The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1881-11-26
TEXAS AMIDST. LOUIS RAILWAY.

Advantages of the Narrow Gauge System
of Railways In Texas.
Non. Thomas NJ. Paschal and H. L. GOsling
Esq. Castroville, Texas.
Tyler, TEXAS, October %, 1881.
Ny DEAR SIRs--I have the honor to &C
knowledge yours of the 18th inst. In reply
have to say that the charter for the ex
tension of the main line of the Texas & St
Louis Railway calls for Waco, McLennan
county, and thence through the counties oil
Coryelle, Lampasas, Burnet, Llano, Blanco,
Gillespie, Kendall, Kerr, Bandera, Medina,
Uvalde, Zavalla, Dimmitt and
Webb terminating at or near Laredo on the
Rio Grande, with branch from point in
the southwest corner of UValde county to
Eagle Pass Our railroad seeks Laredo as
its western objective point, in order to con
meet with what is popularity known as the
palmer Sullivan Narrow Gauge Railway"
which is being rapidly constructed from
Laredo via the City of Mexico to the waters
of the Pacific ocean, etc. The object being
to inaugurate an international as well as
internal system of narrow gauge rail-
\, Il.
natl and Chicago via. the States Of Missouri
Arkansas and Texas and the Republic of
Mexico with the Pacific Ocean. The
GREAT MAIN LINE
of Narrow Gauge Railway will, of course,
have friendly connection with every other
Narrow Gauge Railway now already or be-
ing constructed in Texas and the South
west, including a connection withthe Den
yer Il Rio Grande Narrow Gauge Railway, +"
NOW nearly 1000 miles long by what is
known as the mt. Pleasant IL Dallas
Branch" of the Texas Il st. Louis Railway
to New Mexico.
Thus have briefly given you an outline
of our proposed system of narrow gauge
railway in Texas. 1t is quite unnecessary
to those who have doubtless given Jhis sub
iect some attention, as l've no doubt you
have, to discuss the co operative merits of
the narrow gauge and the standard gauge
systems of railways. There is need and
room for both in Texas, and her wonderful
resources, and her vast territory capable of
sustaining population Of forty millions of
people.
Without amplifying the argument state
the conclusion to which from reason and
experience the advocates of the narrow
gauge system of railways have arrived. 1t
is, that system which costs on an average,
$500 per mile, fully equipped, as against
an average cost similarly equipped, of Sl5-
coo per mile of the broad-gauge railways /;
and with the further fact, that the bonded
debt per mile,of the narrow-gauge railways
rarely exceeds 5000 as against IN average
bonded debt of $4,000 per mile to
brOad-gauge railways with often a second
or third-class mortgage bond superadded),
and finally, with cost of maintenance, re-
pairs, etc, of at least 80 per cent less than
the broad-gauge railways, With such n
system the problem OF
CHEAP TRANSPORTATION
is readily solved. With the same bust
ness on these different gauges one of two
results is inevitable: First, The narrow
gauge railways with the same tariff
of rates for freight and passengers can earn
double the interest on the capital invested;
or ID, Can earn the same interest and de-
clare same dividends on tariff of rates fifty
per cent less than the present current rates
of the broad gauge railways, Ifthe prem
Uses as to cost of construction, maintenance,
repairs, ETC., be true, these conclusions are
legitimate and will be sustained by the
facts and figures Of actual experience.
The question is sometimes asked, Has
the narrow-gauge roads the carrying capac-
ity to enable them to do the business of the
country and successfully compete with the
broad-gaugc roads ? The answer is plainly
in the affirmative The narrow-gauge
freight cars, to illustrate, will carry thirty
two bales Of cotton, the broad-gauge carries
forty-two bales, or difference generally of,
say 1000 pounds. Sixteen thousand pounds
being the average capacity Of the narrow.
gauge freight car and 10000 pounds
of the broad-gauge freight car. With
compressed cotton the narrow gauge cars
- lie A,,1 4 10 4,
we'll known fact that Dremond'S freight
ears haul the same number of feet of lum-
Der rs the Central cars yet it is not consid-
cred good policy to exceed 10000 pounds,
Now let us apply the test. With same
grade a sixteen ton locomotive of the mar.
row gauge has, as generally recognized, a
greater motive power than u twenty
four (2D ton locomotive on the broad
gauge roads. The difference in weight
friction, etc, of the rail lthe one being IS
pounds to the yard instead of 6ll and other
reasons familiar to practical engineers 80
that to a great extent what the narrow
gauge lacks in actual size or capacity to
carry the same bulk of freight, il makes in
the power to transport more freight cars
with the same locomotive tonnage. But il
the BUSINESS is offered
IT WILL PAY
Either system 10 increase tnelr power ana
their rolling stock so rs to meet any de-
mand of the future, however great, which
may be made upon them as common car
riers.
How is it now in Texas or elsewhere?
Stand on the side of any of our broad gauge
roads, and in the winter season sometimes
two or three, or perhaps seven or eight
freight trains, each way, are run daily, but
in summer an average of one
or two each way will do all the
business. If the business is offered
to either the broader or narrow guage roads
they can run trains, passenger and freight,
within fifteen to twenty minutes OF each
other. There are twenty-four hours within
which these trains can run. SO that it be-
comes clear that if the business is offered
the narrow guage roads can and will do all
that this country will demand for hall
century to come,
1t is sure movement in the direction OF
cheaper freights and fares, and if success
full will become, while not less profitable tc
the owners, q great and needed blessing to
our peoplel We have already reduced Oul
passenger rates to three cents mile and
"still live" II will succeed, and las q sys
TEN. Within eighteen months or two
years we will have narrow gauge through
freight and passenger cars running
without change from st. Louis, To
ledo and Cincinnati, wa the great States o
Missouri, Arkansas and Texas to Laredo
thence through the Republic of Mexico tC
the Pacific.
cannot close this brief outline without
paying deserved tribute to some Of til,
hold and snpncious mon who hive spt QfOO