The west shore., September 20, 1890, Page 87, Image 7

WEST SHORE.
87
TOE FA B WEST
THE NICARAGUA CANAL.
A number of gentlemen connected with the engineering department of
the great Nicaragua canal, who arrived in Washington, D. C, last week,
bring reports of commendable progress being made on that great enterprise .
Several million dollars have already been spent and the active work of con
struction is now well under way, and so well started and under such favor
able financial auspices that the success of the scheme is assured. The
Nicaragua company has recently purchased, at enormous expense, the plant
of the American Dredging Company, which had been doing work on the
abandoned Panama canal. The dredges are now being delivered at Grey
town, the eastern terminus of the canal, and the Nicaragua company will
operate them itself, instead of letting ontracts for such work as these
dredges are adapted to. Already the pier, or breakwater, extending ont
into the gulf at Greytown, is nearly completed, and actual dredging for the
canal on the gulf side has begun. The telegraph line from Greytown to
Lake Nicaragua, connecting with the lines ou the Pacific coast, is completed,
and the railway from Greytown, laid along the line of the canal, Is well
under way. At present about 1,800 men and a corps of eighty ollioers, or
engineers, are on the ground and at work. The first work, preliminary to
the work on the canal proper, was the building of the great pier at Grey
town, extending 1,800 feet out towards deep water. This pier is necessary
to protect the entrance to the canal, and work on it was began early last
January. Seven hundred feet of it have been completed. This pier has
proved a lncky enterprise. When work was begun on It the entrance to the
harbor was obstructed by a sand bar, and the 700 feet already built has to
changed the currents tint this bar has almost entirely worn away by the
action of the water. The construction of this waterway means, perhaps,
more to Oregon and Washington than to any other part of the world. The
shipments from these states to foreign countries is increasing at an aston
ishing rate every year, and it promises, with the shortening of the distance
resulting from the use of this canal, to rival that of any other section of the
world. By way of Cape Horn the distance from New York to Portland is
15,510 miles, while by way of Nicaragua canal It will be but 5,430 miles, or
a saving of 10,080 miles by the new route. From Liverpool to Portland by
the route now traveled by merchant ships is 15,360 miles, while by way
of the canal the distance will be shortened to 8,178 miles, or a saving o( 7,
182 miles. These savings are only samples of what will be accomplished
for shipping to all parts of the world, and as the time consumed and dis
tance lessen the expenses will also be proportionally reduced, which
means a decrease in freight rates of nearly fifty per cent. This can not but
be advantageous to all classes of producers In this section, not only in in
creasing the profits of their business, but In a proportionate enlargement of
their respective outputs.
WHERE GOLD AND SILVER GROW.
January 19, 1848, forty-two years ago, Captain Sutter, a California mill
er, James W. Marshall, an employee of Sutter, who was a rancher and not
a miller, was the discoverer Eo. discovered a shining substance in his
mill race. The shining substance proved to be gold, and then began the
western gold fever, which has lasted Intermittently until the present day.
The United States mint was established In 1702. From 1702 till 1848 the
total gold product of the country was less than half a million a year. Then
there was a great jump in gold. In 1849 there was produced 140,000,000 in
gold, fifteen and one-half millions more than the entire output of the country
for fifty-six years previous to the California discovery. The California gold
discovery marked a new era in the Industrial development of the world.
The Australian gold fields were found some years afterwards, and tills was
followed by the opening of the African gold mines. These have not yet
been fully developed. The California gold mines increased their output
steadily until 1854. That year marked the high tide of gold production in
the United States with (05,000,000. In the last ten years mines through
out the union have yielded from $30,000,000 to 38,000,000 annually. Cali
fornia now produces a third of the gold of the country. The second gold
producing state is Montana; the third Colorado; the fourth, Nevada. Not
till 1859, ten years later than gold, did our silver production take a great
swing forward. Then It suddenly jumped from $50,000 a year to half a mill
ion. Since then it has increased steadily. Silver mines throughout the
country yielded In 1888, $59,195,000. In 1888, the combined products of the
two precious metals amounted to $92,370,000. This has never been exceed
ed except in one year, 1878, when the amount was $90,000,000. The silver
state of the union is Colorado, which comes in with a yield of $19,000,000 In
1888. Montana produced $17,000,000 the same year. This new state Is the
second in the union in the production of both gold and silver. From Unit
ed States mines comes one-third of all the gold and silver of the world.
Montana, the youngest state in the development of her mines, ranks first in
the output of copper, a dangerous second in the output of silver and is also
second in the golden harvest of America. As the years roll by Montana
will assume and maintain the first rank in the output of gold, silver and
copper. Jfimtaiia Mining Review,
In answer to an inquiry from the commissioner of the general land
office as to the number of acres of surveyed and unsurveyed land in the
Oregon City district, the register of the land office has prepared the follow
ing statement:
ConntiM, Surrayed. Uniumred.
CUUop ivnoaona 288,000 una
Columbia 88,980 " 10,000 "
Wuhingtoii 11.000 " 57,600 "
Tillamook, 111,400 " 8M,40 "
Yamhill as,7 "
Folk ss mo " es.tao "
Bratoa 70.M0 " 1S1.S0O "
Linn 58.000 " 806,880 "
Union 11.820 " 106,880 "
Clukamu N.10O " MO.M0 "
Multnomah U30 " 80,080 "
Total 48,8H0aorw liH,m tore
The above statement shows that nearly three million acres of land in
this district are yet unsurveyed, and not subject to entry. By far the best
timbered sections of the state are embraced within the UmlU of the Oregon
City district, which will ere many years prove very profitable for the lum
berman. There are about 100,000 acres of land in the Skagit valley, Washington,
Including the Swlnomish fltts, 13,000 acres in the Olympia marsh, and 30,
000 acres of the Samlsh flats. Of this tract about 40,000 acres are now
under cultivation, hops being the most valuable product, though covering
but a small acreage. Oats are also raised In large quantity, one hundred
bushels to the acre not being an uncommon yield. Four to five tons of
hay are also frequently cut from the same amount of ground. All kinds of
hardy fruits and berries are produced in Immense quantities of a quality
unexcelled by any section of America. Dairying is an Important indus
try, though not carried on as extensively as the agricultural pursuits.
The principal town and shipping point of the valley Is Mount Vernon, which
is the county seat of Skagit county. It is a typical western town of about
900 population, energetic and progressive to a remarkable degree. The
Great Northern railroad now building will aid materially in its develop
ment, Its citiiens are not expecting a large city to spring up in place of
their present modest beginning, but they claim the valley will support a
city of 10,000 population when fully developed, and that Mount Vernon will
be that place by reason of being the center of trade already established.
The deep water facilities afford good shipping, and like Home of old, all
roads lead to that point. While not a boom town, the prospects of Mount
Vernon are certainly very flattering.
A motor line is ti be constructed connecting the town of Milton, Ore
gon, with the city of Walla Walla, Washington. The places are about
twelve miles apart as the line will run, and the cost of building and equip
ping it estimated to be $5,000 per mile. The section which will be traversed
by the road it now used principally for pasturage for stock, and it It claimed
by the promoters of the enterprise that immediately upon the completion of
the road tome 18,000 acres of tills land will be taken np in small holdings
and converted Into one vast garden spot. Business and professional men
of moderate means will also be enabled to own suburban homes and still
be within easy reach of their business, and farmers can give their children
Die benefits of the graded school system of the cities. It it believed the
Inauguration of this enterprise will result in a rapid Increase In the popula
tion of that section, as ten timet the present numlier of people could be
accommodated,
The commissioners of Lane county, Oregon, have adopted the plans of
Architect D. D. Neer, of Portland, for the erection of a new jail building in
Eugene City. The new building will be a two story structure, containing
the sherifTs office, five cells, corridor and the sheriff's residence The elec
tric light company at Eugene City hat enlarged its plant to double itt origi
nal site. The dynamos are operated by either water or steam power, or
both can be utilised at once. Twenty-six arc lights of 2,000 candle power
each, and 320 incandescent lamps of fifteen to sixty candle power are sup
plied by the company. Eugene is ont of the best lighted oitlet to be found
anywhere.