The Oroville weekly gazette. [volume] (Oroville, Wash.) 1905-19??, 1914-06-19
4 HAPPY PROSPECT

Never since the railroad first reach
ed this point in its construction west
ward, and Orovile suddenly came into
existence as a town, has the outlook
for the place been so bright and prom
ising as it is today. The conditions
have never been ripe for a spontan-
eous growth, designated in the vernac-
ular of the west as a BOOM" and the
people can be thankful that that blight
has never fallen upon the town. For Il
boom is always followed by reaction,
and it takes longer to recover from
such a set back than to wait patiently
for a natural and healthy growth to
conform with the growth of the sur
rounding and contributory country.
A boom, an artificial semblance of
prosperity, is blight, and nothing
else. There have been numerous ex-
amples OF the misfortune of mercuriai
and unnatural growth in the west A
lew reap harvest from the deceiving
agreements of a feverish whooping
up, and the majority who were Undue
ed to invest in inflated real estate, are
left to hold the sack and regret their
hasty action and shortsightedness So
we say Oroville has been fortunate in
escaping the seductive boomer, and all
the sorrows that follow in his wake.
The town has grown slowly yet stead
lily, indeed vigorously when conditions
and surroundings are considered.
Some times those who have waited
long and anxiously for the expected
squirt in growth have been discourage
ed by the seemingly sluggish eXpan-
sion, and yet they could not help rec
ognizing the fact that the town forg-
ing undeviatingly ahead, keeping
abreast and not in advance of the set
Element and development of the sur
rounding country upon which its eX-
lstence depends. Oroville has never
been at an absolute standstill. Every
year has seen some Improvement, and
each succeeding year those improve
ments have been of better class.
This is exactly as it should have been
to insure permanency, and to estab-
fish confidence in the future of the
town. Improvements SO far made,
and especially those of more recent
years, are permanent, and will be part
of the town well worth while even
when surpassed by more extensive
and expensive buildings that are yet
to be-
Indications at the present time point
to that new era in the history Of Oro-
vile that many of us have long looked
forward to longing'v, Ind there are
most flattering and stable reasons lust
It this time for anticipating rapid
change for the better. Enterprises are
on foot, and nearing consummation.
that will be potent factors in town
building, even without great effort on
the part of those already here. New
blood, new energy new progressive
ness, coupled with the energetic of the
community, will enlist in the work Of
making Oroville a larger and better
city, city in fact aa well as in name.
The chief of these factors is the con-
struction of the irrigation system, that
has been in process of formulation TO-.
Two years, which is to put hundreds of
acres of the choicest land in the west
under water, acres that without the
revivifying and fructifying influence of
moisture are barren and without val
ue. The effects of this reclamation
is beyond the understanding of those
who have not seen the changes that
irrigation has wrought in localities
that few years ago were no more
productive than the desert of Sahara.
1t means that every at present use
.ess acre in the valley surrounding
Oroville will be made productive, and
those acres will be utilized as soon as
returns therefrom are assured for the
work put upon them. 1t means that
many blades of grass will be made to
grow where heretofore the land has
been a stranger to a single blade. 1t
means that the larger holdings will be
divided into small tracts, and where
one family now manages to eylsl
dozen families will be able to live in
comfort, with a hope of future ac-
cumulations. 1t will mean intensive
cultivation, and a rich reward in the
fruits of the earth. It means that the
present vacant lands are to blossom
like bushel of roses, and the beauti-
lui valley become hive of industry.
the abiding place of concentrated eff
fort, and the store house from which
the husbandman will draw ample re-
ward. 1t means that this increased
population composed of men and wo-
men who accomplish things will pro-
vide increased demands for things of
commerce, and that Oroville will be
looked to to supply those demands.
And the business so created means the
building OF more business blocks, and
OF many homes within the corporate
limits to meet the requirements of an
Increased population that will ma
turally be attracted by increased bus
mess opportunities.
Then, in conjunction with the carry
ing out of the irrigation project, and
as a contributory incentive for city
there is the prospective
works at Oroville. This in
dustry is almost as certain of ma
terialization as the irrigation enter
prise, and as a constructive element
IN aiding the growth of a place it is a