The Yamhill Country [pp. 498-503]

THE YAMHILL COUNTRY.
in countless multitudes across the bar and
up the streams to spawning grounds far
back in the heart of the continent; and
immense establishments have been built
to can and market them. Fleets of vessels, great wheels to throw them out of
the water, and other appliances, are used
in the catch, which aggregates hundreds
of millions. So favorable are the conditions, however, that the supply is increasing instead of decreasing, and measures
are taken both by the United States and
Canadian governments to breed young
salmon in quantities more than sufficient
to make up the draught.
Mining might be classed among the
"unsuspected resources," asthe attention
bestowed on this industry thus far has
been comparatively insignificant. It has
been estimated that the gold yield of
Oregon for the past year was $2,500,000,
and might have been many times increased with proper effort. The dull times
induced men to prospect the hills and the
banks of streams where nothing had been
attempted before. Hundreds of these,
without the investment of capital, made
good wages at this work, and larger endeavor produced proportionately remunerative results. The black sands of the
ocean beach contain considerable gold and
there is more or less effort togather it.
Other ores are still more abundant and
only await development to become valuable properties. Copper, silver, iron, and
nickel, are known to exist throughout the
mineral belt of this country, and deposits
of cement, pipe clay, and similar earths,
are already used in the manufacture of
drain tile and other products. There are
two or three factories on the Yamhill
division of the Southern Pacific turning
out large quantities of this pipe from these
materials. These drains are used on the
surrounding farms at a cost of about ten
dollars an acre for sub-drains, and the
expense for this improvement and convenience is regarded by the farmers as a
good investment. An excellent clay is
found all over the valley and an important
industry in brick making has developed.
Out of the hills is quarried a beautiful
building stone, samples of which are observable in the architecture of the finest
structures of San Francisco and Portland.
A high grade of iron ore is found in this
region, and there is no reason why Ore
gon should not export the products of the
furnace and factory instead of importing
them as at present. Deposits of brown
hematite exist for a distance of forty miles
along the Willamette, and the supply is
said to be practically inexhaustible. Several analyses have been made from samples of iron ore gathered in places far
apart, and the results are very encouraging. One sample of Oswego ore tested
by the United States Geological Survey
shows metallic iron 44.7I and phosphorus
.666. An unopened vein thirty-five miles
north of the Oswego deposit assayed 54
per cent of metallic iron, 5.27 of alumina,
.34 of phosphoric acid, and I.25 of silica.
Magnetic iron has been found in southwestern Oregon in large quantities assaying 63 per cent of metallic iron, 5 per cent
silica, 4 per cent phosphorus and 5 per
cent sulphur.
Coal has been found in many places.
The coal of the Coos Bay district is the
best known, but it is by no means the
best, and in all probability the deposit is
not the largest. Columbia River coal is
said to make good coke, and as it lies close
to extensive iron deposits the contiguity
means much for the development of future manufacturing enterprises. This
country produces an excellent timber for
farming implements, the manufacture of
which would employ machinery and men
to supply a constantly increasing home
demand. A species of ash covered large
tracts when the white man first came,
and there is still enough to supply the
demand until more can be grown. This
wood makes good handles, horse rakes,
boxing for threshers, cleaning machines,
and is admirably adapted for use in all
apparatus constructed for strength and
lightness. It has been used extensively
in the manufacture of furniture, and the
result is an article that will compare favorably with that of other factories. The
cedar of the Coast range makes fine finishing lumber, and there ought to be a
large export trade in this commodity.
Oak, maple, cherry, and yew, are plentiful, but there is no one to utilize it. Yellow fir, of fine grain and soft texture,
known all over the world as Oregon pine,
grows in large forests along the hills adjacent to the Yamhill division of the Southern Pacific lines, and red and white fir
flourish in many places and in quantity
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