OREGON. 



553 



Blind shows that during the term ending in De- 

 cember 34 pupils were enrolled, the present at- 

 tendance being 20. The expenditures of the term 

 were $17,578.60. 



In the two years 82 pupils were enrolled in the 

 State School for Deaf-mutes, and 60 were in at- 

 tendance at the close of the year. The total ex- 

 penditures were $13,574.59 for 1899 and $13,183.03 

 for 1900, or a total of $26,757.62 for the biennial 

 term. Taking 60 pupils as the average attendance, 

 it will be seen that the per capita cost per year 

 is $222.98, or $18.58 per capita per month, allowing 

 twelve months per year. The pupils go home dur- 

 ing the summer, so that the expense is really about 

 $22.30 per capita per month during the time the 

 school is in session. 



The State Soldiers' Home is full, and many 

 applicants have to be turned away. Some of these 

 gain admission to the National Home. The last 

 appropriation was $20,000 for the two years, and 

 this was exhausted and a deficit of $10,751.71 was 

 incurred. 



The number of boys at the State Reform School 

 at the beginning of the biennial term was 99. At 

 the end of the term 131 were enrolled, the average 

 having been 113. The total expenditures for the 

 term were $48,734.15, of which $35,574.99 was for 

 general maintenance, $10,429.73 for improvements, 



id $2,729.43 for lighting. Since the institution 

 established 443 boys have been received. 



The convicts at the Penitentiary at the close of 

 ic year numbered 278. Of the appropriations, 

 aggregating $99,946.20, there has been expended 

 $97,541.17, leaving balances aggregating $2,405.03. 

 Early in 1899 work was begun in the brickyard, 

 and 1,100,000 brick have since been burned. Con- 

 victs also work in the stove foundry and on pub- 

 lic roads. 



Militia. The organized strength of the militia 

 amounted in July to 1,433 men, while the number 

 available for military duty was 59,896. The War 

 Department has allowed 84 per cent, of the State's 

 claim for equipment and supplies furnished the 

 Oregon volunteers when they entered the United 

 States service ; some of the equipment was worn, 

 and therefore the whole claim was not allowed. 

 The naval battalion is to have from the Govern- 

 ment a small cruiser and the loan of a 12-oar 

 cutter and 2 rapid-fire 3-inch naval guns. 



Game. The Game Warden says : " The history 

 of the past two years demonstrates the wisdom 

 of the law passed in 1898 protecting elk for ten 

 years. Even the violations by Indians have been 

 greatly held in check, owing to the vigilance of 

 the fire wardens. Elk are most plentiful in the 

 Cascade mountains, where one deputy reported 

 seeing a band of 80 to 100, while another counted 

 27 elk in one band. i 



" Deer are yet plentiful in Oregon, and, although 

 many violations of the law are reported, it is 

 extremely difficult to secure convictions. Indians 

 are the most dangerous enemy to the deer, as they 

 have very little regard for State laws. 



" Nearly all upland birds are more plentiful this 

 year than ever. This was especially true of the 

 ringneck, or China torquatus pheasant, which 

 has obtained such a firm foothold in the State 

 that its extermination is not to be thought of. 



" English partridges will shortly be introduced 

 into the State, a shipment of 100 pairs being en 

 route to Oregon from England." 



Pheasant farming is now a recognized industry 

 in the State. 



Products. Following are the statistics of the 

 products of the farm, orchard, and range in the 

 "State in 1900: Wheat, 16.000.000 bushels, $8,- 

 640,000; corn, 282,547 bushels, $141,273; oats, 



3,583,062 bushels, $1,361,563; hay, 1,506,316 tons, 

 $10,544,212; potatoes, 1,545,669 bushels, $494,614; 

 wool, 20,000,000 pounds, $2,500,000; hops, 16,- 

 000,000 pounds, $2,140,000; barley and rye, 

 1,100,000 centals, $825,000; mohair, 187,500 pounds, 

 $51,362; vegetables, hemp, etc., $500,000; fruit, 

 $2,000,000; sales of stock, $10,5.00,000; butter, 

 cheese, and rnilk, $5,113,013; poultry and eggs 

 $4,750,000; total, $49,561,037. 



The products of the mines were: Gold, $3 - 

 770,000; borax, $100,000; silver, $15,000; coal, 

 90,000 tons, $720,000; total, $4,155,000. 



The fisheries produced: Columbia river salmon 

 pack, 358,722 cases, $2,282,295.10; salmon pack, 

 Oregon coast streams and bays, 73,800 cases, $323,- 

 321.60; fish consumed locally and shipped abroad, 

 5,580,138 pounds, $374,967; shellfish, $47,388; 

 total, $3,027,971.70. 



The manufactured goods, including lumber, were 

 estimated at a value of $60,000,000. 



Portland. The foreign commerce of Portland 

 for the year ending Nov. 30 was: Imports, $1,476,- 

 801; exports, $8,524,882. The business of Port- 

 land's jobbing trade amounts to $110,000,000, and 

 the bank clearings to $106,926,536. A mining 

 stock exchange was incorporated in February. 



Lands. The annual report of the General Land 

 Office shows that' in the six land districts of the 

 State entries were made covering an area of 840,975 

 acres, for which $326,791 was turned in. The 

 heaviest sales were of timber and stone lands. 

 There are now 34,377 ? 907 acres of unappropriated 

 and unreserved land in the State, of which 23,- 

 489,861 acres are surveyed. The reserves are the 

 Cascade Range Forest Reserve, 4,492,800 acres; 

 Bull Run Reserve, 142,080 acres; Ashland Forest 

 Reserve, 18,560 acres. The amount of timber in 

 the State, as estimated by Henry Gannett, is 

 234,653,000,000 feet. 



The biennial report of the State Land Depart- 

 ment shows that the receipts for the two years 

 ending Dec. 31, 1900, were 66 per cent, higher 

 than those for the two years preceding. The re- 

 ceipts for 1899-1900 aggregated $562,081, as 

 against $351,586.68 for the years 1897-'98. Ac- 

 cording to the State Land Agent, on April 1, 1899, 

 the State owned 179 farms, which were secured 

 upon foreclosure of mortgages given to secure 

 loans from the trust funds of the State. These 

 farms aggregated 49,514 acres, and represented 

 loans to the amount of $293,395. Since that date 

 the State has secured by similar foreclosures 35 

 farms, with a total of 8,682 acres, through loans 

 amounting to $57,000. 



From this land 88 entire tracts have been sold 

 for $181,958.71. The cost of those sold was $160,- 

 599.17. 



The receipts of the office of State Land Agent 

 were as follow: From tracts sold, $181,958.71; 

 from partial sales, $2,781.75; from rents, $16,- 

 043.41 ; total, $200,783.87. 



The Scalp Bounty. Multnomah County re- 

 fused to levy a tax for the scalp bounty fund in 

 accordance with the law of the last Legislature. 

 Other valley counties, though having few sheep 

 to protect, observed the law. The 10 counties that 

 have comparatively few sheep and goats have a 

 total taxable property of $76,073,388. The 10 

 stock counties have $20,231,344. The whole tax, 

 if levied, would be $30,290; Multnomah's share 

 would be $7,915. Nearly 50,000 scalps have been 

 brought to the county courts within two years; 

 it is estimated that 47,000 were those of coyotes; 

 the others, wild cats, cougars, mountain lions, and 

 timber wolves. 



Political. At the State election, June 4, a 

 justice of the Supreme Court, a dairy and food 



