The Governor's Booster Sermon for Washington Territory

A large crowd assembled in front of the Washington Hotel last Thursday evening to listen to the address of Gov. Newell. The opening remarks were a description of Whatcom County. The Governor said he had traveled extensively through nearly all of Washington Territory, but this was the first time he had visited Whatcom. He had reserved the best till the last. Whatcom County, extending one hundred miles from east to west and fifty miles from north to south, with its superior agricultural resources, its fine timber, etc., had a splendid future before it. The speaker next called attention to the vast and wonderful country lying to the northwest—Alaska, with its great forests of yellow cedar—the most valuable timber in the world today, save mahogany, and worth in market $100 per 1000 feet; its fisheries, which include 600 miles of codfish banks, salmon in inexhaustible numbers and whales in immense schools; the Yukon river, the second largest in the world, navigable for hundreds of miles. And the great commerce which in the near future must of necessity spring up with this country of magnificent resources will come to the Sound. The great waterways of Washington Territory were touched upon at some length. There was no country in the world that had so many miles of navigable rivers. Few people realized the value and magnitude of these great waterways. The coal fields and timber are thus brought near to shipping points and coal could be brought to an ocean steamer within an hour after it came from the mine. He contrasted this with the coal fields of Pennsylvania, Illinois and Indiana, which were situated more than a thousand miles inland. As to the extent of the coal in Washington Territory, the speaker said he had been told by competent authority that all of Western Washington was simply one vast coal basin. A large part of this is covered with valuable timber and the soil of nearly all of it extremely fertile. The tide-marshes were also a notable feature of this section, being of vast extent, wonderfully productive and needed very little preparation to make them ready for agricultural purposes. Gray's Harbor, said the Governor, is attracting considerable attention, by reason of the fine timber and agricultural country tributary to it. Were it not for Puget Sound and the Columbia river Gray's Harbor would certainly be the most important harbor in the Territory. Eastern Washington, in the speaker's opinion, equalled Western Washington in its resources. He knew of farmers who had grown rich in five years. He had traveled over hundreds of miles of the country east of the mountains, every acre of which would produce enormous crops of wheat and other grains. The metals of this region were touched upon, the great quantity and fine quality of the iron ore mentioned. The speaker hoped that gold would never be discovered to any great extent, as he had never known any lasting prosperity to attend a gold country, and men who had studied the subject thoroughly were agreed that it cost five dollars for every dollar that was mined. In conclusion the Governor predicted a magnificent future for Washington Territory. Situated in the great chain belt of commerce that girdled the earth, in the same latitude as London, Paris, Boston, New York, Chicago, and the great cities of Asia, with her fine climate, great undeveloped wealth and magnificent harbors, cities would arise on her coast and in the interior. There would be a city at the head of the Sound and one at the foot, but the greatest would be at the entrance to the Straits. The Governor's remarks were listened to with the closest attention, and at its finish he was greeted with loud and long applause.