The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-08-12


MIR. Harlan submitted to the Senate a bill
which granted the right of way to General
fremonts road, aud proposed a United
States guarantee Of the six per cent. bonds of
the company to a specified amount. Whether
this guarantee was special or general, we do
not know; though we believe it contemplated
Northern as well rs q Southern Pacific Rail
road and perhaps two or three branches.
But, whether general or special, we are in
flexibly opposed to all such guarantees. The
Government has virtually supplied the means
wherewith one railroad from the Missouri to
the Pacific, over the most difficult and DESC
late route, has already been constructed.
There the subsidy business must stop. To
grant lands in ad of a projected railroad
through the public domain is another matter.
The Government may well afford to give
alternate sections for a breadth of twenty
miles or so along the track of any trans-con-
tinental railroad; for the lands retained will
be worth far more than the whole we're prior
to the construction of the road. If four rail-
roads across the continent were built, and
each were to be conceded alternate sectionsfor
twenty miles along its track, the public
domain, though thereby diminished in area,
would be largely increased in value Hence
we favor IMMIGRANTS to important railroads.
But General Fremont's road, since we had
any knowledge of it, has asked of Congress
lands; and this the House voted February
22, go to grant-yeas, 121; nays, Al. An
other resolve to the same effect was adopted
by the new House, q month later-yeas, 1O2;
nays, 40. That the Senate would have con-
Cured if it had been allowed to vote on the
question, was never doubtful; but the pres
sure of business and unfair maneuvres in
committee precluded any action thereon last
spring. We cannot doubt that the right of
will ha w ppnpa5a1 win
A third joint resolve to the same effect with
the foregoing was submitted to the Senate
March - by Governor Morton, referred to
its Committee on Public Lands, favorably re-
ported april - by that committee, and now
awaits decisive action.
General Fremont's road commences at the
head of navigation on Red river, and pushes
thence nearly due west throughN Northern Texas;
Arizona, and Southern California, to San
Diego on the Pacific. Following mainly the
course of Red river and the Gila, it cannot be
nearly SO expensive or difficult as the central
road already constructed, while it will en-
counter no obstruction from SHOWS and little
from mountains. Its eastern terminus will
be promptly connected with railroads to
Memphis Savannah, and other commercial
points. 1t inherited some sixty or eighty
miles already graded before the Rebellion,
and which only failed to be ironed be-
cause the Confederacy took away the
rails chairs, etc, for use elsewhere. 1t is
pushing on the work of grading, has q
large quantity of rails bought and paid for
has had three full corps of engineers il
the field for months, making the final loca
ton of its line through Texas, which State
has incorporated it, granted it the right OF
way, and 10, 24O acres of State lands for eacl
mile in its course through the whole northern
border of its vast domain. The Memphis ant
Little Rock Company has voted to unite ant
consolidate with General Fremont's road
which expects to have $50 miles of its tract
completed and cars running thereon by th
| 1st of March next.
Such, according to the best information
we can gather, is the present St0tus of Gene
raj Fremont's Southern Pacific Railroad. w
do not learn that it is asking our people t.
aid it by subscriptions, loans, orfavors of an,
kind, beyond the right of way through desc
late Arizona, which we presume no Congress
will ever vote to refuse it. We hope an
trust that it will be steadily pushed on t.
completion, and that, while our country wi
be immensely enriched by it, General Ere
mont and his associates in its constructio
will not be losers.