The Portland daily press., 1883-10-15
A Great Railroad.
A Brief History OF the Work of Construc-
ton OF the Canadian Pacific.
IN. Y. Graphic.l

IN. Y Graphic.l
The Canadian Pacific Railway Company
was incorporated February 16, 1881, to car
ry to completion and to operate forever the
line of railway undertaken by the Dominion
Government between the Canadian Allan
tic and the Pacific seaboards in British Col
umbia. The capital stock is $100, 900.
The distance Of the route as surveyed and
now under rapid construction, from Mon
treal to the western terminus at Port Moody
on the Pacific coast, is about 2,S70 miles,
and runs in many places within sixty miles
of the international boundary of the United
States. The 400 miles of branches will give
the entire system on completion about
3,270 miles of road.
The distance from San Francisco to New
York by the shortest railway line is 1881
miles. The shortest distance by rail from
the Pacific terminus of the Northern Pacific
to New York is 3,20S miles. The compile
ton of the Canadian Pacific will make the
distance from its Pacific coast terminus to
New York, 3,164 miles, while the all-rail
journey to Montreal, Portland and Halifax,
where connection will be made with Euro
pean steamers, will give very decided ad-
vantages between the ports of China and
Japan and those of Europe in point of time
and distance over all other routes, complet-
ed or projected. Some of these distances
can easily be compared
Yokohama TO Liverpool via San Fran
cisco and New York ;..:...;....;,..12,03S
Yokohama to Liverpool via Canadian
Paclnc. ...,........-..- ..,........lo,9o5
--1.053
York. =. ............,.... $3.50
racine. 5,66z
--1 16S
San Francisco to Havre via New York. 1920
Port Moody to Havre via Canadian Pa
c1fc..s.. --................... 6,8lb
- Jos
San Francisco to Antwerp via New
Port Moody to Antwerp via Canadian
Pac1nc. ................ ........... 5000
-, ITO
On its incorporation the company entered
into contract with the Dominion Govern
ment by which the latter agreed to complete
and convey to the company all that portion
of the road which the government had pre-
viously undertaken, and to confirm the com-
pany in it's title thereto forever. The por-
tion thus passing into the possession of the
Canadian Pacific Railway Company aggre-
gates 713 miles of railway, costing about
$35, ,000,0 900, all of which railway has been
made free gift to the company. At the
same time the Government granted to the
company a subsidy of 25,000,00O in cash
and $4,000 acres of land, guaranteeing
that all the land so granted should be fer
tile and fit for settlement. 1t further grant
| ed to the company all lands hereafter need
ed for roadbed, stations, dock grounds, water
frontage, &c., in so far as the title thereof
might be vested in the Government. 1t
| agreed further to admit free of duty any and
all materials that the company might re-
| quire for construction purposes, including
telegraphc apparatus and material. Along
every mile of its railway the company has
| constructed in the most substantial manner
q complete system of telegraphs, which is
| not only of great value 20 the company at
present, but will, by connecting directly
with all other telegraph lines throughout
Canada, prove of immense profit to the
company.
By the terms of the grant the company
has the right to construct and maintain ad-
ditional branches of railway in any part Of
the Dominion. All its property is to be for
ever free from taxation excepting its land
| grant, and that is not to be taxed for twenty
years. The road has the guarantee of the
Government that it shall be protected from
competition by the building of parallel OF