TOE MOItXIXG OREGOXrAX, THURSDAY, JANUARY 1, 1914. MILLIONS ARE SPENT ON BETTERMENTS BY NORTH BANK AND OREGON ELECTRIC Double Tracking Between Portland and Garden Home, Beginning of Work on Portland Freight and Warehouse Terminals, and Pills and Bridges on Spokane Lino Mark Year's Development. BELENS,.0R 9 By W. 1. Skinner, Truffle) Manaccr. MERE cataloguing of the numerous betterment projects carried on by the affiliated lines of the Spo kane, Portland ct Seattle Railway system during the past year, when rolled Into aggregate figures and statis tics, after all, con vey but a compara tively small concep tion of the amount of energies and cash f '-XT";' invoivea in me out- . lay- gramme of develop- A 2j" ment of facilities of 1 V , the Spokane, Port f & JF i land & Seattle, the Oregon Trunk, the Oregon Electric and United Railway has been pressed with all the dispatch possible. Of Immediate moment and of great est Interest to Portland is the beginning of actual construction work on the East Portland freight and warehouse termin als and the building of & spur track a mile Jn length Into the new Indus trial section of the East Side along the south side of Sullivan's Gulch. This track starts at East Third street, near the Burnslde street viaduct, and extends to East Eighteenth street. This work Is already well under way. Several hundred thousand dollars' ex penditure has been authorized for new trackage, fills and yards. Boehmer (fc Hughes, of Spokane, are the con tractors on this undertaking. This Improvement opens up a new Indus trial section to convenient transpor tation facilities. East Portland has W. D. Skinner. experienced a pronounced spurt of commercial energy since the work was Instituted. The details for the freight terminals and yards have been pretty well worked out and it is generally expected that early In the new year the work on these huge buildings will be contracted. The new freight and warehouse system on the East Side makes available for a variety of commercial uses, many tracts of property hitherto not provided with adequate railway facilities. In round numbers $1,000,000 of track and bridge betterments have been made on the North Bank Road, Portland to Spokane. On the Spokane division, in the city limits of Spokane, at Box Can yon and Wilson canyon and other points on Snake River, 180,000 In con tracts were awarded for bridges and culverts. At a' number of places along the Columbia River, the work of mak ing fills has been steadily prosecuted. Natural crushed rock, the ideal ballast ing material, called by construction en gineers "cliff droppings," has been hauled by hundreds of thousands of yards by two gravel trains from the loading place at the base of a moun tain of this material near Cooks. "Wash., and many sloughs and trestles have been converted into solid rock road beds. One of these fills west of Lyle, across an arm of a slough-lake, border ing on the Columbia, is one mile In length. East of Pasco, small canyons, or draws, where wooden trestles, with concrete culverts, were put in when the line was built have been filled with rock. One of the Interesting' construction operations carried on by the company is the North Bank dredging outfit up the Columbia. This is a huge sand dredger which pumps sand from the river shoals into huge bulkheads built under the trestle-work. After the sand packs, forming; the foundation bed, the crushed rock by thousands of tons is dumped In, the completed process re sulting finally In an Ideal, safe road bed, the track being imbedded in crushed rock. General improvement work on the Ore gon Electric and United Railways has consisted of ballasting and dressing the main line with river gravel between Portland and Eugene; erection of new stations and freight houses and sta tion and yardage additions at many points. The Orenco-Helvetla cutoff, connecting . the United and Oregon Electric for freight movement, was completed and opened for use. The big work on the Oregon Electric, however, which will run to about 1800.- 000, or thereabouts, has been the double tracking of the main line from Portland to Garden Home. The entrance into the city, through the southern section has, practically been rebuilt. The main line has-been straightened, a compara tively small curvature between Garden Home and Multnomah having been eliminated and two enormous fills made. The largest of these is a solid earth fill 95 feet in height at Its ex treme. As a preliminary to this fill a giant 5000 concrete culvert was con structed in the bottom of the canyon. Two wooden trestles have been aban doned at this point. The transforming of the line from 600 to 1200 volts has been a part of this improvement. An other valuable feature of the better ment has been the abandonment of the street grade and the approach of the Jefferson street station on elevated tracks for a distance of several blocks over private right of way. "Very mate rial improvement in time schedules and efficiency of train operation will be made possible by these changes. COOS BAY ROAD UNDER WAY Willamette Pacific Building From Eugene to Rich District on Coast Which Has Long Awaited Transportation Facilities. By D. W. Campbell. Superintendent Bouth- era Pacinc Company. NO MORE important Tallway de velopment has ever been under taken In Oregon than was wit nessed In 1913, when the Southern Pa clflo Company started from Eugene to Coos Bay with the construction of the Willamette Pacific Railway. Almost unnoticed In this land of big things, it has quietly begun the opening up of a district larger and. richer than the combined wealth of a quarter of a doz en of Eastern states which might be grouped for comparison. Its completion elves the Southern Pacific three lines from the Interior to the Pacific" Ocean, and three cross-valley lines of import ance: The Willamette Pacific from a connection with the Natron line to Coos Bay, the Salem, Falls City & Western from Sllverton to Black Rock, and the Corvallls & Eastern from Al bany to Yaqulna Bay. While the pioneers of the Coos Bay country in Southwestern Oregon sought gold in its shifting sands, their suc cessors have found larger wealth by harvesting salmon from Its waters, timber from its hills, coal from be neath the earth's surface, and In util izing green grass the year around in keeping a flow of milk that has made Coos County prominent In the produc tion of dairy products. Aside from the encouragement of the investment of capital In its Industries and the construction and operation of a 27-mlle railroad between Marshfield and Myrtle Point, the Southern Pa cific Company has not until 1S13 been able to begin the execution of Its plans to give Coos Bay a standard rail road connection with a transconti nental line. The Southern Pacific 18 now pushing the construction of Us Willamette Paclflo Railway from Eu gene to Coos Bay, a distance of 125 miles and will have the road In opera tion before the expiration of 1914. Deemed of foremost importance In its scheme for giving all of Its Oregon territory adequate transportation fa cilities, the Southern Pacific has given precedence to the construction of the Willamette Pacific and its electrical operations in the Willamette Valley. Starting at Eugene, the Willamette Pacific strikes west toward the Coast Range, 26 miles of the road now be ing completed. In Its approach to the mountains It traverses a rolling and rich agricultural district, the valleys being highly cultivated, and the slight ly timbered, hills forming most Invit ing prospects for the Industry of the homebullder. Avoiding grades and difficulties of Winter operation of railroads In moun tainous countries, the . Willamette Pa cific burrows under the Coast Range in making use of the great Notl tunnel. 2480 feet In length and all completed, and emerges upon the Siuslaw River. Passing down that stream to Acme, Florence and Marshfield, the new road crosses the Smith and Umpqua rivers en route and affords shipping facilities to a large area of the lower water sheds. Porter Bros., contractors, have established grading camps at in tervals from Coos Bay to the Notl tunnel, and it may be said that work on all parts of the western slope Is now in progress. The construction of this road requires the building of so many steel bridges that the laying of rails can only proceed from bridge to bridge, ballasting operations keeping close be hind the tracklayers.. The completion and opening of the Willamette Paclflo Railway means that the lumber mills of that section will secure better facilities In marketing the 100,000,000,000 feet of logs standing on the hills adjacent to Coos Bay, that the coal from its mines can be placed within the reach of the Coast cities, that its fisheries will be available to market, that its unexcelled dairy lands will be more generally used and their products find more ready sale, and that within a short time the Coos Bay coun try will be rivaling the Willamette Valley In the value of les output ot the farm. Its cheap logged off lands and burns are already In demand. HILL BUILDS FAST VESSELS Two $2,600,000 Steamers Are Being Constructed to Run From Columbia River to San Francisco Next Year. STEAMSHIP service between Port land, Astoria and San Francisco will be inaugurated by the Spo kane, Portland & Seattle Railway -and Billed Hill interests on January 1, 1915, on a schedule faster than that now maintained by the fastest trains. Two giant steamers now are being built for this service In the Cramps shipbuilding yards at Philadelphia. They will be among the first vessels to pass through the Panama Canal. While the northern terminus of this new steamship line will be Astoria, Portland will receive the direct bene fits of the service. The Hill officials plan to operate a fast train service be tween Portland and Astoria to connect at the Astoria docks with the steamers. The present track between Portland and Astoria will be improved and reballast ed so as to permit a three-hour run. Passengers will board the trains at Portland, run to the docks at Astoria and step right from the trains onto the boats. North-bound, a. similar- service will be provided. The trains will wait at the docks to receive passengers and start on the run to Portland as soon as possible after the steamers dock. TheBe vessels will be the largest of the kind on the Pacific Coast. Each will be the exact duplicate of the oth er. The contract cost is $3,500,000 each. They will be of 12,000 tons displace ment and have a cargo capacity of 1500 tons. They will have accommodations for 800 passengers, of whom 450 will be first class, 200 second class and 150 third class or steerage. Extra berths will be available In the event that tne third-class traffic demands them, mak ing the aggregate passenger capacity possibly 1000. They will be 625 feet long, 63 feet beam and have a draft of 21 feet. The guaranteed speed, according to contract, will be 23 knots an hour. Par sons' Improved turbine engines will supply the power. TKey will be oil burners. While each vessel will have 12 boilers, the speed requirements will be met with only 10 boilers, keeping two boilers constantly In reserve. According to this schedule It will be possible to make the run between As toria and San . Francisco In 22 hours. With a three-hour train service be tween Portland and Astoria this will make the combination rail and water run between Portland and San Fran cisco 25 hours. This is more than two hours faster than the time of the fast est trains now in operation. While plans for the immediate future provide for Astoria as the northern terminus, it Is possible that eventually the steamers will run to Portland. The Hill system plans to handle both transcontinental and local traffic by means of these steamers. While the vessels will be operated as a part of the Spokane, Portland & Seattle or North Bank system, they will have di rect relations with the Great Northern and the Northern Pacific, which roads are the joint owners of the North Bank. By means of the Burlington system, which is owned jointly by the Great Northern and Northern Pacific, agents for this steamship line will be able to solicit business as far east as Chicago. It is understood that a special effort will be made to make fast freight serv ice one of the magnets with which to attract future business. Headquarters for the steamer line will be established in Portland. ELECTRIC LINES ARE READY Service Soon Will Be Established on First Links of Portland, Eugene & Eastern System in Willamette Valley. By Mark Woodruff. COINCIDENT with the advent of 1914 will come the beginning of interurban electric railway oper ations fathered by the Southern Pa cific Company In the lower Willam ette Valley through its associate, the Portland, Eugene & Eastern Railway Company, and which may reasonably be expected to be followed by a splendid activity In the rich .districts to be served by the red cars of the "Willam ette Valley Line." Of the 350-mtle system projected by the company of which Robert E. Stra horn Is president, 104 miles will have been completed before the end of January, the "Juice" turned onto the wires and the first trains will have Xr-n welcomed as they passed through the various cities between Portland and McMinnvllle along the East Side di vision and back by way of Newberg and Oswego. Known as the "McMinn vllle Loop," and composed of the old Yamhill and West Side steam lines ot the Southern Pacific Company, the first unit of operation of the big interurban system is equipped with cars, electric locomotives for moving freight trains, sidetracks and station facilities for handling the enormous business to be expected from a district that produces from $123 to $440 an acre each year, and where other thousands of farmers may find Ideal surroundings, profits and those comforts which come as- a result of Intimate contact with a great city. Projected only two years ago, the history of 1913 will record .the Port land, Eugene & Eastern as having ex tended transportation to two Import ant districts of the Willamette Valley which have heretofore been without railway facilities, the opening of a great bridge which for the first time connected the east and west sides of the valley, the establishment of shops at Beaverton, the extension of the Wil lamette Falls Railway, and the prac tical rebuilding of the old West Side steam system for use as electric roads. On Its route to St. Joseph Junction and McMinnvllle the West 'Side Inter urban line will proceed out Fourth street, passing through Beaverton, Hlllsboro, Forest Grove and other im portant towns, while the Yamhill In terurban division will be diverted from Fourth street to Jefferson street, and will then skirt along the bank of the Willamette River to Oswego, thence to St. Joseph and McMinnvllle. At Mc Minnvllle, Hlllsboro, Forest Grove and Newberg Improved terminals are pro vided, tracks having been extended di rectly through those cities, while the highly Improved suburban residence district to the south secures a service it has long desired. ' The activity of the Portland, Eugene & Eastern which attracted first public attention In 1913 was the opening of the $300,000 steel bridge at Salem. From the opening of operation on the Salem, Falls City & Western Railroad the Salem terminal had been on the west side of the river. The road was ac quired by the Portland, Eugene & East ern, and on March 15 the new bridge was opened with the daughter of Gov ernor West scattering roses from the prow of the engine. Of the new' construction carried on by the company during the year, the opening of the Monroe and Molalla di visions is of unmistakable Importance as destined to contribute to the sub stantial development of sections of the Willamette Valley which have hereto fore enjoyed slow growth because of their Isolation. Until the Monroe division was com pleted, Corvallls had been practically the southern end of railroad operations in the Valley on the west side of the river. The P. E. & E. acquired the Corvallls & Alsea railroad and its de crepit equipment, and Immediately be gan Its reconstruction between Cor vallls, Alpine and Bellefountaln, a total of 36 miles. The road was then pushed south to Eugene, a distance of 23 miles, and on September 8 hundreds of citi zens stood in a pouring rain as the golden spike was driven. This road not only gives through transportation be tween Portland and Eugene on the West Side, but opens a country be tween Corvallls find the ROUthArn tAr. minal that is potential in the home- uunaing pians of those who hope for a populous Western Oregon. It is a land of sparse settlement, little tim ber, big farms and rare opportunities. . Of equal Importance la tha ii.mli line from Canby to Molalla, on the east Biue ot tne great "breadbasket." which was opened September 19, and has since enjoyed a remarkable run of business in nananng tne crops that have Strug gled with bad roads In seeking- mr ket. The people along the Molalla wo. neo. u years lor transportation. Portland Summers Cooler Than Coast Resorts Weather More Comfortable Than at Atlantic Watering Places Wen. ther of 1013 Favorable. K. A. lieaut. By E. A. Beats, District Forecaster. THE weather In Oregon during 1913 was on the whole favorable for crops, construction work and the transportation Interests. The Winter was colder than usual and more snow fell In the mountains than for several years oacK. Tne Spring also was cool and the season in April was ten days late. This backwardness was welcomed by the fruitmen, as It held back the bloom on fruit trees until the greatest danger of frost had passed, and the crop, while perhaps not so large as a year ago, matured in excel lent shape under the favorable conditions that prevailed during the Summer and Fall. The excess of snow in Winter and the backwardness of the Spring caused river men and farmers on. the bottom lands to fear the annual rise in the Columbia River would be disastrous, but fortunately the melting of the snow took place so gradulally that no very high water occurred, and the property- loss was Insignificant. The Summer months were warm with an excess of rainfall, which fell opportunely and was of great benefit to late crops and pastures. The Fall months were pleasant until near the close of November, when stormy weath er set In that lasted a week. The storms caused unusually high tides, but casualties to shipping were few. Portland Is in latitude 45 degrees 32 minutes north, and New York Ctiy Is In latitude 40 degrees 43 minutes north, or. In other words, Portland is nearly 300 miles farther north than New York City. The mean temperature of Port land is 53 degrees and the mean tem perature of New York City Is 52 de grees. The rainfall Is nearly the same in both cities, being. 43. 97 inches in. New York City and 44.38 Inches lu DEEP WATER AND RAILROAD CONNECTIONS An Ideal Location for Manufacturing Plants, Business Houses and Homes Mar - 4 . -- t 3- - "V" JET. chas. r. Mccormick & co. ' J WHOLESALE LUMBER, MANTJTACTUREBS AND STEAMSHIP OPERATORS Offices at St. Helens, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego. WE SHIP 200,000,000 FEET ANNUALLY AGENTS FOR . ST- HELENS LUMBER CO. Manufacturers of Douglas Fir Lumber. We operate our own logging camps and are in position to handle long tim bers and export orders on short notioa. Ajonual capacity 100,000,000. ST. HELENS SHIPBUILDING CO. Shipbuilding and general repair work. . We build and ' repair anything from a small launch to a large ocean-steamer. ST. HELENS CRESOTING CO. Creosoted lumber, large timbers, ties and piling. Annual capacity 50,000,000 feet. One of the largest and most modern creosote plants in the world. Rail and cargo shipments. OPERATE STEAMSHIPS "Multnomah" "Willamette" "Shoshone" "J. B. Stetson" 'fKlamath" "Yosemite" "Celilo" "Francis H. Leggett" FRANK BOLLAM, PORTLAND PASSENGER AGENT, in D. & R. G. Ticket Office. 124 Third Street "Temple E. Dorr' "Nehalem" Portland; the difference being less than one-half of an Inch. From these data one might suppose the climate of the two cities was similar, but there Is a great difference mainly in favor -of qualities that tend to make Portland the more agreeable place of the two in which to . live. The mean temperature for the Sum mer months in New York City is 72 de grees, while In Portland it is 65 de grees. Portland therefore averages daily. 7 degrees cooler than New York City In the Summer months. The mean temperature for the Winter months in New York City Is 32 degrees, while in Portland for the same months the mean temperature Is 41 degrees, which means that it averages In Winter 9 degrees warmer every day in Portland as com pared with New York City. This ad vantage of having warmer Winters and cooler Summers can hardly be suf ficiently appreciated when one stops to consider how the poorly clad suffer from the cold of Winter, and all In our large cities are affected by the heat of Summer. The Summer mean temperature of 65 degrees In Portland is cooler than in a number of famous Summer resorts on the Atlantic Coast, notably Asbary Park with a Summer mean tempera ture of 71 degrees, Atlantic City 70 degrees, Narragansett Pier 68 degrees, and Block Island 66 degrees. The following table shows the salient features In temperature, precipitation and wind at Portland for 12 months ending November 30, 1913: Month. Temperature, In degrees Fahrenheit. December, 1912..... January, 1313.... February, 1013...... March, 1913 April, 1813 May, 1913.... June, 1913 July. 1913 August. 1913 September. 1913.... October. 1913....... November, 1913 Sums and means... 88.. 2 139.7 44.6 51.0' 57.6 412.9 kS7.8 !8.6: 62.1 63. 2 47.6 02.91 O ,5 I? B 2-3 : 3 -t-O.2 0.9 1.6 1.7 0.8 1.6 1.5 2.7 1.8 0.1 2.0 O f9Sit81 301 22 2 til 29 36 41 47 61 5 4 88 I .'14 t22 Precipitation, In Inches. 2 c S3 3 : 3 T 4.60 T 1.14 1.2 . O.lllOO.O k 1 27j.01-0.6' 9 1.13 25-4.04 282.94 1)1.63 5:4.24 11 0.24J O. SO'OO. 0 16'0. 7610. 11100.0 SO2. 5810. 74'00. 0 6 3.62 0. 07100. 0 14-5. 391 1 .OS 00.01 201 S40.831 8.6512.615tfl .73 Ott.O 2.4B 00.0 Number ot days 21 20 101 18 16 12 16 5 7 11 2 2 8 B 7 ii 13 14 7 3! o a el 9 D ii 271 SW 25ISW OB 20 In 11 NW 121NW 14NW 7imv 4jNW 6 NW ISfNW 20SE 82108170NW Highest. tJuly. tt-owest. January. EQUITABLE SAVINGS and LOAN ASSOCIATION 240-242 Stark Street, Portland, Oregon, offers investors a guarantee o f 5 per cent upon prepaid la vestments, with full participation In surplus profits. Borrowers repay In monthly Installments, thus compound ing; and Increasing the earnings for Investors. . Assets over S2,ft00,000.06. Returned to Investors. $3,500,000.00. Loans in force over 62,700,000.00. ' Securities over $7,000,000.00 Chas. K. Ladd, President. Edw. Cooklngham. Vice-President. Theodore B. Wilcox. Vice-President. F. McKercher, Secretary. The SIGN OF QUALITY EVERYTHING IN LOGGING EQUIPMENT BOILERS ' ENGINES ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT WIRE , ROPE jy v A)wv BROWN-CQ. EVERYTHING IN CONTRACTORS' EQUIPMENT FROM PUMPS TO LOCOMOTIVES MACHINE TOOLS NEW and RELAYING RAILS We carry the largest stock of these lines on the Coast. Consult us for prices on new and rebuilt machinery. Catalogues sent upon request. Scandinavian-American Bank Cor. Morrison and Park Streeta A GENERAL BANKING AND TRUST BUSINESS 4 Paid on Savings Accounts C. F. Hendricltsen, Pres. Anthon Eckem, Cashier. Will T. Wright, Vlce-Pres. O. C Bortimeyer, Asa't Cashier. P. K. Enebo, Ass't Cashier. Oaa Saturday Evralnaja. 8 to 8 1 A. Gleblsch, 672 Halaer Strean, Paone East 33S. F1. Joplln, 673 Claekamaa Street Phone Eaat 141. GlEBISCH & JOPLIN GENERAL CONTRACTORS ALl KINDS OF" HARD-SURFACE PAVEMENTS. STREET, RAILROAD AND GENERAL. TEAM WORK. REINFORCED CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION A SPECIA ITT. Office 08-410 ROTH CHI LI J BUILDING Fourth and Washington Sta. PHONES MAIN 1JS AND HOME A 148. OREGON SHEET METAL WORKS Wm. F. Mau MANUFACTURERS OF HOTEL, RESTAURANT AND BOAT SUPPLIES,? RANGES. BAKE OVENS, STEAM TABLES, SINKS AND DISHWASHERS, BOILERS AND URNS. RETINTING. HEATING AND VENTILATING. TIN, BRASS AND COPPER WORK OUR SPECIALTY". Paonea A 2146, Main 2146. Realdence Phone B S18S. 146 FRONT STREET, PORTLAND, OREGON. American Can Company TIN CANS and Sheet Ivletal Packages PLAIN AND LITHOGRAPHED MARION VERSTEEO Pnone East 2510 G. N. VERSTEEO Phone Eaat 2U51 Versteeg Brothers Brick Co. BRICK Thlrtr-Thlrd and Thompaon Sta. Phone Eaat 4474 PORTLAND, OREGON -T-X