The Weiser signal. [volume] (Weiser, Idaho) 1890-1904, 1897-02-18


gravity. for 1t is too big a factor. even in
commercial life" At another time he
wrote: There is no doubt but the full
benefit has not been taken yet of the
geogra phical value of the mouth of the
Columbia river as direct shipping
point"
President James ]. Hill, of the Great
Northern railroad. talking about the CO.
lumbia river valley. remarked that ''ul-
| timately the export tonnage of Oregon
and eastern Washington would be trans
| shipped at the mouth of the Columbia
! river"
Mr.. s. II. H. Clark, president of the
| Union Pacific railroad. said to Mr.. Fred
erick l.. Ames. on their last visit to the
mouth of the Columbia river that their
! system of roads to the Pacific northwest
would never be complete till they extend
! ed their lines in Oregon to the harbor at
the mouth of the Columbia" To which
| Mr.. Ames fully assented
| The president of the Wenatchee De-
velopment Company of which the Great
| Northern owns one-quarter interest, a
| resident of Seattle for the last % years.
| without reservation that the mouth CT
| the Columbia river would be the great
export shipping point of the Pacific
Northwest"
G. w. Dickinson. the well-known rail
road manager has always fully ratified
project to Mr.. A. b. Hammond the able
financier. who is now building the rail-
road from the mouth of the Columbia
river eastward, to connect with the trans
continental lines centering In Portland.
Many other active railroad men have ia
vorably looked this situation over.
Among them may be mentioned the Of
ficials of the Northern, the Southern. the
Union Pacific, the o. r. & N. Co., the
C. b. & @. and Great Northern railways,
and scores of other influential men from
all parts of the country. One gentleman
who was sent from the east by one of
these lines to make official report on
the feasibility of building the line from
Portland to the mouth of the river. after
a full description of the various routes
now used to reach the coast by the Great
Northern and the Northern Pacific al Sc
attic and Tacoma says: Whoever builds
this road will Immediately command the
traffic situation for the export tonnage on
the Pacific northwest coast, which is the
most important traffic, and is at present
Qn 1880 subject to severe competition be-
tween Seattle, Tacoma and Portland. The
completion of this line. II built in the in
terest of our road would Immediately
place 1t in condition to dictate terms for
all export business to all the transconti-
mental lines from whatever direction
Another gentleman, writing a report in
1894, says: THE building of this road APP
pears to me to be great necessity for the
general welfare of the country, and for
the city of Portland in particular. Since
the completion of the jetty by the govern
ment at the mouth of the Columbia it Is
the best and cheapest harbor from which
to make shipments of the enormous sur
plus of products raised in the states of
Oregon and Washington. You are aware
that all railroads leading to that point.
and the contemplated road, have n grad
of 70
lumbia. This being the only route to the
coast that does not cross the Cascade
mountains over heavy and expensive
grade to operate. makes the proposed
route very desirable one, as a great part
of the tonnage is outward bound
I'VE quote the following extracts from
the pages of the Oregonian at different
times during the last three years:
SO gradual has been the Improvement
at the mouth of the Columbia river that
the people of Oregon scarcely realize the
undoubted fact that there longer exists
bar to obstruct free navigation by the
largest vessels afioat. The shipping in
terests, however. are not ignorant of the
fact. and the Columbia river is now con-
sidered by owners of vessels as one of the
best and safest ports to enter in the
world. An increase of fully one third i'm
the shipping seeking this port is an evil
dence of the high esteem in which it is
now held.
In urging upon the Union Pacific. then
lessee of the Oregon Railway &
Navigation Company's road. the necessity
or building the road from Portland to the
mouth of the river, the writer stated:
The greater part of the business of the
northwestern states would be made the
Unions own, without a rival If it would
build this line. 1t would be u small thing
Tor a result so great. 1t Is the thing nee
Union In
concentrate upon its lines the traffic of
the great region drained by the Columbia
river. In magnitude the second watershed
OF the United States"
The following appeared at later date:
me board of engineers on harbor lines
Tor Astoria, consisting of Colonel Mendell.
Major Huer and Major Handbury. United
States engineers, has fixed the harbor
lines of Flavel. These harbor lines con-
meet with the Astoria harbor lines. and
now there is one continuous harbor from
rongue Point around Young's bay down
10 Fort Stevens, and there is nothing in
the way to prevent the building of a
city as large as New York -
These are but a few OF the exnressIons |
OF representative men after their visit to |
TINS point, and they are quoted thus in |
detail because their oponions are warthy |
of credence.
Oriental Trade.
nv advantages OF the harbOr at the |
mouth or the Columbia river have been
thus far only considered In their re-
lations to present conditions The next
possible and very probable addition IN ito
tonnage will be the establishment of a ,ine
OF first-class 5OO0-ton steamships. to china
and Japan.
No other port either north or sontb
'iohs the entire coast offers so MANY
Lranscontnental railroad connections on.
tbiing the ships laden with the products
u the orient to reach over comDetitive
ines any railroad point in the United
states, and vice versa. AT the first ses
,ion OF congress to convene under Presi-
ient mckinley California. Oregon. Wash
.stoh' luaho ana Montana will unite for
rigorous action to be taken by con~ross
o pulld at once the Nicaragua canal
win tnat under construction the on
Ire Pacific coast will commences to GROW
: never before; far-seeing men will be-
~ 10 puy up timber and wheat lands
'onpletion or the canal will make us ac-
esslble to all ports OF the world NV
uick steamer service bringing us within I
DAYS OF Liverpool. Then the tide of
IMMIGRATION Will flow hither direct as n
ow comes to the Atlantic seaboard. end
rom the mouth of the Columbia will
ollow the mighty river inland tiu tbe
reductions of these new settlers show as n
reat development as is now seen on h
he Atlantic slope o'' 4
~ is not too much to say while on the
loleet that as the advantages held by
eW YORK are greater than all the cities
a the Atlantic seaboard. so also the adj 8
a,., possessed by the mouth of the
oiumbia are superior to those nossassad
any other pert of the Pacific. This
ey seem broad assertion but with a
nowledge of the ISOLATION and circum-
alnces. which by an inexorable law gov I"
ms Ihe location and building of seaports +,
VIII become plain to any reader THAT
enis' ana Is proved in every case n
be correct: That whatever or n,,.a- =
er river. rail and ocean meet there II
Il De a great city. A glanca nt he 49,