, 1858-10-29
me Pacific Railroad .

III IoCalIC naAaOaN.
The time has been when the caption Of
this article might have frightened the timid
when be, who asserted that the erection Of
such work, would be deemed a madman.
But there are those who now believe, and
their name Is legion, that such q work is
possible, that such = problem is susceptible
Of solution, and that the time has come
when that solution is to be demonstrated
We are behind the spirit Of the age in
which w live. Who thought in 1853 that
Submarine Telegraph, connecting the old
and new world, would be cousummated 10
the year Of grace, 1883! Who suspected.
when the national government fitted out its
exploring expeditions in the year 1858, with
q view Of sscsrtaining a Railroad route
across the continent, that like pondrous
eircumlOcution Office. Young America, after
fading sundry passable and practicable
lines, would wait for the demonstration of
. vaster scheme, Of q more abstruse prob
lem, mere abstraction as compared with
inter-oceanic connection Of the broad At
lantic and tho great Paci6ci And yei tie
Atlantic Gable Is laid under the deep,
deep seats bottom fathomed, its topo-
grnphy, hidden from the ken Of man for
ages. now declared and deep embedded
there, liesthe connecting cable oftwo worlds,
ever which. with lightning speed, informa-
ton can be transmitted. questions asked,
the fate Of nations portrayed, pecuuiary
rsvulsions anticipated, their dsleterious and
destroying effects guarded against. A
vast cable tying together the greatest ma
tions Of the earth, another great link to,
wards the future chain Of universal broth
sFhood, fast approach to the halcyon
times when "War shall be no more"
What thea is the duty Of our people and
cur Government under this new phase in
the worlds progress and his.oryH Shall
We not cross this great continent with the
telegraph Aud side BY side with those
poles on which the wire is laid, carrying
messages and tidings Of Joy or grief with
the speed only sxeslIsd BY the dispensatiOn
through space Of Gods living light to all
hlE creatures, lay the great highway Of
nations, the iron band Of indssolubility
between two great regions Of one great
continent. welding with the white heat Of
maternal sympathy the East and the West.
The Pacific Railroad is no logger phan-
tom-an utOpian idea. It is now a posi-
bility. It will be built and il we live yet
few years. we must see it.
But it was our design not to expatiate
upon the feasibility Of such a project-uot
to show to the nation and to the people its
vast benefits: they are fully appreciated.
Already have a vast majority Of our people
declared their desire to see it undertaken.
Both Of the great parties in the late Presi-
DENTAL canvass smblazoned on their ban.
ners Pacific Railroad. each We'd with the
ether IN honorable rivalry for the most
EeAloas advocacy Of this greatest beneficial
project which has been yet suggested, this
work yet to be the crowning monument Of
the brilliant era in which we live. The
Presidents California letter, his inaugural
Address hare committed tho Admiuistra-
ton toiis influence and favor of Railroad
communication between the Atlantic and
Pacific.
In these movements have the people Of
Washington Territory q deep and momen-
tons interest Here in our own borders, is
vast ialand sea, penetrating TO the inte-
rior some tive hundred miles, dotted along
with excellsnt harbors, excellent sites for
commerce, agriculture, and the various re-
sources Of life and advancement, any Of
which would furnish terminus TO this vast
road, leading easily to pass or passes of
the Cascade Range Of Mountains, and
thence across our interior to the Rocky
mountains, thence over the vast plains Of
Nebraska. Dacotah and Minnesota, to the
Mississippi and the greatiakes And then
the work is sdOne-the problem sOlved-the
northern route adopted. and look at the re-
Sult-cOnnecting with the great west,
through which Railroads already extend
like great network, finding an easy out
let, national and Of most faciIe character,
with ell New England, New York, Balti-
more. and the federal metropolis. We
are not visionary nor enthusiastic, but we
believe that the North Pacific and Puget
SQUAD have great claims. Explorations
have proven that such line sxists-that
Il Is q good line-that it is the shortest