THE NORTHERN PACIFIC ROUTE. 171 
here the forms have not been studied with sufficient care to make 
a determination possible. There is so great a difference in the hard- 
ness of the basalt and the soft sandstone associated with it that the 
inner valley may be due to a harder and much more massive bed of 
basalt near the bottom and not to different conditions of erosion. 
About Prosser there is a large area of land under irrigation and in 
a high state of cultivation. It is a pleasing change from the dark 
or dull-gray color of the barren areas to the brilliant 
green of the fields of alfalfa, grass, or oats; from the 
stunted vegetation of the sagebrush plains to the 
thriving orchards which stretch away in the distance 
almost as far as the eye can see. It is no less pleasing 
to pass from the dry plains of the sun-scorched desert, where clouds 
of dust fill the air, to a land where running water is seen in every 
irrigation ditch and the land is so covered with rich vegetation that 
there seems no chance-for it to become dry and parched." 
The railway runs some distance back from the river through irri- 
gated fields, but gradually climbs to a terrace which shows on the 
left about a mile beyond Byron. This terrace is 
Prosser. 
Elevation 671 feet. 
Population 1,298. 
St. Paul 1,691 miles. 
pres. doubtless built of the soft material washed into the 
~ grermpbemensy valley by the streams, but the amount of such mate- 
rial is variable, as the basalt appears at railway level 
in a number of places. 
On a clear day the high peaks of the Cascade 
Range, 100 miles away, can be seen from the vicinity 
Mabton. 
Elevation 725 feet. 
Population 666 
St. Paul 1,703 raties. 
of Pasco, but the distance is so great that at first 
sight the traveler may be disappointed in them. A 
better view can be obtained near milepost 58, 6 miles 
beyond Mabton, but even from this place the peaks 
are not as striking objects as they are from the region about Top- 
penish, farther northwest. 
1The Yakima Valley has been aptly 
characterized as ‘‘Washington’s vale of 
plenty.”’ It is a region of small farms 
intensively cultivated and contains some 
of the most valuable agricultural lands in 
the world. Its farm homes are attractive, 
and in variety of crops and profitable 
yields it ranks fayorably with southern 
alifornia. A number of lakes on the 
headwaters of the streams of the Yakima 
e basin are being converted into 
storage reservoirs, and it is estimated that 
when the work is completed the water 
supply will be sufficient to irrigate about 
_ 900,000 acres. The land lies in a suc- 
cession of valleys, and its reclamation will 
te be accomplished by units. At the pres- 
ent time two units are practically com- 
pleted—the Tieton, embracing approxi- 
mately 34,700 acres near North Yakima, 
and the covering about 
This valley is the home of the big red 
apple, and its fruit lands range in value 
m $300 to $1,200 an acre. The soil 
consists of voleanic ash and gravel. Hop 
and vegetable growers vie with the neigh- 
boring fruit growers, and forage crops and 
arbi are play very: profitable. a pane 
ie 
an acre, pal on the Tieton unit it $93 an 
acre. The Government land has all been 
filed upon, and farms can be acquired now 
only by purchase from private owners. 
