The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1881-11-18
WHAT DOES IT MEAN /.

meuced this week - announced on the Null
Ian Pass tunnel. Five car loads Of machln-
cry for driving It arrived At Silver Bow
Junction this week. Two car loads OF ex
plosives for the work were shipped from CAL
ifornia some time since. The Helena papers
say the "bosses" have arrived, that comfort
able quarters are erected, and that work on
the tunnel proper will begin in December.
This gives matters decidedly business like
look. And yet, last week, the Northern Pa
cific Railroad Company gave Mr.. Dunn =
contract to build q railroad from Garrison
(mouth of Little Blackfoot) TO Butte or Sill
YER Bow junction. The Northern Pacific
Company has no charter TO build branch
roads. Either the Mullan Pass Is 20 branch"
Or the Deer Lodge valley road is. 1t makes
considerable difference to land owners on
the line in this valley whether this IL
branch road or the main line. The Rocky
Mountain Railroad Company indicated in
It's incorporation the construction Of . road
from Three Forks ria Helena to Garrison
and thence to Butte. The Northern Pacific
has had It's main line located In this valley,
and ria Deer Lodge Pass and the Jefferson
River, for nearly ten years. It has had for
the same time each alternate section OF land
on belt eighty miles wide on that line
Withdrawn from entry and reserved for con-
veyance to 1t on the completion Of certain
conditions. That location has neither been
abandoned nor revoked. And now, as was
stated, 1t has made partial contract for con-
structing that road. There Is perhaps al
much significance in these facts as there ID
In the commencement Of tunnel work, the
letters of Mr.. Gamble and the st. Paul
speech Of Mr.. Cakes.
We have believed the Mullan route would
be adopted. The concentration Of all sur.
veying work thereon and the abandonment
Of other possible routes indicated it. The
work undertaken At the tunnel still indi'
Gates road to be built there. But the con.
tract recently let IS strongly indicates to ui
that the Northern Pacific Road will pas.
through Deer Lodge valley. 1t may be that
difficulties have arisen respecting the LAND
grant, In case Of deviation from the origi
nal line. 1t may be that ampler considers
ton of all things involved has led the vii
lard Directory TO the same conclusions al
those reached when Col. Minor Roberts II
1871, AFTER equating all advantages and dis
advantages, reported in favor of the Deel
Lodge Pass route and 1t was adopted. Tn
line is, we believe, forty miles longer thai
pia Pipestone or Mullan. All other consid
erations are In its favor. II Is the fines
Railroad Pass In the Rocky Mountain chain
Those forty miles entitle the company to on
million acres of land held under reserve to
and much of the best Of which would be for
feited If the road went the northern route
This land at 90 cents per acre would pa,
| for the construction on that route. BY tn
Pipestone or Mullan Passes the grades for Il
to 25 miles reach . maximum Of 1l6 feet
by the Deer Lodge Pass, II we remembe
Alright, there Ii no place 1t would exceed 5
feet. These conditions existed in 1871. Tn
| Company then determined In favor Of tn
Deer Lodge Pass route. Since then Butt
alone has developed greater transportatio
interests than all Montana then combined
and Glendale adds materially. Beside,e ever
mile the Northern Pacific Ii carried NORTH
ward gives the Union Pacific 50 much NOR
access by the Utah g. Northern to Its tribr
tary trade, and the first twenty miles west Z
Helena, with 4, 400 feet Of tunnelling and 2
600 feet Of high bridging or trestling. wi
not only be very expensive but very tedious
Some Of these difficulties would be obviate
by the Pipestone route, but that 10 said to
open to the objection Of . too abrupt wester
approach. The same objections Ii made
the Dry Cottonwood and Boulder route .
though 1t 10 twenty-five miles shorter tina
any other route.
Ifthere Is anything In these conjecture
raised by the letting Of the contract froI
Garrison TO Silver Bow Junction by the !
p. Co. 1t may be months before II 10 den
onstrated. The ways OF Railroad Comps
niles are mysterious and past finding out, an
It Is not wholly impossible the Northern p
cifc may yet, directly and indirectly, operai
roads via both Deer Lodge Pass and Mulla
Tunnel.