The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1846-07-17
The Great Railroad to the Pacinc-Is 1t e
he Rullt


The Committee on Roads and Canals, to whom
was refereda number of petitions and memorials
from various parts of the country praying for the
construction of railroad to the Pacific Ocean,
have, it appears, submitted an adverse report
The reasons that induced the committee to make
such report are plausible enough, if they were
well-founded, and substantiated by accurate
knowledge and experience; but, we believe this
IS not the case, and we fear the committee have
been at the task of conjuring up obstacles, which
have more real existence in their own brains than
in the territory through which the proposed rail-
road would pass. We say would, if the report had
been favorable, for then Congress would I'M
doubleday take some action on the subjects; but
we might have added will pass, for sooner or later
grand national railroad, that will connect the
navigable waters of the Atlantic and Pacific
oceans, will be constructed, as surely as the thing
is practicable, which think will be found to he
beyond dispute. Let us look into the reasons that
influenced the committee in making their report
In the first place, they say, that the proposed
route is not on the top of a range of mountains,
but like all other similar routes through lofty
ranges-through gorges, and numerous defiles,
over-hung by rocks and by mountains of the most
terrific altitude, which vary from seven to sixteen
a.
Amid these, the snow must necessarily drift in
heaps of mountain magnitude, and it is said lies
nnmelted .during the greater part of the year
The storms that accompany this snow occur late
IN the spring, well early in the fall, for when
1t rains in the valley, it generally SHOWS in the
mountains The COMMITTEES concluded by assert
ing that they are safe in saying that the road could
not be built for one hundred millions of dollars.
this great work before Congress, but the most
plausible and reasonable of them are Wbitnev,s
anothers, and Wilks's. The former and latter Of
these are accounted the best--and indeed mon &c
standing in the eastern and western Statesmen
who do not manufacture and conjure up obst,.
cles wherewith to blind their vision-to be mi,
only practicable, but easy of being accomplished
with comparatively small cost. We do not know
which one of these propositions has received the
attention of the committee, but we think Messrs.
Whitney and Wilkes have proved satisfactoril
from the experience and observation of travellers
that the mighty obstacles that have SO terrified the
committee, do not exist their lines of route a,
all events But to the obstacles. The committee
say that the proposed route is not on the top OF
mountains. As far as that goes, we would like to
know how the committee would prove it could be
over mountains, which they say are from seven
TO sixteen thousand feet high. But, through
gorges and defles the road must pass That Ger.
iainly, is more reasonable, for if we can't get over
mountains of such altitude as those, we must see
II we cannot get through them, and here we think
Nature has come to our assistance, and kindly
cut the way for us at the Great Southern Pass
lately discovered by Captain Fremont. To this
point, it is well-known, there is no obstacle for.
in the year 1929, an expedition in wagons reached
IL without inconvenience -
The letter addressed by Mcssrs Smith J..L..r