The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-10-29
RAILROAD CRAZE.

Some OF the newspapers, and par
eaEcuIarly those in newly settled sec.
lens, are predicting q continuance Of
1assailrosd building for years to come,
-.szQd asse ting that tae present season
'NaERs only been part of what is to De
-yzsscomp Iished. These journals are
sEsckoning without regard 70 the past,
SaEzd contrary to all laws of industrial
sTEanca. There has been cause Or
Ezsasou Eor the almoetunparalleled con-
sREcac.iou of roads in 1881. For years
vgazSe country has been remarkably
t7egespeEous. The crops have neVer
>ai5een better, the yield surprising the
znrmers. being beyond their expecta-
@1Sons. Che grain products were made
&-EOre valuable by the almost general
Ghilure OF crops throughout Europe,
ss39s furnishing a profitable market
s1sE Americas large supplies Fer
s'zlasar years past there bss been q
,,zsseady fow of gold from Europe 70
~zsais country, until bank vaults here
Fzeere literally oVercroWded. Again.
.aar7Veruuent increased che lsrAs
-s42@9ck of money in hand by It's
s.sssadg redemption o! past due bonds.
szssghich has been going or for three
,.gEsa!s. Tie money markets have
a2seen glutted, the holders being
-aEaziops to fnd anything like paying
Investments for their idle wealth.
Railroads presented the most prom
ossasag opening, and when the boom
-'sEsa-ted people opened their safes and |
-=zzsaoveled GU. their gold az they had |
aSeVer done before. But this thing
gxnast stop. The end must come, for
lie inflow OF gold at Che Fast rate
.1a5auoot continue, and the money is
.ax9p in the country to go on as We are
.going. In the season OF 1872,
.s&aeze was total mileage ofrailroad
LIN the United States of 7,379-the
largest ever rescbed. We all know
e7o8hst followed the reckless excess Of
sg9ast period. The money had been
taken from other industries and tied
~sGp il railroads snat could not be
made profitable until there were
azaore people along their lines, until
nails were built. and the resources of
the country developed. Already this
aFesE the new mileage has reached
800, and before the season closes
-oEEih perhaps be increased bT
vq&oother thousand. It is true that
oxoads have been built and equipped
v&bis year at greatly reduced cost. Ten
years ago the average cost of right OF
vEsy. road BED and equipment, was
about S77, 900 per mile. This season
the average cost, it is estimated, will
xot exceed $4,000 per mile. If
400 miles of road shall be con-
e4traoted in 1881, $500, 900, 900 actual
saEaoney will have gone into grades,
iron, locomotives, etc. Is anybody
r@xegdant enough to believe that the
United States, big ad wonderful in
ats RESOURCES as it is, can keep on
Eiverting so much of lis cash into one
direction and derive interest from the
-55Gvastment of the money? If the pop
%lstion were to increase proportion
<&sely with the extension Of railroads,
e &hs vast resources of the soil could
- developed as rapidly as railroads
we're built, and if the crops were to
Rsyer fail, but every year increase
ssEez the last. the rapid progress might
30 on continuously; but where are
Hhe people to come frem 30 support
This 2 900 miles year OF new road,
! and pay interest on the 1920. OOo. 900 |
u year of new obligations put upon
<Ae countries through which the roads
run? Railroad builders perhaps under. |
eeand their business, yet mandeesn't