Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1871-07-21
Il tFrom the Advance (ohicsgo)l
The Northern Pacific Railroad, Con
- gress, end the Public Lands.

The Northern Pacific Railroad, Con
. gress, end the Public Lands.
4 AMONG the great commercial more
ments that characterize AID render
notable the present times, probably the
most important, both in amount of
capital involved and in the character and
extent of anticipated results, is the build
ing of the Northern Pacific Railroad,
with its branches, feeders and connec-
tons. The Suez Canal, constructed un-
der the auspices of the French Govern
ment, cost about sixty million dollars
The Union Pacific Railroad, extending
from Omaha to Ogden, distance of 1,032
miles, involved a necessary outlay of per-
haps forty million dollars, and the Central
Pacific, completing the line from Ogden
to Sacramento, 743 miles further, did not
cost more than an equal amount. The
Northern Pacific Railroad, controlled by a
] single corporation, will span the continent
from deep-water navigation on Lake Su.
perior TO tide-water on the Columbia
River and Puget Sound--a distance Of
about 1880 miles; and the branches al
ready projected will increase the total
length of road bed to nearly two thousand
five hundred miles. The cost of con-
struction and rolling-stock will not fall far
short of one hundred million dollars.
1t is the comprehensive design of the
projectors of-the Northern Pacific, not
simply to build railroad from lake to
ocean, and then wait for results, but to
render results certain by o. securing ia
vorable connections with the railroad
systems of the Pacific coast and the At
lantic States, and with the commerce of
the Pacific Ocean; (2) by constructing a
series of flateral branch roads to the South
and North of its main line, which will
drain the entire Northwest between lati-
tude 40 and Central British Columbia /;
| 49, and by organizing such thorough,
| wise and humane system of emigration
! from Northern Europe and the thickly
peopled portions of our own country as
will settle and render speedily productive
the vastb of fertile lands tributary to
the road and extending across the conti-
nent. During the years occupied in its
construction the road will give employ
ment to thousands OF men, and create a
large demand for everything that our
people manufacture or produce.
II is Impossible that such an enterprise,
| managed by the surJ,Uf men that control
this one, should not benefit the whole
country, while specially and vastly bene-
fitting the region known as the Great
| West. This greatest of commercial pro,
| iects, viewed as a matter of national i'm
| port, is entitled to the same hearty SYM
| pathy and confidence that greeted the
| first Pacific Railroad, and the recent at
tempts, in Congress and by a portion of
the press, to represent the Northern Pa
clo Company as an Unsuitable devourer
of the public lands, were as unfair as they
were unfounded. A bit of Pacific Rail-
road history may be in place
The Illinois Central was, we believe,
the first railroad TO receive a grant of
lands directly from the government. OF
the wisdom and good results of that ini-
tial grant probably no one now entertaiDs
doubt. When the Union and Central
Pacific roads were chartered in 1862, two
other charters were also granted-one for
Northern, and another for a Southern
Pacific railroad. Upon the Union and
EeInatIratb SsIaI N RFsGifc Fa e., G9mpsnies which pro-
sidy of lands and bonds was conferred,
more than enough in actual value TO build
the roads-the bonds, however, being in
the character of loan. The Northern
Pacific, which it was correctly believed,
would be the second line built, received
only land grant, equal in amount, but
far superior in quality, to that of the
Union and Central. The question of
money ubsidy or loan TO the Northern
line was left in abeyance until the time
when its construction should be near at
hand; and the Southern Pacific was left
with bare charter, the state of the
country then seeming to indicate that
many years would elapse before the
actual construction of q Southern
road could be thought of In. this way
the government made provision for three
main lines of railroad across the conti-
nent, aud fully committed itself, scith tie
hearty approval of both political parties, to
the policy of aiding the construction of
these three national highways. The mo-
tives which lead to this action were OBJ
yious enough. Q.) The Government
considered itself under some Obligation 10
aasist in nnsninn ne.-anIunlcatlon between
the older and the newer sections of the
continent, thus benefiting both and be-
getting q closer sympathy and a better
understanding between distant communi-
ties and the General Government which
taxed them and claimed their allegiance.
(2.) 1t was known that in time OF peace
the bulk of our standing army is en-
ployed on the Western plains acting as a
police between the Indians and the white
settlers, and that large part of the great
expense OF maintaining troops at frontier
stStions consists OF the excessive cost of
transporting mtn and supplies where
there are no railroads Tue saving of
several millions year in army transpor
tation, and the redoubled efficiency of /
troops when they can be rapidly con-
veyed from point to point, were legiti. i
mate reasons Tor extending Government
encouragement to railroads built beyond
the settlements (3.) The third and
weightiest of the reasons which infu-
enced Congress to adopt the land grant
policy was one which appeals even more
directly than the former two TO the com.
mon sense OF plain people, and is enough
of itself TO Justify the system, as applied
TO tie three continental lines of road Five
years ago the limited States Government
was proprietor of eleven hundred million
acres OF wild lands, lying between the
Mississippi and the Pacific coast, not in
cluding the State public lands of Texas.
such a domain is too vast for compre-
hension, and only an approximate notion
of its magnitude can be obtained by con-.
sideriHg that it Is equal TO thirty four
States the size Of Neto York, or TO two
hundred and four States as large as Mas
sachusetts. OF these lands, the govern
ment, during the last five years, has been
able to sell, and give away under the
homestead act, Tess than Jt0ttr million acres
per year. AT this rate the present gene
ration would reap next to no benefit from
the public lands and 275 years would
elapse before they would all be taken up,
much less titled. The reason why these
lands cannot be-. given away. to actual
settlers is that they are inaccessible and
hence worthless. No farmer will agree
to live on them for them, and for the ex-
cellent reason that no farmer can afford to.
A farm without market is without
value, and market without railroad is
usually impossible. Under these oiroum.
stances the government, through its sys-
tenn OF grants saysto responsible oorpo-
waste lands Of mine, rendering them ac-
ceaaihle and Yaluahln and will niua tnrnn