The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1870-11-28
Great Railway Enterprise In Bolivia.


In the November number of the London
FortnigAAy Review there is an able and
instructive article on s'Bolivia and Brazil
in the Amazon Valley" from tho pen
of George E. Church. Colonel Church,
who is the concessiOnajrs OF the pro-
posed Madeira and Mamore Railroad, has
been for some months in London pushing, we
are glad to learn, with great success, his inn
mense undertaking. To the readers of the
HERALD Mr.. Church's facts and figures have
not the attraction Of novelty; but the article in
the Fortnightly Re0ieao, crammed full as it is
of most valuable information regarding Bolivia
and the valley of the Amazon, cannot fail to
direct the attention Of capitalists to the rich
highlands Of Bolivia and Matto-G Crosse.
These territories Mr.. Church not inaptly de-
scribes as ga casket OF riches walled in from
the Pacific, and having its natural outlets in
part by the Plata, but mostly by the Amazon"
From a variety of causes which are sufficiently
explained this wealthy region. Astounding
in all manner of natural products, has
hitherto been but little utilized. Up until
1868 Bolivia was effectually shut out
from the valley Of the Amazon in consequence
Of the unsettled condition of the boundary
lines between her and Brazil. In that year,
however, the two governments signed o treaty
of Friendship Limits and Navigation, and
thus was removed the great stumbling block
to the progress of four hundred thousand
square miles Of country, beautiful and rich
almost beyond comparison. One serious diff
Guilty, however, still remains; and 1t Is this
difficulty which the "Madeira and Mamore
Railway" is intended to remove. Mr.. Church
explains this obstacle with great clearness.
He says :--sThere is but one obs tacle between
the Atlantic Ocean and the heart of Bolivia,
via the Amazon river; this Is the line Of
rapids of the Madeira, at the northeast angle
of Bolivia. They are rocky distractions,
found at intervals in the river, and are eighteen
in number. They have total fall of two hun.
dred and twenty-eight feet with length oil
broken water of sixty-four thousand five
hundred and five feet. The total fall, in the
navigable stretches between them, is forty.
three feet. This makes total, from the upper
rapid Of Guajara-merim to the lower, called
San Antonio, of two hundred and seventy-twc
feet. The total length Of river between these
two points is two hundred and twenty-nine
miles, of which two hundred and seventeen
miles are of clear channel, perfectly naviga-
Bile. with a depth of water from ten to ons
hundred and twenty feet In the dry season.
Immediately after the boundary question
| was settled both Bolivia and Brazil began tx
consider how the difficulty presented by the
rapids could be overcome. Two distinguish
Prussian engineers were appointed to examine
the ground and to report to the government al
| Rio. The result of their exploration was in
favor Of line of railway, which, avoidin:
the rapids altogether, should connect the
upper navigable waters Of the Madeira wit
the Mamore and the three thousand miles 0
Bolivian rivers" OF all possible solution:
this seems the simplest and the mos
satisfactory. A concession for the con
struction Of this railroad has, by tn
two governments conformity, been given t
Colonel Church. The whole length Of the
railroad will be one hundred and sixty-eigh
miles. It is not expected that In the worl
itself any very great difficulty will be expert
enced. Labor is abundant and cheap; tn
gradients are easy; there are emo rivers t
cross, no swampy Ground and very little exca
walton and embankment." The cost Is est
mated at E625, $50.
The merits of this undertaking from com
mercial point of view are 30 obvious that capi
tai must be easily found. From the case whic
Mr.. Church makes out he does not seem
exaggerate when he says that on capital o
ESQ, 900 the result TO the shareholders wi
be rather over than under fourteen per cen