| Show WOW f for thu ah POP paper TRAVELS LEFTER NO III wednesday may irth at 9 a m I 1 left seattle as a passenger on a Seattle Lake shore and eastern railway train we followed the shore of elliot bay in a northerly direction the track being built on piles driven in the water some distance from the shore in passing out we enjoy a fine view of that part of seattle which is situated on the hillside on our right and looking across the bay i westward the appearance ot of the snow c capped appedu olympian mountains pleases the eye very much the bay also is is dotted with numerous vessels of different kinds aud and sizes soon boon we pass up smiths cove then skirt salmon bay on our left lake union on our right cross the state university grounds where extensive buildings are in course ot of construction and finally find ourselves traveling along the shores of beautiful lake washington for several miles at Woo denville twenty lour four miles from seattle a branch railway i takes off iu in a southeasterly direct direction io n thirty one miles to the snoqualmie falls which rank as one of natures greatest wonders in the state of washington at this point the snoqualmie river leaps over a precipice feet high thousands of tourists visit these falls every year continuing the journey we arrive at the thriving little city cit y snohomish finely situated on the snohomish river this is the largest town between seattle and sumas after passing arlington another growing city we cross the river next we pass the village of mcmurray romantically situated on the bank ot of a beautiful lake in the woods and then skirt the banksy several other lakes all situated in the dense forests the timber growing from the very edge of the water to the summits of the surrounding hills finally we cross the river and just beyond acme the two main forks of the Rappers oyle river on the south fork of this stream a polish settlement has just been commenced one two story frame building has already been completed on a clear ing made in the timbers for that purpose and sixty polish families are expected in a few days they will commence active operations at once it seems to me that they have a life lie work before them in clearing off the dense forest where they expect to make their farms and I 1 firmly believe that a farm in utah is easier made by irrigation than one in washington by clearing timbers As we proceeded up a narrow valley in the foot hills of the cascade range we found our train enveloped in dense smoke to keep out which it became necessary to close the car windows though the day was sultry and warm we soon discovered the fact that a forest fire was raging in front of us but we passed through it in safety one of the passengers now informed me that a few months ago the train was delayed for five hours not far from the same point and that the fires on that occasion so completely surrounded the cars that the train men could neither pull ahead nor back up until they bad cleared the track of the fallen timber and that while doing the latter the heat was so intense that the men nearly perished with suffocation As we neared sumas the snow capped peak of mt baker came in view this is a mountain very similar in shape to mt ranier and the other peaks that I 1 have mentioned before and is feet above sea level the twin sisters two other lofty mountain peaks of the cascade range which from the distance appear exactly alike is another land marklow great interest to tourists they are seen to good advantage from fr m the little railway station called deming at three p m we rolled into the growing town ot of sumas situated on the boundary line between the united states and canada A lew few minutes later we crossed ahe the line into her Maje domains and at huntington junction we changed cars once more this ibis time boarding a canadian pacific railway train and at we were again on wheels and traveling almost due north A ten miles ride brought us to the great fraser river which we crossed on a substantial bridge and we next found ourselves at a station called mission on the main line of the canadian pacific railway our train having made connections with the east going ditto we passed on traveling westward along the right bank of fraser river alter after a while we crossed pitt river and then passed port moodey at the head of berrard inlet this place was for a short time the terminus of the canadian pacific railway but the water being too shallow for large vessels the port was moved farther down the inlet from here to vancouver the railway follows the south shore of the inlet where the outlook to the north is truly delightful snow tipped mountains beautiful in form and color r rise i ise opposite and are vividly reflected in the mirror like waters of the deep set inlet we arrived ri ed at vancouver at 6 p m this ended my railway journey in the land of america for this time in order to reach this northern seaport town I 1 have trave eld 1266 miles by rail from salt lake city as follows by union pacific railway from salt lake city to huntington by oregon railway and navigation company line from atom huntington to portland 44 by northern pacific railway from portland to seattle by seattle lake shore and eastern railway from seattle to sumas or huntington junction on the national boun ary line za 5 by canadian pacific railway from boundary line to vancouver 55 total 1266 after putting up at the waverley hotel I 1 hastened to the wharf to look at the steamer which is destined to carry me oft to strange lands I 1 soon learned that the ship had met with an accident on her last voya voyage gein in the breaking of a part of her machinery and that in consequence ot of this she would not sail until monday the aoth dinst thursday may irth after visiting the canadian pacific railway offices and examining the state room assigned me on board the Mi owera I 1 proceeded to post myself in regard to british columbia vancouver the canadian pacific railway etc and I 1 also took a walk through stanley park lying adjacent to the city of vancouver the city of vancouver is situated at the western end of berrard inlet a deep landlocked arm of the sea eleven miles in length with an average width of about two miles constituting the inlet named a magnificent harbor and enabling it to rank with the great harbors of commerce thi the site of vancouver is remarkable tor for its beauty its esy easy gradients and facilities for drai drainage W i e the main portion of the ground on an which the city stands is peninsula in character false creek a tidal arm of english bay paralleling berrard inlet near the eastern boundary of the city the western knob of this peninsula is a military reserve about one thousand acres in in extent and comprising the so called stanley park this reserve has i been leased to the city for park purposes at a nominal rental with the exception of a beautiful drive way around it cost ing about 35 and paved tor for several miles with clam shells and a number of bridle paths and shady bowers this park is still in a state of nature affording as it does one of the best living illustrations of the genuine primeval british columbia forest to be found in in the province vancouver has both gas and electric lights it possesses 7 miles of electric street railways water works 70 70 miles of streets opened x n i miles of graveled streets 6 miles of macadam 65 miles of sidewalk 25 miles of sewers etc capielano Ca river ou on the opposite side of the inlet with a dam six miles up the valley is is the source of water supply for the city the water is piped across the inlet A tramway connects vancouver with new westminster a young city of inhabitants situated on the fraser eraser river 12 miles southeast of vancouver until 1886 the site of vancouver was covered with a dense forest from may to july of that year its growth was most rapid but in july a fire spreading from the surrounding lorest swept away every house but one in the place and with this one exception every building now seen in the cit cita has been built since that time the present population is about aboul vancouver is the western terminus of the canadian pacific railway and the most important seaport town on the pacific coast north of san francisco Fran cisro ocean steamers leave at regular intervals for japan islands the fiji islands new zealand australia alaska etc locally and coastwise vancouver has direct and regular communication by steamship with victoria nanaimo portland san 1 francisco and all up and down the he coast Vancouver or berrard inlet is a concentrating point for the lumber interests ot of the british columbian coast the saw mills around its shores in 1893 bad a capacity ot of about daily or feet per annum while the beautiful location of vancouver can not fail to please the traveler I 1 certainly do not admire its city plot or general survey the streets though perhaps more regular than those ot of seattle portland and some other western towns run in all directions without any reference to the cardinal points of therom the compass and the blocks and lots are too small smal on the other hand the city spreads over so much ground leaving so many vacant lands between the occupied portions that the expense ot of making roads extending water mains etc etc to the different fragments ot the city and its suburbs has become almost tax already if every founder of a city would visit the capital of utah before making his final surveys he would gain some object lessons anat would enable him to lay layoff off his bis townsite with more taste and consistency nor is is the peculiar shape of the sites water fronts or slopes ot of such cities cites as Vau vancouver couver and seattle a sufficient cent excuse tor for making all the streets crooked and irregular at least not according to my judgment akle the readers of the NEWS may be pretty well posted in regard to the building ot of our five united states transcontinental railways the union pacific the northern pacific the great northern the atlantic and pacific and the southern pacific 1 I am of the opinion that most ot of them know but a very little about the sixth of these great continental highways namely the canadian pacific railroad hence I 1 submit the fol lowing A hailway from the atlantic to the pacific all the way on british soil was long the dream ot a few canadians this dream ot of the few became in time the hope of the many and on the confederation ot of the british north american provinces in 1867 its realization was found to be a political necessity then the government of the new dominion of canada set about the building of the canadian pacific railway much of the country through which the railway must be built was still unexplored toward the east all about lake super bior and beyond to red river was a vast rocky region where deep lakes and mighty rivers in every direction opposed the progress of the engineer beyond red river for a thousand miles stretched hed a great plain known only to the wild indian dianand and the tur trader then came the mountains range after range in close succession and all unexplored through all this for a distance of nearly three thousand miles the railway surveys had first to be made these consumed nuch much time and money people became impatient and found fault and doubted there thee were differences of opinion and these differences became questions ot of domestic politics dividing parties and it was not until 1875 twenty years ago that the construction commenced in earnest the machinery of government was found founis to be i I 1 adapted to the carrying on ot of such an enterprise hence after many changes and delays it was decided in 1880 1880 to surrender the work to a private company consequently the canadian pacific railway company wa was s organized early in immediately entered into a contract with the government to complete the line within ten years at that time the railway system of eastern canada had already advanced far up the ottawa valley attracted mainly by the rapidly growing traffic from the pine forests and it was from a point of connection with this system that the canadian pacific railroad had to be carried through to the pacific coast a distance of 2550 miles of this the government had under construction one section ot of miles between lake superior and winnipeg Winne peg and another of miles from berrard inlet on the pacific coast eastward to kamloops Kam loops lake in british columbia the company undertook undertook the building of the remaining 1920 miles and for this it was to receive from the government in mone money yand and acres ot of agricultural land the two sections of railroad already under construction were to be finished by the government and together with a branch line of 65 mites miles already in operation from winnipeg Winne peg southward to the boundary of the united states were to be given to the con company pany in addition to its subsidies in money and lands and the entire railway when completed was to remain remain the property of the company the company set about its task most vigorously and while the engineers were exploring the more difficult and less known section from the ottawa river to and around lake superior and marking out a line for the nav vies work was commenced at Winn Winne epee peir and pushed across the prairies where miles of the railway was completed before the first year during the second year the rails advanced miles the end of the third year found them at the summit of the rocky mountains and the fourth in the Sel kirks nearly 1050 miles from winnipeg Winne peg while such rapid progress was being made west of winnipeg Winne peg the rails ad avancing at an average rate of more than three miles each working day for months in succession and sometimes five and even six miles in a day armies ot of men with all modern appliances and thousands ot of tons of dynamite were breaking down the barriers of hard and tough laurentian and huronian rocks and pushing the line through the forests north and east of lake superior with such energy that eastern canada and the canadian northwest were united by a continuous railway early in 1885 the government section from the pacific coast eastward had meanwhile reached kamloops Kam loops lake and then the company took up the work and carried it on to a connection with the line advancing westward across the and the Sel kirks the forces worked towards each ot hermet at craigellachie in eagle pass in the gold or columbian range of mountains and there on a wet morning the of november 1885 the last rail was laid in the main line ot of the canadian pacific railway the company did not confine its energies to the mere fulfillment of its contract with the government but in order that the railway might fully serve 1 its is purpose as a commercial enterprise independent independent connections with the atlantic seaboard sea board were secured toy by the purchase of lines leading eastward to montreal and quebec branch lines to the chief centers of trade in eastern canada were provided by purchase and construction to collect and distribute the traffic of the main line and other branch line were built in the northwest for the development of the great brair prairies ies the close of 1885 1889 found the company not yet five years old in possession of no less than miles of railway including the longest continuous line in the world extending irom from quebec and montreal all the way across the continent to the pacific ocean a distance of miles and by the midsummer ot of 1886 all this vast system was fully equip ped and fairly working throughout villages and towns and even cities followed close upon the heels of the line builders the forests were cleared away the prairies soil was turned over mines were opened and even before the last rail was in place the completed sections were carrying on a large and profitable traffic the following years were marked by an |
