The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-01-03

~ A1Etz-z- 112oo. y asnt1skon ara Jfs-
Fon.
Or Na-rh Is plan a recrganfza tion
was promulgated thar received the assent
OF practically al ce ire security holders
n Interest ard Il Vas declares operative
on A p-1l - This plan limited the line On
the east 20 re Mississippi and Lake Sape-
rso-. abandoning CetczEo as TIE eastern
terminus. a1S was 20 provide ample work
Ing capital as required n 4 series o.
years. for the development % the properly
and FOR be..srnsnts. additions. etc he
property was 20 BE foreclosed ard sold
and 4 new company organized with CAP
tia OF So Go fsa common stock. sos. co
preferred stock. $50 60 co prior hsn per
cent 119-year god bonds. and general Len
15a-year per cent. gold bonds limited IN
amount 20 81 20 oo0. n addition 20 a re-
serve for the taf-vsar per cent. prior len
mortgage OF $50 GO 90.
Tnls plan vas carried out. and this a.
vision having been formally forecloseo and
sold 70 the new orgaa3zatior. The name q
the company became the Northern Pacific
railway. instead OF railroad. Edwin ".
Winter o. S. Paul. became president.
and Immediately after midnight me last
day Of August the new officials took pos
session OF the road.
New Company's Policy.
The general policy y the new company.
Inteingencer. IS for the present one Of I'M
pr0vsmsnt only and not extension. The
company Is replacing all the wooden
bridges with iron ones. reducing the
grades and strengthening out curves. and
thus shortening the line. A marked
change OF policy had been adopted IN re-
gard 20 the eompany's government lands.
IL having been decided 10 reduce the price
by about 40 per cent. This policy IS adopt
Ell, so Il IS explained. with the object Of
getting the territory the road serves more
thickly settled and so add TO is business.
rather than 70 make profit out OF the
land.
The new company has already laid
twenty miles OF new steel rails between
South Prairie and Eagle Gorge, and has
filed In many OF the tresties between Ia
coma and Portland New coal bunkers.
costing 10000 and i00-foot extension %
the freight shops have been built al Ia
coma A new sea wall a mile long is in
course OF construction that will cost $50.
o0o and a retaining wall to the blun est-
mated 70 cost so 900. Twenty-Five 10 thir-
y thousand dollars has been expended in
Improving the Seattle freight house, and
extensive improvements are contemplated
az YesleT wharf. which Is 10 be enlarged
20 cover ali the ground Of the company
there. but there are some legal complica-
tlons In connection with the tide lands
that are 20 be Strengthened out before
this can be done. One OF the most i'm
portant moves of the past year was the
purchase OF the Coiman block west OF
Western avenue between Columbia and
Madison streets IN this city. where new
depot is to be built 20 cost sl1S.oeo. A great
number OF tracks have been laid here for
the purpose OF extending the yard facih-
ties occupying the space that was given
in lieu OF the old rams horn property.
The litigation about this rams horn prop
erty had been going on ever since the fire.
every adjoining property holder having
enioined the road and the latter having
enjoined in turn every one I'm sight, so TO
speak At last II is settled. and the
tracks In the vicinity have been straight
ened out and improved. The new car
shops at Spokane are nearly completed.
These arc the divisional car shops. in place
OF those destroyed by FIRE at Sprague.
The latter We're old. having been built at
the time tho line was opened. and the re-
moval OF the works 10 Spokane. where
there are 50 many branch roads. was a
great convenience TO the company.
v. II. Mileage In Washington.
The Northern Pacific. with It's branches
and leased lines. has over 1000 miles OF
road in this state. the only addition dur
ing the year being the spur between Aber-
deem and Aberdeen junction of 2.61 miles
Pend d'Oreille. and with branch taps the
rich mining district of Occur d'Alene from
the north. What Is called the CUTOFF
taps the Occur d'Alene from the south,
with four spurs at the end OF a branch
from the cutoff. the main line and the
cutoff thus forming a circle and making
tho whole OF this great mining district
tributary TO Spokane. From Spokane the
road runs southwark through the wheat
and stock raising counties OF Lincoln and
Adams. across the sage brush county of
Franklin which Irrigation Will shortly
make fertile. to Pasco on the Columbia.
which the road crosses near the mouth OF
Snake river.
Then comes great change In the seem
ery-great stretches OF desert lands. or
what were but a short time back ali des-
ert lands. but now the famous orchards
and farms OF Yakima, produced by irrl-
eating canals. Then comes the beautiful
Kittitas valley. and Ellensburg. famous
for its butter and the center OF a largo
stock raising district. and at Cle-Elum the
main tine Is Joined by short branch that
brings up the large shipments OF the Ros-
lyn and Ronald colli>ries.
The Cascades are crossed al Stampede
pass, tho lowest n this range OF noun
tains. and the landscape changes 10 one Of
dense and lofty timber. The Puget sound
country Is entered by way OF Green river,
which the road follows westward for
some distance and then dips 10 the south
west TO tap aae coal mines and timber sec
tons OF Pierce county. and pulls up IL Pti-
yal.up. The metropolis OF the hop country.
From here a branch runs 81 miles north
ward 20 Seattle, the commercial metropo-
lis ~ The state
The main line continues 20 Tacoma. its
princl pal terminus. and from there 80
Olympia. The state capital. where Il turns
due south 10 Re stone qUarrles Of Tenino,
touching az t7e milling towns Of Bucoia
Centralia and ChehaBs. and runs down The
broad Cow.iIz valley % Castle Rock and
Keiyo. tapping the fruit-grcw .ne and lum-
Der districts OF che lower Columbia al Ka-
leus. There - crosses by ferry the Co
lunshfs and the boundary Of the state and
Is wlthln - niles % Portland. Ore, its
southern terminus.
Branehe. of the Northern Pacific.
Many % the branches 81 TIE Norchern
Pacific are 81 considerable length The
three branches that serve the greas wheat
hog and cattle rails ng country Of me Pa
louise measure III miles. the branch from
Chehshs 20 South Bend taps a numbering
and fishery district and IS = miles long;
the Seattle b-ls line runs from Black river
by way ot Renton Up The east shore OF
Lake washington: the Green River &
Northern is laid northward 30 the Durham
ccsl u.neS. - miles. and IS protected fur
thsr 70 connect vita Th- Seattle 4 Inter
national near SnoQusims- Falls TIE
Gray'S Hsrnor branch has g. miles ard
reaches the lumber and fishing towns o..
Nfonfeszno. Aberdeen. Cosmoco.is ard
Occsta. The aggregate mileage or the
Northern PAclac branches IL "a.
c. ~. Steamer Connection.
The grea ,est 81 al railroad events % me