The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-12-08

pears that the expenses for operating the ROAD LOT
The amount received from passengers during the
same time was l09 SOL, OF which Slu 10y was from
Tue uai.ea states Tae me- savspnment paid
$3.50, 759.
This Department. on the a5th OF September. repre-
scented to you that the time had come for such revi
sion. Brevet Major General Governor X. Warren,
United states Army; Jacob Blickensderfer, Jr., OF
pointed commissioners for that purpose. The first
is accomplished ocer OF the corps OF engineers,
the other gentlemen are ciyii engineers Of large ex;
in the science and practice Of their profession.
The commissioners report has just been received.
executed with intelligence and fidelity. A descrip-
ton OF the location OF the road Is given. The eeya
head Of Great Salt Lake Lax AIS feet The sum Of the
ascents going westward is IL 995 feet and the con-
sequent sum OF the descents is 9,e26 feet. They
whole and IN its different parts, is upon the most
direct, central and practicable route but that the
as are pon Where the mi 90
the country have not been developed, and others
where, in its details the location Is radically wrong
This has been Occasioned by desire to diminish the
cost Of work by the introduction Of more and
sharper curves than the circumstances require,
although the saving In cost was but small in com
commissioners are of opinion that the ne as built
should not be permanently adopted, and that econ
omy and the best interests OF the road require alter
atoms and improvements to be made.
The road, when examined, was built 800 miles
and embankments were required, was remarkably
easy. From Omaha to a point 535 miles west there
are no rock excavations and the natural surface OF
great portion Of the intermediate country presents
nearly practicable grades From the latter point to
the end OF the track the work is less than on Eastern
roads OF the same length and the most difficult parts
are light in comparison with roads in the Allegheny
mountains There Is but one tunnel. 1t is on the
bank OF 81. Mary's creek, 23o feet in length:
The rolling stock OF the road consists Of III loco
motives, 10 first class and secOndkcass passenger
cars 10 baggage, 442 box, 22I nat, 43 coal and Y
special purposes. The locomotives are well con-
structed and the number on hand probably sufficient
Tor The present wants OF the road. An additional
where the line is open for through tratc. The
are equal TO those on the best roads and the accom-
modatlons for the care, maintenance and repair OF
the rolling stock are now sufficient to meet current
demands, but must be enlarged from time to time to
meet the increasing necessities OF the road
The Commissioners submit the following estimate
OF expenditure which viii be required to render the
first $50 miles OF the road equal to fully completed
first class railroad. No allowances are made for
work in progress or materials and equipments
dered or reported to be in t,u,asu for delivery
already delivered except so far as they placed
position In the structures themseves-$6 409, $50.
The following estimate is furnished by the Com
equipping the road from the mouth OF the Weber
canon to the head OF Great Salt Lake-$S. $50.
Az the actual cost OF this road is matter OF pub
lie interest deem 1t proper to present, in con-
densed form, the estimates submitted, on the 14th
inst, by Jesse L. Williams. He states that the
cost OF the road shown the books OF the rail-
road company is OF course. equivalent to the con-
tract price per mile. The actual cost to the con-
tractors forming an association which embraces
shown only by their private books, TO which the
government directors have no access. The calcula-
tions were, therefore, made from the most
available data and the estimated cost OF the first TO
miles OF the road was taken as the basis for cCm-
Road. as il expected by '"G the comnan NV
form junction with that OF the California company
near the northern extreme OF Great Salt Lake q
about ITO miles. The cost OF locating constructing
and completely equipping IL and the telegraph line
is $3.50 SCI, an average per mile OF $34,977.
The government subsidy in bonds for that dis
lance at par amounts to S9 504 000 an average per
mile OF s26,5so. The company's first mortgage
bonds estimated at 90 per cent and would yield
$27, l436S0 The fund realized by the company from
these two sources amounts to $56,6a7, ESQ., being
average per mile OF $51 034 exceeding by $16056 the
actual cost OF constructing and fully equpping the
road, and yielding profit OF more than sl7, 0OO
fornia, have constructed 800 miles OF their road and
telegraph line, Of which 296 were constructed and
ed map Of the definite location Of their road ro
Humboldt Wells, via the head 0fs0reat Salt Lake.
the mouth OF Weber canon. on the 1Stn Of May
last gave my consent and approval" to the
location as lar as the head OF Great Salt
Lake, distance OF lao miles. Subsequent
surveys corrected ana improved the unac-
nltmo they filed map and profile from the head Of
Great salt Lake to Echo Summit, TO which location
gave my consent and APPROVAL
The company state that their earnings for the six
months ending June go 1868, were, from passengers
sl45,04s and from freight, 1894 ,4l0 Their expenses
for the same period were $I57 O83 and their ntabted
ness at that date, $50 727, OF which the sum of
$.,34o,oo0 was ON account OF bonds issued by the
United states In aid OF the construction OF the road.
ON the 18th utmo special Commissioners Sherman
Brevet Lieutenant Colonel X. $. Williamson, United
States Army and Lloyd Tevs were appointed to ex-
pacIac Raroad COMPANY OF California .o and the
Western Pacific Railroad Company. They were in
structed 10 report In regard TO the location, road
bed cross-ties, track laying. ballasting, rolling
stock, repair shops, station buildings cuiverts,
bridges, yiaducts, turnouts and all other aDpurte
nances OF the roads, and the amount OF expenditure
required TO render them. FAR as built, equal In
every respect To fully constructed first class rail-
roads. No report has been received.
AZ the date OF my last annual report the Union
Pacific Railway Company Eastern division, had con-
structed sO5 miles OF their road and telegraph line,
date SIS 9425-o0oo additional miles have been con-
structed and accepted.
authorized this company to designate new
route and lie map thereof They were
miles westerly from the meridian OF Denver In
Colorado. Their right TO bonds was limited TO the
amount fney would have received had the road been
constructed on the original route to the one
hundredth meridian OF longitude. No acceptable
survey had been made from Fort Riley to that ner-
dian; and as the department was not officially ad-
vlsed OF the exact distance between those points
Brevet Major {. W. Howell. Captain OF Engineers
United States Army, was at my request, assigned
on the sth Of June last by the secretary OF War;
make such survey. lie executed the duty and sub
1865. He determined the. distance to be
25s 9,425-l0,oo0 miles. lie also ascertalned that
the meridian Is $500 feet west OF the point
designated by the Union Pacific Railroad Company
THIS survey was approved by you. The distance for
which the company was entitled 10 bonds Is 1913 and
p,s25-l0,O 900 miles. The following summary Is made
from their report-They have constructed and ope
rated the road 400 miles ives. OF the initial point. IL
has been provided with round house accommoda-
tions, repair shops, turn tables, water tanks,
sidings, &C., 10 meet the immediate
wants OF business, and the necessary ware
houses 1aff ha
stations for the accommodation OF passengers and
freight The equipment Is as foows:-Twenty-nin
locomotive engines, twenty-one passenger, and s78
other cars The aggregate earnings from September
l. 1857 To August ~, 1865, were $lS7S,5SS, and the
expenses $245Sl6 leaving the net earnings $3.50 I'll
The average length OF road operated during the year
331 miles, aud tue average earnings per mile
$1,000. surveying parties employed In examining
nth parallels have discovered on the latter prac.
tcabe route westward from Albuquerque to the
Pacific. IL crosses the Colorado river south OF Fort