The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1872-02-21
Land Grants TO Railroads and Their
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The Boston Daily Adrertiser has q long
article on the value Of land grants to rail-
roads, which concludes as follows:
With respect to the grant of the Northern
Pacific railroad and its prospective value,
Congress granted to this company IL, 800
acres Of land to each mile Of road, commencing
on Lake Superior and extending to the cas-
tern boundary line of Dakota, and $4,000
acres per mile from that line to the Pacific
coast. This grant was to aid in the construc-
ton of a railroad from Lake Superior to Pu-
get Sound and the vicinity of Portland, Ore
gon, and calls for about $1,000, 900 acres, or
10000 square miles Of land, an extent equal
to New York and Indiana together, OF eleven
and q half times Massachusetts,. The route OF
this road, commencing in Minnesota, on the
SHORES OF Lake Superior, passes through the
timbcred lands west Of that lake and over
the region Of prairies, lakes, and groves, in
western Minnesota; thence it crosses the
wonderful valley of the Red river of the
North, and strikes out over the gently undll-
latln2 and fertile prairies of Dakota, and
crossing the Missouri river at the mouth of
the Heart, it extends to the beautiful valley
OF the Yellowstone in nearly straight line.
Ascending this valley and passing through
belts OF timber and rich rolling lands, it goes
through the Beseman pass of the Belt
mountains into the central basin of the Mon
tuna, and crosses the fertile valleys Of the
Gallatin, Madison, and Jefferson forks of the
Upper Missouri. Going up the valleys of
the latter and Divide creek, it runs through
Deer Lodge pass at an altitude under five
thousand feet above sea level, and descends
the western slope by the valleys of Deer
Lodge creek, He'll Gate river, and Clark's
fork to Lake Pend Oreille. where it crosses
the great grass plain of the Columbia to Wal
lula; thence it follows the Columbia river
through the Cascade mountains to the Pa
ciic coast. The climate of this great land
grant belt across the continent is bracing
and unusually healthful, being free from all
peculiar diseases. The soil, as whole, is OF
excellent quality, producing large crops OF
wheat, rye, oats, and barley; vegetables yield
without parallel in the history of horticul-
turc in America, and all kinds Of small fruits,
wild and cultivated, yield the same as in
New England States. The nutritious grasses
growing wild on the eastern and western
slopes Of the Rocky mountains and in the
valleys afford sustenance for cattle the yeal
round, the climate being so mild as not to nc'
cessitate shelter for stock in the winter. \
large portion Of this grant is covered with for
ests of an immense growth, the like Of which
cannot be found on this continent
Fine building stone is found in al,
most every variety and inexharlsti IT,
bic in quantity. The mineral wealth Of
this region seems as yet to be hardly eX,
plored; at the present time no portion OF
our country promises greater amount Of
the precious metals than through which this
road will run. Immense coal deposits are
found underlying a great portion of the
grant. The Committee on the Pacific Rail
road in the United States Senate, in their re-
port February 10, 1869, says: Every ele.
ment Of wealth, every condition Of social
growth and prosperity, exist in super.
abundance and beyond exhaustion in the re-
gion lying between Lake superior and the
Puget Sound. For this immense country
railroads can do more than they have done
for Illinois,"
Now if we compute the ultimate value OF
the grant of the Northern Pacific railroad al
81 per acre, the average Of the Immigrant
sales already made, it will amount to S40G,.
O00 900; if ut only s. per acre, it amounts to
1896, 900, 900; if at S3.07 per acre, the lowest
of all the grants, it will amount to SlIS,'
OG0000 This latter sum is more than twice
the estimated cost Of the road, as set forth b!
the most competent engineers. These
prospective results seem astounding, yet il
strikes Us rs not unreasonable to believe that
the financial results Of this grant shall even
exceed the highest of these estimates.
ilrsmuch rs its resources are so immense and
will be developed with SO great facility by
the railroad, which will be the shorter anL
more easily operated of on'PaciGc roads.