The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1855-11-14
Pacific Railroad.-Northern
Route.


Route.
The Reports of tho Preliminary Sur
veys. authorized in 1852 were commu-
ncatcd to Congress. Feb. 9th, near the
the close Of the last session. OF these the
first volume, as already published has
come under our eye. 1t is a splendilly
printed quarto of solnc six hundred aud
fifty pages, and contains in detail, but
the reports from day to day, observa-
tons. estimates, &c, Of Governor Ste
veps aud his party, in the survey Of the
Northern Route, of which all the rarti
eulars are presented in great miscclia-
ny Of papers and correspondence, nlca
ting, we suppose, the plan of the whole
Report. 1t is introduced from thc War
Department, by Mr.. Secretary DAVIS in
statement mentioning the geographical
features Of the country the routes in-
tended, the officers employed, and giving
summary of the comparative results.
The routes were, first, the Northern
Route, near the forty seventh parallel Of
latitude, from the Mi,sissippi near ST.
Paurs ia Minncsota.to Seattle on Pugets
sound The second route is by the for
ty-irst parallel or near it, from Burling
ton, Iowa, 10y the Platte and the South
Pass, to San Francisco. The third is
near 'he thirty-eighth parallel, from St.
Louis, by Westport, Mo, to san Francis
co, substantially Col Benton's route,
which fluids little favor in the survey
The fourth near the thiry-Gth parallel
leads from Fort Smith in Arkansas by
TIE Arkansas. tho Cauadien, and the
CHA and finds its way to San Francis
CO. To the cast it connects with Mem
lLis readily The fifth survey follows
near the thirty'sec1nd parallel, from
Fulton on Red River to thd Rio Graule
thence to the Gila, and on to the Pacific
at San Diegoor, turning from this course
earlier to San Francisco. The depart.
mcnt expresses its prepossesslons clearly
in favor Of the soutLcrumost route, with
but little plausibility, if San Francisco,
as it comedies, is the point in this quar-
ter to be attained. The main pciats Of
comparison are as follows
| First or Northern Route,
length, 2O25 miles
Asceuts ana descouts, ~
100 feet
Euuatcd distance, 1887
Second Route from Council
Bluffs to Bencia. 20j2 =
Asccuts and desceuts, 90
l20 feet
Eruated distance, 2js3
Third Houte from Wcs'port
to San Francisco. 22g0 -
Asceuts and dcsceuts, j6,-
574 feet.
Equated distance 1850
Fourth Route, from Fort
Snlith to San Francisco, 2l7i
Accents and descents, So
go feet
Eluatcd distance, 3lS7
Fifth Routc, from FultOnto
St Padra, l6lo
Asconts aud desceuts, 81
GSI feet.
Equatcd distance, 22S9
Same to Sau Francisco 20i9
Ascents and desceuts, Al
00S feet
Equated distance, 2S3t
The advantage in cost of construction,
after certain equaliziug process, ap'
piled by the Department to Gov, Ste
veus's estimates, i, given in favor of the
Southern over the Northern roate by
forty-sevcD millions of dollars AS 93..
l20 600 to l40S7l 900 Gov Stevens
might claim au equal right to eqnalize,
doubtless. and while il is not to be sup
posed that subordinstes would have
over-estimated the expenses of the South
orn route there is no reason 10 conclude
against the judgment of the survey, in
the former instance. Tho grades, aud
eventual feasibility Of the country for
occupation, are greatly in favor of the
Northern route, the extremes being re-
spectively GO feet against 20 or more;
not particularly bad, says the Depart.
ment. The Platte route seems to have
an advantage Of location in respect to
both Oregon aud San Francisco and for
building as passing by Utah. The cost
of this is given at l6,095oOo