FREIGHT RATES AND MANUFACTURES IN COLORADO 1 3 



development of the state. They did not come to Colorado for the pur- 

 pose of starting a manufacturing plant. In fact, the rewards from the 

 mining industry had become sufficiently well known to make most of the 

 migrating population turn their energies in that direction rather than 

 pay much attention to the establishment of manufactures. The persons, 

 then, that came to the state in the earlier decades were persons of the 

 adventurous type of mind and not persons accustomed to the monotonous 

 routine of workaday industry. A population of this sort largely engaged 

 in the mining industry expects that everything will be high. A mining 

 region is accustomed to pay high prices for all things as the rewards 

 of industry in the search for gold are apt to be high and this increases 

 the cost of all other things as workers in other lines must be paid as much 

 as the average returns of the gold seeker. If they are not so paid they 

 will also engage in the search for the precious metals. 



This was the situation in Colorado for the first decade and more 

 after the railroad reached Denver. Mining was the leading occupation. 

 No one was paying much attention to manufacturing; the returns from 

 mining were sufficiently large to make that the paramount industry. 

 Therefore the few manufacturing concerns which did start were soon 

 disposed of by the adjustment of discriminatory rates on the part of the 

 railroad companies. After the factories started, the rates were lowered 

 so that goods could be brought in from the East more cheaply than they 

 could be produced in Denver. This matter did not attract any par- 

 ticular attention during the early period as mining was occupying too 

 prominent a place. As Denver increased in population, however, and 

 it was seen that it was destined to be one of the large cities of the country, 

 and as it also became apparent that the cheaper forms of mining were no 

 longer efficient, then it was evident that manufacturing in Colorado 

 would be an advantage to the city and state. Therefore, public atten- 

 tion began to be directed toward whatever hindrances there were to the 

 development of this important industry. The freight rate difficulty 

 was at once complained of. Discussion of the injustice which it was 

 alleged the city and state were suffering at the hands of the railroads was 

 carried on in the newspapers and in January, 1885, the legislature, 

 almost immediately after convening, appointed a special railroad com- 



