Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1899-12-29
DONE BY RAILROADS.
THEIR AID in DEVELOPING WEST
ERN STATES.
Strong Contrast Between State of Af-
fairs in Ante-Railroad Days and at
Present-Credi to a Useful Agent of
Civilization.

Before the railroads were built, it
took week to go from New York to
Buffalo, nearly three weeks from New
York to Chicago; and at that time, no
man would have thought of making
trip from New York to the Pacific
coast, except a few Of the hardest pio-
neers, and when on such an occasion
the good-bys were said, it was expected
on both sides that it would be forever,
said George H. Daniels, general pas
senger agent of the New York Central
Railroad, in recent address before the
International Commercial Congress at
Philadelphia. If tomorrow night you
should place letter on the Pacific and
Oriental mail train, which leaves New
York at 9:15, you may be sure that your
correspondent in San Francisco will be
reading 1t next Monday night-four
days from New York. The trainers of
our Constitution would have considered
a man entirely beside himself, who
would have suggested such a possi-
bility.
In 1875 the States east Of the Missouri
River were sending food and clothing
to the starving people Of Kansas.
Thanks to the facilities afforded by the
railroads the corn crop of Kansas this
year is 340,00O,OOO bushels.
1t seems but very few years since
1 made my first trip to Colorado, and
stopped on my way at the home Of
Buffalo Bill, at North Platte, Nebraska
On the Union Pacific. At Ogallala,
hfty-one miles west Of North Platte,
the Sioux Indians were roaming over
the prairies and making more or less
trouble for the early settlers who ven
tured so far out of the beaten paths of
civilization. The Nebraska corn crop
this year covers 100000 acres, and the
yield is 29O,0OO,OOO bushels. ....
Previous to the construction of the
Northern Pacific, the Great Northern,
Northwestern, st. Paul, Burlington and
other railways that traverse that won
derful region known as the "wheat
belt" there was nothing to be seen but
prairie grass and an occasional band
or untamed savages. Minnesota this
year will ship 90,O0O,0OO bushels Of
wheat, South Dakota 45,0OO,OOO bush
els, North Dakota 65,OO0OOO bushels,
and Montana 100000 bushels.
In 1S49 there came across the con-
tinent reports of the discovery of gold
In California, but the only means of
reaching it's Golden Gate was by sea
around Cape Horn, or the long and per.
flous journey, with OK teams, across the
plains, including what was then STYLED
IN our biographies the American des.
ert and through the hazardous noun.
tain passes of the Western part of the
continent. The completion of the Pa.
citic railroads changed all this, and
opened new fields for all kinds of enter.
prises, in an uneXp' red territory
stretching over more than 1000 miles
to the west. northwest and southwest
of the Mississippi River the products
OF which region were practically value
less until the means Of transporting
them were provided by the railroads.
The wheat crop Of California this
year is 37000,000 bushels. The larg.
est crop ever produced in California
was in 1880, when owing to exception.
ally favorable weather conditions that
State produced 63,000,0OO bushels. The
gold output of California for the veal
1899 is estimated at $16,00,O00. The
vineards and orange groves of Califor
mia would be of practically little value
were it not for the fact that the rail
roads, by their trains of Refrigerator
and ventilated fruit cars, make it pos
sible to transport the products of hel
fertile valleys to all sections Of the
country.
1t seems but yesterday that the rail
roads were completed into Portland
Ore, Tacoma and Seattle, Wash, anC
1t Is marvellous that for the year end
ed June 80, 1899, there was exported
from the Columbia River Valley 16,
100000 bushels of wheat, and from tn,
Puget Sound region 100000 bushels
Oregon and Washington form tn,
northwest corner of the Territory o.
the United States, south of the line o.
British Columbia, and are directly OIL
the route to our extreme northwes
possession, Alaska. The wheat crop o.
the States of Oregon and Washington
for the year 1899 is 4S,6O0,0OO bushels
There was exported during the yea
ended June 80, 1899, from the Colum
bia River direct to foreign ports, LILO,
600 barrels of -four and from Puge
Sound points 100000 barrels.
Colorado, which, with its inexhausti
bic mines of gold, silver, lead, iron anC
coal, forms almost an empire in itself
will nroduna thiS voor Of 1000 of ,,nIl