The Chickasaw messenger. (Okolona, Miss.) 1880-1900, 1881-01-20
TuE TEWUANTEpEC ROUTE
The Proper roinfs OF Transit
Between the Two Oceans
EfS sGdr0iifages OrcF fiic
Nicaragua and Pan
ANA Route.


Nicaragua and Pan
anna Route.
Isl. Louis Republican,
The Iathmus OF Tehuantepec
which Capt. Eads proposes to cross
with bis ship railway has been re-
cognized as The proper point Of tran.
sit for ships between the two oceans,
and twenty lYe years ago Senator
John Bell, OF Tennessee, warmly
advocated the construction Of canal
to connect the Costzacolcos river,
which runs half way across the neck,
with the Pacific Ocean. Capt. Eads
proposes to make the transit BY
means of a broad multiplex railwaS
on which the ship shall be lifted and
be borne across from ocean to ocean
and when we reflect on The perfection
to which railway bnilding and car
riage has been brought since the days
ex-senator Bell, and the thoroughness
with which Capt Eads Is accustomed
to make his calculations and DO HE
engineering work, the superiority Of
his railway scheme over a canal will
be recognized. lie has secured
from the Mexican Government the
necessary authorization, giving him
a wide liberty Of action and discre-
ton, both in building his railway and
IN the subsequent management Of it,
and he now asks the Government Of
the United States for a slight assist
ance in the shape of a guaranty
which it can easily afford to grant
and which he has q right to expect.
lie asks the Government to guar
antce 6 per cent dividends to the
stock holders on $4,000, 900 capital
stock and in return therefor he Will
allow free transit to all war vessels,
troops and mails ofthe United States.
IL is confidently estimated that the
railway will be able to pay 6 per
cent dividends from Its net earnings,
10 which case the Government guar
anty will be merely nominal thing
Still it will be of inestimable adyan-
tage TO the enterprise, since it will
induce capitalists to invest the neces.
sary amount OF money in the scheme
without hesitation Some estimates
Of the tonnage that would pass over
the road place it as high as 100000
tons a year, at S5 ton would Yield
$50. 100000. But admitting that
only one fourth this amount or
100000 tons would pass over IT,,
sill there would be 81, 500, 600 as the
gross earnings Of the road, ono.half
Of which would be net proft-en-
abling the company to pay a 6 per
cent. dividend without calling upon
the Government
The advantages of the Tehuantepec
crossing over both the Nicaragua
and the Panama routes are seen at
glance. From New Orleans TO
San Francisco via Tehuantepec is
1000 miles; via Nicaragua is $3.50
milos. and via Panama Il ia G,20o
miles; the Tehuantepec route, there
fore is / $50 miles shorter than the
Nicaragua route and 2,2O0 miles
shorter than the Panama route-al-
vantages of which to tue Mississippi
valley can hardly be computed
From New York to San Francisco the
route via Tehuantepec is 700 miles
shorter than that via Nicaragua and
500 miles shorter than that via
Panama These differences involve
days of steaming and sailing for YES
sells. and are bound to be taken into
account in this era of rapid transit
when such great efforts are being
made to shorten ocean trips by a
single day. The superiority Of the
Tehuantepec crossing to all that
part Of the worlds commerce pass
ing to and fro in the Northern hep
sphere, in which all the great civil
lied nations Of the globe are found
are therefore manifest and important
To our Government there is no room
for hesitation or choice The Tehu
antepec is the route which its grea'
authority should be thrown on %,
side OF, not only because it presents
great advantages in distance, but be
cause the crossing would be undel
the control Of its eitizeng, and woult
not, therefore, involve any necessity
for asserting the Monroe doctrine