Seattle, Washington - History, 1891 (part 1 of 14)

Preface

A HISTORY of Seattle can be nothing more than a^ chapter from an uncompleted volume. The story of the city^s life has but begun and it will continue to unfold so long as physical and social conditions in North America remain unchanged. Seattle has in the future many years - many centuries - of life, and the past affords only the beginning of the story. This history can, therefore, be regarded as a story of the pioneer days of Seattle. It covers a |)eriod of only forty years, and as future time passes this i)eriod will become more and more homogeneous in a[)pearance. We who reside in Seattle to-day do not regard ourselves as in any sense pioneers. The substantial city of the present apparently has little in common with the frontier settlement of twenty-five years ago. But to the resident of Seattle a century or two centuries hence, to-day will be linked with yesterday as the days of the pioneers. The time intervening between the events that have marked the city's history hitherto - the siege, the lynching, the anti-Chinese riot, the great fire - will appear less and less. In the long pei'spective of tlie future, the present and the recent past will seem almost as one. It is in this sense, therefore, that the present volume is said to contain only the history of the pioneer days of Seattle.

Even at this comparatively early day, however, the preparation of a history of Seattle is attended with ditticulties. The sources of information are not so plentiful as miglit be supposed. The written recx:)rds of Seattle's past are exceedingly scanty. In the absence of such records the historian is compelled to depend upon the memories of the actors in the scenes described. AVhen information is derived from this source alone, there are frequently contradictions which seem inexplicable. No two men view an occurrence in precisely tlie same way, and no two men remember it alike. Where the information gathered in this manner seemed to conflict, every effort was made by those who prepared the present work to acquaint tliemselves witli tlie real facts. There may be points in whicli the conchision reached differs materially from the recollections of the majority, Imt T believe that in all material points the history is as corn^'t as patient research could make it. As to the events of more recent years, tlie files of the newspapei's have, of course, been an invaluable mine of information, but thestorv of earlier events is based almost entirely upon the memories of those who witnessed them. In this connection I wish to acknowledge the indebtedness of the compilers of the history to the old settlers, who, with only a few exceptions, willing!}* fendered valuable assistance in its preparation. To Hon. Arthur A. Denny, especially, is such an acknowledgment due.

My own connection with the work has been entirely that of an editor. I have carefully read the manuscript and have endeavored to verify the facts where a doubt .seemed to exist or when a question arose in my own mind. I have rewritten a few pages of the work where it seemed to me to l)e necessary in order to give the local touch which only a resident of the city could . impart. Except in the biographies, where a greater degree of freedom was permitted, I have been careful to exclude all statements which did not seem to be capable of verification and all conclusions not fully justified by the facts.

I am glad to acknowledge the intelligent and faithful work done by Mr. 0. F. Vedder and Mr. H. S. Lyman in the preparation of this book. They are its real authors. They wrote it, and I merely read it, as a severe critic, in advance of its publication. To these gentlemen, who have been patient, diligent and painstaking in their work, the people of Seattle are greatly indebted. They hav(» brought to light many facts which had long since been forgotten, and have done much to render complete and trustworthy the story of the early days of Seattle.

Chapter

Causes tending to the Growth and Development of the Pacific Coast - Geographical Position and Topography of Seattle - Commercial Advantages - Value of Puget Sound - How Seattle Satisfies the Requirements of a Commercial City - Water and Rail Comnmnications - A<lvantages for Residence - Natural Beauty of Surroun<lings - Description of the Country Adjacent and Tributary to Seattle - Its Pioneer Settlers. Growth and Present Development - Productions of Western W^ashington - Quality and Kxtent of Iron, Coal and Timber - Agricultural Resources of Washington 16

Settlkmknt And Pionkkr Timks

Settlement on the Duwamish River - Henrv Van Asselt - Alki Point - Lee Terrv - J. M. Low - The Founders of Seattle - Arthur A. and Da\id T. Denny - C. D. Boren, William N. Bell - C. C. Terrv - Life at Alki Point - The Native Indians - Their Character, Habits and Condition - Location of Claims on Elliott Bay - Dr. D. S. Maynard - Salmon Fishing - First Building at Seattle - Henry L. Vesler - Discovery of Salmon Bay - Incidents of I^oneer Life - Prominent Events from IHo^ to LSV) - Laying out the Town - How Seattle was Named - Building of Roads - Surveys for a Railroad - Vesler's Mill - First Postoffice and Mail Facilities - First Church and School - Ships and Craft of Early Times - Description of Seattle in I800 - Sketches of Early Settlers ... 40

Chapter Hi

Relations of the Puget Sound Settlers and Native Indians Preceding the War - Causes which Engendered Distrust and 111 Feeling - Condition of Washington Territory at the Beginning of the War - First Acts of Hostility - Murder of Ciold Seekers - Expedition of Major Haller - Arrival of the War Ship Decatur - The White River Massacre - Building of Block Houses - Seattle's First Militar\' Company - Indian Depredations Near Seattle - How the City was Guarded - Attack on the Town - Incidents of the Siege - Effects of the War upon the City and Country 95

Chapter Iv

Establishment of the Territorial University - Labor of Rev. Daniel Bagley and others - Value of the University to Seattle - Early Discovery and Development of the Coal Fields - Progress of Mining and Shipping of Coal - Opening of the Snoqualmie Wagon Road 114

The Struggle For Existence

Projected Railroad Enterprises to the Pacific Coast - Object Sought to be Obtained - Political Character of the Project - Governor Stevens' Efforts - Building Retarded by War of the Rebellion - Re-organization of Railroad Enterprises after the War - Struggle for the Pacific Coast Terminus - The Race Between Seattle and Tacoma - Inducements Offered by Seattle - Selection of Tacoma - Failure of Jay Cooke and its Effects - Seattle's Period of Self Dependence - Local Efforts to Build a Road - The Seajitle and Walla Walla Road - History of the Undertaking from its Inception - ^The Difficulties Met and Overcome - Part Borne in the Entefprise by J. M. Colman, A. A. Denny, Judge McFadden and others - Celebration in Seattle over Completion of the Northern Pacific Railroad - ^The Villard Era - Seattle's Emancipation from Corporate Influence Completed by Local Enterprise - Present Status of the Railroad Interest i:W

Chapter Vi The Lynching Of Howard, Sullivan And Payne

Conditions which made Lynching Possible - The City Infested with Criminals - The Killing of Reynolds - Formation of a Vigilance Committee - Capture of the Assassins - Assault on the Jail - Examination of Sullivan and Howard - Their Execution by Citizens in Occidental Square - Lynching of Payne - Scenes and Incidents Connected with the Unlawful Proceedings 181

Chapter Vii The Anti-Chinese Agitation

Causes which Produced the Agitation - State of Public Feeling Toward the Chinese - Murder of Chinese Laborers at Rock Springs - ^The Squak Massacre - Meeting of the Anti-Chinese Congress at Seattle - Expulsion of the Chinese from Tacoma and other Sound Points - Mass Meeting at Krye's Opera House - President Cleveland's Proclamation - Arrival of United States Troops - The Conspiracy Trial - Efforts to Forcibly Drive the Chinese from Seattle - How the Plans of the Agitators were Opposed - Action of the Home Guards and tK)cal Military Companies - Governor Squire's Proclamation - ^The Chinese Driven from their Homes to the Ocean Dock and Placed on the Steamer Queen of the Pacific - Arrest of Several Agitators - Chinamen taken from the Steamer by Order of Chief Justice Greene - ^Their Examination in Court - Departure of the Steamer with many Chinamen - Attempt to Escort those who Remained back to their Homes - The Home Guards Attacked by the Mob - Scenes and Incidents which Kolloweil - Killing of Stewart - Martial Law Declared - ^The City Under Military Rule - Services Rendered by the Home Guards and Local Military- Companies - President Cleveland's Proclamation - Second Coming of United States Troops - The Home Guards Defended - How Law and Order was Maintained by the Citizen Soldiery - ^Trial of Conspirators - Martial Law Revoked - The City Turneil over to the Civil Authorities - Review of the Anti-Chinese Agitation in Seattle 1H7

Chapter Viii Thk Grkat Firk

Appearance of Seattle before the Fire - Beginning of the (»reat Disaster - Progress of the Flames - Burning of the Opera House - P^fforts of the Fire Fighters - The Tacoma Fire Company - Fury of the Wasting Element - Property Destroyed - Preservation of Order - Work of the Police Force and Military Companies - ^Thrilling Incidents of the Day - Appearance of the Burnt District at Night - Extent of the Loss - Assistance Rendered by Firemen from Tacoma, Portland, Olympia, Port Townsend and Snohomish - Measures for Relief of the Destitute - Generosity of Neighboring Cities - Steps Toward Rebuilding and Improvement - Memorable Mass Meeting after the Fire - Spirit Shown by the People in the Face of a Great Calamity - ^W^ork of Rebuilding begun Amid Smoking Ruins - Scenes and Incidents after the Great Conflagration * 212

Chapter Ix Events After The Fire

Work of Rebuilding the City - Growth in Population and Wealth - Sad Circumstances Connected with the Death of Dr. T. T. Minor and G. Morris Haller - Their Loss a Public Calamity - Adoption of a New City Charter - Outlook for the Future of Seattle 284

Character of Early Commerce - The Lumber Trade - Development of Coal Mining - Yesler's Mill and its Effect upon Early Growth of Seattle - Early Merchants - Statistics Relating to Grain, Coal and Lumber - Period of General Commerce - Report of Governor Squire - Volume of Exports - Tonnage of Vessels Engaged in Trader-Present Condition of the Commercial Interests of Seattle 238

Chapter Xl

Advantages possessed by Seattle for Manufacturing - Early Lumber Mills and their Operators - Northwestern Cracker Company - Soap Works - Furniture Manufactory - Iron Works - Brass and Bell Foundry - Leather Manufacturing - Breweries - Progress of Recent Industrial Enterprises - Ship Building - List of Vessels Built at Seattle 25^

Chapter Xii

Seattle as a Railroad Center - The Northern Pacific - The Seattle and Walla Walla - Union Pacific - Canadian Pacific - Great Northern - Columbia' and Puget Sound - Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern - Electric and Cable Lines - Steam Navigation - Commercial Institutions 268

Record of Mercantile Growth from the Coal Period - Names of Business Firms in 1867 - Description of the City in 1875 - Extracts from First City Director>' - List of Business Houses - Condition of Business and Extent of Improvements During 1876 287

Commercial Conditions And Prospects

The State University - First Schools - Establishment of Public School System - The Central School - South School - Denny School - Minor School - Rainier School - Present Condition of Public Schools - List of Teachers - Private Schools - Business Colleges 323

Chapter Xvii

Early Churches - Growth of the Various Denominations - The Methodist Episcopal, Methodist Protestant, Presbyterian, Catholic, Episcopal, Baptist, Conj^regational. Unitarian and Lutheran Churches - l*resent Condition of the Religious Bodies of Seattle 334

Chapter Xix Chapter Xx

The Seattle Pioneer Newspapers - The Seattle Gazette - Pit get Sound Setni- Weekly - Ptiget Sound Weekly Gazette - First Telegraphic Dispatch Received at Seattle - The Alaska limes - Pnget Sound Dispatch - Pacific Tribune - The Post-Intelligencer - The Chronicle - Daily Call - Daily Times - Seattle Press- Times - Morning Journal - Seattle Telegraph - Trade Journal - Sunday Star - Seattle Budget - Die Tribune - Recent Publications 362

Chapter Xxi

General Appearance of Seattle - Its Streets, Business Houses and Private Dwellings - Grandeur and Beauty of Surrounding Countr>* - Characteristics of Suburban Towns - West and East Seattle, Ballard and Fremont 371

History Of Seattle

Causes tending to the Growth and Development of the Pacific Coast - Geographical Position and Topography of Seattle - Commercial Advantages - Value of Puget Sound - How Seattle Satisfies the Requirements of a Commercial City - ^Water and Rail Communications - Advantages for Residence - Natural Beauty of Surroundings - Description of the Country Adjacent and Tributary to Seattle - Its Pioneer Settlers, Growth and Present Development - Productions of Western Washington - Quality and Extent of Iron, Coal and Timber - Agricultural Resources of Washington.

The future of the Pacitic Coast of Anieriea iiiav l)e easily foreseen. Its growth is not a matter of conjecture, but is as ceiiain as the continuance of the human race and the economic principles that determine human action.

It is the law of enterprise that exertion will always be [)ut forth in those places and in those conditions which give assurance of the greatest returns according to the effort expended. It is moreover a simple fact of social growth that as the natural advantages of the old centres of population become more and more fully occupied and monopolized, the rewards of the labor and industry of the masses of the people become more and more reduced to the level of actual living expenses, so that in the old Asiatic and Euroj>ean world from ninety to ninety-nine ]:)er cent, of the ]:)eople can never do more than earn the means of an average style of subsistence. The surplus of their labor, whatever it may be, goes to governmental or business monopolies. With the growth of the older states of America a like condition is beginning to appear. In all the old countries, therefore, and in the older states of our own country, the people are always impelled to seek for new places or conditions where their toil may be adequately rewarded and a full return for their exertion is assured.

To bring the motive for departure from an old and densely peopled country into positive action, the only pre-requisite is general intelligence.

All Europeans know that life in America is easier and labor more profitable than in their native land, and this very knowledge is operating, and always will operate, to relax their natural love of home and country, and bring them hither. The chief obstacle - that of the expense of transportation - is diminished constantly by the growth of transportation companies to whom it is an advantage to have large bodies of emigrants cross the ocean.

The causes which precipitate population upon the Alantic coast of America act all the more energetically to move it across the continent to the Pacific Coast. The simple mention of this fact, and the naming of these causes, is sufficient to bring to notice the certainty of the future growth of our coast.

Old World difficulties will drive the people even into regions where the climate is less comfortable and the soil less productive than of the regions which they leave. How much more rapidly and thoroughly these must act when the region to which it impels them is one of climatic salubrity and prolific soil, may readily be conceived.

Without many words or much philosopliising, however, it may be admitted that population in the United States will rapidly tend to spread itself about evenly over the national area, according to natural advantages, until no one place has any special [)re-eminence over another, so far as rewards of labor are concerned, or until the density of population, growth of business and governmental monopolies burden industry about equally in all parts ; until the level of average subsistence for the masses has been reached in all parts alike. If this be true, the state of. Washington should at length have a population equal to that of the states of New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania combined, or nearly 10,000,000 inhabitants, with cities like Jersey City, Baltimore and Philadelphia.

To say how soon these figures will be reached would be (juestionable. Manifest causes sometimes act with unaccountable slowness ; but the difficulties in the way of Washington reaching its capacity are but trifling. With its very complete system of rail communication, the transfer of population presents no great difficulty. The only restraint so far as ap[)ears, is insufficiency of work Ibr emigrants as fast as they arrive. The stimulus to l>ring them must In* work more steady and profitable than where they come from. Just so fast as the [)eople now in Washington, or thos(> operating her(\ can project and carry on work to employ new comers, so fast will tin* state approach its maximum |)opulation.

At the rate which raih'oad i>uil(ling, and other enterprises are being pushed, our capacity of al)S()rption is very greal. The ix)pulation of the state increased five-fold during the last decade. Ifw(^ suppose the increase to continue at about this rate for the next decade, and then fall at the rate of on(»-half for each tluM-eaf'ter we should have the following results : U)0(), 1,500,000 : H)10, ;^7:)0,000 ; 1920, 4,687,- 500; and from that time an increase of perha})s 1,000,000 per decade - conditions continuing substantially the same as at present. Seattle as one of the princij>al cities would grow accordingly. It is, therefore, fully justifiable to s{)eak of this city as having the most of its career before it. All that is to be done in this volume is to give an account of its beginning. Nevertheless that beginning is much. It will always be the most interesting and entertaining period of the whole. In a certain wav it will be the most instructive, and must embrace most of that which is romantic and adventurous.

The future mav have much to tell of business schemes, of the launching of great transportation and manufacturing enterprises, with improved municipal methods and general advancement in the comfort and welfare of the people.

But to the past, short as it has been, must ever belong the story of the discovery and location of the site ; the hand to hand struggle with the natural difficulties of a new and remote settlement ; of the conflict with the Indians, who disputed possession, and the conflict with rivals that expected to walk over her dead body to their own metro})oliUin splendor. It will also be a difficult matter for any one in the future, however strong and able he may be, to stand out in the clear, bold outline of the pioneers who made the place. The future will estimate its citizens in the aggregate, by numbers of souls, by numbers of dollars, by banking capital, and by ships cleared, or passengers passed from the depots ; but the past has already measured the [)ioneers of Seattle as individual men, with their characteristics and labors ap})ortioned to each. It is to make a record of their exertion, therefore, together with what has already sprung from it, that we now address ourselves.

Geographical Tosition

The bold and strongly marked features of the North Pacific Coast are well understood. Making an observation toward the east from the ocean shore, the topography appeal's as a succession of mountain chains and interjacent basins, each new elevation larger and move imposing, and the corresponding basin broader and more extensive. Thus passing over the Coast Range, or their northern extension, the Olympic Mountains, thirty to fifty miles, tlie Puget Sound basin is reached, with its extension on the south of the U[)per Chelialis and the lower Cowlitz valleys. Including the waters of the Sound itself, with its arms, inlets and passages, to the British line on the north, there is found in Western Washington a depression measuring three degrees of latitude by one and a half of longitude, or sometliing upwards of two hundred statute miles by sixty, or some 12,000 scjuare miles. The Cascade Mountains on the east, although more lofty, are a narrower range than the Olympic. On their eastward slopes they break down, by long tables, to the great plains of the Columbia, which, with a few somewhat isolated mountain ridges like the Peshastin, Simcoe, and the flanks of tlie Blue and Caair d'Alene Mountains, make up the immense pastoral and grain raising belt of the State, measuring some four degrees of longitude by tliree of latitude, or upwards of 30,000 square miles, more than half of which is arable.

By the Cascade Range Washington is cut into two distinct sections. Another geographical feature, equally obvious, is the long passage way between the Coast and Cascade Mountains, continuing almost without a break from the noilhern boundary of California through Oregon and Washington to, and far into, the British possessions, with sheltered waterways into Ahiska. This is a depression extending aeross seven degrees of latitude in the United States and nearly six in British Columbia ; and it continues northward, among the straits, gulfs and islands and the sea-looking valleys of Alaska for ten degrees farther, making for it nearly twenty-five degrees of latitude, or upwards of 1,500 miles. It will average 100 miles in width from crest to crest of the mountains, making an area of 1")0,00() square miles, (>ne-half of which is arable land, one-quarter waterways, and the rest waste rocks and mountain peaks or ridges. In such a rc^gion there must be a great jK)pulation, much traffic an<l travel, and many cities.

A peculiaritv of this inland svstem of vallevs and basins is the small number of outlets to the sea. Tiiere are but two - that formed by the lower Columbia River, and that of the Straits of Juan de Fuca, expanding into the (Jeorgian (Julf and Puget Sound. Juan de P\ica is distant from the Siskiyou Mountains on the south just six degrees, and from the Alaskan boundary just six, being in fact very near the mid-point of the western coast of North America. It is one of the most remarkable inlets on the face of the earth, perhaps having no equal. About eighty miles in length, from Cape Flattery to its junction with Puget Sound, and ten to fifteen miles in width, it is as easy to navigate as the ocean itself, having a depth of water measunnl by hundreds of fathoms. Assisted bv the tides, which run from three to five or more miles per hour, sailing crafts of all kinds jiass in and out with expedition and perfect safety. By the Canal de Ilaro it connects with the great body of water on the north, the (Jeorgian (uilf, which encircles Vancouver Island. Bv the Kosario Straits, whose crescent channel leaves within its compass the grouj) of the San Juan Islands, entrance is made on the east shore to B(?llingham Bay. The great arm reaching south, almost at right angles to ihe straits - sending out a small arm, however, on a circle to the north and east to s(»t off Whidby Island - penetrates the land for one hundred niil(»s, forming the multitude of bays, inlets and straits which now go collectively by the name of Puget Sound.

coast, that Seattle is situated. It is on Elliott Bay, an indentation in the east shore of Admiralty Inlet and is in latitude 47 degrees, 35 miirutes north, and longitude 122 degrees and 30 minutes west, 140 miles from the sea.

To fix the spot more particularly, it may be regarded as the center of concentric circles, with multiple radii. A radius of twenty-five miles would form a circle the circumference of which would pass on the east, (south of east) through Snoqualmie; on the northeast, Snohomish ; on the north, the south end of Whidby island ; to the northwest, Port Ludlow ; to the west, a few miles into Hood^s Canal beyond Seabeck ; on the south, (west of south), Tacoma. This circle would include, beginning on the south, Puyallup, Sumner, White River, Renton, Cedar Mountain, Newcastle, Duwamish, Lake Washington, Kirkland, Fall City, Lake Samamish, Snohomish Junction, Mukilteo, two or three towns on Whidby Island, such as Phinney and Useless, and across the sound such important places as Port Madison, Port Gamble, Port Orchard and Port Blakelv. In this circle are included three of the most noted rivers on the sound : the Puyalhij), Duwamish and the lower end of the Snohomish ; all, to be sure, small streams, but unequaled for the fertility of the soil of their meadow lands.

There also are included the three lakes, Union, Samamish and Washington, the former of which is included within the boundaries of Seattle, and on the latter of which she fronts upon the east. Lake Washington is five miles wide, almost thirty miles long and one thousand feet deep. Lake Samamish is beyond the city to the east. The western segment of the circle embraces Admiralty Inlet and the wooded hills toward Hood's Canal, and a portion of the canal itself. This circle is seen to occupy the choicest and mid-most position of the sound basin. Doubling the radius to fifty miles, we have a circle whose circumference i)asses on the east to the heart of the Cascade mountains through Lake Kichelos. On the northeast, N. X.E., through Skagit; on the north, nearly to Deception Pass, to touch the north end of Whidby Island. On the northwest it reaches New Dungeness, at the upper end of the straits. On tin* west it j)enetrates far into the Olympic mountains. On the southwest, S. S. W., it passes through Olympia. By this circle are included the waters and arms and tribu-

Making the radius one hundred miles, we have on the east, E. S. E., EUensburgh, and E. X. E., Lake Chelan, across tlie Cascade mountains; on the north the circumference passes the British line; on the northwest it passes Victoria ; on the west goes througli Destruction Island on the Pacific shore ; and south, S. S. W., reaches the Cowlitz Valley within a few miles of Freeport, near the Columbia. This circle illustrates Seattle as central in relation to tlie north and south boundary of the state, and east and west to the mountain systems.

A radius of two luindred and fifty miles forms a circle including Walla Walla and Spokane Falls, eastward, much of British Columbia northward, the Pacific Ocean shore for three hundred miles to the westward, and extending to Eugene, Oregon, on the south. This illustrates Seattle as central in relation to the great area of population of the North Pacific Coa.st, where are situated our great industries, such as lumbering, mining, fruit and grain raising, grazing, etc.

The topograj)liy of the i)lace should be briefly noticed. Seattle, as has been said, is situated on the east side of Admiralty Inlet having as an immediate frontage tlie (ym. known as Elliott Bay. This forms a harbor without doul)t the most j)erfect on the Pacific ( 'onst. Its entrance extends from West Point, or the projection of the j)oint, on the north, to Duwamish Head on the south; the two l)eing nearly three miles apart. This breadth of water is quite continuous for six or seven miles southeastward, in which direction trend the including shores. Thus a water surface of more than twenty scjuare miles is formed, with ample depth at all places, except at the extreme upper end, where the Duwamish Plats are encountered.

The east shore of the bay rises rapidly, in some places abruptly, making a table land of undulating surface of an elevation from one to five hundred feet. At a distance ranging from two to four miles the table breaks down, in j)laces abruptly, upon Lake Washington, the site of the city is on the land between the bav and the lake, on both of which it fronts. A small lake - Lake Union - lies between Lake Washington and the salt water on the west, having an outlet into an arm of the sound entering north of West Point, known as Salmon Bay. Another small body of fresh water - Green Lake - lies still north of Lake Union, soon, like the latter, to be surrounded by the

The surface of the city is undulating, and was originally regarded as broken and rugged, but is found to yield most gracefully to grading and improvement, and to grow handsome in the extreme under the expenditurje of wealth directed by art.

Commercial Advantaoks

Tlie term commerce must be understood here in its broadest significance as exchange of all kinds, and by no means be confined to the notion of exchange only with foreign countries.

It is by commerce that the greatest cities are produced - Chicago, New York, London - and any place having truly great facilities in this respect has the potency of greatness. The laws of commercial advantages are two. First, communication with the ocean ; and second, a central position in re.spect to productive and populous territory.

The first of these laws is fully recognized, and its operation is well understood. No one expects a great city - a metropolis - unless it has access by water to the ocean,, and .thus to all i)arts of the world. The ocean, with its winds, curreats and tides, is the common carrier, and by it only may all parts of the world bo reached. There is no example of a great city, unless in ancient times some capital or half military camp of a despot, as Ninevah, which has been out of reach of the ocean. Babylon, Rome, Paris, Berlin and London, although all rising under a condition of things now no longer prevalent, have exemplified the necessity of communication w^ith the open sea. Our own great cities, New York, Chicago, New Orleans and San Francisco, illustrate the same thing to a more marked degree. The fact that commerce now runs as much on rails as on water does not detract from this necessity. Rail communication saves time only at the expenditure of power. Water communication requires time but operates at a minimum of power. Where time is the principal consideration, the rails are the cheapest ; where power is chiefly to be econ- omized, water is cheaper. Commerce involves botli. Any city depending on one only cannot compete with the one that has both. No city can become metroi)olitan sini])ly as a railroad center.

The otlier law is not so well understood, but is, nevertheless, as exact. No city can be great commercially unless it is central to a productive and populous region. It is only when both of these conditions are satisfied that a city may reach j)re-eminence. It is not often that a location satisfies both comj)letely; it usually inclines to one rather than the other. A central i)osition did most for Rome, Paris and Berlin. London approximates centrality to England, having a short reach across the island to Liverpool. New York City is a bright exanij)le of this in contrast with Boston or Richmond, each of which at one time rivaled her. This emporium of America is central in two respects. First, being near the middle of the line drawn along the Atlantic Coast from the ti}) of Flori^la to the tip of New Foundland ; and second, being nearest to that point on the coast which could be the centre of a circle having on all sides populous and productive territory. Notice New York's advantage in the latter particular over Boston. Make the latter a centre and draw a circle with a radius of a tbousand miles, and you have nearly half the circle only waste water. Make New York the centre of a circle with a radius of a thousand miles, and not more than one-third of the included area is thus waste; her situation being at the obtuse angle of the indented coast line. If, as may be allowed, the advantage of position is in proportion to the area tributary, New York would have an advantage equal to the difference between one-half and one-third, or one-sixth ; or the immense advantage of sixteen per cent., which applied to racing horses or racing steamboats, would settle the question very quickly.

The two Canadian cities, (iuel)ec and Montreal, illustrate the same thing, the latter, although farther from the coast, more than making uj) by central position. Chicago and her rivals afford even a better example. Those old-time rivals were Milwaukee and 8t. Louis. Tbe latter fell behind, not from any lack of enterprise, but from lack of access to the sea in deep craft, which Chicago enjoyed, to the largest extent of any great inland city, through the lakes. Milwaukee was condemned by the other law - lack of centrality to productive and populous regions. Chicago was located at the end of the long Lake Michigan. A circle with a radius of a hundred miles drawn around her included only a narrow segment of waste water - not above onefifth of the area inclosed. Milwaukee, on the other hand, was located on the side of the lake. A circle about her with radius one hundred miles embraced as almost half of its area nothing but waste water. This gave Chicago the immense advantage, so far as concerned its immediate area, of forty per cent.

The first law, that of access to the sea, seems almost to negative the second, that of centrality to a productive territory. A point on the coast must necessarily have about half of its surrounding area waste water; while a point that is tlic centre of a productive territory must be removed some distance from the coast. Of course, one law would nullify the other excei)t for the fact that in some places the ocean throws arms into the hind. It is uj)0h these arms that as nearly central as possible, /. c, as far into the land as i)0»'sible, the conditions are most fully met, and both laws have a chance to operate.

Having called attention to these laws, which no one will care to disi)ute, let us see how Seattle stands. As to the first, access to the sea, the path from the Pacific ocean through the Straits of San Juan de Fuca, Admiralty Inlet and into Elliott Bay, is perfect. It is a direct road, ten to twenty miles wide, of a depth of hundreds of feet. So far as navigation is concerned it is the same as the ocean, and better - l)eing sheltered from the storms. Practically, therefore, the ocean extends to the wharves of Seattle. The entrance from the sea is ideally perfect ; confessedly without a rival. Nothing excels it, and it will always be regarded as the ne phis ultra of inlets. The law of metropolitan growth, therefore, recjuiring connection with the ocean, is fully satisfied. No justification for this statement is reciuired. No statistics, no records of disasters, no reasoning away of seeming difiiculties will be necessary. Its complete satisfaction of this law will not be disputed.

The second law is in its nature more obscure in its operation, and will involve the consideration of more complex facts. In examining this subject it may be necessary to compare the site of Seattle with that of other places near or remote - not from any spirit of boasting or any desire to depreciate others, but simj)ly to develop the fact. Is Seattle central? That is, does it occupy a {)Ositi()n in the center of productive, or fertile and i;k)J)u1ous, or well inhabitable territory?

By reference to the section on ^eo^rai)hical jK)sition it api)ears that it may be described as the center of concentric circlets. A small circle of twenty-five miles radius embraces the most productive meadow lands, the most useful lakes, the most numerous cities and towns, the most valuable mines, the. most extensive lumbering points, and tlie most important harboi's on the Sound. If we should suppose this small circle to be all that there was in Washington - a small region surrounded by wilderness - where would the metropolis be except at the center? Through it all points, from Snoliomish on the north to Tacoma on the south, and from Sno(|ualmi(' on the ea.*<t to Seabeck on the west, could be most easily reached from any given point in the circle.

Enlarging the circle to a radius of fifty mib^s, Seattle is i^ccn to be the central point of the Sound basin, from Deception Pass on the north to Olympia on the south, and the cre.st of the Ca.^cade mountains on the tnist to the crest of the Olympic mountains on the west. With a radius of a hundred miles, Seattle again aj>pears as a natural center, with EUensburgli on the east, the British line on the north, Destruction Island on the west, and the Columbia Uivcf on the south. With reference to Western Washington, therefore, or to any great division of it, as the Puget Sound basin, Seattle is cc'ntral. It would seem, therefore, that, othiT things being e(|ual, it must occuj)y the position of metropolis - "mi<l(lk* city" - of the hundred mile radius. Comparing it with any other j)oint, su(*h as Whatcom, Port Townsend, Tacoma or Olympia, the hundred mile radius, or any part of it, gives it cultivable and inhabitable territorv in all directions bcvond that secured by the same means to any one of these. Kxtending the radius, of coui'se, a segment on the ocean now becomes waste, its diminishing value being retarded, however, by the northwest trend of the coast above the straits an<l bv Vancouver Island.

farther up the Sound and nearer the centre of production. It may be thought, however, that the same law would work disadvantiigeously to her by compelling the central point to be made still farther up the Sound, at Tacoma or Olympia. It will be noticed at once, however, that there is no advance inland, /. e. to the east, by going on uj) to either of these places ; and whatever is gained on the south in j)roductive tributary country is lost on the north. At Elliott's Bay the ocean water ceases to advance toward the heart of the continent, but thence trending south or south-west merely parallels the coast line without gaining anything in perpendicular distance from it. From Olympia directly west to the coast line it is about sixty miles ; from Tacoma about eighty ; wiiile from Seattle it is above ninety. Seattle is likewise slightly nearer Si)okane Falls, the present commercial centre of Eastern Washington, by virtue of its j)osition farther to the east. It is not denied that Tacoma has a magnificent position, almost ideally fulfilling both the conditions that determine a metropolis, yet it must be evident that she gains nothing by being farther up the Sound. Indeed, it must alwavs be accounted loss to sail two houi-s and then be less inland by ten miles than before. C-ommeree will, and nmst, reach Seattle in order to unlade as far as possil)le in the interior, and to lav down its wares on the east side of the Sound where the railroad may take it up. But it will not go a mile further if there is no advantage to be gained, and it cannot l)e budged if, instead of gaining, it only loses by going on. Seattle ai)i)ears therefore as the farthest point up the Sound to which it is i)rofitable to ascend, but it is the point which must be reached. It is clear therefore tliat it is a si)ot w-hich satisfies the requirements for a commercial city. It is on ocean water, central to productive and inlial)itable territory, being one liundred miles interior, and the farthest j)lace inland on the body of water. It is on an incomparably beautiful and commodious arm of the sea ; it is at the middle of a long series of the most handsome and fertile valleys and basins down which must flow increasingly the tides of trade and traffic, and it lies at the head of profitable deep sea navigation on an unrivaled harbor of its own. These things fix its pre-eminence with the certainty of fate.

at the upper end of the bay do not in the least interfere with navigation, and the tide channels wash near the whole city front, allowing ingress within a few rods of the mainland. But tlie most remarkable feature is the harbor on the eastern side of the city, Lake Washington. Here are above fifty s([uare miles of fresh water*surface, with a depth of one hundred feet - ample to afford accommodation for all the navies of the world. Into this lake a ship canal mav readilv be cut. Such a fresh water harbor as would thus be made available, it is safe to sav, no other seaj)ort enjoys, for no other city has both strongly salt and perfectly fresh water at its docks.

Rail Communk'Ation

The facilities of water communication are complete, inviting the, commerce of the world. Rail communication is quite as nece^ssary. How is Seattle situated in reference to the railroad systems, present and prospective, of the Northwest ?

So far as concerns this region there are three transcontinental lines : The Union Pacific, the Northern Pacific and the Canadian Pacific. The (xreat Northern is soon to bc^ added. The Southern Pacific extends through Oregon, and is not unlikely to seek sea water. The rails of these roads have all been laid after due consideration and careful examination of i)asses and available routes. The railroad system as now laid down is but a reflex of the railroad capacities of the topography. On what footing do they put Seattle? Let us see.

The Northern Pacific entering the Sound basin from the east and seeking to make its own terminus on tide water, crosses the Cascade mountains at Stami)ede Pass, from which the distance to Seattle is the same as to Tacoma. So far, therefore, as concerns this line, Seattle is at no disadvantage, but is as near Walla Walla or Sj)okane Falls as any port on the Sound.

The Canadian Pacific, while doul)tless maintaining its terminus at Vancouver, British Columbia, must also have a branch to meet the other transcontinental systems. \i^ nearest point to form such a junction is at Seattle. The Union Pacific has begun to build a line from Portland, ])y way of Vancouver, Wasliington, down tlie Columbia river to the Cowlitz, and thence to Seattle,

Of the lines projected, the Great Xortliern will terminate at Seattle, and the Seattle and Southern, as yet not begun, will eonimunicate directly with Portland, to operate in connection with the Southern Pacific. This makes Seattle the terminus of three transcontinental lines, with the prospect of two more. This fact well enough answers the question concerning Seattle's relation to railroad routes. These roads reach Seattle because^ it is, on the whole, the most convenient place for them to terminate - meeting the commerce of the world.

Of important state roads, the Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern stands first, having some eighty miles built into the Squak and Snoqualmie country, and aiming to cross the Cascade mountains at Cady s pass, and ultimately to connect with its eastern branch to reach Spokane Palls. It will also, by another branch, connect with the Canadian Pacific.

Advaxtagks For Kksidence

As this history proceeds with the account of improvements that have been added to tlie natural site of Seattle, the artificial advantages of residence in this city will api)ear. Churches, schools, refinements of society, l)eauty of buildings, and attractions in the way of amusements, will all be esteemed as advantages in this particular. It is, however, not to these that attention should now be directed, but only to those features of natural desirability that exist here irrespective of what man has done.

thirst among these should be mentioned salubrity. Being on salt water the city enjoys an atmosphere always })ure. The germs of zvmotic diseases are destroved bv the sea breezes. Malaria does not exist. The temperature is also remarkably equable, having no great diurnal variation, nor reaching extremes of heat or cold in summer and winter. The prevailing winds in summer are from the northwest, bringing clear skies, and in the winter from the southwest, bringing warmth, with moist air and rain. In spring and autumn, and even in midsummer and midwinter, the east wind is not unknown, bringing dryness and heat, or dryness and cold, according to the season. Snow alwavs falls in winter, but usuallv not above a few inches in dei)th, and it soon disai>i>ears. A phenominal snow fall of five feet is on record, but this has occurred only once during the residence of the oldest settlers, or, indeed, within the remembrance or traditional records of the Indians. Lake Union is frequently frozen sufficiently to permit skating, but Lake Washington has never been known to freeze. In the main, Seattle enjoys, in connnon with the Puget Sound basin, a climate similar to that of Northern France.

Life has more enjoyment, more zest, more nerve, from not being burdened by the malarial disorders that the people of some places in the Northwest must struggle with. The salt, heavily oxygenized air of the sea also adds percei)tibly to vigor and longevity. The i>eople here remain active and retain their powers, even to a far advanced age.

As a second attraction to residents will be the beauty of the surroundings. The scenery here is unsurpasse<l. This is said while bearing fully in mind the remarkable scenery commanded by the imi)ortant cities of the Pacific Coast. San Francisco, with lis Golden Gate and blue expanse of water in the harbor; its white shores of sea and bay; its circling hills across the water beyond Berkely, Oakland and Alameda; the pyramid of Tamalpais to the north crowning the hills of San Raphael, and the dome of Diablo to the east looking down on all. Portland, with its romantic ''Heights;" its front toward the Willamette and the buttes and meadows beyond ; its prospect of the gorge of the Columbia Kiver in the Cascade Mountains, and its full exposure to the gaze of Hood, St. Helens and other volcanic peaks. Tacoma, with its fine bay in front ; its great plain in the rear and Mt. Rainier bevond. All are a L^allerv of nature's best art. Each will have its admirers and devotees. Seattle, however, not lacking in comparison with any of these, adds some features the like of which are not furnished bv anv of them.

The view of the harbor with its heads and fiats and union with the long sweep of A<lmiralty Lilet, north and south, but serves as introductory to that of the lofty and jagged peaks of the Olympic Mountains forty miles to the west, l)ehind some spur of whicli the sun is often observed to set in a majesty of colors. These mountains are usually white with snow. On the east the i)rospe(^t is still more commanding. Here is Lake Washington, from the heights above which.

or from whose surface, may be seen with e(jiial satisfaction Mt. Rainier to the southeast, and Mt. Baker to the nortlieast, with Adams, St. Helens and the Olympic mountains to till out the |)ictur(\

Advantages of resi<lence in relation to business and intercommunication with such interesting places as Victoria, N'ancouver and I)oint<« in Alaska; and with Portland, San Francisco an<l the Sandwich Islands, resulting from geographical position, need only he hinted at.

In order to attain even the small mcasuri' of completeness that is aimed at in this volume, it is rcfpiisitc that some notice of the country which Seattle serves as commercial center l)e now inserted. The history of the city cannot l)e'followed intelligently without having something of this in mind.

First, the imaginarv circle drawn around the citv within a hundred mile radius, will he glanced at. This it is rememhered passe<l over the (-ascade mountains to the east, touched the British line on the north, passed by Destruction Island on the ocean shore to the west, and nearly reached the Columbia river on the south, practically including all Western Washington. On the ixtreme north is that remarkable group of islands now constituted as San Juan county. There are four or five main islands, the largest being San Juan and Orcas, although the whole archipelago docs not comjn'ise more than two hundred square miles of territory. It is tor the most part made up of the most romantic islets, worn by the water into all manner of fantastic shapes, and beautiful and eerie beyond l)elief Friday Harbor is the principal town, and the most remunerative occupation is quarrying the stone secured here, being of a remarkable beauty. Lime for building purposes is also burnt and exported. Lying in the expanse; of watei*s of the Straits of Fuca, where these widen to meet the Straits of (Georgia, the islands possess a remarkable climate, being salubrious and vernal throughout the year; and, what is most remarkable, having a rainfall of one-half to one-third of that on the mainland to the east. Grazing and dairying are carried on profitably. These islets will one day be occupied, as the Thousand Isles of the St.

Next the northern border on the mainland is the Whatcom country, set off as Whatcom county. Here is BcUingham Bay, justly regarded as one of the finest harbors in this region famous for harbors, being about six miles square and defended on all sides by the mainland, projecting headlands, or islands. It was here that Captain Pattle, then on a mission for the Hudson's Bay Company, discovered the first coal on the Sound, making this valuable find while walking along the beach. A better vein was afterwards disclosed by the overturning during a storm, of a tree whose roots lay over the bed. Whatcom was early settled, and while the Frazer river mines were flourishing, ISoo, became a busy and populous place as the point of supply and outfitting. With the decline of the gold furore, however, the town rapidly decayed. It has always been a considerable luml)ering station, and coal has been mined spasmodically. Within the past few years it has entered upon a period of new and more substantial growth, and is now numbered among the flourishing cities of the state.

Semiahmoo, on the border, and Birch Bay are good harbors ; and the Nootsack river, coming from the mountains direct, also forms an opening in the shore line. On this stream there is arable land which is for the most part still wilderness.

liellingham Bay will soon be the seat of cities of importance. It is on the line that must betaken by north-bound railroads, and indeed has made at present a considerable beginning in railroad entorj)rises, the Fairhaven and Southern extending from Fairhaven on its waters to Hamilton in Skagit county. Lakes Whatcom and Samish are beautiful little bodies of water near the shore, and the county is distinguished by possessing one of the most lofty of the Cascade mountains. Baker, with an imj)enetrable tangle of peaks and ridges surrounding. Lumbering and navigation, together with fishing, as on all the Sound coast, are the principal occupation. Here are some of the most extensive forests and best of coal mines.

Coasting southward along the shore, which here presents a succession of lieadlands and leads on the west further and farther into the archipelago, one reaches the Skagit country. This is made l)y a

.swift and strong river of a considerable volume, the Skagit, which takes its rise in the British possessions, and finds its way through a great deft in the Cascade mountains to sjdt water. On its lower course it dejK)sits much silt, forming extensive bottoms that are of inexhaustible fertility and grow phcMiominal crops of oats. It has lx>en late in settling, but is making rapid progress. The towns of La Conner, Mt. Vernon, Skagit, F'ir, Hamilton and others are thriving places. On the shore of the Sound, Edison, Samish and F^'iilalgo are attractive towns; while Anacortes is famous all over the coast. Fidalgo Island, off shore, is one of the most fertile and important of the whole group in th(» lower Sound. The railroa<l to iiellingham Bay opens the county to the northwest, while the Skagit River affords a route to the southwest. The surface is for the most part heavily timl>ered, but the soil is fertile beyond belief Considerable progress in agriculture has already been made.

Offshore in the greatest breadth of water, almost touching Fidalgo Island, lies Whidby Island, the garden of Western Washington. Together with Camano it forms Island county. It measures nearly forty miles in length, but not more than two to live in breadth. It is nowhere more than ten miles across, and at Penn's Cove is nearlv cut in two. The entire county, including water, has but two hundred and fifty square miles. It is ([uite largely of an alluvial formation, with little highland or rocks, and has been from pro-historic times the gathering place of the tribes. Here, before the days of the white man, c^ime Indians from all parts of the Sound coast to the '*pot latch" and "pow wow." The shellfish in the sands of the beach constituted one attraction, and the convenient groves of balm and fir another. The main thing, however, was the open grassy prairie in the midst of the isle, and the herds of deer that ran here. To take these animals the Indians built fences of poles wide open at one end, but gradually narrowing to a point at the other. Then beginning at a distance, with guards stationed along the route, runners began to beat up the game, gradually driving the frightened creatures into the traj), where they were slaughtered in such numbers as to feed the whole congregation of tribes.

Glassgow. With A. B. Rabbesoii he went down Hood's Canal in a canoe and approached the island from the west. Glassgow began a garden, but not long afterwards the two were compelled to leave owing to a council of Indians being held there in which it was attempted to inaugurate a policy of exterminating the whites. The fii'st settlement actually made was at Penn's Cove in the autumn of 1850, by Col. I. N. Ebev, who was afterwards murdered bv the Haidah Indians on a raid from the Russian possessions. In February, 1851, R. H. Lansdale settled at Oak Harbor, making ^*a good garden that year," but in 1852 he abandoned his claim there ''on account of the mud flats" and settled at Penn's Cove. He left at the muddy shore Martin Taftson, Clement W. Sumner, and Ulrich Friend. In 185'5 the island population was increased by the arrival of a brig, the Cabot, Capt. Dryden, from Portland, Oregon, which had entered from the north, steering through Deception Pass, and bringing as settlers James Buzby and family, Mrs. Maddox and family, R. L. Doyle and wife, Mrs. Dr. Kellogg and family, who were soon joined by the Doctor, who came by way of the Cowlitz, and Mrs. Smith and daughter, with a few others. A most welcome growth was there enjoyed. Among the settlers of this year were some men of distinction. As such might be mentioned Col. Crockett, who before coming to Oregon had served a number of terms in the Virginia legislature; and his son, John, who was a veteran of the Mexican war, and had gained reputation as an Indian fighter on the plains. Whidby Island quickly became well settled and highly cultivated, and earned the name of the (Jarden of Washington. It was thought for a time to be about the only place on the Lower Sound fit to live upon, and rivaled Olympia in the culture and brilliancy of its society. It has now the largest i)()pulation per square mile of any agricultural region in Western Washington, or perhaps the state. Dairying, fruit raising and general farming are the occupations of the i)eople.

In 185;3 Utsaladv, on Camano Island, was located bv Lawrence Grennan and two partners, Thonip?son and Campbell, and in 1858 Thomas Cranney bought an interest, and under the lirm name of Grennan & Cranney, they built a sawmill and operated it in connection with the shipment of spai*sto Europe.

On the mainland opposite Whidby Island is a valley region formed by the Stillaguamish and the Snohomish rivers, whieli with the Cascade mountains in the distance, composes Snohomish county. The Snoqualmie river, a tributary of the Snohomisli, was not settled upon until 1858, as mentioned in Arthur A. Denny's *' Pioneer Davs."

Snohomish county has been late in developing, chiefly owing to the immense timber to l)e cleared away. liOggiug and milling are the first industries, and in these the Snohomish river leads all other sections. Here the timber is of tlie very finest cjuality, and the logging streams are of good capacity. The i>ottom lands of the rivers and creeks are of unlimited fertility and make an increasing showing in the production of hay and oats, for both of which there is a demand for the logging camps, far beyond the supply from the product of the innnediate vicinity. It is in tlu^ Snohomish woods that the tramway to run on wooden rails laid on the ground without crossties, and to be operated by steam, has been developed and profitablv used. The towns of Snohomish Citv, Edmunds, Mukilteo, Marysville and Stanwood are thriving places on or not far from the line of the Great Northern Railroad, now being built. A small portion of the countv on the shore of the salt water is set aside as a reservation for the Tulalip Indians.

The settlement of King county, being substantially the same as of Seattle, mention of it will be omitted here. The Sno([ualinie river, falling into the Snohomish on the north; Cedar river into Lake Washington, and Black river out of it in the same bed but by another channel; Green river and White river into the Duwamish, and this into Elliott's Bay, are the principal water courses. All tlu* eastern shore of the Sound is striated by streams whose meadow lands possess a .soil of wonderful productiveness. The soil of the uplands and hills is thin and gravelly, being composed of glacial drift, sand, gravel, cobble stones and boulders of schist, porphyry, gnuiite, etc. But the great number of the strips of meadow land lining the stn^ams afford a considerable aggregate of land, which is productive beyond measure. The names of the towns in this countv will occur so fre(iuentlv in the narrative, that they may be omitted here. King county has more

The oldest settlement in Pierce county, the county next south of King; was at Steilacoom, in 1851, by Captain Lafayette Balch, at the upper town, and by J. B. and J. M. Chapman at the lower. This place had for a long time great expectations, having like all towns on this water, such a location as w'ould, in lack of anything better, give it pre-eminence. It has been made the seat of public institutions, such as the Insane Asylum, and will always be a delightful spot on the shore. Without the smallest doubt, the entire coast of the Sound will ultimately be occupied by the sites of villas, villages and suburban seats, each with its special attraction. Steilacoom will always possess decided advantages among them, becoming more and more the seat of elegant retirement, solid culture and easy enjoyment.

It was the building of the Northern Pacific Railroad in 1870-72, and '84-'85, that brought Pierce county into fome. The head of Commencement Bay, Old Tacoma, had been a long time before this occupied by a sawmill and small village ; but the Northern Pacific, following the plan of making cities as it went, under the management of Hon. C. B. Wright, selected the site of New Tacoma, with the express intention of making liere the metropolis of the Pacific Northwest. The daring j)lan was carried out with characteristic boldness. The struggle that ensued between this place and Seattle will form the subject of a subsequent chapter, and need not, therefore, be dwelt on here. However, the career of Tacoma, which has become known the world over as the Citv of Destiny, has been one of the most brilliant in the annals of the West. It has now the pojmlation, buildings, improvements, rail and water communication, and the enterprise of one of the gi'cat cities of the Pacific Coast, l)eing surpassed only by San Francisco, Poilland and Seattle. Its present attainments will never diminish. Its advantages are such that it can always otier great inducements to the business man and the resident. Its growth and progress will in every way be not only a good thing in itself, and a benefit to Washington and the Pacilic Coast, but a prime advantage to Seattle. No citv can arrive at greatness without the stinnilus of an able and ardent rival. Two are alwavs better than one. In the case of cities, improvements in business methods, in social advancement and inducements to enterprise, are seldom effec*ted excej)t under the spur of emulation. The enterprising and aggressive in a city, who are pretty certain to ho a minority, are not able to overcome the natural conservatism and inertia of their own townsmen in resjx^ct to improvements, except as they are able to bring to bear the fear of loss of leadership as a motive to action. Cities without rivals sink into retrograde metho<ls, or become the prey of municipal pirates. The generous sympathy that exists l>etween Tacoma and Si^attle, the complement of their generous rivalry, was shown at the time of the great fire in Seattle. To be sure, each city expects to become the greater, and neither is willing to concede superiority to the other, but neither desires or would consent to see the (jther obliterated.

The principal river in Pierce county is the Puyallup, whose meadows pos^<ess the fabulous feilility of all these lowlands. It enters Commencement Bay at Tacoma, and a part of its lower hinds are set off as the reservation of the Puyallup Indians. This is the region of hops, as also the Snoqualmie in King county, which realize from two to five hundred dollars per acre a season. On the southern border runs the Niscjually, a fine logging stream, passing through extensive forests. The most of the surface of Pierce county is a great gravel plain, commanding in scenery but infertile. Near the centre of the countv is the famous Carbon river coal field.

At the head of the Sound is Hudd's Inlet, seventv-five miles from the strait at Port Townsend and almost twice as far from the ocean. It was near this, at Tumwater, that the first American settlement was made in Washington, in 1844-"). The story of the occupation of this place is not a little romantic. In the immigration of 1844 was Michael T. Simmons, and a good friend of his, a mulatto, George Bush, who for sersnces in the American armv had been made a freeman. He had served under Jackson at New Orleans, and shrewd and capable, had since that time accjuired a considerable competence, but not liking the aspect of affairs at the East, perhaps fearing enslavement for himself or his family, he determined to come to Oregon. Arriving on the Columbia late in the autumn, he found that the legislature had just passed an odious law denying residence to colored people. It was his intention to go with Simmons to the Umpqua Valley, but on account of this law he began to look to that portion of Oregon, (Washington), claimed l)ythe British. Simmons was also willing to look this way because he found that the Hudson's Bay Company were trying to keep Americans away from the Sound. In December, therefore, they made a tour of exploration and in the following summer made settlement at the prairie since known as Bush's Prairie. This settlement, with others soon following, w^as one of the valid grounds upon which the United Stiites claimed the territory up to 49 degrees.

Bush was a remarkable man, not only for shrewdness and good judgment, but also for unvarying beneficence. With more than usual forethought, he had i)rovided for the journey across the plains a large supply of flour, which, toward the end of the journey, he distributcnl, in many cases free of charge, to those destitute. After* making his home at Bush's Prairie, he l)ecame noted for his generous hospitality, and always associated on equal terms with the white settlers of the Territory. Simmons \vas possessed of the usual Southern fire and much more than ordinary j)enetration. He was a pioneer in every sense of the term - a noble but whoUv unlettered man. A settler of

1846 was Judge A. B. Rabbeson, who began life as a sailor boy, and, after as manv turns at the wheel of fortune as SinV)a(l the Sailor, found his way into Oregon and upon the waters of Puget Sound. He built the first sawmill, getting his mill irons from the Hudson's Bay Company. Tumwater was first called New Market, and Olympia Smithfield - the latter from Levi L. Smith, its first owner. Its present ambitious name was bestowed bv E. Svlvester, the next owner, at the suggestion of I. N. Ebey. In 184J) Cai)tain Clanrick Crosby made this city his home, l)uying out Simmons. When the Territory was set off from Oregon as Washington, Olympia was named as the capital. It retained this distinction throughout the period of Territorial government and is now the permanent capital of the state. By reason of its public position it has l>een embellislied by jKiblic money, and has enjoyed the very best social advantages. It is a place of great attractiveness and (piiet beauty, being kept clean and ornamental. Without lavish display of wealth, it is as handsome as any place in the Territory, aii<l lias unsurpassod attnictions as a quiet place of residence. It will become more and moiv a seat of ciiltiiri\ relinement and comfortable living.

An older settlement was made in Thurston county, being that of the Hudson's Bay Company at the Niscjually, under the name of the Puget Sound Agricultural Company. This was undertaken in 1H41, and the settlers were brought from the Selkirk st»ttlement of the Red river of the North, being mostly Scotchmen and Knglishmen with native families. On account of the poverty of the .soil, however, the colony did not flourish. The p(H)ple became discouraged and, in disgust, left for the Tualatin Plains, in the Willamette Valley. The Hudson's Bay Company had a fnrt on the Nisqually from very early times, and the Methodist missionaries from Sah^m, Oregon, established a mission to the Indians in 1840-42, which thev visited as thev were abl(\

The very earliest American settlement in West^'m Washington was on the Cowlitz, by John Jackson, from Oregon City, who put up a cabin in 1S44, near a place held for the Hudson's Bay Conqjany by Plamondon, a Frenchman ;a man of Gallic courtesy, who used to give pigs to the American boys who occasionally happened by. The Cowlitz became a favorite resort of the Catholic missioujiries after 1846.

Thurston county is mainly a gravel plain interspersed with fertile prairies, without important streams, Imt is ornamented near the Sound with small hikes, some of which have upon them floating islands, matted ricks or rafts of logs ui>on which has collected growing grass, Imshes and considerable trees, which serve as sails to move them about in the breez(\

The counties south to the Columbia, Lewis and Cowlitz, are of very fertile soil, the gravel that mars the Sound country ceasing at th(* Chchalis river, and are densely timbered. Quarries of stone and croppings of coal abound in this entin^ region. The Northern Pacific accommodates the entire country from Olympia to the Columbia, but at the rate roads are projected there will soon be no less than five through this gaj).

wilderness, a great forest region, but having a number of thriving towns, such as Coburg, Kamilchie, Arcadia, Shelton and Oakland. The Skokomish river, rising in the Olympic mountains, falls into the southern side of Hood^s Canal at the elbow, and is a perfect logging stream. It is here that a reservation has been set aside for the Skokomish Indians. On the upi)er part of Hood^s Canal are a few small places, Union City, Cliffbon, Skokomish and Dewatto. David Shelton was one of the earliest pioneers of this county.

Kitsap county, occupying the lower or northern part of the peninsula between Admiralty Inlet and Hood's Canal, was settled at Seabeck in 1856 by J. R. Williamson, Hill Harmon and W. B. Sinclair, who operated with a San Francisco partnership in the lumber business. The establishrpent of Port Gamble is thus told : In July, 185.3, Capt. Wm. Talbot came to the Sound in the schooner Jidius Pringlc to select a site for a sawmill in the interest of Wm. C. Talbot & Co., the firm being composed of himself and A. J. Pope of San Francisco, and Chas. Foster and Capt. J. P. Keller of East Machiiis, Maine. Among others on the schooner were Cyrus Walker, present manager of the Puget Mill Company, E. S. Brow^n, millwright, Nathaniel Harmon, David Foster and James White, all of the state of Maine.

The cargo of the Pringlc consisted of lumber, tools and supplies necessary for beginning the proposed enterj)rise. They first anchored in Poll Discovery Bay, from which they made explorations around the Sound as far south as Commencement Bay, and finally located at Port Gamble, to which point the schooner was brought and discharged as soon as possible, and building commenced. On the fifth of September, 1 853, the schooner L. P. Foster^ commanded by J. P. Keller arrived, 154 days from Boston. It had onboard the captain's wife and daughter, who were the first white women to land at Port Gamble. The Fostei' brought the mill machinery and general outfit, and after loading with piles at the head of the bay was taken to San Francisco by Captain Talbot, Captain Keller remaining in charge at the mill, where he conthiued in charge as resident partner and manager until his death.

found Captain Wm. P. Sayward and J. K. Thorndyke biLsily engaged in building a mill at Port Ludlow, which in time boaiino one of the principal mills on the Soun<l, and has tinally become the proiK»rty of the Port Gamble or Puget Mill Company. A mill was locate<l at Appletree Cove in IHol^ by J. J. Felt, which, after the first winter, was moved to Port Madison. Several men came up on the brig J<flin Dai'is to assist Felt; among them being Isiiac Parker, Delos Waterman and S. B. Hinds. In the spring of 1853, Captain Wm. Renton came to the Sound. He first built a mill at Alki Point, of which we shall scnm hear more, but early in 1854 he moved across the inlet to Port Blakely.

The early selection of these points in Kitsap county as sites of the mammoth mills that have made the money kings of the Sound, tells the tale of its natural wealth. It is a denselv timbered tract, ideally situated for lumbering, being opened in almost every direction bv inlets and arms of the Sound. When the timber is off nmch of the land will be fit for grazing or orchards. Nevertheless, as the land is to a large extiMit held by the great mill companies, and as the young timber shoots up with astonishing rapidity, much of the county may always be devoted to the culture of timber and held as preserves for forest trees.

JeHerson county, next down the Sound, is in part a trackless wilderne^, extending across the little explored Olympic mountains to the ocean shore; but in its northern extension it contains the old city of Port Townsend, wntli Port Ludlow at the mouth of Hood s Canal, and Port Discoverv and Chimacum on the inlet to the west. Port Townsend was located in 1851 bv A. A. Plummer and Charles Bachelor. The first important immigration to this city was in February, 1852. This was from Portland, and among the arrivals was one of the former proprietors of Portland, F. W. Pettygrove, with L. B. Hastings and a number of othei's. They came in a schooner, the Mari/ Taylor, as independent as the Pilgrims in the Mayjloircr, or the Saxons, Ilenghist and Horsa. The place throve, in time securing tlu» custom house, which had been at first put at Port Angeles, fuilher down the straits. It has from the first maintained a high character as a seat of business enteri)rise and of cultivated society. It has a most romantic site, commanding an illimitable prospect of water, studded with islands ; and of the peaks and ridges of the Cascade mountains, and the summits of the Olympics.

New Dungeness was settled in 1852 by Daniel F. Brownfield, who was followed by B. J. Madison, J. C. Brown, Charles M. Bradshaw, and others. This is the most important place in Clallam county, which lies broadside to the straits and follows the shore down to the rocky Cape Flatter}^ which the voyager Cook sighted a hundred years ago, named and passed by in the night, sailing for Nootka and the Alaskan coast ; failing to see the Straits of Fuca, or "Anian,'* which he had been sent expressly to explore, and leaving it for Berkely and Meares to be the first Englishmen to see the water long before claimed as the discovery of the Greek pilot John Apostollos, or Juan de Fuca. Captain Robert Gray of Boston, who discovered the Columbia, Siiiled through the straits in 1792. Vancouver, sent hither to settle the question of the great river of tlie west entered the straits, thoroughly exploring the Sound, the archipelago and the gulf, and bestowing the names that have been for the most part recognized by geographers.

The region that we have been considering is, broadly speaking, two hundred by one hundred and fifty miles, or tliirty thousand square miles, with five thousand s(iuare miles of water surface and ten thousand of trackless mountains, leaving about half of it as cultivable land, the most of wliich is now forest.

What such a country can produce is but slightly indicated by what it has done. It will not be out of place, however, to give here a condensed statement of what this l)asin is now ])ro(lucing. It will be remembered that lumber, coal and iron are tlie substantial products; and the reader will be interested in noticing where the forests and mines are located.

The iron ores of the state are inexhaustible in quantity and of a qualit}' unequaled by those of any other state of the Union. An analysis of six specimens of ore taken from the deposit known as the Denny mine, on the Seattle, Lake vShore and Eastern Railroad, near Seattle, shows the following average :

Prof. Ruffner says of these ores : "There can be no doubt of the superior quality of the Snoqualmie iron ores. Analysis shows that they rank with the best steel ores in their large percentage of metallic iron and small admixture of deleterious impurities.'* Again, after quoting analyses, he says : " This showing places the Snoqualmie ores in the front rank, of American steel ores; indeed, it shows a little higher in metallic iron and a little lower in phosphorus than any of the others.** The iron resources of the state are still practically undeveloped, but arrangements are being made for their development on an extensive scale. Without any information other than that these great beds of ore are in its vicinity, one might predict with entire safety that the population of Seattle will reach one hundred thousand within five years. Here alone is wealth sufficient for the upbuilding, not only of a great city, but of & great empire.

But, as has been said, iron is but a fraction of the enormous mineral wealth of Seattle and of Washington. Not less in importance are the deposits of coal, which have already proved a great source of wealth to the state and which will be a factor of prime importance in the building of a great Pacific commonwealth. The coal beds of Washington have been grouped by Professor Ruffner as follows: a. Carbon River Group; b. Green River Group; c, Cedar River Group; d, Squak, Raging River and Snoqualmie Groups; e, Yakima and Wenatchie Ciroup; /, Hellingham Ray and Skagit River Group.

The shipments of coal from Seattle, whence the greater portion of the product of the state is shipped by steamships and sailing vessels to Oregon and California, have long averaged more than one thousand tons per day, and are constantly increasing. About three thousand miners are now employed in the mines of Washington, and it may fairly be said that the development of the coal resources of the state has but begun.

It is scarcely possible to speak at length of the remaining mineral resources of the state. It is sufficient to say that in the production of precious metals it will soon rank with the foremost states in the l^uion. Copper and lead are found in large quantities. Granite, marble, limestone and valuable clays are also here in great abundance.

In the past, however, the forests of Western Washington have been its greatest source of wealth, and this will be true for many years in the future, no matter how rapidly the other resources of the state may be developed. Nowhere else are to be found such forests as extend in massive majesty from the shores of Puget Sound far up the slopes of the Cascade mountains. Though sawmills equal in capacity to any in the United States have been feeding upon the giants of these forests for more than a quarter of a century, they have made no perceptible impression upon them. Here is where the entire West will turn for its lumber supply before many years, and here are the resources which will meet that demand until generations yet unborn have passed away.

The Douglas fir or red fir, sometimes erroneously called the Oregon pine, constitutes the greater part of the forests of Puget Sound. The timber of this tree is of the best quality, greatly superior to that of the fir tribe generally, and probably superior to that of any other fir tree in the world. It is heavy, strong and firm, and is well suited to ship building, as the ship builders of Puget Sound have abundantly

The white cedar is next to the Douglas fir in point of abundance and importance. Its wood is soft, light and cream colored, and it splits with remarkable ease and regularity. It is specially adapted for the manufacture of shingles, being durable almost beyond belief. The shiugle-makitig industry is an important and rapidly growing one in Washington, and Puget Sound shingles are already forcing their way into the Eastern market, where they are received with the highest favor in spite of the increased price which is rendered necessary by transportation a :ross the continent.

To enlarge \\w boimdarv somewhat and show what the country east of the Case^xde mountains can produce, we will insert here something of the report of Professor Ruffner, which may be regarded as authoritative. An objection may well l)e taken to his drawing the boundary of the grain belt of the upper Columbia basin on the east and south along the state line. There is no reason in the world for this, and it is contrary to the fact to so limit it. From Spokane Falls it should be continued into Idaho to the Coiur d' Alene mountains, to include their foothills and around the famous Moscow country, the most of Nez Perce county and the valley of the Clearwater. The southern boundary of this grain belt should be drawn along the Blue mountains, to include their foothills into Oregon, taking in the Umatilla country, which has some of the finest grain lands in the whole Northwest. With this exception Professor Ruffher's report may be taken as correct. The whole of this grain belt, whether in Washington, Oregon or Idaho, is naturally tributary to the Hound.

"As heretofore remarked, the agricultural conditions change suddenly on crossing the Cascade mountains to the eastward, and this chauge begins at the crest line, and is more marked on the mountain side and near its base than anywhere else. The winters are longer and more severe, and the summers dryer and hotter. There is natural pasturage similar to that of the plateau country, coming up to the timber line, the lower edge of which is high on the mountains.

-'Much of this mountain land, though covered scantily with sage brush and bunch grass, is really fertile ; and besides supporting cattle, can be made to bring fair crops of wheat and other things ; but the rainfall is so insufficient that irrigation is necessary for the development of any large agricultural interest.

*' r'ortunately in the large basin of the Vakinia, irrigating streams are abundant, and its enterprising people are availing themselves of this happy resource. By reference to a good map it will be seen that the Yakima river is made up of an unusual number of streams. A group of these come together near Kllensburgh, and another group near the town of North Yakima ; and there are said to be large bodies of land susceptible of irrigation by these streams.

** The Ellensburgh Valley is thirty miles long, and about ten miles wide, and is the best agricultural section in Kittitas county. It is claimed that forty bushels of wheat to the acre can be produced without irrigation ; and that 1,()(M),()0(> bushels of wheat were actually producer! in this basin in 1887. Hay, hojMj, vegetables, berries and fruits also do well naturally, but with irrigation the product is uniformly large. There are four irrigating canals in the valley. The Teanaway Ditch Company has one fifty miles long which can water 7o,()(X) acres of land.

" Next below Kittitas is Yakima county, which contains a number of fertile valleys, and also good uplands, and is well supplied with irrigating streams, which have already been brought into use. Two large ditches are drawn from the Natchess river. Ditches are also taken from the Ahtanum, which is the principal hop raising section. A plateau, three by ten miles, between the Cowiche and Natchess, will all be irrigated. The Moxee Valley is largely owned by eastern and other capitalists, who seem to be expending much money in the improvement of the country. This company has fourteen miles of ditch. By the help of these ditches the people of the Yakima Valley are producing corn, which under the hot sun of the locality perfects its product. Tobacco has been tried also with fair results. And the Moxee country will try the dairy business. There is a disposition also to try improved breeds of cattle. Every crop is grown, and most of them with remarkable results.

"Corn is grown only south of Snake River, and in the Yakima and Klickitat, where it yields thirty bushels to the acre. The average yield of wheat year by year for the entire territory is put by Governor Squire at twenty-five bushels, and no one who knows the coantr\' can regard this otherwise than as a moderate estimate. This average places Washington Territory, beyond comparison, first among the states of America ; and. so far as I can learn, second only to England among other nations. England, by the highest manuring, has brought her wheat product up to thirty bushels, which is double the average of former years. By the census of 1880, Washington Territory, as a whole, leads all the other states 28.5 bushels per acre."

Settlement And Pioneer Times

Settlement on the Duwamish River - Henry Van Asselt - Alki Point - Lee Terry - J. M. Low - ^The Founders of Seattle - Arthur A. and David T. Denny - C. D. Boren, William N. Bell - C. C. Terry - Life at Alki Point - The Native Indians - Their Character, Habits and Condition - Location of Claims on Elliott Bay - Dr. I). S. May nard - Salmon Fishing - First Building at Seattle - Henry L. Yesler - Discovery of Salmon Bay - Incidents of Pioneer Life - Prominent Events from 1853 to 1855 - Laying out the Town - How Seattle was Named - Building of Roads - Surveys for a Railroad - Yesler's Mill - First Postoffice and Mail Facilities - First Church and School - Ships and Crafts of Early Times - Description of Seattle in 1855 - Sketches of Early Settlei-s.

THE settlenioiit of King county bo^aii at two points almost sinuiltanoously - on the Duwamish river, and at Alki Point. It was from the latti^' that Seattle sprung; hut as the settlement on the Duwamish is verv closelv connected with tlien-ise of the citv, it cannot be overlooked. It took precedence of the other by only a few days, but this entitles it to fir.st mention.

xVmong the Oregon pioneers of ISoO was Ileiiry Van Asselt, a native of Holland, born in 1H17, who crossed the water in 1H47. Three years later he was on the Pacific (oast and in IS;")] was digging gold in California. In June of that vear the little ccmipanv of which he was a member quit work and dividing profits found they had $1,000 each. They expected to come back to Oregon and locate claims in the Willamette, but in the company was a Puget Sound man, I^. M. Collins of the Nisqually, who had on that river a section of land and a family. Being a frank, open-hearted man, fond of talk, he freijuently told stories of the grand country on the SouikI, the clams and oysters of the bay, tlie delightful climate, and the wild fruit, and fowl and tish. He finally prevailed upon a number of the party to accompany him to his home and examine the countrv for themselves. Of these were Jacob Maple and his son Samuel, of Iowa: John Thornton, now of Port Townsend ; Charles Hendricks, who returned soon to Iowa ; Mr,

Balland, a tanner by trade, who before this had luid something to do with the tannery on Tanners' creek in Portland ; and Mr. Van As3elt. While en route at St. Helens, crossing the river, \'an Asselt accidently discharged his gun receiving the shot in his arm and shoulder. . It made an ugly and painful wound and at the time was deemed very unfortunate. He was able, however, after a time to go on over to Collins' and with the rest look at the countrv, but he found nothing to suit him. The soil was gravelly and the country seemed to him incapable of supporting such a community as he wanted to live in, with schools, churches, and the rctinements of civilized life. As he talked the matter over with Collins and was making ready to leave, the latter said to him that he knew where there was a good country, just what he wanted, one that would support a populous community. It was fortv miles down the Sound amonc: the Ihiwamish Indians, and the only objection to the place was the great number of the savages. Van Asselt and his comrades said they would pay a crew of Indians if Collins would go with them and show them the phice. Collins agreed, and al)OUt the middle of September they were oil'. Samuel Majde had to stay behind on account of a cut on tiie foot, but he agreed to abide by the decision of the others.

Reaching the river, the party found it to be a line tide stream, with extensive meadow lands or l)ottoms of the most fertile soil, having certain little grassy prairies. \'an Asselt was so well pleased with the prospect that he declared he would take a place and stay if there were another who would do so. Collins told him privately that he wanted to come here if he could sell his place. On the return, as they were camped on Vashon Island, it was arranged that Balland should take Collins' place and Collins should come to the Duwamish, Balland still wishing to carry on his tanning business. He paid $olo for the section and improvements. Collins and his family, Jacob and Samuel Maple and Van Asselt were the ones that finally composed the colony. They took their claims in the order named, Collins being nearest the mouth of the river, Jacob Maple next, Samuel Maple following and Van Asselt being farthest up. The greatest difficulty in moving was to get the the live stock over. A scow was first ol)tained and sided up unseaworthy, sinking soon after setting out, and the animals had to be taken ashore and driven along the tide-flats, and sometimes pulled out of the ditches or washways that they fell into. At length they were brought as far as Alki point, and around to the place afterwards called Milton, now West Seattle. Here the mud-flats were found too bad to travel and the woods were quite pathless. The scow had, therefore, to be worked into the bay, and, by care in the calmer waters, the animals were conveved to Collins'.

The colony made a prosperous beginning, but there soon arose an occasion of difficulty with the Indians. Collins kept a calf tied in front of his house, and one evening, soon after becoming established, the young creature was howled at- by a couple of Indian, dogs from the camp near by. It was frightened and bawled piteously. Van Asselt, a good shot, ran out with his gun, and, seeing the dogs scurrying ott' in the moonlight, cracked them over. Collins' daugliter, a bright girl of fourteen who had in her two or three years among the Indians learned their feelings and superstitions, said at oncte^ that there would be trouble; one might as well kill an Indian as kill an Indian's dog. Early the next morning she went to the camp and soon heard the savages say that they were going to kill the man who shot the dogs. " Hut you can't kill him," she said. They wished to know why. " It is Van Asselt and he has lead in his bodv," she answered. She had learned their superstition tliat one with lead in his body was invulnerable. At this intelligenc(\ therefons they were much set back. ''More than that,'' tlie girl went on, ''he is sure with his gun; daylight or dark, sunliglit or moonliglit, he can shoot and kill."

Having told Van Asselt of her great claims for him he took pains to exhibit to tlie Indians the hnid in liis body, still carried from the old shot at St. Helens, and to carry liis sliotgun, and walking about leisurely, would evt'ry now and again bring down a pair of crows, one after tlie other, filling the -savages with dread and admiration. They regarded him as a '' Zudway, " or devil, and in tlu' war that came in IS.")."), li(> wVwil upon their dread of his charmed life to throw himself into an cntin* gang of savages on the war-|)ath with lirearnis in their hands, ihcrc'bv sas'iuij: his own life and that of the others. In the

During the four years before the war, much work was done. Collins mostly niised cattle. Jacob Maple cleared land. Samuel Mai)le was a partner of Van Asselt and was a good hand with oxen. Van Asselt found it most renuinerative to hew timbers for which there was great demand. He made four and five dollars a day. Upon s(|uaring up with his partner shortly befon* the Indian outbreak, they found there was $3,<)0() to their credit. Tliey also made improvements worth over two thousand dollars, which were totallv dest roved at the time of the Indian outbreak.

Mr. Van Asselt is now the onlv one of tliesc Duwamish settlei*s living. His wife, whom he married some years after settling here, is a daughter of Jacob Maple.

Skttlkment At Alki Point

Alki Point projects into Admiralty Inlet, and, together with Duwamish head and the backlying land, forms a rectangular peninsula between this water and Klliott Bav. From Alki Point, which looks west, it is a little less than two miles to Duwamish head, which fronts north, and the length of the pcniinsula from t lie northwest short* to the head of Elliott Bay or the neck of tlie ))eninsnla, is somewhat above three miles. The surface of this tract is a level or nearlv level plateau, breaking down steep and bluffy in many places to the water, above which it rises to an elevation of from *J0() to '")()() feet. Alki, however, is low and level. It was at Alki Point, with this j>lateau behind, that the first city on the lower Sound was projecte<l. Olympia, when this place was begun, was already a thriving village with several score of inhabitants. The settlement of Whidbv Island had just begun and Port Townsend had not as yet been planted. Ia'C Terrv, D. T. Dennv and J. N. Low were tbe men who first undertook the enterprise. Terry was from New York. Low was a native of Ohio, having been born in 1S20. He removed subse([uently to Illinois, and was married there to Miss Lydia Colburn a native of Pennsvlvania. He brought to Oregon a IkmhI of select(Ml cattle for

Seattle may well feel proud to trace her lineage to such a fixmily jis that of John Denny, for he was one of the purest and best examples of the American pioneer of the last generation. A native of Kentucky ; his early life was one of adventure and stirring events. When but a boy he enlisted in a Kentucky regiment to provide for the defense of the frontier against the Indians ; and the then wilds of Ohio, Indiana and Michigan, he travei-sed before the whites had made any beginning of settlement. When not yet twenty-one years old he enlisted in Col. R. M. Johnson's regiment of mounted volunteers. He served through the war of 1812, and was with Gen. Harrison at the battle of the Thames, where Procter and the noted Tecumseh were killed. He early made a home in Indiana, and after having lived there until he had reached a level of comfort and competence, came west to Illinois. In this state ho became active in public affairs, serving several terms in the legislature. He was a Whig and was on intimate terms with Abraham Lincoln.

This was John Denny, the father of the men who were leading spirits in establishing Seattle. He crossed the plains with his sons, but settled in the Willamette valley in Oregon, and took an active part in starting the republican party in tliat state, of which he was the first candidate for governor in 185S. He came to Seattle in 1850, where he died in 1875.