The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1914-03-05

hiuNA anu uoItN 10 your NdtlGN created
values. Ali the advertising stunts OF
attracting outside capital have already
been exhausted, and the hope of secur-
ing newcomers through those efforts is
practically thing of the past. But
you hold today within your own hands
the power TO put yourselves in direct
contact with a half million people in
Oregon alone, TO say nothing about the
thousands of others who will visit YOU.
People will swarm over your valley and
seeing II at various seasons Of the year
IN its various stages of beauty, the
charm will hold many. Seeing your
orchards at budding time, and in bios
som time, and in your golden green
harvest, who dares to dispute the un-
told benefits which will result from
those observations
The tourist travel is building and
populating many of the eastern Oregon
towns. You must have people to have
values and business. The writer be-
came resident of Oregon, caught by
the wonderful variety of wild flowers,
ahd the excellent fishing sport. Senti-
ment and beauty cut a wide swath in
human affairs.
Increased population and new deyel-
opments, brought about by having this
great utility and tourist road, will
greatly lessen the tax, ami by the time
the bonds mature your population will
have doubled. Never in the history of
time, so far as your valley is con-
cerned, will there be a project that
means so much to every property hold
er as the building of the Columbia
river highway. You are not a com
mercial center, shipping center, a
mining center, nor manufacturing
center. Some towns pay half as much
as you will vote to secure an industry,
just as a bonus. And that industry
would mean only fraction of the BEN
eft as compared with your highway.
The writer fully believes that in three
years after the completion of the high
way. your valley will have to provide
large tourist hotels, probably the finest
in the west, to accommodate the. .thous-
ands who will visit you, and who will
not be satisfied with one days cutting
in your charming valley. This belief
is based upon what the writer saw
upon recent travels, citing British Co
p. X. r., the Grand Trunk r. X. and
the Canadian Northern Z. X. have
built and are building tourist hotels
whole chains of them, costing in the
millions. This is the tourist age.
Countries in Europe have been male
rich by it. II is developing our cousin,
British Columbia, and we have more
to offer to this brainy, leisure class,
more than most places.
The real head of the Pacific High.
way. Samuel Hill, favors the eastern
Oregon, or inland route to California,
and he knows whereof he speaks. They
may pour millions into the willamette
route, but they will never present to
the tourist the wonders of the Column
bia gorge and the Deschutes canyon.
nor the vast fertile plains of eastern
Oregon. The whole route is of intense
interest, and can be built and main
tanned for half the cost of the William
ette route. 'Tis we'll to have both
routes, but let US have the best. sea
rons meaning much.
The writer notes by the papers that
Jackson, Benton, Josephine and other
valley counties have voted highway
bonds with a spirit. Why? Because
| they realized the immense value accru-
ing to them. Yet, great as the value
would be to them, it would not be half
SO valuable as to Hood River, for the
very reason that the trade and traffic
the highway would bring to them
would'be divided between a large num-
ber of towns, while Hood River would
| ka "a
largest center Portland; and further,
our season Of travel continues half as
long again as the Willamette route.
take it that nearly all the big men
who can do things, and who do dc
things, are in favor of the bonds. They
see: they know. Let the weaker ones
fall in line.
The small or medium farmer in some
of your outlying districts seem to op
pose the bonds, claiming, no doubt
that they should have good roads al
home fiist. This ground is well taken
from their standpoint. Will the de
feat of the bonds give them good roads
Assume that. it will. They will fal
far short of the great, broad benefits
which will accrue to the valley as {
| WHUlCt IL lncy ldil W euppoIb Wv
bonds. Does the fact that the bes
brains AID largest capacities flor bust
ness of some of MultuOmah's S foremos
citizens approve and are working tooti
and nail, for the Columbia river high
way, unselfshly, mean nothing? One
rich man gave $40, 600 for what pur
pose? Not to make money for himself
or for any selfish motive. No. Blu
with insight into the future as to thu
great good and general benefaction o
all those with reach of the Cnlumbii
river highway. Think it over. You
sister, county, Wasco, is anxiousl.
awaiting your'decision, ready to hooI
on and continue the good work. Don
lose your grip--have faith. Your ac
ton in this great important matter i
being watched by thousands outsid
your county. Make good your STANDARD
of progressiVeness.
| have no doubt that all this herei
stated has been thought of and writtel
before, but even so, repeated sermon
may.at some time convert.
/ One cannot fail to bear his part,
t For one great cause we all unite.
+ No one can tell, nor can we see
| What lies beyond this shadow, night
, With faith and hope breaks bright tn
? morn,
DispeIled our fears. and there the
stay.
The caravan, Prosperity. shall swim
/ along our great HighBay.
j. K. McGregor.