6 SUGGESTIONS TO SETTLERS IN COLUMBIA RIVER VALLEY. 



The early season in the low lands of the Columbia River Valley is 

 a great advantage on the one hand, since it enables the farmer to 

 obtain the highest prices for early vegetables, small fruits, melons, 

 and similar products. On the other hand, the tender varieties of 

 fruit, such as strawberries, peaches, apricots, and cherries, are more 

 apt to be injured by the late frosts than they would be were the alti- 

 tude higher and the season shorter. 



SELECTING A FARM. 



In selecting a farm in one of the irrigated districts in the Columbia 

 River Valley a deep, fine-grained soil with good drainage is very desir- 

 able. If the soil is deep the land can usually be so graded that it can 

 be irrigated and cultivated wath the greatest possible ease. If con- 

 siderable grading is done on a shallow soil much damage may result 

 by bringing the gravel too near the surface where the higher areas 

 have been cut down. A deep, fine-grained soil will also require much 

 less water than a shallow or coarse, sandy soil. Wlien possible sub- 

 soils containing cement gravel should be avoided, for they seriously 

 interfere with drainage and with the root development of plants. 

 The depth of the soil can easily be determined by the use of a post- 

 hole digger, 



Wliile the lower lands usually have tlie best soils and produce the 

 best crops in the beginning, it must be remembered, when selecting a 

 farm, that they are much more likely than the higher areas to be 

 damaged in the future by the rise of seepage water and alkali. The 

 higher areas are also much freer from frost, for the greater elevation, 

 if only a few feet, permits the cold air to settle to the low^er levels. 



A prospective settler should duly consider the amount of water to 

 be supplied per acre, the ability of the company to deliver the water, 

 and the efficiency of the irrigating system. Especially is the latter 

 important in cases where the operating company ceases to have any 

 interest in the irrigation system when the land and water rights are 

 all sold. 



IMMEDIATE EXPENDITURES NECESSARY IN CONNECTION WITH 

 THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A FARM. 



The immediate expense of developing raw land in an irrigated 

 district is considerable. Many people undertake too much and 

 exhaust their resources before paying returns can be obtained from 

 the land. The new settler should carefully consider the following 

 items of expense and make his plans according to his resources. 



The price of land, with the water right, varies from $200 to $300 

 per acre, according to the equality of the soil and the distance fi-om 

 transportation facilities. Some land may be found that is clieaper 

 than $200 an acre, but it is very scarce. Wlieii sold separately from 



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