Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1883-04-19
TIE WALLA WALLA BOARD OF
TRADE.

TIE wALLA wALLA BOARD OF
TRADE.
We publish elsewhere letter directed
TO be sent to us, and through us to the
business men of Lewiston, and the ans
wer to the same. The purpose and scope
of the letter can better be understood by
its pcrusal. The answer is both courteous
and significant Of the views of our people.
IF the request was that We cooperate with
Walla Walla in seeking the construction
of a railroad down Snake river thence
north from Texas, there would We think,
have been more willingness to cooperate.
But the Lewiston people cannot see why
they should endeavor to connect Walla
Walla and the Palouse branch by rail at
the delay and perhaps the sacrifice of
railroad down Snake river from her own
city to q connection with the Northern
Pacific or Puget Sound. The proposed
Texas connection with the P;,louse branch
is not what our people want, and is not
what they will be satisfied with when
built, and is not what will accommodate
the people at large as much as road up
and down Snake river. We are aware
that Walla Walla would derive some ben
eft from the Texas connection, but we
cannot see that any point between here
and Texas, on either side of the Snake
would derive but little benefit, not half as
much as would railroad benefit them
extending up and down the Snake as far
Is Ainsworth. That is what Lewiston is
striving for, and iii does not pour its tri-
butes into the lap Of Walla Walla, except
through its branches the country gener-
ally will derive benefit from the river
line. It is a now feature in the history
of Walla Walla, that they should ask the
cooperation Of the Lewiston people in
any. measure Of public importance, and
We appreciate the liberal policy towards
Us she adopted, and we sincerely wish We
could consistently with our convictions
of duty to ourselves accede to their first
request made upon us. We need say
here that the strongest faith exists among
our people in the early building of the
O. s. L. road down Snake to this place
which will furnish to US our Eastern con-
nection. 1t seems that our Walla Walla
friends do not Join with US in this strong
confidence, and we cannot see why. The
movements Of the company all point in
the direction Of Puget Sound via Snake
river and one Of the passes Of the Cascade
mountains, and We here do not give cred
It to the people Of Walla Walla as having
more definite knowledge Of the movements
Of the @. s. L. and the purposes of its
managers, than we here in Lewiston pos
sess. We here take things as VIC find
them, and draw our conclusions, and we
expect to see the Utah Northern form
junction with the 0. S. L. at this point
and branch of the former extend north
ward through the Potlatch, Genesce,
South and North Palouse and Pine and
Rock Creek valleys, cutting across the
Willard system, and we don't expect that
Willard can prevent these achievements
Of the Union Pacific system by any prom
ICES he can make The country we in
habit has the capacity to support even
more than two systems Of railroads and
no one is going to shut out the other and
tie the country up for score or even a
half score Of years, as intimated by inter
prctations Walla Walla journals have
placed upon the Eastern dispatches pub
lished in the Dregonian in February
last. We are told that neither the 0. r.
/ N.Co. nor tho Northern Pacific will
build up Clearwater river and through
the Bitter Root mountains. We never
expected they would unless some other
company Of strength attempted to do so,
and the Walla Walla papers have report
cd Zanier as saying that road was fin-
neutrality-suspicious. over the pass survey
cd. We never claimed that it was good
route, although Truax reported it as such,
But We have always Claimed that the pass
south Of that about 35 miles south of the
Lo Lo, was perfectly practicable and
Lewiston has sent men to determine the
fact by survey and close observation of the
approaches both from the east and the
west, and they have reported the route
even better than the most sanguine had
before been induced to believe. Here
after Lewiston proposes to become indie
pendent thinkers on railroad matters and