Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-02-10
P1serNGRRs AND FREIGHT.

l1GoBNGRRS AND FREIGHT.
~ pnesrssssng Letter ~ General
Manager TOWnes
u,csceasy lawrence. Of the Board Of
Yn1a has received the following letter
nsen A. n. Towne, General Manager Of the
uoathsrn Pacific Railroad Company:
goufHnRN PACIFIC COMPANY
AND LEASED LINES. I
once General Manager.
SAN Francisco. February I, 1888.
N. A. r. Lawrence, Secretary Los Angeles
Board Of Trade:
DxAR SrR:--Your letter just received. say
ing the Board of Trade Of Los Angeles WIN
make an effort during the present session
priation for Government buildings in your
city: also to have the efficiency Of the Post
.o6lce greatly increased, etc., and aoking me
for facts and figures demonstrating the
country; also particularly requesting that
place you In possession OF an authoritative
statement in regard to the immense pas
senger and freight traffic over the lines of
the Southern Pacific Company.
Measured by = standard Of comparison,
1887, with previous periods, we ind, even
within our limited scope OF observation,
much of interest to Californtans ana much
which should interest all OF those OF the
ton Of and awaken aninterest In the min nds
of our representatives, To properly direct
attention to the wants OF the people OF THIS
great and phenomenal California It VIII be
been made within the last few years; show
them that labor, q ready flow Of capital,
and our climate provide the necessarles OF
life; also show them the multiplied COM
forts and luxuries immeasurae!e IN every
direction. Then show them, BY way OF
comparison, how inconsiderste the Govern.
1ent has been of your wants-not only OF
L0a Angeles, but Of your port 81 San feoIo
Government, i believe is born, Of want Of
knowledge Of the true state of afsirs which
surround you; and it is not at all strange
We find the Government SO far benlnd
sSI fscts 'Gf shs %asveioas Prosperity q
your section of the State as well as that OF
an other portions of California, are SO little
known or understo ID BY eur people, How
slant fow OF trafic passing and repsssing,
always q fair index as guide OF other busi-
ness pursuits, has SO largely increased, as
il denoted by the following figures:
A careful calculation shows that the num-
ber Of freight cars coming west from Ogden
during October, November and Decemper, I,
1887, exceeded the same for like period
in 1885 by 40 per cent. A similar compari-
1887 OF 63 per cent. At Fl Paso the increase
was 10 per cent for freight cars and ~ per
cent. for passenger cars. At Deming we
received from the Atchison, Topeka ana
Santa Fe during the period named 1S4 per
cent. more freight cars and IA per cent.
more passenger cars than during the same
period In 1886, and from the Atlantic and
Pacifc ct M0jave 81 per cent. more freight
cars and 133 per cent. more passenger cars
We are taxed to our utmost capacity aud are
unable to meet as promptly Is we would de-
,Sire the demands made upon us. We had,
a. We believed. foreseen large increase Of
trafhc in 1887 over 1886. but y has exce Cd
ed our most sanguine expectations. In this
connection will mention In passing that
our company has orders out for 116 loco
motives, of which 33 have been received.
regret am unable to give yos the
amount Of lumber received at the port of
San Pedro during the two yesrs above nam
ed, but the increase in 1887 over 1885 was
Relative to the increase Of traf,c into the
city Of Los Angeles, this must be apparent
even to the observer; we have at the present
time thirty passenger trains per day into
and out Of that city, not to mention freight
tradc destined to and passing through
there.
You ask for statement OF freight received
1t Los Angeles III 1887 as compared with
1856, and also q ststement OF freight re-
ceived there in 1887 - compared with
latter year OF the total freight received at
Los Angeles in 1887 find there was an in
crease 9 compared with the receipts of 1886
Of xlO, ,6O0 tons, or II per cent there be1ng 8
an increase in through freight of 100 per
cent and In local OF ~ per cent, not In
,0luding O0mpany's freight.
Comparing the local traffic received at Los
Angeles during 1887 with that received
by rail ct San Francisco during the
same period, dnd the Los Angeles
f0nnAse exceeds that Of San Francisco
BY 81, ,302 tons, or an excess Of IL per cent
1t should be remembered, however. that In
the case of Los Angeles the tonnage given
includes prop0rtiOnately greater amount
Of the o0ar6er class of freight, such as coal
lumber. etc., than does that OF San Fran
ctsco.
have not the passenger statistics befors
zmc to give you, but you will form o fail
idea of the tide Of travel to and from LOi
Angeles as compared with San Francisco by
the relative movement of baggage ct the
'of baggage shipped from Los Angeles
number checked from Ban Francisco. and
the number received at Los Angeles
equalled 50 per cent. of the number re-
Ceived at San Francisco. And still the peo-
pie continue to come from all sections Of
the country where there is neither present
certainty nor remote prospects Of rapid
improvement to California, which offers
such great attractions and 30 many Oppor-
tunities. It IL not, we think, putting the
scese too strongly to say that . comparison
Of the current year with the one Just passed
will show q favorably for 1858 a. does
1887 over the year preceding 1t. Your1
truly. (Signed.1 A. N. TOwNB.