USA > Washington > History of Washington; the rise and progress of an American state, Vol. IV > Part 25
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While he was thus engaged the attack became more general along the line, and some of the guards, no one knows how many, began firing. No order to fire was given, but the rioters were rapidly becoming so aggressive, that the guards or some of them, apparently believed they must use their guns or be overpowered. At the first fire one of the noisiest and most aggressive rioters, a man named Stewart, fell mor- tally wounded, and several others were hurt. Stewart was a large powerfully built man and, although mortally wounded tried again and again to rise, at the same time cursing the guards and calling upon the mob to attack them. But they could not be encouraged to do so, and while they delayed the
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two militia companies arrived, and thus reënforced the guards were able to hold their ground until the mob gradually dis- persed and permitted them to escort the Chinamen to their quarters. But this was not done until nearly an hour later, during most of which time the soldiers stood with their rifles cocked and ready to fire at the first indication of an attack.
During the shooting a charge of buckshot was fired from the west end of the line into the side of the New England Hotel, at the northwest corner of First Avenue and Main Street, tearing a hole nearly as large as the crown of a man's hat in the clapboards. Judge Burke held a place with a double-barrelled shotgun in this part of the line, and it was for a long time charged that he fired the shot that made the hole, though it was afterwards proved that his gun was not discharged during the fighting. But somebody drew a mark around the hole, and labeled it "Burke's mark, "and it remained there for a long time afterwards.
The man Stewart seems to have had no part in the agita- tion, and no relations with the agitators, until he appeared in the mob on First Avenue on the day he was wounded. He was not a resident of Seattle, but had come to town that morn- ing to see the excitement, and like one who "passeth by and meddleth with strife not his own," he had fallen into trouble from which there was no escape. He and the others who had been wounded were carried to express wagons, by which they were taken to a hospital. Stewart died on the following day, but all the others recovered.
Finding that the guards would shoot, and shoot to kill, the rioters could not again get up courage to make a second attack, but they remained for a long time to hurl impotent abuse at the militia, the guards and the Chinese. Then some of them bethought themselves to invoke the law in their
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THE RISE AND PROGRESS
own behalf, and warrants were sworn out for Judge Burke, Rev. L. A. Banks, E. M. Carr, Frank Hanford and David H. Webster, on a charge of shooting with intent to kill. The intention was to accuse C. H. Hanford, who was then assist- ant United States attorney, and had been among the fore- most in upholding the law from the beginning of the agita- tion. He had been detained at the wharf in arranging some matter with Captain Alexander in regard to the Chinamen he had already taken on board, and did not reach First Avenue until the shooting was over. He then, at the sheriff's solicitation, did what he could with others, to keep the crowd from pressing too closely upon the guards, and so provoking another volley. He describes the scene as one of intense excitement. Several of the rioters were doing their best to encourage others to make an attack, but not one of them offered to lead it. They were particularly ugly toward Judge Burke. "Look at him," they cried, "with that double-barrelled shotgun and both barrels cocked. He'll hurt somebody yet." It was in fact extremely probable that he might hurt somebody, though it happened happily that there was no occasion to do so.
The five warrants which the mob had procured from a justice of the peace, were not served until the guards had reached the courthouse. A single constable came to make the arrests, and he had considerable difficulty in finding the Hanford he was after. He met Judge Hanford, who had been stationed with a gun to guard the courthouse door, but did not recognize him, and finally selected a third brother, A. Elwood. This mistake was soon discovered and Frank Hanford, for whom the warrant called was arrested.
When the constable was about to start with his five pris- oners for the justice court, it began to be apparent that he
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OF AN AMERICAN STATE
could never take them there alive, and a general protest was made against the attempt. The streets were still filled with the rioters. It was almost certain that one officer could not defend five prisoners, who were now marked by being under arrest, as the persons charged with shooting Stewart, and the others who had been wounded. Burke, Banks and Carr were particularly hated for the time being. Once in the street under arrest and without sufficient protection, they were likely to be torn limb from limb. But the con- stable was a broad-shouldered and very resolute man, and quite confident of his ability to escort them in safety. The prisoners, particularly Burke, were quite as willing to go. "I have been preaching submission to the law," said he. "The time has come to submit, and I shall do so."
But before a start was made news came down from an upper room in the courthouse, where Governor Squire had been in consulattion for some hours, with Judge Greene, W. H. White the United States Attorney, Colonel Granville O. Haller, and other prominent citizens, that martial law had been declared, and the functions of all civil officers throughout the city suspended. He had also been in tele- graphic communication with the president, and General Gibbon, and had been encouraged to believe that his pro- clamation would be sustained by the national authorities, as it was. A staff was promptly organized, the necessary orders issued, and within an hour or two the city was com- pletely under the control of the militia. On the evening of the 10th General Gibbon arrived with ten companies of United States troops, and they remained for several months, until the excitement had entirely passed.
While the excitement was at its height in Seattle, the Chinese were driven out of several towns in King, Pierce and
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THE RISE AND PROGRESS
Snohomish Counties. An agitation was started in Olympia, to expel them from that place, but the prompt action of N. H. Owings, who had then been secretary of the territory for several years, and of Sheriff Billings, prevented any riotous disturbance. A company of about 150 of the law-abiding citizens was organized, the command of which was given to Captain William McMicken, whose long service during the civil war peculiarly fitted him to use such force to good pur- pose. Some of the riotously inclined knew that he was not a man to be trifled with, and the agitation was soon dropped.
The five men for whom warrants were sworn out on the day of the rioting in Seattle, were subsequently arrested on a charge of murder in the first degree, but they were never tried. The agitators fought stubbornly to have them sent to jail, but even this was not done. They were admitted to bail, which all readily furnished, and they were not afterwards called upon to answer further. The bitter feeling against them, or some of them, continued for a long time, although their sole offense was that they had done what they could to preserve the peace, uphold the law, and save the multitude from injuring themselves. This hatred and bitterness was shown in various ways. A shot was fired through one of the windows of Judge Hanford's house one evening, but for- tunately no one was injured by it. Judge Burke's landlord was notified that he must no longer rent his building to him, or it would be blown up with dynamite. All were more or less annoyed by vicious remarks as they passed through the streets, but they did not permit themselves to notice these stupid insults, and in time they were heard no longer.
Most of the leaders of this vicious agitation, particularly in Tacoma and Seattle, had no permanent interest in these cities. They were mere transients, or if they had hoped to
CAPTAIN WILLIAM McMICKEN
For nearly sixteen years surveyor-general of Wash- ington territory and state. He was born at Youngs- town, N. Y., January 1, 1827. In 1854 removed to Dodge County, Minnesota, and at the commencement of the Civil war raised a company for the Tenth Minne- sota Regiment, of which he was elected first lieutenant. and finally became its captain. He served in the west- ern army under Schofield, Rosencrans and Thomas. and in the Department of the Gulf under Canby. He came to Washington in the employ of the Northern Pacific, and helped to build the line from Kalama to the Sound. Was appointed surveyor-general in 1873, and was reappointed by Presidents Hayes and Arthur. He was territorial treasurer from 1886 to 1887, when he was again appointed surveyor-general by President McKinley, and held the office until his death in 1899 He was long prominently identified with the Masonic order, the G. A. R. and Loyal Legion.
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ILIVE MAILIMSH AND PROGRESS
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day of the noting in whatthey were subsequently arrested on 9 a charge of murder m the first degree, but they were never tried. The agitators fought stubbornly to have them sen to jail, but even this was not done. They were admitted to bail which all readily furnished, and they were not afterward called upon to amwet further. The bitter feeling again them, or some ot cheny, continued for a long time, although their iole ofere was that they had done what they could to preserve the peace, uplild dre law, and save the multitud Trom injuring them alves. This hatred and bitterness wa Howen un various ways. A shor wes bred through one of th windows of Judge Hanfond's house one eyerang, but for tunately no one was injured by , Judge Burke's landlor Was buried that he mmist no longer rent his building to him or i would be blown up with dynamite. All were more ( let annared by cioout rombylo as they passed through th strodir but they did not print themselves to notice the stupid insults, and i rum they were heard no longer.
Most of the leaders of this vicious agitation, particular in Tacwmia and Seattle, had no permanent interest in the They were mere transients, or if they had hoped D
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OF AN AMERICAN STATE
make permanent homes in either city, the hope was soon abandoned, and they moved on to new fields where less was known about them. The names of the committees of fifteen are now scarcely remembered. One member of the Tacoma committee when last heard from, was reported to be working for a Chinaman in Honolulu.
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CHAPTER LVIII. THE LUMBER INDUSTRY
UMBER was the first of the many natural resources of Washington to engage the attention of the settlers. It offered them the readiest and most obvious means of supplying their temporary wants, and besides it was necessary to clear the ground before anything could be done with it in an agricultural way. Simmons and those who came with him employed their first winter at Washougal, as already noted, in making shingles for the Hudson's Bay Company, and this employ- ment engaged a large share of their time and energy during the first years after their arrival on the Sound.
Long before they came, William Cannon, the old mill- wright, who had come to the coast as one of the Astor party, had made lumber by more or less crude and unsatisfactory methods, for the Hudson's Bay Company, after the head- quarters were removed to Vancouver. Doubtless the first boards made were whipsawed, as they were long afterwards at Fort Nisqually, but, in course of time, some mill machinery was brought out from London, and a sawmill was established on the north shore of the Columbia, a few miles above the fort.
The next sawmill was that built by the so-called Puget Sound Lumber Company, in which M. T. Simmons, George Bush, Jesse Ferguson, A. B. Carnifex, John Kindred, Colonel B. F. Shaw, Edmund Sylvester and E. B. Rabbeson were interested, and which was, in fact, nothing more than a partnership. The mill was built at the lower Tumwater Falls, in the winter of 1847, and its machinery seems to have been that first used by the Hudson's Bay Company in its mill on the Columbia, and which doubtless had been replaced by something better, imported from England. In the follow- ing year, 1848, Alexander D. Abernethy and his partner,
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THE RISE AND PROGRESS
a man named Clark, got a mill started and perhaps com- pleted, on the north bank of the Columbia, opposite Oak Point. It began operations just about the time the demand for lumber from San Francisco began to be pressing, and it did a prosperous business for many years.
Many of the mills in the Sound country, which afterwards became most prosperous, were established between 1850 and 1853. Many smaller concerns like those of DeLin and his partners at the head of Commencement Bay, A. T. Simmons on Henderson Bay, and Yesler's famous steam mill at Seattle, were begun during these years, and several of the larger ones were also established.
Most, and perhaps all, of these mills were supplied with logs furnished by the settlers who were clearing their claims. Yesler's mill was supplied for a long time by Dr. Maynard, A. A. Denny and others, who felled the tall firs and cedars that were nearest the mill with their axes, cut them up and rolled them with their own hands to the mill, or into the bay, so that they could easily be floated to it. In course of time it became necessary to employ oxen, and build skid roads, when the logs were dragged for a greater distance. But millions of feet of lumber, and pile timber, were cut and dragged to the mills or to the water by the early settlers, with their own hands. In this work, Indians were employed to a certain extent, and were made very useful.
The demand for piles and ship timbers, as well as for shingles, began early. The first cargo of piles from the Sound was taken in 1846 by the English brig Rosalind. They were cut on Anderson Island, and were probably taken to Victoria. The first spars of which any mention is made were thus cut for the British ship Albion, whose seizure before her cargo was completed has been described
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OF AN AMERICAN STATE
in a preceding chapter. The demand for spars, ship knees and other special material for shipbuilding, furnished occu- pation for many of the settlers for nearly a generation. The ship knees were supposed to be cut from fir and spruce stumps, both of which made excellent material for that purpose, but in time the settlers found that they could be much more easily made from the upper part of the tree, where the first strong branches left the trunk, and as these were frequently accepted as readily as those made from the stumps, and were much more easily cut, they were most frequently furnished.
The Hudson's Bay Company appears to have sold the earliest shingles made, at the Hawaiian Islands and in Cali- fornia, but in time they began to compose a part of the cargo of each ship sent annually to England. For the first few years after the settlement north of the Columbia was made, more shingles were offered by the settlers than the Company could readily find market for, and a considerable stock of them was accumulated at Fort Nisqually, where all that the settlers offered were bought, and if they could not be readily sold at the time, were carried until the demand for them increased. Fortunately for the Company, the rapid growth of San Francisco soon furnished a market for all that could be supplied, and at a very handsome profit. Nearly all of the settlers who arrived on the Sound before 1853 did something at one time or another in the way of shaving shingles, among them being many of those who afterwards became the wealthiest men in the territory, like Dexter Horton, A. A. Denny, W. N. Bell, and many others.
The mill started by J. J. Felt at Appletree Cove, in the Minter of 1852-53, began to cut lumber April 4, 1853. A few cargoes were shipped during that and the following
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THE RISE AND PROGRESS
year, in vessels which Felt himself owned. The mill was then sold to George A. Meigs, who moved it to Port Madison, where it was burned soon after it was erected, but was im- mediately rebuilt. From 1854 to 1861, it did a most pros- perous business, and Port Madison came to be one of the most thriving towns on the Sound, rivaling and promising soon to distance Steilacoom and Olympia. It maintained a general store, and also a blacksmith and carpenter shop, a brass and iron foundry, and a well-appointed machine shop where all kinds of mill and ship work were done. On the north side of the bay, nearly opposite the mill, a shipyard was established. In succeeding years, vessels carried lumber from Port Madison to almost every port in the known world, although a very large part of the cut of the mill was sent to San Francisco, in the Company's own vessels. The profits on this business were enormous at times, lumber selling at $200, $300 and $500 per thousand feet.
On May 21, 1864, the mill was burned, and it was only by the greatest exertions that the vessels at its docks, the store and machine shop, and many of the residences of the employees were saved. But as had been the case ten years earlier, the mill was promptly rebuilt, and was running again before the end of the season.
In 1872, William H. Gawley, who had been engaged in the lumber business in San Francisco for a number of years, bought an interest in the mill, and the firm became Meigs & Gawley, but the new member of the firm soon became involved in speculation in mining stocks, and during the panic of 1873 the firm became financially embarrassed, and was practically wrecked. But Meigs courageously set to work as he had done before when disaster overtook him, and by 1877 had reëstablished himself, by associating others in
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OF AN AMERICAN STATE
his undertaking and had organized the Meig's Lumber & Shipbuilding Company. This company did a thriving busi- ness for several years, but as the demand for lumber varied and the mill companies combined to limit the supply, this was one of the mills that was closed down. As the town depended wholly or largely on the mill for the support of its inhabitants, it gradually declined and has now practically disappeared.
The Puget Mill Company was, at the start, composed of W. C. Talbot and A. J. Pope, of San Francisco, and J. P. Keller and Charles Foster, of East Machias, Maine. These gentlemen had fitted out the schooner Julius Pringle, in June, 1853, at San Francisco for a cruise to Puget Sound. She was commanded by Captain W. C. Talbot, and among her passengers were: Cyrus Walker, Nathaniel and Hill Harmon, E. S. White and James White, all of Maine. The two last named were millwrights and machinists. They arrived at Port Discovery July 14th, where the vessel lay for some considerable time, and an exploring party was sent out to examine both shores of Admiralty Inlet and select a site for the mill. The choice was finally made of the bay on the east side of Hood's Canal, near its entrance, which Indians called Tekaleet, but to which the mill company gave the name of Port Gamble.
On the 4th of September, 1853, the schooner L. P. Foster, Captain Keller, arrived at Port Gamble, 158 days from Boston, bringing a cargo of general merchandise and the machinery for two steam sawmills, for the company. Cap- tain Keller brought his family with him, consisting of his wife, a daughter and a son, and was accompanied by Edward A. Foster and Edwin Emerson. He immediately began the erection of his mill, and by the end of January, 1854, had
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THE RISE AND PROGRESS
a gang of thirteen saws in operation. By the middle of March, a shingle machine had been started, and a few days later, the L. P. Foster carried away the first cargo of lumber from the new mill.
It was from this mill that the first cargo of lumber was shipped from Puget Sound to Australia. It went on the bark Ella Frances, which sailed September 1, 1854.
The Puget Mill Company soon became, and still continues to be, one of the most prosperous lumber concerns on the Sound. Early in its career, it began to buy timber land, of which it could then choose where it wished, and which it procured at the government price of $1.25 to $2.50 per acre. It is now supposed to own more than 100,000 acres, a large part of which is the most heavily timbered in the State. One-quarter section alone is assessed at $100,000. In 1880 its annual output of sawed lumber was 36,000,000 feet.
Captain Keller early retired from the management of the company, and Cyrus Walker succeeded him, and still remains in control. The mill was for many years one of the largest on the Sound, having an average daily output of 220,000 feet. In 1876 the company bought the mill at Utsalady, and in 1878 that at Port Ludlow. The latter then had an average daily output of about 150,000 feet.
In 1853 Captain William Renton and Charles C. Terry built a small steam mill at Alki Point, but it was soon moved to Port Orchard, and located not far from the present site of Bremerton. It began operations some time in 1854, and, in July of that year, sent a cargo of lumber to San Francisco by the brig Leonesa. Captain Renton continued to operate this mill until 1862, when he sold out to Colman & Falk, who ran it with success for a considerable time. James M. Colman was a practical mill man and in early days was
CAPTAIN WILLIAM RENTON.
One of the most successful pioneer mill men of the Sound. Born at Pictou, Nova Scotia, November 2, 1818. His father Adam Harvey Renton, was a ship- master, and died while his son was only a mere child, and he obtained most of his education from his mother. He went to sea when only eleven years old, and at twenty-three was himself master of a ship. He came to California in 1850, and to the Sound in 1853, where he engaged for the first time in the business in which he afterwards became so successful. From a small beginning his business increased until his mill was the largest on the Sound. Captain Renton took a great interest in public enterprises of every sort and did much outside of his mill business to develop the terri- tory.
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THE RISE AND PROGRESS
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OF AN AMERCIAN STATE
employed to superintend the construction of some of the principal mills in the territory. While thus employed he introduced many improvements both in the arrangement of the mills and in their machinery. Some of the latter were very valuable and would have made a great deal of money for him if he had taken pains to apply for patents for them. But this, he for a long time neglected to do. It was not until a person who had patented one of these devices which he had invented, sued him and the company for which he was working, for using his own inventions, that he took pains thus to protect himself.
In spite of Colman's skill as a mill builder and manager, his firm became involved in difficulties. Falk retired and A. K. P. Glidden acquired his interest. The mill was rebuilt and considerably improved about 1868 or 1869, but the lumber business was not then prosperous and the company was overtaken by disaster. Vexatious suits were begun, the vessels and other property of the company were seized and sold at great sacrifice. Early in 1870, the mill was burned and thus one of the pioneer industries of the Sound came to an inglorious end.
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