The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1860-03-19

bly VIII r&n6o 20 pass IL. The Union Com napv
are making streno,c',s efforts to influence The
Committee on Commerce Az Navigation to ~
port favorably to their interests, but In pre-
sence Of such unanimous expressions Of public
feeling in support of the bill, they will hardly
dare to report adversely to it Should they DO
bold enough to do so, however, we believe that
there Is sufficient self respect left in the Assem-
bly, to prevent 1t compromising itself recklsssly
On this measure. Where the justice Of the cass
is so patent, and where it is enforced BY ~
general opinion Of the press and public, thsy
will hardly run the risk Of mourning the aoou.
sation Of having been Bought up Wholesale by
the money Of tho monopolists.
Explorations I'm the Great west-TAe
Northern Pacific Railway Route ana
the Lander Wagon Roaa.
We have received from one of our oorree-
pondents on the Pacific coast copy of letter
from Lieutenant Mullan, Of tho army, having
In charge the explorations for the sxtre0e
northern Pacific Railroad route along the forty
ninth parallel, the material points Of which 70
have published elsewhere. The exploratieas
Pursuant to instructions from tho War De-
partment, the expedition left the States
in April last, reached Oregon in May, or
ganized competent corps of operatives, &C.,
and repaired to Fort walla- Walla, Washington
Territory, where, moro thorough formatioa q
tho party being made, and the military escort
joining the expedition, they left for the Rocky
IT.
months, most Of the time being taken up II
bridging streams, constructing boats, grading,
telling timber, excavating mountain slopes,
&c. The general direction after leaving Wallis
Walla was In q line northward across tie
Snake river, thence along the valley of the Pa
louise, thence to 10 st. Joseph's river to ths
Occur dA1ene Mission" reaching the latter
point in the month of August. This mission IL
at the entrance of one Of the Rocky Mountain
passes, and stands as St. Bernard to the Alps,
where the patient and toiling Jesuit has raised
the standard Of Christianity among the Indians,
and where, amid snow and colds and dreary,
frowning mountains, the children of the
Forest are taught the praises of great and
good Creator. The expedition, taking up their
march from this place, worked through dense
forests and over rivers for sixty miles, bridging
streams, and making roads. This work Of ton
was continued till December last, when the
snow and cold necessitated Lieutenant Mullaa
to suspend operations on the route; and, halting
in a mountain gorge, he set his men at work
erecting log cabins, in which they are nowpaa-
ing the inclement season and awaiting the
opening Of genial spring, when their intention
is to move eastward towards the Missouri river.
It is stated that there Is now only link Of six
hundred miles of land travel from the head Of
navigation on the Missouri to the Columbia By
this route, and over this section practicable
military and emigrant road il now being oea-
structed.
We make particular note Of Lieutenant Mnl-
lan's expedition, however, merely on accouna
Of the geographical and typographical infoc.
nation it contains. There have been many
expeditions over the vast plains and grand
mountain passes Of the West, but We are prse-
tically no nearer to Pacific railway than wss
were when old Bullion began to agitate hQ:
question in the Senate The expeditions, foag
the time of the gallant and intrepid Lewis an
Clarke down to the present time, have beea, \
nevertheless, Of immense service to the country
in opening up the great region west Of the Nj
sissippi. The country has done the preliminary
work carefully, and paid for it liberally The r.
suits of the lahors Of Fremont Carson, BealH
Bonneville, Cooke and others have enlightene&
us materially, and all the officers engaged r.
them deserve well of their countl1men. Dix
tinct from this view is another, with which,
of course, the army has nothing to do. It h,
however, important. 1t is the financial aspect
of the matter. Wehear of hundreds Of millions
of dollars spoken of as lightly as people gene
rally reckon sixpences or shillings. Who're
this money is to come from might be- .
serious question were it not for the prospect
that the road if it is built, will be constructed,
like all great works of the kind, by private an
terprise, before government gets ready to act.
Meanwhile, the cost Of the official expeditions
would make pretty figure in the expense Of
the road There is little item Of nine hum
dred thousand dollars for the publication Of
eleven volumes of reports on this subject.
wl5chuay be taken as specimen brick of the
whole edi6ce. At this rate the road would
swallow up the income of the nation before its
preliminary surveys have been completed.
We have also received from Washington an
abstract of the report made to the Interior De-
partment by Mr.. F. W. Lander, relative to do
wagon road for Californian emigrants.
The instructions from the Interior Depart
partment of March 25, 1859, directed Mr.. Lam
der to proceed to the frontier, thence to the
South Pass of the Rocky Mountains, to 60 OVER
the road opened last year, make such improve
ment upon it as might be necessary; thereafter
to proceed to Honey Lake Valley by the Hum
boldt river route, for the purpose of obtaining