Important Enterprise
The Seattle & Walla Walla Wagon Road Company Means Business

Seattle Post Intelligencer
June 9, 1883

Lester Bull, a prominent man of eastern Washington and President of the Seattle and Walla Walla Trail and Wagon Road Company, is at present in this city, endeavoring to work up some interest in the very important under taking the company he represents has taken in hand. In reply to our reporter's question yesterday regarding the plan by which the money to carry on the work is to be raised, Mr. Bull said; "In the first place, our company agrees to build, or cause to be built, a wagon road from Yakima valley westward through the Snoqualmie Pass, in the Cascade mountains, to connect with the wagon road at or near Falls City, in King county.

To accomplish this we solicit subscriptions from the parties most to be benefited by this great enterprise, which subscription is simply in the shape of a loan, as our company issue scrip, with coupons attached for every share of stock taken, and this scrip will be received the same as cash for tolls over said road. The amounts subscribed are not to be paid till the script warrants are issued to the subscriber. For instance. suppose Messrs S. Coulter S Sons subscribe $1000 toward this enterprise. Every dollar of that money would be laid out on the road, and scrip to the amount of $1000 will be issued to them. This scrip will be taken by as at regular tariff rates as tolls for the cattle driven by this firm over the road.

These subscriptions are based on an agreement on our part that the wagon road shall be commenced before the first day of July,1883, and completed so as to pass wagons over the road from Seattle to Yakima valley on or before the first day of October next. What have your people east of the mountains done toward this enterprise?" asked the reporter. "They have subscribed $7,000 in cash," replied Mr. Bull, and we already have quite a force of men at work, pushing toward the summit.

These men take half cash and half script for their pay, so that we will get about $12,000 worth of work besides paying for oar tools out of that $7,000. As in all enterprises of this character, many people held back fearing it would fail, but now that they see we axe bound to succeed they are all willing to do something to aid the enterprise. The completion of this road," continued Mr. Bull, "will throw the entire trade of over four thousand people in Yakima county directly into the lap of Seattle. This trade now goes to Portland.

In order to reach a market now we are compelled to haul our produce 140 miles to the Dalles, on the Columbia river, and from there ship it to Portland, where we now do our trading. Besides this, with the proposed road opened, immigrants by the hundreds will land from the ocean steamers at Seattle, buy wagons, teams, etc,, and drive over into Eastern Washington. For instance, wagons can be bought in Seattle at the same price they are sold in Portland, but it costs $11 freight on a wagon from Portland to a point where a team can draw it to the interior of Eastern Washington, when with the proposed road constructed wagons can be drawn by horses from Seattle to any point in Eastern Washington Territory.

So that instead of adding the trade of our present population of four thousand to Seattle, it will really be adding the trade of probably 15,000 in two years, as our country is filling up rapidly, notwithstanding the great inconvenience and heavy expense necessary to reaching Eastern Washington by way of Portland and the Colombia river. Our natural outlet, natural shipping port, and natural trading point is Seattle, and there is where we wish to reach. Our company expects your businessmen to come out liberally and advance us money to build this road. It can and must be done. We want it, and your people cannot afford to get along without it.

United we are strong, divided we are weak. This road will unite us forever. Our company is in earnest. and the road once open will always be kept open. We intend to have it so arranged that teams will pass over each section of this road every day in the year. From Ellensburg to Seattle by the proposed road is about 120 miles, and there is a petition in every post office in Yakima county being numerously signed asking for the establishment of a mail route from Seattle to Ellensburg and Yakima City via the Snoqualmie pass. This route doubtless will be established soon after the completion of our road, in which ease stages will run regularly over this route.

The people of Seattle, in the item of beef alone, will save $40,000 per year. after the completion of our road, as cattle can be driven to your slaughter pens in good order, where now, as the trail is, beef are all used up on their arrival over the mountains so severe is the trip on them, that they are not fit for beef till fattened up. which is an expensive operation while feed is so high." Mr. Bull went on to show a hundred other mutual benefits to show from the building of the road, but lack of space prevents a continuation of the interview at this time. Suffice it to say that aside from a railroad across the mountains there is no scheme that would rebound to the benefit of Seattle so much as a good wagon road from our city across the mountains into the fertile plains of Eastern Washington.

Those who are benefited the most should advance the necessary money to carry the scheme along to a successful completion.