Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1867-06-08

mas regular round OF these places,
and as the seasons advance each of
these stations is visited in turn with the
most religious regularity by the devo-
tees of fashion.
PooNA.
Not to follow in the wake of fashion,
able life, but rather to indulge in trip
combining business with pleasure, Wis
lted Poona, town of about one hun
dred and fifty thousand inhabitants, sit
uated IN the deccan or plateau of Cen
trail India. 1t derives its importance
from the circumstance of its being the
chief military station of the bombay
Presidency, and the seat of the
government for iour or five months of
the year. You go to it by means of the
Great Indian Peninsula Railway, or as
it IS Familiarity called throughout India,
'the g. i. r." Starting by the early
train you enjoy the advantage of a fine
view of the scenery of the country
through which you pass, and arrive at
your destination during the afternoon.
For the first thirty or forty miles of
the Journey, the line runs through a
lOw-Iying tract of country. in which
immense quantities of rice are grown,
but which presents few features of in
terest. PROFESSIONALLY the principal
attraction OF the route is the scenery
as yOu ascend the Western Ghanis-a
range of mountains running down the
coast of Western India, and which.
next to the Himalayas, are regarded as
the grandest scenery in India. The
length of the range is about eight hun
dred miles, and some of the mountains
measure from six to seven thousand
feet high, but most of them are only
aboGt four thousand feet in height
A MOUNTAIN RAILROAD.
When the idea of eonstructinga rail
road was first moOted in England ID
was secuted as the very height of folly
and absurdity, and many well-meaning
people cOmpassionately believed Geo.
Stephenson to be mad. John Bull has
even built "A railroad over one of the
mountain ranges of India, and although
it Is one of the greatest engineering
feats of the present century, the
achievement seems To be comparatively
unknown.
A few words concerning this remark
able undertaking. may not be out of
place. When the British government
determined TO construct q network Of
railways throughout India, considerable
discussion took place as TO the best
means ol connecting Bombay with Gal
cntta and Madras, for rs there was no
break IN the Western Ghauts, the idea
oil constructing railway across them
seemed utterly impossible However,
surveys We're made, and ut length it
was determined to build the railway as
it now exists; that Is, run from Bombay
to Callian. distance of about thirty
miles inland, and there il forks into two
branches, one going to the northeast to
Agra, where it joins the East Indian
Railway leading from Agra to Calcutta,
and the other going In IA southeasterly
direction towards POOna aud Madras. -
The first Of these crosses the Thell
Gaut-a mountain rising 1912 feet
above the level of the sea-and the lat
ter crosses another mountain called the
Bhore Ghaut, which rises to a height
of 2, OBJ feet above the sea. The diff
cultlcs which the engineers encounter
ed IN the construction al this work
were something stupendous but as
most of the ground over which the line
passes is now cleared of jungle aud lev
eled, and the all but inaccessible noun
tain scarps along which the track has
been laid have been well nigh oblitera-
ted, the obstacles are now i'll many pla-
ees scarcely apparent.
The BbOre Ghaut incline, which is
| the larger of the two mountain ways, is
10 miles 6S chains long. The level of
its base is 1876 feet above high-water
mark at Bombay, and of its summit,
1907 feet; SO that the total elevation of
the incline is 1881 feet. Its average
gradient is l in As; it's least in $50,
ami its steepest l in 81. Throughout
its length are 26 tunnels, ranging from
40 yards to 437 yards long, and forming
a total length of 8, 1886 yards, or 2 IA
miles. There are eight viaducts, most
of which consist of arches of so feet
span, varying in length from 81 yards
to los yards, and from 40 feet to I39
feet high; so that the total length
amounts to fully half mile.
The total quantity of cuttings
amounts to 1923, l02 cubic yards, and
the enbankments to ,849, 1874 cubic
yards, the greatest depth of cutting
being 80 feet, and the maximum height
of the largest embankment being "a
feet. Besides this, there are Is bridg-
IS of various spans, from to 30 feet,
and IS culverts, ef from 2 to feet
span. The cost of the incline was
1857, ODD sterling, or 941, lSS mile; or,
IN other words, about So, 0O0,0 900. The
works were commenced in 1855, and
were finished in about five years after
wards.
IL is obvious that to make a train
laden with freight or full of human be-
ings ascend "a gradient of upwards OF
eighteen hundred feet must require ex-
traordinary locomotive power. Ac-
cordingiy, when an ordinary passen-
ger train approaches a station at the
foot of the Ghauts it is divided into
two sections, aud generally two exceed
ingiy powerful engines are attached to
pull, and third to push each section