Page:The History of Oregon Bancroft 1888.djvu/210

192 there being only fifteen miles of sand on this part of the coast. Little attention was given to any bay or stream north of the Umpqua, McArthur offering it as his opinion that they were accessible by small boats alone, except Yaquina, which might, he conjectured, be entered by vessels of a larger class.

It will be remembered that the Samuel Roberts entered the Umpqua August 6, 1850, and surveyed the mouth of the river, and the river itself to Scottsburg. As the Ewing did not leave the Columbia until the 7th, McArthur's survey was subsequent to this one. He crossed the bar in the second cutter and not in the schooner; and pronounced the channel practicable for steamers, but dangerous for sailing vessels, unless under favorable circumstances. Slight examination was made of Coos Bay, an opinion being formed from simply looking at the mouth that it would be found available for steamers. The Coquille River was said to be only large enough for canoes; and Rogue River also unfit for sailing vessels, being so narrow as to scarcely afford room to turn in. So much for the Oregon coast. As to the Klamath, while it had more water on the bar than any river south of the Columbia, it was so narrow and so rapid as to be unsafe for sailing vessels.

This was a very unsatisfactory report for the projectors of seaport towns in southern Oregon. It was almost equally disappointing to the naval and post-office departments of the general government, and to the mail contractors, who were then still anxious to avoid running their steamers to the Columbia, and determined if possible to find a different mail route. The recommendation of the postmaster-general at the instance of the Oregon delegate, that they should be required to leave the mail at Scottsburg, as I have mentioned, induced them to make a special effort to