Eureka daily sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1871-1887, 1880-04-01
General Ledlie interviewed by an
Eastern Paper.
AUSTIN THE FUTURE CAPITAL OF
NEVADA.
The Story Of the Building Of the Nevada
Central.
RICH fURS TANNED BY THE SHOSHONES.
Wild Cats, Coyotes and Grizzlies.
RICH FURs TANNED BY THE sHosHoNES.
Wild Cats, Coyotes and Grizzlies,
A Fasry Tale of sageIand.

General James III. Ledlie, who built the
Battle Mountain and Austin Railroad, has
got back to his home in Utica, New York.
The Utica Observer, of March 22d, pub
fishes the following h~igh-sounding article
as the result Of an interview with the Gen.
eral. The story is lengthy, but it will be
read with absorbing interest by the SENTI-
NEL's readers in Eastern Nevada. SAYS the
credulous Observer /:
General Jaraes H. Ledlie, President of
the Nevada Central Railroad, is stopping,
with his family, at the Butterfeld House.
AS already stated in these columns, General
Ledlie completed the building Of the road
OF which he is President, at 1l:4S P. M, on
the 9Th day Of February. The undertaking
deserves to rank as one OF the most re-
markable features OF the railroad history
Of America. Aside from the stupendous
nature of the enterprise, and the skill and
rapidity with which it has been pushed, the
fact that it opens to the continent the rich
est mining region in America and the
known world, gives 1t All importance which
can hardly be overestimated. The State of
Nevada, known as the :" Silver State il
larger than the New England States COM
bined. One county (the county of Nye)
covers more territory than does the State
Of Massachusetts,. Rich as are the ore beds
OF Lander, Nye and other counties, the fact
that the ore had to be transpo ted long dis
tances by teams was not calculated to en-
courage either the capitalist or the miner.
II the reader will turn to a map Of the
Z" Silver State" he will notice taat the city
OF Austin is, geographically, in the center
OF the State. The present capital Of Ne
vada is Carson City, which will be found
near the extreme western border. The
railroad just completed - taps" Austin,
gives it connection with the great Central
Pacific, and. for obvious reasons, Austin is
to be made the capital. We omit dia-
gram of the country which comes in just
here.-ED. SENTINEL.
Gen. Ledlie had the contract to build the
100 miles of road between Battle Noun
tain, Ledlie and Austin. He had subcon-
tracted the work. According to a law,
passed by the county of Lander, the build
ers Of the road were to receive a subsidy
of $3.50, 900 provided the road was COM
pleted before the 10th of February, 1880.
Early in December it became apparent that
the subcontractors would not prove equal
to the emergency, and canceling these con-
tracts he assumed personal direction of the
work. Summoning a force of 1000 men,
he built 81 miles Of the road in 60 days,
driving
THE LAST SPIKE
On the night OF February 9th, at HAS, and
thus securing the subsidy Of a quarter Of a
million by a margin of exactly IL minutes.
Railroad building, even under the most
favorable circumstances, is not easy work.
the Sierra Nevada range in the lead Of
winter with the mercury ranging from 20
to "a degrees below zero, is not a romantic
business. In order to complete the work
by the date specified, General Ledlie estab-
lished seven large camps. From Virginia
City and Gold Hill he secured a force OF
400 men from Sacramento he obtained
another large detachment; the miners, I'M
able to mine proitably during the winter,
joined the forces, tempted by the high
wages offered. The gangs Of laborers were
so divided that from 300 to 400 occupied a
camp. Nearly all the supplies for the shell
ter and sustenance of the men were pur-
chased in San Francisco. IN the work
were 800 teams. The rails laid were trans
ported from Sdu rIdnciscD. lHe tlIuDtf
and ties were carried 800 miles the en-
gines came from the famed Baldwin works
in New Jersey, and the rolling stock from
York, Pennsylvania. General Ledlie says
that while great quantities of snow were
encountered in the progress of the work,
this fact proved to be a positive benefit, as
the snow was so deep that it prevented the
frost from entering the ground. Remov-
ing the snow, plows were at once set to
work and the progress made, under the
circumstances, is remarkable. Work con-
tinued
DAY AND NIGHT.
At night the works were Illuminated with
burning barrels Of pitch, pitch-pine and
g cradles filled with pitch. Many of the
laborers suffered from pneumonia, and in
some instances it became necessary to am
putate hands and feet. As a rule, how
ever, the men enjoyed excellent health and
spirits to the close. General Ledlie said
he aimed to give them the very best care,
feeding them on the richest food,
and procuring from San Francisco great
quantities Of canned meats, fruits, vegeta-
hles, etc. When resting, the men were
made comfortable in huge tents, 60 feet in
length, made expressly for them. At either
end of the tents were capacious box stoves,
the sides of the tents being boarded up in
side. Here, in hunks with plenty of blan-
kets, the workmen were made comfortable
during the long siege. The coolest day ex-
perienced was the day before Christmas,
when the men were driven into camp three
times, each time r~allying and proceeding
with the work. That day the mercury
marked "a degrees below zero. On that
day, clad in a suit Of buckskin, Gen. Led
lie drove SO miles, visiting all the camps.
The past winter has been the most severe
one experienced in Nevada for twenty years.
Personally visiting the camps every day
and encouraging the workmen by word
and presence, Gen. Ledlie was enabled to
get the very best results obtainable. The
discipline maintained throughout was ad-
mirable. No liquor was permitted in or
around any of the camps, but every day
and night the men received all the tea and
coffee they wanted, aud in this way were
best fortified against the severe weather.
The best Of feeling prevailed among the
workmen, the liberal policy of the con
tractor going far to produce contentment
and win jealous work. Gen. Ledlie saws
the feeling in that section against the Chi
nese is very strong. Realizing this fact,
and desiring the good will of the miners
and ranchmen, he did not employ a single
Chinaman. He thinks that with Celestial
cheap labor he could nave built the road
for $3.50, 900 less than the amount expended.
As previously stated, the completion Of
the Nevada Central opens to the world the
richest mining section known. Austin, the
future capital, contains a population OF
some IA, 900 souls. Until the railroad was
built wood brought $14 per cord 10 Austin.
while coal commanded $50 per ton. The
Manhattan Silver Mining Company at
Austin consumes Is, 900 cords of wood per
annum. The residents of Austin use TO-
600 cords additional. With railroad facili-