Excerpt from Collections of the Minnesota Historical Society, Vol. 9
Our present systems of transportation are the outgrowth of a method and order of evolution, not as slow as the Darwinian, but steadfast in the principles which have governed their development. From the carrier in the Soudan, with his load upon his back, or the Indian in his birch bark canoe, down to the modern splendidly equipped railway, or the superb ocean steamer, it has been a continuous development, and one that has caused and marked the progressive steps of man in trade and commerce, being, in itself, the highest mark of the best civilization. Safe and rapid transportation is the fruitful mother of material wealth. There seems to be no limit to its growth, and we wonder what next will quicken the movement of peoples and of products. In peace, or in war, safe and rapid transit has been the synonym of power. That upon China, a vast empire, but without the means of rapid or reasonable transportation, the very curtain of history should drop as blankly as if it belonged to some other planet, is perfectly apparent; while England, but a little island, by means of every modern system of transportation, has carried her arms, her commerce, and her power, into all the regions of the globe, gathering wealth in her movements as a universal carrier.
Rapid transportation sets in motion mighty tides of immigration, and is the spur to all commerce. It tunnels the mountains, it bridges the valleys, it deepens the rivers, it opens the wilderness, and builds new empires.
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