Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1909-06-17


John A. Rae returned yesterday
from three weeks trip along the
Oregon Short Line in Idaho. He
calls Idaho "a land of sunshine and
bronze faces" with plenty of prosper
ity.
II have been in Idaho since May
taking lessons. In our beautiful
egotism we think Puget Sound, our
\ akima, our Wena<ehee. our Kenne-
wick and our wheat fields on the east
side and our forests on the west side.
or harbors and our noun tains are the
earth and the fullness thereof. but
they are not the whole thing. When
we annex Idaho, however. there will
be enough to justify modest portion
of our incorrigible optimism.
II only covered a few Of the val
leys, with 10 days in beautiful Boise,
where you can learn what is doing
both south and north along the route
of the Oregon Short Line. Boise is
not more beautiful than Tacoma. even
If she Is older In size she is about
one-fourth, but in her own state just
as important. You see substantial
business blocks and local building
as light as the stone in our new
postoffice and local brick almost
pure white. Buildings of this stone
and brick are going up how many
did not count but the number imp. e sses
the visitor.
The streets of Boise are clean and
the electric signs don't extend out
over the sidewalk. Boise's theatre
is beauty. Then the capitol is not
large, but with the old as an. annex
is probably sufficient. 1t will be If
the occupants don't take essons from
us.
ut is not Boise, with her friendly
shade and trees in the capitol grounds
planted by the mighty lion hunter
and President Harrison, that sur
prisss the visitor, but her irrigation
projects. and most OF all those built
by private capital. The government
has only two under construction, but
individual enterprise has undertaken
and early completed %. ranging II
cost, guess, from half million te
three or four millions. Whispers OF
others. larger than the largest are
beard, and when learned that j. G
White & Co. of New York. thu
largest contracting engineers in thu
world, are in the field. present ant
future, understood the meaning o
the claim that Idaho will soon be tn
banner irrigation state. This com
pany is completing in Is months. =
mark the time-a project that viii
Hrigate $50, 900 acres. And the Ar
mold company of Chicago, engineers
almost as distinguished and EXTENSIVE
in their operations, are even bette
known in Idaho and believe the
are about to take on IS. 600, 600 pro
ject and complete it in two years, i
Uncle Sam is willing. In Boise ant
elsewhere you will meet the Trow
bridge & Niver company Of Chicago
who have financed 90 irrigation pro.
jects, seven of them in Idaho. Whel
this bond house and the Arnold com
pany say they are ready to finance ant
build project. my skepticism van
ishes.
THE Carey act is responsible TO
this Idaho enterprise. Already /,
500. 900 acres have been taken "
under this act and there is as mucl
more that private capital can reclaim
if it elects. Idaho along the Oregon
Short Line is something of moving
pictures and when you recall tina
Twin Falls, the striking example, i
only four years from sagebrush AM
expects the census enumerator mex
year to turn in at least 8. 900 you ca
understand there are others beside
Yakima. The value of new building
now under construction is 81. 500. 900
In the same general locality there is
bunch of trailers.
'Our Washington is doing her shar
in this empire building. Of the frs
loco men who filed on land when tn
market 434 were from Washingto
and only 33 from Oregon. and o.
every subsequent opening Washingto
people have been well to the fror
and on my trip | met them every
where. They are there from Tacoms
Seattle. Olympia, Aberdeen ard
would not be surprised if every con
munity on either side of the Cascade
is represented in the movement
Migration is the life of civilizatio
and when the emirgants cross a
imaginary line. the loss is only nom
inal. Idaho's gain is not our loss
a. Idaho is tributary. While there
: good deal Of fae climate in ths