The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1888-01-26

parent Of four other lines which now pene-
trate from the great valley of the Missis-
sippi to the Pacific coast parallel through
out to the one designed and aided by the
government, and, of course, reducing its
probable income. Branch roads have
passed from this main stem through almost
every valley, penetrating north and south,
opening up immense areas Of country to
the hand of civilization and progress.
Some stress has been laid both by the
commissioners and by Mr.. Pattison upon
the benefits derived by the railways from
the government land subsidy, and they
have even claimed that the government
gave something when it gave this land. AS
a matter of fact the government did net
give one acre of land to the roads. 1t pro-
vided that they should take a certain
amount of land contained in the odd sec
tions and that the price of the remaining
even sections should be doubled. Neither
the odd nor the even sections of this land
was worth one penny, or would ever have
been worth one penny but for the building
of this railway. In fact the gentlemen who
invested their time, their money, their
energy, their intelligence in the construc-
tion of this road gave to the United States
In the increased value of its lands more
than the coat Of the road.
A reference to the reports of the various
executive department will show that an
terror to the building of that line the actual
expenditures for the transportation of
troops, supplies, mails, &C., across the
continent was from 81, 0Oo,0 to $s,000,000
each year, but the cost OF single war, the
suppression of the Utah rebellion, when the
army and its supplies were transported from
the Missouri river to Salt Lake by wagons,
was almost equal to the amount advanced by
the United States to aid in building these
roads. The cost now of sll government
transportation between the Atlantic and the
Pacifc-that Is, ever these transcontinental
lines-even with the fact that the popula-
ton of the Pacific coast and the country
through which the lines pass is ten times as
great as 1t was before the roads were built,
is less than 100000.
In the years that have elapsed since the
roads have been constructed there has been
an annual saving on transportation-that is,
the construction Of the roads has saved the
government up to date $135, 900, 900, the ser
vice performed having been twenty times
greater than it was anterior to their building.
These are facts which the public should
take into consideration and which Congress-
should consider when a partisan raid is
made upon the Pacific railways for the sell
fish purpose which distinguished the one
now being made.
Mr.. Pattison charges that the Central
Pacific railway has robbed the government,
has taken large sums of money earned by
that road, divided it among the project
ors and used 1t In building other roads,
which are free from government liens and
government supervision, and that these
roads have been built out Of the earnings OF
the Central Pacific, which should have been
used to pay the government debt and In
terest, although that debt and interest will
not be due for some years to come.
1t is true that the gentlemen who con-
structed the Central Pacific railway have
also built an immense number of miles of
railway, and now control the largest rail-
way system In the world, extending from
Portland, Greg, one thousand miles down
the Pacific coast, across the continent to the
Gulf of Mckee, thence up the Mississippi
river nearly seven hundred miles to the
mouth Of the Ohio, and thence to Norfolk,
Va, on the Atlantic coast.
The splendid management, which the
constructors of the Central Pacific displayed
when they built their highway, penetrating
the great Nevada range, crossing the tree
less and arid desert extending from that to
the Rocky mountains, overcoming obstacles
that seemed insurmountable before their
industry, intelligence, and energy were
brought to bear upon them, enabled them
to go into the money markets of the world
and procure the money from bankers any
and everywhere to construct any line of
railway which they deemed practicable and
profitable. Because of this they have
built over five thousand miles OF railway,
they have passed from Portland, Greg,
down the Pacific coast to Los Angeles and
San Diego, from thence through another
desert country to the Golf of Mexico and the
Mississippi river, but to build these roads
these gentlemen have gonsinto the markets
of the world and borrowed the sum of
nearly two hundred million dollars-eight
times as much as the paltry sum advanced
by the United States to assist them in
building the Central Pacific, and there are
no clamorous creditors besieging them for
their money. The United States is the only
Shylock who stands upon the Rialto crying
aloud for the penalty Of the bond 1t is
demanding its pound of flesh, not, like
shakespeare's Shylock, because Of avarice
and greed, not to crafty malice, but to ad-
vance political partisan ends.
With the full knowledge Of the facts the
government, instead OF attempting to force
the payment of this debt from the Pacific
railway-instead Of forcing the roads into
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. endeavor to make
them more useful to the country. Eng
land guaranteed 5 per cent. interest on
$50, 1000, 900 to build roads into the interior
of India, and the result is already an enor-
nous increase Of production and of course
of wealth and tax-paying power.
The Dominion of Canada has furnished
almost the entire capital TO build road
across the continent, and is substituting
steamers on both the Atlantic and Pacific
to aid this road, while the road itself, by
the aid Of the administration, is taking
goods from the very harbor of San Fran
cisco, the terminus of the Central Pacific
system, carrying them In subsidized steam
ers to it's Pacific terminus and transporting
them to New York and to Europe cheaper