7;M WKST P1I0UK.
IT ll " llllll -.AAA.
T MI IHOALWAUM BAY COUNTRY,
Shoalaater Uy It thirty mile lung and hu an average
width of l i mllea. Th water In th Uy it ahoal, bene 1U
nam. However, In Ui rhannrl ther la from thirty to ninety
(rtt (4 water. Tl.a La, where I ha Uy meeU Ilia ocean la aii
in I wide, am! la perfectly aafa to rroaa at all tlmee, and hu a
ll0i of water at low tide of thirty fret. Shoalwater bay
aliunde In all klnda of flah, aurh aa sturgeon, salmon, trout,
rraU, torgle. torn cod, herring and numerous other klnda, but
la flnrllly notd fur ita oyitere and clami, of which ther la
no and, and of which there art several thousand aarka ehlpped
annually. Ther art several large rivers emptying Into It, all
draining a mutt wonderful, fertile country, In which thousands
of arrra ara only waiting for aettlitr to Improv th opportunity
offered by I'nrla haw to make themaelvea lndejendent In a few
yeara. Tl.a principal on la th Wlllip.
North river rlae in a apur of tha Coiat range mounUlna,
and runa In a weeterly court for tlxty mllra, and ernptiet Into
Mtoal water Uy at tha northeut Mjlnt, forming a eheltered Uy.
Utile Noith river and Salmon creek are Hie main tributarlea
inlying Into tha main river, two and four mllra retiecllvely
frum lU mouth. North river would U a navigate Itrrarn for
many iiuIm for tha ordinary tteamere that run on thla Uy but
( turn dg jama. The main on la aeven mile flora ita
mouth, and ia alout 700 yarda long. Tha lower one on Smith
rk ! hot nearly ao formldahla. Ther la no reusable doubt
Imt thai the government will appropriate funda to clear lth
rrwka, aa ly doing ao It oena op aa fin a Iwdy of limUr aa
ther ia on U. rout, telda mile of Ude and lottom landa.
Tl.e txjtlomt art from on to on and a half mile wide, and
ar generally covered with a tptre growth of pine, maple and
aider, lntrred w llh amall prairie. The lid land extend
for aliout all teen mllra, tnd are uaually tlmtored Uie aame aa
th Imt tome, home good farma ar already oned uon bolh
rlrere, niuatly at the mouth, although th head of North river
la Uing rapidly eetlltd. There la a larg co of good farming
land Uilrtitary to Smith creek, and about ality aettler have
taken rlalma. A toad hu len oned to th Wllla, and no
d.wH ther will U a large Immlgrallon ther thla aummer.
T1. earn general feature govern Smith creek aa do th North
river. The principal enteral. now la etovk ralalng, although
i j-erimenta In all klndi of grain and ho prov Uiat the coun
try la an ar Icultural on. Frulta of all klnda alao do well, aa
U orrharde at the mouth of North river and Smith rreek giv
aUndanl evldeno. (im U all klnda la abundant. IVer,
Ik and Uar ar very plentiful; wild dix ke, gee, pheaaanta
and grout are numerate in their aeaaon.
Tt Nema and Nwth Nema ar abort atreama, and ar not
ia IgaM U hoeU larger than a plunger, and only a few mile
U them. Tli general court of th Nema la weaterly, and
mptle Into Mutilator Uy on th Mat aide, oppuelU Soaland.
TMr jondU Utm a amall Uy, (lata, aa Uiey ar locally
ralUl. They ar dry at low lid, but mak viy good oyeUr
grounds. Th general rioter of th ground la billy, and
comd generally w ith a heavy grow th of fir, epnio and wslar.
TtT la a larg amount of U.I land upon both rivere, and
auw fin buUome. Tt. WHotut ar generally covered w 1th a
growth U alder. er Urry and aalmon Urry buahr. Ther
are no town or villaei oion either river, and only a few Beat
tared aettlrr upon the moat available and valuable tide lands
and oyntering point. The majority of the country ia still open
to the aettler, and can U had either from the government or
the Northern Pacific Railroad Company.
The Palix river rises in the same range of hills as the Nema,
flows In a northwesterly direction, until It empties into Shoal
water bay. The general characteristics of the country are the
tame aa the Nema, except that it has a proportionately greater
share of the tide lands. There are a good many settlers on the
Palix, though most of the in are near Its urnith, at a place called
Hay Centre. Pay Centre la situated upon the west side of a
penlntula, and la aheltered from the storms In nearly all direc
tions. The bay formed by the Palix, and the natural formation
of the ground, makes It one of the best, if not the best, oyster
Ing ioltit on the bay. Uruceport, a few miles farther east, is
alao a tributary to Palix, both towns having the same Interest,
vis., oyttering. At one time it was the most Important town in
the county, the county seat being located there, and was also
the main ahlpping point for oysters. Attoria Columbian.
THE OLYMPIC REGION.
The early departure of the expedition jointly fitted out by
(ieneral Gibbon and the Oregon Alpine club, to explore the
Olympic range, renders the following letter of C. 8. Oilman In
the Tacoma LtJgrrd special Interest:
My son, 8. C. Oilman, who is now making his headquarters
at Oray'a Harbor City, hu been exploring Western Washing
ton for more than a year puat, and I was with him In the work
during the lat three montha of 1889 In the Olympic country
north of dray's harbor, aouth of the straits and between the
waters of Puget sound and the ocean. Three months' very
hard work with suitable help, In which time we crossed the
country both north and aouth and tut and west, gave us an
avurato knowledge of much of that region, and a good general
knowledge of the whole. The north, eut and south sides of
that penlnaula are occupied and ijuite well known, but the great
Interior and Die cout landa westerly therefrom were but little
known and were supiweed to be all mountains and uninhabit
able. Thla ia a great misapprehension, though the mountains
are Iher In great form. They do not reach the ocean, how
ever, excei by a low tpur which extenda along the south side
of the strait to Ca Flattery. South of that spur or extension
and between the main bsxiy of the Olympic mountains and the
ocean la a Ult of fifteen mile or more in width of the finest
country to U found anywhere. It la In all ahapee, from mod
erately level to aharp hilli, all In view of both the ocean and
mountalna. Four large rivere, the Qulnault, Queeta, Hob, and
Qmllyot run from the euterly part' of the mounUlna weat
rly to the 0, acrow th good belt, the first-named river
draining U, mounUlna nineteen rolnte wlthlu about twelve
mllea of lood'a canal. Vpon varioua sections of theac rivers,
both in th. mounUlna and west of them, are very fine bottom
landa from on to four miles In width, timbered but lightly
with very .mail cottonwood or brtuh, and very cheaply cleared
for farma. Thee, valleya ar not excelled by any in the aUte
lor hop raiatng or for any kind of agriculture. Numerous
mailer streama ar alao there, all bountifully supplied with