diff
cult
According to the report about
10000 acres of land in the vicinity
of Richland have been bargained for
by Downs & Allen of Seattle, who
will complete the Horn & Grosscup
ditch and irrigate that section. What
this deal means to Kennewick is a
matter of conjecture to a great ex-
tent, but it will certainly mean the
investment of large amount of
money in the early fruit belt and the
rapid development of many acres CT
now desert land. For the immediate
present it will mean the employment
of hundreds of men and teams in
construction work and for the near
future large increase in population
The first suspicion in kennewicll
that there was something doing was
aroused two weeks ago today when
a surveying party unloaded at the
Northern Pacific depot and went up
the river and began work in the vi
entity of Richland. The members If
the party were entirely non-commit-
tai but left the impression that they
were working in the interest of the
North Coast.
Their actions indicated that there
was something besides North Coast
in the wind and started a quiet in
vestigation by newspaper men O.
L. Hanson, superintendent of the
Northern Pacific canal, was visited
and interviewed but no information
could be obtained as he was appar-
emily ignorant of any proposed
changes or developments and APP
peared greatly surprised that any
suspicious of any deal had been
aroused.
When Howard Anon returned
from Tacoma he was asked If he
knew what those surveyors were do
ing in the vicinity of Richland and
asked 'What surveyors" as innocent
ly as a child. Later when he was
asked squarely if he knew anything
about the deal. he replied: Moth
ing for publication or for newspaper
men,
AS near as can be learned and ac-
cording to the persistent rumor the
consideration paid for the canal and
adjoining land was 100000 and it
is reported from Tacoma the deal
was consummated Monday afternoon.
According to the same authority
from which the above information
was secured. the surveyors near
Richland did not know that the deal
had been closed, but they reported
that their Investigations had shown
the project of completing the Horn
ditch quite satisfactory. AS mat
ter of fact it appears that several
well known capitalists were after
the ditch and adjoining land but
Feehter G. Rudkin closed the deal
while the iron was hot.
II is an open secret that the ditch
has not been paying expenses since
it was first put in operation and the
Northern Pacific has been keeping its
land off the market in hopes of dis
posing of the canal by using the land
to help sell it. Numerous offers
have been made for the land which
have been refused and the keeping
of the land off the market has re-
tarded the development of the coun-
try. particularly in the vicinity or
kennewick and Richland.
Now that the land has passed into
the hands of capitalists who will
naturally seek to profit by their in
yestment it will in all probability be
placed on the market and the valley
will be even more rapidly settled.
The land in the vicinity of Kenne-
wick will probably be sold first, but