The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1878-02-01
NARROW GAUGE RAILROADS.
A Railroad from Monroe to Little Rock.


Editor Ox1cltiI0 Telegraph:
wish to address you n series OF ar
ticles upon narrow gauge railways in
general, and one running from this
place by way of Bastrop to Little Rock,
Ark, in particular though the advo-
cacy of the road leaving here shall
leave for one of the future articles.
Every innovation has it's advocates
and it's adversaries, and the s'narrow
GAUGE railway has not been exempt
in this particular more than other new
departures or enterprises. The opposi-
ton that the narrow gauge road OF
forty years ago met with was intense
and bitter but so far from convincing
the general practical public of the
efficacy of the broad over the narrow
gauge, of that date, the latter has be-
come the broad or standard gauge Of
to-day, and the broad gauge of that
| date has become almost obsolete, and
the advocates of this broad gauge have
become antagOnistic to the present
narrow gauge roads.
A fiercer warfare has been waged
during tho last ten years over the
| question of the proper gauge for rail
ways than has marked some of our
most enthusiastic political contests.
This Wordy warfare has been carried
on through the medium of pamphlets.
| newspapers and scientific journals until
it has assumed proportions that would
fill volumes as extensive and volumi-
nous as the writings of some of our
eminent authors. Notwithstanding so
much has been written about narrow
gauge railways by the advocates of
both systems, yet but little has been
said of the practical success of the Oper-
ations of these much abused roads. RI
would here state that the stnarrow"
has Il gauge of three feet, and the
| ssstandard" Il gauge of four feet eight
and a half inches.1
From the inception of the narrow
gauge roads have been a champion OF
the system, and have become thor
oughly convinced that they are pre-
eminently the roads for the Develop
ment of most sections of the Southern
States. The number of standard gauge
roads now completed and in operation
in the South are sufficient, with few
exceptions, for main trunk lines, and
many of these are more than adequate
tor the amount of traffic over their
lines, as is shown by the fact that they
are not paying dividends on the stock
invested, but ON the contrary bringing
their owners out in debt annually.
The trouble with many is that they
have been built for the purpose of car
rying tons of freight, when they in
reality can only obtain hundreds or
to bring the comparison down still
lower, they have prepared for the
transportation of gallons of produce
where they have only been able to OBJ
tain quarts for shipment. These facts
are patent to every observant person
who travels over the roads in our
taf1 -
that cars are loaded to their full capa-
city, showing conclusively that I, road
of less gauge and smaller proportions
would answer the requirements of trade
and traffic fully as we'll as the present
standard gauge road, besides having
the advantage of costing from 80 to 50
per cent less.
Let us examine more into the details
Of the two gauges as regards their orig
inal cost of construction and equipment
and carrying capacities: Taking the
East Line & Red River Railroads.&c.
which L have been chief engineer for
two years-ilS the basis of the cost of
the narrow gauge roads in the South.
we find that this line cost $4,000 per
mile, which includes the entire con-,
struction and equipment of the road,
which is fifty miles long, and was
OpenOu lTsllllC over InlleS OF us
line on the LIST day of December, 1876,
and the present terminus of the road
was reached on the 1st of December,
1877. The above amount includes the
cost of construction, equipment and
buildings of all kinds, and the road
traverses Il timbered and broken coun-
try, such as is met with between this
place and Shreveport. The operations
and financial statement Of the road
have not been published yet, but will
be obtained and given to the public in
Il future communication. The construc-
ton and equipment of the standard
gauge road will cost from $4,000 to
$35, 900 per mile, and can rarely be
built for the smaller sum mentioned,
unless through a comparatively level
country and free from heavy bridging.
The difference between the weights
and carrying capacity of narrow and
standard gauge locomotives is less than
the difference between the respective
weights of the narrow and standard
gauge passenger coaches, while the
difference in carrying capacity is very
slight. The standard passenger coach
is constructed to carry So passengers
and each car weighs from 10000 to
81, 900 pounds, giving an unproductive
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