[4] A factor in Yorston being elected in 1907 was the ongoing unlikelihood of a railway line being constructed through the Cariboo in a timely manner, for which the early caution of the Conservative administration received much blame.
[7] Although the Conservative administration had promised late in the election to extend the Pacific Great Eastern Railway (PGE) northward to Quesnel, Yorston regained his seat in 1916.
[8] On forming government that year, the Liberals appointed a select committee to investigate allegations of corruption regarding the PGE construction under the previous Conservative administration.
Local lobbying influenced Yorston and the minister of agriculture to provide BX with a freight subsidy of $10,000 annually from 1918 for the Soda Creek–Prince George steamboat run.
[21] The Yorston ranch, which was significantly larger than the average farm, played a key role in the regional agriculture.
Being a developed farm at the time of purchase, the brothers could focus on productivity as the market expanded, while other settlers struggled to create capacity.