The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1902-12-11


service between here and Roche Har-
bor would be very much greater to
Roche Harbor people if there was good
steamboat mail service between Seattle
aud Anacortes. The slp-shod mail
service rendered by the steamer State
of Washington during the winter
months is'a constant aggravation. No
dependence whatever can be placed
upon it. Very often the State does not
reach Anacortes until after the Buck
eye leaves and the island mail pouch is
carried through to Whatcom, involv-
ing days delay in the delivery of It's
contents at the various offices in this
county. There are other steamers
which reach Anacortes early enough
/ to make connection with the Buckeye
regularly and if one of them had the
mail contract the service on that route
would be of,much greater value to the
people of this county than it now is.
In this connection the ISLANDER de-
sires to call attention to thef ease with
which the Roche Harbor service from
here might be materially improved
and extended, at small additional cost
to the government, so as to afford the
advantages of rural mall delivery to
many people. At present the mail
stage goes and returns via Sportsman
lake, from which the route Is over one
of the poorest roads IN the county,
traversimg the most thinly settled sec
ton of San Juan island. Now instead
of returning the same way it would
seem that the return route should be
established over the valley road, with
little detOur to the most convenient
point near the head Of Mitchell bay.
BY putting up mail boxes along the
road many people who now have to go
from two to seven miles for their mail
would obtain the advar tages of rural
delivery. The mail would be delivered
at Roche Harbor just as early as it is
now and the route, would be little, if
any, longer than the postoffice depart
ment's minimum requirement for
rural service.
There are other ways, too, in which
needed improvement in the mail SER
vice in the county might be made.
One of them is by placing the Lopez
office on the Buckeyes route, and an
other is by establishing a special star
route service tri-weekly between here
and Waldron island, Including also
Shaw island, if anyone ON this side of
the island is willing to serve as post
master. There is much good agricul-
tural land on Waldron' island that is
untitled; the timber resources are con-
siderable, the fisheries are extensive
and there is deposit of fine sandstone
for building purposes. In fact the re-
sources of the island are ample to well
sustain population OF several hun
dred people, but its settlement and de-
velopment will be slow until some reg
ular and safe means of transportation
is provided. If it is impracticable to
require one Of the present mail steam
ers to touch at Waldron, 1t certainly is
not impracticable to provide special
service from here, connecting with the.
steamers on the main routes.
Competition for the carrying trade of
the county has reduced the cost of the
mail service fully one-half during the
past few years. If the saving thus ef-
fected were expended in extensions of
the postal service many people would
be benefited and the settlement and
development of localities now greatly
isolated would receive q much needed