The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-11-16

| So per cord for assorted hBds, and CfOss-tles
| Tor from 81 to Sl'J0. Two hundred apd fifty
miles from Omaha, and south Of the Platte, ts
found a belt Of red cedar, about thirty miles
| wide and twenty-five miles long. From this the
company have cut one hundred THOUSAND ce1ar sIr
| Cross-ues and telegraph poles--en0ugh :, loI W
| several hundred miles, and probably enousl " "
reach the Rocky Mountains. This cedat gIIws g,1,t
| in the canons, where it is most pIoO%aVIe % ro roV
the wild fowl have dropped the seedi an pr
| tected from fire and the cold, pleah' plel.in5 a5
winds, they have been nursed mo NE i.l anu
once securing foothold, soon p,Ti reaaru eneII as
heads to bid defiance to all the elements com
bined and now thew are found ready TO make
glad the hearts of the Pacific Rallw pioneers.
THE WATER QUESTION.
Water Is easily reached all along the road by
digging from eight to twenty rect: Ihe con-
pany have constructed water stations at con-
venient distances, and with station houses of a
size and character not eXcelled by any of our
Eastern roads. The water is pumped up at pre-
sent by hand but the company will soon in
troduce windmills for that purpose, the per-
petual winds that 60 bowling over the Plains
furnishing all the necessary power.
RAILWAY SHOPS AND STRUCTURES.
The company have built shops at Omaha for
the construction and repairs OF their cars and
engines, that bid fair TO rival, in efficiency and
build, those ofanyiof our Eastern roads. They are
all of brick, and are all so laid out as to enable
the company to extend them indefinitely. The
company are now running twenty-one ocomo-
tives, and the next summer will increase vt to
one hundred. They have now only three hun
dred cars but in less than year will have use
for two thousand. BY March next they will be
able TO turn out from their own shops at Omaha
one car a day. and probably soon double and
even treble that number.
THE DIVISIONS.
The road will be divided into working divi.
sions OF about one hundred and fifty miles each,
and although the same cars will run from the
Atlantic to the Pacific without any change OF
their freight, the engines will only run one divi.
sion. From Omaha to the mountains there is to
be no grade over thirty feet to the mile. and the
trains made up there for the West go through
Just the same. On their return the all down
grade will en- able them to bring back any
quantity of coal or stone for ballasting the road.
The first WORKING division terminates at Grand
Island, one hundred and sXty-hve miles from
Omaha. Here the company have nearly COM
pleed brick roun d-house for their engines,
and shop for repairs. The next relay or end
of division will be near Cottonwood, where
similar brick buildings Will be erected. The
bricks are made at Oma ha, although there Is
plenty OF the finest brick clay all along the road,
upon the bluffs or terraces at the edge of the
prairie bottoms
THE TRACK.
The loan and sand make an excellent bank
for the track, and the surface, forming kind
of paste, does not easily turn into dust ana
soon covers over with grass; this in q creat
a terrible plague to all travellers 1t is the in
tention of the Company to ballast the entire
length of the road with finely broken stone,
similar to the Pennsylvania Central Railroad.
On their reaching the Rocky Mountains they
will send return loads of stone on all their con-
struction trains.
AN AIR LINE.
No road ever vet built runs on so straight a
line as this. East of Columbus there is an air
line of eighty miles, without the slightest dehec
ton; while in the last two hundred and fifty
miles of track there is probably not twenty
curves in the entire distance, not an embank-
~, l,n II hforI
that depth, with only a bridge in half days
ride. This road has every advantage that will
enable it to make the fastest timeECf any rail-
road in the world
HIGH SPEED.
On its return the late excursion train was
composed OF nine cars. and, to show the guests
what could be done, 1T ran al the rate of a mile
minute, or sixty miles per hour, for some
time. Five hundred and fifty miles from Omaha
to the mountains can be run in fourteen hours
with perfect safety, and allow for passengers to
stop ard get meals and the engines to supply
themselves with wood and water. From New
York to Chicago, by way of Plttsburg, Is oil
intestine 80 hours; from Chicago 10 Omaha,
by way OF Northwestern, is 497 more, aEd time
% hours; making 1858 miles In rs hours, or
three days from New York to Denver City. One
week to go from Wall street, spend day in q
Colorado gold mine. and return to the Brokers'
Board.
PROSECUTION OF THE WORK.
But turning back to the end of the track
| reaching away out over the Plalns, we ma
grading parties at work for distance of hun
dred miles beyond the end of the rail; seventy
| FIVE miles are ready for the ties, except some
| small gaps that will be filled up in ample time.
| There is bridge to be built over the north fork
| OF the Platte, but that is already partly done,
| and will cause no delay.
The track has been laid this summer at the
| average rate of one mile and siX-tenths per day
| for every working day in the month, and making
| no allowance tor rainy days or want of material.
| Three hundred miles of rails, chairs, etc. have
| been taken up the Missouri river this summer
and landed at Omaha. More is on the way, but
the freezing up of the springs that supply the
Missouri river at its head Will leave so little
water in the channel as to stop navigation in
ten days more. Before the work is stopped this
month they expect to have three hundred and
| twenty-five miles in running order. BY January
| l the Chicago and Northwestern will have com
| pleted their road to Council Bluffs when all the
| future material of the Union Pacific will pass
| through Chicago on the way to Omaha.
| The item of frelghts up the narrow and tortu.
| Gus channel OF the Missouri has been an enor
| nous one. To get engines and cars up from st.
| Joseph from which point nearly all the freight
| was taken), q boat had to be constructed on pur
| pose and so built as to draw only three feet ot
water 1t cost 10 transport engines from the
! shops in the East, where they were built, from
| Sl70O TO $4,000 each, and cars from $3.50 to $1,000
| each. 1t is evident that all rail communication
| next summer will reduce the iGem OF ireightt
from thirty to forty per cent, While no roac
| has ever been so cheaply graded none has
| ever been built under so many disadvantage
| and expenses, and the whole world may wei
| look on with wonder mt the almost magic builC
of two hundred and eighty six miles, now in
| running order. The wonder is increased as yoU
any other railroad and only the Missouri river
| TO furnish channel for supplies,
THE SURVEYS
| tIo loo Cix months fbp ri