The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1899-11-01

PREPARING For BIG BUSINESS
Intends the Sound City to Be the
Greatest Wheat Shipping Fort
Ia the World.
Tnooma Ledger.


President {. s. Mellon Of the North.
ern Pacific railway. with his party, In.
cludng j. w KendrIck. second vice.
prosdent J, a. Hannaford third vice.
preaidcnt II, A. McIIenry. chief engl-
ncer, NJ. G, Kimberly, general auperin-
tendcnt W. II. ucmmcll. assistant
secretary, and II. y, Bush. manager OF
the coal company, arrived In the city
last night and wen Joined this morning
by 3. @. Fulton. assistant general
freight agent, who came up from Port
land.
The party came through direct 70
Tacoma In special consisting OF throe
cars including thu private car Yellow
stone. which has recently becn over.
hauled and rehtted At the South Ta-
coma shops,
This morning MIR Mellcn held a con-
aullatlon with Thomas Cooper. general
western land agent OF the company,
ard the representative at the west end
Of the executive department Of the road.
Mr.. Fulton " also n managing director
ot the Tacoma Land 4 Improvement
Company OF which Mr. Mcllcn recently
purchased for the railroad company
all % the wntar front from the Elev-
cnth street bridge 10 tho ocean dock.
The most important Item for Tacoma
In PRECEDENT Melons visit az this time
is the closing up 0f arrangements for
the building Of norc grain warehouses.
Grain warehouses with Il capacity OF
i've million bushels will be built on the
lands below the Hotel Tacoma and the
Northern Pacific railway general Office
building, and the channel viii b. drcdg-
cd out as FAR up as the Eleventh street
bridge to allow ships Of the dcepest
drafts to load az the wharves at any
stage Of the tide
The grain warehouses win Do built
by the grain exporters on land leased
from the railroad In the same manner
ns the present warehouses are man
agcd. Elevator II. Elevator A. the Pu-
get Sound Flour Min warehouse and
the EuNka dock all being built and
managed by corporations outside OF the
railroad company.
We shall commence az once the Inn
provcments on the water front proper
ty which We recently purchased from
the land company" said MIR, Mellen.
THE wharvcs viii be repaired. the
channel dNdged deep enough TO Ac-
commodatc the wheat ships. and grain
warehouses built TO handle the wheat
which is coming to this port for ship.
ment.
"The deeds for this purchase are COM
plete and have passed through the
necessary examination by counsel and
win probably be delivered in a day or
two.
The preliminary arrangements for the
construction OF n passenger station at
Seattle win also be concluded during
my present visit"
The land purchased by the company
to which Mr.. Mellen refers Is the tract
extending from the Hatch mill site at
the south end OF the local steamer ware
house at the wharf southwark along the
channel about 5000 feet, including the
Algcr boathouse site, the Commercial
dock, the Eureka dock, the Western
Machine & Engine Company dock, the
Cascade Cereal Company dock and the
long strip under the blum below the
Hotel Tacoma up TO the Eleventh street
bridge. The strip is about 400 feet
wide and abuts on the channel 400 feet
wide, II is this channel which Is to be
dredged out to depth sufficient TO al
low the wheat ships to load at the
docks.
These ships draw from % to 80 feet OF
water when fully loaded, This channel
was dredged ont by the Bowers dredger
years ago so as to accommodate the
Sound craft, and such steamers as the
Bay city Flyer, Skagt Chief, etc., have
run up as far as the foot OF Twenty
first street, distance OF over a mile
and half.
The dredging out Of this channel for
deep ships will also make available the
city wharf site on the east side Of the
channel at the foot of the Eleventh
street bridge.
No plans have yet been given out as
to the capacity Of the new wheat ware
houses, but as there Is now something
like FIVE million bushels in store here 1t
Ia probable the new warehouses will
add another Ave million bushels to the
capacity Of the port, which is becoming
one of the greatest wheat shipping
ports Of the world.