Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-10-03
THE RAILROADS.
A COMMITTEES Appointed to AppraiSe
the Right Of Way Of the Santa Fe
Through the Territory.
An Arrangement which will Result in tho
Reorganization of tho Mexican
National Railway.
Toxins RAILWAY Notes.

Inc Lone star state could receive bU,-
900 people Of this nation within its Dor
ders, and give to each man, woman and
child 80 acres Of land.
There is to-day no line of business,
however large or however humble, that Is
not affected more or less directly by the
railways, and ali business life is sustain
ed by these needful agencies.
In all this there is only one thing TO be
set down to the discredit of the common
wealth on the Rio Gcande border, and
that is Its anti-railroad legislation, for
which 1t has been made to suffer.
The future Of Texas is certainly promis-
ing, and year by year she will find it
necessary to add TO her railroad mileage,
until it shall amount to from 100 to 400
per cent. Of its present total Railway
Register, ST. Louis.
Texas is lacking in railway facilities.
In the states named above, as having an
area approximately equivalent to Texas,
there were at the opening of the present
year $1,000 miles of railroads, while the
latter had only GGs7 miles.
Although Texas is conceded to be a
large state, its territorial Importance is
apt to be undervalued unless it be exam
ined in comparative way BY consult
ing map this great commonwealth ap-
pears gigantic in its proportions.
A trip from the Panhandle to the mouth
Of the Rio Grande river, on an air line,
would involve more miles Of travel than O
similar Journey from the Panhandle to
the Northern Pacific railroad in Dakota
The distances from Texal kama to Chicago,
to Cincinnati and to El Paso are prac.
tically the same.
The soil of Texas Is fertile, the land is
we'll watered and the climate Is salubri
Gus. The products OF the field are varied
and crops reasonably sure Of abundant
returns to the farmers. The state has al
ready accomplished much In every line OF
progress, but the surface of its wealth has
as yet been only touched.
Texas contains 274, 1866 square miles OF
territory To make another state of equa
area would absorb, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York anc
all of New England, Maine excepted; anC
even then Texas would be the larger by
1916 square miles. Texas lacks but little
OF reaching half way across the United
States from north to south.
But the lesson In these facts Is ALREADY
being learned. The resources of thu
great blute Ol texas ueeu the ala, Wl1Cf
railway facilities alone can afford, foI
their development. But railways cannot
be operated as charities; h must |,
permitted to share in the prosperity
which they bring with them. Oppressive
legislation will not attract them.
The state OF Texas is occupying quite 9
prominent place in the attention of tn,
railway world just now. Kansas is un
doubtedly the banner state, so far as new
projects are concerned, but Texas is
hclose second. While there are ground.
for believing that the chartering Of rail
way lines in the former case is beng over
done, such suspicion cannot attach to tn,
| latter.
With one-fifth the territorial extent o
Texas, Illinois has 9s per cent more rail
roads. With one-seventh the area OF
Texas, Ohio has nearly 10 per cent. NOR,
railroads, With one-sixth the number
Of square miles that Texas has, Pennsyl
vania has over l6 per cent. more rail
roads. With trife more than one-sixtl
the area Of Texas, New York has over II
| per cent. more railroads.