Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-01-12

ST. LOUIS AND SAN FRANCISCO,
And the title would be appropriate enough
if it had thirty seven miles added to its
eastern end and about 800 to its western
end. 1t has been in the market for years,
an elephant on the hands of its owners,
who paid the losses from their own pockets
quietly, and 10 and behold, with the re-
turn of better times put up the stock by
sales to themselves to 40, 80, and even 70.
By some sort of jockeying they managed
to dispose of half their interest to the Bos-
ton concern, which had up to that time
been in good local credit. Some attempt
will be made to unload the joint concern on
the public, by twenty-five million loan 10
start with The present market rates of
the securities of both concerns look as if
they were getting ready to sell something.
There are indications that it will fail The
well known difficulties of the route, the
barrenness of the country, and the certain
competition it must meet from the Union
Pacific, on the one side, and the Southern
Pacific on the other, will deter heavy cap
italists and banks from lending money, aud
without that it is impossible. Meantime
it is significant that both these contesting
companies are running race by their sur
veying parties down the Rio Grande from
Santa Domingo, some forty-five miles above
Albuquerque, to Fort Thorn, near Mesilla,
a distance of $50 miles. The only object
of this, if it is in earnest, must be to con-
meet there with the approaching Southern
Pacific This 32d parallel route, though a
trife longer in distance, will be much the
easiest in grade and quickest in time, the
35th being full of submits and ugly ascents
and descents. 1t is, however, more likely,
| merely cheap demonstration to help the
stock and bonds of both companies, to
enable the managers to unload on the pub
lie, or on the banks as collaterals for loans.
My own impression is that whenever they
put their surveyors into the work across
the country on the line of the Atlantic and
Pacific there will be reluctance to putting
SO much money into it. Meantime the
route down the Rio Grande Valley is easy
and cheap, and the Eastern and Western
companies are about equal distances from
| the meeting point near Mesilla.
GOOD PROSPECTS FOR ROAD.
So that you perceive your prospects are
very good for road along the ella route,
with connection nor5hward to Denver
and Chicago by one or the other of these two
routes. and, in the course of time, for .
st. Louis connection via the Texas Pacific
and Iron Mountain. This will make the
distance and time between common points
tMesilla and St. Louis) about equal,
| whether by the Atchison route through
! Kansas, the Missouri, Kansas and Texas
route through Indian Territory, or via the
Arkansas route through Little Rock. The
| very latest development in this railroad
chessboard of strategy also halls from Bos-
ton. There are certain wealthy parties
there and in England controlling road
! FROM Galveston and Houston westward to
San Antonio some $50 miles, with fran
| chise and land grant from Texas
to the Rio Grande at Fl Paso
These men, who are large capt.
| talists, have it in contemplation to
extend their line from San Antonio over
this gap $50 miles, there to unite with the
road from Los Angeles SO as TO make .
short route-the shortest, in fact, on
United States territory-between the Gulf
and Atlantic and the Pacific navigation.
For through freights this route would have
pre-eminence, a. it could transfer to and
from cheap water carriage at Galveston