80
WEST SHORE.
the face of opposition, d now enjoy, her prosperity nd above .11 her in-
The Canadian Pacific railroad company, which Is operating a line of
steamship between Vancouver, B. C, it western terminu, and China and
Japan, bai placed the iteamer JfonjiuJ on the line between Portland and
Vancouver lor the purpose ol supplying ita trani-Pacific iteamen with car
goei of flour from thli place. At a recent meeting of the Portland chamber
of commerce propoeltlon wai eubmltted by Mr. Frank Upton for the et
UblUhment of line ol veel between Portland and the Orient direct, in
which he asked the chamber of commerce to give him a lubiidy of $0,000
per month for a term of ten yean, in consideration of which he would im
mediately place three large itoamehlpa on the route. Thia propoeltlon waa
referred to a committee for the purpose of examining into Itf merit, which
body haa been at work and li itlll considering It in all Ita different phase.
Many clrcumalancea have of necessity to be considered, before final an
wer can be given, and In order that no mistake be made, no nndue haste
has been made by the members of the committee. A bill li now pending
In the legislature granting the city of Portland the right to Issue bonds to
the amount of 1500,000 for the purpoee of straightening and deepening the
channels of the two rivers between Portland and the sea, and second bill
has, or will be, Introduced providing for the operation of line of tugs be
tween the ocean and this city by the state, the rates for such service to be
only sufficient to keep the boat In repair and pay the expense of operating.
Tbe success ol these bills will, of course, affect the action of the chamber of
commerce. It la plain to be seen that If the channel Is made deep enough
to admit any and all vessels seeking business at this port, that It would be
the better policy to devote that amount of money to the work than It would
be to eubaldlie one particular line of vessels; for at the expiration of the
ten year there would be but one line in operation, the money would be
gun and the stream would still be as shallow as at present. By improv
ing the channel other vessel would be attracted to the trade, and in thlt
manner, Instead of building up a monopoly, competition would be fostered
which would tend to control price and keep them within proper limit.
Then are many other circumstance to be considered in this connection,
which also tek time, and It I quite probable definite action will not be
taken until alter tit legislature adjourns. This seeming Indifference on the
part of Ui chamber ol commerce ba caused a good deal of unfavorable
comment by those unacquainted with the facte In the case. In a recent Is
sue of tli Columbian, of Astoria, " prominent shipper" was reported as
follows: " The subsidy which Upton demanded from the Portland people
could not be railed, and though it teemed large was not enough to compen
eate him for the risk Incurred In taking vessel a far Inland as Portland.
Thl hld-bound policy of Portland by which all 1 building up Puget sound
cities at the txpene of th Columbia river, I ruinous to Astoria and will
ultimately result seriously for Portland a well a the rest of Oregon." This
1 tli earn cry with which Portland haa been regaled numerous time In
th past, and to which eh will probably b compelled to listen many mora
time In th future. In making her (tart (or th position of leader In the
commercial world on the north Faclllc coast, Portland had no sister cities
to belp her In her effort, but on th contrary had th fiercest rivalry to con
tend with. Otlisr aspiring places enlisted th sympathies and oo-operatlon
of powerful corporations to advance themselve at th expense of the life of
tli city by th Willamette, and every nerv waa strained to that and. Th
biiilne men of Portland ar not of th apeculattv, nervous class, but
steady and conservative, weighing carefully every proposition submitted
be (or taking action. Numerous schema hav been laid before them from
tlin to tlm which bora tvldenca of tending to promote th welfare ol th
city, but which, upon Investigation wra nnabl to bear out the assertions of
tlislr projirtor ; such hav Invariably been met with refusal ol endorsement.
On the other hand when any meritorious projtct ha been brought to their
notice they hav never failed to promptly respond. Th statement that th
proposition made by Mr. Vplon haa been declined 1 rronou. If th
legislation asked for by Portland b refuted, and In th opinion ol that com
mute Mr. I'plon't offer be deemed th most likely to promote the welfare
of the city, It will no doubt be accepted and th money raised. Under th
circumstance, If Astoria aspire to btrom lb principal port ol th Colum
bia rlvtr, 1st hr mak bar shipping facilities to attractive that vessels will
not rare to go farther op Die river, Let her build rallroada and operate
sir inert to Interior points and furnish th capital lor handling th product
ol th country a Portland haa don, and tli chance ar ah will be abl
to control her just proportion ol lh shipping business. Seattle or Taroma
hav new asked aaalatano ol th other, nor haa Portland vr asked her
sister cities and competitors to help her. Sht hat built up her business in
dependence.
A great deal is being said and written of late about the Nicaragua canal,
which is now in course of construction across the state of Nicaragua, in
Central America. In it issue of December 6, 1803, W Suorc presented
a full page engraving of the route to be traversed by the canal a. now sur
veyed and located, together with sketches of points along the une. Grea
interest attaches to this enterprise on this coast on account of the important
bearing its completion will have on the future business relations of th is sac
tlon with the rest of the commercial world. Every item of information on
the subject is eagerly seized and devoured, and only seme to create a
desire for more particular and definite knowledge of the inside workings of
tbe company's affairs. That application has been made to the United
States government for aid in the construction of the canal la well known,
and that certain exclusive privileges are offered as an inducement to th
government to extend a helping hand is also understood, but just the infor
mation sought it kept a closely guarded secret by the senate committee on
foreign relations which la now considering the question. A few days ago a
resolution was offered and passsed by the senate without exciting any par
ticular Interest or comment, which provided for the printing ol 1,000 maps
of the proposed route of the canal and the adjacent country, and there la
room for but little doubt that in the near future the committee will appear
before the senate with a proposition In the shape of a bill providing for issu
ing bonds for the purpose of raising the necessary funds to prosecute the
work to a successful completion. While the canal will be constructed, and
to all appearances owned, by a private corporation, it Will really be con
trolled by the government, and the matter of fixing tolls, etc., will be lft to
it officials. It Is thought by a majority of the committee that the people
will endorse the proposition, and that the greatest opposition will come
from those who are In favor of the government buying the canal outright
and managing every detail. Then, too, there will be a class who will
oppose the scheme on the ground that the measure will have the appear
ance ol nsing the credit ol the government to further the Interest ol a pri
vate corporation. Still another class will oppose it on the ground that
the whole thing is prepared lor the purpose of permitting a gigantic steal
which will enrich a few men at the expense of the national treasury; and
th ubsidlied Pacific railroads will be held np as glaring example ol what
may be expected should the work ever be undertaken by the government.
These objections are so trivial when considered in connection with the ben
efits to be derived from the construction of this great waterway that they
will vanish like chaff before a wind when the bill is put upon ita final pas
sage. The undertaking It one of such magnitude as to be almost beyond ,
the possibilities of private enterprise, and It absolute necessity make it
obligatory on the part of the government to enlist its practically limitless re
sources In the work of construction. While the merchant marine will re
ceive the greatest benefit from the building of thlt cut-off between the
oceans, the fact that the United States controls ita operations would have
the effect of placing the present naval force of the government noon a war
footing, as It would make It possible to concentrate all vessels In service at
any given point in a remarkably short time as compared with the present.
Aside from this, It la shown conclusively by computations made by the offi
cers ol the company that th toll received for service would pay all ex
penses of operation and a handsome profit In addition. Tht Pacific coast
haa the largest Interest In this canal of almost any section of the world. It
construction will supply a moan of placing the almost unlimited natural
resources of thlt region In the market of the eastern states ol America and
th countrie of Europe, and will also enable the manufacturer in those
sections to place their ware In the coast market! at price very materially
lower than at present. What the coast needs more than anything else is an
enlargement ol it field of trade, and the Nicaragua canal la ita mean of ac
complishment above all else.
Second only to the Portland chamber of commerc among the organl
tatlone ol business men In the state It the Salem board ol trade, which baa
been doing a great deal ol work th past year In advertising that city, the
Willamette valley and the state generally. The board is especially fortunate
In possessing a secretary of ability, energy and a long newspaper experience
that enables him to accomplish much that would be imposeible to one not
poteetlng his qualifications.
A valuabl ledge of anthracite coal has been discovered on the claim ol
tli Washington Improvement Co., about thirty-five mile east ol Tacoma.
In prospecting over the company' property last summer th manager die
covered th anthracite vein, which is between four and five feet thick and
rune np th side of a bluff 1,000 feet high from the bottom ol a gulch, and
la located three and one-half miles from the town of Burnett, to which place
an axtenslon of the Northern Pacific railroad his been built. A aoon a
th weather will permit In the spring this sour will be extended to tht