Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 15.djvu/625

 WASHINGTON

561

WASHINGTON

westerly and south-westerly winds bring with them the almost even ocean temperature, and make west- ern Washington's winters milder and its summers less oppressive; eastern Washington, owing to its higher altitude, is less favoured. The state's mean temperature is about 51° west of the Cascades and 4S° east of that range. In like manner, these ocean winds charged with moisture precipitate more readily by coming into contact with cold land air in winter, and hence there is more rainfall in west- ern than iu eastern Washington, which latter they reach only after coohng off against the snowy Cas- cades.

P\\nNA. — This is represented by a great variety of animals. The fur bearers which attracted the first white speculators are not yet extinct, and furnish the market stil) with their valuable pelts. We note the bear, wildcat, cougar, coyote, elk, deer, mountain sheep, otter, beaver, marten, skunk, muskrat, squirrel, and rabbit. The "Evergreen State" is also the natu- ral home of birds of every class and description. The smaller kind and singers are represented by the robin, black-bird, meadow lark, humming bird, and wild canary; while the game birds, geese, various kinds of ducks, prairie chickens, pheasants, and quails, attract the sportsman. Washington's rivers and large bodies of water, especially Puget Sound and its tributaries, are rich in all kinds of commercial fish, shellfish, and their by-products, such as glue and guano. The follow- ing statistics, taken from the report given by the state bureau, show the present extent of the annual output: Salmon packed, value .$9,113,656.40; fresh, salted, and smoked fish, S3,592,215.00; ovsters, $.581,000.00; clams, $111,375.00; crabs, $58,750.00; shrimps, $35,- 203.70; oil, $16,200.00; guano, $22,0.50.00; glue, S3,.500.00. The total value of the output for 1909 was consequently $13,534,010.10; the capital invested being $4,825,620, and the number of persons em- ployed 13,237.

N.\TURAL Resources and Industries. — Together with 6,173,688 acres of improved lands, 2,425,717 acres Indian reservations, 3,196,0.59 acres federal lands for home.steading, 12,007,340 acres of national forests, the State of Washington has still 391, 0(K),- 000,000 (board) feet of standing timber; and the lumber, lath, and shingles manufactured in 1910 reached 4,000,000 feet. Though the coal mines and other mineral resources are yet in their infancy, the coal mines produced in 1910 no less than 3,979,.569 tons of bituminous coal. Rich veins of silver, lead, iron, and copper, and occasionally gold, are found, especially in the hills of the Okanogan highlands; but they have been more or less neglected probably owing to the proximity of the richer goldfields of Ala.ska. More than three million dollars are annually realized by the lime, sand.stone, cement, tile, potterj', and brick industries. Wa.shington's chief charm and source of r(>venue lie in its forests with their wild vegetation of dogwood, madrona, maple, Cottonwood, and alder and liieir gigantic trees. Cedar, spruce, fir, pine, and hemlock are the chief marketable varieties. Washing- ton fir is extensively used for shipbuilding, and the cedar shingles are well known for their durability.

Commerce. — The foreign trade of the State of Washington has naturally grown with the develop- ment of its agricultural and natural resources. ^^'hiIe twenty years ago the total foreign commerce barely reached five million dollars, its present foreign trade is listed as follows: import, 1910, 828,910,491; 1911, $.36,64.5,675; export, 1910, $29,889,473; 1911, S39,13.5,.571.

Agriculture. — The State of Wa,shington, owing to its favourable chmatic condition, is rapidly advancing among the states of the T^nion as an agriculfur.al state. Not only are the valleys, plains, and redeemed lands utilized for farming i)urposes, the logged-off forest lands are also growing in favour on account of XV.— 36

the ever-increasing population. According to the

U. S. government report, 8 Sept., 1911, western Washington had in 1908 a total area of 5,180,000 acres of standing timber, which was reduced by 1910 to 4,450,000 acres. The same govermnent bulletin reports that in 1908 this territory had 432,000 acres of assessed pasture land which in 1910 had increased to 628,000 acres. The following list will show the principal agricultural products of the state: wheat, 34,895,000 bushels, .$32,452,350; oats, 9,190,000 bushels, $4,411,200; barley, 5,180,000 bushels, $3,- 315,200; corn, 417,000 bushels, $359,000; potatoes, 6,970,000 bushels, 83,276,000; hay, 798,000 tons, $11,- 172,000; hops, 3,000,000 pounds, $666,000. The total number of farm animals for the assessment of 1909 was given at 1,068,857 at a total value of $38,034,450; while the dairy industry shows for the same year the following result: butter, 9,681,668 lbs., $3,160,- 599.23; cheese, 204,983 lbs., $32,750.21; condensed milk, 1,195,893 cases, .$4,185,2.30.00.

Means of Commdnic.\tion. — With a frontage of salt water approximating 2500 miles Washington possesses on account of its numerous and safe har- bours favoured foreign and domestic routes of com- munication. The most important harbours are Seattle, Tacoma, Gray's Harbour, Everett, Belling- ham. Port Townsend, and Bremerton, at which latter port the U. S. navy yard and dry dock are situated. Besides its great facilities by sea the state has more navigable rivers and railroad advantages than any other western state. The total mileage of navi- gable rivers is approximately 1150; while the steam railroads are operated on a total trackage of 5726 miles, which does not include different interurban electric routes. In fact there is scarcely a county which is not touched by one or more means of communication. The principal companies operating within the State of Washington are the. Northern Pacific, Great Northern, Chicago-Milwaukee-St. Paul, and the Canadian Pacific, which form the main transcontinental routes. There are also several interstate and state railway companies such as the Seattle-Portland-Spokane; Oregon-Washington R. R. & Nav. Co.; Inland Empire; and Columbia-Puget Sound. All railways are under the control of a state railroad commission.

Population. — According to the census returns Washington had, in 1860, 11,594; in 1870, 23,955; in 1880, 75,116; in 1890, 349,390; in 1900, 418,103; and in 1910, 1,141,990 inhabitants, about, 5000 of whom are Indians. There are about 100,000 Catho- lics; 48,000 Methodists; 29,000 Presbyterians; 21,000 Baptists; 19,000 Lutherans; 11,000 Disciples of Christ; 9.500 Congregationalists; 9000 Episcopalians; and a large variety of smaller sects. For purposes of ad- ministration the state is subdivided into .39 counties. Western Washington contains a population of 732,291; whereas eastern Washington, though almost twice as large, has only 409,706 inhabitants. The largest cities are Seattle, 237,194; Spokane, 104,402; Tacoma, 83,743; Everett, 24,814; and Bellingham, 24,298.

Political Organization. — The state constitution provides for the election of the state officers for a period of four years simultaneously with the general presidential election. Minor state oflScials and com- missioners are appointed by the governor. Both men and women of the legal age are quahfied to vote, provided they are citizens, and have duly reg- istered after a residence of one year in the state, three months in the county, and thirtv days in their voting precinct. The legislature consists of a senate and a house of representatives. The senators are elected for four years, one half retiring every two years, while the rei)resentative8 are chosen even,' two years. According to the Sate constitution the senate can never number more than half or less than one third