, 1883-08-23
Commercial Prospects.
ri NTLEE HAS HIS SAY.
L

".""' trrm!in. towu>itrE. etc. and only
-"ttH- "a glimpse uf the outside world
through the Iaprrs once week hy fine
steamer Dispatch, We are nevertheless
becoming anxious about the Grand ru-
tarro: this Territory, and this county in
particular especially after the rcsurrcc-
uon of that dead and buried place. Bel
Hu=ham Bay which seems to he having :,
boom second only TO that Of Seattle.
In the language of old Bill Krane:
'" hat on: Il cannot be on that arti-
Gle published some time ago in the
Nhatc"m H"rcWc, stating that parties
had rcsched the snow line on Mount
Baker and found good prospects. bring
ing down several fine nuggets. If it is |
fear the bottom will drop out when 9th
ers go there to prospect. | have been to
the summit Of Mount Baker and pros
pccted in many places on the mountain
and streams adjacent. and would saw
right here that if all the gold that will
be taken out of any stream heading in
Mount Baker were coined into twentics
1t would not be enough to purchase a
town lot IN Whatcom at present prices.
1t may he that the contemplated railroad
from Bellingham Bay 10 tap the Cana
dian Pacific Railroad is another cause.
It certainly viii never be Il shipping
terminus for the \. Z. II. r.. and the
Canadian Pacific being exclusively a
Canadian enterprise, Ia benefit only the
Dominion OF Canada, it cannot be ex-
pected that they Will do anythingt to heIp
build mp a trade or terminus in the
United States. No, the object is tobene-
fit British Columbia, and if Port Moody
is not Il safe and easy harbor to approach
they VIII push on still farther Vaucou-
ver's Island is not Far from Port Moody.
and 10y bridging Seymore Narrows they
can extend their line to any part of Van
couver'S Island, making two termini, one
at Victoria, another 1T Barclay Sound
which cGts the island from the Pacific
ocean to within twenty miles of Nanai-
mo, making one of the finest sheets of
navigable water on the coast, and sec
ond only to Puget Sound, with many
good harboTs the whole length, and with
no difficulties of approach, its opening
being on the Pacific ocean opposite Cape
Flattery.
And now comes our isolated county of
Clalam into notice. This county has
over one hundred miles of coast line, ex-
tending from Pacific county on the
sea coast to Jefferson county on Puget
Sound, with good agricultural lands in
places and an immense amount of fine
timber land unsurveyed. A line of rail
road from the Columbia river or Gray's
Harbor along the coast to Port Angeles
would open up an extensive country rich
in coal, iron and timber, passing through
the Quileute valley and following chain
of lakes which could be utilized for
many purposes.
l have no doubt of the future great
ness of many of the embryo cities and
towns on Puget Sound, which are now
rushing to the front. We patiently
wait for the last spike to be driven on
each of the great roads now approaching
this coast, when the question of final
terminus will be serious consideration
for the managers of both railroads, to
ecOnomize time with safety for the hea-
Wy carrying trade that each will try to
monopoliZe. And, take my word for it,
it will not be Tacoma, Seattle, Belling-
ham Bay or Port Moody, but Barclay
Sound and Victoria in British Columbia
and Port Angeles in Washington Terri
tory. Our government has already re-
served land here for custom house
and other government improvements
which would be required at a great COM
mercial entrepOt; strange to say, this
reserve was made twenty years ago with
a prophetic eyet to the future greatness
of this splendid harbor which has all the
for a large city-abun-
dance of water front perfectly safe in all
winds, and a never ending supply of
purest water from the snow-capped
mountains of the Olympic range. With
a terminus at Victoria and one at Port
Angeles, ferry boat could make three
or four trips day between the two
places, a distance of seventeen miles
across the Strait of Fuca, and fifty-fve
miles from Cape FIattery, a straight east
and west course. Time will tell which
of the two places named Will eventually
be the great entrepot for the vast COM
merce which will center ON this northwest
coast. HUSTLER.