The teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1876-1878, 1878-03-02
Description and Resources Of w ashing-
ton Territory. .t-

Delegate Jacobs, in his argument be-
fore the committee on Territories, on
the Washington enabling act, deliheates
Washington in the following manner.
"First. The western half Of the Ter
ritory is a continuous forest, on the
southern verge of which rolls the Ore
gon, but it hears other sounds now be-
sides that Of its own dashings. This
forest is full 200 miles in width by $50
in length. It is mostly fir and cedar
timber. Within the limits of this forest
there is a population Of 80, 900 people,
engaged in numbering, ship-building,
coal.mining. farming and fishing. am
not able to state accurately the volume
of business done in each one of the
branches Of industry named above, but
I can approximate closely all but the
fishing business.
The annual lumber product of this
section is stated at 370,000,000 feet.
If there is any error in the statement,
it is too low. This product is worth, at
least, "a, 600, 900 in gold coin. Besides
this an enormous quantity Of lathes and
shingles are made annually. This lum.
Der, and these lathes and shingles. find
q ready market in California, South
America, and Australia, China and the
Sandwich Islands To the above must
be added very large quantity of masts,
spars, piles, aud various other kinds of
round and hewn timber, making the full
amount over FIVE millions Of dollars in
gold coin. Yet this business is but in
its infancy, and it's volume is swelling
year by year. The resources of quick
ly re producing forest. which yields from
one hundred thousand to quarter of
million feet Of lumber per acre, is mex
haustible.
1t is found by experiments made by
the Government that The red fir timber
is equal to, if not superior to, live oak
in strength, durability, and holding
qualities for ship. building. Hence that
business, although yet in its infancy, is
fast developing, and promises at no dist
ant day to become one of the leading
industries of Western Washington. Last
year fifteen vessels, ranging in tonnage
from $50 to 1900 tons, were built on
Puget Sound, and company was organ
ICED, with capital of one million dol
lars, to carry on the business in the
future. Nowhere else in the world can
wooden ships be built so cheaply as on
Puget Sound. Fir knees, the best in
the world, and of any size or dimensions,
can be obtained in inexhaustible quaint
ties for from fifteen to thirty cents per
lineal foot. Planking, free from knots,
strong and elastic, and from fifty to one
hundred feet in length, can be delivered
At the ship-yard for fifteen dollars per
thousand. Masts, from one hundred to
one hundred and fifty feet in length,
are delivered. into navigable waters for
from thirty dollars to fifty dollars each.
Ship.loads after ship. loads of them are
taken every year to nearly every foreign
port In the world. With all these and
other materials at hand and cheaper
than they can be obtained anywhere
else, the speedy and immense develop.
ment Of this business is secured.
In this connection suffer brief state.
ment Of the amount Of shipping, and
incidentally, the commerce, domestic
and foreign, Of the Territory. A feet
OF thirty steamers, some of them costing
3l5O,OOO are registered and owned upon
the Sound, and are actively and pro6ta-
bly, engaged in the carrying of the mails
and passengers, and in supplying the
wants ofinternal commerce OF the Sound
and the river afauents. A large feet
OF steamers are daily plying on the COL
umbia River, some of which are owned
and reRistered in the Territory, and all