Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1880-01-02
Railroad Bonuses.

A few persons are of opinion that since
the required bonuses sforsthe Little Falls
& Dakota have been voted, at all the
points west Of this county, the road will
be built to Little Falls whether any bo-,
nus. is voted by Morrison county or not.
This is certainly gross delusion. Any
railroad company that requires bonuses
to be given along its proposed line, un-
dertakes to insure the several commu>
mites voting on the question that bonuses
will have to be issued by all these COM
munitles or by none. The aggregate
amount of the bonuses required along
the line of the Little Falls g. Dakota is
nearly $200, 900. Now, if the village of
Sank Centre had been the only point
where the bond proposition was carried,
it would be unjust to require that village
to pay its $4,000 and let all the other
towns and counties off without paying
anything, and no railroad company
would expect it. We remember that
when the Southern Minnesota railroad
was built, bonus Of $50, 600 was required
of the village of Austin. The road had
already been completed much of the DIS
lance from Lacrosse to Austin, and Aus
tin was on the exact line where it seemed
necessary to run the road. The Austin
people thought that the railroad could
not get around them very we'll, because
1t was to run to Spring Valley and Al
bert Lea, and Austin was on an exact
line between these two points and it
would require large additional expense
to run the road on either side of their
town. The bonus proposition was there.
fore voted down. The company would
doubtless have run the road to Austin
without bonus, if it had not been that
this would be rgarded as unjust to the
towns that had gwen bonuses. The poll
icy OF all honorable companies is to do
equal justice to all the communities CIV
ing bonuses, and not give one town or
or county for nothing that which anoth-
er town or county is required to pay for.
The Southern Minnesota company were
therefore compelled to run around Aus.
tin, at an additional expense of some
$50, 900, and their road was built three
miles north Of that village. We are now
informed that Austin is Offering bonus
Of $4,000 to have few miles of the
track of the Southern Minnesota changed
so as to run through that town, and that
the desired change will probably be made.
In rare instances a railroad company
finds it necessary to build their road to a
point that does not bear its burden equally
with other points on the line, but such
Instances are very rare, indeed. We
don't imagine that Little Falls is such an
important city that the Little Falls &
Dakota company think it absolutely nee
essary to run their road here. The as
sessed valuation of the entire village,
some $50: 900, water power and Ill, is on
ly about enough to build one good grist
mill. We very much fear that when
the officers of the company come in sight
of this metropolis and don't see any
mills, large brick business blocks, exten.
| sive factories, or stately domes and stee.
pies OF public buildings, they will con.
clude that this is not such mighty big
metropolis after all, and that their road
might possibly get a little business to do
if 1t should cross the Mississippi some
| where else.