The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1909-06-02

itself:
a. Ii. Morris Describes What lie
Finds in Washington
State.
To the Editor:
Noticing an article in your paper
today from Mr.. Moser of Tacoma.
Wash, in contraction of Mr.. Lampar-
ter's advice to those Ohio people who
contemplate going in the fruit BUSH
ness in Washington, I desire to give
my support to Mr.. Moser on the sub
Ject having just returned from a ten
weeks stay in the northwest, a month
of which was spent in and around
North Yakima, Yash., which is in the
center of the largest area of irrigated
fruit lands in the northwest.
This town has about $4,000 people,
who are almost entirely supported
by the fruit industry. 1t has larger
bank deposits than any town of SINH
lar size in the United States. 1t is
finely laid out and built far ahead of
the average Ohio town. 1t has splen-
did schools and churches and beauti-
full homes. Its business blocks md
hotels will compare favorably in size
and number with those of Akron, even.
Just west of the town is the ia
nous Mob Hill, a slight eminence of
considerable area, and here is land
that has paid the owners as high as
$4,000 per acre in good years. 1t is
an impressive sight from the summit
nf hat l1.n
the eye can reach and on either side
to the foothills there is to be seen the
most beautifully cultivated land in this
country. The orchards are set out
with mathematical accuracy and not
a weed or blade of grass is allowed to
grow about the trees. There fruit rails
ing is science and fine art and the
results are seen in the beautiful
homes that these ranches of five and
ten acres have made is possible for
their owners to live in. There are
homes there that the Ohio farmer
would not dream of and that the not
surpassed by but few of Akron's homes
and on the other hand I visited sew
eral ranchers' homes that were hard
1y in keeping with the great value of
their land, but as their owners had
come there poor and grown rich they
had not yet seen the necessity of
changing their mode of life. 1t is az
ter the easterner with a few paltry
thousands goes there and begins to
use his nervous energy to live in syl-
fish home that his western pioneer
neighbor wakes up and beats him
hands down at it.
Mr.. Lamparter is like all eastern
people, including myself, who visit
Washington, especially if they are not
practical farmers. They are at a loss
to understand the great value of those
irrigated lands. Real estate men there
told me that it was much easier to
sell those $500 and $1,000 acre lands
to western people than to eastern peo-
pie who are accustomed to values of
from $50 to 1928 per acre. The gov
eminent is spending $25,OO0,0OO to
irrigate 10000 acres in the Yakima
valley, from the Cascade mountains
to the Columbia river, and after this
great work is done it will be one of
the richest and most productive places
in the world. No such crops. whether
of fruit or ordinary farm products, as
are raised in this valley, are possible
in Ohio, or anywhere else where the
land is not irrigated. There the sun
shines brilliantly every day In spring,
summer and fall. and water, the other
factor necessary for the crop, is at the
disposal of the farmer. All he has to
do is to open the flume and the wa
ter flows over the land.
The soil is volcanic ash from six to
twenty feet deep, and contains ele-
ments that are only found in coun-
tries that have in past ages been sub
ject to volcanic influences. 1t is true
that the entire western country lying
between the Rocky mountain range.
and the ranges near the Pacific coast
is of volcanic nature but it is valuelsss
unless irrigated. 1t costs the Wash
ington farmer more for his water right
and to prepare his land for irrga-
ton. than the average Ohio farm is
worth, but after this is done he has a
much easier and surer way of making
money than the man on unirrigated
land, and naturally he will not sell
except at high price.
However, there are many other op-
portunities for the person of average
means in Washington than in the fruit
industry.
It's people are getting rich by de-
veloping the natural resources of the
country, and they have only scratched
the surface. while in the industrial
east statistics will show that about 95
per cent of the people work for a
mere existence that the other five per
cent may become rich.
A. r. MORRIS.
TWhile IT NAV seem knocking" on
Ohio and Summit county in an indi-
rect way to publish this letter of Mr..
Morris. vet it gives Ohio farmers a
deep insight into what they ought to
know about the west. not only to meet
the competition of the products of that