The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1895-04-11
A E OF ASTORIA.
The Portland Sun Acknowledges that
the Mouth of the Columbia Must
Have a Railroad.

$3.50 NAA
a disposition to treat the Astoria-Go-
bic railroad proposition with a great
deal of fairness, and in yesterdays
issue appeared am article giving a
comparative statement of the advan-
tages as ports of Seattle and Portland
that is worth reading:
Few people know that the estimated
cost of the Nicaragua canal is $10O, 0OO,-
900, and that 1t will take six years to
build Vt, and THAT the estimated traffic
through DIT ait the opening will be
10000 900 tons, but such Is the case. The
canal in excavation is 26.S miles in
length; the length of basins zig miles;
The length of the San Juan river 64.5
miles; Lake Nicaragua, $50 miles,
making THE total length of the canal
from ocean to ocean, 1914 miles. Few,
also perhaps, know that the distance
from Liverpool TO San Francisco via
the Horn, is 1880 miles, and that the
distance from Liverpool to San Fran
cisco, via the Nicaragua canal, is only
1894 miles, OF a saving of 6,996 miles,
or THAT the distance from New York
to Sam Francisco, via the Horn, is A.
$40 miles, and the distance between the
same points by the canal routes is
only 4946 miles, or a saving of 1894
miles. The completion of this canal
msans to Oregon a 80 day service by
steamer between Portland and New
York and England; 1T "a that the
products of the forests Of the West
will be laid down in the markets of
the East at living prices, and that
staple commodities will be brought to
this coast at the minimum cost.
The raising of $500, 900 in Seattle for
the building of the new canal that
will make a fresh water harbor on the
Sound for deep-wtater vessels shows
that the Sound people are alive to the
situation and are determined to get
the advantage over Portland IL posi-
bic. AS between Seattle and Portland,
as points of shipment for export of
the products Of the Northwest, Seattle
given the new harbor, Seattle will
get the business. AS between Seattle
and the mouth of the Columbia river,
both being fresh-water harbors and
both having direct rail connection with
the interior for handling of the pro-
ducts Of the country, the mouth of the
Columbia would control the business.
A glance ait the map will show that
with a railroad to Astoria the entire
amount Of grain produced in Eastern
Oregon would seek the natural water
level route down the Columbia for
shipment, where the least expense
would be enSalled for Handling and
loading, as we'll as mourning the least
expense for transportation, instead Of
going over the mountains Ito the Sou i.
In addition, the entire- product of the
Willamette Valley would see the same
channel for an outlet. The route that
NOi ptiiOIll pHG SCI NHCe WI plt lNdSI
cost to the farmer and put his grain
into the market of the world is the one
that will handle the business. What
would bhe Sound country be without
a railroad, eve with a fresh water
harbor, to bring the grain to IT for
loading? What win THE Sound be as
a port of export, even with a railroad,
II the roads bring 1t no grain for ex-
port? The railroads will haul the
grain over the route that is the least
expensive, and such viii be the new
line to Astoria, A birds eye view Of
Washington and Oregon plainly shows
hat The mighty Columbia river Is the
outlet Of the immense ag-i-
'ultural section embracing the William
SITE Valley and the millions of acres
IF Eastern Oregon and Washington.
nhe products of these acres will inev-
ltably follow it to the sea, Just as
NE waters of hundreds of streams
from its vast watershed are collected
and poured into the Pacific ocean at
he jetty. These are the arguments in
of the proposed Astoria railroad.