The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1871-05-18
IFrum sne NeW YoEk lnd6pehd0htI =
ito THE
.N0rth'n Pacific Railroad.

[From the New York independently 8.
9isa THE
|North''nn ' I Pacific Railroad
BY sUHUYLER coLFAx,
Midway across the continent-a,
the head Of twelve hundred milel
Of Lake navigation - Thousand milel
from Buffalo, the western terminnl
Of tho Erie Canal, and as near to il
By water as Chicago = hundred
miles Of the longitude Of st. Louis ol
Galena- -is tho young city Of Duluth
the initial point Of tho Northern Pc
ciflo Railroad. That great work, st
magniiicently endowed " tho Gov
ernnsnt ID already being pushel
|rapidly westward, under its energetic
controllers and before the snow flie.
next Fail, IL viii be completed 70 ths
western line Of Minnesota, where i,
croases the Red River OF the N North
which runs north ward to Lake Win
nipeg land one-eighth Of its distance
70 the Pacific Ocean will have beer
accomplished. Uommencino. TOO. thie
season on its western line. the work
will bc prosecuted from both direc
tiona and long before the nation
celebrates the Centennial Anniver.
gary of Independence. the Lake will
be united by iron baifds with thai
Mediterranean of our Northwest
Puget Sound. 5 So
Of the auspiclous influence Of this
enterprise, which but I few wears
ago would have been considered %
daring, the most eanzuine Of its
friends have scarcely vet 4 full reali.
cation. Even taking Chicapo a the
starting point, il viii be (via 81
Paul, whore An arm of tho North.
ern Pacific Railroad il reached) two
hundred miles less distance to Puget
Sound than to San Francisco. Be.
sides this. vessels from the Golden
Gate to China sail on what is called
the grand circle. instead of n I
straight line; and any one testing
this by 4 string on 3 globe win be
surprised at The result. If thew have
not previously studied the effect 81
the rotundity of the earth. and ita
diminished protubersuce a Won 90
northwards towards tho Pole.
Hence, when they have sailed
eight hundred miles from San Fran.
cisco, they are only one hundred
miles from the entrance to Puget
Sound; and this striking fact shows
the advantages this route will have
in commanding the through traffic
of Asia with our Atlantic States. Or
that portion of it which will pass
over the soil of this nation on its
road to Europe.
Nor is this All. Devclopment il
the great duty Of the Republic. After
ali its recont trials. Resources ~
the gift Of the Creator. Developing
thom depends on the work Of man.
Along tho line Of the Northern Pa
cific Railroad, as it follows up the
water-courses, the Missouri and Vel
lowstone on this side, and descends
BY the valley Of the Columbia on
the other, vast body Of agricultu-
raj land is waiting for the plough,
with . climate almost exactly the
same a. that Of New York, except
that, with less snow, cattle in the
larger portion Of it, can subsist on
the open range In winter. Here, il
climate and fertility Of soil produce
their natural result, when railroad
facilities open this now isolated re-
gion to settlement, will soon be seen
waving grain-felds, and happy
homes, and growing towns !; while
ultimately . Gordon of prosperous
States, teeming with population, and
rich in industry and consequent
wealth, wilt occdpy that now unde.
veloped and almost Inaccessible nor.
tion of our continental area.
But this Road il fortunate also in
it's pathway across the two RANGES q,
mountains which tested so savsrelv
the Raoifio. Railroads hn;lt on ~
central lima and the overcom;ns u
which Rejected snch we'll daser1ed Il
honor ON their anaroat;o hu;iders ..
A. the hear f,odya Psss In Monta 10
where q crossas ths RncLv n,onn
tains IA alt;tnde ahovo tba sos 3
ah0O feat less than tia iin;on psc;fe I
Railroad at Sherman. which is said
| to be the highest point at which !
| locomotive can be fonnd in the world
And on the Pacific side Of tho Cont
nent it is even more fortunate. From
Arizona M to the Arctic Circle tn,
Columbia is the only river which ha,
torn its way through that might,
range, the Andes Of North America
which in California is known as th,
Sierras, but in Oregon changes Il,
name to the Cascades. Mature hal
thus provided o path way for tn,
Northern Pacific Road throu gh thcs,
mountains, the scaling Of which, OF
the other lire, at an eleyatio of ovel
seven thousand feet "a most wonder
full triumph OF enaineering,] cost ths
Central Pacific company millions o
dollars, and compelled them. for soy
enty miles, to maintain y grade o.
over one hundred feet to the mile
twice the maximum Of tho Northern
Pacific at the most difficult point OF
its entire route.
1t ID fortunate, also. in it's ter,nin
ia IN tha pa.;Ho ..o.s. NJ -. ~ :,