The Oroville weekly gazette. [volume] (Oroville, Wash.) 1905-19??, 1917-10-12
OUT OF THE PAST.

ed upon the 41st year of its existence
the Sth year under the management o
the present owners, the Brownwei
brothers. The Gazette is one OF the
oldest, largest, most literally patro
nized and best all around weekly
newspapers in the state.
If we are not mistaken, the Gazette
was established by Charles Hopkins
and Lucian b. Kellogg, and has passed
through a number of hands since the
first issue. Some thirty-five years age
Mr.. Hopkins was sole proprietor OF
the Gazette, Mr.. Kellogg having sew
cred his connection with the paper
and had then recently founded the
Cheney Tribune. A few years later
Mr.. Hopkins went in for the telephone
business, wisely seeing what a revo-
luton the telephone was to make In
the matter of near and distant COM
munication. He was behind the COM
pany that put in the first long distance
telephone system in eastern Washing
ton, and is still connected with the
company that is operating lines all
over the Pacific coast. Consequently
today Mr.. Hopkins is a man OF sub
stance. 1t might be added. both physic-
ally and financially, as Mr.. Hopkins
gathered avoirdupois as he gathered
prosperity. Things never went any too
we'll for Mr.. Kellogg and the last we
heard of the kindly and worthy old
scribe he was holding down an orch
ard near Wenatchee.
And, writing of the Cheney Tribune
brings back very wildly to memory
an occasion, when two very foolish
individuals met, the one being the
editor of this paper. and the other the
said Mr.. Kellogg.
Away back in December, 1882, we
made a trip from California up into
Washington territory, looking for a
location. Our objective point was
Cheney, for a Californian who had
been north brought back glowing
account of the boom on In eastern
Washington, which seemed to be con-
centrating at Cheney, with the promise
Of making that place rafting big
city. We first stopped at Walla Walla,
and tried to make deal for the old
Walla Walla Waterman. Early in jan
lary, 1888, we reached Cheney, and at
that time Cheney was a hummer in
the way of frontier town, with bright
promises of the future that our Cali
fornia friend had predicted. The Nor
thern Pacific was just building, and
had reached into Idaho. For some
reason that was never satisfactorily
explained the influence of the railroad
seemed to be altogether ex-
erted in favor Of Cheney, almost en-
tirely overlooking Spokane Falls, then
little more than a village, and a quiet
one at that. So far as business, fever
ish push and life were concerned, at
that time Cheney had it over Spokane
Falls by a thousand per cent. Houses.
raw and flimsey though they were in
appearance, were going up like magic,
people were on the keen jump and ev-
cry branch of business was flourish
Ing.
Among the prosperous business VEN
lures were two weekly papers, one
conducted by Frank Montgomery, who
a few years afterwards left the coun-
try never to be heard of again, and
the other, the Tribune, owned by Mr..
Kellogg. The plant occupied a half
finished building out in the woods on
the edge of town, about where the
Normal school now stands, where Mr..
Kellogg expected the business center
would soon be. The material in the
shop probably did not cost more than
a few hundred dollars. We doubt If
there is paper in the state today so
meagrely equipped. But the business
the Tribune was doing! My, but it
made our eyes bulge out. Kellogg was
worked almost to a nervous wreck,
and yet could not keep up with the
demand for Job work, and his paper
was overrun with advertising. We
were wild to get into the game in such
a promising town. AN effort was made
to strike up bargain with Mr.. KEEL
logg, but he would not stop work long
enough to listen to any such propo-
sal. We made similar appeal to Mr..
Montgomery, and he laughed at us.
Failing in Cheney we went to Spo-
kane Falls, fell Immediately in love
with the place and at once realized its
future possibilities. After spending
some days at Spokane Falls we re-
turned to California to settle business
affairs and within three months re-
turned with printing outfit and cast
out lot for time with what has be.
come one of the most progressive and
beautiful cities in the land, the rapid.
ity of its growth bordering upon the
marvellous.
But that is not the completion Of the
story of how two fools met. Upon re.
turning to California we found letter
from Mr.. Kellogg offering to sell his
plant for $4,000, although confessine
that he believed that he was making
grave mistake parting with the pa
per. We telegraphed back that W.
would give him $500 cash and $500 If
six months MIR. Kellogg turned dowr
the offer, and we Immediately arrang
ed to 60 to Spokane Falls. Within
three years Montgomery's paper hat
passed away, or he had left Cheney
the Tribune was languishing ant
finally persisted, Spokane Falls alb
sorbed all the prosperity in circulation
in northern Washington, and Cheney
commenced slowly drifting backward
Where the two foolish people mad'
the silly break that we have been try
ing to tell about, was when we Offered
such an unreasonably large sum fol
the Tribune and Kellogg refused t,
accept.