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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 1, 1881)
September, 1881 337 CHANGES IN TKN YEARS. By contrasting trip made between Walla Walla and Port) ami nnw. and the tame journey accomplished ten years ago, a good idea of the progress made in thii country can be obtained. Ten years ago the Walla Watlnian, in. tending to visit Portland, made his nr. rangementt days before, and if he did not make his will, he at least solemnly took leave of his relatives and friends. A Concord stage coach, drawn by six horses, constituted the means of travel between Walla Walla and Wallula. The usual time occupied by the driver in making his twelve horses, divided into two teams, draw the coach and contents over the thirty miles of sandy, alkaline, hilly road, was seven hours. Opposition some times caused the knight of the whip to persuade his teams to make the distance in leu than six hours. The inside traveler always prayed for a spirited opposition, as it shortened his misery and lessened the load of dust his unwilling lungs re ceived. Once at Wallula the unfortu nate stage passenger washed himself in an unattractive, not to say dirty, tin wash-dish, mopping his streaming face with a suspicious towel, and, after an in different meal, consigned his weary bones and bruised flesh to a hard lied and industrious bug. The next day the journey to Celilo and The Dalle was made, in compirative comfort, by steamboat and railroad. The traveler was fortunate in those days who ob tained, at The Dalles, a room with a single bedstead in it a room to himself was impossible, as the social and odor ous fellow who inhabits cracks in bed steads and walls thrust his unwelcome company upon the just and unjust with Impartial and Industrious vigor. At the unseemly hour of four o'clock in the morning the knuckles of the watch man beating the Devil's tattoo upon the bedroom door would rouse the traveler to hear a hoarse voice proclaim, "Time for the down boat, sir." Hustling on his clothing and gathering his grip- sack, the unfortunate man, half asleep, would hurry down stairs into the office, settle his bill, and start in the dark lor the boat, where dozen or two more persons would be found trying to finish naps on stools or benches. Ji our irav eller knew the rope, or rather the stew ard, he would speedily procure a cup of strong coffee and bract up for the day After a reasonably pleasant trip by boat and rail Portland would Ik? reached late thut afternoon. The icturn trip was worse, because it required getting up t four o'clock in the morning nt Portland, and a ride the next morning, before breakfast, of sixteen miles in the cars, from The Dalles to Celilo. In those days three days and two nights were consumed in the journey between alia Walla and Portland, and as boats ran but two or three times a week, ow. ing to the season, the round trip be tween the two point, with a short stay in Portland, occupied, according to the luck the traveler had in making connec tions, a week or ten days. The journey cither way wus unpleasant, and to most people so exceedingly disagreeable, thut it was never made unless it was abso lutely necessary. No one made the trip for pleasure, and as a consequence "travel was light." Now', if a man has business in Port land requiring his personal attention, he puts on a clean collar, thrusts a tooth brush In his pocket, kisses the wife of his bosom M hy-by," and entering the sleeping-car at the depot, goes to bed when he wishes to, and wakes the next morning at The Dalles in time to take the seven-o'clock loat, one of the large stern-wheel fleet, ndmiies the scenery, talks with acquaintances, reads a paper or novel) and passes the time iu one way or another until altout three o'clock in the afternoon, when he lands In Port- land, fresh and ready to transact the business that caused the journey. (Jen erally the business can !c transacted during the evening, and the man Is ready, after a night's sleep, to take the boat at seven A. M. for the Cascades and home, the latter place being rcnchci the next morning. Thus, In sixty hours from the time the Walla Walla man said good-by," he has visited Portland, transacted his business and returned home in fact, he has been so fir and done so much in so short a time that he must be in great request hi the com munity if his absence has been noted by any one outside of his foully and possibly a newspaper rcixirtcr. In six months from to-day the trip between Walla Walla and Portland will be shortened several hours, because then the cars will be running between the two places, and passciigcr-fal will b things of the pt. The trip now is neither very tirsm or disagreeable, and delicate- ladies can and do make the journey for health and pleasure. "All the modern improve ments" are rapidly reaching Wall Walla and adding the comforts devised by man to the attractions the Maker of the Universe placed around Its beautiful location, Walla Halt I'm!, IIAKEK COUNTY (OREGON) MINES. Prom J. W. Virtue, banker of linker City, who is one of the oldest settlers in the county and whose extensive con ncction with the leading mining enter prises, says the lun(h(irat GautU, en titles him to be recognised as authority, we have gleaned much valuable Infor mation in regard to the mineral resour ccs of llaker county, 1 le estimates the amount of gold and silver produced from Maker, Union and Grant counties since the discovery of gold In iSqj, from placers, at forty-five millions, Tho yearly products now amount to one and one-half millions, principally from shallow diggings, from three to thirty feet deep. Very few of our old river channel gravel mines, from 60 to loo feet deep, have lieeii worked, al though a large amount of this class of mining ground Is to be louml In llaker, Union and (Jraut counties. Some of these ,derp gravrl channels have been roH-cled on the brad of Powder river which average iio acre. It requires capital to njien these Immense dcosits and turn on the necessary amount of water, but water can be pro cured without the expenditure of very great sums of money, and the gold pro ducts of these counties will he greater twenty year hence from placer and gravel mining than ever Ik fore, (Juarta mining is In Its infancy, and yet the yearly product is about $oyir ami the yield Irom that source has been almut eight millions. llaker has the following mills! Connor Creek, to stamps; (Jold Hill, 10; Moore ami F.astabrooks, 1; New EnglamllOrrgon Mining Compiuy (organised In Con cord, N. II., a very irswnsihle com pany.) 5, silver 1 Virtue (dd ami Silver Mining Co., jo, with steam hoisting and pumping works; Mammoth, j; Tom Payne, 1. Ilcsidc, about 30 are tras, (irsiit has about 40 stamps, the principal mill being the Monumental, 15, and supplied with all the modern liitrtrfimttil. t vmr irmm ttiiA.t.t 'gold ami silver ledges are being devel I oped, awaiting capital to put up machi j ncry, prominent among w nh h are Cable I A Son group of six mines. Cable Cove, Buffalo, Hazard, Silver King, Calttof nia, (iranite ami Silver Peak.