The Globe-republican. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1889-1910, 1895-06-21

in the railroad world. The Northern
Pacific road and the Great Northern
road each start from ST. Paul. MIMI,
and extend to Puget Sound. They are
parallel lines. 100 miles apart, from the
Red River Of the North to the Rocky
mountains, and their combined mile
age foots up almost exactly 5000 miles,
the Northern Pacific having Ass miles
and the Great Northern 4.494 miles.
President Hill, who manipulated the
great deal, is Canadian. He is 81 years
OF age, and prior to 1866 was nobody
In particular in st. Paul, Mimi, where
he has lived nearly all his life. AS a
young man he was a clerk on an upper
Mississippi steamboat. Later, when he
had saved little money, he was en-
gagged in what was known as the Red
River trade" and a most peculiar and
unique trade 1t was. Away to the
northwest, about Pembina, on the Brit
ish line, and where Winnipeg now
stands, at the mouth of the Red river,
was the Selkirk settlement Of French
Canadian hunters and trappers. The
Hudson Bay company then controlled
all of the great territory stretching be-
tween Lake Winnipeg and Alaska, and.
saving only the trade forced upon that
great corporation by the Red river carts
from st. Cloud, no outsider sold dol
lars worth Of goods or bought bea-
yer skin anywhere in it's domain. Hill
and his partner worked part Of the
time in harmony with the Hudson bay
factors, and part Of the time in direct
opposition to them.
The Quitting was all done at st.
Cloud, and the two-wheeled carts were
each drawn by a single OK harnessed
between thills to a creaking, wooden
wheeled vehicle. The felloes Of the
wheels were bound with raw buffalo
hide. stretched while green, and fast
ened with sinew. Not nail or bolt of
any kind or any other piece Of iron was
used in the making of these carts.
When the outfit started, each OK was
tethered to the tail Of the cart ahead,
and, with a creaking noise that could
be heard mile away, the long caravan
began its journey across the park
lands and prairies between st. Cloud
and Pembina. This was Jim Hills first
venture in transporting freight to the
northwest. Today. following almost
the exact trail along which he plodded
on foot with his creaking carts in
youth, he controls well-equipped and
thoroughly maintained line of railroad.
In 1865 Mr.. Hill entered railroad life
as station agent on the levee in ST.
Paul. In 1871 he was still station agent,
but he had associated himself with c.
W. Griggs in the wood and coal bust
ness. and was beginning to get ahead.
When Jay Cooke began his Northern
Pacific enterprise and opened up at
Duluth, on Lake Superior, some men
there began to ship coal to the St. Paul
market.
Hill was shrewd enough to see that
he and Griggs must get finger in that
pie or go out of the coal business in ST.
Paul. He offered to go partners" with
the Duluth men, and they accepted. In |
the three years that interviewed between |
that time and the failure Of Jay Cooke |
in 1873, and the consequent collapse Of |
business at Duluth, there were from |
1900 to 10000 tons of coal handled on |
the Duluth docks, and If any money |
was made the Duluth partners did not |
find 1t out. Then came the hard |
times in the northwest. The st. Paul |
and Pacific road was in the hands Of a |
receiver. a man named Fraley. Hill |
made proposition of some kind to Re- |
ceiver Fraley for the purchase Of the |
road. His prophetic eye saw already |