Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 3.djvu/28

18 of the farmer supplied, but the beginning was made of an industry that was able to exist independently. It formed the easiest method of making a living, and the herder with long lariat riding through the deep grass of the valley was a familiar sight in the earlier days before the number of agricultural settlers and the cultivation of the soil drove them to the prairies of the south and east. It has proved to be an industry which has added to the wealth of Oregon, and affected in other ways its social life. Regions that would otherwise have remained unsettled have contributed to the resources, and a population independent and hardy has been added to the state.

As auxiliary to farming the production of fruit began. When the earliest settlers came orchards of choice fruit were growing on the property of the fur company. Like the cattle, however, they were not destined for the service of the settler. The earliest of the orchards of Oregon took their start from the "traveling nursery' of Henderson Luelling. Unable to dispose to advantage of the nursery of young trees, when he was ready to start, this plucky man packed them in boxes and brought them across the continent. Importuned many times to abandon a load so heavy and cumbersome he always refused, and had the satisfaction of setting them out upon his claim at the end of the route. This choice selection of apples, cherries, plums, and pears brought into the community health and wealth and the promise of another industry for Oregon. From an auxiliary of farming the raising of fruit has come to be the means of a livelihood to many of the population, and with each year draws more to the state.

Could the facts be obtained there would be interest attached to the introduction of all of the auxiliaries to