The Oroville weekly gazette. [volume] (Oroville, Wash.) 1905-19??, 1914-10-16
AN ERRONEOUS STATEMENT

The following misleading item has
been going the rounds on the coast:
aThere is no longer room for more
cattle east of the mountains, accord
ing to ]. w. Miller, owner of a ranch
and mining property in the Okanogan
country and another ranch in the
Yakima valley"
The person here quoted Is one of
the old residents of the Loomis neigh
borhood, and those who know him
would prefer to believe that he has
been misquoted, rather than believe
he willfully gave out statement that
the facts of the situation relative to
cattle raising would not bear out. 1t
is true that conditions in Okanogan
county are different today from what
they we're when Mr.. Miller first came
into the country, many years ago.
rTssss. re. change in conditions stands in
the way of the free range of vast
herds on the Okanogan hills and val
Ieys. and that far his statement bears
4 tincture of truth, for the range un-
restricted is thing of the past.
Twenty years ago the country was
open and unsettled, and the COW man
was not hedged in by any limits as to
bis feeding ground. Cattle roamed
every hill and vale. 1t was the feed
ing ground for transients as we'll as
the herds owned by citizens of the
county. Home hunters came in, took
IN all the more desirable land, and
the barbed wire barrier shuts off The
browsing steer from the former
wealth Of bunch grass that once en-
tered into the fattening process Of the
four footed property. Insomuch as
huge bands are concerned there may
be no further room in the settled
mart of the county fer cattle, but that
does not mean that there Is no longer
room here for cattle, nor that cattle
rsieing cannot be made even more
profitable now than in the days when
the range was limited only to the en-
durance of stock to travel over 1t.
There is not only room in OkanOgan
county for more cattle, but more cat
tie are being raised in the county
from year to year. This increase Is
bound to keep up steadily until Okla
hogan county becomes one of the chief
sources Of supply of meat for the mar
kets Of the state. Farmers are turn
ing attention to alfalfa, and aside from
alfalfa there can be large quantities
Of other forage feeds grown. To util-
ize this forage farmers are turning
their attention to stock, cattle and
hogs. Under present conditions cat
tie receive better attention than in
the days Of the large herds, and loss
Ia much less, and the quality of mark
etable beef Is much improved. Then
cattlemen are not restricted to their
immediate surroundings for range. A
large portion of this county Is given
over to national reserve. For nomi-
nal sum stock can range on this reserve
and thousands of head are SO feed
every season. The lack of room for
cattle is fallacy. The county will
never be over crowded, and few
years hence 100 head will be raised
where only single head is raised to-
DAY. The certain profit in cattle Is
too alluring for farmers to pass up,
and farmers are learning that the bet
ter care given to cattle the faster they
run into money. The quantity and
quality is steadily improving. Men
ton was made in late issue of the
sale Of prime lot of Okanogan beef
cattle to Tonasket buyer. That buy
or was L. Stubblefield, who bought
cattle for years in this county and
throughout the west for the largest
firm Of cattle buyers in the northwest.
BY experience he is as we'll quail
ned to Judge cattle as any man in the
state, and when he passes an opinion
upon the quality Of commercial cattle
that opinion is authoritative and con-
not begainsaid Mr. Stubblefield volun-
tarily stated that this late delivery
was made up Of the choicest beef
cattle that he had ever seen. This evil
dence is sufficient without going any
lurther to put the seal of approval
upon Okanogan cattle. And there is
room here, and feed here, and mark
ei within reach for thousands Of head
OF Just such cattle, Mr.. Miller or any
other mistaken individual to the con-
trary notwithstanding. Yes; there is
room here for more cattle, room for
many more, and the farmer who is
not feeding few head of beef steers
ior market is passing up side line
mat is sure income producer. Mr.
Aillers statement Is not going to In
duce people to shy at cattle raising IN
this county, but it may leave the er'
roneous impression among people who
% not know that the empire embraced
with In the boundaries of Okanogar
county is so overcrowded with cattle
mat there is not room enough tc
crowd In another head.
Fatal, TERMINATION