The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-01-31
THE PACIFIC RAILROAD.


engO and the Tr"do of tno E'lahns-rno
Yearly Freight business OG the Pacific
Railroad EstimaCsd .t Fifty Thousand
9Ons-Vhe platte River VaIley-rne
Richest Lama the Fsos OF tne
Globe.
From the Chicago Times, Esd.
At Moroes Exchange rooms last evening, MIR.
George Francis Train delivered lecture on the
Pacific Railroad, and on the territory west of
the Mississippi, to a large audience composed lof
many members of the Board of Trade, and M
nuential merchants of this city. The following
is an abstract OF his remarks =
He was not here to talk fun. And the occa-
sion OF his coming here reminded him OF fifteen
or twenty years ago, when he was strictly
business man. II was only when he LETT home,
and saw something OF it, and learned some
things wrote some books, became an orator
and iuerdteOr, that they seemed to forget that he
had started first business man. But he had
no idea that a knowledge OF the world tended to
destroy a mans business capacity. 1t Is time
we knew something of tins Western country
The men on the sea-shore are bent up double.
They knew nothing of this Western world Many
OF them have never been in Chicago, aud how
many OF those IN Chicago come within 100 miles
OF 0maho? !? There is but confused idea OF the
Pacific Railroad prevalent in the country. Few
knew where that railroad is located.
The policy Of this country for fifty years was
TO keep everything on the seashore. Fourteen
IL
wall of tomahawks. The Indian lands we're
such as could not be penetrated 1t was the
policy of the North and South to keep those
tomakawks there so that you could not go there.
All the legislation OF the country tended to the
benefit OF these States. But finally Ohio worked
westward, then Michigan stepped westward, and
about fifteen years ago there was column oil
young men Of intellect who moved westward,
despite the higher wages offered in Eastern
cities, and came to Chicago. II contains to-day
500 0men Of more intelact and brains, men who
would know better what to do If ship were
wrecked or an earthquake suddenly heayed
and broke under them, than any other 500
men IRON any city except San Francisco. Yet
these men in Chicago don't know where 20
locate the Omaha or the Pacific Railroad.
What he proposed TO show was, that these
men these pioneers OF the East, broke through
this barrier OF Indians and drove them back.
This column of young men Is moving westward
and are going 10 make Omaha another Chicago.
Now they are across the Missouri and the Mis-
souri, tribes are being pushed up towards Da-
cotah. This has only happened recently. The
legislation of the entire country was
for the East. Nothing was brought to bear in
the interests OF the West On looking at the map
OF the world, he had discovered that on little
spot only SIX hundred mules wide all the cvltza-
ton OF the world was located. This narrow belt
OF land contains 100000 900 of white people. The
mixed races and darker races were north and
south Of this belt. 1t contained the Indian en-
pire, the Chinese empire, the Roman empire;
and along the same belt there was the French,
English, and American empires. On that little
belt were ali the cities of importance-Nankin,
Pekin, Canton, Bombay Calcutta; then Car
thage, Rome, and Greece; tnen you come to
Berlin, Vienna, Paris, and London, and then you
cross the ocean. Columbus has received credit
Tor what he did not deserve. He static for China
and struck an island 1000 miles across He start
ed for a new road to China put he came here and
found it not. On this belt crossing the ocean
you have-what? Here is Boston, New York
Philadelphia and Baltimore, Pittsburg and But
tao, Cincinnati and Chlcago then right on the
lire st. Louis and Davenport, Leavenworth and
Omaha, and another step onward Utah and San
Francisco. This belt surrounds the world. CiYi.
Slizaton is on that line.
Now we have lust discovered q new country.
Every 1000 years there is some great idea that
springs into existence. Four thousand years
ago the Pyramids were built. Two thousand
years later the Catacombs and Pompeys Pillar
were erected, aud two thousand years after we
found that while Louis Napoleon is cutting his
way through EGYPT on his way to Asia, we were
now cutting our way over the Rocky Mountains
TO Asia, and we shall get there first. We got
our ideas from the East. The sun moves with
its splendors from the East to the West; the
stars come over in their planetary system from
the East to the West; and Christianity came
away IRON the East onward towards the West;
the magical letters and figures are from the East.
But it came from the East by accident 1t
should have come from the West. Why didn't
they come from the Pacific to us Simply, out
ot the policy Of England. The policy OF England
has ruled this country up to the time OF the late
war. Ii ruled America. The American Revolu-
ton was dead failure. Commercially and
financially we have been ruled ever since,
until they put end to that. That policy
bound in the thirteen States and made the
world believe we had a great inland desert.
Only the other day we discovered that we had
not an inland desert. Every two thousand years
great idea springs up, and now it is the Pacific
Railroad.
Mr.. Train then went on to speak OF the progress
OF the Pacific Railroad. He said that there
were already 40 miles of the Pacific Railroad
open; that by the LIST of February 20 miles more
will be completely in January next 100 miles;
at the end OF two years 200 miles; at the end OF
five years it will be open, and meet the line
comiIg this way. In that time he expected to
see Chicago gentlemen going over the line.
He then spoke OF the distances from one point
to another. 1t was 243 miles on the Chicago
and Northwestern Railroad to Boonesboro; I4O
miles from Boonesboro by stage to Omaha To
pass between these two places it now occupies
from thirty-hVe 10 sixty hours. 1t was proposed
TO pay thirty thousand dollars for new line OF
stages between these two points, by which peo
pie could travel the distance in sixteen hours.
This would make it thirty-tive hours from Chi
cago to Omaha, and in June next three hours
more to Columbus, distance of 100 miles on
the Pacific Railroad, making forty hours from
Chicago to Columbus. a distance OF about 500
miles, adding to this thirtysiX hours TO come
from New York to this city and it would make
seventY-siX hours from New York to Columbus
ZION this line of the Pacific Railroad it was
proposed to build cottages at stations at dis
tances of forty miles apart. To pass to the
terminus of this roid in California il will then
be necessary for emigrants and traffic from
Europe to pass through New York Buffalo
Chicago Omaha, Denver City, UCah Territory
and California,
Men who had been interested In the planning
of railroads to the Pacific had not intended thai
Chicago should reap any advantage from them
1t was their intention to benefit st. Louis alone
II Chicago reaped any advantage from them il
was to be through S Louis. Had IL not beer