The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1899-12-10
DROPPING THE CURTAIN,
A Boom That Cost Eastern Capitalists
Twelve Million Dollars,

Two tel,gNnS IN yesterdays orc-
gouiau mark the elise ~ 4 financial
play, a money drama In real NE, and
In some r,SuActs a f0rcc The man
who played the part ~ tho hero AMI
also. as some believe the william, is
dead and the audaci;y with which he
raiscd and iiSSpl,cd Twelve million
dollars is pas;. The tvlegrans are US
follows:
Washington, DyC. S-Thc report NJ
the board u enEin ,ars uPn the va
quina bay investigation. made with a
view to aSc,rtaininG the desiy0hiity Of
prosecuting the work authorized In
l>s6. was submitted TO congress today.
The board expresses the opinion that
the commerce Of YaquinA bay dces
not render it advisable 20 prosecute
the jeLty improv ,ulent. although a rec
ommendati0n is made that ss0,OoO Be
expended in removing cluster OF
rocks in the enamel beyond the south
lefty. 1t deems the har6or unworthy
OF further improvement by the general
government.
Corvallis. or, Dec. S-Tae county
court has made i contrast with Port
land hrm for the collection OF dean-
Queat taxes due from the Oregon
Development Company. The company
was one Of the auxiliary organization
Of the old Oregon Pacific railroad oom-
pany, and I has been dslinquent IN
tax payments to Bentoa county for
nsally a dozen years. The total de-
linQuency now is in the neighborhood
Of sl5O0. The company has been In the
United States district court for long
time, with A. l. Maxwell as receiver
since 1898. Lincoln county has sirni-
lar claim for delinquent taxes that ag-
gregates about $500, Among the assets
OF the company IS 4 slwmin on va
quira bay. which is now advertised
for sale by the receiver.
The only real disappointment over
the failure II the engineers 10 recon-
mend the Yaquiaa Improvement will
be- felt in The n-ighborhood OF YaQuina
bay The people II the Willamette val
ley who have laboNad so long and
10 have Yaquina made a
safe harbor for large vessels realized
some time ago that their hope was
vain. and while from custom and
sense Of duty they urged the improve /
nent against which the board Of an
sinevrs has just reported they knew .
.hlt the engineers would report .
adversely.
There was 4 time not long ago when /
he authorized million dollar contract |
might have been forced through, but
he letting Of he contract was de-
,eated By those who should have besn
he first to promote 1t on ac-
,ount Of the successful biddars arrang-
ng FOR the necessary stone with the
wrong" parties. Since then the val
ey people have grown Very lukewarm
oward the improvement
The second telegram relates to an
auxiliary OF the Oregon Pacific rail-
Dad in whose construction sl2, ,OOO, 900
ash was expended, not Includ-
ng the debts that never were paid.
'ir. Hammond purchased the road for
10000, II is now called the Corvallis
Eastern and extends from Yaquina
o the Cascade mountains
Colonel Hogg, who engineered the
cheme that ended 81 disastrOusly for
IS hackers. is dad One If the prin-
ipal gngina, stockholders John
blair, q New York millionaire. died
hr other day.
The road while not realizing the
r-ams II its original hackers, has
roy-d Of service 10 the people Of the
willamette ALLEY, giving them a com
citing linz TO san Francisco and an
ppositl,n boat line on the Willamette
.yer.
It was hop-l at one time that the
ntrance 10 Yaquina harbor would be-
a improved as 10 enable SHIPS % load
here with grain, thus avoiding he
yrtllnd "rske-on that operates 10
i've the farmers low prices for their
heat Apparently relief can no long
r BE- booked for in that direction and
10 farmers viii take up for them
live The proposition II Obtaining
InmJH point rates to- the mouth Of
Ie Columbia river