The Northern Pacific Railroad Monopoly
Critics argue that the railroad company's selection of Stampede Pass is a calculated power grab over Washington's coal wealth.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
There is great stress laid upon the statement that after struggling vainly for ten or fifteen years to locate a line of railroad over the Cascade mountains which would sidetrack Seattle, the Northern Pacific Railroad Company has finally been compelled to fix upon a route which is practicable. We are told this is significant of a desire to do the correct thing toward this city. The record of the company has been so permeated with deceit that its movements are scrutinized more closely, and the underlying motives are sought not in its statements, but in the probable cause and effect of its actions. There are three causes which combined to force the selection of Stampede Pass. The first is that it is the best route. The second is that the road will bisect the heart of the coal deposits of Western Washington. The third is that the farther north the line is placed, the more land can be claimed via land grants. Any one of these would be sufficient to influence a management not dominated by little-brained town-site speculators. If the line be built as suggested, and if lands are patented to the company, individual enterprise will be impotent to compete with this huge corporation. A monopoly will control our transportation, our mines, and our lands. The construction of a railroad is a needed measure, but it is not a wise policy for the people of this section to forfeit their birthright in order to obtain one.
“A huge monopoly will control our transportation, our mines, our lands; it will levy tribute at its own will upon our resources.”
This 1881 critique of the Northern Pacific Railroad echoes ongoing Seattle debates about corporate monopolies and the control of land and infrastructure. Just as the paper feared the 'forefeiture of birthrights' to rail interests, modern Seattle continues to grapple with how to ensure private development benefits the public, rather than merely draining regional resources.
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