The Idaho world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1864-1918, 1874-02-12


from all unnecessary verbiage, we , ana iiss
must have, railroad communicate" s ~, aal
Ihere was time when orr no,.,,
forward with much hope to the co .up1e ,!ioold
the North Pacific road, but unfortnnple d
encountered embarrassments. T" "a'ey itha
these may impede its progress am ~. nov a,
1t is to be hoped. however, that ali W. ~ ad'sd
culties may be overcome, and the roa saese di
All our people would rejoice at suo Jau 0ebuA
nation; but l know the enterprise il , , o;
one, and must necessarily involve r..s gigantic
dlture OF money. Over fourteen hlnS.sts ipe.
OF broad-gauge road must yet be con. S.sq nile
reach the waters Of the Columbia Tr,1ucsedt
cost will not fall far short, probable 1 .s Whole
hundred millions Of dollars; and Will };% malt
for success, confess to fear a. r. 81 Dope
Our people desire its completion th .ue Result
OF commerce, of trade, and eyerv con.; .1alefett
OF nationa! Importance join in expres.; rela'la
It's necessity as great national h;I daA
whether work SO vast can in thesa a'susa
financial times be successfully prosecuts s'iasa
course problem for its managers tn lucy ." vi
But the construction of the North ne..
would be NO argument against the ro, Iaeans
posed by this bill. as it, with the ex. .oaa Pro-
a portion of the distance down ths 1c9p r, d
River. traverses an entirely different o ."
and affects entirely different intsrsst .00o!y
Cascades and the Dalles of the Columh, p 1ls
er, the one four, the other fourteen m,I. en-
length. are distractions to our comms-a "'.
virtually separate the waters and the sh;o ~. aa
mel OF the lower Columbia from the GREAT , uA:''
fields Of Eastern Oregon and Wash;on,ats%r
ritory. The valleys Of Walla W alIs G. ~,
Ronde. Umatilla, Burnt River. and p ~,sIa
River, constituting an area large, tb., "
whole state OF Pennsylvania, and the s, ~.
wheat countries i'll the world, are wholly u;a
out any means OF transportation for their i'm
mense surplus products When wheat Is s al.
ing at Portland, Oregon, at 81 Is per hu.b sl'
it will bring but thirty and forty cents in p.
tern Oregon and Washington Territorv T.
ship wheat from Walla Walia to Portland
distance Of Il little over two hundred mile. J.
must be handled thirteeen times in g+f,i,a !.
from warehouse TO boat, from boat 70 ear and
car TO boat. and so on. The producer in nj.
fertile valley pays ten dollars per ton, thirr
cekts per bushel, TO get this wheat from h,
barn to the river. distance Of thirty mill.
AT Wallula, on the Columbia River. be BAYS fra
cents per bushel warehouse charges, and fran
there to Portland, on the regular boats Of ts
Columbia River. be pays eighteen cents mcs
per bushel. the boats making two regular trim
onl. per week; on special boats twenlyig
cents per bushel
simply refer to this 10 show the utter heln
lcssness Of the people OF this large extent d
country. surrounded by mountains on the one
hand and deser, on the other. with no posi-
bic means Of escape, except down river Vier
natural Instructions and the monopoly Of trans
portaiion necessarily resulting therefrom, con.
s,ituIe Il still more formidable barrier than
either mountain or desert.
One great oycrshadowing purpose Of tiA
measure is 10 anuh.late this state Of things 10
overcome these natural distractions. by tie cOa
s.ruc;lon 81 railroad around them, thas at
one aud the same time striking dowu he force
al the INSTRUCTIONS and the power Of tie He
nopoly of trans osiation they iuspre: aEt iAat
portaces. il j. provided in tie bill, shall be hFa
completed, So that competition On the great
river OF the West shall no longer be bid ID
allowance, so that the key 10 this national i9.
ouglfarc shall 10 longer be held b! eirE'
bat be free 10 all.
The enterprise suggested in this oil kM
one Of merely local nature, which II c0asua'
mated would result in benefit to a smaa sc
ton of country or 10 but few people; hkN
tional in It's character aud objects Ills "
less proposition than 10 unite IN close coa.Fs
ton, through the means OF railway comnalS
ton. the Pacific Northwest with the gfea'rs
ternal arteries of commerce on the e's'e,h a ~
of the Rocky Mountains, and thai' 100, y"
nearest possible route, about seven laduS
miles. connecting the waters OF the Ioua'I
and the Central Pacific by line il'e lu. ..'s
miles in length, and this, too, over ,.' J,.
marked by nature in the eeceraph'ca a"
biographical formation Of the country 'so-'
the many great channels OF trade tlal E'.s r
make our country commercially ricn 'u' i''
erful :, n..hrs
There is trade, Mr.. President, 'n' .ssa
along the shores of China and japan . aaa A
of the Hawaiian group and other 'NI sa-.,L
the Pacific that the ships OF commefe. . .@
READY euNieu. LHSiauu me- -. s,rnE
and she will not surrender it w''nou' . 1
gle. That trade Of right belongs a IL
and no, to England. How are we 10 se. .sltiob.
Simply hy connecting our transcon'''e"; ..t@s.
way by means of railroad conl'', 'a.tsr d
aided by the free navigation OF tue . "'
the Columbia, with the head OF snip ' sssms 10
On this river It is a fact patent it SEEM s.S
me to all that the commerce OF ASA ,'mnrjjyng
most of Farther India, all OF emma ~; aa' teeh.
and the eastern empire of the h9 ps.;fc pua
er with the islands Of the North pa'; its natural
eventually and at no distant day n" '.,srs ofths
and geographical center IN inc "''
Columbia River. ,....t arectLne
between the coasting ports OF Oa Ss" Francisco
of Chicago and New York, while e, ga. From
New York to Shanghai via Chicas,uo1 lsSm1si
cisco. and the midway islands, II Is y, Cbicsga
81 g No., V,rk IN Shanghai W" hr tha