Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1871-03-30
IFrom the New York independent
PACIFIC RAIL
ROAD.
BY Schuyler COlfax.
vIcE-PKEsIDENT OF THE UNITED sTATI

VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
MIDWAY across the continental
the head of twelve hundred miles of
Lake navigation-a thousand miles
from Buffalo, the western terminus
of the Erie Canal, and as near to it
by water as Chicago-a hundred
miles west of the longitude of St.
Louis or Galena-is the young city
of Duluth, the initial point of the
Northern Pacific Railroad. That
great work, so magnificently endowed
by the Government, is already being
pushed rapidly westward, under its
energetic controllers; and before the
snow flies next Fall, it will be COM
pleted to the western line of Mime
sofa, where it crosses the Red River
of the North-which runs northward
to Lake Winnipeg-and ne-eight of
its distance to the Pacific Ocean will
have been accomplished. Commend
ing, too, this season on its western
line, the work will be prosecuted from
both directions, and long before the
nation celebrates its Centennial Ami
versary of Independence, the Lakes
will be united by iron bands with that
Mediterranean of our Northwest,
Puget Sound. t.a
Of the auspicious influence of this
enterprise, which but a few years ago
would have been considered so dar-
ing, the most san9uine of its friends
have scarcely yet full realization.
Even taking Chicago as the starting
point, it will be (oia St. Paul, where
an arm of the Northern Pacific Rail
road is reached) two hundred miles
distance to Puget Sound than to San
Francisco. Besides this, vessels from
the Golden Gate to China sail on
what's called the grand circle, instead
of in straight line; and any one
testing this by a string on a globe
will be surprised ut the result, if they
have not previously studied the effect
of the rotundits of the earth, and its
diminished protuberance as you go
northward towards the Pole< Hence,
when they have sailed eight hundred
miles from San Francisco, 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. Development is
the great duty of the Republic, after
all it's recent trials. Resources are
the gift of the Creator. Developing
them depends on the work of man.
Along the line of the Northern Pac-
ific Railroad, as it follows up the
water-courses, the Missouri and the
| Yellowstone on this side, and des-
Gems by the valley of the Columbia
on the other, vast body of agricul-
tural land is waiting for the plough,
with climate almost exactly the
same as that of New York, except
that, with less snow, cattle, in the
larger portion oft can subsist on the
open range in winter. Here. if climate
and fertility of soil produce their
natural result, when railroad facilities
open this now isolated region to set
tlement, will soon be seen waving
grain field, and happy homes, and
growing towns; while ultimately q
Gordon ofprosperous States, teeming
with population, and rich in industry
and consequent wealth, will occupy
that now undeveloped and almost
inaccessible portion of our continent
al area.
But this Road is fortunate also in its