The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1879-10-10
EnE NoRTmERN PACIFIC nAILRoAD RE.
GnoN.

a - PneM glory as bankers, and pushinI
ne Northern Pacific railway into no
tlce with their accustomed energy.
great corporation had been formed
which at tho time Of the suspension Il
. september, 1873, had absorbed s5I.
VvV,OOOi Congress had donated man,
million acres Of land for its aid, a. h
haa previously done for the Union Pa
enc and other roads, and the aboy.
arm we're marketing the bonds at 8 ne,
cent. interest, payable in gold. Work
was pushed on and the road had 20,
well under way towards the setting sun,
when, like the bursting of bubble
the concern collapsed, and the stock.
holders and bondholders alike were In.
VOWED IN pecuniaTy trouble from which
great difficulty was experienced IN
emerging. The company was almost
annlhilated, tho property sold and new
oombinations made by which 1t Is ex-
pestod tho enterprise may be pushed on
u completion.
One objection urged against this road
was that II ran through an unsettled
country, and consequently could not be
paying investment for many years.
On the other hand II was urged that
the road ran or would run through the
finest winter wheat region on the conti-
nent. Those objectors were right in
charging tho climate as cold, but never
more wrong than in calling tho soil un.
productive. The attention Of men eu,i.
nent in knowledge has been turned 70
this region, and they find the claim Of
Al isothermRl belt 70 DO correct and
that tho men who arst projected that
railway across the continent know what
they were about. The whole range Of
the country ut tho north Of the source
Of the Mississippi, west Of Lakes So.
porior and Winnipeg, extending west.
ward 70 tho Rocky Mountains and
northward 70 parallel Of latitude cut
ting the southern Ghore Of Hudson
Bay, is plateau Of nnequalIed extent
IN level surface, fertile land, easy of ac-
ceas and cultivation, mach of it we'll
wooded, ell Of Il weil watered. feasible
Of settlement and productive in wheat
20 degree that puts Ear In the shade
the best wheat lands Of southern Wis
oonain, Michigan and Minnesota. The
average yield per acre IL so buahela.
while 10 70 20 Il as much as can be ex-
pectcd in the older wheat regions.
Tho largest part VI this one lies
within the British Dominion, which
also includes the splendid valley Of tho |
Saskatchewan, mighty river 900 |
miles IN length, that rising in the Rocky |
Mountains, courses through this in. |
mense plateau eastward 70 lake Win
niPeg, through whose bed its water
hnds its way 10 Hudson Bay. There
arc no mountains in this grand area to
obstruct railway building. The Red
River Of the North riSes in western
central Minnesota, and running north. /
ward, dividing that State from Dakotn
Territory, also 6nds its way into Lake
Winnipeg, 20 that that body Of water
large consequence, though 20
little known. British immigrants arc
now fscking into some parts Of this
region, and through It the great Cana
dian enterprise Of continental railway
connecting with the Grand Trunk II 10
run, and by which the productions of
the future douTishing settlements will
ind their way 70 Atlantic ports. But
years must elapse before lis great
theroughfaro will be completed, and
hence branches from the Northern Pa.
ci6c may judiciously connect that sec.
ton with the outlet at Chicago, Duluth
or St Louis. On this grand area mil.
lions Of handy people of British origin
viii yet find their hsmes and rejoice in
high civilization. The climate il too
cool TO admit Of malarial diseases. the
summers are too short to allow q long
poriod Of intense heat, while the win.
ters, with their abundance of snow.
csnduce to longevity. No speculation
in the future Of this region can reach
the reality that may DO experienced.
But the best part Of this range of land
lies near the boundary Of 40 degrees
and laps over into the domains of Uncle
sam. The railway under construction
irom Duluth to Portland and Seattle
runs between the 45th and 49th paral-
els, 30 that it bisects the very region
% be benefited, and lies admirably for
extending arms north and south a. thew
nay b. wanted. In the last settlement
II the boundary between the United
States and Canada, many sanguine pol.
ticians at Washington claimed that the
United States owned the territory up as
ar as o. degrees 40 minutes. An ear
lest discussion was had over this oues-
ion in Congress and in the public news
'apers, but diplomacy settled the line
where it ID, giving the United States
ontrol Of q large part Of Lake Supe-
lOr, and carrying our territory north ,
o the Grand Rapids and Rainy Lake
{ would have been felicitous result
ould we have honestly acquired the
alley Of Lake Winnipeg, with its ad-
Dining lakes and the Saskatchewan
alley, as within those limits several
arge and important States could have
cen organized andadded TO the strength
the Great Republic. As it is, the
lture must dispose of all problems
nat spring up as the past has done in
ges past and gone.--HousehoId Gazette.
The Standard says that the Ashland Z