Western sentinel. [volume] (Winston [i.e. Winston-Salem], N.C.) 1856-1886, 1877-11-15

sheraton OF q liberal share of the
land thus redeemed. This he then
began, and down to the present
time had continued to convert into
new streets, bouleyards, parterres !,
and avenues, planting, improving,
selling lots to wealthy builders,
lining the roadways with the nseful
Eucalyptus, two million plants of
which he imported from Australia.
The Chilian Government, in
those early. years of his South
American life, had just begun, IN
der English auspices, to carry out
the great plans of. internal improve,.
ment urged by our countryman,
Mr.. Wheelwrigbt. Mr.. Meiggs ex-
tended bis relations into Chill, and
beginning with d contract for build
ing the bridge on the remarkable
line from Valparaiso to Santiago,
finally took charge of the line
itself, He was allowed four years
IN which to complete this great
piece of mountain work he ac-
complished it in two, and of the
$12 100000 expended on it netted
in profit one-eighth. This per-
formance made him the acknowl-
edged railroad king of South
America, and secured fer him the
control OF the magnificent and in
their way unparalleled railway enter.
prises which Peru was then plan
ming TO open up her cwn mountain
hemmed resources. In 1867 Mr..
Meiggs began the construction OF
the line from the Audean city OF
| Arequipa to the Pacific ut Mollen
do, a line the dizzy grandeur Of
which is rivalled only by his own
subsequeus achievements. The
work was completed on New Years
Day, 1871, when he offered to the
hundreds OF guests he had assem-
| b!ed from all parts of the world a
banquet at Arequipa which, served
on that lofty table-land and in tina:
remote region, seemed like page
out of Aladdin. Two hundIed
thousand dollars are said to have
been expended upon the festival
The commemorative medals, many
of very large size, in gold and sill
yer, struck off and lavishly dist,ib
uted. and the abundant and prince
| ly gifts made to his guests are
estimated to have increased his
, outlay to $3.50, 700. Only the Khe-
dive at the fetes Of Suez has in our
time surpassed this spieudid hos
pitality. It was hardly an extrav
agance, however, fer the profits
accruiug from his contract-he ie
ceived $l1, ,25U 600 for building the
lO7 miles of road-were enormous.
A portion of these profits he sci
apart to discharge the debts due
his California creditors, and the
Legislature of that State passed
. acts of immunity covering his exit
, of 1854 aud inviting him TO return.
He had no intention, however, OF
returning 10 San Francisco to be-
!. come a miner or speculator. Be
fore the completion of the Arequipa
road. ii 1870, he had Signed con
tracts to build no fewer than six
other Peruvian railroads, at II col.
Iective cost of about Sis, 100000
IL 1872 the 1lo and Mosguegan
road, sixty three miles, built at d
cost of $6,2Sl.25 was finished
! in 1873 the Pacasms vo, Guadalupe
) and Ma9dalena rond, eighty'three
:. miles, built at cost of $6 ,656, $50
aud the colossal Arequipa and
!, Puno road, which crosses the An
!, des at, height of more, than i5,'
009 feet, and reaches Lake Tlticac
bv, a line of, 220 miles in length
> From Puno to the ancient capita
of the ,Incas, Cnzco, this road ex-
tends for. $50 miles more. While
; these works were going on he was
pushing up the Andes at the nortl
J the Titantic wo, ks of the Orovt
line, which, la the wild ma2nifi
; cence of the scenery it traverses
rivals its more southern compeer
D These were all but parts OF a 81
S gautic system of lines, to cost some
t s21O,o0t, 900, projected by Mr.
a Meiggs aud adopted for execution
{ by Peru. OF course these vas
. undertakings neithe. are no
5 were expected 10 be immediatel.
;, profitable in our sense of that word
They were intended to open the grea
in:er-Andean regions of Peru to th'
: Pacific, and to make her Amazonial
8 wealth available, and were, alrnos
s without exception Government works
The finances of Peru were and are 81
e involved that at times SIr. Meigg
It has been compelled TO suspend ope
!. ratiuns, but he has never suffered tn
: main outline of the work to be seri
: ously ;nterfered with. OF all thes
! roads the most important and inter
esting is likely to be the Oroya-Calla
: line, which is To be eventually carrie
l. across both Cordilleras and to reac
the ad-waters of the Amazonia
Y SYSTEM This was intcrfered wit
y for time by short line some min
l. miles in length which has long been i
!. operation between Callao and Lims
E%ha ow0orc af which hovinr