St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1863-12-31
RAILROAD TO LAKE SUPERIOR.

RAILROAD TO LAKE SUPERIOR.
The importance o. railroad between
Lake Superior ss.a Tho a!:s.sssippi riv-
CIR can be estimated in some degree by
the excrtions made by localities, out
| side the natural desi grated point, to Sc
cure the south western terminus.
St. Paul has, by resolution Of the
City Council, offered bonus of $780,
600 in City bonds to dcfunct corpo-
ration for the construction Of road
from TINT place to the Lake. The whole
affair was managed BY u few, as evil
dcnccd by the extremely light vote
when the people were called upon to
ratify the resolutions and was so ab-
surd throughout as to give the idea
either that it Was a cloak to conceal
some purpose not TO be seen on the sur
face, or that the ostensibl, design was
being poorly furthcrcd. The voters Of
the city seemed to have taken the for
me, view, although the action Of the
Council was ratified by majority of
the very few votes cast The sum of
$3.50, 0O0-cspccially in St. Paul bonds
appears too triaiug in comparison
with the project it would seek to effect
Last winter St. Anthony struggled
hard t. have the Mississippi terminus
Of the land grant road fixed at that
place, and failel siyna1ly. Now the
Minneapolis Atlus mourns the asserted
fact that, in consequence, Minnesota is,
for long years to come, to be without
this much needed means Of commune
tation. Because the Legislature did
not sec fit to bury the south western
end of the road in the barren sand hills
surrounding St. Anthony, the editor
prefers to treat the line as an entire null
lity-a prize once within the grasp of
the people Of Minnesota, but now lost,
to be found, if ever, only when "thc
grand system" "h'ngine upon the Falls
Of St. Anthony" shall be "work,d
out" II the development Of TIC State
is to await this event then will the con-
struction of the road be indeed far in
the future.
But, fortunately for her well-being,
this is not the case. All the uncertain.
t, that is made to appear arises from
the attempts, referred to above, of Ger
tain localities to enrich themselves: at
the expense of the great body Of the
Stat, and to turn this road from the
route traced By the finger of nature,
vointed out by com mon sense, and FIX
cd by the Legislature. That route is
from Lake Superior to the Mississippi
at some point at or above St. Cloud.
1t is the only one by which there is
the slightest probability Of "a railroad be :
ing built until long after the expirationof
the time marked out for the rising of
St. Anthony to the pln"aclc of CONNER
| cial greatness. 1t is endowed by Con-
gross with heavy land grant-a grant
all-suficient to insure its construction.
of not less Importance is the fact thai:
it is rulRrY MILES SHORTER than the
proposed <outc from St. Paul.
A-great an< noticeable difference be-
tween the claims Of st. Cloud for the
terminus of the Lake Superior road
and those of other places is, that while
the former asked it as al outlet for the
immense and fertile regions embraced
in the Sank and Red River Valleys,
and the Mississippi Valley to the north,
which would thereby DO opened up and
settled at rate almost beyond belief,
St. Paul desires it that she may be the
railroad center Of the State, to
control its trade. and shape all for her
.ovp ACKNOWLEDGMENT, while St. Antho-
' :, ,o;,,.. >L4ye it as part of the 'sgrand
~, .s,,.,nn3 Int bio ooc::crse within her
limi.s-or the brains Of her ref: eSs"t'
atives. $3.50 '. }'5.2 1Hh~1 az f*''-@
The terminus located at St Cloud
would furnish to half the State means