When we reached the Black Hills in South Dakota we found the route from Silver City to Rapid City down the narrow valley of Rapid Creek occupied by a partially completed railroad which the projector had been compelled to abandon for lack of funds. This we purchased for a small sum. With that exception the right of way through Washington, Wyoming and South Dakota cost us practically nothing. Moreover, the farmers in Eastern South Dakota aided us with their labor, accepting the produce and merchandise which we brought with us from Idaho for pay. The labor orders, also, were in demand along that part of our road, and we established the department stores in the states where these orders were soon received back for wares. The state of Washington was at the time our road reached Seattle largely under the control of the Washington Co-operative Association, and that Association, being like the Co-opolitan, a creature of the National Brotherhood of the Co-operative Commonwealth, deemed its interests identical with ours and aided us materially in pushing our enterprise in that direction. In Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois the several legislatures had denied to all, except domestic corporations, the right to exercise the power of eminent domain. This law had been passed at recent sessions of their legislatures at the instance of certain railroad companies to exclude our line. The people of these several states had been much incensed when the laws mentioned were enacted. Had the initiative and referendum been in force there as in Idaho this would not have been a serious impediment. We could then have gone among the indignant citizens and procured a petition signed by twenty per cent of the voters of the state asking that the obnoxious laws be submitted to the popular vote. Such was the feeling against the corrupt corporations at the time that people would have hastened to sign such a petition. But they had no initiative and referendum law, and so were at the mercy of the corruptionists. The plain reason why the competing railroads desired to exclude our line, and why the farmers desired to have it enter these states, was the understanding that we would reduce all rates, both passenger and freight, to the great advantage of the farmers. In fact, we designed to make a reduction in these respects which would mean ruin for all competing lines. We were able to do this. In the first place the road had cost us nothing but labor, except what we paid in cash to purchase the Rapid Valley Road and the right of way over the lands of certain hostile farmers. Even this cash represented our labor and was valuable only as it would purchase other labor or its products.