The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1913-04-04

world is over-loaned.
1t is no secret that the railroads,
except when the wheels are turning
the fastest are, having some difficulty
in maintaining their net earnings in
the face of stationary rates and ris-
ing charges. The partial meeting of
this situation by some of the noun
tain roads through identification is,
in it's potentialities for the future,
perhaps the most important thing
done during the year The Chicago
Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railway,
is now busily engaged in the electri-
fication of a $50 mile stretch of its
line across Montana. The D. & r. G.
has semi-officially announced a SINH
lar intention as to its line across the
mountains from Helper, Utah to
Salt Lake City and it is rumored
that Others will follow suit. The
Importance of the move in this re-
gion of plentiful hydro-electric pow
err may be guessed from the estimate
of the Milwaukee engineers that
train operating costs will be cut
practically in half under electrical
ton and that the whole cost of the
Improvement will be paid from the
savings of the first five years. These
savings vii come from several sour
ces which we have not space to de-
tail, but one of them is worth spec
ial note, l. e., the rather astonishing
fact that with steam power the inter-
mountain roads are compelled to util-
ize third of the rolling stock which
under electriication could be used for
the handling of ordinary frienght, in
hauling coal to themselves.
During the year company headed
by w. F. Jensen of the Jensen Cream
cry company and backed by other
powerful interests was organized for
the purpose of supplying the farm
ers of this territory with dairy cattle
on time, and is really one of the big
) things undertaken this year. Utah
is already known as dairying state
} and produce a large annual total OF
creamery products and condensed
milk. Yet Utah, though a natural
dairy state. has only thirty milk cows
on each 1000 acres of farm land
while Iowa has forty-seven. Oul
: farmers are throwing away hundreds
of thousands each year through omit,
ting to sell their grass and grain feed
in the most profitable way, i. e., as
: butter or pork. Utah imports large
5 quantities of creamery products in
ferior to its own, to the loss of oul
: producers and consumers alike
This gives us occasion to remind tn
: farmers of Utah that they are evel
t more negligent as to hogs than as t.
, dairying. AS a matter of fact, Their
, are not enough to supply our loca
l packers. Iowa farmers have learned
| that the most profit in dairying il
t had when hogs are kept to utilize
: the skim milk and the grain The!
t have found that hog raising has done
: more than any other division o.
farming to pay off Iowa farm mortga
ges and to change the state from ;
borrower to a lender. Consequent
. ly there are 81 hogs in Iowa fol
every 1000 acres of farms, while il
3 Utah where conditions are ideal TO
for the industry we handicap ourselv
' es heavily because we only have 2;
l hogs to each 1000 acres of farm
/ land.
Salt Lake has had another year o
building, the permits totalling nearl
SIS, 500,O0O.00. 1t is worth notin
= that the building has been of higl
I class only 2.3 percent of the tota
being Of frame contraction. A slight
7 ly larger proportion of the residenc
building was of that class, but evel
there the percentage was only 6.
percent. The residence permits to
, tailed $1,230,000 and, as we pointed
, out last year it is this item which
l really indicates the city's growth
{ In spite of the increase, the humble
! of residences available for rental i
| dropping. In November a painstak
Z ing census of the city was made will
I the result that only 700 vacant build
: ings, both houses and stores, wer,
l found, including about 800 uninhabi
, table shacks in various parts Of tn
$ city. The available supply has beel
= still further cut down until today
is doubtful whether there are 25'
I habitable and unoccupied dwelling
in theNcity, fact which tells It's plail
{ story of local prosperity, and an al
{ most equally story of prosperit.
3 throughout the whole territory 0
! which Salt Lake is the commerica