The weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1852-1858, 1856-03-22
Gbt weeklq Mlnn,sotlull.

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Frem the Chicago Press.
Tia C4mparasive value Of Eastern and West
ern Railroads,
On several occasions within the last two
years or more, we have remarked upon the
constantly increasing productiveness Of West
ern Railroads, and especially those of our
own State. We have endeavorei to show,
by comparison of their costs and receipts,
with those of old-established Eastern lines,
and their prospects for the future, that their
stocks offered to capitalists better chances
for investment than could be found else
where in the country, or indeed in the world.
At first. we remember, some Of our Eastern
contemporaries regarded the anticipations of
Western men in this regard as unwaranted
bv the facts in the case, and even some of
the latter were not prepared to accept in full
our own view of the matter. But the doubts
of all have been rapidly dispelled by the
wonderful developments of the resources of
this portion of the West, and the equally
wonderful development Of the Railroad sys-
tenn, there being between the two mutual
action and reaction. The paragraph below,
from the N. Y. Herald, presents pretty fair
comparison between the present condition OF
Eastern and Western Railroads:
"Western Railroad stocks are attracting
attention, and must, during the present year
absorb great deal of capital. The new
roads, ayorably located, are preferred as
general thing to those which have been OPP
Grating long, the stocks of which have be-
come inflated. An early Investment in the
most prominent Western roads cannot fail
to pay handsome returns. Within the past
five or six months several new roads favor
ably located in Illinois and Wisconsin, have
come upon the market at prices which have
attracted new class of purchasers, and the
effect has been of the most favorable charac
ter. It hes fer gears appeared most extra
ordinary to us that capitalists remained sat
isfied with their investments in the old
Railroads of the Eastern States, while those
at the West presented such inducements
Illinois and Wisconsin are peculiarly adapted
to the construction of Railroads. The i'm
mense prairies of that region afford great
facilities for preparing the superstructure.
The right of way costs but a tri1e, depot
grounds of unlimited extent are obtained at
low prices, and commencing, as they all
have, with new country around them, and
amid sparse population, it follows that as
they develope the resources Of the section
through which they pass, their productive
ness must at no distant day from completion
lie sufficient to satisfy the most sanguine
stakeholder. There is not we'll located
stock in the region north and west of Chica-
20 but is destined to pay enormous dividends
and command high premiums in the market.
A glance at the map is sufficient to satisfy
any shrewd observer of the destiny of the
country. The western shore of Lake Mich
igan is a natural barrier, which no Railroad
can overcome. The tendency of travel and
traffic is to the south, for the purpose of
passing round the southern end of the lake,
and the bulk of transportation from the west
to lake ports north of Chicago will pass over
the lake shore lines to Chicago, on its way
to the Atlantic. This will throw an immense
business over the lake shore roads and make
them good investments. All lines running
east and west between ports on Lake Michi-
gan and the Mississippi River must be i'm
mensely productive. The tide of travel sets
east and west, and it is only by roads rum
ming west that we can penetrate the unlim-
tied region beyond the Mississippi. Rail
roads located in the Eastern States have had
their day. All Of them cost per mile double
and treble the roads of the West, and their
earnings per mile are much less.
eastern Railroads, as general thing,
are operated much more expensive, subject
to more ruinous competition, and in receipt
of less income on the same business than
Western roads. Eastern Railroads, in the
aggregate, have reached about the maximum
of net revenue, while those in the West are
yet in their infancy. The former are old,
diseased and nearly worn out, while the lat
ter are new, healthy, vigorous, and but in
the beginning Of productiveness. AS perma-
nent investments, the Eastern railroads are
no more to be compared with those of the
West than the moon is to the sun for light
The construction account Of all completed
roads at the West is closed, and in most Of
them it rests at a small figure compared will
the roads Of this State or New England. A
strict adherence on the part of Western
Railroad managers to this principle, will be
attended with results more extraordinary
than have yet been realized in Railroad in
vestments in any part of the world"
Those who carefully consider the subject
will not be surprised that the Railroads Of
the West have so far outstripped those of the
East. From the first, before single mile
Of iron had been land in the Northwest, thi
results which we now see were as demonstra
BILE as the plainest problem in mathematics
though, of course, it required the actual ex
istence of these results to render the subjec
clear to the general apprehension. VIVA
Railroads need to secure good dividends is
large amount of travel and business; ant
when we know that the country through
which they are to run possesses soil of lit
eral Egyptian fertility, and hides within it
bosom great abundance of mineral treas
ures, has fine and healthful climate, and i
so situated with respect to rivers and lake
that all it's productions can be easily concen
trated at the chief commercial points whel
we know all this, we need no argument t
show that these Railroads are needed an
will pay. All this is true Of the whole eH
tent of country through which the numerou
lines of our Northwestern Railroad syster
have been so rapidly ramiied, and the spler
did results which have been brought abou
through their agency are just what sober
thinking men predicted years ago, with th
single exception that the development of th
country has been considerably more rapi
than even they ANTICIPATED.
This, however, is but the commencement
of Railroad building in the Northwest. on
own State is pretty well intersected by iro
lines, but they are still being laid down a
most as rapidly as ever, and every few day
we are called upon to chronicle some ne
project. Wisconsin is coming on bravel
with her system of roads, the whole ne
work of which is intimately connected witt
and will in the end vastly contribute to til
business of our own. That system will el
long become connected with the whole LAX
Superior region on the one hand and wit