The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-06-12
DANGER TO BALLARD.
Protest Against Filling Sal
mon Bay Tide Lands.
The PEOPLE ARE UNANIMOUS.
Nfiimen and Merchants Say Letting OF
Contract Would Ruin Mills and
Iniure North Canal.

Z
Mayor Matthew Dow. Eugene Ricksecker.
government engineer. z. " Carr. for Sc
attic. Lake Shore x Eastern railroad. who
went 10 Olympia 10 enter protest before
Commissioner of Public Lands Forrest
against the letting OF a contract by the
state 10 Hays and Shay for hlling the Bal
lard tide lands. have returned home. Pro-
tests were presented signed by every mill
owner in Ballard. by the MAYOR and all
the councilman OF Ballard. ana by nearly
every merchant Of Ballard. There were
also numerous other protests from ind.-
viduais and corporations.
{. ID. Stlmson. OF the Stimson Mil Com
pany, OF Ballard. in speaking of the matter
yesterday. said. There is no doubt that
the letting Of such a contract would az
this time be serious public calamity. not
only 10 the people OF Ballard but 10 every
person and corporation interested in the
advancement and development of the
Northwest. In the first place it would
seriously interfere with the construction
OF the government canal connecting the
waters OF Lake Washington with Puget
sound through Lake Union. BY the grant
ing OF such a contract the parties to whom
the contract was given would obtain Ger
tain vested rights. and in order TO secure
the right-of-way for the north canal il is
necessary for the people of King county
TO buy the right-of-way along the proposed
route IL would simply mean that these
parties, having secured vested rights in
the signing of the contract to dre,ige out
the channel. would have TO be paid for All
The work done and almost any amount
they might ask for the profits they cosid
nsore on In the carrying out OF their con-
tract. The result would be that new diff
culues would be thrown in the way OF Sc
curing the right-of-way by greatly and un-
necessarily increasing the cost. and no one
would be in the least benefited except the
private individuals. who OF course as bush
ness men would take every advantage
their contract would give them to make
every dollar possible. The work of secur-
ing the riSht-of-way in time TO use np the
remaining $2D,0O OF the APPROPRIATION
would possibly receive a fatal blo. and a
PROJECT OF so much Importance 10 the city
county and state would be greatly endau-
gered.
In the second place the granting of such
a contract 10 dredge out the channel of
Salmon bay and hll up the tide fats would
result in great loss TO the mill men at
Ballard, Gripping all the interests that at
the present time employ about TOO men di-
rectly and many more in an Indirect way
With the filling in OF the tide flats on Sal
mon bay would cause in all probability a
complete paralysis of the single and Ium
Der interests on its shores, as the booming
grounds of the mills would be destroyed
and the milling operations so crippled that
IL would result in the financial ruin OF
some of the millmen. This is a stron.
statement TO make. hut it is a fact that
any millInan on Salmon bay Will willingly
testify to. IL is impossible TO run mill
10 any advantage in this or any other
country without booming grounds for the
logs. and as it would be Impossible To con-
poses once they were filed in. the result
would be A removal of the mills to some
other point or the abandonment of man
ufacturins center that is now in a thriy-
ing and prosperous condition.
The shutting down of the Ballard mills
at this time would not only work a great
hardship on the mill owners. on their 40
employees and on the hundreds OF families
depending on the men for support. but
would be a calamity TO the business inter
ests of this section, the results of which
IL would be hard 10 rightly estimate. The
state OF Washington has already accepted
payments on applications 20 purchase
these fats from the owners of the uplands
and in many cases the owners of the adj
joining uplands have proceeded to improve
these lands. particularly the owners of a
number OF mills and factories. These
vested rights would be interfered with in
a way that would surely result In legal
complications without end. The plan OF
the government canal, when carried out,
will not only leave the present boom
grounds undlsturbed, but low places about
the mills which are of no particular ben
eft will be flooded and thus the facilities
for milling will be improved instead of
ruined as by the private contract. The
building of the lock at the mouth of Sal
mon bay will raise the water on level
with Lake Union, thus giving logging In
terests the advantage OF floating logs
through Lake Union and out into Salmon
bay to the mills along its shores.