The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-11-12

Just south O. the coal bunkers at Smith
cove. 1lttng far out into the bay and
Joined 10 the present lines o. railroad By
curving spur tracks, the new warehouses
and grain elevator of the Great Northern
are rising rapidly into prominence.
The contractors have taken advantage Of
the fire weather that has prevailed almost
continuously sinct the contract was let. and
they expect 10 nave the two big buildings.
one Oh the north side and the other on the
south side OF the slip completed by Christ
mas. The dredging out OF the slip Will
probably take longer, cat the dredgers Will
be a work within TWO weeks and that part
Of the work aili be pressed with equal Dis
patch.
Five million feet Of lumber will be used
IN the construction Of the two main build
Ings.
Thirty thousand cords OF brush are being
used in the construction OF seawalls for
the dock
Ten thousand piles VIII be required for
the varions foundations OF these more
than S.eD have already been driven, ana the
remainder will be put down next week
From these few figures the reader may
gain some conception of the magnitude %
the work now being done by the Great
Northern in building up a system Of 'er-
mnal facilities at Seattle
The idea of a great dock, a great ware
long been in the mind of President fIll.
and he has waited only for q convenient
opportunity or putting his conception into
tangible form, With MS characteristic.
foresight he was one OF the first Americans
10 grasp the importance Of Oriental traffic
and the relation which that traffic was des-
tined TO bear to the Pacific coast Mr. Hill
has not only foresight but a genius for
action and consummate strategy He had
no sooner perceived the great opening for
American transcontnental and oceanic
commerce than he opened negotiations with
the largest Of all the Asiatic steamship
companies, the Nippon Yusen Kaisha: and
the result 81 those negotia lions was a com
pact between the Great Northern and ths,
japanese company by which for term OF
years Seattle was made the terminus OF a
new transpacifc line OF steamers.
Its Importance to Seattle.
The Importance Of the establishment Of
that lire, so far as Seattle IS concerned il
would be hard to overestimate While il is
true that most OF the freight 10 and from
the Orient has been delivered here simpIv
In transit yet Il has in many ways formed
an important part OF the commercial life Of
the city The mere handling of the freight
has given employment to hundreds of men
and the Increased business of the railway
has benefited the city IN other WAYS
Further than this, the establishment of Sc
attic as tle terminus Tor the Japanese line
advertised this city throughout the Orient
10 an extent and in A manner which moth
ing else could have done Two weeks be-
fore the establishment Of the line the name
OF Seattle was practically unknown III ia
pan Within two weeks after the contract
had been signed there was not leading
port in Japan in which the name of Seattle
was not heralde1 far and wide.
In order 10 appreciate the rapidly and
extent Of this advertising il is necessary
for the American reader 70 bear in mind
that the japanese steamship company with
which Mr. Hill had formed his coalition is
the most powerful commercial company in
the Orient, II has a feet Of more than
sixty steamers, a number Of which have
been recently built by the famous Euro
pean ship builders II has a capital which
enables II - undertake such an enterprise
.he establishment OF four transoeeanic
lines simultaneously But these are not its
greatest elements OF strength Al every
leading port in Japan and China il has the
choicest water front property and the most
eligible location. Its commercial credit Is
practically unlimited. Two years ago four
OF it's board of directors We're members of
the imperial government. A. the same time
its shares are widely scattered among the