Page:Oregon, her history, her great men, her literature.djvu/195

 and persuaded that body to declare the action of the f session not binding. It also designated a company of Californians who had incorporated under the same name to re^ei^e the benefits of a grant of land which had been made by^ Center ess on April 22, 1867.

Raihvri ij 11 'I '(if in RosrJ)/' /■(/. Holladay then sent agents to Washington to secure certam concessions for his company, and that body passed an act declaring; that the company which should construct twenty miles of road from Portland south should he^ entitled to the land grant. This Holladay was able to do through money secured in various ways, breaking the first ground on April 16, 1868. TTirough the sale of bonds in Germany based on the land grant he was able to complete the road to Koseburg in 1869.

Railroad Extended to CoJifnruia. After the Oregon and Cah'fornia Railroad was completed to Roseburg, it was taken out oi the hands of Ben Holladay and placeci under the management of Henry Villard. The southern terminus was soon extended to Ashland, where it remained seven years; and in 1887, it was finished to the northern terminus in California, thus completing the connection between Portland and San Francisco.



HiDockt of Hmnletf Soakei. Yeais ago ( 1 869 to 1896) water snakes were very numerous about the wann springs along the banks of Link River, where frogs, tadpoles and other creatures on which they preyed were abundant; and it was observed that when the snakes first came from their winter hiding places in early spring th^ would shoal up into miniature hillocks, thus by close contact conserving the warmth of their bodies. They were entirely harmless, and some gardeners strongly objected to having them killed since the snakes were materially valuable in their destruction of mice and various insects. One season the settlers who wished to get rid of the snakes, because they regarded them as dangerous, offered a small reward for all that could be killed» and the boys slaughtered them