The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-11-26


tho Oregon Improvement Company would have
gone on and paid interest and dividends a
usuaI. II had fully earned them, but better
ments Of its road had taken considerable money,
which had been borrowed ON consolidated
mortgage bonds. Tnen the bonds were called.
and the money which would have paid the in
eeEest went in oher directions
WORKED BY TOwNsIrE BOOMERS.
Oregon Improvement Company Built
Roads to Sell, but Couldn't Sell Them.
The application for the appointment of . re-
cetver for the Oregon Improvement Company
Was the one subject Of conversation yesterday
among railroad men, and several points were
brought ont VII On help TO explain its troubles.
There was general agreement among those
who talked OF the subject that the railroads, the
but dug OF which was the immed ate cause of
the cOmpany's difficulties, were only built for
the purpose Of booming townsites, and after
ward being sold to some of the great railroad
companies It was stated that efforts were
made TO cell the Seattle 4 Northern road TO the
Great Northern, the Union Pacific and the
Northern Pacific ct . good price. The Union
Pacific had no use for the road. as It is entirely
disconnected from any road which that COM
peuy even contemplates building. In order to
make the road Of any practical use the Union
would have to continue its extension from Port
land to Seattle still further down the Souud Z
sdistance Of eighty mileA The Great Northern
shed the opportunity of buying the road. and
could have made good use Ct IT. but the price
asked was too steep; consequently II Hill brings
his road across the Cascade mountains down
the 6kagit valley, he will build new line and
not make use OF the Seattle & Northern. The
Northern Pacific declined an outright purchase,
nnd was satisied with . nfnety-nine years
tsaeac agreement The road had, hoWever,served
the purpose OF booming Anacortes properly,
md hes doubtleas enriched those ollcials Of the
Oregon Improvement Company who got in on
~ Ground hcor II traverses some Of the
1ot est land on the Sound, both agricultural
ond mineral and may soon become rich source
With The Port Townsend oouth1en soad the
efkcuo61e6o m 1i0erent Is Il outixolv ino-
Jated from any raiiroad ay6Esm until ID - 80
tended to Olympia for distance Of eighty
milea For half this distance 1t would traverse
the base Of the Olympic mountains. and would
have TO depend for business on the products OF
the narrow strip Of land along the shore Of
Hoods canal and along the valleys extendi, Z
back into the mountains for few miles. The
settlement Of this strip has only begun, and,
while the mountains are reputed to Be rich In
minerals, their development has not progressed
even 90 far - prospecting, and all that is known
ID the result Of explorations made within the
last year. The construction Of railroad through
tical railroad men, and It was found impossible
to sell the twenty miles Of road from Port Town
send to Hooker's lake.
Thus the chance Of resellIng these two roads
disappeared, snd the borrowed money used in
building them, instead of being realized
promptly with profit, became permanent in
vestment with only prospective profits. Land
subsidies had been Obtained ct Port Townsend
and Olympia, but could not be realized on. The
feOeivership seems To be the roault
One railroad 0ficial found another cause OF
trouble in the variety OF lines of basiness in
which the Oregon Improvement Company 10 en-
gagged. 1t is operating railroads, steamers, coal
mines wharves and sawmillss requiring the
services OF men Of the highest ability in each Of
those lines. to whom much must be trusted, ~
the general oficers could not be expected 70 be
familiar with every branch OF business. Yet
every proposal to buy any one Of these proper
ties has met with refusal, the officers being
determined to sell all together or none.
p. p. Padden, the auditor. said yesterday that
he had no oficial information ~ to the applica-
tion for . receiver. He said that douptless the
receiver would make stat tsment a. to the con-
dition Of the company's affairs when he took
charge. All the property was paying well.
The company's difficulties do not involve any
cessation Of work except on new construction.
All branches Of its business which are now pro-
ducing revenue will be run % ~ present. in
cludlng ra1iroad1, steamers, coal mines, Ouuk-
ers and wharvea The construction Of new rail-
roads will probably cease.
Toe Oregon Improvement Company occupies
the posi ION of owning . number Of corpora
tons These are the Seattle Coal and Transpor-
tation Company, operating the Newcastle coal
mine; the Columbia h Puget Sound Railroad
Company. operating forty 1--we mi.e OF narrow
gauge railroad, the coal bunkers wharves and
water front; the Seattle 4 Northern Railroad
Company, operating TWEEN y-four miles OF rail-
road from Anacortes to Sedro. with ten more
mics graded; the Pacific Coast Steamship Com
psny, operating steamers from seattle to San
Francisco; the Pacific Railway Company, OF San
Francisco, which operates about fifty miles oi
railroad and carries garden produce to San
Francisco; the Port Townsend Southern Rail-
road Company. which owns the Port Townsend
southern and the Olympia & Chehalis Valley
railroads The company owns directly the
franklin and Renton coal mines, the steamer
Eastern Oregon, sawmills az Seattle and Coos
bay and lands in Eastern Washington and Mon
tana.
Manager h. W. McNeill. when called upon
yesterday. declined to be interviewed, but
later in the evening he sent note 70 the editor
OF this paper saying: "If you think can say
anything Of interest, send reporter" On
second thought, however. he refused TO talk