A Prophecy Of The Pacific Coast

Twenty years henee nearly all tñe bread stuffs i'or export f rom the United States will be i'.roduoed in the country ■west of tfee Bocky mountains. The exception will be the surplus production of corn in the Mississippi vailey. Obio has eeased to be a great whêat-producing State. This erop is yearly diminishing in Illinois ; in Minnesota, the production this year was only about as much as in California, wherè we had one of the dryest seasons ever known. The figriculture of all the vast región west of the Bocky monntains is still in its infanoy. Some of the great Territories are notyet prodüoing brendstuffs enough for home consumption. That was true of Oregon a few years ago. Now tbere is a large fleet of wheat-ladeu ships sailing from her principal port every year. Utah Territory, with the exoeption of a little spot about Salt Lake, made no show of agricultural products. Now the best potatoes found west of the Mississippi river are produced in Utah, and sent over to California in large quantities for consumption. Fruit culture has been pushed beyond the Sierra. The great apple orchnrds will be far up the mountains on either siope. The culture of the grape and the wine interest will probably be west of the Sierra, although ït is just possible we have not yet found the best soils for the production of wine grapes. The maximum of lumber production has already been reached in the States east of the Mississippi. The eastern timber belt has been explored, and most of the lands reduced to private possession. The timber belt of the Paciiic coast, north of Oregon, covers an area clear up to the north limit of Alaska, or as far as the olimate will permit. No impression has been made upon the forests of Alaska, and the timber resources of Washington