The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1912-02-15

Hood klNer valley. There is legally
line where the city ends and the sub
urbs begin. but this line is difficult 10
determine, almost the entire valley
being like a village. There are numer-
Gus postofices and trading points up
the valley, ard two or three along the
river below the town: but none Of
them large enough TO be reported on
the census returns. Hood River being
the only place in the country so show
ing.
The valley is not merely a village
from the standpoint of the number OF
dwellings, but also from their appear
ance Ii is probably true, as the Hood
River people say, that the average cost
of the dwellings and outbuildings in
the valley is higher than in any other
suburban section of the state. The
houses have a metropolitan appearance
and almost all Of them are as well
| finished in the interior as the average
city residence and have all of the city
conveniences. Indeed, there is no
more charming section adjacent to any
of the newer cities of the West than in
the apple country above Hood River.
| Any section is, of course, dependent
| for its prosperity upon the character
| of its citizens, and thus il can almost
invariably be told by their habitations.
Judging from this the average is
| high in the Hoou River Valley and
their finances must be far above the
average of the ordinary run Of farm
folk, else they could not spend SO much
money on Improvements. Perhaps, then,
\ the boast of the Hood River people
that their valley contains more wealth
per capita than any other section of
| Oregon is wei founded.
Money is still pouring into the val
| ley, most of the purchases being made
by those who have sufficient capital 10
either buy bearing orchards or plant
them and await the years of produc-
tiveness without monetary stress.
Every appearance shows this. Raw
apple land is not so awful high there
as some think, and bearing orchards
have recently sold around $500 an acre
orchards that will pay with ordinary
yields and an average price for the
fruit, from % to Is per cent on the
investment.
1t may be said that it requires more
capital than the ordinary settler can
command 10 purchase one of these or
chards, or even a few acres of un-
planted land, and that Hood River
Valley is no place for poor man to go
to. That depends largely upon the
character of the settler. Any indus
trious man with a very little money
can soon get a foothold there, for the
wealthy land owners hire much labor,
! b, II haN nh A
and willing to pay liberal wages.
In many respects the Hood River
townsite is a most beautiful location
The view in almost any direction is
grand and inspiring. Looking TO the
south glorious old Mount Hood seems
to be towering right over the city
looking to the north, northeast and
northwest the mighty Columbia in all
its majesty lies flowing on to the sea.
The city is on the benches between the
river and the valley, making the
streets hilly from north to south, bat
tolerably level from east to west. On
nearly all streets ale cement walks
and cement curbs, with not only good
sewer system, but storm sewers OF
large capacity.
= Speaking of the sewers, walks and
curbs reminds me that the citizens
have shown a spirit not often displayed
by civic bodies, for while they have a:
yet no paved streets in the town, they
5 have networked the country districts
j with a splendid system of macadamizet
roads, and the coming Spring ant
q Summer will see the streets wei
paved In short, the people cater t
J their suburban citizens, to tho orchard
! lists first. 1t has been made easy fol
d them to get to town and back the
street work can be attended to later.
D There are many beautiful residences
$ in the town and a large number of fine
I brick and stone business blocks. M
5 town of its size in the West can boas
G of finer or better. The two leading
, notels, the Oregon and the Noun
!, Hood are as we'll kept, give as muci
] for the money, entertain you as wei
q as any hotels in Oregon. The tive
newspapers, the Glacier and the News
d are two of the best weekly newspaper
n in Oregon A. d. Moe is the veteran
S owner of 1.-The former. The Bennett
S brothers. of New York, apparently
: capable men, have recently purchased
q the News and promise to improve /
q with every issue.
e No article about the Hood Rive
! country would be complete unles
l. something was said about the climate
d the desirableness of the place as
i year-round home. The Winters some
times show cold weather, often con
l siderable snow. The air is usual.
n dry, the cold not piercing or marrow
!, eating. But the summers There ar
o few places in the country more de
J, lightful for Summer residence than tn
II Hood River Valley.
= Perhaps this has had fully as muc
!" to do with attracting wealthy peopl
i as the peerless apples, people VIII
y wish to live close to the soil in sense
IS but at the same time have an idea
r. climate, a place of residence wher
n the air is SO pure and eXhlarating a
l. to make disease germs give 1t wild
e berth Surely for health there coul
be no better place-for rest and recrc
IL alton no place to surpass 1t.
r For the followers of lZaak Walton
& the disciples of Nimrod, where coul
lr one find a place where sport is soone
r reached or more abundant? Fror
ID every tiny stream running from Noun
rs Hood the fishermen can take as fin
s. speckled beauties as there are in tn
u world and in the foothills at the yer
y base Of Mount Hood and running we
., up towards the eternal SHOWS, can b
3 found the lairs of the bear, the retret
le of the deer, the feeding grounds Of tn
lee quail, the sage hen and the partridge
)f Along the river fly ducks and gees
beyond calculation.
r. = There must come an end to th
is article. ] have said much, out migf
e. go on for page afier page withol
d. fully covering the subject So wi
lr stop and go back to the beginning an
= take up the ''sinker". Hood River hi
st become famous from two weight
v causes, causes that other cOmmunitlC
lr can in one way emulate; they had
l. good country and the people stoc
d. together as one man to adopt the be!
t, methods in every branch of their il
I'd dustry and in exploiting their believe
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