The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-12-01
INCOME FROM THE HARaoRs.
what the Experience Of Other Great
Ports Leads W ashin gtsa to Expect

What the Experience Of Other Great
Ports Leads Washington to Expse,-
An idea Of the income which may be OBJ
tanned by the state of Washington from
the ownership Of the harbor lines Of the
different ports in the state may be derived
from q recent report on the dock facilities
of Boston.
The report shows that from 1854 10 1858
seventeen new piers were built, q, a cost Of
$50. 0o0 an average OF $50. 900 pier. From
1859 10 1894 City new piers were built. al
cost of S2,076, SIS. an average of about
Sc, 900 pier. For FIVE years ending with
ISIS the amount of bonds issued TO pay for
private property acquired for construction
Of new piers and extension of old ones, a.
well as for the expense OF maintenance
was s.. 10000 The total revenue col
lected amounted 10 $lt. 69l. 592-
Livsrpool's frat docks were so profitable
that the municipality used the receipts for
various public purposes. The income re-
celved by the dock board of Liverpool for
1888 " as 81 Csc, 600. cost of the entire dock
system, si06, COO 600; outstanding bonds.
SO. 0oo, 900, and hiking fund about ST.,
COO. 900.
Much Investigation, The report says.
shows that with she exception Of the port
of London eli great seaports have been
developed and are controlled through pub
lie ownership In every instance the in
vestment of the public credit has been
justified by the results. Not only have
these improvements increased the CON-
mercial Importance of all the cities, pro-
yiding adequate facilities for handling
large ocean commerce, but the money has
been productivity expended. New York
city owns about three-hfths Of It's water
front at a cost of s.. 000, 600. The income
for the year ending April 80. 1894. was
81, $50. 65s. netting the city nearly per
cent as an investment, taking no account
Of the facilities provided for the growing
demand OF the port aud the direct returns
which the city receives from oil additions
to the capacity of producing wealth. The
report says:
The harbor of Hayre, France. has been
entirely created by the hand of man. AT
the port of Matinee, Sweden, they propose
to construct an entirely new harbor work,
the work to extend over period OF fifteen
years.
Eat Hamburg Germany. the great dock
improvements resulted in Increasing the
foreign tonnage about 100 per cent. in the
years from iss0 TO lS9e.
''Ali the French ports have been devel-
oped by the public, also many of the ports
OF the French possession in Africa.
Antwerp, Holland. modernized her
facilities through tie public credit, ad-
iustcd the charges TO meet expenses. inter-
ess and king fund, the loans maturing
IN sixty-six years.
AT Philadelphia they commenced the
agitation of the question few months
age. and already they propose TO COM
mence the pubic Improvements OF the river
front by expending s., coo. 900.
THE labor problem il another impor-
tant feature of the undertaking OF the
construction of such a system. and would
occasion the employment of very large
force Of mechanics and laborers, and the
business TO be transacted upon such sys-
TEN, after completion, would go long
way toward making the labering classes Of
the city self-supporting. and. OF course,
such a result would mean prosperity 10
the whole community"