The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-07-17
TIDE MARSH LANDS.
Some of the Richest Agricul-
tural Soil i'm the World.
VERY PROFITABLE FARMING.
Interesting Bulletin Issued by State
Board of Trade-Deep Alluvial
Deposits-Large Crops.

Yesterday the State Board OF Trade issued
its ninth bulletin on the tide marsh lands
OF the state b. Edridge Morse, OF Snohomish.
The article, which follows, is up to the high
standard reached b. previous bulletins, and con-
tains much that is of interest
Wherever the land meets the sea there is q
struggle Tor mastery. The ocean ever is eating
into the land, and alluvial deposits are being
formed continually along the shores, whereby
land IS in such places built out into the sea
These deposits vary in character according to
the material OF which they are formed and The
conditions TO which they are subjected. The
rainfall and the amount OF salt or fresh water
where they ere formed also affect their value.
The tide marsh lands along the coast OF South
ern California cannot be improved, because
when diked the absence OF rain renders 1t i'm
possible TO ffeshen them and render them lit for
cultivation.
On the other hand in the state of Washington
many things combine TO render such lands the
most productive and valuable In the world.
Along all the streams of the state are tracts OF
river bottom land. These bottoms along the
larger streams are from one to three miles in
width, extending nearly the whole length of
each stream. The soil near the banks is usually
a light sandy loan. Farther back IL becomes
more OF clay loan, and Ia some places even
stiff clay may be found. Most of it is covered
with heavy growth of CEDAR maple, cotton
wood, or similar timber.
Tide marsh lands are mostly found within
three miles OF salt water around the outlets OF
streams or along the shores of Puget sound or
other inets of salt water. They are further
classified as tide marsh prsiries and as spruce
brush tide marsh lands. The tide marsh prai-
ries i'll a wild state covered with grasses.
They stand about on the level of ordinary high
water, rarely a foot above. The highest spring
storm tides seldom cover them more
than two or three feet deep. Nearly
all tide lands standing more than one or two
feet above the level of ordinary high tide are
covered with spruce timber brush, and are
classified as spruce or brush tide marsh lands
All marsh lands in Washington above the level
OF the highest storm tides are called fresh water
or beaver marshes. Beaver dams, stopping the
drainage of both uplands and bottom lands
have retained with the water aIluviai matter
which, with the growth of peat and the decay
of vegetable matter growing in such svamps,
has formed deposits OF almost pure vegetable
matter, in some cases fifty to 100 feet in depth.
What are commonly called tide lands, as con-
trasted with tide marsh lands, are mud flats
covered most of the time with salt water, SO
trees and grass do not grow on them They are
too low for farming purposes are non-agricul-
tural lands, and are of value only near cities
and towns where water front is ESPECIALLY de-
sirable.
River bottom lands may consist of either Or
binary river bottom, fresh water marsh or tide
marsh land. The tide marsh p-airies are near
est salt water then the spruce or brush tide
marsh, aud above these are tracts of ordinary
river bottom or fresh water marsh land. All
tide marsh land before cultivated must be diked
and drained. IL is all to be diked against
tidal overflow. Nearly all fresh water marsh
has to be cleared, and if dikad the protection is
not against tidal or salt water overflow, but
against river freshets. Only on few streams
which drain high mountains and have high
summer freshets is it necessary to dixie fresh
water marsh land or ordinary river bottoms.
About one-third of all lands in Western Wash
ingtOn are bottom or alluSial lands, with about
four or five times as much fresh water marsh
land as tide marsh land. Only about one-third
of the tide marsh land consists of open tide marsh
prairies two-thirds or more in a wild state be-
ing spruce or brush tide marsh land. In many
cases land partaking of all these characteristics
is found and for such lands, and they are the
very best, there classihcations are more or less
arbitrary. On rivers where bikes are made
against freshets, one portion of the dixie may
tom land against river overflow only while d
mile or two farther down the continue
ton OF the same levee may protect strictly
tide marsh land from tidal or salt water
overflow. Thus estimates of dikes and tide
marsh improvements are to a certain extent ar
bitrary also. Still only comparatively small
amount OF anything but tide marsh land is pro-
tected by dlkes, and nearly all such improve
ments can be classed as belonging to tide marsh
lands.
AS to the location and area of Washington tide
marshes, there are near the mouth of the CO.
lumbia river on Walicutsriver /, $50 acres and on
Chinook river Las acres. There are around
Shoalwater bay or Willapa harbor about 1900
acres open marsh and from 5000 to 10000 acres
OF brush ana spruce marsh, as follows: West
and south OF the bay, ,6i9 acres; on Bear river,
979 acres; on Bone and Palix rivers, $500 acres;
on Nasalle and Mama rivers 5000; ON Wiliapa
river, 5000 acres and the east side of the bay,
mostly spruce marsh, 5000 acres On the
south side OF Gray's harbor there are
$1,000 acres; on the east side where
the Chehahs river EN- pties, $4,000 acres
and on the north side 5000 acres, or a total of
5000 acres, OF which 10000 acres are open tide