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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 21, 1913)
8 n r-x.v.?:cjr:OT okegokian, iportland, September - 21; 1913. it n 77 A ' s6:E-'a:iESf -? GiSCTS.? 'i ' "" ' It::, j n; i . i'ii ' i'Ii' 1 nil' i i i Mmmnii" "" mm . in i i.' m 'ii.wm i nwainmMum "iiminiir, .MM nil in nil IHI Mill I ISMUMS I Willi IMIIH ' Tl I 7T r 0 IJLI n-' c 4 Graceful Highway, Now Assuming Definite Form, Will Awaken Portland and River Towns the Scenic Marvels of the Lower Columbia Vast Fanning Country Will Be Opened to Settlement Completion of Boulevard Will Mark Realization of Years of Effort and Will Be One of Western Ore gon's Greatest Assets. 4fcS ' jn?m vQ fRVvC-v-' lii r"l : St :v 5 k v hv t Jo y t w VJ e;r.j, sj K ft A WIDE, graceful trunk highway from Portland to the sea along the south bank of the Columbia River; another highway- of the same sort down the seashore to TCehalem City; still another leading back through Clatsop, Columbia, Washington and Multnomah counties to Portland: Ipng, well graded feeder roads draining to the trunk highways from all parts of Northwestern Oregon. These are the arts of a wonderful highway system which Is to be Oregon's within the next few years. Sounds like a tremendous under taking at first, doesn't It? But It Is thoroughly practicable, roadbiiilders say. and It is only a matter of time until It will be an absolute necessity to open up to the markets of the world one of the richest agricultural and dairying countries In the United States and to open up to the tourist, and the autoist a country rich In scenic marvels. The first unit of the big project, the highway down the Columbia from Portland to the sea, seems almost a certainty for the near future. Behind it now are the roadbuilders, the busi ness men. the farmers and the good roads enthusiasts of Portland and a score -or more towns and communities between Portland and the sea. Money ls beineT raised to pay the cost of the survey of the route In Columbia Coun ty. With this settled, the way will be clear for the tax levies and bond Issues which will bs necessary along the line in the three counties to put the high way through. The commercial feature of the high way la considered the real important factor, although the aoenle and tourist feature Is not being overlooked. The real need and the real hope is to have a trunk highway extending' on an easy grade down through the fertile valleys of the Iower Columbia to tap the mar velous districts which await only the touch of the plow and the harrow to make them lands of plenty. Without the highway they are of little value. With the yawning; market in Portland open to them by way of a good road they will become among the most val uabla farming districts In the state. The Increase in the value of farm land will pay three or four times the cost of the highway. Deer Island, Caples, Reuben, Goble. Rainier, Hudson, Ladu, Maygers. Quin cy, Inglis to Clatskanie down to As toria, and from there westerly to War ren ton and south to Nehalem. At pres ent there is a road as far as Clatskanie, but it is practically impassable at cer tain points during the Winter months. An occasional automobile makes - the trip In dry weather, but it is consid ered difficult and unpleasant as wall as unsafe. From Portland to the city limits of Multnomah County, a distance of 18 miles, the road is in good condition. From that point the road is in fair con- ditlon clear through to St. Helens. From St. Helens the road extends to Columbia City, a distance of three miles. A turn is made there and the course leads down in to the (Deer Island country, where natural beauties and wonders abound. The road at present winds 'through dense forests, carpeted with ferns and moss, with here and there a small creek trickling over the rocks and clay. It is the plan to ex tend a straight road through this dis trict, eliminating many sharp curves and bends which are a ' part of the winding road of the present. - i- The Columbia Highway alone is not expected to bring about all the marvel ous changes, but it will be the founds. tion. Of great benefit also to the vast districts will be the feeder roads which will drain from the valleys down into the trunk way, much the same as riv ulets drain down into a river. The trunk, highway is the first considera tion, the feeders being secondary. They will spring up in thousands as soon as they can get an outlet to a market. The Columbia Highway as tenta tively planned will be one of the most wonderful roads in the country. Ulti mate plans call for a highway 24 feet in width, of permanent material. graded down to as near level as prac ticable. anX laid out as straight as pos sible from Portland down through the forests, the hills, the tidelands, the valleys and the mountains of the plo turesque Lower Columbia to Astoria, and from there down the beach through Gearhart and Seaside to Nehalem City. For the present it is planned to con struct th roa of macadam, leaving tie paving for future consideration. The highway will lead from Portland northerly over the LJnnton road through LJnnton, Holbrook. Scappoose, Warren and Houlton to St. Helens, From Deer Island the road now leads to Goble. a distance of six miles. . The way here is very poor, being practi cally Impassable after a rain of any consequence. The entire new road from Portland to Goble will be on a water level. It being possible to avoid all hills and uplands with a proper survey. At Goble the road now leaves the Co lumbia River and goes back into the woods over a hill and divide, a distance of ten miles, to Rainier. It is neces sary to go ten miles to get from Goble to Rainier, a distance in a straight line of five miles or less. Instead of fol lowing the old course, the new high way will follow along the river bank. rising to a height of about 200 feet on a 4 per cent grade. A mile or two of the construction here will be very ex pensive. A series of bluffs, over which the road will have to pass, are directly across the Columbia from Carroll's Point, where the State of Washington recently completed a road over almost the same size and variety of hills for 110.000. . From Rainier the present road now proceeds up an S per cent grade In a roundabout way through Delena, in the hills far back from the river, and then circles back to the river at Maygera A good survey would shorten the dis tance a great deal. The new highway between Rainier and Maygers will con tinue along the river, encountering nothing steeper than a 4 per cent grade. In the uplands about Goble, Rainier and Maygers beautiful views of the Columbia River and the valleys and i mountains of Oregon and Washington! can be had, ln'addition to unusual nat-i ural beauties in the forests and woods through which the road winds. From Maygers the road at present runs to jQuincy en countering' steep hill a All through this country the road are. fair ly good In dry weather, but are bn-i passable In- wet weathar. At Clatskanie the ' present road branches off to the south, leaving the river and mounting the divide between the Columbia and the Nehalem rivers at an elevation of about 1200 feet. " It extends to Mist and from there to As toria. A road which Is in fair condi tion extends down the river from Clat skanie to Wauna. a distance of 18 miles. The new highway between Clatskanie and Astoria, wui not branch oC atClaV 11 I 1 I Js7; tyTjt-. .y f e vMasoV x. f K 7JRi -.T:Viff- ;j1-triraslM.l.ul -a-.u.'WM --vM-WVr Step ofihe Coun try S iCaliri-l - A v 4 "tii mil "to" ihr iastess the Columbia, passing "through some rough country, but encountering no heavy grades. It will go through the towns of Marshland, Westport, Wauna. Albert, Blind Slough, Knappa. Swensen and Fern Hill. Roadbuilders of Astoria have already started construction on a stretch of. 38 miles of the road be tween Astoria and Clatskanie. which, is in good shape where finished. ' . . The. greatest country along the. road to .be developed Is that between Clxt- land is to be found there which is suit able for agriculture, yet It stands idle for want of transportation facilities. Small roads are possible, but they are worthless to this district without an arterial way to the markets. Fruit ex perts say that the hills back of Goble, Maygers and Clatskanie are as good for fruit growing as the hills and valleys of Hood River. ' Vast stretches of dairy land are found-about Maygers, Clat skanie - aniA'Ajstoria. ... Thousands' of opment between Clatskanie and As toria. One company is now reclaiming 12,000 acres near Maygers and the work is thoroughly successful. There is much more of the same class of land available. : . . .. . There are also soma large timber Interests ' In ' the , district. " Near the mouth' of the Columbia, within the range of the new highway, are some of the ' largest lumber camps in the world, which .would be. a great attrao- From Astoria the highway will ex tend westerly across Young's Bay to Warrenton and from there south to Gearhart and Seaside, a distance of 20 miles. The road from Astoria to War renton is already built and it is said to be in excellent shape. There is now a road to Seaside through Gdarhart, but it is said to be poorly laid out and would not do for the arterial highway. The road from Astoria to Seaside will be a part of the. Columbia highway, but will be known as the Coast high- -way. It will serve a large dairying and agricultural district as well as a dis-' trict with every advantage for Sum mer beach resorts. The Coast highway will extend from Seaside south over tho Elk Creek Road to the head of Cannon beach, where it Is possible to drive on the sandy beach at the head of the breakers for many miles. This beach road has been said by State Highway. Engineer Bowlby to be the most wonderful road in the country. It is resurfaced by tire .ocean twice a day. Commencing at Nehalem the second great" arterial highway will extend up through -the wonderful Interior country of Northwestern Oregon. Leaving r.elia lem the highway will run in a north easterly direction through the pictur esque and fertile Nehalem Valley of Mist. From there it will be possible to branch off and go either to Clatskanie to Join with the Columbia River high way or to Pittsburg, and from there to St. Helens or continue on the Ne halem Valley road to Portland, by way of Buxton, Banks and Hillsboro. Event ually this boulevard will extend be yond Nehalem, perhaps across the bay and down into Tillamook. On the Coast highway there are only three miles of road to be built to connect up a straight and perfect highway extending a dis tance of more than 100 miles. There re parts of the Nehalem Val ley highway which are in good shape at present, but there are otner pans which are almost Impassable. Nearly the entire route Is through country of wonderful beauty. Graceful valleys. low rounding hills covered with forests. wide rivers, picturesque farms fringed with forests and rugged mountains, mv ud a combination of natural beauty hard to excel. These are to be found all the way from Portland to the sea on any of the proposed trunk highways. From a commercial standpoint the district cannot be excelled by any other part of the state. Vast valleys, long sloping sidehills and extensive uplands need only the touch of the magic high way wand to cause them to blossom forth with abundanoe. first to lay macadam only. The f!r?t ambition of the roadbuilders will be to get a grade as near perfect as pra tical and lay the macadam base so thnt it will never have to be disturbed With this done the base is always there for the laying of a redress pavement 3"eeder roads draining into the trunk highways will come quickly with th completion of the Columbia trunk These roads will lead from the furix to the main highway and the main highway will lead directly to the mar ket. The road will open up transporta tion facilities to competition. Auti trucks will call at farms for milk. cream and produce, as in England, anil dolivor supplies to the farmer. Persona interested in the Columbia project say that the time Is not far distant when huge sight-seeing automobiles will be plying alon the principal highways of the country competing with trains. This has been the experience In Eng land and other foreign countries and it is said It will come in this country. Already Portland has one auto bus line running to St. Helens, along the first part of the new highway. This line carries passengers in competitien. with the railroads at a rate of 3 1-3 cent a mile, and It Is said to be a prof ltable business for those operating the machines. Those who are already supportlna the arterial highway system point to the success of the good roads built la California. In addition to opening up, scenic routes for tourists and travelers, the roads opened the gates for agricul tural and general farming growth. which has meant hundreds of millions of dollars to California. The oppor tunities for both scenery and resources in California are said to be far out classed in every way by the scenery and the resources of the lower Cali fornia, where is to be the beautiful new trunk highway. Ways to Foil Tobacco Estimates or approximations of the probable cost of the Columbia River highway fix the sum at $1,000,000. This cost would mean the establishment of the road on a grade not to exceed 4 per cent at any place, with a heavy macadam or crushed rock base. In other words, the road with a paved wearing surface It feet In width could be built from Portland to the sea, an approximate distance of 100 miles, for 11,000,000. , v The cast of the highway will not be Maeterlinck has discovered s, sub stitute for tobacco. Some years ago. according to his eulogist, Gerard Harry, he was unable to work without the inspiration of his pipe. "If he has not overcome the need, he has outflanked it Smoking, he noticed, had lost its virtue as a stimulant, and Instead of rousing the brain to activity, as at first, had come to disturb its functions: so now, in lieu of ordinary tobacco, he fills his bowl with a denlcotinized preparation, tasteless Indeed, but harmless. His pipe Is still always alight when the pen is busy, but it Is hardly more now than an lnnooent subterfuge Intended to cheat and so satisfy an irresistible mechanical crav ing." That mechanical craving that Mae terlinck got over is a common one. My own father with a twist toward horses used to walk about with a bit of straw in his mouth. I have trav eled across the Atlantic with -a man who could not get along without a "cold elsar" and the one lasted him from Liverpool to New York. And these notes are written by a smoker with a eold pipe In his mouth. I want a pipe, but the tobacco In It amounts to about a quarter of as ounce J
