Mr. WILLIAMS. I undertake to say that if this company undertakes to transfer the powers that it derives from Congress under this amendment to their charter to citizens of Can ada, Congress may repeal the charter and may repeal this law, and s. but an end to the enterprise and prevent an defeat the construction of this road in the U.S. In that way Congress has the entire control of this subject, and there is no reason to apprehend that this company will, under such circumstances, put the control of this road into the hands of, citizens of Canada. This argument, if it amounts to anything at all as an objection to this bill, is an argument that may be used with equal force against any act of congress of a similar nature; for it is possible for any company and every company or nized by congress for any purpose, to tran er the control of its franchise and its powers and its privileges to citizens of Canada or of any other portion of the world; and it is only brought in here simply because this road runs along the northern boundary of the U.S. This idea is brought forward as a mere matter of conjecture, and Congress is required to defeat a bill of this description and this magnitude, so necessar to the development of the country and to the commercial interests of the entire world, upon a possible contingency that is exceedingly improbable, as the Senator must admit. The honorable Senator argues that the road is objectionable because it runs along the northern boundary of the U.S. I, on the contrary, claim that that is one reason why the U.S. should with all possible exedition cause the construction of this road. here is a plan now in contemplatiOn of confeder ating the different States and Provinces of Canada, and British capital is contemplating the construction of a work like this from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean within the British possessions, and if the U.S. decline or refuse to construct this road at this time, the time is not far distant, I apprehend, when British capital will construct a road through the British possessions from Puget sound to the Atlantic ocean, and in that we. will obtain the command of all the trade an commerce of that entire region of country. If this road is constructed the U.S. will obtain the control of all the trade of that region of country both in the British possessions and in the U.S. The vast valley of the Saskatchewan, the Red river valley, the As siniboin valley, and many other extensive val leys in the British possessions that are rich and populous will be made tributary to this thoroughfare through the U.S., and all that portion of the British possessions lying contiguous to the northern boundary of the U.S. 'will be made tributary to the U.S and to this road. I think, therefore, that it is for the manifest welfare of the countrythat this road should be constructed, and that the British possessions should be made tributary in that way to the U.S., rather than this entire northern country be made tributary to the British possessions. This road traverses a vast region of country, a country that would make 7 or 8 or ten States as large as Pennsylvania, traveling through Minnesota, Dakota, Idaho, Montana, and Washington to Puget sound, and its construction would tend to the development of the agricultural and mineral 'resources of that country, and in an indirect way it would more than compensate the U.S. for all that it might expend in the construction of the road or become liable to expend if this bill should become a law. The Senfrom Ohio has presented an im osing array of figures here for the purpose of righteuing the Senate from a favorable consideration of this bill; and he argues that the U.S. by the passage of this law becomes liable to pay $100,000,000. That argument is just as sound as it would be if the Senator was to argue that the Government of the U.S. should cease all its operations because at the end of 20 years the expenses of governing the nation would be $2,000,000,000 without taking into the account at all whatever the Government might receive during that time for the purpose of defrayin those expenses. The Senator says that there was a solemn promise when the original act was passed that no application should be made for money. I know not what romise was iven. I do not know what individual or indivi equalshad power to make such a romise or such a pled e. I have no doubt that it was the expectation at that time of everybody connected with this enterprise that an appropriation of this amount of lands would enable the company to construct the road; but after an effort of 2 years these lands have been found unavailable for that purpose, and the question is now submitted to Congress as to whether or not it will abandon this magnificent work, give it up altogether, surrender any effort to develop the resources of this vast country by the construction of such a road, or whether Congress will lend simply its credit to the enterprise in order to accomplish its speedy completion. That is the simple question. Is it wiser and better for Congress at this time to abandon the enterprise because it has been ascertained that this work cannot be constructed by the use of the lands at this time, and there 18 no other way in which this company can proceed except by this assistance, this credit which it asks at the hands of congress‘? It is perfectly apparent that these lands cannot be made in their present situation to build this road. What were the rairie lands of the State of Illinois worth in the interior of that State lands that are now exceedingly valuable before there was any railroad constructed in the State of Illinois? What were the lands in the western art of Iowa and Missouri, removed from the navigable waters of those States, worth before there were railroad lines connecting those lands with some commercial thoroughfare in the country? These lands lyin" in Minnesota, in Montana, and in Idaho would be rich and productive lands if they n could be cultivated; but now, when there are no means of access to them, they are worth little or nothing; they would produce nothing of any value to the individual; they would produce nothing of any value to the country; but build to them a railroad and then they become valuable; then they can be sold; then they will produce an income. But you cannot now go into the market with these lands and sell them to a man or to a company for any considerable amount. Nobody desires to invest money in lands so remotely removed from all possible connection with the commercial centers and channels of the country, without some proba bility that there will be a railroad or some means of connection constructed between the northern lakes or the lakes or railroads of the country and these valuable lands. Now, sir, this has been ascertained, as I understand, that these lands cannot be made available but this bill proposes that this company shall proceed, in the rst place, and construct 25 miles of road without any assistance whatever from the Government, by the use of private capital. When the 25 miles of road are constructed, then the Government is asked to guaranty the interest upon the stock of the company to the amount of 2odd 1,000 dollars permile from the date of its issue. The Government does not guaranty the payment of the stock, as the gent cman seems to imply, if he does not directly assert, but the Government simply guaranties the payment of the interest at 6%. upon that stock; and the gentleman argues that in this way millions of indebtedness will accumulate against the U.S. This company proposes, as security to the government for this guarantee of interest upon the stock, to mortgage to the U.S. all the lands lying on the south side of the road, amounting to 20 sections permile, more than has been donated, as the gentleman says, to the Union Pacific railroad. All these lands are to be applied to the payment of the interest upon this stock in case the Government is compelled to pay any portion of that interest. Now, here are 12,000 800 acres permile of land that is to be applied, in the 1st place, to pay the interest upon the stock issued, which the Government guaranties, for each mile of this road. Anybody can see at a glance that that land of itself, assumin that it is worth anything at all, that it is wort the price for which the public lands of the U.S. sell the proceeds of those lands will be sufficient to pay the interest which the Government would have to pay upon the stock that it might guaranty for each mile. Then, again, when this road is constructed, after the expiration of ten ears, within which time it is to be complete, one 4th of the net proceeds of the road is to be up lied to the liquidation of any claim which the government may have for interest advanced upon this stock. Now, su osing that the interest accumulates, that noting whatever is received from the sale of these lands during the ten years and that is not a reasonable supposition at all at the end G ten years the entire interest perannu m uponv the amount that the Government will guaranty according to the terms of this bill will be about 5 million dollars perannum. Now, Mr. President, I will ask the Senator if it is unreasonable to suppose, in case the road is constructed, that the net earnings of it will be $16,000,000. I understand that the Pennsylvania Central in 1865earned 3odd million dollars. It is not reasonable to suppose that the net earnings of this road, c on structed from Puget sound to Lake Superior would be $20,000,000? And a quarter 0 that, $6,000,000, is to be did every year to the Treasury of the U.S. in case there be any claim remaining there for the interest advanced on this stock. Here on have the land lying on the south side of this road; 1/2 of the munificent grant made by the U.S. to this company, half of the lands appropriated simply to the payment of the interest upon the stock, and then you have one 4th of the net earnings of the road pledged. You pay nothing but the interest; there is no liability for the principal of the stock; and here is this vast amount of land and here is one 4th of the proceeds of this road ledged to the pament of the interest. So it oes seem to me that there is no proba bility at all that the Government will be compelled to pay one cent which is not reimbursed to us under these provisions of this bill. This is simply the Government loaning to this company its credit; it simply becomes an indorser of the stock. The company will pay the interest if it can. The simple object of this is to enable the company to negotiate its stock and raise the necessary money. Every man knows that railroads cannot be constructed in this country unless the road be mortgaged or bonds be given, unless some means are employed for raising money. What other way can this road ado t unless it be to have some guarantee of this escription? Should the company ap 1yto an individual to subscribe 10,000 or 50,000 dollars for the construction of this road, that individual may not wish to invest his money because he does not know that other persons enough will take the balance of the stock so as to make the road a success; and if it is a failure, whatever he contributes in that way is lost to him; and so it is impossible to bring persons enough to agree to contributecapitalenoughbytnkingstocktomake the road a certainty, to make its success after tainty, and each individual stands back, is unwilling to put forward his capital in this enter rise because he a prehends that there will not he capital raised eihewhere, put with his capi tal, to construct and finish the road; but when ever the Government guaranties the interest, men are willing to contribute their capital for this purpose, and the construction of the road becomes a certainty, a success. Mr. President, I am taxing the patience of the Senate, and I will not say more.