The Arizona sentinel. [volume] (Arizona City [Yuma], Yuma County, A.T. [Ariz.]) 1872-1911, 1877-09-15
II. II. Charges for Heavy Freight.

In a former article we had occa-
sion to comment upon the mistak-
en- policy, which was being pur-
sued by the lately built branch of
the Southern Pacific railroad to
Fort Yuma, in regard to freight
charges to and from Arizona; char
gees which are represented to be so
heavy and connected with, exac-
,tions so oppressive as.to give that
remote territory few of the advan-
5tages which the building of the
road was naturally expected to con-
fer. We are fully aware that, as
yet, it is nearly sheer waste of
words to write of these abuses of a
vastpower which the carrying cor
porations of the country possess,
aided as they also are by a power
fully voiced press, always on the
watch to bolster and defend that
power as a chartered inviolable
right wrapped up inseparably with
public order and the safety of all
property. Nevertheless, we shall
pursue the subject whatsoever the
occasion seems to call for it, by
some fresh instance of misjudg-
ment on the part of railroad, with
reference to the transporting fores
and metals, or material used and
necessary in the development of
the mineral wealth of our country.
1t has been a source of apparent
ly well founded complaint that the
development of the rich lead re-
sources of Utah has been grievous-
ly impeded by the exOrbitant
freight charges imposed by the
Union Pacific railroad, whose ma
nagers appear to have remained
insensible to every appeal for less
prohibitOry freight tariff and, as
We think. very blind to the nat
ural interests of that powerful cor
poratiOn. The lead interest of the
company is one which should be
stimulated, not checked, pariicu-
larry at time when industrial in
terests throughout the world are
so gravely stagnant. In Great
Britain lead mining is, and long
has been, a favorite investment,
because of the comparative steadi-
ness of prices, cheapness of work.
ing and reducing the ore with GER
fa1nty OF ready sale. British lead
has had and even still has a cOnsid-
cradle market in this country
which teens with lead ore of such
richness and extent, that the coun-
try should by this time be large
exporter of the metal and not be
importing a pound. In the last
seven months of the present year,
lead was exported from England
to the value of 50, 1868, 900, one half
of which went to China, a market
which naturally should be supplied
from San Francisco with Ameri-
can lead, as would be the case with
proper efforts based on an inteli-
gent cooperation between produ-
GERS, tranSpOrterS and merchants.
Last year we actually imported
5000 tons of lead at a cost of $780,
600 which should have been all
produced in this country, as would
have been the case had the Union
Pacific railroad management pur-
sued comprehensive policy and
endeavored to develop instead of
sitting the life out of the lead in
dustry of Utah where the lead de-
nosits are particularly rich, extern
siye, and easily worked. We can
rN be content with producing lead
sufficient for home consumption,
though that, at least, should be our
immediate achievement. We
must find and reach foreign mark
cts for that metal, and one such
market is China which we can
easily occupy as we are now doing