Page:Portland, Oregon, its History and Builders volume 1.djvu/696

510 Mrs. Frederic Thorne of Tacoma) became the editors and owners of the onetime suffrage paper, "The Pacific Empire." After a brief period, Miss Cogs- well resigned her interest in the weekly paper, and Miss Gotshall took her place in the publication. The Pacific Empire, however, was at no time after passing under Mrs. Miller's control, the organ of the suffragists, the last number of which was issued on July 7, 1898; and in September of the same year, the first number of "Drift" was published.

During this same period mentioned, Mr. William Bittle Wells had been planning to issue a monthly magazine to be called "The Pacific Monthly"; and for which he had been raising means and making arrangements for advertising to support the same. And on the appearance of "Drift" he proposed to the proprietors thereof that good business policy for all interested, suggested that they combine their efforts in one single publication. And after careful consideration, Mrs. Miller on behalf of "Drift," agreed to Mr. Wells' proposition and joined him in the work of founding the Pacific Monthly, and rendered editorial services thereon from 1898 until she went to Alaska in 1901. Mr. Wells having the business management and outside push to the venture.

The magazine was not established without long-continued and very exacting labors, and it was exceedingly fortunate to have a man with the temperament, business ability, perseverance and energy of William Bittle Wells to carry it along for years through all the stress of a scanty magazine reading population, and an advertising support that had to be educated up to the point of believing Oregon could support a first-class magazine, and display costly advertising to a wealthy subscription list able to buy the most costly merchandise. To Mr. Wells is due the credit of establishing the Pacific Monthly on prosperous foundations and making it the first of first-class magazines on the Pacific Coast, and the equal of any illustrated magazine in the whole country.