Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1886-09-15
MIR. HILLS SPEECH.

A0 wv
and party by the Helena Board Of Trade
last Friday evening MI. Hill responded to
the toast 1.-THE Northwest" As the pro-
jector of a grea, railroad which in it's
westward course will pass through the
heart of this magnificent mineral section
the gentleman's opinions Of the great
Northwest is OF more than passing interest
to the people OF Montana generally and OF
Butte particularly. We therefore give the
full text of his remarks:
Mr.. Chairman and Gentlemen: It is a
great pleasure for me to meet SO many old
friends tonight, and to make, l hope, q few
new ones. This occasion I take as an evil
dence of your good will towards myself and
my friends who have been for some time
identified in Montana enterprises with some
of the enterprising, loyal citizens Of your
city. And as your chairman has just said,
the northwest is q iar-reaching toast; it
covers a great deal of ground. Before
going out on the prairie perhaps I may be
able to say a few wor Is that may be OF
more direct inte,es to you gentlemen OF
Helena. We have here at your doors a
good railroad grade and we have
put it down in good faith to stay.
Loud and prolonged cheers.] We
expect to be able to iron it in a
little while. In fact, We feel encouraged.
We think that you have a great deal OF
business in this country for a road. and
that your business is very ~remunerative.
1 do not know any locality where, for the
same distance, there is so large a volume
of business that does afford, whether it can
or not, to pay SO high a rate. loud ap-
~plause.] 1t has already been our habit as
we build our railroads to weigh our dollars
and try to get one hundred cents worth OF
value for them. And we would like to put
one hundred or more miles of road opera
ton in Montana this year. But we actu-
ally found that we could not very well do
it. We found that it was going to cost us
to much. Thirty-five dollars per ton for
freighting rails was not fair and we started
in to do it ourselves. We are not SIS far
from you as we were O year ago by $50
miles and l hope by next summer we will
very much nearer-that we can run our
trains into Helena. And when [ took up
my plate 1 found a railroad time card, q
very handsome one, and want osay that
there will soon be opportunity to make a
new one. Looking over the schedule l
think it is about twelve hours too long.
Now for, the northwest; 1 feel l am a
man Of the northwest; I have lived in the
for over thirty years. But when
kCU OuO l L AN ~ n wv N"yC w i
home, while the friends who accompany
have a weeks journey ahead OF them.
The northwest is something that even our
who have lived in it 81 long. fail, l
;hink, to appreciate. If you will take a
nap Of the North American continent and
AXE a pair OF dividers, placing one leg OF the
ity where l live and the other OF Jackson.
lille, Florida, then swing it round to the east
when you get opposite New York city
'ou will find that the Jacksonville
eg will be three hundred to four
miles out in the Atlantic.
t you swing it round to the northwest it :,
loes not begin to cover the limit of good
and grazing land upon which
nen can live and be happy, comfortable
nd prosperous This northwest has heen I
'pened by u hardy, persistent band OF pio- +
GERS. We find them everywhere: we find
hem in your Territory to-day-men who '
anne up over tie prairies or over the 1
following the water courscs-planted t
he stakes in the mountains and in the
alleys. Many OF them have. prospered. /,
nd | think tina those who kept their eyes
n their gun barrels, attended to the shoot
,g OF them, invariably have no reason to
Omplain of the Northwest. Applause. &
'ealth. Your prairies are covered and
our valleys are filled with as fine cattle as S
he sun shines upon. Your mountains ere
He'd with mineral. r
The day for high prices in many of these ::
hings is gone. 1t may return for a time !
ut l think not permanently. l think the !
ay OF lower prices must prevail as the f
lrger areas of production are opened and |
,ade available. ::
What you want in Montana is an abun- =
ance OF good, strong, earnest labor. You {
ant the material brough, in more cheaply. r
Notwithstanding the difference in your |
tuation, your remoteness from market, q
GU want to be placed where you can COM :
etc with more favored localities-more !.
as regards nearness to market; and q
it'll your other natural advantages there b
no doubt but that you will be able to e
old your OWE successfully. l won't de- a
Lin you long gentlemen, tonight. We -
ave had rather an active time in visiting {
.ifferent parts OF the Territory, since we
ave been here; and another time-a little
ter than this next year-we hope to be
BILE to meet you again and to be in posi- b
on where We can do you some good. n