The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1881-11-18
PORTLAND AS A COMMERCIAL CITY.

EDITORS GAzETTE.-I want to say
a few words about Portland and the
Columbia bar; and l suppose there
would be no use of trying to say it
through the Portland papers, rs pa
pers do not like TO publish anything
contrary to their taste. The GAZETTE
however, l believe is generally liber-
al and it's columns open to CORES
pondents, so / avail myself of the
opportunity.
arrived 1ff the bar on the 18th
inst, having come out of the Yaqnina
OF the 10th with a fine smooth bar
and plenty of water. When l reach
ed the Columbia I found that vessels
had been having a djfficult time to
get in and out, there being a large
fleet in the river waiting to get out
and number outside waiting TO get
in. One bark, the Lock Fergus,
came in in company, having been off
the bar eighteen days. The tug had
spoken her several days before, but
would not take her IN unless the
captain would agree to pay five hun
dred dollars for towing in and out,
or three hundred dollars for towing
in alone. Now here is where the
trouble of Portland comes in. Such
charge to stranger making the
Columbia for the first time would
naturally convey one of'two impress
sions, either that the place was de-
cidedly dangerous or that towing
was very expensive not to say exhor
bitant. IF Portland is to maintain
its commercial supremacy, it seem.
it should take some steps TO remedy
this. And the only remedy that oc-
ours to me is to put tugs on the bar
to tow vessels free. My first thought
was that the expense of maintaining
such tugs might be borne by the
state, and that the state would he
the gamer by so doing. But this
will not stand the test of a second
thought as it would be taxing the
whole state for what might seem to
be local benefit. And so it seems
that the city of Portland ought TO
stand the expense, and l believe the
experiment would prove profitable
in the end. Or failing in this, towing
vessels mi ght Lc reduced to mini
mum and the city might contribute
in the shape of subsidy toward
maintaining the necessary tugs.
Portland has been so far successful
in keeping its position as the second
commercial city Of the coast. but it
has been and is yet contending
against fearful odds. Situated as it
is oyer hundred miles from the sea,
with expensive bar and river towing
and pilotage, with Astoria lying
menancingly at the mouth of the riv'
er slowly but surely creeping forward
as risal, with Puget Sound on the
rorth looming up as the terminus oil
great trans-eontiHentat- railroad, to
say nothing of the Yaquina on the
south. / hardly think it necessary
to say anything more about that, as
perhaps we have said all there is to
say abcat4hat,F possibly more, but
the workers have now commenced,
let them speak, it has more force than
words.
The sound of the locomotive over
the mountains down to the sea will
do more TO awaken Portland from its
dream of security and commercial
supremacy than all that has been
said or written or all that might be.
But / did not set out to write up
Yaquina or write down Portland, /
merely proposed to mention what
seemed to ME to be one of her draw
backs, or l might say dead weights.
If they don't see it now they will see
it by and by and be compelled to
remedy it, and the sooner 1t is done
the better. Vhe vessels visiting the
Columbia river labor under peculiar
difficulties. II they keep off the
shore good safe distance, such as
good judgement and common prlI-
derce might dictate, they can neither
get pilot or tug, aud are often
blamed or laughed at for being so
long getting in. lion the contrary
they approach too near and get
ashore, as is often the case and but
recently occurred, they are blamed
for bad judgement and carclessness,
SO man has but little show to escape
censure and many of them get dis.
gusted and swear they will never
come to the Columbia river again.
And to make matters worse l hear ii
said now that there is rivalry be