Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1883-09-27

zach wheat a O-ucoa and Wnzhingson
toce<her; ulzooss eoxee1Dss foSx Tunes
~ rnncA: xod u osher grains lllzooss
mss Gruxr nezrsy farxy tzun<s thszr lAH
yexr's crop. and res N<b<Aska Twelve
Tunes ~ uach- Thsre - paensy Of room
u Eastern Oregon and W&AAz1z3oc for
d great x6dltioz % the wheat proonc-
tso1. and probably hive sssck c&1 be
mach i,sresSed Also bot Oreeun and
wasnsnS91n- n p-sp xtloc 30 thssr area
vii newer rank II acriczlfzre neA,ay a.
hizs ss tne prairie SsAteA Ieszr great
fcreEts vii n tine Be scarce Of tn
Deose vealtk- bal probably VII not Be
utilized very rzpiily, and VII be Ear
kessd by scs rather than By land unless
TIE railroad caa make q rate loS
enozzh 10 bring lauher from wash
in9ton 10 Dskosa- and thus cause Il
10 conp-te with AiehigsH and wlscon-
sin lumber.
But the value of the railroad 20 its
owners does NOT depend chiefy upon the
production and growth of the Pacific
end Of IL. which vail give i; the longest
hanl. but on that Of the country aioER
its line Ii mikes accessible an i'm
nense territory hitherto reached only
with difficulty, and in 8hicb the pfoduc
ton of COARSE articles for consumption
on -either coast OF abroad VAS impossible
because Of the COST of transportation.
For only small part of It's length u
tbs country comparable In prsd7ctIvo-
ness with the prairie states OF the
Northwest. bat it makes up m quantity
for quality. As II -, the fertile AgrIc1l-
tnrai country On It, line IN western Min
nosota and eastern Dakota extends quite
~ far a. the Agricultural counfry ON the
Union Pacific IN Nebraska or the Kansas
Pacific IN kausas-perhaps little far
Their, thouqh the Northern Pacific has
the disadvantage Of an unpfoductiye
country for some i50 miles from Lake
Superior before this fertile country is
reached. Further west the grazing
country 10 probably better than On the
Union and Central Pacific; there being
very little absolutely worthless land,
though, like the other grazing country,
IT takes a great deal Of Iapd TO support
thousand cattle or sheep. For the
now prosperous community In Colorado
and the smaller one in UtAh which af
ford much traffic to the Union Pacific,
il has the very much smaller mining
communities Of Montana and Idaho,
and Idaho IL crosses far 70 the north of
its chief population, which is served by
branch of the Union Pacific. Idaho
and Montana together had bat IS, 76S
inhabitants in 15o0, bat then Colorado
and Utah together had but ID, $50 in
1870, SHORTLY after the Union Pacific was
open, which increased 70 49,, s55 in 1880.
IL would be dangerous TO say that the
northern territories will NOT grow a.
fest IA tbs next ten years; but II Ia not
probable that there viii be any such
Development Of mining in them as there
has been in Colorado. They have not
been 50 inaccessible that they could not
be pretty thoroughly explored for mines,
and there has NOT recently been much
increase In tue mi ing industry there,
and it, mines are what lave made
Colorado grow. Beth Idaho and Mon
tana have been accessible by rail for
two years.
But, on the other hand, the Northern
Pacific has not 80 long a line through
n0n-agricuitoral country TO be support
ed-something like thousand miles
while on the Union and Central Pacific
are about fifteen hundred miles of such
country. Further. In the mining and
grazing country on the Northern Pacific
there are more fertile valleys, each of
Of limited extent, bat in the aggregate
considerable, than farther south. There
| will bs. except in the mountains, few
long stretches Of the road where there
Is not some population and production
directly along the road; and az there is
most Of the way no other line for hum
dreds Of miles, small production per
square mile may contribute large aQ-
gregate traffic.
Most OF the road, however, has now
been open year or more; 40 miles of
the eastern end, through by far the
larger part Of the cultivable land on the
whole line, for ten years; and there il
comparatively small part of the coun-
try on the line, and a great part of that
in the mountains, which Is this year
| first made accessible. The fact that the
road was not open through has not been
great disadvantage to the country on
its line except that in Oregon and Wash
ingt0u. II has been for some time pos
sible to utilize the capacities Of the
country along the road. A great many
men and great deal of money have
been engaged in doing this for two OF
three years, more in Dakota than else
where, bat also further west. IL the
country grows for some years to come
~ II has recently. the road must soor
find abundant support. Already it ha,
very respectable earnings, which ths
through trafiic may not largely but vii
considerably increase.