Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1868-07-05
THE RAILROAD OVER THE
ALPS.
Triumph Of Engineering-A Most
Interesting Letter.

AnAtESSafAS A@CttChs
We extract from a letter to the Lon
don Times of late date, the following
highly interesting description Of a trip
over the Brenner Railway. He writes
from Kufstein, Tyrol, under date OF
June lst
While your Florence correspondent Is
at this moment making an experimental
trip over Mont Gents, | set about my
report of the state of the Brenner Pass,
over which | travelled yesterday. 1t is
the more necessary, as any precise infor-
nation as to the mode of getting at it,
its condition, and the times and CORES
pondences of the trains with the Italian
and French trains, cannot be procured
in Italy. Even at Florence | was told
that probably the road would not be
open for months that, besides the land
slip which compelled the Crown Prince
of Prussia to travel by post, there we're
slips IN several of the tunnels, and l
know not what else At the bureau for
receiving and dispatching goods the
clouds were lifted to a certain extent
" the road loas open indeed, but a GER
tain portion of it was trayersed by dill
gences. At the railway Office the capo
della sfazioae recommended me TO take
a ticket for Undine, in order to find
corresponding train to the Bremen, and
his subaItern, in daring opposition to his
superior, gave me a ticket to Mestre,
which | protested in Padua, to which
place the passenger should take his
ticket from Florence, and whence he di-
verges to Verona. Even at Verona, and
also when one has entered. the Tyrol, no
one could say at what time | could get
on to Munich from Kufstein, where an
interruption occurs by the morning
train. and after studying those very abb
struse works called handbooks and
guides, with the aid of chefs des stations,
I was compelled to give up the inquiry
in despair. 1t is, however, very easy
affair as most affairs are when they are
known. From Florence the traveller
must take his ticket to Padua, and
thence another to Verona, the journey
being completed in twelve hours. From
Verona to Munich, over the Brenner,
there are two trains-a morning train
and an evening train. The morning
train has this advantage, that it enables
one to See all the wOndrous beauties Of
the line but it has these advantages for
persons not very strong, that 1t starts at
) clock in the morning, is interrupted
at Kufstein for an hour, and arrives at
Munich at two hours and a half after
midnight. Travellers will dc well, there
fore, to stop at Hufstein and 60 on to
Munich by the morning train, which
leaves at III o'clock, reaching the for
mer city at pm. There is another
train which leaves Verona in the even
ing, and enables you to get over the
ground without any interruption, land
inc YOU in Munich at + the next day
The reverse Of this order will suit those
coming south. As to the accident on
the line, it has been much exagge-
rated, and had nothing to do with the
construction of the line itself 1t oc-
Cured between Matrei and Patsch, after
passing the Brenner, in the direction of
Munich. A part Of the mountain called
Kogel di Patsch gave way, and for a
time obstructed all progress. The en-
gineer told me il had beea foreseen, and
preparations were being made to bring
it down when the accident oc-
Cured but eight hundred men were
put on, and in three hours a portion Of
the ground was cleared, while, according
to him, in three days-aecording to
others in FIVE days-the trains were run
ming again. That there are slips in
some of the tunnels is perfectly true /
passed through two which were sup
ported by an intricate framework of
wood and strong poles.-indeed, the en-
gineer admitted that as many were un-
der repair. On the lower part Of the
road, too, 1 observed that there had
been several other landslips, which
seemed 70 have impaired the outer boun-
daries Of the road, and pGnderous
wooden machinery was raised on those
sites. They were not, however, sf such
a character as to obstruct the working
of the line Such accidents as these on
a road so exposed to the winter SHOWS
must needs be expected, but the
experience Ct every year viii discover
the most dangerous spot and provide pre-
cautions 1t is, however, u road that
will require constant and strict surveil-
lance To the eve nothing can be more
finished and beautiful than the construe-
ton Of this wonderful work, especially
on the Italo- Austrian side where there
are any apparent defects or drawbacks
they are all on the Austro- 2avarian
side. There the engineer had to con-
tend with the greatest difficulties, and
his science is evident at every step. To
the upinitiated the results were supris-
ing. We looked down several hundred
feet on a road we had passed over ten
minutes before, and one part especially
struck US. 1t was as if the arm were
doubled over the breast and we entered
a tunnel by the hand, coming out at the
most distant hOulder-enough to show
the Marcy space in which the engineer
had to work, and the gFeab difficulties
which his skill has overcome. Every
one is now speaking of the great dan
gers of travelling by the Fell Railway
over Mont Gents, but after passing the
Brenner and examining Mr.. Fells line,
/ l see little or no danger in the difficulty
attending the transit which should put
down at zero. 1t is true that on the
Gents line one appears at times to be
charging at an acute angle at the preci-
pice,S but on the Brenner a considerable
extent of the hns Is az the very edge.
whereas for the most part the Gents is
constructed at distance from it. On
the Brenner, too, there are not, as yet,
any of those barricades of wall which
/ if they do not offer any safeguard, at all
eFests save the nerves of timid people.
You look OUT Of your window down to a
depth Of several hundred feet, and have
not the guarantee Of Mr.. FelPs central
wheel. On the Gents line yOushay oc-
casionsliy look down several hun
dred feet deeper, but II it came to a
smash it is not the difference of a hun-
dred feet CT 50 that would save you
On the extreme edges Of tite RFepner ]
observed also that the geological forma-
ton was al times Of eehglomerate but
though this line was constructed In a