Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 5.djvu/140

 130 P. W. GILLETTE. They received about -t: !.( more than th<> actual cost of the property. The $175,000 put in when the company was first organized, in I860, was about all the cash ever put up. That small sum was the prolific nest egg from which so many fortunes and millionaires were hatched. It may be interesting to mention that for many years after the organization of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company they paid no attention to or had any boat on the river be- tween Portland and Astoria, considering it of so little im- portance as to be unworthy their attention. Not until the salmon-packing business had reached considerable magnitude did they give it any notice. In 1865 the company found the Astoria route had grown to be of sufficient value to be worth taking. All they had to do was to notify parties running boats on that route that they wanted possession, and that the company would buy their boats if the price suited. Of course the price suited, because no one would be foolish enough to oppose the Oregon Steam Navigation Company. The Oregon Railway & Navigation Company grew out of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company, continuing its business, and almost immediately began the construction of a railroad up the Columbia from Portland. That company was con- trolled by men in touch with the modern business world in the older States, and at once adopted a broader and more lib- eral course, fully understanding that the rapid development and settlement of the country would advance their interest and increase their business. They soon reduced the rate of transportation, giving the farmer better compensation for his labor and encouraging him to produce more. The "live-and- let-live" policy which they inaugurated at once gave a new stimulus to the whole country. Unquestionably, the Oregon Steam Navigation Company had held in check and kept back the growth of the country east of the Cascade Mountains for years, though perhaps un- intentional on its part. It had so long been accustomed to receive such exceedingly liberal compensation for its services that I have no doubt they believed farm products could not