Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1881-05-06

/ from the navigable waters of the Column
| bia eastward, and, in the fall of 1879, il
placed Il mortgage to secure $4,000 per
mile on the Pen d'Oreillc division, extend
ing 209 miles from the mouth of Snake
river on the Columbia, to Lake Pen dor.
ellie. Bonds to the amount of Sc 2O00, ,O0O
were offered to the stockholders, and they
were again urged to come tOrward-antl
they did so. The materials necessary to
complete the whole division have all been
purchased; some of them have already ar
rived in the Columbia river; ten ships are
now afloat, and two more are just read,'
to start from the New York docks. Over
60 miles are already graded, and about 90
miles of track laid, and, if no accidents
betall the slips on the way, and there is
no difficulty in transporting the material
up the Columbia river, the company hopes
for the completion of this division during
the present year.
The company has also started a branch
up the Red river valley to accommodate
the farmers who have bought lands within
the limits of its grant, and thirty.two miles
are to be built during this season. SO the
company have really AGO miles of railroad
under way, and so far as the funds are con-
cerned they have been substantially from
the stockholders.
Still further, the engineers are in the
field with instructions to definitely locate
the line on all the other divisions of the
road, which are to be constructed, and if
the company can be allowed TO go on and
work out its salvation-if capital is not
frightened by fear of hostile action by
COngress-there is every reason TO believe
that this great enterprise, so beneficial to
the public and the government, will stead
lily progress towards completion.
Between these divisions under construc
tion are 500 miles, and on the Pacific coast,
$50 miles down the Columbia river and
250 miles over the Cascade range; adding
to these divisions the 80 miles of the Wis
consin division, about 1,400 miles are yet
to beput under construction. These parts
to be constructed embrace some Of the
most difficult portions of the line-the
work of the Yellowstone valley, the cross
ing Of what is called the Belt range, the
crossing of the Rocky Mountain range
proper, the division down the Clark's
Fork of the Columbia river, the division
of the Cascade range, and the work ON the
Columbia river.
The estimates of the cost Of these di-
visions, including equipment, as made by
Colonel Roberts, the late chief engineer of
the company, are as follows:
Miles. Cost Of mile.
Yellowstone division. ..34O. ]. .$25, 5,O49
Rocky Mountain division. 19S.. 80. 33,1i2
Clarkss Fork division. .282.. !. 29456
ColuRbia river division. .250.... 2T&66
Casca4a mountain division. $50.
Nore1Mc ssxrEe eyed fnEr ~ -
accurate estimates' IS pur .dnoo
down from. m.............. 10000
l have not included the Wisconsin di..
vision 600 miles), for which we have no
estimates. 1t is now being surveyed
These estimates may, on final location,
not be absolutely correct. The company
hopes they may be reduced. They will
be affected by the varying prices of ma
terials but they help to show the magni-
tude of the work that remains.
And now, in the view of this history of
the company, and what it is engaged in
doing, who would have supposed that
there would be any suggestion even, of
hostile action on the part of congress? In
the two congresses preceding this, the
company applied for bill extending the
time for the construction of the road. 1t
had been advised that with faithful prose-
cutiOn Of the work, congress could not
prehension on the part of capital-which
is always easily alarmed-it was thought
best to ask congress to say affirmatively,
that the time should be extended for q
period of years sufficient for the compile
ton of the road. In each of those cong
resses an extension bill passed the senate
almost unanimously, and the bill failed Of
passage in the house simply because it
could not be reached in the ordinary
course of business But there was always
a majority in its favor.
Was not this action of congress suffi.
cient to justify the stockholders in believ-
ing, if they advanced money to go on with
the enterprise, they would be certainly
undisturbed? And yet here, today, the
question is gravely considered whether
bill declaring forfeiture of the lands
shall not he reported to the house of rep
resentatives? Why should anything of
the kind be done? Have these stockhold-
ers done any wrong? Are they not enti-
tied to credit for the manly selfsacriiicing
spirit in which they cleared the enterprise
of all its embarrasSments? Are they not
entitled to credit for going forward at the
first dawn of better times and vigorously
putting the road under construction?
And who got them into this enterprise !?
Was it not the government itself who first
gave the charter, and then afterwards au-
thori2ed bonds to be issued and mort
gage to be executed to secure them? Did
not the government really by its acts in
vite these stockholders into this great
national undertaking. And have they
not done all that any set of men could do?
Did they not give their money literally,
up to the panic of 1878, and as soon as
there was possible chance for new
movement forward, did they not make
that movement?
But some one says they ore all getting
SO rich. Who is getting rich? If the
bondholder who turned his bond into stock
could have received par for his stock in
September, 1873, he would simply have
got his money and interest back. Two
years more have nearly gone since then,
and two years more interest should be
added, and the stock is selling today at
about fifty cents on the dollar. Some
stockholders were obliged to part with
their stock at low prices, and those who
were fortunate enough to get it at those
low prices, have made mOney-but the
bulk of the preferred stock-which is the
substantial interest 0f this company, is
still with the old holders, numbering today
about eight thousand.
Has the government been wronged? Is
it IL wrong that that northwestern region