Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-07-26
The GRAIN TRADE-A LEAF FROM
HISTORY,

upon Mr.. Clayton's lament upon the de.
cline of wheat shipments at San Francisco
recall to my mind chapter in the history
of the State. Some years ago, before the
various terminii of the railroads had been
definitely fixed, when Port Costa and Be.
nicia improvements had not been thought
out, the railroads proposed to obtain per-
mission from the Government to utilize
such part of Goat Island as might not be
needed for military uses, for the purpose
of terminus for the Central and Southern
Pacific Railroads, and a point at which
grain and other interior bulky products
could be shipped. The great object Of the
railroad company was to provide some GEN.
trail and accessible point at which car and
ship could be brought together-a growing
necessity of the agricultural interest-and
yet to have that point, if possible, within
the limits of San Francisco. Goat
Island answered all the conditions.
1t was most convenient point
for this commerce, and was within
the corporate limits of that city. The bill
to grant leave to use part of the island, to
be designated by the War Department, if
in its opinion any could be spared, provi-
ded that all railroad and other property
thereon should be taxable by the city and
State 1t was provided that the island
should be reached by an iron bridge, with
piers of minimum dimensions, SO set as to
least obstruct the current, which Govern
ment engineers said would cause no detri.
20 how ole 4
that the Government might resume posses
sion of the island in any emergency, of
which it should be the judge. Had this
bill became law, and the railroad company
have carried out its intended Improvement,
which no one can doubt who has observed
the fruits of it's enterprise, Port Costa
would have heen unnecessary as a ship
ping point, San Francisco would have
practically all this business, and the inter.
ests of the company would have been
strongly knitted to hers. But there was a
speculative holding of real estate on part
of San Francisco Bay called Ravenswood, at
the head of which was w. c. Ralston.
He proposed to compel the company to
bridge the bay at his vacant lot location,
and bring into great value lands which
then were and ever since have been drug
in the market. Ralston had some very pre-
vailing ways, and especially knew how to
awaken the vigilance of the press
No sooner was the bill fairly launch
ed than the press of San Francisco
became alive to its enormities. In
flammatory editorials, day by day, dashed
the people of the city and State into fury.
The railroad company were accused of in
tending to destroy the city. The mem
bers of Congress who supported the bill
were called all the unsavory names in the
vocabulary of spite. No argument adj
dressed to the common sense of the city
had any weight to allay the storm OF un-
reasoning passion, though it was clearly
pointed out that the project was an at
tempt to create taxable property within the
limits of San Francisco, while accommo-
dating the pressing needs OF the State.
The shrieking papers insisted that it was
the purpose to build solid causeway from
Contra Costa shore to Goat Island, and
this would ruin the harbor They would
not note the contradiction the bill gave to
their assertion. Ralston is dead, and his
peculiar arguments are not now available !;
and these dogs are dumb while a
solid causeway is being built over the
ground where they saw SO much danger
from an iron bridge. These prophets OF
evil saw a necessity for the immediate use
of Goat Island for defensive purposes, and
wondered that the Government had de-
layed for twenty years to crown it with
Notifications. When General Sherman ridi-
culed the idea of such use of the island,
saying that it was like defending a house
by putting cannon on the doorstep, to draw
the enemy's fire, he was called an old fool
for his opinion. Public meetings were
called; committees of Zone hundred were
organized a lobby delegation sent to
Washington every resource OF indignant
people, outraged in their dearest inter.
ests, was employed to head off the de-
signing knaves who dared to endeavor to
create point within their city where
grain could be easily shipped to the ocean.
OF course these patriotic people prevailed.
The papers of San Francisco gained great
victory, and drove the business away to
interior waters. They had supposed that
it was possible to continue a system that
had grown up before there were railroads,
and when grain. growing was small inter-
est, viz, the landing of grain at San
Francisco wharves from barges, earting it
to warehouses, and then recarting it to
ship. This made profit for teamsters
and warehouses hard to relinquish; and
all predictions made, that if San Francisco
would not have the business on the new
and necessary terms, it would be trans
ferred elsewhere, were treated as idle
threats that showed the malice of the
prophets. will but add that the present
jeremiads over San Francisco's loss of the
grain trade are necessary results of the
victory to which have alluded.
NEMESIS.