The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1888-09-15
THE SEATTLE OF 81.
EETUKy 0E NJ 4. 3. nKRrKR. oyv or
TEE EAKLT sETfLEnx.
He Expects 20 Experfenee = Rip
Van Wrinkle Sensation ON Awak~u-
ing This HsrntaS-ssme Very In
terestinz "Reminiscences

M A. : Mercer. rahiisAer 81 the Ssrss-
sssseTa Lize sesck Jesrzzs a. Cheysnne.
+ ironing. the largest pg.siie&;son dexosei
+ 70 the stock business In the Ha-ssi, eceaEs-
panied b. lis wiEe, ATEig=t Ia Seattle las
Z evening 70 visit bis brother. Judge Thomas
Mercer. Of Lake Enssr. Mr.. Mercer
Has ore Of TIE e=y3y settssrs ct SEATTLE. and
9 fpsT-iSTELAfsEseEE reporter eAaaced 10
Iaest hina shorsiy after his arrival last eyea-
{ ing.
Il expect 70 BE pretty Thoroughly snr-
Yrfsed when get Up "a the morning. a. Il
Bas ~ dark y hen ! arrived tk1a- could
not see nGch Of ftse eitv.# SAID Mr. Mercer
4 leti heTe IN - AID shasssht would
come hack and yzsis mv hTCfaFr ard Sc II
e0Eld rggzd up aag o. EaY old scsuaEn-
tAnees wbca eazas 70 seattle Ia 81 tlss
nrxf thing did was 30 dig Neil- Then tai
lied lufaoer into ships r3<as there where the
PusT-lsrEL11GKScEs once i nov. IeSIer's
f7il was right sbsge here AID where yeur
olnce j vas filed in Wifh Fawdus7. 50 that
onscould get freui the wharf 10 the n4iu-
land rs there was sE island here then.
Nex5errs mill Nas at9gt al there was Of
the soRn. Il maA The f1ainstag ard hack
ssaze % the Place There Nere not mere
than half n dozen houses berth Of this
street fNiiil. TheTs WIS q little brown
Methodist church Up there On the hill
somewhere. where sc used 70 have preach
ing every sunday. ressembsr / used 10
lead the choir sometimes Il disnst take
much, you kas@--5ess someone 20 s.asr the
hymns. Then Old chief seattle himself
vas alive SUD recall that had him pho
scgraphed and hsve one Of TIE pictures
pew. There couldn't have been over ID
people in the whole tssyTn. Peter Horton.
D-. P.umSner and DF. Williamson kept
stores These, With tsE8 saloons, com
prssed the business houses Of course, we
didn't really have any slree.s-ju.ta rough
road along the beach and few traits"
Il dom suppose there were many houses
on the hill, Mr.. Mercer
.sPrAeiira,lv n0na. Il was all timber.
Edwin smith had 8 contract for surveying
al ever the hill He picked up gang VI
men and went out int0 the woods, but they
al came back ia week aud swore that he
vas crazy. He couldn't get any more men
asd lost BIS contract. aud ] took II after
him l surveyed nearly the whole OF the
town. hack from the besch way over 90 I
The lakes"
orENISG OF FRE UNIVERSITY.
'sHow about the schools
AThe Washington university Building
was erected IN the fall Of 81. and was lis
FIRST president ! remember that the iegis-
lature adjourned dFrving the holidays aud
came down here 10 dedicate II. was II
young fellow, fresh from college. and got a
fdead % suggest az the dedication services
t1st n would he q good idea 10 have a
speech. The president Of the council was
an old gentiemsa from Port Townsend.
He said, That's 20; we ought 10 have
speech, but can't talk M Won
know anyone wso can Ny friend
suggested me. and | got III ana
male a speech. a. prearranged. I mad
eAly hnd two days .s.s'ss So --.oa aaa every
fi.s s-SI<' was an imprompiu affair
.ot lots OF glory ossi Of II, | can tell s5a.
when opened the university | wanted
some scholars. for there werc noEe here. 50
/ got out a little circular a1d circulated 7
around among the logging camps By tAis
means got fifteen or twenty young fei-
lows 10 fefac In and go 10 school fa9 chop
wood on Saturdays TO sell To TIE steam
boats 10 pay expenses This brought lay
toll up to seventy-niue and things went
aIeng xWimmingiy. ! suppose some OF
those young wooG-ehopPer students are
here vet and they deserFcd 10 succeed.
NJ brother used 10 tell me that this
was going to be a great country, but I
would rcply that Il was too hard 10 get al +
and develOp-too much woods remem-
her that tried 20 make q little money on I
the side by planting crop one season on .
the side hill and II did bot come up The 4
Soil was so graveiy that it would not raise
anything.
OLD SETTLERS.
what citizens of those days do You re-
CALI
There were H. l. Yesler. Dexter Horton,
Can't Libby, Dick Atkinson, HiIoTy But 4
Ter Henry Van ASSET. q prominent farmer
up the river named Smifhers, uusIaith .
named Hugh McAleer. A. A. Denny, David /
Denny, old uncle John Denny, John Ross, I
nr. Josiah settle, Rev. Daniel Bagley, .
farmer in the edge Of town named Magic, 4
although every one called him Male;
farmer named Utter, Mr. Wyekon, tire .
sheriff. J. ". johnson. = young lawyer ea
old shoemaker who was character OF the /
camp. but whose name have forgotten
George FRYE, a big man named Baxter, Dr. !
Maynsrd DR. Williamson, my brother
Tom, Charley Terry. DR.. Plummer, Bell: Of
Bellfown. and carpenter named MAI +
thews There may have been few others,
including the transien,s working az the
mill. but that's aboat all Of the old crowd.
and don't believe the names OF more than
bali dozen have gone of and LETT me.
Ne Mercer viii remain here about
wees and Il is safe 70 say that he viii ex-
rerienee = soft Of Rip Van Wrinkle sen
satioNwhen be swases this isafning and
locks ont upon the modern, busting eiiy
which has succeeded the saWmill eafnp
az ii. Mrs. Mercer was before her mar
rage. which occurred in seattle, Miss
Anna stevens She viii be remembered
by all who were living here at that time as
one 81 the most accomplished young ladies
hz~