New-York daily tribune., 1859-01-12
FROM PHILADELPHIA.
THE LEHIGH VALLEY RAILROAO-EN-
GLISH FORTUNES,

GLISH FORTUNES.
From OR Own Correspondent.
PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 10, 1889.
TIE msrvel Of the day, in tits region, is the L.
high Valley Railroad. Unlke most enterprises oi
the Kind, which generally look for support irom
traffic to be created by the construction oi the
road, the projectors of this seired upon route
where an everw helmns trade had existed for gears,
and whicb ony wiired for the new channel TO be
cor s,rucied that it might pour do*n uPm II an IN
e1haustlble supply Of products from the heid, the
forge, the furnace, and the nine This road begins
at Easton, the outlet Of the river Lehigh. When
the line Of road commenced on the Delaware, all
access 70 the latter was shut OUT by an enormous
limestone bluff, which rose something like hun
dred feet above the water line. Through this huge
obstruction the roadway was blasted some nun
dred feet, at a great expense. The great blocks
of stone thrown out in the excavation were used
in building the massive piers and abutments oil the
noble bridge across the Delaware, on which two
tracks are laid, one above the other connecting
the Valley Road with the New-Jersey Central and
the Beyidere Delaware Roads. The tracks are
thus built one above the other because the grade
of one road is some - feet higher than the other.
1t is probably the only similar bridge in America,
and its colossal proportions strike with astonlsh-
ment the mind of every traveller who views 1t IN
passing either up or down on the Belvldere Road.
1t is the outlet which the products of the Le-
high region find their way to New-York and other
Eastern markets by two great thOrougbfares, and
twenty years hence must pass an almost fabulous
amount of coal.
After leaving this rocky chosm at South EastOn
it follows the Valley Of the Lehigh 46 miles to
Mauch Chunk. The whole route abOunds IN Wild
and striking scenery not so terrific as that on the
Erie Road, but equally picturesque and captVat-
ing. The mountains have been blasted away IN
many places where they touched the river, to make
room for the track. AT various points as you
travel upward, YOU notice other roads connecting
with this, all running up into the coal mines and
some of them interlOcking with other roads still
further in the interior. At its northwestern ter
minus il connects with the Beaver Meadow Road,
some % miles long to Jeansvile, and about MD
way with Quakake Road a branch l3 miles long,
which unites with the Catawissa Road above
Tamnqua Some Is miles above Mauch Chunk
the Beaver Meadow connects with the HazetOn
Road. which extends to Cranberry Colliery, ~
miles above Hazleton. About miles north of this
junction the Lehigh and Luzerne Road untes with
the HaZleton, having come down miles from the
Big Black Creek coal basin. Other ramiiicatons Of
the network of railroads established in the coal
region, might be mentioned, all which are tributa-
ry to the Lehigh Valley Road. These pour an im-
mense tunnage over the latter, all which formerly
passed down the Lehigh Canal. These feeders are
increasing in number annually. The Valley Road
has not been three years in operation yet IN IS,-
it brought over its beautifully descending grade
nearly half million of tuns of coal, beside vast
amount of iron and other heavy freight peculiar to
that region. II had struggle TO create the busl-
ness il is now doing, all Of il being ready made and
clamoring TO be accommodated. Its profts have
enabled il t. make first dividend few weeks
since.
At the village of Catasaquo, % miles below
Mauch Chunk, another road 10 miles long comes
in from Fogesyie, and furnishes large tunnage
of iron from numerous furnaces all IN blast IN
Lehgh County. Just below Allentown, two other
connections with the Valley Road will soon Do
made. One Of these will connect Allentown with
the Dauphn and Susquehanna Road at Auburn, on
the Reading Road, and the other the East Penn
sylvania from Allentown to Reading. These will
be new and bountful feeders to the Lehigh Valley.
They traverse a country which contains untold
amounts OF iron ore, of which great amounts will
be carried to the blast furnaces on the line OF the
Valley Road. When these roads are completed,
the valleys of the Schuy lkl and Lehigh will be
connected together But to do this the Blue
Mountain must be pierced by tunnel 1900 feet in
length, slow and expensive undertaking. One OF
these routes, the East Pennsylvania opens direct
communication betwt en- New.YOrk and the West,
without going through Philadelphia. By this
route from New-lork to Harrisburg is only l75
miles, or 81 miles nearer than by Philadelphia, 42i
to Pittsburg, and sos to Chicago.
At the old Moravian town Of Bethlehem the Le-
high Valley Road connects with the North Penn
sykania, and at Eas.on with the Belvidere, the
New-Jersey Central, the Delaware and Lacka-
wanna Roads, and with the Morris Canal and the
Delaware Division Canal 1t would be difficult to.
name another railroad so sbundantly supplied with
important feeders and outlets as this. What these
feeders and outlets DO for il is shown in the follow
ing table of its tunnage during the two yesrs it has
been in operation.
1887. 1858.
North Pe.usylyanis Ralrosd. - 2g 66,cO1
New -Je!ssy Central Railrosd........... Sslo2 l80p
B,udsre Delaware Rsrcsd ...........i2i64e 100000