Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1872-03-09
The Valley Route 20 the Pacific.
THE SNOW PROBLEM.

THE SNOW PROBLEM.
The four principal routes that have been sur
elevation above the sea level: 1. The extreme
southern or Texas Pacific route, skirting the
border of Mexico, has an average altitude OF
200 feet. 2 The 35tA parallel ronte, $500 feet.
8. The middle route, extending III miles from
Omaha to Sacramento, 5000 feet 4. The north
ern route, from Lake Superior and st. Paul to
Puget Sound, 1900 feet.
The middle route (now occupied by the Union
and Central Pacific road) scales four pr ncipa
SUBMITS, having the following elevations GIG,
feet, 1912 feet, 1868 feet and S235 feet. The
northern route has on its main line but one prin-
cipai summit, and that has an altitude not much
exceeding 1850 feet. Nine hundred continuou,
miles on the middle route have greater eleva-
ton that the highest summit on the northern
and $500 continuous miles on the former line arc
1000 feet above the highest point on the latter
The remarkably low altitude of the northerB
line fully entities it to the designation it has
ceived OF the Valley Route to the Pacific. from
Lake Superior for a distance of 500 miles on thi.
line the country is vast plain, partly timbereG
but mainly prairie, gradually rising from 10
TO 200 feet near the Rocky Mountains. Thi-
plain has varied surface and in its depressions
flow the navigable waters of the Mississippi, tn,
Red, the Upper Missouri and the Yellowston.
and their many tributaries.
Crossing at right angles the valleys Of the
Mississippi and the Red River of the North, the
Northern route traverses the rolling prairies OF
Dakota to the broad and fertile valleys OF tn,
Missouri and Yellowstone. The latter it folio W.
nearly the entire length of Montana to the foot
of the mountains. Ascending the eastern slope
by an almost impercePtibie grade, and sur
mounting the single divide by pass SO remark
aDie that IL mas long been known as the "Gate
of the Mountains the Northern line enter
the valley OF branch OF the Columbia and fol
lows that noble river to tidewater on the Pacific.
The leading advantages resulting to the North
ern Pacific railroad from the low altitude OF the
valley route along which it is building, are
milo cnmate ana sheiteIed position. = Ek
smPuoh iiom aeep anu druting SHOWS anu
hence, with ORDINARY precautions, entire free
a ,,d naoM win1el oostr uc.ohs; .. pIoauctlvt
anu verdure-covered country nanklng the road
resulting In rapid settlement, large tributary
PoPuiation ana prentabie local uamc. T. Al
aDunuahce OF goCu water. o. a saving Oh many
. MiIllons III cos. vi cons.Iuc.oh WIN PIopor
liona.e Ieuuc. lon Oh Interest purIen. o. sue
cess,Un vi Ialufa anu Easy gIaues when WI,
eIeaty ItouSe tne coet ol Operating the road
any ehaple .ae same Motlve power " accomp
usm isr gfea.es results, pom IN speeu anu franc
tnan arc Possipie Oh All eieValeu OF mountain
route,
ane "a vi 'ne p pas. w,,er, the severest
slnoe oul ies were set.'eV anu not likely
. ne LePeaeu ior many years, mas tnor1ugn!
Ies..neu Tue cIalm ma. rne NoItheIn faclnc
Noac' when competed, VIII not DC at any uInr
obstrncted by snow; Authentic reports, official
unoIncIal anu inciueh.a,, Irom surveyors, ehgl-
neers, UhIeu States mIiItAIv anu signai emcers
ana settiers, representing all important sections
OF tne route, agree tnat during the past hard
WINTER, IaeIe mas not Deen ume when, with
- III
eln States, Nortnein racine trains could not
hare Mane regular Tips.
Snaei EhgheeI hopers, OF the northern
Iscinc ROAD, VINO mas no superior IN MS PROBES
slon IN tnls country, mas careiuliy studied the
western snow proDiem during the past three year
anu IN u recent report, Dased on very Iuli data'
ne sums up ms conclusion IN TINS sentence
nm SIunnaIS means vi pIotection AZ exposed
P0in's the NorInefn racine haliroad wnen CON-
pieteI py the Yellowstone route can unqueston-
s noiy pe hepu open Ior Ieguiar franc lts entire
Iengtn across the COhtnent, even during win
tsrs as severe as the Present, should they occur
ne u,1neI SAVE aiiuoihg 10 mass VI testimon!
IRON montana:
Hese very iavoraoie Reports, during WIN
yer vi unprecedented severity, cover the most
eieVateu anu mountainous portions OIL our line
where oostructlons from snow would occur II
anywhere on the route; ana when 1t Is remem
bered that the distractions on the Union Paci
nc have been virtually confined to section o
$50 miles, every part OF which is at least ], 30
rect higher than the highest summit on tn
northern route, ana most OF which Is :, 800 T.
o,OUO feet higher than the mountain section
equal length on the northern Pacific line. it be-
comes perfectly safe to predict for the latter a