Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1877-10-24


a. motive and the clustering magnat
n thereon in the foreground, was exec
4 ted and placed in the Capitol in SAINT
"a ago. The whole country rejoice,
NJ Meiggs was solicited to become ma
:, uralized citizen of Chill, and was O
- iercd any station in the Republic Q,
- cept that of President which no fo
II eigner can hold. But he respectful
a repelled all temptations TO surrcnde
l. bis American citizenship, although
q never hoped to see his native Ian
!, again. He took up his residence O
, Santiago, whore he lived on scale {
4 princely profusion and splendor unit
a 1867, when he accepted overtures fron
q the government Of Peru to develop
/, railroad system in that country.
a His first contract with the Peruvian
government was to build a railroa,
hom Mollendo, on tho coast. TO Are
quipa, ninety miles inland in the noun
tains, for Sl2000,000. As soon as /
; became known in Chill that Megg
had begun work on railroad in Peru
a create xcitement arose among his ole
Chilian iaborers. Hundreds Of then
at once started for Peru, and thou
, sands of Others began to prepare to 90
Finally the Chilian government ISSUED
a decree interdicting this emigration
which threatened to expand to such
proportions as would seriously embar
rass the labor and defence of the coun
try. Meiggs was allowed to take a
number Of the most skiliul of the Chill.
lans with him TO act as chiefs of sec.
tons, and they instructed the Peruvian
peasants in the use of the pick, shovel
and crowbar and in other mysteries
Of railroad making.
Tho Areaquipa road was completed
early in January, 1871 The most for.
midable drawback to his enterprise
which Meiggs encountered was the
great earthquake which on August 13
and II, 1868, shook up all South Amer
lea IL was especially severe in Peru,
and overthrow vast deal OF good
work which had been done on the road.
But Meiggs Immediately rallied, and,
Notwithstanding his own vast losses,
with 500 600 and tbcn wa ,ront ohoad
with bis ,corl5 which La nnataJ -, c'.
ward with prodigious vigor to compile
had $3.50 OOO worth of soiJ J ,nodei, ol', ,1J mi
s350 OOo worth Of silvor roodois ,1 s,raDi, ',,'L
on which bc d,s,rihntod oalo''I a'9 9s' IoN I'm
| lGiends uo olso onvo "'ngS a'.niS,d,s n,s
cntertoinment ot noiIo,Jo m" n"' y ''nuuni u.s.,I
fete NJ Arconina in bonor ., - ~ = oo,,, '',u
pletion Of tbe road la ;n,;tod G % Goo
guests from Lima. the CAPITAL of Peru
including the President Gen. Balta
and tho elite Of Peruvian society To
bring the GOO guests from Callao the
seaport of Lima, Meiggs chartered tbe
Panama. one of the British Sonth pa.
cific mail steamship company's steem.
ers President Baita was accompani.
cd by regiment of regular troops one
thousand strong. 1t took three Perm.
vian war steamers to carry tho gov.
ernment party, the President and Cab
met going in one, and the soldiers in
the other two. At Mollendo the arch
bishop of Arequipa publicly blessed
the twelve locomotives which were to
draw the oxcursonists 107 miles up
an incline Of 5000 feet The fete at
Arequipa was magnificent beyond dc.
scription. Everybody was filed with
delight and qualification. The whole
affair cost Meiggs 100000 in. gold. |
He could well afford the outlay, how.
ever, as he made within a triae Of s4,-
100000 on his contract.
Mr.. Meiggs continued 10 reside in
Lima, where he iully sustained his
reputation for maenifcencc and hos.
pitality. His house, two.s stories in
height. has over seventy rooms ON tho
second floor. The first floor 10 occp.
pied by stores for the most mart ex.
cept an entrance. which il exceeding.
ly capacions. The residence was fitted |
up and furnished with great splendor
The princcIy host always sat down 10
a dinner prepared for any number Of
guests that might droY in on him As
Callao. the peaport il bnt seven miles
from Lima, il was a common thing for
naval officers in mort TO rnn over nnd
dine with Meiggs and he often had
TWENTY-FIVE or thirty off.band quests
at dinner. Eyervthing was in reodi.
ness for them; and if as sometimes
happened. nobody came he ,avo tbe
food prepared for his dinner TO The
poor of the city.
When Mcires first went TO Lima he
found tho city surrounded BY an old
and diIapidated adobe wall and all
around The wall. and stretching ont
into the country was vast mass OF
the refuse and cfoaca of The CITY which
had been accumulatine for a century
Meiggs undertook 10 clear all this
away, in consideration of receiving
certain share OF the redeemed land 4
lie accomplished tho work with bis
usual speed and thoroughness. and soon
4 magnificent park was created where
The old wall and refuse had beon. with
avenues and flowers and shrubbery, h
and hundreds OF valuable buildings and |
ots belonging to Meiggs, on either
side of the avenues. 4
Mr.. Mciggs not only was a great /
railroad maker but be became a poll. I
.ician also. Prior TO his advent in {
Peru that unhappy country was raw.
lged by revolutions. In fact, rovolu. {
ion had become regular line of bust. 4
less in that Republic Whenever the d
outs" ran low in funds, they would /
lrivc out the "ins, and take their turn c
1t the treasury. The ins always went
,ut rich, and were never called TO an o
recount by their successors who were \