The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-09-25
y. j. HILL AN 7ONORED GUEST
AT MINNEAPOLIS CLUB DINNER

power company on this side. [ went
over to see General Washburn, or will
say Governor Washburn. There were
two General Washburns. / will distin-
guish by saying Governor Washburn,
and you never had better friend in
Minneapolis that he was. I told him
what l wanted to do, that I wanted to
build bridge across below the falls,
we wouldn't obstruct the flow of water
and we wanted to land it on the west
bank. Isked him to fix price, l ex-
pected that he would tax me somewhere
in the neighborhood of 100000. I
didn It know the governor at that time
He fixed the price at $4,000 for what
we wanted in realestate and the dam
age for crossing the river was nil.
1T had to take some ground that
Frank Steele owned to build the sta
ton and some ground that Henry Wells
owned.
These men did more to help me face
the expense, which at that time seemed
enormous, of the double track, the stone
arch bridge and the station, than all the
other men in the city. They named not
only fair price but very low one.
shall never forget these men, because
they gave me words of encoura cement.
They were older men, men / looked up
to, men [ believed in, and men whose
memory L not only respect but rever-
ence.' .-.. ~ --...
Mr.. Hill then told of former occa-
sion when Minneapolis was good, to
him. 1t was, just after building the
stone arch bridge, when he was asked
house and meet some people. He
| thought they wanted to thresh out some
issue with him., and didn't want to
go, and when he arrived and was given
the great silver piece, of which a cut
! was published in h e Journal Sat-
| urday, he never felt so cheap in his
| life.
River No Competition.
| Speaking Of st. Paul, Mr.. Hill got
| back to one of his favorite themes.
the river. He said St. Paul was head
her little good, because congress had
been unable to "lath and plaster the
bottom" He would rather have rail-
road along river, in spite of the COM.
petition, because of the low grades it
affords: GA railroad that is we'll
built,' he declared, twill give you
cheaper transportation than you can get
twenty feet of water. - won't COM
promise on twelve or fifteen. The man
is not born today who can say what a
railroad can do if you will give it room
and not obstruct it and block it with
the ideas and the legislation of men
who know no more about it than they.
do about preaching the gospel of Christ
in Hindu.
"You are we'll placed here. We are
interested in your welfare and your
prosperity We have over one-tenth of
the railway mileage of the United
States. You have more than $4,000
miles Of road that wishes you well and
that can help to build up and means to
do everything that will put you for
it has no interest that is higher or that
is located elsewhere, and upon that I
think your future rests upon solid
and substantial foundation.
"Now the railroads of this state have
had ups and downs. Sometimes We have
agreed to disagree, Sometimes L feel
that we haven had fair show. May
be we have, maybe I am mistaken,
maybe I am too enthusiastic; but bear
this in mind: the railroad transporter
ton of the United States today is just
starting up on an era of better work
and lower rates because you de-
mand them The PUBLIC can make any
I demand it. likes, but the courts have
stepped in wisely and said that the
public cannot take property without
paying fair compensation for its use.,
I -rIf the public. will give attention to-
what can be done, to what may be
done by intelligent work on railroads
and give the railroads an opportun-
itv, I want to tell you that no coun-
try on the face of the earth has ever
had or ever will have as low rate
of transportation as we have in the he
United States. Will do better, we will
90 on. I know what [ am talking
about, because I have seen figures;
Maybe it is all accident, but l have
seen figures that would dry up canal.
Want to Finish Work.
tTo the people who have been good
enough to follow me year in and year out
I have always felt not only. debt of
gratitude but of loyal devotion. l have
Been impelled to go on and, as |
thought. to finish up the structure. |
know that in the course Of a very short
time I must give up my active work.
No one is more ready to put it down
,, than I am. It would be a delight
to, me to put it down in
day. But before doing that ]
want to see it in such shape that it
:, won't be either grated. adopted,
| merged or submerged. I don It want
YOU to have to go to Chicago or to st.
Louis or to Omaha when you want to
get a rate. I hope that you will be
) able to get one nearer home.
-"Tonight I want to thank you, as ]
. IreII Dso E;r.4 Co1,,n