The Oregon daily journal. (Portland, Or.) 1902-1972, April 18, 1915, Page 41, Image 41

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    STRONG PERSONALITIES DOMINATED STEAM BOATING IN EARLY DAYS
- ' , - , , ' . " L ' ' '
- -I' ' x. ' T' : ' " ' ' ! ' '5 ' . -' -, - i - ' . V ': - , .. . . . , - ---- V" i ' . " : '
Hit 'f' ' ','--' J'. ill 2 .i.I'i'nV"' r"' j-" 'jffiy - u - ' rlij , 'JL-. I j' II
R,L R, Thompson, J. C, Ainsworth Sr., Simeon G', Reed and
Jacob Kamm Were Quartet That Organized and Con
trolled Steamboat Navigation on the Columbia and
Willamette Imaginary Journey in Anticipation of
. Celilo Canal Celebration Concluded,
By Marshall N. Dana.
history or development Is a
history of men. Progress is
commanded by the energy and
determination, the vision and
co-operation, of individuals- A
country does not jrrow by accident.
Master spirits figured in the Colum
bia river evolution of canoes, bat
teaux, sailing stows, solitary steam
ers, water transportation lines, and,
finally the railroad. The landmarks
of thepast are the imprints of their
personalities. Many of the accom
plishments of today are the children
of their ambitions.
We have had in recent weeks an im
aginary journey down tha Great River
of the West, showing those who have
cared read what of legend, historic
fact and commircial opportunity will
be revealed to the celebrants of the
Celilo canal's completion as they trav
el by fleet tf- river craft from Lewis
ton to the mouth of the river through
the canal during the week of May 3-8.
Now thit we reach Portland and near
-Journey's end, you shall be introduced
to some of the big xnen of the former
generation, that, from tlw viewpoint of
the past, we may look be&ond the pres
ent, into the future.
A quartet of men overshadowed all
others in the early development of riv-
- er navigation. They were bold and
strong. They were raised up to serve
a generation which gave them latitude
for their daring, and richly rewarded
them for thsrir tffortr. They were R.
R. Thompson, J. C. Ainsworth Sr., Si
meon G. Re id and Jacob Kamm.
Portland, thtn a waterfront village,
was the seat of their courageous busi
ness enterprise. Their lines of vessels
they extended surely, confidently, to
the feverish mining fields of the up
per Columbia, and to the transshipping
, point at the mouth of the Columbia.
where vessels came foaming in over
SAGE TEA DARKENS
HAIR TO ANY SHADE
Don't stay gray! Here's a simple
recipe that anybody can apply
with a hair brush.
The. use of Sage arid Sulphur for re
storing faded, gray hair to its natural
color dates back to ' grandmother's
time. She used it to keep her hair
beautifully dark, glossy and abundant.
Whenever her hair fell out or took on
that dull, faded or streaked appear
ance, this simple mixture was applied
with wonderful effect.
But brewing at home Is massy and
out-of-date. Nowadays, by asking at
any drug store for a-60 cent bottle of
"Wyeth's Sage and - Sulphur Com
pound." you will get this famous old
recipe which, can be depended upon to
restore natural color and beauty to
the hair and is splendid for dandruff,
dry, feverish, itchy scalp and falling
hair.
; A well known downtown druggist
says it darkens the hair so naturally
and evenly that nobody can tell it has
been applied. You simply dampen a
ponge or soft brush with it and draw
this through your hair, taking one
strand at a time. By morning the gray
hair disappears, and after another ap
plication or two it becomes beautifully
dark, glossy, soft and abundant. Adv.
the bar. The beginning of their organ
ization was on the Willamette when
Captain J. C. Ainswcrth was mastar
and Jacob Kamm engineer of the Lot
Whltcomb, a boat that ran from. Port
land to the falls at Oregon City.
They fought difficulties. Where
there werj rapids they portaged them.
When there were hazards they ignored
them, i When there was competition
they conquered it. They were the first
northwest monopolists.
Year by year thy built better and
reached farther. The first stubby craft
gave way to vessels that in the last
70s were proudly called "floating river
palaces." There are no such boats in
service on the Columbia today. The
Unions Transportation company merged
in I860 into the Oregon Steam Naviga
tion company. In 1879 the O. N. Co.
half deserted water for rails -and be
came the O. R. & N. Co., now the O-W.
R. & N. Co. The coming of the rail
road Snarked the decadence of boat
lines Until the present, when, with the
Celilo canal, and channel improvements
at the mouth of the river the restora
tion of water transportation, handling
those : commodities that go best and
cheapest by water Is expected.
No handicap was laid on the quartet
whichf in later years became a trio
through the withdrawal of Kamm. No
anti-trust law had been passed. No in
terstate erd railroad commissions in
terfered. No complicated tariff sheets
were iprinted. Ma&ters of steamboats
were expected to levy all tfe traffic
would bear and they did. Boats
coined : money. Sometimes a single
trip would net more than a steamboat
will make now in a year.
Fortunes Made In River Transporta
f tloa.
The! foundations of great fortunes
were jlaid. Reed college is Simeon
Reed's monument, erected by one of
those early, river-made fortunes. The
Multnomah hotel was built with part
of the money made by R. R. Thompson.
The United States National bank, of
which: J. C. Ainsworth Jr. is president,
is a monument to J. C. Ainsworth Sr.
Ainsworth was president of the navi
gation! company. Thompson was the
financial director. Reed was the' of
fice man Kamm was the superintend
ent of. motive power.
R. R. Thompson was first associated
with K. F. Coe; by 1859 he had accu
mulated a fortune in the operation of
a steamer line, on the middle and upper
reaches of the Columbia. The two
built the Venture in 1858. This boat
was swept over the Cascades of the
Columbia. Undiscouraged, they built
the Colonel Wright at the month of the
Deschutes, just a short ways above
Celilo.j The single boat service was
added 1o until there was a fleet, later
acquired by the O. S. N. Co.
With but a few dollars capital in the
beginning, Thompson and Coe got the
contract to carry freight for the gov
ernment to Fort Walla Walla. They
did the business with batteaux, and
their charge from Celilo to the fort
was $100 a ton. They made enough
monevpto discard flat boats and build
steamboats, and in consideration of
their larger carrying power they re
duced the freight rate to -$80 a ton.
People were flocking from the east
to the; west, hurried by the mirage of
easily ! made fortunes. The passenger
and freight business was greater than
could be handled, eveft after the Tenrno
had been added to the service in 1864.
They paid Captain Leonard White $500
a month as master of the Colonel ;
Wright, then they got, to thinking the
salary ; was a little excessive and they
put on Captain Thomas Stump at $300
a month, says Frank J. -Smith, cnide of
our trip dowp ; the Columbia, to whom
1 Jacob Kamm, pioneer steamboat man on the Willamette and Columbia rivers.
scene at Astoria, showing fishermen's nets drying. (Photograph by the Angelus Studio.) 3
General view of Oregon City in 1873. (Photograph by Oregon Historical Society.) 4 The S. S. S.
G. Reed, a river palace of the late seventies.' ( Photograph by courtesy of Frank J. Smith.) 5
The S. S. Carrie Ladd, built by J. C. Ainsworth and Jacob Kamm in 1858, the first stern wheel
er ton the Willamette and Columbia. Photograph by courtesy of Frank J. Smith.) 6 Front
street in-Portland, in 1852. (Photograph by Oregon Historical Society.) 7 J". C. Ainsworth Sr.,
prominent figure in early steamboat navigation of the Willamette and Columbia. (Photograph
by courtesy of E. W. Wright.) 8 R. R. Thompson, and 9 S. G. Reed, associate of Jacob
"Kamm and J. C. Ainsworth Sr., in river navigation. (Photographs by courtesy of E. W. Wright.)
I am indebted for a considerable por
tion of the Information In this article.
Captain J. C. Ainsworth was educat
ed for Columbia river navigation on
the Mississippi river. The California
gold excitement brought him west- He
was to command a steamer, but before
he had left the boat on which he had
come around the Horn the engines for
the vessel were purchased by Lot Whit
comb of Oregon, who also.induced Cap
tain' Ainsworth to come north and su
perintend the building of the boat, the
understanding being that he should
have .command when completed. He
came to Milwaukie in 1850, and found
it a very vigorous rival ef Portland.
By Christmas of the same year the
steamboat was completed, and he was
made master at $300 a month. He was
given stock in the company instead of
back pay. The boat was named the
Lot Whitcomb, and made good time and
gave excellent service between Astoria
and the Willamette. It cost a good
deal to operate here, however, and In
1854 she was sold and sent to San
Francisco, where she was again put
into operation under the name Annie
Abernathy.
Ainsworth and Jacob Kamm built the
Jennie Clark at Milwaukie in 1854.
They built the Carrie Ladd, the first
stern wheeler on the Wllamette or Co
JAPAN IM CHINA THE JAPANESE VIEWPOINT
By. K. K. Kawakamt.
Author of "Asia at the Door
American-Japanese Relations," Etc.
HOWEVER skeptical the world may
be of Japan's intentions, the mi
kado's empire is truly solicitous
of the preservation of China's integ
rity. We know Japan is sincene, in
spite of the apparently sweeping de
mand which she has made upon China.
There are in Japan not a few men
who think it safest for their country
to abandon what may be termed con
tinental policy. They urge that Japan
cannot afford to carry China's burden,
that she must first of all think of her
safety and welfare, and that it would
be safest for her to give up Port Ar
thur, withdraw from Manchuria, and
at once return Kiau Chau to China.
Theee men, however, constitute the
minority. The majority believe, and
most firmly, that the 'moment Japan's
grip upon Manchuria slackens .a third
power is certain to grab it, China' her
self deriving not the least benefit from
Japan's magnanimous act. It will be
the same story in other sections of
China. Suppose Japan restores to
China Kiao Chau and every German
concession In Shantung Province, will
China be able to keep them for her
self? . Her past history compels the
Japanese to answer in the negative.
Japan, perhaps with the "moral" back
ing of the United States, : may once
again proclaim the integrity of China,
but If China herself is so utterly in
capable of taking care of herself,
reams of proclamations would be of
no avail. - The result would be another
war in which Japan would have to
play the unprofitable role of China's
protector, just as she did In the war
with Russia In 1904. 'In the meantime
the United States would remain an
anxious but helpless spectator. Japan
' ''-Ts rll c nr-ir -.?22s: ' III ' i ' 'lil
lumbia, In 1858. They named this boat
In honor of the daughter of William
Ladd, founder of the Ladd & Tilton
bank. The Carrie Ladd was a prom
inent factor in the organization of the
O. S. N. Co. Let me quote Captain
Smith:
"Captain Ainsworth's life in the
northwest until he .retired "after 30
years' service is Inseparably associat
ed with the development of navigation.
To his thoroughly practical knowledge
of all the details of steamboating and
his rare business judgment was due.
in large part, the marvelous success
achieved by the great transportation
Company in which he was a leading
spirit.
"'Give the boys good wages," was a
frequent expression of his, and the
boys were ready day or night to tackle
for him the most arduous duties. He
died at his home in Oakland, Califor
nia, In 1893."
Kuom'i Start in Stea3nbot Business.
Jacob Kamm also learned steamboat'
lng on the Mississippi river. He came
to this country from Switzerland when
a boy of 8 years. He Vas given a chief
engineer's license atSt. Louis in 1848.
In 1849 he came teCalifornia and ran
on a little steamer called the Black
hawk. Lot Whltcomb had him come to
declines to pull the chestnut out of
the fire simply to let other crafty
powers appropriate it.
Japan wants China to grow strong
under her : tutorage and . assistance.
She believes, with all her sincerity,
that the presence of the influence of
certain western powers has not been
conducive to the benefit and safety
either of China or of Japan. Von Bern
hardi in his "Germany and the Next
War" is frank enough to declare that
"the political rivalry between the wo
nations of the yellow race must be
kept alive'', for the benefit pf the
white race. Prince von Buelow. in hi
memoirs, also confesses that G?erman
policy enunciated by! Bismarck has
been to direct Russia's territorial am
bition towards China and Japan. What
wonder that Japan was anxious to see
Germany busted from: Kiao Chou?
Japan does not care, cannot afford,
to wage another costly war for the
protection of China's integrity. That
is why she demands that no territory
on the coast and no : islands off the
coast shall be ceded or leased by China
to a third power. That is why she
wants to act -as guardian in the man
agement of China's affairs. The world
must recall that, in the wake of the
Boxer disturbance, China was on the
verge - of disruption. 1 It was Japan,
and nobody else, who saved the day
for her decrepit neighbor, and in sav
ing it Japan sacrificed untold treas
ure and unnumbered j lives. And yet
China, has never realized the true sig
nificance of the Russo-Japanese war.
As for. Kiao Chou. China must not
think it her right to get it forthwith
now that Japan reduced Tslngtao. The
territory belongs, to Germany, and. it
behooves Japan to j negotiate with
Berlin at the end of the war for its
final disposition. After the territory
has been definitely j surrendered by
Oregon in 1850 to place the machinery
and boilers of the Lot Whitcomb.
Where Captain Ainsworth accepted
stock in the company for back pay,
Kamm took wheat, which he sold at a
profit. The boilers arrived In 21 pieces,
and Kamm, unaided by boilermakers or
a machine fchop, directed the successful
installation. He was chief engineer on
the Lot whitcomb until the vessel was
sold south. He was half owner of the
Jennie Clark, and had a quarter share
in the Carrie Ladd. He and R. R.
Thompson were the largest stockhold
ers in. the Union Transportation com
pany, and in the O. S. N. Co., its suc
cessor. After he had become chief en
gineer of the company's fleet, he re
tired from the river. After he had re
fired from the corporation he went Into
the steamboat business for himself.
During the early days of steamboating
he also had interest in the Elk, Sur
prise and Rival. At one time he was
owner of the steamship George S.
Wright. He owned a controlling inter
est in the Lurline, Undine, Ocean Wave,
Norma, Wasco, Eaglette, Klwood and
G. M. Walker. At the time of his
death, in spite of his extreme age, he
was operating the Lurline and Undine.
He amassed a great fortune, mostly In
real estate. He was retiring and
Germany, Japan will restore It to
China, if nothing unexpected happens
in the meantime. Ignoring this ob
vious course which Japan must pur
sue, the Peking government seems to
have thought it its right to receive
Kiao Chou, and peremptorily Jemand
ed the withdrawal of Japanese troops
upon the fall of Tslngtao. This was a
diplomatic blunder on the part of
China.
The "open door" of China will not In
the least be impaired by China's ac
ceptance of the . Japanese demands.
Japan's methods in commercial com
petition are fair and honorable. It is
true that in Manchuria. Japanese trade
has made phenomenal advance, while
that of America has been decreasing.
Tet Japan's success is not due to any
unfair or' illegitimate means. As
everybody knows Japan is the great
est. If not the sole, customer of the
Soya bean, Manchuria's premier prod
uct, while the United States buys al
most nothing from that country. Un
der normal condition a man buys most
of another man who is also bis best
customer. Bear this in mind, and you
have the key to Japan's commercial
success in Manchuria. Then, too, Jap
an has advantage over America in the
proximity of her country to China, iii
the abundance of cheap labor at her
command, .in the kinship existing be
tween the Chinese language and her
own, and in many another respect;
Why, then, should she slam the "open
door" in order to attain commercial
supremacy in China? The American
people with their innate love of hon
orable sportsmanship must unreserv
edly recognize this fact. They must
also remember that had Russia been
permitted to remain . in South . Man
churia, their trade in that country
would have suffered far more serious
ly than under Japanese rule.
2Waterront I i i W-C J.-., : J F
quiet. Few realized hie usefulness In
the upbuilding of navigation on the
Columbia and Willamette rivers.
Thompson, - Reed, Ainsworth and
Kamm combined navigation interests
in 1860, organizing the O. S. N. Co.-nn-der
the laws of Washington at Van
couver; they incorporated under the
laws of Oregon at Portland In 1862,
with a capital of $2,000,000. The com
pany was succeeded by the Oregon
Railroad & Navigation company, under
Henry Villard, In 1879, with a capital
of $6,000,000. It is remembered by all
that the O. R- & N. was suc2eded by
the OW. R. & N. In 1910, and that this
line has become part of the. Union Pa
cific system.
The O. S. N. Co. began with the Car
rie Ladd, Jennie Clark and Express.
It finished with the beautiful vessels
of 1878-9, the Wide West, R. R. Thomp
son and S. G. Reed. The Wide West
was 218 feet long, as compared with
the Jennie Clark's length. of 115 feet.
The later boats were luxuriously fur
nished, and had hot and cold running
water.
Ae I look back over the stories of the
past weeks, a panorama of men, places,
activities anecdotes, scenic features,
legends, unfolds along the course of
the winding, swiftly flowing rivers.
The journey goes on. From Portland
we steam to Oregon City to pass
through Willamette, river locks, made
free to navigation under government
ownership for the first time, and we
witness the rejoicing of the Willamette
valley that at last the toll on passen
gers and freight has been removed.
We turn about and make the run to
Astoria and the mouth of the river,
stopping briefly at Kalama on the way
down. We Join Astorians in their pre
diction that the day Is coming
IS EXPLAINED
The United States is not the only
nation which Is committed to the
preservation of China's integrity and
the "open door." Japan, in her treat
ies or conventions with England,
France and Russia made it her avowed
policy to maintain China's Integrity.
Downing street, the Quai d'Ore&y'and
the Newsky Prospect are as Well In
formed as the White House of the
true nature of the Japanese demands
If' the mikado's overture is of the na
ture to endanger China's integrity, the
four powers would certainly have of
fered an objection before its presenta
tion to the Chinese government.
In conclusion a word on the "open
door." That principle as enunciated
by the late Secretary John Hay Is as
follows:
First That no power will in any
way interfere with any treaty port
or any vested interest within " the so
called "sphere of Influence or inter
est" or leased territory it may have
In China.
nere government.
Third That no -power shall levy any
higher harbor dues on vessels of an
other nationality frequenting any port
in such sphere than shall be levied on
vessels of its own nationality, or any
higher railroad charges over lines
UsherVonrmerchanoiirlon
to citizens or subjects of other nation-1
alities transported through such
sphere than shall be levied on similar
merchandise belonging to its own na
tionality transported over equal dis
tances. Does Japan's action in China 'con
flict with the letter and spirit of this
principle? I think not.
KjWns1 ThOt Tha I 'Til M MM . TrPflTV T Vi J UyiUIO Ule IUU VU MWW VI il -
tariff of the time being shall apply tb days' trial . . . , ZK"ntfn " " ,"f, " ) aimoe sure to
all merchandise landef or shipped to W pne think food enough to otamft VteUs about the fmft,.. ri.w
all such Dorts as are within said such a long and thorough test V!z a, 2il tn? ramous Cluth
Sphere CofP influence "unllia they be ,Tbat is our fuaraateeft rupture ow S.e-i-ho wTu Ucandv'it
free ports), no matter to what nation- boJf- . ' . ilxtv divi Vkhout hvin -VT U
ality it may belong, and that duties We ll make one especially for your JLtny dy wilho1utiatvJn . l Ti
leviable shall be colfected by the Chi- case make it to vour measure and Knn , and now 1Utle u co,t "''i
when at the mouth of the river will be
established a great ocean, river and rail
terminal great beyond the dreams of
Lewis and Clark, beyond the vision of
John Jacob Astor; yes, and beyond the
best we can predict today I
Look upon the Astoria public docks,
upon the Flavel terminal of the Hill
lines, and farther out, upon the Jetties
built by the government at cost of
many millions, with the aid , of a
dredger, to narrow and control
the current that the channel may be
safely deep for all carriers.
Here we stop; the' trip is ended on
paper. It is yet to be made in actual
ity. You are invited. Will you come?
$10,000,000 A Year
! Wasted On Trucceo
How 60 Days' Trial Protects You
Against Throwing Moneys Away
Away With
Worthless
Makeshifts j
v.
Ninety-nine out of every hundred This guaranteed rupture holder tin
dollars spent for elastic and spring o thoroughly proved its merits in
trusses might about as well be thrown nearly 800,000 cases that surgeons in
away. . the U, 8. army and mivy and phyt
Close to ten miljlon dollars a year ' clans In all parts of the wwhi now
In this country alone is practically recommend It instead of advising on
wasted on such 1 contraptions. eration.
And all simply because nine suffer- It has completely cured Jiundrie
ers out of ten trust to a mere try-on or and hundred of people wttose unci
hasty examination Instead of first seemed almost hopeleHH.
making a thorough teet. Th Things We Tell in Oar Book,
. A Mere Trr-on Is a Snare. There are so many mistaken lj
You caift possibly tell anything
about a truss or anything else for rup
ture merely Dy trying it on.
A truss or so-called "dd1
A truss or so-called "appliance" may
seem all right at first and afterward
prove utterly wortniess.
The only way In the world you can
make sure of exactly what you're get
ting is by making- a thorough sixty-day
test without having to risk any money.
The Only Tain Oood Enough
fa lund -a BO-Dav Seat. -
There is only.one thing of any kind
nrvii ..,u.nj i-. - h
long without asking ,you to risk a
penny
If it doesn'i keep your rupture from
coming, out or bothering you In any
way. no matter bow hard- you work
or strain ir it, aoesn t prove every
Tio.Vu" TRfa-fi
back and it won t cost you a single
i SKaae om '.Vew Yrlacrplo,
This guaranteed rupture bolder the
famous Cluthe is so utterly different
from everything else for rupture that
it has received eighteen separate pat
ents. It is far more thaa Just a trass.
Made on an absolutely new principle.
Unlike everything else. It Is oU
Betrayed by a Chit ken. r
Columbus, Ind., April 13. Some one
stole six chickens from Mrs. CharU"
Prultt of this -city. One of them was
a pet and she declared' the chicken
would recognize her if she could finl
it She finally' called at the Car
michael Produce company's place of
business and asked to look at the
chickens there. In a short time h
found her pet and the chicken came
running to greet her. Then she iden
tified the other chickens. Hh learne I
the poultry had been old by Ksniuel
Harden and so she filed an. affidavit
against him in the city court. Hurden
was arrested.
regulating, salf-adjnstlor Instantly
and automatically proteots yea aralstt
nr strata so your rupture caul pos
sibly be forced out.
And in addition to this constant
holding, it provides the only way ever
discovered for overcoming the wk
aess wht-h 1m the real cause of rupluio.
Just how it doH that entirely auto
matically is all explained in the tf
book which the coupon below will
hrlnir you.
XTo Belt Wo X,g Straps Vo Bprlnri.
Does away et.tirely with fh cur
of belts, leg straps and springs. Peopm
who have tried It say it la as comfort,
able as their clothing. Is water-proof
-r-will hold In the bath. Also perspi
ration proof and canity kept clean.
Will Save Yon Tram onantiim.
snout rupture that we have taken the
nine w uiii ujj ii & u'")n an we nave
learned during forty years of exreri.
'n?'i --....... w ....
.9 pages, SO chapters, and 23 .photo-
rPh' illustrations ! full of facts
never before nut in nrint-
It deals with rupture in all Its forms
and stages.
It shows the dangers of operation
It exposes the humbug "sppliancet,"
"methods," "plasters," etc
It shows why wearing elastic
Also arives over boon voLmtim
Sor8?inent" rrom be;nfl!i and cur 1
pcopic, j
,,snd f',T th' book today don't put
, jj off the minute It takes to write for
u mav. fr yu trJ.fh trouble for the
" '", u me cou-
" rooV
your pootii
THIS iintfli w
Box. 610 CZ.XTTKZ COKJAST
185 Zest 23rd St., Hew Tork City
Bend me your Free Book and Trial
offer. . -
Name
Address . ... . .