, 1874-04-02

A AGLoR1oUs PRosPECr.-A Washing,
ton telegram announces that stron.
company has recently been organized tc
commence extensive building oper-
atoms on the Pacific coast. The princi
pal parties recently met in that city to
perfect their plans. Among them are
Richard Vance. of Bath, Maine; Mr.
Cushing. brother of Caleb Cushing. of
Newburyport, Mass, and the leading
new York ship builders. E1astus Bart
lett, of, California, is also connected
with the enterprise. The company has
not yet determined whether to establish
their works on Puget Sound, or at Port
Oxford or Elgin. They intend to build
ships, manufacture lumber, and work
coal mines. They will sell ships and
cargoes in foreign ports.
Over the foregoing announcement the
Micawber of the Tribune rhapsodizes as
follows: "What magnificent enter.
prise it would be to get that company
established in Tacoma! What a lift
above all contingencies that would be!
And no place under the sun is better
adapted for the carrying on of coal
mining, lumber manufacturing and ship
building than this right here. If Direc-
tor Ainsworth, President Wright of the
Land Company. and other influential
Northern Pacific men would only intel-
est themselves. the new company would
doubtless fix their business here in our
midst. But who knows? Perhaps they
have already done SO, and, ere the sum-
mer is out, we may see the golden fruit
Of their labors"
Now this reminds us of little story,
which has general credence in Oregon:
Captain Ainsworth, whose accidental
connection with the O. S. N. Co. under
fortuitous circumstances had not only
put him in possession of comfortable
fortune but given him great self conf
dence in his business capacity, under>
took to push his fortune by magnifi-
cent mining operation. Be purchased
quartz ledge in Eastern Oregon so re-
mote from wood and water that it could
not be worked proftably. The Captain,
inspired by the spirit of Napoleon, de-
termihed to show to the unsophisticated
Oregonians what enterprise, backed by
capital, could do towards overcoming
natural obstacles. He selected a site
near his mine, than which Z" mo place
under the sun is better adapted for
grinding quartz, erected thereon large
and expensive mill to be run by water.
had canal dug from themill to water
course several miles distant, and when,
all was completed and ready for run
ming, it was first ascertain ed that the
foundation of the mill was several feet
higher than the source of the water sup
ply; and as Captain Ainsworth, with all
his money, could not make water run
mp hill with sufficient force to operate n
quartz mill, the expensive works were
abandoned. We only tell this story as
we have often heard it told by men of
veracity. Those who have seen Captain
Ainsworth's location of the N. P. Rail.
road will not feel inclined to discredit
it. When he can dispose of bis mill
and canal at profit to joint stock
company, he may be able to pursuade
capitalists to invest money in any per-
mapent Improvement in Tacoma. Eve.
~ one who has ever seen the place will
witness the fact that there is not safe
or suitable place upon its shores for a
ship yard-high. abrupt bluffs jutting
upon waters too deep for anchorage
within cables length of the shore; q
passenger and freight depot four hun
dred feet above the water level; the only
country adjacent and tributary to the
town, for forty miles on the line of the
railroad. mostly gravel prairie and sand
plains destitute of timber for any COM
mercial purpose; not defined coal bed
within forty miles of the place, except
those Immediately in the rear OF Seattle;
Tacoma is the very last place on Puget
Sound which any intelligent business
man would select to invest his own mo-
ney in any such enterprise as the one
above mentioned; yet there is no partof
the world which offers greater induce
meats for the investment of capital in
just such enterprises than Puget Sound.
We but want capitalists to examine the
ground for themselves. Z I9VrrEl