The San Francisco call., 1901-10-30
AUCTION SALES.
RISE OF POINT RICHMOND.

THEN the Santa re secured terminal faclll-
NV ties at Point Richmond it by many sup
posed to be a temporary expedient, to be
abandoned when adequate yard room and water front
could be secured farther down the bay. This idea
must now be abandoned. While the Santa Fe may
some time secure convenient landing of its passen
gers in Oakland for the sake OF a shorter ferriage to
San Francisco, its landing plant Point Richmond
IS destined to become permanent commercial and
transportation adjunct to San Francisco. For all
purposes of direct overland carriage this city is
much island New York is The bulk of its
landward traffic must always reach it by ferry and
the charging accommodations on its water front
indicate that its incoming and outgoing commerce,
continental and ocean. is to be by water The Santa
Fe road at Point Richmond emphasizes the value OF
deep connection Immediately with rail trans
portation. No expensive mole had to be built and
the cost OF continual dredging is avoided. The same
deep frontage has been sought by the Standard
Oil Company, which is locating its plant there, and
the more recent purchase OF 500 acres on the same
front by ]. P. Morgan discloses the value put upon
such immediate deep water contact by business men,
The effect upon San Francisco will be beneficial 1t
that this city will its business along
The whole eastern shore OF the bay and that its great
est concentration and best development will be where
ship and car come together. All of this business
will be tributary San Francisco just the count
less business establishments on New York Bay Long
Island Sound and North River are tributary to New
York City. What San Francisco has needed has been
the touch of ship and In that respect the Sound
ports have had advantage over which they
have wisely improved it is a facility that takes
burden off commerce. On the Atlantic side of the
continent has always resulted in the attraction and
concentration of commerce. Great sums have been
expended as at Galveston and Savannah to secure it,
This city is fortunate in having it SO near to her
water front and in such easy touch with all her
activities
Every added facility increases commerce Per-
haps the constructors of the San Joaquin Valley Rail
way builded wiser than they knew, but it is certain
that in seeking the Point Richmond terminal they
showed great business foresight.
Since the construction of the Central Pacific road
vast and valuable enterprise and bold in its day,
California has had equally bold and valuable en-
terprse until the projectors OF the San Joaquin Val
ley road entered upon their work. Its absorption by
the Santa Fe system completed its efficiency, and
brought the long looked for second transcontinental
line TO this city. Those who thought honestly that
one road suficed for the carriage OF our trade can
now witness the interesting spectacle OF the two
lines pushed to their utmost capacity to transport it.
Both are charging their equipment, their yard room
and all OF their facilities and increase these as they
may production and the demands of commerce fol-
low closely upon every expansion OF accommoda
tons Il is doubtless the fact that il one road only
had been here it would have proved inadequate to
answer the demands upon it.
SO those who looked upon the San Joaquin Valley
project mere ideaty, useful only because it re-
sponded sentiment in favor Of a rival road re-
gardless OF any demand for it, prove to have been
mistaken. 1t not ideality, but irst-class
commercial reality, in the realization of which COM
merce has prospered and both roads have fourshed
This is the law OF commercial action An addition to
facilities always stimulates their to an increase
equal that addition. Both of transcontinenta
roads will find this law pushing them for long time
to come and the Santa Fe will not soon be able to
stop the enlargement of its terminal facilities at Point
Richmond to accommodate its local and through
traffic and meet the needs of such extensive business
plants foretold by the operations of Morgan
and the Standard Oil people