, 1878-05-25
A Word of Warning.

The STATESMAN has no quarrel with
Portland. neither does it desire any; but
the GREAT interest now eyinced by a class OF
men of that place for this particular To-
cality, in view of certain circumstances,
is really amusing. For years 1t was the
bab;tual custom Of our web-feet cousins
TO speak Of the great Columbia valley as
an almost barren waste, fit only for stock
purposes, and even this was grudginsly
admitted. The Willamette valley was
their paradise, and all other portions,
compared to that favored spot, were as
bleak and gloomy deserts, unfit for the
habitation of man. No enterprise look
ins toward the Development of this
country, could, or ever did, receive the
slightest recognition from their hands
Not single dollar of the many millions
controlled BIZ the capitalists of that city
has ever found its way to this valley,
save only, perhaps, in a speculative way,
and then, the party investing was amply
rem,,merated, the increase, In many IN
stances. being ten-fold. So far as our
knowledge extends. and We have been a
resident here for near y twenty years, not
a dollar has ever been invested by Port
land capitalists in public enterprise no
great work for the amelioration Of the
bottled up and monopoly y-ridden people Of
this locality has ever received the slight
est support from their hands bat, on
the contrary, they have, ignorantiy, per
haps. and without design, thrown Obsta-
Giles in the way of cur progress. Bills
asking congress for appropriations TO open
the Columbia river were the objects of
their ridicule, and it is mainly through
! their efforts that work at the Cascades
and the Dallcs has been partially para
! lived. All attempts to secure railroad
connection with Salt Lake and the Colum-
bia river have been bitterly opposed by
them; and to-day, the leading and most
influential paper published in that city
is bhndly, yet none the less successfully
exerting its great power to prevent the
passage of a bill, which, when it becomes
law, will furnish us, at least, some tenn
porary relief. We candidly believe that
our brother, now in charge of that paper,
is honest in his opposition, and thinks
that he is doing the country a service in
his attacks upon certain railroad schemes
now pending before congress. As mat
ter of course, the same honesty We accord
him he viii cheerfully extend to us in our
firm belief that his course can result only
in great injury to those vital interests
which he, as well as ourselves, ought to
protect and foster The dislike of pub
| lie man, and determination to break him
| down, furnishes 10 excuse, at least hone
| in our opinion, to tranple upon and de-
stroy, for the time being, the prosperity
of whole people. What are the little
petty jealouSieS and resentments of men,
when compared to the developement and
settlement of country rich IN all the
attributes necessary to make happy and
prosperous people! No man, worthy to
control the columns Of a public journal,
will permit his rreiadiees to carry him to
that degree where all idea Of the general
good is buried in the qualification of a
selfish motive. Journalism is high and
noble pursuit, vast in its powers for good
or evil. Its aim should be the promo
ton of the general welfare, and no man
should seek to use it as the medium
through which to vent his personal likes
and dislikes In dealing with all men
and measures it should be impartial, and
7 in all its efforts should be free from sell
! fshness, and its whole tenor absolutely
unspotted,
Wearing the white flower of 4 blamless lie.
The people of this country ask no favors,
neither do they bestow praise where it is
not deserved. The time is not far distant,
when, We ourselves, without the aid of
any, Will he able 10 accomplish those
ends, now so persistently thwarted by
those whose interests should see them
speedily accomplished, but whose cupidity
stands, as it were, in the way of their
present realization. They will come, how
ever, and when they do the day of retri-
button viii set in Beware how you SOW
the wind lest you reap the whirlwind-
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