Whitman County, named in honor of Dr. Marcus Whitman, superintendent of the Presbyterian missions in Oregon Territory from 1836 to 1847, when he was killed, with his wife and others, by the Cayuse Indians, who had become jealous of and infuriated against Americans, on account of the annual immigrations arriving in the country for several years previous, and for other reasons. As the first American settler in Washington, Dr. Whitman is entitled to the distinction of having his name given to the finest agricultural county in it.
The Palouse country, which really includes a portion of Spokane County, is about one hundred and fifty miles in length by an average width of fifty miles, embracing four million five hundred thousand acres, two-thirds of which, or three million two hundred thousand acres, is available for wheat-growing, and yields more grain to the acre than any other portion of the United States. But only about one-third of this three million two hundred thousand acres is under improvement, and only about eight hundred thousand in wheat. At the low average (for this country) of twenty bushels per acre, the crop would amount to sixteen million bushels. If only twelve million bushels were marketed at fifty cents per bushel, the crop would bring six million dollars; and accordingly, as the fields are looking wonderfully well, bright hopes are entertained of a profitable year.
[But let me here write between the lines that it is not every year that a full crop may be expected, and that the best farmers summer-fallow their fields, taking a crop only once in two years, thus saving the expense, as great for a poor as a good year, of putting in and harvesting on the off year, while they get a double crop after letting the land lie idle.
The year 1890 was a good one all over East Washington, and the amount of wheat raised in the Palouse, Walla Walla, and Big Bend countries did not fall short of thirty million bushels. Farmers looked at their fields and expected to grow rich quickly. But behold how the unexpected happens! Although the transportation companies were informed of the prospects of an unusual demand for their services, they' made no preparations to meet it. The market prices opened fairly, but declined when it was found there was an overplus. Wheat-elevators and storehouses were filled, and thousands of tons lay piled upon the
