The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1915-03-11
KEnNEWICK, PRESENT
"A LUSTY YOUTH
PAPER Read by Mrs. w. B. With
at Recent Meeting of the
Woman's Club

II seems to me that my subject
places me in a precarious position. III
/ tell you that Kennewick is the most
beautiful city in the Northwest, that
the inhabitants are all clever or rich,
that our butterfly life is the envy OF
our neighbors, you will think l am
either trying to sell land or am not
speaking the truth. If | hold up a
picture of dust, poverty, and dls-
agreeable people, again you VIII be
displeased and if I try to give you
facts as find them, fear you may
go to sleep. However, the CIVIC De-
partment has given me an outline
which the committee calls "dry bones"
and expects me to clothe them for you.
This idea of skeleton upon which
to hang the life of Kennewick ap-
pealed to my fancy, and as ! have
PASSED back and forth through the
streets and shops looking into the
faces about me / saw at once that we
have here no mere skeleton, but tru-
ly living city.
It has been said the common peo-
ple are the backbone of the nation, SO,
may as we'll say there is much to be
proud of here. Kennewick has youth
that glorious time when dreams
come true and aspirations mount to
the stars. Do you realize the oppor-
tunity given you as builders and Gre
ators? You need not take over the
| mistakes of an older generation but
can execute right here today, all your
altruistic or communistic ideals.
Some decry this privilege and be-
moan the loss of the older culture in
the East, but remember that Kenne-
wick is in your hand, as marble in the
hand of the sculptor. Your ideals
will be left for the next generation.
Every tree, every new pavement, ev-
cry building, will be but one more
hope given material form. A grave
| responsibility is ours.
Kennewick has perhaps 1900 inhab-
itants, 1000 in the valley adjacent and
700 upon the Highlands, and each one
is planting, digging, or planning for
the development of the country. Our
climate, too, is working with us, CIV
ing us long days of sunshine, in which
are produced wonderful fruits and
vegetables, animal life grows vigor-
ously, and with our splendid water
supply we may be reasonably sure
of continued progress.
/ About 5000 acres hold water rights
below the canal and 1900 are planted
upon the Highlands; moreover the
proposed Sunnyside canal may bring
80 900 acres under water. It has been
said that nowhere in the Northwest
is there such large acreage with
such ideal conditions for irrigation.
The people of Kennewick make use
Of eight churches, two modern school
houses, clubs for social, civic and re-
ligious life, library, which will grow
to be civic center, and fraternal or
ders are strongly represented. These
institutions might be here and mean
nothing but the interest, hope, enthu-
siasm, and best of all, the energy are
here too. So you can see that Kenne-
wick is well supplied with vertebrae.
The other parts of this skeleton are
just as sturdy. / find manufacturing
plants and business houses, such as
the ice and grape juice plants, bas-
ket and broom factories, creamery, a
flour mill, Standard Oil, lumber COM
panies, warehouses, electric company,
blacksmiths, garages, groceries, phar-
macies, hotels, millinery, haberdash-
cry, jewelers., dry goods, and tailor
shops, furniture and hardware, these
with physicians, dentists, musicians,
lawyers, bankers, etc, complete the
frame of our young Kennewick. His
muscle and intelligence must be sup
piled by the people.
find he has splendid means of
communication with the world. Do
you, wonder, appreciate that wonder
full artery, the Columbia river, which
flows through this youngster-a new
er-failing source from which to draw
energy? Let us hope that history
will repeat itself and upon the south
bank of the Columbia there will arise
a busy manufacturing and jobbing
city.
And do not forget the three big
veins, the railroads bringing in and
taking out our necessities, luxuries
and products. What splendid loca-
ton is our! Here is center appar-
emily prepared by the topography Of
the land and ours for the using-an
inland empire from which to draw