The Minnesota pioneer. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn. Territory) 1849-1855, 1852-01-29

ton he held al West Union, in Fayetls
county, ui,on the fret Thursday in Februa-
~. On motion, IL was further resolved,
that the people of the counties feeling in
ter ested he cordially invited TO send Dele
gates To the proposed Convention.
The meeting then adjourned till Tuesday
evening next when Delegates from Du--
bnque county to the West Union Conyen-
tiou will be choseL." .,+a esf5G s4eggd
Possibly the Dubuluers think, that if
they do not hurry a railroad through to
Pen,i,ina, west Of us, ST. Paul may get to
be something Of village and Dubuque
cease to be the "eniporium Of the North
West." Dubuque has really so little to do
with the river, that she naturally turns her
attention to the interior. When "Resoiu-
tons" willmske Steamboats, aud Railroads,
Dubuque will eclipse New York aud Lon.
don! ati#
Not less chirnerical is the idea Of con.
structing a railroad from ST. Paul to Lake
Superior, unless il wsr. road expressly
for the purpose Of interseeting a railroad
built by British capital, from the Gulf of
ST. Lawrence to the British shore of the
Paci6c-a work not likely to he accom-
Pilshe,l, for some time yet. With short
canal around the Ste ST. Marie, freishts
could he taken from Buffalo to the Western
extremity Of Lake Superior, at ahou, as low
rates as from Buffalo to Chicago. A town,
therefore, OF the Yves, end Of Lake Superi.
or, couli obtain freights lower than St.
Paul can and would uudersell Us. Thus,
f railroad were bull, from 81. Paul to
Fond du Lac of Lake superior, the trade
of the Upper Mississippi would flow up
stream, and move off to the eastern cities,
through the Lakes. The Steamboat bust.
ness Of this river would be dried up; for not
pound of goods could I've brought TO ST.
Paul, in our fat, small, river boats, il they
were brought in direct competition with
The capaeious holds OF the Lake propellers,
sailing to Fond du Lac; and so far from
bene filing the trade Of this river aud sspe-
cially of St. Paul, which now supplies the
whole trade north Of US, by building rail-
road from ST. Paul to Fond du Lac, it would
be found that our mill was at the ,rrong End
Of the race, aud that the stream Of COM
rnerce was flowing away from the town.
But why talk and write all the chimeri-
cal nonsense, Why utter all the windy va
porings that are uttered, about building rail-
roads that will cost millions, through a
country not yet inhabited, and much Of
which never will be! When win men Re-
come reasonable and PRACTICABLE
Have we no, the Mississippi river. made
on purpose for trade? Have we not uatu-
raj advantages and resources Of trade that
need all our capital and resources, properly
to develope them: With the exception of
New York, where all railroad systems CELL
tire ami terminate, the effect Of railroad
scheme upon the prosperity Of any town, is
altogether preLlematical. SO il is with
Chicago; So it is with Milwaukee. II is
even questionable whether the increase %
the transient and transit business Of Gale
ma, W i'll more than compensate her fur the
secure, snug monopoly Of winter trade,
which she now enjoys, while cut off from
the competition in trade, which she will
soon have to meet with from all cities far
Their east, at all seasons of the year.
More and more are we daily conyinc
that the true commercial interests Of the
valley Of the Mississippi, are identified with
the navigation Of the river. When the east
and west lines of commerce cut off the
north and south, steamboats, will peter out,
, (as miner would sny,) and the west, in
stead of doing her own carrying trade, will
surrender it TO soulless railroad corpora.
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