Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1886-01-09

4 Mage Estsbitshmest. dsing an En-
srmsas gssises. In Lumber.
ships asd Merehasdise. with
immease and VaIaabie
Properties.

lxHrrEs YoB The POST sT-NrKLLIGkScKs.
Port B.akely u situated on BaInbrIsee
Island, nine miles west of Seattle, and
~ one OF the most important milling
ports on the Sound. As far esck as
1872 Dexter Horton, = Seattle banker of
today, was Oh the site and cut his name
spon q tree, but the axeman has not
spared that tree; 30 whatever claim Mr.
Horton may have thereby had on the
premises has been oblItersted. Captain
henton and a Mr.. Howard. who owned
q ssvRill at Port Orchard, sold it TO a
Mr.. F.lk and j. N. Colman of Seattle,
and In 1858 bailt at Port Blakely a mill
With capacity of 5000 feet per day.
That fall Mr.. Howard died in san Fran
CISCO, and Captain Renton has from that
day to this been actively engaged IN
making lumber there.
10 1872 the size OF the mill was in
creased to q daily capacity of 5000
feet, and IN 1873 vas again enlarged,
and can nov tarn out any day from
$50, 900 to 100 600 feet of lumber. Until
the last enlargement they ran almost
continuously day and night the year
round to supply the demand upon them.
In the beginning the mill company
owned but one vessel, bot chartered
several others in which TO send their
lumber to market. most of it going to
San Francisco. Tue lumber was then
worth SIS a thousand by the cargo; nov
Common lumber goes al about $3.50 ana
dressed at SIC. Then timber was every
where plentiful, and logs could be had
for "a per thousand; whereas they are
now worth from IS 10 IS, according to
quality.
The company nov own seven sail YES
sells and two powerful tugbosts. They
get their logs all the way from Olympia
TO Wha.eom, and send their lumber all
over the world. During toe year 1885
they cut 55, 400 900 feet and loaded luz
ships. In early days freIghts were from
Is 20 $40; now about half those figures.
Twenty years ago the mill furnished
employment for about 20 men, nov leo
are engaged there. visited the place
some days ago and obtained all these
items and maBy more. The huge mill
10 a perfect labyrinth Of machinery, and
when runnIng with full crew on hand
It 10 q most interesting sight. They
have 10 boilers, i've engines, two double
circular and two gang avs, With other
appliances In proportion. Just think OF
four great sawlogs being snaked up out
Of the mIllpond by huge iron ohains,
and simultaneously dissecteJ by those
four sharp -toothed and savage saws in
almost no time. The smaller pieces of
ali sizes and shapes nov go gliding on
over rollers, being assorted and out into
proper lengths, and passed on out at the
other end of the mill to the adjacent
wharf, where great ships come up and
take il avav. Fally a hundred men can
and do work in the mill at one time;
they seem thick as bees and Just about
as busy, yet In no manner interfering
with the work Of each other, and there
being but few words spoken, understand
ing each other by signs.
The Oill company own some $1,000
acres of timber land, about so acres of
1t being around the mill. Ali of the 10
to So houses on the premises belong to
the company. The single men who CO.
oupy the smaller houses, generally two
to q room, pay no rent, but the larger
buildings in which families reside rent
as from 81 to $l5 a month. The EN-
pioyees nearly all eat at the company
boarding house; no less than 2l5 persons
daily eating there. Mr.. Gard, manager
Of the cook house, is the right man 10
she right pace. He has been IN charge
seven years. He sets better table
than the average hotel, and keeps every
thing neat and clean as a pin. It costs
about $l500 Q month to supply the cook
house. They consume daily ~ barrels
of -four. 400 pounds Of beef. aud veeets-
bles and other things in proportion.
The families around can there obtain
fresh meat and bakers bread every day.
There are nine white men employed
about the esok house. Most of their
potatoes come from DunReness in lots of
500 sacks at tine.
The mill company have a large gen
eral merchandise store, in charge of
John Haley, whe seems to fully under
stand his business, for everything about
il is kept in apple pie order. As they
buy in large quantities IN San Francisco
and bring the goods mp in their own
vessels, they can sffsrd 10 sell quite as
low as any other merchants. They sup
ply the surrounding country and many
logging camps. and the extent of their
business may be judged from the fact
that IN 1885 they sold $222, 800 worth Of
goods.
About q dozen men are constantly
employed in the machine and black
smith shops, and half as many carpen-
ters are kept at work.
There are nov nine vessels there tax
ing on lumber, one of them being a
British iron ship that will carry more
than q million feet. Captain Rentou,
though almost totally blind. sits in the
mill Office and directs the affairs Of the
whele conceru; hts nephew. John Camp
bell, being general manager. with tried
and true subordinates in charge OF the
various branches of the business. Taken
all In all, it 10 q model institution.
The little steamer Success makes dsu
bic daily trips between there and Seattle,
/ O., h~.n~ S0 santa