The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1874-10-29
railroads and the Farming Interest.

5 sIIIs1Si S 81 g. 3. e s. g 3 1i:s
Railroads and the Farming Interest.
Il is pretty plain proposition to assert that
railroads are either benefit or an injury to
State, and we think it equally plain that nine
hundred and ninety nine of every thousand
viii agree with us that railroads are a great
and lasting benefit, actually indispensable to
the growth and prosperity Of State in these
modern times. This is q day of impotence
and activity, and the State that is not checked
over with railroads, and its citizens thereby
afforded quick, rapid and certain transporta-
ton facilities, is bound to lag behind, and
play second fiddle to those States better pro
vided with the modern mode Of lightning
travel ] immigration, thrift, enterprise and
wealth go hand in hand with railroads. The
farmer who can put his cotton, grain. wool,
stock, prodace, etc, in market at from ten to
twenty per cent less than the farmer Of
auoIner seosir---.SAszs iiisf that much advan
tage, and, therefore, If the other barely keeps
even with the world, his twenty per cent. adj
vantage soon enables him TO expand his
fields, and in a short time he becomes an ex-
tensive and successful farmer The absence
Of railroad facilities in this State is the great
drawback to farmers to-day While the tillers
Of the soil in Kansas, Missouri and the great
West, have but TO take their products to a
convenient station, our farmers have to con
sumo much time In hauling the fruits of their
years labor hundreds Of miles before reaching
railroads, which not only eats up a very ma
terial share Of the profits on the crop, but oc-
cupies time that could be employed profitably
on the farm at home. It is a mistaken idea
with few that railroads are inimical to the
farming interests, and we believe rice 'uersa
Railroads and farmers are dependent upon
each other aud their interests are identical
and inseparable. The farmer who has pro-
ducts to ship and the merchant who has goods
TO receive, are especially Interested in rail
roads and low freights, and freights can only
be reduced by the building Of roads, and the
more we have OF them the greater the reduc-
ton in freights, and passenger travel as we'll
OF course pioneer roads, built through
sparsely settled country, keep freight at com
paratively high figure, but still they are the
incipient cause Of flle. final reduction They
bring immigrants, development and more rail-
roads, and therefore are the beginning of
great good to say the least. If no rail-
roads existed anywhere, then all could do
without them, or at least all would be on an
equal footing in matters of transportation
But as most Of the States Of the Union have
become checked over with railroads, they be-
come an absolute necessity to pEsducers else
where, and are, therefore, cheap at any price
Texas cannot afford to remain longer without
railroads. She must be able to compete with
her sister States in the removal of products to
Eastern markets. And If she is ambitious to
become one of the most powerful States in
the Union, she must have her vast domain
opened up by rail to the outside world. Texas
is able to support forty millions of people,
and the rapidity with which our State will
settle up after the two great highways of the,
nation, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, are
completed, viii be amazing. We alude to
the Texas and Pacific, connecting the harbors
of the East with that Of San Diego California,
passing through thousand miles of Texas
territory;. and the International, passing
through as much more, and opening up an
all rail route from New York and the great
East and North with the heart of Mexico, and
becoming the great thoroughfare between the
United States and China and Asia. The ad-
vatages that Texas viii receive from these two
great baekbones of the nation, cannot at this
day be coJnprehended, so vast, so varied and
so lasting viii be the advantages and blessings
they win bring % us. ! ITO look into the future
and imagine one sees this vast State dotted
over with railroads and populated with mil
lions of busy people; her mineral resources
developed to high degree. and her millions
of acres of wild lands put under thorough
state OF cultivation, appears like a
dream-but it is dream that viii
be realized, and in our day. The time has
gone by when twenty TO fifty years are re-
Quired for the settlement and development Of
State, and especially one with the naturalist
fractions and advantages of ours. This is a
day of life, and whirl and wonderful events
the time for drowsiness and poking has gone
by forever. Look at Kansas, Eight or ten
years ago her population was meagre and her
lands went begging at one dollar an acre. But
Western enterprise pushed railroads into her
territory in every direction, and to-day those
same lands are worth from ten to fifty dollars
an acre, and everywhere culture, opulence,
enterprise and wealth Is manifest Then are
not railroads benefit to a country, an actual
necessity 10 its settlement and develop
ment, and, as we said before, cheap at
any price And can Texas afford to
lay behind her sister States in these all
important essentials to her advancement. If
we could get the two great national thorough
fares above alluded to completed to our west
ern and southern borders, immigration would
How into Texas Ia two immense and never
failing streams, and soon Our Indian frontier
would be changed from scenes Of blood and
cruelty to those Of civilization and prosperity.
It's our earnest hope that Congress viii,
this winter, give encouragement 70 the Texas
and Pacific Railroad, and thereby speed the
day when tie great Southern route, from.sea
10 sea, viii be completed. We also hope that
when our Legislature meets this winter, an
-amicahlc settlement win be made between
the State and the international Railroad, and
that within another year the International
Railroad win have penetrated Western Texas
and Be rapidly pushing lis way on 70 our SIS
ter Republic Of Mexico,
OK rHR GAzErrK-Mr. F. II. Rundell,
formerly one Of the editors Of the STATE
.Josr4al has been employed BY Col Elliott as
local editor Of the 6assiss Col Elliott, who
imaeines hiEase8 the only unaanlleraled
simon.pure, Jacob Townsend Democrat this
side Of Vermont, has now, therefore. done ex-
.actly what he eensured the srATEaWAN for do
ing three or four months ago. We dent
blame him, however for following the
sr.rrs,rAs's examples II he win continue
), f.llovr tl,en, he win make tic 6asctts bet