The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1884-01-16
CHEAP FREIGHT BY RIVER.

That the construction of the Northern
Pacific will not kill the boating bust
on the lower Missouri and Yellowstone
is well illustrated by the following arti-
Gle from the Glendive Times:
Articles of Incorporation of the Vel
lowstone and Missouri river navigation
company, with headquarters at Glen
dive, have been filed with the secretary
Of the territory. incorporates: Geo.
r. Tingle, J. w. Allan, w. w. Mabee,
]. Carlisle, N. w. Comford and w. I'll.
Raymond. The stock books will be
opened in a couple of weeks. It is the
intention to construct a steamboat to ply
between Glendive, Fort Buford, Poplar
river, Bismarck and Pierre, to connect
at the latter point with the Northwest
ern railroad. Cheap freights for our
merchants will be the result. It is a
matter OF great Importance to Glendive
to accomplish this project.
It is not strange how quick The bust
ness men of any town will awaken to
the fact that they must have competi-
ton in transportation as well as in any
other line. It is just as true in freight
ing az in any other business that com
petition is the life Of trade.n Without
that the legitimate carrying business
degenerates, first into a monopoly, and
then into extortion. Railroad corpora
tons are formed and the roads built for
the same purpose as private business
houses are established-to make as much
money as they car. AS long as Fort
Benton can get goods from the east via
Missouri river for a cent anda half the
Northern Pacific will have to keep
down to the same rates in order to
"catch on" to any Of our business. On
the contrary if they car choke Off the
Missouri river mitigation, as the compa-
ny has done SO far at Glendive, on the
Yellowstone, the railroud could, with
impunity, charge us five times the rates
that are 0 payed and we would have
to stand it. There would be no redress
except to do as tho Glendiver. have
shrtwdly resolved-start up the old
lines again. The Glendive
company intend to get their river
freight from Pierre, by the Northwest
ern railroad. This is a point to be no.
ticed, and the reason is very apparent
why they go there instead of to Bis
marck. 1t is not to the interests of the
Northern Pacific to give special rates to
Bismarck for Montana shippers by way
OF the river as the railroad would get
the carrying of these same goods into the
interior of the territory, say to Helena
or Billings if they could draw off the
Missouri and Yellowstone river trans
portation. With the Northwestern
at Pierre it is quite different. BY offer
ing special rates to the steamboat lines
they can. control some Of the Montana
which they were never able to
get hold of before and which they can
not expect to procure except by under
bidding the Northern Pacific rates to
In order to make it an in
extra 800 miles from Bismarck down to
Pierre the railroad tapping the river at
lower point will have to give lower
rates than the Northern Pacific to Da-
kota's capital city. The managers of
Coulson and Power lines, with their
usual business sagacity, have no doubt
taken in the situation long before this,
and unless special freight rates from the
east are given to Bismarck another sea-
,on will see their boats dropping quiz
city down to Pierre and loading with
Fort Benton freight alongside the
of the Yellowstone and Mis-
'ouri river navigation company.