The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-10-21
THE REAL COMMUNITY OF IN.
TEDECT

In his address at the opening of the
North Dakota Irrigation congress at
Bismarck yesterday, President James
J. Hill again laid down and expanded
the principle that has made him the
most successful railroad manager of
his age; the principle that must gov
ern the future of all such work that is
to endure. 1t is expressed in those
much atased and often misunderstood
words, community Of interest," the
community of interest that exists be-
tween the producer and the carrier.
The people and the railroads must go
up or go down together; their inter-
ests are Identical. They can destroy
each other and they can build up each
others fortunes. This is the large but
simple thought in line with which they
must work and live in harmony if
either is to reap the reward of peace
and plenty.
''All wealth." said President Hill,
"comes from one of four sources; the
farm, the forest, the mine or the sea-"
Out here we are depending upon the
soil and its products; the ancient and
unfailing reliance of Industrious peo-
pies. And the transportation of such
products to the consuming millions
supposes the railroad as an indispens-
able factor in the production of this
wealth. By conjunction Of forces, both
parties have profited nightly. The
railroad company has expanded it's
business, increasing it's earnings and at
the same time by virtue of increased
volume of traffic, reducing it's rates;
so that tens of millions have been
earned and other tens of millions saw
ed by lowered charges.
The record for the railways side is
shown in its reports of business done
and its tables of earnings. The peoples
balance sheet can be gathered from the
amazing statistics of growth, quoted in
the address, for North Dakota points.
Places whose very names are as IN
known outside of the state as if they
were in a foreign country are increas-
ing their business yearly by leaps and
bounds, and piling up totals that show
near approach to the business done
in some of the large Sand well known
centers of the country. There is no
war between the people and the rail-
roads in North Dakota and the won
derful development Of the state has
followed as natural consequence.
To add to the tillable area, to make
new homes, to promote the increase of
population and to multiply products is
to create business as well as to stimu-
late prosperity. AS means to that
end, to extending far into the future the
limit of the beneficent work of turning
the resources of nature to the use of
man, irrigation comes In play. AS
available land is exhausted, this turns
the desert into fertile field; and hun
dreds of millions of acres of untouched
soil are waiting but the touch of the
fertihzing stream to create new en-
pires. That great project, now so far
on its way to completion and so well
assured, has been promoted by far
sighted railroad interests. through a
long and intelligent campaign of edu-
cation, until now all opposition is ST.
fenced and the reclamation OF mighty
areas will follow year by year.
These plans, at last accepted by the
government and backed by splendid
resources, open a new and richer fu-
ture to all the states west Of the Mis-
sissippi. They promise an addition OF
development and Of wealth undreaned
OF but a few years ago. The magma
ton can scarcely conceive the richness
Of the future that awaits these COM