The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1874-02-28

South " in the present number, and we are
t hardly surprised to learn that this region
5 with which it has been fashionable only to
!cor meet the idea of barrenness, abounds not
/, only in untold mineral wealth, but in an ex
ccptonally rich and productive soil,
DR.. Robinson, who has been travelling in
the Holy Land and Arabia, gives many very
I-consisting of four christian women, three
ministers of the gospel and theological stu.
dent-had traversed the Holy Land, being
able to pronounce but one Arabic word
Yullah-(a vigorous oath) which they did
not understand and had caught from their
mule drivers, they returned, tired, jaded and
worn out, to Beyroo..
| AS we neared BcyroOt-oh, how wearied,
man and beast, and Mohammed's stced lying
dead down just beyond SidOn!-we caught a
far glimpse OF DR.. Jessup coming forth on
horeback to meet us. If ever mortals were
glad to see dear friend, we were glad to see
him then. We could not, consent to be tame
under such a welcome. Two or three of us
knew him at distance. Up went hat, and
lhand and handkerchief to greet him as he
to come in in style Oh, if these jaded
beasts would only comprehend the position ,
We whipped them and spurred-one happy
man had spur-alas! we shouted fuitdh
| like so many agitated Indians. We all shout
ed YulIah, all the horsesrabiC we knew till
the Syrian air quvered. Then we swung
our green sun.umbrellas like faded banners,
and screamed louder and louder. All this In
honor of the missionary!
But it became evident he was not pleased
For he stopped short; he put up both his
hands; he waved them deprecatingly; some
thing was wrong. Yet all which that excel
lent man said then was, 90 friends, please
stoy saying HulIdh!" And we did
But we never recall our mastery APPROACH
to Bcyroot that hot noon without an ignom-
nous sense of proiane failure. DIR. Jessup
has told us since, with hushed voice, that he
never, before or since, saw such platoon of
whoopng, swearing troopers entering the
town as we were. And so it may be urder-
stood we made that dragoman learn lesson
when he had taught us to go disappearing,
unconsciously, men and women, all the way
through Palestine!
"The Heiress of Washington" is very in
teresting bit of history; and an article on
John Stuart Mills will challenge attention
Then we have thrilling account of the
"Credit Mobilier,"-an old story enough by
this time, but served up with new reasoning
as, for instance:
Mr.. Peter A. Dey was the engineer who
surveyed and located the first hundred miles
of the road He estimated its cost at not over
thirty thousand dollars mile. When this |
estimate was shown to the Directors, it was
returned to him with orders to re-touCh it |
with higher colors, to put in embankments
on paper where none existed on earth, to
make the old entertainments heavier, and to
increase the expense generally; and then he
was requested to send his estimate that it |
would cost fifty thousand IA mile When MIR.
Dey found that this part Of the road was to
be let to IioXie at $4,000 per mile, for work
which he knew could be done for $4,000
this difference Of $4,000 "A mile amounting
to two millions of dollars on the first hundred
miles, and to five millions on the two hundred |
and forty-slx miles-he resigned his position
as chief engineer with noble letter to John
A. Dix, President of the road He closed that
letter with this statement My views of the
Pacific Road are, perhaps, peculiar. | look
upon It's managers as trustees of the bounty i
of Congress. q You are doubtless,
how dsproportioned the amount to
be paid is to the work contracted for. lneed Il
not cXpatiatc on the sincerity Of my course,
when you reflect upon the fact thaEA have re
signed the best position in my profession tins
country has offered TO any man"
And these are the round figures of that stu
pendoqs fraud
ArithmetiCanS, who love the truths that
figures always tell, may now see what it cost
the nation to build the Union Pacific Road, Il
and what II cost the stock holders of the
Credit Mobiller!