Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1915-10-15
WRITES Of
EASTERN CONDITIONS
FO X VI Err THCRSTON COUNTY
RESIDENT SENDS INTEREST
ING LETTER ABOUT TRIP.

T. F. Seyfang, former resident
of Chambers Prairie, and we'll known
throughout the county, is now visit
ing friends and relatives at his old
home in Northern Ohio, having left
Olympia early last June intending to
spend some months in the East. His
many friends throughout the county
will be interested to read the follow
ing letter comparing conditions here
and in Ohio as seen by Mr.. Seyfang,
with particular reference to the
farmer:
when l left Washington, about
the 10th of last June, the wheat har-
vest had begun in a few places in
Eastern Washington. l saw Wash
ington strawberries and cherries in
the markets all along the line as far
east as Milwaukee, Wis. In Mime
sofa and Wisconsin the native straw
berries and cherries ripened about a
month after those of Wastern Wash
ington.
THE crops in Montana, North and
South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin
and northern Illinois looked bad on
account of too much rain and cold
weather at that time.
:, I'm Montana and the Dakotas
there is lots of land for home
; stead entry, but this lies from 25 to
80 miles from any railroad. Good
farm land in these sections near a
railroad can be bought at from $40
to $40 per acre, but near the Twin
Cities and from there on east into
Ohio, good farm land sells at from
500 to 5000 per acre.
CAN along the road west of st.
Paul there was an immense army of
idle men, but east of Minnesota there
seemed to be work for everyone who
wanted it, and the further east went
there were less idle men and the
wages were better.
cat st. Mary's, Idaho, met Mr..
and Mrs. L. Cormier, who were for
merly in business in Olympia but are
now in the hotel business in Idaho.
Mr.. Cormier is one of the councilmen
in St. Marys and is we'll pleased with
the country there.
Montana HailstOrms.
ION my way through Montana Il
saw what hailstorms can do to farm
Rcrops. Near Miles City l saw where
there had been a 300-acre field Of
wheat the owner of which told me
that week before he had the pros
pect of getting the finest crop Of
wheat he ever had, when one morn
ing he saw he had absolutely moth
ing left. as hailstorm had pounded
it all into the ground during the
night.
1.-THE Miles City horse market was
sight we'll worth seeing. 1t is said
it is the largest horse market in the
world. I was there during the sales
days in June. There were thousands
Of horses there and thousands being
brought in every day during the sales.
1t was nothing uncommon for several
thousand horses to be sold in one
day, not one at time but in punches
of rs or 80 of about the same size
and age.
Good young horses here in Ohio.
from 1900 to 1900 pounds, sell at
5000 to $500 per head; good mich
cows sell at $50 to $50.
Ohio Farmers Prosperous.
During my stay here in Ohio
have travelled over most of the north
west part of the state and must say
that If this part Of Ohio only had the
western Washington climate 1t would
be the paradise farming country. De-
sirable farms. for sale here are not
easily found, as farmers all seem
prosperous and contented. Every
thing a farmer can raise he can sell
at good price at all times of the
year.
1.-THE public markets in the cities
are public markets in every sense of
the word. Here the farmers sell
direct to the consumer; no middle
men are allowed to sell anything in
these markets. You can bring any
thing the farm produces, from a box
of berries or dozen of eggs to
load of hay or grain or a cord of
wood, and here is where real COM
petition exists.
''These markets are so built that
the farmer drives right in and is not
obliged to unload his wares only as
he sells them. In summer the farm
honi,a 70 nj