The west shore., August 01, 1885, Page 255, Image 27

THE WEST SHORE.
I
OUR BRITISH NEIGHBORS.
N the minda of the average Oregonian the name Vic
toria is at once associated with thoughts of defaulting
casniers, postmasters and refugees from justice in gen
eral. No sooner do we hear of a bank suspension in
Oregon or Washington Territory, of some" postmaster's
ingenious methods of duplicating accounts, of sorae oon
niving rascal who has cheated an unfortunate widow out
of her last dollar, than we read in our Victoria dispatches
of the safe arrival in that city of those distinguished
individuals. A man can at 11:45 o'olock to-day close his
offioe in Portland, after putting all his available assets
beyond the reach of his creditors, and in less than
twenty-four hours step ashore at Viotoria with his ill
gotten gains in his possession and be beyond the reach
of American justice. Leaving the wrong-doer in his
haven of rest and security, let us turn our attention to
Victoria as the more legitimate traveler finds her, and in
place of the hoard of wealth whioh is foroed upon her
by peculating cashiers and postmasters, pay particular
attention to the extensive trade whioh oomes to her
through legitimate channels.
Victoria is more than prosperous she is solid. From
her business blocks to her Government buildings all is
stability. Her business firms are solid, and what cannot
be said of some of Oregon's thoroughfares, even her
roads are solid. Wherever you find the English doing
business there will you always find a volume of business
to be done, and wherever the English element is predom
inant there will you always find prosperity. Give an
American twenty thousand dollars and he will either
make one hundred thousand or lose the entire amouut
of his original oapitaL Give an Englishman the same
amount of money and he at onoe seeks for a permanent,
secure investment The English look to a steady dovel
opment, not to a rapid growth. Their buildings are con
structed to stand; their roads are made to last, and their
trade once established is retained.
Victoria holds the key to the entire trade of British
Columbia. The large fishing interests of Fraser River,
the extensive coal interests of Vancouver Island, the im
mense fur trade of the thousand islands to the north, all
pay tribute to Victoria. The Indian in his frail dugout,
with his squaw by his side, makes this ennui thousand
mile trip to Victoria to dispose of hie yearly faad
fun, The miner after hie. year', hard toil intbe go d
fields of the Btickeen and Fraser come, to Victor k y
in his winter's supply of provkW b Jietom
that those of profligate tendencies from the coa lei of
the north spend their hard-earned wage-, end it Je in
Victoria that the cry of "dull time." u m J"
Nowhere on the Pecifio Coaster, ther. hinry
those leading out from Victor A dm. &
the British naval elation, four mile, distant U . m
pleasant ffiZ
general evenness of the road, wan w b
with pleasure. At Esqnimalt the pleasure seeker will
find much to interest him. There he can visit one or
more of the immense iron-olads lyinpf penoefnlly st nnchnr
in the harbor; there he can see in process of construction
one of the largest dry docks on the Pacific Coast, and
there he can listen to the somewhat longthy sketches of
Indian charactor from the mouth of the "oldest settler"
to his heart's oontent At the dry dock. h. cannot but
note the genoral solidity of the work. When completed
this will be the most substantial dock on the Const It
will receive a vessel 450 feet in longth, and in a few hours
at most she can be scraped, painted and again ready for
sea. EsquimaU will in the near future be place of no
little importance. She will not only enjoy what advan
tnges must aoorue to her from her position as the Eng
lish naval station for the Paoiflo Coast but being the
western torminus of the Island Railway, eh will, on the
oom plot ion of that road to Nanaimo, enjoy the immense
trade of the Nnnaimo ooal fields.
North of Viotoria ilia next place of importance i.
Nanaiino. This place is full of historic interest It was
here in the early "50's" that the Hudson'. Bay Company
established one of their large trading stations. Here, In
1853, this company built for protection against the treach
erous Indisns the bastion which i. .till standing intact
The Indian has long ere this learned to not only respect
but fear the palufaoe, and to-day the onoe dangerous
native is feared by the whites no more. The Indian ha.
discovered that retributive justioe la sure to follow any
of bis enoroaohraeuU on the right, of the white man, end
the onoe untamed eavage is now the most docile and
harmless of individuals.
At Nanaimo is located the extensive ooal mine, of the
Vancouver Coal A Land Company. A shaft has been
sunk to e depth of GOO feet end from the bottom of thi.
shaft a tunnel, following the ever widening vein of ooal,
has been run for over 8,000 feet under the harlior, The
coal supply here is simply inexhaustible. The ooal taken
from this mine i. of the best quality, as attested by iU
constant use by the Paoiflo Mail Steamship Company,
Occidental k Oriental Steamship Company, San Fran
cisco Gaslight Company, Paoiflo Coast Btoamship Com
pany, Oregon Improvement Company, California Sugar
Refinery end the Victoria, Oa. Comjmny.
Among the contemplated improvement in Nanaimo
are the new water works, to be erected by e syndicate of
gentlemen composed of W. II. Halleok, J. W. Sterling,
Dr. O'Brien, E. Pimbury end others. Water will be
brought from the headwaters of Nanaimo River at e
point near SUrk'. Falls, about ton miles from the oity.
The quality of water supplied from this souroe is unei.
colled. The estimated oust of these Improvements Is
aiutnr,ooo.
The trade of Nanaimo is steady. The miner, are paid
off weekly end their earnings ere mostly .pent et home.
The merchant, uoiug a cash business are able to meet
their payments promptly. There is on record but e single
bad debt ever contracted by e Nanaimo merchant, and s.
facetiously remarked by one of Nanaimo. most .olid