The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1868-01-09
THE IR0NgH0RsE.GS THE MOUNTAINS.
The California End Of the Pacific Rail-
rGad---NOyei SceHeS---Bridging
Coz @es Three thousand feet
in Dcptii---The iicyiOn
Of Perpetual Snow.
[From the Cincinnati Gazc.te.l

Our readers know, but only by casual
newspaper paragraphs, that the Central
Pacific railroad has already crossed the
summit Of the great Navada range; but
they do not know with what remarkable
scenes and extraordinary triumphs of en-
gineering that work has been accomplish
cd. Indeed, if we had not the testimony
of witnesses, we should hardly believe
that even amid the great achievements of
our country, SO remarkable one had been
accomplished. Bat we have before us
the letter fan eye witness. which describes
in detail the railroad crossing the Navada
AS this was very novel scene, both In
nature and in civil engineering. we think
the reader will be interested in it. About
the lst of October, Pavmastcr Charles ID.
Mansfield with three other officers OF the
Pacific Squadron, paid visit to the sum-
nit of the Nevada, by way Of the Central
Pacific railroad. From this letter we ex-
tract the following description Of that work
and its scenes. He says:
"Our party consisted of four, and we
went as far as the summit of the Sierra
Nevada mountains. The central point of
operation for the Central Pacific is Sacra
mento. Here the engine houses and MA
chine shops are located. Those in present
use are only temporary structures; but
they are laying the foundations for the
most extensive buildings OF this descrIp
zion in the United States. The circular
engine house will contain over one hun
drcd stalls. There will be two machine
shops, three hundred by one hundred feet.
The foundations of these buildings are
sunk deep in the ground, and are of great
thickness and solidity, being laid Within
mense blocks of the splendid granite with
which this country abounds These
buildings will be enlarged, as occasion
demands, and it is thought that it will
require three hundred locomotives to
run the road to Salt Lake and the branch
es to Oregon and San Francisco The
latter place is one hundred and seventeen
miles from Sacramento. The locomotives
u-ed on the mo Intains are the largest
ever saw, some Weighing seventy tons
The fare is enormous, being ten cents per
mile.
SAT half-past six in the morning we
took the cars The first twenty miles of
the road lay over level bottom tract of
land lying between the Sacramento and
American. rich grain growing and forest
bearing country. The first station, Rose
vile eighteen miles, is the junction o.
branch road leading off toward Marys-
VILE Soon after passing this station we
began to ascend, and in the distance were
plainly to be seen the snow capped peaks
of the Sierras. Behind us lay the rich
valley OF the Sacremento, its vineyards
and its orchards, its meadows and its
fields of golden grain-the frost of winter
and the warmth of summer seen t. geth-
er. At first the grade is gradual and the
ground rolling: very soon. however; the
grade becomes heavier, the hills more
abrupt, the gorges there called canousl
breaking between them, their perpendi-
cular sides rising to height of one thou
sand feet. just before losing all sight Of
he yalley-in fact, our last glimpse of ii