The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1926-12-24

/. Stevens, then governor of Washington
Territory, who had been commissioned by
he United States government, made eXplOr-
atoms Of the country lying between the
'orty-seventh and fOrty-ninth parallels of
to determine the practicability Of
4 route for a railroad from the Great Lakes
and the upper Mississippi valley to the
waters of Puget Sound. The scope of the
included, among other data, the
characteristics of the immediate regions, /
then very Indefinitely known, or wholly un-
known, as to their adaptability to agricul-
tural pursuits, their water supplies, their
mineral, timber and other resources, and
their conditions in general for the main
tenance of a civilized and progressive pop
ulatiOn. The official report of the eXpedi-
ton confirmed the truly national charac-
ter of such an enterprise as the Northern
Pacific. Great Northern, or Chicago, Mil
waukee q st. Paul. of today. This report
brought prominently into view the northern
routes advantages in respect to distances
as a highway of and travel-its
greater proximity to Asia, its shorter dis
lance between the great water lines, and
most direct route beween Europe and Asia.
1t also established that by the Northern
route we're by far the easiest gradients, the
least and feweSt engineering difficulties,
and that there existed an abundance of
wood. water and materials Of construction.
The Northern Pacific Authorized
In 1862, when the Union and Central Pa
cific railway companies were chartered, a
very strong effort was made to obtain a
charter for the Northern Pacific line. For
the time being, it failed, but it was again
revived in 1864, and by the Act of Congress
| approved July ?, 1864, a large body of cor
p~OratOrs became a body corporate and pol
itic, under the style of the Northern Pa
cific Railroad company, with power to
build a railroad from Lake Superior to
Puget Sound on the line Of the fOrty-fifth
parallel.
Jeff Davis Killed Northern Idea
II hoe mt hoon wanarolIv writfan onf
few people today know who it was thai
deprived Montana of the privilege of beina
upon the route of the first tran%scOntinenta
railway route, despite the thorough re
port by Governor Isaac l. Stevens, after
conscientious survey and finding that i
was the most practicable.
Jefferson Davis--the man who was to be
come president Of the cOnfederacy-wa
then secretary Of war under Presiden
Pierce, and it was under his particular di
rectiOn that three general surveying par
ties were started simultaneously from tn
east, one to follow the Missouri 10
point near the head of navigation, theme
to the Columbia river; a second to eros
the great American desert through Uta
and Nevada to San Francisco, and still
another TO proceed from Texas thrOu@
New Mexico and Arizona to southern Cal
%ifOrnia. .
The triumph of the Democratic party i
November, 1852, had insured a more vigOI
Gus policy of exploration and settlement &
the vast DOMAIN GAleuuluE lIOM LuG NAAos
isSippi to the Pacific, but the admlniStra
ton was naturally inclined . favor
southern route. Puget Sound and 81
Francisco, however, were regarded as ms
tural depot points for transcontinental ira.
Ific. The central route, the one finally &C
opted for the first line, and the one thG
would lead most directly to San Francisco
was regarded obviously even by the sOutl
ern Democrats because of the vast steri
areas to be traversed. SO, while I'll
southern Democrats would have p%referre
a route farther south, many of them ha
come to the conclusion that the nOrther
route Through MOntana) was inevitab
unless it could be shown that IT was III
practicable because of heavy SHOWS in Il
mountain passes and general unfavOrab
weather conditions.
Governor Stevens submitted his first r
port of all the routes. on June 30, 1884.
this report, he met the stock objections
the northern route, setting forth the supe
iOrity Of this route in soil, climate an
easy grades, citing the absence Of snO
and the accessibility by inland river nav
CATION.
Timid Mr.. McCIelIand
An excise for rejecting Governor ste
ems report and recommendations, hOweve
was found in the subsidiary report Of Br
vet Captain George Il. McCelland, afte
wards commander of the union armies
the Civil war. In the words of Steven
biOgrapher, (his SOM, Captain Mcclellan
= in his exploration. manifested the san
UlldLOflneSS III preparation anu mONlu
the same timidity in action. the same ma.
nifying of difficulties, that later mark'
q and ruined his career as an army cor
4 mander."
McClelland was entrusted with the cor
mand of the surveying party that START
from Vancouver and proceeded eastwai
n over the mountains to meet the main par
coming west. He took n decidedly anfa
Orable view of the country and of Il rai
Y road route across the Cascades. lie d
. clared that the Columbia river pass w
70 the only one worth considering, and tn
there was no pass north Of it except Il
- ~SnOqualmie pass and gave it as his fir
and settled opinion that the snow in whit
- was from 20 to % feet deep in that pass.
N Four railway lines now pass the We
70 range that McClelland eXamined and tn
he reported as impossible. These are t
- main line of the Northern Pacific, by t
- pass inst south of the ~SnOqualmie al
north of the Nahchess; the Great NOrthe
by the pass at the head of the Wenachee
- P%isquOuse river, of which stream McClt
land declared at appears certain tn
there can be no pOss at its head for
~ road - a Northern Pacific line across I
COuer d'Alene pass on Governor Stevel
10 route to the vicinity Of the Mission al
= the Gilmore & Pittsburg from Salmon, Id
no, across the mountains into Montana.
In his report to Congress, Secretary Je-
w ersOn Davis arbitrarily increased Stevel
20 estimate Of the cost Of the construct
along the northern route from $117,121,C
70 to $3.50, S71, 600, magnified the raHSs al d
no ficulties, condemned the Agricultural
al sources, and declared that he counf
20 west of the Rocky mountains to Ehe z
cific slope may likewise be described
one of general sterility." Resardjog {
~ SnOqualmie pass, he quoted McClsitr
fl and warmly cOmplimented the latter
~ reconnaissance Of great value"
- Union Pacific and Central Paciiin
fe Thus it was that finally, in 1864 c0igc3
ro having become convinced that a EaiTO
ne 20 the faclLlc c1asI was a lHL L -
~ be accomplished without governmental a
al amended the original charter which h
os been granted the Union Pacific and c.
G Irdl TaclAc r"iiO"us' "uueu