Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1902-10-07
THE MARVELLOUS NORTHWEST

The annual report OF the directors of
the Chicago, Milwaukee IL ST. Paul
Railway, submitted To the lass meeting
OF the stockholders, and covering the
operation of the system for the fiscal
year ended June 80, illustrates, among
other things, how little even the most
intelligent and careful of observers
realize the extentand grandeur of the
resources of the great Northwest.
The year was one in which the
great Northwestern farmers met with
tremendous losses, as IA result of a gen
eral and disastrous drought. Before
the season was far advanced it was
predicttsd in the money centers of the
tcountry that the railroads penetrating
.ihe territory would suffer Immensely
from the failure of the crops.
5 Figures were not wanting to prove
that the traffic would decline anywhere
from 80 TO 75 per cent. Yet as the
weeks and months passed by and the
railroads entering the corn and wheat
belts seemed to require the service OF
all their rolling stock the efforts to bear
the stock market became weaker, until
they were finally abandoned.
The Northwest had reserve that
neither Wall street or La Sale street
had counted on. If the estimated loss
by drought be compared with the
value of the farm products hauled by
he NorthweStern railroad during and
after the drought season, an idea of
this reserve may be obtained. 1t is
revealed, in part ut least, by the fact
that the company named was able to
report gross earnings for the year of
S45 .6I3. 124, ,S4 CT 81, pa liz 10 in excess
Of the previous Year.
The tonnage was 81, ,732 tons less than
in the preceding year, and agricul-
tural products comprised only 80 per
cent. of the total as against ~ 81 per
cent of the total in the previous year,
but the number OF ions of commodities,
other than agricultural products,
carried during the year was 1854, ,33l,
an increase over the previous year OF
1859, ,629 tons.
The people of the Northwest had less
to offer in the way OF products than
they had the previous year, but the
higher prices obtained for what they
had enabled them TO spend more on
other commodities In other words,
the drought, instead of injuring them,
improved their condition 10 the extent
that it served To Increase the value of
their purchasing power.
That they were provided with ready
money is proved IN many ways, and in
no way more satisfactorily thtn in the
reports of collections which have been
made from ime 70 time But il is
demonstrated in tho report of the pass
enger traffic Of the st. Paul lines in a
mSaner that viii perhaps prove more
conclusive to the average man. The
earnings from this source were 10 50
per cent. greater than in the previous
year
This cannot he accounted for by the
increased immigration into the North
west. Ii can only be aecounted for on
the theory that the people OF that sec
ton were able to indulge in the pleas
ure of travel last year to greater
extent than in the previous year.
PEOPLE do not traSel for pleasure, as a
rule, unless they are provided with q
comfortable surplus.
X may be true that last years pros
perity was more apparent than real,
since it drew largely upon the reserve.
1t may also be true that smother year
of drought would have exhausted this
reserve completely But this is mere
speculation. and hardly worthy Of con-
Sideration, in view of the fact that this
years harvest will restore 5he reserve
aud allow a very handsome Margin
Editorial Chicago Inter Ocean, Septem-
Der Is, l9ee.