The daily intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Territory [i.e. Wash.]) 1876-1881, 1879-10-02
y. r. r. X. OPERATIONS AND
Future TRAFFIC.

The Portland Be u.an. connecting
On President BillIngs's letter. published
by US, has this to say Of his own town,
Of the Colambia river, Of the railroad
and its future enormous traffic:
Never before, in tks history Of rail-
road building was such scheme known
.. is proposed and being csrried out on
the Northern Pacific railroad. The pol
icy seems to rs to be- incorrect Gnd vastly
clore expensive than necessary The
idea of commencing the construction OF
= trans continental road at an interior
point was never before known For
one moment glance at the present state
Of affairs. The little narrow gauge
road built By DR.. Baker has fairly DEL
uged the river transportation. which
consists Ct ten large steamboats,, and
the road has been restricted to certain
amount of freight during the present
week in order to give the steamers an
opportunity to clear away the accu-
mulsted grain. Ten boats cannot keep
clear 9 little narrow gauge road. and
taken altogether, steamboats, and rail-
road can ship but two-thirds OF the
surplus of wheat running at full caps-
city the remainder of the season,
thereby preventing one.third Of the
yield reaching . :eDuneratise market
at 81 per bushel or upwards. 1t must
10 consequences be held over and IN oil
probability be sold for one third less.
Now we'll take the Northern Pacific.
They will contract for 10000. 900 feet
of lumber for bridges. trestle. etc.
which compared to the little nsrrow
gauge sinks it into insigni6cance; 1t will
drain millions If acres where the mar
row euage does hundreds; the country
is undeveloped, and would sink every
boat on the upper Columbia with the
surplus grain. il they were compelled
TO receive it. What can the North Pa
cific do when in operation. if the boats
ct present cannot meet the demand?
They have Is many boats now as can
be operated with profit. ss they must
lie idle or carry light freight . great
portion of the year. When Eastern
Oregon and Washington Territory are
developed. all the boats that could be
put on the Columbia could not carry
the surplus to market. The North Pc.
cific Railroad company are causing
monster barges to BE- built At great ex-
pense for the purpose OF carrying their
material to the interior; there to COM
mence track laying The material. FROM
leaving the dock 10 this city, must he
handled ten times before landing at
Ainsworth station, 1t an enormous ex-
pense. each rail for the many hundred
miles having to 60 through the same
process. Enormous prices must be paid
for ties, bridge timbers and lumber,
which must be foated or RATED nearly
thousand miles, when. if the road
had been commenced at Portland or on
Puget Sound millions Of money thus
spent could have been saved. When
in running order they can only stack
the grain up at Ainsworth station. st
the junction of the Snake and Colum-
bia rivers, and there it remains. as boats
cannot carry away one tenth part of the
surplus. when the land is brought into
cultivation. 1t may be good policy,
this commencing in the interior. but
it surely does not seem 81. The cost
Of bringing the wheat to market by
steamer is much greater than by rail,
and when the empire becomes populs-
ted and under cultivation objections to
the high rates will be made. An illus
tration on . smaller scale may DO seen
here at home upon tho Willamette.
Since railroad times grain can be mar
keted ct profit, but when tho p. T. Go.
owned the river. the farmer was COM
pelled to give the difference between
the actual cost to raise his grain aud
the price received. for transportation.
and sometimes little more. This Same
thing will be enacted on the Columbia.
only on a grander scale. Portland does
not caro- whether the North Pacific
builds road to this city or not. She
is tho fixed metropolis Of the North
Pacific, has more wealth than all com.
bined and ifthe North Pacific Company
does not see fit to run the route to this
city, there are millions Of capital wait
ing for investment. in the East and in
Europe. another line will DO built. aud
the North Pacific will he left 10 ollnb
the mountains Of Washington Territory
over rusty rails with empty cars.