The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-01-24
Getting Out the Logs.
Tacoma LEDGER

logs is by no means a serious one,
and the lumbermen of Puget
Sound have overcome the difficul,
ties. Forests that stand at the
waters edge will not last forever,
nor do they furnish always the
class of timber demanded.
There are some streams which
penetrate the mountain Businesses,
and millions Of feet of logs are
brought by them annually to mar
ket. But the streams which per-
NIT such burdens are infrequent,
and the bawling, boisterous brook
that leaps from rock to rock is
worse than nothing in the trans
portation of logs. 1t has been de-
termined that transportation by
rail to the mills is at once the most
expeditions and economical method,
and in this way the big mills that
ere aiding SO materially i'll the sub
stantial growth Of Tacoma are
supplied.
A town supported by the log
ging industry presents some pecu
liar features. Such town is that
of Shelton, in Mason comfy. Six
months ago there was little on the
site to attract any one, but now
fully 1000 people have made their
homes there, and Shelton is a
growing place. No effort has been
made to create false boom" or to
work up fictitious values. The
town has grown naturally and nor
mally. From the cluster of log
huts has sprung young city with
a bank, hotels, and a mill that is
doing an increasing business. AS
the trade Of the place waxed great
er, the population grew and at
the present time Shelton congrat-
ulates itself upon being one of the
most substantial and steady towns
on the Sound.
Two logging railroads have made
Shelton what it is. The town is
the Sound terminus of the Mason
County Central logging railroad,
and OF the Satsop logging railroad.
These roads have their initial
points on tressels built into the
Sound, and end-no one knows
where, or, if the other terminal is
picked out, the fact is not made
public. The present termini are
in the timber where fortunes are
waiting for the loggers nd mill
owners. Month after month these
roads are extended, but their obiec
tive point always is timber. Tie
Mason County Central railroad
has three and half miles of track
completed, and the Satsop railroad
has thirty miles OF steel laid.
There is main line which winds
over the hills, following the heav-
lest timber. This is intended to
he a permanent road, and the grad
ing and laying of the track are
carried on with the care engineers
use in constructing a trunk line
Ii a hill lies across the trsck it is
cut through, and if a ravine or
] stream must be crossed it is
bridged. From the main line nu-
merous spurs and switches blanch
out into the woods, and as the tim
Der is cut and hauled away the
spurs are taken up and made to do
duty further along the line. This
work progresses rapidly, for on the
Satsop railroad 100000 feet of logs
are taken out every day.
! This work requires the employ
ment of 100 logging cars, three
standard box cars, two 3S-ton
Baldwin engines. one 27-ton Por-
ter eugine and one 13-ton Porter
engine. At work day in and day
out the year round, the men en-
ployed on this line and in other
industries Of Shelton have made
the money which is building up a
prosperous young city.
HOW THE LOGS CONE OUT.
Great power is needed to bring
the timber of the forests to its
market. When a spur track is
built into choice piece of tim Der,
the trees as they stand are survey
ed and an estimate is made upon
their values for various purposes.
Straight as an arrow trees looks to
the eye that is not practiced, and
often one wonders whether it
wonld MT be a relief to see an oak.
gnarled and knotted, spreading it's
branches over the mountain side.
But every tree is not straight and
often giant is felled which must
be cut otherwise than originally in-
tended.
Logs must be cut according to
their intended market. The long
est timber is set aside for the Chin
csc market. A Chinaman wants
to buy his timber by the "stick,o
and he will pay certain price
whether the log is an uncut giant
or a piece suitable to DE made only
into lath- A consignment of tim
Der to Hong Kong nust be such
that the Chinese merchant may
count the Sticks" and make an of.
fer OF SO much per ssstick." For
this reason the timber complying