The Council Bluffs nonpareil. [volume] (Council Bluffs [Iowa]) 1857-1867, 1858-06-05
From the Nebraska City News.
The g. joseph and Cosncil Blaffs Railway.

/ From the Nebraska City News.
The ST. joseph ana Cosncil Blsffs Railway.
i AS TO ITS IMPORTANCE.
OF all the enterprises of improvement
which even . poverty-stricksn community
may feel safe in projecting for the advance.
ment of the country, the st. Joseah and
Council Bluffs railway may be placed FIRST in
importance. ..-s. -
1t is proposed to unite tho tw, cities
named, with road along the river bottom
"a distance of some l40 miles. A glance
at the map will be sufficient to discover the
range of country which such road would
command. The rich prairies of Southern
Nebraska extending back hundreds o, miles;
the valley of the Platte capable Of sustain
ing a population larger than that ofthe Al
leghany: Northern Nebraska, and tn, fertile
Mo bra-rah country alrerdy yielding a
trade of no mean value, would of necessi-
ty seek an outlet for its marketable pro-
ducts by this road. The settlement Of the
Platte valley, and the whole region lying
west and away from the Missouri ri'er, on
ly needs the prospect of surer, Peeder,
and cheaper means of intercourse With the
Eastern markets, to, encourage ID rapid
growth, and the development of the natural
resources of the country. North o. Coun-
Gil Bluffs, is a strip of country lying on the
East side Of the Missouri river, andextend-
ing to near the 50th degree of Moth lati-
tude, which commands the outle of the
valleys of the Boyer, Soldier, Litth Sioux,
Floyd's, the Big Sioux, and many Nber riv-
ers--a region rapidly settling up, and rich
in fertility beyond all other pats of the
West. East of TIE road, the valleys of the
streams (the Nishnabotny, Tarki.s, Nodo-
way, One-hundred- and Two, and even as
far East as the Platte) watering tie whole
of Fremont, Page, Taylor, Adam,, Mont
gomery, Mills, Cass and Pottawattamie
counties, and part of Harrison, Shelby, Au-
dubon, Adair, Union, and Ringold, slready
afford traffic sufficient to pay fair divi-
dend on the necessary capital for sush road.
The traffic now goes by slow stages, from
producer to village, from village o country
town, from conntry-town to city, by wag-
ons or on horseback, at so ruiDus an ex-
pense, that when market is resched, there
is little, more often no mar,n left for
profit. We have not the means of estimat-
ing the exact amount of bushis of grain
that will be raised in North Western Mis-
souri, and Western Iowa, this season; but
venture upon personal observation OF the
growing crops Of Atchison, fremont, and
Mills counties, to predict larger quantity
of the cereals than has been riised in the
same region for the past four Or five years
altogether. This product must of course
10 6a no 9th I'd of IN mn
ket by the overland route to the Mississippi,
or by the almost equally expensive carriage
by the steamboats, on the Missouri. A rail-
road would concentrate this trade, and, by
saving expense to the farmer, keep money
with US, and accelerate the rapid progress
we are now making toward distinguished
position in agricultural wealth and import
ance.
1t is the concentration of the trade Of the
Missouri Valley, that is to be productive Of
the first benefits from such works Of i'm
provement as railways-and especially in
| the case Of the st. Jo., and G. B. 4. r.
For the prosperity of the western counties
of Iowa, it is necessary that the capital
which they have to inve with railroad COM
panies, should be productive. This cannot
be done, at least for very many years, if it
is to be divided among different roads, each
one of which, tapping the Missouri Valley
not more than forty or fifty miles from its
neighbor, cannot expect to get more than
small portion of its trade; whereas if the
investment be made in one line, which can
be built easily, cheaply, and Immediately,
and which satisfy our wants, until the H.
creased traffic and wealth of the country is
sufficiently large to warrant the construction
of the East and West roads. Besides this
there is little or no prospect, from the poli-
cy pursued by the Burlington and Missouri
companies, that their roads will open way
for us within six or seven years. They will
not build faster than the counties along
their lines will furnish the means, and we
have DO reason to believe that the credit of
the interior counties, will be in q condition,
for many wears, to warrant the issue Of their
bonds. The border counties are in csnd-
tion-the security which would be afforded
by a mortgage on the swamp land, is amply
sufficient to command twice or thrice the
amount Of money required. 1t will be but
n little while before the capacity of the
Missouri river will be strained to its utmost
to accommodate the trade, and now, while
we are in the humor for it, and our border
counties have the credit, we cannot and
ought not to wait the slow progress of the
Iowa companies.
There are many other considerations
which might be presented, showing the in
portance of the road to Northern Missouri
and especially to St. Joseph and St. Louis
cities. The amount Of the passenger traffic
the increased value it would put upon the
lands of the counties through which it would
pass, &C., &C., but a limit to space prevents,
and We must be content with asserting our
opinion, that no public improvement has
been projected in the West, which is Of such
vital Importance 70 the country, as the st.
Joseph and Council Bluffs Railroad.
AS TO ITS PRACTiCABILITY AND COST.
The proposed route of road, is from St.
Joseph to Council Bluffs City-some lao
miles-along the bottom on the East side of
be safe from extraordinary overhows of that
uncertain stream. The St. Joseph and
Council Bluffs Company were organized at
Council Bluffs on the 10Th of the present
month, and made provision for the Con.
struction of the line from Council Bluffs TO
the Missouri line, a distance of about fifty
miles. For the most part the line will be
straight, one tangent of thirty miles can
probably be run; and in no place need there
be curve of less than one degree-573O
feet radius. The earth work is perhaps the
smallest consideration in the construction
of the road, the larger portion of the en-
bankment can be made with but little more
work than that reqred for ditching; and in
no place will it be likely to exceed 10000
yards to the mile. The excavation necessa-
ry to insure a solid bed and perfect drain
age, and will not exceed an average of 5000
yards per mile. There will be required about
five first and second class truss bridges, on
pile foundations--to be replaced, when the
road itself affords the means of transporta-
ton, by iron or stone. The hurried csti-
mate we have been enabled to make, from
not a perfect knowledge of the route, gives
us the the following figures, which We think
approximate closely to what will be the true
state Of the case:
Grading and brdgngroad ready for the iron 500 900
Cost of iron, distributing and track aying $50 OOOO
Depots and proportion Of equipment. 80 600
Engineering, rents, &C., .................30 900