The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-01-02

The Inauxuratiox, OF the Vera Crss
and Mexico RAILROAD and New
Era for the MexicaNs.
The completion of the railway betweenvyera
Cruz and the city of Mexico will shortlysbe
celebrated with extraordinary festivities along
the whole line. and especially at Vera Cruz, the
starting point. and at the Halls Of the Monte
zumas, the present western terminus Of Hhs
line. The newspaper press of Mexico havD
invited their brethren of Havana to join thew
in these festivities and large delegation Of
Habaferos are going over The New YoRx
HERALD has its representatives on the ground
awaiting the great event-for the opening OF
this road will be a great event, as the inaugu-
ration of new industrial and political epoch
in the history of Mexico. The distance from
Vera Cruz to the capital is two hundred and
fifty miles, and thence across the mountainst0
Acapulco, on the Pacific, it is some three hum
dred miles, and the road is to be pushed for
ward till the line is completed from sea to sea.
And to great and rich country like Mexico.
without a navigable river to speak Of, and en-
bracing immense interior table lands, cut of
from the water on both sides by great chains
OF mountains, the value of even one railway
across the heart of the country from SEQ to sea
cannot be overestimated.
But this half-fnished line between Vera
Cruz and Acapulco is only one of the railroad
enterprises comprehended in the internal i'm
provement programme of President Lerdo de
Tejada. Within few years we expect line
will be completed from the capital northward
to the Rio Grande, connecting there with q
line they are now building from the Rio
Grande to Denver, in Colorado, thus giving
continuous line Of railway connections between
the city of Mexico and the city of New York
Again, General Rosecrans is pushing his pro-
ject for line between California and the city
of Mexico, and doubtless he will succeed in 1t.
By this line when completed, with others now
in course of construction on the Pacific slope,
traveller will be able to go from New York
by rail, via Texas, to the Mexican capital, and
thence northward by rail to San Francisco.
and thence to Oregon, and thence, by our
Northern Pacific road, back to New York
again. Within half dozen years, too. we
dare say some of the readers Of this article
will make this magnificent journey.
But to Mexico the building of these rail-
roads will be regeneration, peace, progress and
prosperity. These railroads will develop her
vast mineral, agricultural and manufacturing
resources; they will enlarge her old cities and
build new ones; they will dispense and drive
to honest pursuits the bands Of robbers which
now infest all her highways; they will dis
perse and disband the fighting revolutionary
factions Of the now widely separated Mexican
States, by bringing them all into direct rap
port with the capital; and thus, in giving law,
order and security to the Mexican people, and
ready markets for their products, and in
bringing Northern enterprise and capital
among Them they will indeed set out upon
new march of progress and prosperity which
the wisest of them little dream of to-day And
so we wish success to President Lerdo de
Tejada and his magnificent programme Of
Mexican railroads.