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Show I I BEAR LAKEVALLEY. I r - I .(As Seen on the Way.) I I u V J- A- w- ; fe r - H Wnftch for the Dcseret Farnier.K Since, 1863 and 1864, when thcfirst H hra hearted bands of pioneers bc-H bc-H ganMhcir work, Bear .Lake-Valley has grown steadily towards its 'present prosperous condition. The severe winters, the long haul to the railroad, H undone various other difficulties! be-H be-H setting the Bear Lake farmer, seem to ijjlvc; prqduccd sa. peculiarly sturdy H classfof men and women, who, laugh- ing m hardships have conquered the tcondjtins surrounding them, and; H madi the valley' superior in its pres H ent advantages to many similar val- leys 1 the West. Perhaps the most romr&kslbl tlliriibout Bear Lake Vallr is the largenumber of sons of the mpneers Avho arc still living in it, I and who, in spite of the allurements of other places, are content la con-H con-H hit I tinue in this lak embosomed ba'sin, the B ww, " 1 work begun by their fathers. Happy, in tlii 0, west of purs, p the dis-frict dis-frict whose young men stay at home, v and opply to the paternal homestead the intelligence gathered by the world. A district so f6rtunatc as to retain , successive generations of its 3'oung, . 1 IP , intelligent men, will yield bouiUifully in spite of wind and weather. t v Bear Lake Valley, like many similar districts, has continued a systcirf'of ranching and diversified farming. Til's rancher has chosen the easiest road to a living by depending on the hay crop for a large area for winter feeding, feed-ing, and the public range for summer feeding. The fanner has growni little of everything, andi not always With the greatest pecuniary advantage to himself. Ready money has been scarce, each family has grown prac tioally all the foodstuffs necessary for its ttceds. Witha few notable exceptions, ex-ceptions, intensive farming has not been practiced. The acre has no; been made to 'yield its Imaxium. ;jh crop or money. Changing conditions pre compelling a change in the farm methods of the valley. The growth of the nearby mining camps on the Oregon Short Line, the growth of population in thr citie3 of Utah and Idaho and -the growing complexities of life in the valley itself, arc inviting specializations specializa-tions among the farmers. The time has come for the Bear Lake farmer to be a specialist, a grower oKonc ... or at worst a few articles. " ,' ' - Nature has' so ordained it, by climate clim-ate and location, that first and, forc-most forc-most among the agricultural endeav-" ors mf 'the New Bear Lake farming, 11111st 'be the live stock business, in the most comprehensive meaning of the term. Of the branches of the live stock business, the one that should be first attacked is the dairy business. It is really a matter of surprise sur-prise that such an jdcal dairy valley lms not already awakened to its dairy possibilities. The condition of the so-called so-called dairy cattle shows how little the people appreciate their ppssibili--ties in dairying, Three-$ourths of the cows that are seen during a dric through the valley are of the mongrel h kind that requires a terrific stretch i ofqourtesy to be classed with -dairy kind. The first riced of the dairy business in the Bear Lake district is for the farmers to get together and to import eight or ten carloads of well bred cattle with the right kind of milk producing pedigree. Tlicrc arc too many cows in the valley today that give five dollars worth of milk for every ten dollars worth of hay eaten. Dairying, however, is only one haven hav-en of the live stock business that may be made profitable in Bear Lake Valley. Val-ley. It would be an excellent idea for Bear Lake to aim to become noted as producers of first-class horses for draft or driving purposes. The prcs ent remoteness of the town from the railroad makes a large number of horses necessary for each farm. Why not make every Bear Lake horse of such a kind that the surrounding counties and slates will seek them and pay first-class prices for them? It can be done by proper ibrccding and by a united effort of the farmers to keep out the scrub animal. The whole West is, suffering for the want of" really first-class horses. The production of beef or mutton mut-ton likewise offers an attractive field of work. We are rapidly approaching a belter era in the cattle and sheep business, to which the animals will be produced and fed on the farm, with the incidental help of the local ranges. Nor is it impossible that the poultry business may be made a leading ag ricultural business in Boar Lake Valley. Val-ley. The production of hogs might easily be developed , in connection with the dairy business. Hay i? plentiful in the Bear Lake basinV On many of the lower 'lying lands it is improbable 'that any other crop can profitably supplant the hay crop. At the present time much of the hay is shipped out. This is a bad practice and should be stopped. While Bear Lake Valley soils are fertile, they will wear out if the 'plant food taken from them by crops is not re-turned re-turned in some form. All hay should be f-"d to livestock and the manure returned to the soil. It is just as well that we of the West face this matter now 'as later, when our soils have 1 een robbed of their fertility, and the TS. sons' would curse their fathers because be-cause they have robbed the soil. Hay v in the stacf probably averages five dollars per V Xt would be .; vcy poor systeni of dairying that ypuld not bring ten dollars per ton dffhay. Bear Lake farmers cannot afford, to sell their hay. It must be fed, and the products sold as milk, butter, cheese, eggs, 'bcs Jr mutton. On the benches-and . higher soils of BcarLakc Valley, fruits can un- doubtedly be grown. Hardy apples, i small fruits, including strawberries, J arc already grown in small quantities. J If the sunny slopes and warm soils 1 be chosen, the danger from killing I frosts sliould be very largely over- I come. Owing to the late season, bcr- 1 rics could probably be placed on the j Utah markets after the Utah crops arc o r. On the lower soils root 1 crops of all kinds can be grown. If j potatoes arc irrigated, moderately, the danger from frost will be lci-scned. lci-scned. Five years ago, Bear Lake Valley farmers scoffed at the idea of arid farming in their valley. Last year j and this year some of the finest arid farms in the whole West were found in thc"proximity of Bear Lake. Especially Es-pecially fine were some of the farms on the high lands between George- I town and Bennington. All along the J foothills where he soil is deep, farm-ing farm-ing Ytithout irrigation will soon be practiced. The greater precipitation and long snow-covered winters make this district much more suitable than K" ..." I Utah points to farming without irri- gation. Bear Lake Valley is abundantly supplied with water, and, of course, the farmers use much more than they should. The growing season is short. j.t more water is applied to' grain I the later will i4t mature. To avoid the fall frosts, very moderate irrigation j should ;bc practiced. This was strikingly strik-ingly shown last summer (1907). A heavy frost passed over the inter- i mountain country early in August, ' practically killing all the irrigated grain in Bear Lake Valley, but leaving leav-ing the arid or non-irrigated grain a1- ; I most untouched. The difference was l very striking even to the unprofessional unprofes-sional observer, The large amount of water will tempf thu urmcr to use it excessively. Use less, and less. Very little, irrigation is needed under the climatic conditions prevailing on the shores of Bear Lake. The progressive spirit of the people of Bear Lake Valley is exemplified in the splendid Fielding Academy which commands a view of the valley from the bench west of Paris. A new wing is being added to the main building this year. The construction and work of the Academy speaks well for the liberality of the people and the skill of the management. There is no excuse ex-cuse -for'any young boy or girl of tip 'UrtPJWVWJf i Bear Lake Valley to go without a good high school education. Among the younger generation it should be accounted a. disgrace to be uneducated. uneducat-ed. Sure progress roots in education. The h6pc of the west lies in the trained minds of its boys and girls. A catalogue of Fielding Academy was not at hand, but it was said that the school does not offer a course in agriculture 1 A school lying in the heart of an agricultural district where mining and manufacturing are almost unknown should make the study of agriculture obligatory. True education educa-tion is to train heart, hand and head so that the light of intelligent skill may be blazed into the duties of daily life. English, mathematics, science and the other fundamental studies . should be taught in order to make every day of later- life happier and more successful. For that reason they should be made to cluster about agriculture and mechanic arts and t around- domestic science and arts for Ihc girls. The school for Bear- Lake Valley must stand for the dignifying Jj of the lives to tbe led by the boys an-1 girls of the valley as they , grow to manhood and womanhood. Even If a'few of them should choose to become be-come doctors and lawyers, .their training in agriculture would only serve to make them understand the needs of their clients so much better. It would be well for the men and women of Boar Lake Valley, youn;; and old, to look at times into the clear cut, deep blue of the lake; and listen to its whisperings, and dream of its mystery, and awaken to tlic great possibilities of the soils and the mountains around the lake, and the wonderful future of the people who dwell and shall dwell there.' |