Sikamish, Cedar, Snoqualmie, Snohomish, Stoluquamish, Skagitt, and Nooksahk. Several of these have two or more branches of about equal importance, and all of them are navigable for certain distances; the Skagitt for a distance of fifty miles. This last-named river rises far to the north-east, in British America, and flows through mountain gorges for long distances, like the Columbia and Frazer rivers. Everywhere in the neighborhood of these rivers, and the Sound, is timber of excellent quality for lumbering, and in great quantities. The streams flowing into the Sound from the west are in all respects similar to those on the east side, except that they are shorter, and have less bottom-land. They rise in the Olympian Range, and have but a short distance to flow to reach their outlet.
With regard to the great business of the Sound—lumbering—so much has been written, that more seems superfluous. In a chapter on Forests, we shall give a full account of the timbered lands both of Oregon and "Washington, together with the amount of lumber annually produced. It is unnecessary to say more in this place, than that the shore-line of the Sound is over sixteen hundred miles in length; and that its shores everywhere are heavily timbered, except where fires have, in some places, ruined the timber. Leaving out all burnt and unsuitable timber, the amount is still enormous which is excellent for lumbering, and easily reached. Milling companies buy logs at $4.50 per M.—the loggers having but short distances to go, and every facility for hauling at a trifling expense; nor will they work a piece of timbered land producing less than thirty thousand feet per acre—the more common yield being twice or thrice that amount. Water-power is commonly used only in the small mills, all the large
