The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1873-01-31
THE GOAT ISLAND GRAZ.

THE GOAT ISLAND GRAB.
The possession of that little BODY
of land know as Goat Island, in San
Francisco, is the all absorbing ques-
ton in California, and is likely to |
be the ruling issue there until set
tied. The island is owned now by
the United States, but bill is pend |
ing in Congress to transfer il TO the |
Union Pacific Railroad Company.
which has casting longing eyes at it |
for years. The company propose. If |
they can get possession of the island, |
to build bridge or causeway to it |
from the main land for the purpose |
OF establishing their depots and |
other improvements there. It is |
claimed by scientific men that such |
q structure would utterly ruin the |
harbor of San Francisco, and COM |
merclal men say it would cripple |
her trade. 1t is quite natural, there |
fore, that the San Ffanciscans shoaId |
oppose the transfer almost unani- |
mously, and that the question should |
oVershadow all others in their local |
politics. So powerful a corpora
ton as the Central Pacific Railway
can always command more or less
support for any scheme, and they
managed last fall to get one or two
candidates for Congress in that
State to take ground in favor of the
transfer. The consequence was
they ran behind their ticket several
thousand votes. The railroad has
9 powerful lobby working for it in
Washington, but if the people of
California and particularly of San
Francisco, know what they want.
and it is rather probable they do,
the transfer of the island to a grasp
ing corporation would be an out
rsge. AT very large meeting held
recently in San Francisco in oppo-
sition to the measure, Governor
Booth declared that in his opinion
not one man in five thousand in
that State favored it. We advise
any member of Congress who votes
for it to give the Pacific coast a
wide berth in his future travels.
The above is one side of the story.
Here is the other side:
There is just now a terrible noise
being made about the "Goat Island
Job, and newspapers aud scribblers
are berating the public ear about
the corruption and monopoly of the
Goat Island Ring, as if the world
depended upon its defeat.
The truth is, that so far as the
public, outside the Pacific railroad
and San Francisco are concerned,
the interest is all in favor of the
island being given to the railroad.
Outside of these parties and as a
N ~ 50
lighter men, the dFaymen and the
warehousemen, the longshoremen
or stevedoremen of San Francisco
against the commerce of the world.
San Francisco is on the ocean side
of the bay, and the depot of the
Central Pacific is on the eastern
shore.
The water on the eastern shore is
SO shallow that ocean vessels cannot
land there, and all freight passing
through San Francisco to or from
the railroad is transported across
the bay in Fighters" or transfer
boats, and drayed to and stored in
warehouses on the wharves of San
Francisco. 10 avoid this and bring
the cars and the ships together is
the great object for which the rail-
road is working.
Goat Island is a small, rocky
island, lying out in the bay some
distance from the eastern shore,
that can be reached either by dixie
or trestle work by railroad, and
will cost to construct two or three
millions of dollars.
On one side of this little island
the water is ample for the largest
ships to lay alongside, and here the
railroad company ask for the lease
of few acres upon which to blast
out the rock and locate depots, with
the right TO construct a tract for
their road 10 it from the main land.
The island belongs to the United
States, and the consent of Congress
is necessary to be obtained-hence
its being before that body.
When the railroad first attempted
TO get possession, the people of
San Francisco opposed it through
private claimants, who professed to /
have pre-empted it as public land.
This was before Congress for two
or three years as the Yerba Ruena
Island questiOn-that being its
liquid sounding Spanish name.
But the decision was in favor of the
government title and new phase
has assumed.
Now the possession by the rail-
road is resisted on two grounds
% that it is necessary TO the mile
tary and naval defence of San
Francisco; and (2) that if a cause
way Is built from the main land to
it, it will SO effect the currents of
The bay waters as to fill up portion
of the harhOr
The first objection fails from the
fact that the side island upon which
Notifications must be built il at all, |
is the side opposite to that asked for |
by the railroad, and the report of
the Typographical engineers that the |
occupation by the railroad would |
not only not interfere with its use |
for defensive purposes, but be val
liable addition to them.
The second objection, as 10 the |
current, is cOntradicted by chief of
engineers Humphreys, by the re-
port that if any danger &C all can
be apprehended, it can readily be
avoided by an approach upon trestle /
work or piers-either of which the
railroad propose to adopt, as Con-
gress may require. ih ~
= This is the question as it stands
before Congress and the country,
with all the facts as of record.
Now, there are other influences,
but as they would not do for grave
reasons of State, are known only to
those on the ground or who have
been there. There is little of the
old Lawrence and Kansas City, or
St. Louis and Alton, Chicago and
Milwaukee contests at the bottom
of it all. ..r,.
If the ships and their business ere
kept as now at San Francisco, she
will grow aud predominant as in
the east. If the Central Pacific gets
a Judgment on Goat Island, and the
China, Japan and Australian ships
can unload there, Oakland may be-
come an important town on the bay,
and thus share with her ambitious
neighbOr across the bay a portion of
her prosperity. Aud Oakland peo-
pie really believe that their city of
gardens and flowers would be In
the future, 10. remote, the qneen of
The Pacific Slope. Ii
All these things make a very /
lively fight, but unless the people of ,
he United States feel an interest in {
.hese local riValries, their interests
md that of the world are on the !
tide of the railroad.
FatteRing HOgs-DOes it PAY? /