Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1884-06-04

would give little attention 10 this mat
ter, because it shows the vonderfui zssl.
and, not only that. but the wonderful
power, of railroad corporation 70 twist
and turn Its position when il can place
Il hand upon the public domain. The
document before me Is the report of the
president and vice president of the
Northern Pacific Railroad Company,
made IN 1876, and they made ne pre-
tense that this branch was ANYTHING
more than coal road to develop their
own coal lands. and do not suggest that
IL was any portion either of the main
line of the Northera Pacific Railroad
OF OF its branch across the Cascade
| Mountains
If that feet is true. there is the end
OF that Argument here and in the Int
nor department.. and u should be the
| end of II before the President, IL the
question be raised there. IL that be
true, then Is it not reasonable that the
Senate should say to these men Z" Halt 2"
and II by any means you obtain from
| the President authority to examine this
road and commissioners find your road
correctly built. Is it not reasonable that
We should politely request the Secretary
of the Interior 10 suspend the issue of
patents on their report until We see
whether the Northern Pacific Railroad
shall be allowed to cousummats this
fraudr l know not when, in defiance of
their own report of 1876, they CON-
menced to claim that this shall be re-
cognlzed as q portion of their Cascade
branch for which they are asking to re-
ceIve million acres of land. In 1876
Charles b. Wright was president of the
company. First he makes q preliminary
st atement:
The Pacific division has lately been
visited and thoroughly inspected by the
VICE president, whose report to the board
upon Its condition and prospects and
upon the coal fields of this COMPANY,
and the proposed branch road for their
development, Is printed herewith"
Net their main line or their Cascade
branch, the only two which could have
any Government bounty in the shape of
land, but the proposed branch road for
their development"
The profitable development of this
property seems Q depend upon the COM
pletion of the through line or the i'm
mediate construction of thirty-one miles
of the Puyallup branch and the deyel-
opment of the coal. The details of the
latter are fully discussed in the vice
presidents report"
They only intended it for a coal road.
did not seek it for anything else, and
did not cons; der it a portion of the Cas-
cade branch. lie said the vice president
would give a more detailed statement.
and here 1t is in the same document.
InIs Is the report of the vice. president
TO which the president of the road re-
ferred. He Is stating a little of his |
movements Ia that cdNntry, and says:
devoted my time to examining the |
constructed road and its business in all |
detail, in exploring the Puyallup line
and coal fields. Unless the coal fields |
of the company on the Puyallup should |
be developed, or unless Tacoma is made
point OF shipment for the products of
the Columbia and Willamette valleys,
subject which will be hereafter adverted
to, the growth of our receipts will be
slow and dependent upon the general
settlement of the country or the COM
pletion of the through line"
Now
my examination of the Puyallup
Valley and coal lands was made with
special reference to a practical look
at the surveyed line for the proposed
branch"
They nowhere, by direction or indi-
make any, the most distant,
to the thirty-one miles as por-
ton of any possible branch except the
Puyallup. Now l call my friends at
more particularly the Senator
from Oregon. and the Senator from
Michigan also:
My examination of the Puyallup
Valley and coal lands was made with
special reference to practical look at
the surveyed line for the proposed
branch and the explored portions of the
coal fields. &C."
1.-The preliminary line as located for
the branch road follows the stream"
Now / call special attention to this:
The grades are all descending with
the stream, and do not exceed on this
division fifty three feet to the mile.
From South Prairie to Flett's Creek, six
miles to the coal openings, the line is
more difficult and the grades
the maximum grade being enc
and five feet to the mile. IL ia.
however, all down hill with the stream.
and as the load will all be down and no.
thing but empty cars up, the road will
be easily worked"
Will any one say that in 1876 the Off |
GERS of the Northern Pacific Railroad |
believed they were building these thirty
one miles as portion of the Cascade
branchT. Ii so. why were they not to
have transportation up as we'll as down,
freight going both ways? This road |
was built thus as coal road, and they
say it is " all down hill with the stream"
and "the loads will all be down and no.
thing but empty cars up" and so "the
road will be easily worked" There are
some other illusions in the same strain;
but can anything more be necessary af- |
ter that bare statement of facts to show
that when they commenced the construc-
ton Of this road they did not intend it
ts be part of the main line or the branch
for which they were entitled to dona-
tion of lands?
To be continued.