| Show THE NORTHERN VALLEYS developments in oneida stake prospects in the various gettle settlements tle ments an lee ice cave soda springs curiosities SODA SPRINGS bear like lake co I 1 idaho june jane 11 1888 editor deseret neus A trip around oneida stake involves i considerable travel and hard travel tavel too as it includes a series of valleys widely separated but it affords an excellent opportunity of viewing a growing I 1 country which per perhaps halys offers offer sas as ganv attractions for new settlers as any in this mountain region having consented to accompany the stake of the young mens and young ladies associations on a tour around the stake for the purpose of holding meetings in the various wards the writer joined the party which included six persons with two conveyances to travel in at franklin the present headquarters of the stake slake A drive ot of five miles across cub river westward brought us to FAIRVIEW FAIR VIEW a somewhat scattered ward presided over by bishop moroni W pratt who has as only resided hereabout here about a year having aan co coming ing from meadowville Meadow ville ille rich county oun it is situated on a level plain immediately balat ay north of lewiston Le wlaton utah the terri territorial rial line divi dividing in the two wards the soil isa is a sandy joam well adapted to the production of grains and vegetables and now that it is well watered by canal f from rem cub river it is bound soon to become an important agricultural region the people eople of this ward have bad many drawbacks raw backs to their success in the shape of delay and heavy expense in the construction of their canal ravages of grasshoppers etc but their prospects are somewhat better now than heretofore and it is to be hoped they have seen the worst of their troubles lea PRESTON the next place visited is perhaps the most populous ward of the stake in eluding as it does families who are scattered over an aa area of live five miles squares square extending from bear river on the west to the mountains on the e ceasr 1 and from fram fairview on the south almost to bear river on the north the soil boll for the most part is very good specially adapted to the raising of lucern corn etc of a nature but inhabitants are generally very poor some of them having bever raised a crop with the exception possible of a little rye grown without irrigation for eight years this has usually been tor foi want of water but Forne sometimes times because of grasshoppers saving having devoured the vegetation as they did last year totally A canal anal 0 fifteen ralles miles long ions to bring water from cub river to irrigate their land baa been a long t time 1 im in course of construction st but bu t 18 is at last completed at a cost of it and were it not for the liR lingering gering presence of the gra grasshopper sabod per pest Pres tons prospects would toe be bright even for the present year they i are exceedingly promising tor lor the future any haytor with such de determine tion to conquer all obstacles as the inhabitants habit tints bave haves evinced in the past and the unusual facilities which the place affords for makin making the best of farms gardens land homes success is abouna bound in time to crown their efforts brother wui C parkinson is bishop of ef the ward and seems to so have a good influence six 8 miles northward from preston the bear river is reached where on an extended ilat hit skirting the north northern ern shore the village of Ri verdale consisting sistina of about twenty widely scattered houses bouses is found not more than five or six men could be mustered mastered in the place the others having gone off to obtain employment employment most of them to ha bullard I 1 ilard to fill a contract for furnishing es 9 large quantity of timber for coal coal mines the custom of leaving during the summer bea season son to seek work seems to have been followed by the residents generally t ever since the place was settled and one of the most practical among them who had decided to vary from the rule by remaining at home and aad working his farm gave it as his opinion that if others would do the same notwithstanding the abe fact that the cultivated land is of such a poor quality as to i yield but a small return for their labor upon it they would be better off eff in the course of time as afi L well viell as better able to look after their faini families lies than by going away to work and leaving only their wives and little children chi to look after t their b air f farms a a and arren stock Ri verdale ward includes in addition to the families la ia the village about a dozen living at the monta of battle creek about five miles westwards westward near it r col connors fight with t the he indians occurred some years since about ten miles eastward from riv ardale the thrifty little settlement of MIK was found nestling among the hill bills a it consists of from fifty to 19 seventy five families almost exclusively scandinavians who with their characteristic patience energy arid and economy lave made comfortable homes in the hilly region at the mouths of three mountain streams stream which form a junction here and theo then empty into bear river a region whick almost people eople would have considered onside red worth worthless F ess except possibly for grazing purposes the go boil however is very productive but is difficult to cultivate as such a large proportion of it stands up edgewise A thirty acre patch is considered a large farm for a family to have herrmany he remany families not possessing near ly so ad much as that but they make make up in cultivation what they lack in area water to irrigate with is abundant here and aad can be conveyed in ditches high up on the mountain side and it ft is astonishing to see how high the cultivated land extends eit tends in some places where scandinavians cannot succeed in conquering natures obstacles iu in the agricultural line it of little use tor for any other people to try ten tea miles north northward waro over the hills from mink creek the GALLEY fralley WARD WABD resided presided over by bishop K R H wil E liams ams is reached this is in thes the Gath end of what is commonly known as gentile valley an excellent region for stock raising the surrounding nills bill s supplying the best of sum m mr r ranges while the broad belt of meadow land extending through the valley rom orn north to south a distance of many majia furnishes urnis hes an abundance of blue grass and other good qualities of native hay tile ward includes about twenty families and is very much scattered cantile valley Is traversed from north to south by bear river and also by ridges of volcanic rock of varying height which seem to hav been thrown up tu in this longitudinal shape by some upheaval of the long ago the river at one point occupies occupies a narrow channel between lava avs ridges s at which place it is spanned by a substantial bridge which affords communication between mound valley and WARD situated a few miles farther northward on the opposite side of chevalley the valley almost half the families of mormon ward live so distance cue westward on the cottonwood and we had not the pleasure leasure of seeing them A dozen or fifteen families among whom brother solomon H haie counselor Coan in the stake presidency is a leading spirit are scattered along the western foothills and all appear to have very comfortable for table surroundings their pretty schoolhouse school bouse located upon an eminence commin commanding dlug a view of the val a very creditable building L leaving e abiog mormon or ua n ward we forded corded bear bea r riveral river which h is unusually low for this season of the year and journeyed northward over an extensive but rather uneven plain seamed here and there with ridges of lava rock stopping on the way to view the natural curiosity known as the ICE 1 having provided ourselves with candles for that purpose in ID one of tile the nu berous depressions or sink holes holas with which the plain abounds was found the ent entrance an aperture oer perhaps hour four feet high and aim ten teet feet in width beneath an arched arc bed roof of volcanic rock which widened and deepened as it extended in many places to at least 20 z x 50 feet for much of the dist distance the floor was covered with broken masses of volcanic rock which were difficult to walk over but in other places lee ice the depth of which we had no means of ascertaining was found f beneath our feet and in still others mud more or ar less compact and occasionally quite level covered the surface about a quarter of a mile from the mouth of the cave and almost half way to its extremity an opening was found in the roof through which the sunlight de ed and a current of air entered that was I 1 doubtless the means of congealing the water as between the opening mentioned and the extremity of the cave no lee ice was found la 19 many places places the arched ceiling of the cave was covered with diminutive aytes formed by the water impregnated with lime dripping dipping through and presented a very pretty appearance the residents of the valley when in want of lc ice e to f reeze freeze cream with resort to the cave for a supply cupply which is easily obtained by means of an ax to chop it as we would on the surface of a pond in winter and the holes thus made are soon filled again by the process of dripping and congealing constantly going on it is pos possible that as the country becomes mote more thickly settled this cave may become a flamous resort for curiosity and pleasure plea suie seekers and some interesting ice cream dealer may yet take possession of it ass as a saloon ready made to his bis hand folding the river again near where it enters the northern nort herd end of gentile valley we concluded to diverge a little from our direct course through oneida stake and take in the sights of the famous soda springs region we stopped however long enough on the way to visit an EXTINCT CRATER located a short distance to the tale left of the road and descend to the bottom of it from we could view the surrounding im walls of lava towering towe ruso up ground around the vast amphitheatre wilch which they enclosed and picture in our minds the scene presented plesent ed when the crater was aglow with internal heat the curiosities of soda springston of the throbbing bing spouting steamboat steam noat springs the mineral waters various and tastes found in this region the beds of sulphur and the peculiar lime formations eaves caves grottoes and lakes with which the eastern part of the cheva th eva valley abounds have been so often described in the NEWS that I 1 need not dwell upon them suffice it to say that they are not suen guta a host ot of tourists Jouris ts aud and pleasure and curiosity seekers as the hotel proprietors of the place doubtless expected they would when they made such soch extensive preparations for their entertainment tain lAin ment the magnificent and costly hotel which was finished last season has but three names upon its register yet tint but the season here may be said to have hardly commenced the bottling bott line works at the ninety per cent spring which have a capacity of cues cases or bottles daily but are now new putting up on an average about 60 cases or bottles dally daily now one of the attractions of we the region since my last visit to soda springs twelve years changes and i improvements have taken place not only in the number and style of the buildings erected but also in the cultivated land surrounding which is far snore more extensive than I 1 then imagined it ever would be and is 18 yet vet likely to be vastly increased more anon G 0 L |
