Year: 1874




fast receding season OF navigation
demonstrates, beyond the shadow of
a doubt, that, although we have al
ready two railroads In daily opera
tion-the one to the west and the
other to the s0uthwest-we not only
require but must positively have a
third, and that running to the east
by the shortest possible route. I'm
til we do have such additional high
way we shall remain as now, occu-
pying somewhat subordinate or
sideshow position. This is an as
founding fact and its announcement
may give otfense to few people
here who have all along imagined
that the lake to the east Of us was
of itself sufficient to guarantee our
full success; but the truth is now
apparent, we need something more
than the lake in the way of an east
ern commercial connection. Lake
Superior is great hel p to us aud,
during the summer, will always give
us an advantage in the shipment of
wheat and flour east and the ship
ment of coal and heavy freights
west; but, it is folly to think other
wise, we must have a quicker out
let to the Atlantic seaboard. an out
let that will, from the mere force of
circumstances, compel all business
people west of us to get their mer-
chandise this way.


AT present the railroad lines run
ning east from St. Paul have Us
completely under their thumb, ana
To break us down are carrying the
principal eastern freights at rates SO
low, considering the difference in
the time of transit, as to preclude
the possibility of their being shipped
this way. This is startling admis-
sion, but it may as well be made
now rs here ,iter, for it is 4 truth
none can gainSay How, then, can
We expect TO grow, III Il business
sense, locked IN IN winter rs we are
for five months, and forced to pat
ronlZe III our eastern interc curse the
very corporations that break us
down in summer? The thing is out
of the question, and every reasoning
mind must so conclude.


An airline railway to Montreal
and the eastern cities will work a
complete commercial revolution, 50
far rs Duluth is concerned, and will
result in making every city and
town within radius Of hundreds of
miles tributary to us. st. Paul.
Minneapolis and hundreds of other
places would then lre, IN one sense.
our commercial servants instead Of
our commercial masters, as now,
their location forcing them, rs it
undoubtedly would, to come TO and
pass through here whether they de-
sired 50 TO do or not, for our route
east, bear il in mind, would be much
the shortest, The quickest and the
cheapest to the Seab0ard We
could, by means of it, draw through
here every barrel OF flour shipped
east by the millers of Minneapolis
and other places, and the passenger
travel and lighter freights of these
places would assuredly, despite any
inducement that could be held out,
pass through here, the Saving of
time and money securing that busi-
ness to us.


What, then, in view of these facts,
Is the duty Of our leading men :?
Plainly to drop everything else and
institute the work of getting an east
ern railway connection. Will they
do this?


As we have said an hundred times
before, the Canadians stand ready
to meet us at the SauIt canal with
their Northern Pacific Branch rail
road, and, further, so needful 10 them
is a road via Duluth, we believe, it
they Were called upon by the right
kind of people, they would put in a
large share of the capital necessary
to build the line westward from the
Sault.


1T Is sheer nonsense to say that
money cannot be raised at present
t. build railroads. It car be raised
Y the right sort Of an effort be made.
Satisfy capitalists (and this can
readily be done) that there already
exists paying trade for the con
templated road, that it is absolute
ly demanded, aud the currency to
build it will come forth. We
guarantee y0u a good dicidendiS the
open sesame that will unlock the
Golfers of the capitalists.


That this matter will receive the
earnest and early attention of our
people Is our sincere wish. Our
Ideas, II is true, may be crude, but
a practical carrying out of them
will, before ten years, make Duluth
what we desire to see it. one of the
greatest Of the great cities on this
Duiuih Herald.


Duluth has awakened, has she.
to comprehension of the situation.
1t Is an eastern outlet is it? 1t is
the ease substantially of mill which
grnds only half the year, because
Its drive wheel is locked up by ice
the other halt, and which can't COM
pete with machinery that runs with
out lntermission.