THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



219 



to be the best built and most modern on the continent, ects, one of these being a passenger and freight line 



has been established in less than 30 years. Most of this from Nighthawk to Brewster, Wash., by the Okanogan 



has been accomplished in the last few years, and there Electric Railway Company, headed by Col. Albert M. 



is every indication that it will have a population of 150,- Dewey of Spokane. This line involves an expenditure 



000 by the close of 1910. The appended table, showing of $3,500,000. The Big Bend Transit Company will 



what was accomplished in 1908 as against 1907, gives an also build a line to penetrate the Big Bend wheat 



idea of its commercial importance : belt, west of Spokane. This project involves $3,000,000. 



19 Qg 19 Q~ The Great Northern Company will build a line from 



Bank clearings . ..$307^91,482 $301,419^017 Wenatchee to -the British Columbia line and the corn- 

 Bank deposit!, estimated. .. 25,000,000 24,000,000 P? n - v . .""* the Milwaukee are projecting lines in central 

 Building expenditures .... 5,927,548 5,778,876 Washmg^ton tapping rich mineral and agricultural 



Citv water receipts 321,736 291,743 ^elts. The North Coast Railway Company, headed by 



Transfer property 20,715,405 19,869,832 Robert E Strahorn of Spokane, is building a line from 



Postoffice receipts 360,504 302,388 Spokane to the Sound. The Idaho, Washington & 



Jobbing trade 24.500,000 24,000,000 Montana Railway Company will extend its line from 



Manufacturers, output 17,000,000 16,500,000 J.ewport to. Metelme. F A. Black-well, president, has 



Capital invested . 13,000,000 12,000,000 Jj"P?f d the * on&s and work ls to be P ushed on the 



Wages paid 4,500,000 4,200,000 m '' e , s road - 



Other lines are projected and it may be said there 



Spokane County, taxable property: are more mileg of railroad lineg under ^ onstruction in 



Real estate 15,787,170 14,856,353 this country than in any equal area on the continent, 



Personal 1,518,480 1,352,375 the mileage in Washington alone being 2,500. The 



City of Spokane : present mileage of mail lines, branches, yard tracks and 



Real estate 53,521,895 32,809,447 sidings in Washington is 4,595. 



Personal 6,595,395 5,427,295 Steam lines now in operation in the Spokane coun- 



Spokane County, taxable try are the Great Northern, Northern Pacific, Chicago, 



property, about 60 per Burlington & Quincy, Spokane Falls & Northern, Spo- 



cent of value 77,422,940 54,445,470 kane International (Canadian Pacific system), Oregon 



City of Spokane, tax rate: Railroad & Navigation Company (Harriman system), 



Mills. Mills. Spokane, Portland & Seattle, Central Washington and 



General fund 7% 6-H$ the Idaho & Washington Northern. 



Parks The growth of the city began with the completion 



Library % % of the first railroad in 1883, and its progress has been 



Interest on bonds 1% ! % substantial and rapid. In less than a decade, from 



Bridges % Nil 1881 to 1890j it attained a population, according to fed- 

 Sinking fund eral census, of 19,222, and in 1900 the official count 



showed 36,842. Conservative estimates in 1906 placed 



Total . . . the population at 84,000, and in June, 1907, a postal 



Total for city, county and census, authorized by the city, state and federal gov- 



state 26.5 37 ernments, gave 77,584 within the city limits, 7,500 in 



Ninety-eight miles of street railways are in opera- the limits since incorporated and 11,000 employed in 



tion in the city and 285 miles of electric lines extend railroad and mining camps and making homes in Spo- 



into the suburbs and as far east as Coeur d'Alene and kane, thus placing the population at 96,084 at the be- 



Hayden Lake, Idaho, and south to Palouse and Colfax, ginning of July, 1907. The Polk Directory Company 



Wash., and Moscow, Idaho. There are six transconti- announced in March, 1908, that its estimate, at the 



nental lines, including the Chicago, Milwaukee & Puget close of a careful and thorough canvass of the city, 



Sound, which is rushing construction work in Washing- placed the population at 108,675, while in the beginning 



ton. There are 12,440 telephones in use and the oper- of 1909 the same company estimated the population at 



ing company is 1,500 instruments behind in its orders, more than 121,000. 



A competitive system, with 6,000 instruments, will be Fruit-growing is destined to become the chief in- 



in service this year. The city has adequate waterworks, dustry in the Inland Empire of the Northwest and it 



sewerage, lighting, power and park systems. is no t too much to say that the crop of 1912 will be 



More than 150,000 horsepower electrical energy is worth $60,000,000, estimated on a conservative basis of 



developed in and near Spokane, and there is at least the millions of trees which have come into bearing that 



500,000 horsepower available and undeveloped. The season. One thing is certain: The production will never 



expenditure upon electrical plants and service amounted be equal to the demand, hence there need be no fears of 



to $3,000,000 in 1907. The Washington Water Power the lack of markets in the Northwest or elsewhere. Then, 



Company, of which Henry M. Richards is president, an- too, are the new distributing centers to be opened in 



nounces that $16,000,000 will be expended at the rate England, Germany, France, Australia, the Latin repub- 



of $2,000,000 a year in extending its city and interur- lies and the orient. 



ban electric railways and light and power plants, and Missionary visits by growers in the Spokane coun- 



the Spokane & Inland Empire Electric Railway system, try to England, France and Australia last winter dem- 



headed by Jay P. Graves, also has plans for extensive onstrated that Washington apples are in favor; in fact, 



works in addition to the projects now under way. This the first gentleman in Great Britain, His Majesty King 



company is surveying a line into the Big Bend wheat Edward, graciously expressed his pleasure and highly 



belt. There are numerous other electric railway proj- commended the fruit sent to Windsor Castle from this 



