Ill
daced. All of the couD
try Ijii uth and t of the Columbia nver, clear
throoch ti IL iVkjr mountains, is adapted to rws-
fog mini. tU average yield for ue acreage now
Cm. U ir thirty buahels per acre. This region, which
i, gr,r!ly known m the Columbia river basin, and
w,::a times ca11 J the Inland Empire, comprises about
ter,ty.five million acres, capable of producing, when
tilled to iU fulleit capacity, upward of two hundred
million bushels of wheat per annum, the annual sur
plus of which ha already reached the very consider
al l bulk of fjfWn millions of bushels. West of the
CmwI range of mounUins, are found extensive fer
tile tall') a, which yield, under the influence of a
rnout, mild finals, immense crops of hops, hay and
vegetables, anil the clay loam uplands, when cleared,
yield plentifully of hardy fruits, such as apples,
(ram, prune, plums, cherries and small fruits. Im
mediately east of Tacoma, about thirty miles distant,
are found extensive deposits of coal, which have been
reliably estimated to bo worth more than the value of
all the precious metals ever produced in golden Cali
fornia. Tbetc dejxwiU vary in thickness from three
to twenty feet, and are believed to extend throughout
the (Wade range of mountains, from the extreme
northern to the extreme southern boundary of the
territory. The coal measures of this field have been
'1unI up, and its mines are now being rapidly de
uh.jl, upwards of one thousand tons per day find
ing shipment from Tacoma. Near by, have been dis
covered extensive deposits of iron, copper and mar
ble. On the eastern slot of the Cascade range of
mountains, rich mines of gold and silver are king
work!, and in the Salmon river district, located in
the central psrt of the northern jwrtion of the terri
t.ry haveben discovered ledges of gold and silver
hchMfMr to rival, in richness, the mines of an
.hUad Immediately aJjwnt to Tacoma, and on
the ulands in I ug,t loond, tributary to this city are
nten.Me lb, parries, which supply, to a large ex
t i;Uh mar et of the Pacific et In no pitioo
of the world .. there found, in such close proximity
m e th thm m,Ltials for the manufacture of iron
d sWL The and lime are both found on av
M ters, and can thus l transjwrted to Tacoi
ury ..all ex,,,s, As the resources 0ftt
m wMi;Uin Territory um"
. K irl "Wets htmte fr. .- i . 1
Uttheheadof
navigation on Puget sound, which is an arm of the
Pacific ocean, extending in, through the Straits of
Fuca, to the wharves at Tacoma, without reef or rock,
open for navigation three hundred and sixty-five days
of the year. The Straits of Fuca are thirteen miles
in width, and present a favorable highway for navi
gators, who frequently sail their craft to Tacoma
without assistance of pilot or tug. The safety of Pu
get sound for navigation is attested by the fact that
no vessel has ever been lost between the Straits of
Fuca and Tacoma. Vessels of the deepest draft can
land at the wharves at Tacoma at any stage of tide.
Commencement bay, on which Tacoma is located, is
all that could be deaired, being land-locked and capa
ble of affording anchorage for all the vessels which
will find their way here for cargoes. The local trade
of Puget sound is tributary to Tacoma by numerous
local steamers. The immense wheat fields of Eastern
Washington are tributary to Tacoma by the Cascade
division of the Northern Pacific, which has recently
been completed across the Cascade mountains, and
which, with other feeding lines, reaches the heart of
the richest and most populous portions of Eastern
Washington. The trade of the mining districts above
referred to, is tributary to Tacoma by steamers on the
Columbia river, in Eastern Washington, and thence
to Tacoma by rail. On the south, Tacoma enjoys
connection direct with Oregon and California, by
means of the Pacific division of the Northern Pacific
railroad to Portland, Oregon, and thence to San Fran
cisco by the Oregon & California railroad. The main
line of the Northern Pacific railroad, to St Paul,
Minneapolis and Duluth, extends directly east from
Tacoma, through the Cascade mountains and Eastern
Washington. The trade of Eastern Oregon is tributa
ry to Tacoma by connections made with the Union
Pacific railroad, in the southeastern portion of the ter
ritory. Thus it will be seen that the channels of
tradd already established in the territory center at
Tacoma.
Tacoma was chosen as the western terminus of
he Northern Pacific railroad by a resolution of the
board o directors of that company, passed in 1873.
uwmg to the financial difficulties under which that
corporation labored, hnt mnft i :
toedm the place until 1880, from which time its
growth has been rapid. Its greatest growth has been
I , lMl W nce the completion of the main
T 01 t0 "" 'be Cascade mountains, which
one hme were considered an insurmountable bar-
No thtn P !tlC,h "s roa(1 onl tomtom "
vol Pacific Kailroad Company's management
J' Purchased, in and around the town site of