Chapter XXIV

Emigration to Oregon--Who should not come--Free advice and no fees-- English emigrants--Farmers--Haste to be rich--Quoted experiences--Cost and ways of coming--Sea-routes--Railroads--Baggage--What not to bring --What not to forget--Heavy property--The Custom-house--San Francisco hotels--Conclusion.

The question most often asked and most difficult to answer is, "Do you advise me to come out to Oregon?" It is easy to say who should not come. We want no waifs and strays of civilization, enervated with excesses, or depressed with failure; men who can find no niche for themselves, who have neither the habit, the disposition, nor the education for work. We want none of those youngsters who have tried this, have failed in that, until their friends say in disgust, "Oh, ship them to Oregon, and let them take their chances!" We desire no younger sons of English or Eastern parents without energy or capital to start them. High birth, aristocratic connections, we value not at all, unless they carry with them the sense of responsibility to honored forefathers--the determination that the stigma of failure shall not stain a proud name. Nor do we desire those young men whose first thought is, "How shall we amuse ourselves?" and whose first aim is the cricket, or base-ball, or lawn-tennis ground, and whose chief luggage is bat, fishing-rod, and shot-gun.

And, on the other hand, we do not want those who, having qualified themselves, as they suppose, for life in Oregon by six months or a year with some scientific farmer, consider that they know everything, despise instruction, neglect advice, are wiser than their elders, and then throw up in disgust as soon as they find that they have sunk their money, that their theories will not work, and that they must here as elsewhere begin at the beginning.

Nor do we propose (and we are certain it is in no way necessary) to charge new-comers an initiation fee of two hundred and fifty dollars, or any other sum, for the privilege of joining our society in Oregon, and profiting by our experience.

And, as I began by saying, the English who have come here have established no colony, in the usual sense, set up no separate society, and claim no common corporate life.

[Sidenote: _WHO SHOULD COME._]

Society we have, association we have, common amusements and pursuits we have, but in all these we invite our American neighbors to take their part, and see no reason to regret our course.

True it is that the costume of knickerbockers and gaiters and heather-suit and pot-hat is a very common object in our town, and that we meet in considerable force at the Episcopal church on Sunday to join in the familiar service. But we adhere to our original plan that the newcomer shall settle where he pleases in these counties, shall have the best advice we can bestow in the choice of land, the purchase of stock and implements, and of the other necessaries for a farmer's start in life; and shall have this free of charge. We offer the right hand of friendship; we will do our part to keep up association and kindly relations of all kinds.

But we are more anxious that Oregon should be built up by the gradual incoming of men of serious purpose, possessed of moderate capital, who shall disperse over the face of the country as they would at home, and strengthen the State by the force of attraction each will exercise over the friends and acquaintances he has left behind, than we are to create here a bit of interjected foreign life.

Therefore let the farmer, above all, tried and worried at home by fickle seasons, heavy rent, burdensome tithe and taxes, labor-troubles, low prices, and gradually fading capital--let him bring his wife and children and come. His few hundred pounds will make a good many dollars, and he will be amazed to find himself _owning_ productive land for about the sum he would have paid for two years' rent at home.

If his means do not permit him to pay down the whole purchase price, he is one of the very few who can be safely advised to begin to some extent in debt; for, remember, land in Oregon is expected to pay for itself from its own productions in five years' time.

Even if the new-comer has had no previous practical experience, that need not of itself deter him. One of our best farmers told me the other day that when he began he did not know which end of a plow went first! But in such case the wisest thing is either to hire himself out to work for an Oregonian farmer for, at any rate, a few months, or, if he takes an opportunity of buying land for himself, let him reverse the operation and hire an Oregonian to work for him for a time.

I read a short article in the "Portland Evening Telegram," the other day, which seemed to me very much in point; so I shall quote it:

"Seven years ago two men, dissatisfied with the sluggishness with which their fortunes grew in Portland, determined to better their condition.

"The wonderful resources of the Willamette Valley as an agricultural country attracted one of them to Washington County, where he purchased a farm, and stocked it with teams and farming implements, and started on his road to independence and wealth.

"He told his neighbors, who had been in the farming business for years, that he proposed to show them how to succeed.

"He was industrious; he studied the books on farming, and pursued his occupation on scientific principles, joined the Grangers, became an active member of farmers' clubs, was bitter in his denunciation of monopolies.

"Disliking the looks of the old-fashioned worm-fence, he divided his fields by building nice plank partitions, and even asked permission of an old fogy neighbor to build the whole of a partition fence of plank, that the old one might not offend his fastidious taste. Here was mistake number one. The rail-fence answered the purpose well enough, and he ought to have avoided the expense of the costlier one at least until a new one was necessary. He was from Indiana, and thought corn a good crop to grow; so he prepared ten acres of his best land and planted them to corn: the squirrels came and took it all up; he replanted, and again the squirrels took the seed before it sprouted; he planted it once more, and succeeded in getting a small crop of poor corn which did not mature, and it profited him nothing.

[Sidenote: _QUOTED EXPERIENCES._]

"This was another blunder, as any man who had made any inquiry ought to have known that the raising of corn in this valley was never a paying business. A small patch for roasting-ears for family use is all any wise farmer will ever attempt to raise.

"Again, our progressive farmer had been so impressed with the idea that the climate of Oregon was an exceedingly mild one, that he thought his apples and potatoes were in no danger of freezing; so he put his apples upstairs, and left his potatoes uncovered. Consequently, they were all frozen and lost.

"This was an inexcusable blunder, for any man who would look at a map and see that he was located above the forty-fifth degree of latitude, should have known that any winter was liable to be cold enough to freeze unprotected fruits and vegetables.

"Our friend became discouraged, and gave more attention to wheat, but found that he could not raise that commodity for less than seventy-five cents a bushel, although other farmers have asserted that the cost did not exceed fifty cents.

"With his experience of seven years' farming in Oregon, he is perfectly satisfied that it will not pay, and hence he is back in Portland, intending to stay. The corn, apple, and potato business fixed him as far as farming is concerned, though he ought to have known that his course in regard to them would have resulted just as it did.

"Our second young man did not like the slowness of farming as a means of getting rich, so he put his money in sheep, and took up a ranch in Wasco County.

"For a few years he was encouraged: as the grass grew, his stock increased; the winters were mild, and wool brought a good price.

"He raised some feed, and for three years had no use for it, as the sheep made their own living off the range.

"He thought when the cold snap set in last winter that he had enough feed to last through any winter that could reasonably be expected. But the cold winds continued to blow, the snow fell and froze, and continued to fall and freeze.

"Two months passed; his feed was exhausted, and his sheep began to die. Out of 4,300 head 3,000 died, and though a neighbor who started in with about the same number had only six head left, our young friend thought his own condition bad enough, and so concluded to quit the business and come back to Portland. He says a man can take a thousand head of sheep, build sheds, provide food, and have a sure thing to clear a few hundred dollars every year, but he did not want that kind of a sure thing.

"He made the mistake of him who 'makes haste to be rich,' and hence he retires from the contest on that line no better off than when he started in.

"Both these men are now in Portland, and each is hopelessly disgusted with the attempt he has made.

"One thinks that farming in Oregon will never pay, though there are hundreds of farmers all over the State who started with less than he did, and are now well situated and independent.

"The other thinks the whole of Eastern Oregon, so called, a failure, though he virtually admits that his lack of providence, and his desire to make a large sum of money in a short time, were the causes of his losses."

Since we have been in Oregon we have seen several cases like these examples. Let the intending emigrant weigh this well--that farming in the Willamette Valley is not the road to large fortune, though it is to comfort and prosperity.

[Sidenote: _COST AND WAYS OF COMING._]

Let no young man, brought up in a comfortable Eastern home, come to Oregon to farm, unless he can be assured that at the end of a year or two's probation and apprenticeship he can have provided for him some small sum of money, enough for a start on his own land. The life of the agricultural laborer in almost every farmer's family here is a very hard and uncomfortable one; the lodging is rough, the living, though plentiful, is often coarse, the hours of labor very long, and the employments on the farm miscellaneous indeed.

The better thing is for two friends or relatives to come together; they may separate for their apprenticeship, but their purchase may easily be made together; and, indeed, out here two are better than one.

And now for some hints as to the ways of coming, and what should and should not be brought.

For the English emigrant there is a large choice. He may come by any of the New York lines, and thence across the continent to San Francisco, and on by steamer to Portland. If he comes first class throughout, he will find the expense nearly L60 sterling, or about $300. By choosing the cheaper cabin on the steamer, and reconciling himself to doing without the comforts of the Pullman car, and economizing in meals on the journey across by providing himself with a provision-basket, to be replenished at intervals, he may save about L15, or $75. The time is short; three weeks will bring him from Liverpool to Oregon, unless he delays needlessly in New York, Chicago, or San Francisco.

In New York let him beware of cabs or carriages. He is likely to be charged five dollars for a ride he will get in London for one shilling. The proper course is for him, after his baggage has passed the custom-house, to intrust it to a transfer agent, who will have it conveyed to the hotel, and the emigrant can take the elevated railway or get a tram-car ride for a few cents. The same course should be followed on leaving the hotel for the railway terminus to come West.

So far as I know, he can make no mistake in following his fancy in choosing his route.

The Erie or the New York Central will carry him to Chicago, by way of Buffalo and Niagara; and, if any pause on the journey at all is made, let the opportunity be seized of seeing the most glorious of waterfalls, the remembrance of which will never die.

The Baltimore and Ohio passes through Maryland and West Virginia, and the Pennsylvania Railroad through New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and each shows him some of the finest scenery on the Atlantic slope.

From Chicago he will have a choice again. There is no difference in cost, time, or comfort between the Chicago and Northwestern, the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy, and the Chicago and Rock Island. I have traveled by all three; perhaps the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy runs through the most interesting scenery.

Up to Omaha the first-class traveler is allowed one hundred and fifty pounds of baggage free, and so far it will be properly handled and cared for by the baggage-men.

[Sidenote: _BAGGAGE-SMASHING._]

At Omaha things change for the worse. Only one hundred pounds of baggage is allowed by the Union Pacific and Central Pacific roads; and on all excess the rate to San Francisco is fifteen cents a pound. And, if the traveler has any regard for his possessions, let him see to it that they are closely packed in the very strongest and roughest trunks that he can procure. Oh, those baggage-smashers at Omaha! When we crossed last I stood by to see a baggage-car brought up alongside the stone platform, piled with trunks and other baggage to the roof, the doors thrown open, and the contents literally tumbled out pell-mell. Trunks were smashed open, locks broken, straps burst, contents ruined. And the baggage-men seemed to take a horrid pleasure in tilting heavy trunks on to their corners, and so bundling them across at a rapid rate to the other car; dislocation of the strongest joints was the result.

If the passenger be incautious enough to burden himself with needless weight from Omaha, he should dispatch it to San Francisco by freight-train addressed to his hotel; the rates are thus so moderated that he will not have the chagrin of paying to the railroad companies about as much as most of his baggage is worth.

Another route from England is by Southampton and Panama to San Francisco. The charge for a first-class passage is L50, and the traveler will not be bothered about his baggage save on the Isthmus Railway. He _may_ lose no time in catching the Pacific mail-steamer on the Pacific side, but he is more likely to have three or four days to wait at Panama, in a town where there is nothing to see or do, and where he will be charged not less than three dollars a day at the hotel. The lovely scenery and gorgeous vegetation of the tropics will be a pleasant picture in memory, whatever draw-backs the five weeks occupied on this route may discover.

San Francisco is the city of comfortable and moderately charging hotels. The most expensive are the Palace and the Baldwin. The Lick House and the Russ House are comfortable and more moderate; and the International is cheap but comfortable.

From San Francisco to Portland the steamers Oregon, Columbia, or State of California, sail every five days, and are each safe, speedy, and excellent boats. The cost of the journey is twenty dollars, and the time usually three days or more, including a detention of some hours at Astoria. As soon as the Yaquina route is opened, it is expected that this time will be reduced by one half.

And now, what should the emigrant bring to Oregon? So far as household furniture and fittings are concerned, the best and cheapest way is to send them by Royal Mail from Southampton by way of Panama. The freight was L4 10_s._ per ton of forty cubic feet. I do not know if any change has been made.

It is wise for any family to bring bedding (but not beds), knives and forks and electro-plate, books, pictures, and the little ornaments and trifles which go so far to transfer the home feeling to whatever room they may at once furnish and adorn. And do not forget the crockery. It is foolish to bring furniture, pianos, or such heavy and cumbersome property. All these used articles will come in duty free. If they are sent to San Francisco direct from England, they will have to be examined at the custom-house there.

The traveler will find it a great waste of time and temper to pass his goods through the custom-house himself. There are many respectable agents, whose trifling fee is well spent in getting their services for this work.

As for clothes. New clothes will be charged with a duty of sixty per cent. of their value, and cause trouble also. Worn clothes and boots come in duty free. The strongest and most durable woolen garments are those best adapted for the Oregon climate. English ankle-boots are treasures not to be obtained for love or money in Oregon. The field-boot, of porpoise-skin, will be infinitely valuable in our muddy winters; but such are too hot for summer wear. English saddlery should all be left at home.

If the emigrant is the happy owner of a good breech-loader, let him bring it, with as many of Eley's green cases as he can pack. Ammunition is expensive here. English rifles are a nuisance. The Winchester, Sharp, or Ballard, I think superior to any sporting rifles we have--as much so as the American shot-guns are inferior to the English makers'.

* * * * *

[Sidenote: _ATTRACTIONS WHICH OREGON OFFERS._]

Let us see, then, in a few words, why we expect that immigrants will continue to arrive. What are the attractions which Oregon offers?

1. A healthy and temperate climate, whether residence in the Willamette Valley or in Southern or Eastern Oregon is chosen.

2. A fertile and not exhausted soil, adapted to the continuous raising of all cereals, to the growth of the best kinds of pasture, and to the ripening of all temperate fruits in profusion and excellence.

3. A climate and range unusually suited to cattle, sheep, and horses of the best breeds.

4. The ocean boundary on the west, giving free access to shipping for the cheap transport of all productions.

5. Mineral wealth of almost every description, most of which is yet unworked.

6. Industrial openings of many kinds, with special facilities by way of abundant water-power.

7. Beautiful scenery, whatever portion of the State may be selected by the new-comer.

8. Sport and pastime in moderation, with a notable absence of dangerous animals, and reptiles, and noxious insects.

9. A modern and liberal Constitution, affording special advantages and securities to foreigners and aliens.

10. A quiet and orderly population, ready to welcome strangers.

11. Good facilities for education, remarkable in so young a country.

12. A railroad and river system of transportation, only now in process of development, and which is certain to effect a great rise in the value of lands.

* * * * *

And now my work is done. I have endeavored to give, in as concise and short a form as I could contrive, a faithful picture of life as it is in Oregon to-day. I have extenuated nothing, nor set down aught in malice.

If, in reviewing what I have written, I feel conscious of a special weakness, it is that I have brought too strongly into view the difficulties the immigrant will have to encounter; for I feel sure that no one, on full knowledge, will accuse me of drawing in too fair and flattering colors the attractions of our beautiful State.

May Oregon flourish by receiving constant additions to her vigorous and industrious people, whose efforts, in scarcely any other place in the wide world so certain of a due return, may make her waste places plain, and cause her wildernesses to rejoice and blossom as the rose!