Mr. DODGE. Mr. Speaker, I propose to examine this question for a very few moments as a business man and with reference to its influence upon the business of the country and the Interest which the Government has in the completion of this road. I presume, sir, that when the Congress of 1864 granted the charter for the construction of this road it was in view of the fact that the completion of the road was calculated to advance the interests of the country. At that time a bargain was made, such as railroad men often make with sections of the country that need the completion of railroads. have been familiar with the construction of railroads know how often, for the sake of securing the building of a single spur or branch through an unimproved and undeveloped portion of the country, those who own the land are ready to come forward and offer to the railroad company one half, or any fair proportion of the land which they own, and whicIiis entirely unmarket able, if the company will buildarailroad which will give value to the land. In this case the Government not only had unproductive land which it was desirous of rendering productive, but it had other objects. It looked to the vast population settling on the Pacific coast. It looked to Oregon, 0. 1,000 miles north of SanFrancise o. It looked to the vast mineral resources of the country, which this road would open to development and settlement; Looking at all this, a bargain was made, which, for the Government, would have been a good bargain if those with whom the bargain was made had had the ability to carry it out. They came for this charter under the full expectation, probably, that obtaining a charter with such liberal grants of land they would be able to find capitahsts with the necessary money to build the road. The moment they presented the charterto men of capital, from whom they must have the money, they saw at once there was to be an ex)enditure of from 20 to 30 million dollars before this land could be. made available, The consequence was, when they went to capitalists here and elsewhere, they failed to find those who were willing to take this immense grant of laud, this wild and mountaine us land land, as the Gentfrom Minnesota [Mr. DONNELLY] has truly said, entirely unavailable, and which could not be sold to any capitalists in the world for 5 cents an acre. They failed to find the capital, but they did not fail to find those who, if they could control this charter, would be glad to make it acces sory to great works through the British North American Provinces. They found British capital could be obtained to build this road. I will say to the House that I have not been interested to the extent of one dollar in the Northern or Central Pacific railroad; but when I found, a few weeks ago, a gentleman with whom [have been acquainted for years, and whom I have looked upon as the best railroad man in the country; when I found that he and his as Those who sociutes, some of the best railroad men in NewEngland; men whose management havemarle them what they are: men well known in the moneyed circles of NewYork and NewEngland when, I say. a few months ago there was danger that this franchise would fall into the hands of British capitalists, these men met in Boston and looked over the charter; and they decided that something should be done to prevent this charter falling into the hands of rit ish capitalists. They decided they would take this charter from these parties and pay the honorable expenses which had been contracted in preliminary surveys and such other incidental expenses, which every one who has had anything to do with railroads is aware enter into every such arrangement.