DAVENPORT, the county seat and largest town in the county, is situated on the central Washington branch of the Northern Pacific railway near the middle eastern portion of the county, and has a population of about 2,800 people. Its business blocks are chiefly built of brick. It owns its own water system, is lighted with electricity, has fine school buildings and churches. Its court house cost about $80,000. It is surrounded by splendid farms and annually ships out about 1,250,000 bushels of wheat. [Page 70] WILBUR, a town of 1,500 people, on the Northern Pacific railway, is a very important shipping and distributing center. It has large flour mills, warehouses, five churches, and schools, electric lights, and water system, bank, newspaper, parks, and important commercial institutions. ALMIRA, in the western part of the county, on the Northern Pacific railway, is another prosperous and growing grain center with about 600 people. HARRINGTON, on the Great Northern railway, is a town of some 1,200 people. It has a beautiful location, commands the trade of a large farming county, ships grain and livestock, and is a prosperous and growing town. CRESTON, EGYPT, and BLUESTEM are smaller growing commercial centers. MASON COUNTY Mason county lies on the upper reaches of Puget sound, having the Olympic mountains at its north, where about one-fourth of the county is in the Olympic forest reserve. Its total area is about 900 square miles, and it has a population of about 6,000. Hood's canal penetrates well into the center of the county in its great bend, giving it a very long salt-water shore line. From the Olympic mountains numerous streams flow into the Puget sound, while others empty their waters into Gray's harbor. The county is a great forest of splendid timber, which has been only to a limited degree cut out. The soil of the foothills and valleys Is composed chiefly of shot clays and alluvial deposits, making good farming, stock-raising and fruit-growing lands. RESOURCES. Logging and its allied industries constitute the main industries of the county, Much of the logs are shipped out of the county to feed sawmills in other parts of the Sound. Raising and marketing oysters is an important source of wealth to the county. There is already considerable acreage for farming and stock-raising, stock finding pasturage the year round. This industry will grow as the land is cleared. The county affords splendid hunting and fishing in season. TRANSPORTATION. The county is so cut into by the inlets and bays of the sound that it has splendid transportation facilities by steamer to all the sound ports. The Northern Pacific railway reaches its southern boundary. No other railroads traverse the county but its logging railroads, which can give only a limited service. [Page 71] PRINCIPAL TOWNS.