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The Klickitat County News, Goldendale, WA., October 4, 1934, page 2

LUMIJARVI'S IMPRESSIONS OF COUNTY CHRONICLED HERE
Clerk Aspirant, Defeated, Sees a Lot of Good in People And Believes Klickitat County Has Future;
Admits He is Poor Salesman in Political Game

On the 11th of August I filed for the office of county clerk for Klickitat county on the republican ticket. Shortly thereafter I proceeded to go out and sell myself to the people of Klickitat county. How well I succeeded can be learned from the tabulated vote cast in the primary election. The result of this vote goes to show one thing and that is, very poor salesmanship.
I learned during this campaign that running for office is a great deal like trading horses. Any one having a horse that does the work isn't taking chances on one that is untried. This is good logic in itself. But, it also presents the question: "How are you to know the qualities of a new one until he is tried?"
In traveling over the county I met many Interesting people, whose opinions I value highly and whom I would like to know better. I was also impressed by the two extremes existing in Klickitat county in the living conditions of the people and the topography of the country.
In Trout Lake one can find what most of us yearn for. Abundant of shade and water; beautiful homes with green lawns and flowers, good schools and contentment. It can be truthfully said that Trout Lake is the garden spot of Klickitat county. The fine herds of dairy cattle wading around in green clover, provide a steady income to the owners of farms in the valley. It is also fortunate in having what one would call a primitive area in its back yard. In the trip from there to Glenwood you pass through some of this primitive area. It always quickens one's pulse when passing through scenery and viewing nature as it has stood for ages.
Upon entering Glenwood you are again impressed with the courage the old pioneers showed when they began hewing and grubbing their farms out of the tall timber.
Glenwood's possibilities as a farming community are greater than Trout Lake's, and all that is needed to make it so is more water and more diversification in farming. At the present time cattle raising is the chief industry and no community can be a consistent winner by depending only on one thing for an income.
Every community can trace its beginning to some old pioneer and of which Glenwood has several, but the name, Kuhnhausen, is most prominent and numerous. Their determination and thrift can be attested to by the well managed farms and the modern homes whereever a Kuhnhausen is the owner.
Another interesting spot in the county is Husum. It reminds one of the Catskill mountains and Rip Van Winkle. You just want to hang around there and loaf. No one seems to be in a hurry, but they evidently work because they buy and sell and take great pride in having beautiful homes and surroundings. As fruit raising is one of the chief industries outside of lumbering, the work is seasonable and during certain times of the year not much activity is in evidence. However one cannot judge Husum by viewing it from the main road, and a short trip along one of the branch roads will be a revelation. Some of the artisticly beautiful homes found among the hills and timber would make a good many of the dry area farmers want to follow old Rip's example.
At White Salmon and Bingen, everyone is too busy to talk much and you have no inclination to hang around and loaf. It was hard to find anyone in either town who had anything in common with me, so I moved over to the Grange hall and there found a group of men and women busily engaged in finishing their hall. This new hall is a noteworthy achievement and will be a monument to the memory of many, through whose earnest efforts it has become a reality. A more seriously intent group in work and play cannot be found and once in their midst you feel at home.
At Lyle one is impressed by two things; the Klickitat river and the high surrounding hills. The Klickitat river was once considered as the best natural spawning stream for spring run Chinook Salmon and Steelhead, in the Northwest. Due to the intensive fishing operations on the Columibia river, the chinook salmon are all caught before they reach their destination, and in a few years the glacial waters of the Klickitat river will call in vain for these Kings of the Sea.
At Klickitat you find lumberjacks and fishermen. Lumberjacks in work and fishermen at play. In my opinion Klickitat has the best group of sportsmen to be found in the county. The crying need in Klickitat is a road to Goldendale, and I feel that whoever is elected and empowered to do so, will see the need for such road.
The hills above the Klickitat contain many large wheat ranches and many game birds and animals. The owners of these ranches resent the intrusion by hunters. This resentment in some cases is justifiable while in some it is only fancied, and is becoming a problem to the game department.
In the east end of the county the population is sparse and wheat raising in carried on extensively. In Cleveland one finds a ghost town with the ghost still walking around. The boarded up store buildings, the hitching racks, etc., still testify to the trading center this used to be.
At Bickleton one finds large, well kept-up farms and a warm reception, but the town itself has seen better days. Unlike the rest of the county, the Bickleton farmers enjoyed a prosperous year, but for all of that are not high-hattin' any of the rest of us.
I enjoyed my trip to Goodnoe Hills best of any that I made. Many people go there and find only sand, dust, and run-down orchards. I found kindred spirits with whom it was a pleasure to sit and chat. If some of that water that goes to waste in the Columbia river could be used on that deep, sandy loam what a garden spot this would be! The development of the Columbia river for power and irrigation, and the building of the highway east, hold much promise for Goodnoe Hills, and some day the mail carrier there will need an assistant and a couple of trucks to carry the mail to the hundreds of people that will be living in that vicinity. I also enjoyed meeting Musa Geer, and I can only say that I couldn't hope to find a more interesting and charming person no matter where I might go.
We all experience a feeling of disappointment sometimes and I felt all of that when I arrived at the county poor farm. While it isn't named that, it could just as well be because it is all that the name implies. It presented no inducement to me, whatsoever, to become an inmate of that place. One is impressed by the isolation, lack of modern conveniences, and evident discontent among the inmates. In an institution of that kind of, we should strive for an environment and surroundings that would make for the happiness of the aged and unfortunate.
At Wishram the folks are eitherbusyor asleep. Being a railroad town, a part of the population work at night, so upon approaching their residences, one finds the shutters drawn and a polite sign saying, "Please do not disturb." Most of the people there are plenty wide awake and know what they want and need without being told.
In Goldendale you encounter that metropolitan air not evident elsewhere in the county. People do things in a leisurely fashion there because there really isn't any hurry. It is a great meeting place for the people for miles around, who like to go there to chat with their neighbors from other communities.
The advantages for an education and Klickitat county are good but the opportunities to display one's talents are few.
Having started out to sell myself to the people of the county, I find that Klickitat county has sold itself to me. I have only the deepest appreciation and thanks for the support and well wishes of my friends during the campaign just closed. As I was plugging for myself then, I will keep on plugging - for you now.
As to Centerville, I still think it the best part of Klickitat county, and the support I received here just makes a fellow want to continue to live here among his neighbors and friends.

With sincere thanks,

MARTIN LUMIJARVI.