, 1853-12-24
of the country canI take an homes,

"Hn Ou' duuhlonlI IeUlaIhs VIII mo-
ceed TO the consideration Of the route ~.
plored By me. In tits question Of a rail.
read, too much stress must moi be placed il
government aid. have my doubts AZ IL
It's policy or expectancy, except 10 the or.
tent Of a grant Of land, with the usual "a.
strictions as to the land becoming mopon.
oily, and as 10 tolls and fares. The conaic,
of interests and views may be so great, Ina,
Congress may have no other practicable
course, than TO pass a general railroad law.
giving aid in land 10 every through road
Private capital will sex out the best route
and private enterprise, with the aid Of
our vast railroad experience, is abund.
antly able 10 construct them. At this time
thirteen thousand miles of railroads are n
operation, twenty thousand miles under
conStrusiion, and lbrce thousand miles each
year added to the list. Cannot private Cap
ital undertake two and even three roads, n
practicable routes are found Involyinv
in round numbers some six thousand milr,
of railroad construction, accomplished say
in eight years, il adds but seven hundred
and fifty miles yearly to our roads Is ihis
too stupendous an effort, when the re.ult
will be not only the binding our vast cm.
pie together with chains of iron, bu
spreading over our country the vast wsalb
of the east-a wealth growing out Of the "a
Dor Of at least three hundred millions Of
souls, and causing 10 spring nnCa commerce
which must amount al least TO one dollar for
each individual. Recollect, again, our rail.
road experience, as exemplifrd on The fer
tile prairies Of the west, where roads havs
at once become rcmuncrative immedialplv
on starting the cars, tbp roads through On
n hcly unsettled country, and the selIlr.
ment going on, paTi passu, with the build
ing Of tn, road Such is the case with lha
central railroad in Illinois. Such il Tho
experience Of other roads in Illinois and In
diana. Such will bo the experience Of all
the roads seeking the Pacific for many hun
drcds OF miles on their way. In the case
Of the Illinois central road, the alternate
sections reserved brought more into The
treasury, sold OF auction, than would have
flowed from the sale Of tho whOlt at Iho
poyernmrnt price.
have thus presented the general qHn.
ton, and lei US now examine our special
field.
This field, rs have before observed, ~
tends from our northern parsEhel 10 the Rexi
souIherR line along the Platte and through
the Salt Lake region aad Ihenec 10 San FrSn-
cisco looks to conneeiiOo with the grra.
lakes and the northern roads east oflhs Ms
sissippi and has, for its Western trrmina,,
Puget Sound. In il are found the two gfrai
rivers Of the Missouri and the Columbia. and
three mountain ranges, the Rocky, Cqurd
Eleins and Cascade mountains We have
endeavor,d TO ascertain The ssv~rsl eioss.
ings Of the Mississippi river and the nsviga-
biliiy Of tue Missouri and The Colnmbis TiF-
ers. The Missouri river has Le carefully
surveyed to the Gresi Falls OI the MiSonfi,
and the Columbia has been explored "
small party, the chief of which, DR.. Sucklfy,
reached Olympia 10 day and who has do
scendrd in boat from the St. Mary's val
by, only two hundred miles from the Falls
of the Missouri, 10 Vancouver, except ka
about sixty nih-s, from The Ponae d'Oreinb
mission to Colvills. } have hlile doabi,
though canno, speak advisedy 1ill TeceivS
the official re- port, that the Missumi is saw
gtblr for steamers of light draught 10 The Gll'.
From the Falsthe distance to Puget Sound i
only seven hundred miles The Rocky noun
lains in this general region arc broken dowo
into spurs and valleys, the pass used by tho
main n rty being fifteen hundred feet loEer
than the South Pass. Let q determined
party Of ten mcA and q six Ca wagon lears
the Fails with axes few spades and rpo-
visions and in one month they will reach ihr
81. Marys valley, leaving behind thems
good wagon lrail which the en:igranl with
his loaded wagon can pass over in ten OF
Twelve days. The St. Marys valley snd
other valleys separated from il ouly BY ~
dividing ridges, extends along the Weslem
Base o. the Rocky mountains for The eniire
width Of the Ferraory; are from one TO ten
milrs wide, arc connected with numerou,
valleys in tina Rocky mountains, all posses.
sing mild climate, rich in grass and adaP.
ted 10 the raising Of wheat and vegetables
Eaa Of the Rocky mountains the county
for n, arly a hundred miles is exceedingly
rich and we'll grasscds abounding IN game and
the climate almost as mild Is that al The 81.
Mary's valley. On both sides Of the noun
lains the cattle require noshelter N winler-
At Fort Benton some twenty Mills heleg
the Falls, snow falls rarely and n small
and the Fur companies take goods
10 their posts on the MaFias and Milk ~
srs 10 wsgOas Ihrougll the sntire winter
There are sevepal good passes iOiIiese moua-
iains, and there are probably four passep
practicable Tor railroad, and oil with lh-
lie work afToFding good wagon roads The
OF these passes is densely WOOD
,d and is, 10 consequence, more dificph 70
,e made practicable for wagons THAI eiihI
he Hell Gate, Blackfooi, or Flaiheaa pa'A
In all these passes there is abundance d
wood and the water is Of the purest qnalig.
There ars doubtless other passes whieA