Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 25.djvu/217

 as above specified, shall not be embraced in or any way affected by this agreement, but the right to and the use of the same shall remain as though this agreement had not been made. And it is further agreed that said parties of the first part shall and will not transport freight during said term over said roads for any other person or persons and further that they will not charge said company for transporting over said roads the personal baggage of passengers by the boats of said company. And it is further agreed that said parties of the first part are to have and receive as a compensation for said transportation during said term one-fourth part of the current receipts for freight through from Portland or any place below the Cascades to The Dalles, also one-fourth part of the receipts for transporting specie over said route, also one-fourth of the receipts for carrying the United States mail over said route. And it is further agreed that said parties of the first part shall have all the business of transporting freight across the Cascades to and from the Boats of said Company so far as the said rail roads extend and the said company hereby stipulate not to give freight to any other person or persons for that purpose.

And it is further agreed that the proceeds of said business to be received by said parties of the first part as aforesaid shall be paid over to them in monthly payments, pro rata, each month on or before the sixth day of the ensuing month in such assets as shall have been received by the party of the second part. Witness our hands and seals the day and year above written.

During the winter of 1860-61, the owners of the Oregon Portage Railroad were repairing the line because of the damage occurring in the 1859 rise of the Columbia river, anticipating, as it appears, that their entire line would soon be needed to supplement if not entirely supplant the short Bradford railroad. As early as January 3, 1861, Colonel Ruckel, who had become a director of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company, informed the board at a regular meeting that "the railroad on the Oregon side of the Columbia river at the Cascades would be ready to receive and transport freight on Monday the third day of February next"—so the minutes record. This, we may