The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1869-01-22
DAILY PRESS.
Friday Morning, January %, 1869.
Portland and her Pacific RaiIways.
CORTLAND,

Portland and her Pacific RaiIways.
Intercolonial, uia Grand Trunk Montr.oL
Grand Continental, ria Portland and Oo-
densburg) Rouses' Point.
Union Pacific, uia Portland Western) Rut-
land.
Southern Pacific, ria Portland and Roch-
ester) Nashua.
Great Diagonal, ria Boston and Maine)
Boston.
illustrated by the Diagram in Merchants Fx-
change)
Portland harbor lies like the open palm of
hand, upon an outstretched arm of the
sea. Ihere are at least fre fingers pointing
across Inc continent to the Pacific shore, by
as many different and diverging ways.-
Would Portland to-day WELD, as with the
VIII OF one man, and with an eye single to
her future greatness, her power, she NAV not
only grasp but hold these continental lines.
and fix her destiny for all coming time as a
central point upon the trestle-board of COM
merce, through which all the world-navIpat-
ing movements shall pass. She might fix a
point as important in the commerce of the
world as is the equinoctial in the Journey of
t1e sun, tryStlng point-the Great Harbor
of the continent.
These lines above may be called, for the
sake OF distinction the Intercolonial, Grand
Continental or "Northern Pacific" "Union
Pacific" Southern Pacific" and the Great
Diagonal, which last, though it is the little
hn9er OF this giants hand, and the shortest
route across the continent, is nevertheless
the most important of the digItals.
This route also presents more favorable
features and far less disadvantages than any
other proposing to connect the two oceans.
brief description of all these lines will be
given at this time, but more at length in some
after communication.
The Intercolonial " answering for the
Mum6 piece OF our hand, connection with
which is had by way of Montreal, is in its
conception purely toreign road, vet, when
the st. Lawrence is sealed by the ice, which
is for half OF the year at least, or when a
quicker passage is wanted, the "Grand
Trunk will deliver to ship at the wharyes of
Portland both its merchandise and its men.
In these days OF steam and electricity the
ocean has come to be spoken of as the "At-
lanlic Ferry" and although the head quar-
ters OF this great road are in Europe, yet its
front and real starting place is upon the
shores OF New Foundland; and, doubling
the TERRITORY" of Maine, by way OF the st.
John river, it passes up the st. Lawrence and
ottawa valleys, north o; Lake Superior, and
south of Winnipeg and on to the Pacific
being through its own length within the
possessions of her British majesty
We will leave the completion of this great
work to our Canadian brothers, knowing that
with such engineers as Stanley, Fleming
Keeler, and managing men like Bridges, Fer
guson and Bell, it will come through in good
time.
The "Grand ContinentaIo is intended to
start in Portland, and stop in Portland, or
rather Astoria at the mouth of the Columbia
river. 1t may go out by way of the An
1rOSpQpOin Vallpv IN Montreal h.. h. G.
Valley, through the Notch of the White
Mountains, or by the Ossipee Valley and
Montpelier to Rouses Point and Ogdensburg,
thence, by the chain of the tgreat Lakes to
the northwest bay of Lake Superior; or it
may take the New York Central to Buffalo.
the Grand Trunk or the Lake Shore Road to
Chicago, thence by st. Paul and the Upper
Missouri, and make the descent of the Pacific
slope by the Columbia River to Portland. In
actual distance from Chicago to the Pacific.
this northern route has an advantage of be-
tween two or three hundred miles. 1t has
less rise and fall which practically doubles
the difference in its favor. This route spans
the continent in its widest breadth and must
do much TO develope the "Great West" and
to bring the far off nations of the world to-
sether across the continent.
Port and has one of the best. most commo-
dious harbors ON the Atlantic coast, with ia
clitieS for shipment and traushipment of
merchandise that no other city upon the sea-
board has. Portland has the advantage over
Boston OF S q re regular @ line OF steamships 20 Eu7
than Boston, and nearly two days nearer than
New York. The distance from Ogdensburg
to Portland is seventy miles less than to Bos-
ton. Puget Sound, the western terminus of
the Northern Pacific Railroad, is 700 miles
nearer the ports OF Eastern Asia than is San
Francisco, the western terminus of the Cen
tral Pacific. And the distance from Portland
across the continent, by way OF the Portland
& Ogdensburg Railroad, the Lakes and the
Northern Pacific Railroad, is 500 miles less
than by way of the Union Pacific and the
Central Pacific roads to San francisco. The
Northern Pacific road passes over the Rocky
Mountains at an elevation of 5000 feet less
| than does the Union Pacific road, and over
the Cascade range at an elevation of 1000
Ieet less than does the Central Pacific over
the Sierra Nevadas. Thus freeing the North
ern Pacific road from the danger and expense
OF the forty miles of sheds which the Union
Pacific and the Central Pacific roads are un
der the necessity of erecting to protect the
roads from the deep SHOWS to which those
roads are subject in passing the Rocky Noun,
| tains and the Sierra Nevadas.
Only 800 miles of new road have to be
| built in order to connect Lake Superior with
| Puget Sound; forming, when the Portland e.
| Ogdensburg road is completed, a thorough
| fare across the continent, by means OF these
roads, and the great American chain of lakes
| By the Northern Pacific road the distance t.
Eastern Asia is 1900 miles less than by the
| Union and Central roads, insuring for al
| time the transit over this route of the pro
| ductions of the hundred millions of inhab
| itants of Eastern Asia aid the great North
west destined for Europe and Northern New
| England. So, too, the vast amount of mer
/ chandse from Europe and New England
| necessary for the consumption OF the inhab-
| itants OF those almost boundless regic ms o
| country, will mostly pass over this great
| northern thoroughfare. The amount of bust
ness from the West has doubled within thu
| last ten years, and undoubtedly will during
every decade of future years, until the bound
| less regions of the West are inhabited by civ
| ilzed men. Some idea of the amount O
| business that these roads will do may b,
] formed from the fact that the business of the
| Lakes now requires fleet of sixty steamers
How enorm ous will the business OF thes,
| two roads be when the West becomes thickh
| inhabited, and the commerce of Asia witt
| Europe and the United States is changed
| from its circuitous course around the Cape 0
Good Hope, by the building of railroad
| across the continent to the Pacific coast.
The "Union Pacific is in good hands, an,
are not its great expectations" sufficientl,
written in the books OF the Wall street bro
kers? Suffice it to say however that its ter
minus is not Omaha or Chicago or New Yorl
| city even, for much, and by far the greatest
| part of its labor will ultimately be aiming
l more directly for the great perennial harbol
| of Portland by more direct route. The
pennsylvania Central and the 'New Yorl
| Central will both do their part in leading Il
Portland, making their approach by way 0
i the Massachusetts Genital and Nashua. a