, 1889-10-31
CONsTRU CTION ~ MONTANA.
The Drift Appears to he In tho nj
rectiou of Missouia.

T.. II. McHenry, division engineer in
charge of the construction of the Butte
n Gallatin short line and various other
branch lines of the Northern Pacific
railroad now building in Montana,
reached Helena last night from his work
on the above mentioned road He says
thnt on the east ond OF the line the work
islconipeted for forty-iye miles and on
the west end for seven, leaving only
eighteen miles. The ballasting and
grading are not all completed, however,
for the portions of the track now already
laid but the entire line will be finished
and trains running by January /, if the
winter does not come to early. A line Is
also to be constructed to Pony and an
other TO Rcd Bluff, The Pony line will
leave the Gallatin Il Butte line at Liv-
ingston, twenty miles from Gallatin, and
the line to Red Bluff will leave the Pony
line ten miles further on, at Harrison.
The Elkhorn branch also under Mr.,
MCHonry's supervision, il now under
construction. 1t will run from Boulder
to Elkhorn u distance of twenty-five
miles, and with the exception, perhaps,
of few miles will be completed by
Christmas.
The Oregon Railway & Navigation
Company is pushing its line from Farm
ington into the Cmur d Alene country
and a considerable portion of IL is now
under construction. The idea is un-
doubtedlytocontinue tins line overJohn's s
pass down the st. Regis Borgia river to
its mouth and thence TO Missoula. II is
this scheme, probably, which has given
rise to the rumor that the Northern Pa
ciiic will seek, or Is seeking, line to
Butte via Philipsburg and across the
head of Flint creek valley to the head of
the Bitter Root valley and down that to
Missoula. This was reported as the in
tention of the Northern Pacific in order,
in connection with the Gallatin X Butte
Short Line, to shorten the main trunk
line. Mr.. McHenry says, however, that
the Northern Pacific engineers are not
looking for any such line and never hive
and that the main trunk line of the road
will continue as 1t is. The completion
of the Gallatin d Butte line will not
mean that the main traffic West will go
via Butte, because from Butte to Gar
rlson IL will pass over the Montana
Union, which Is not ownedi by the
Northern Pacific.
Some surveying parties of the Union
Pacific have been in the field between
Butte and Missoala, however, and ii is
not unlikely that this company u seek
ing "a line to Missoula to connect with
that of the Oregon Railway Il Naviga-
ton Company. 10 is probable, also,
that the Manitoba railroad, in seeking to
push westward beyond Great Falls, will
come to Missoula, the lines of drainage
all tending that way, and join there for
a western outlet with the Oregon Rail
way & Navigation Company, which will
carry them into the C9ur d Alene coun-
try and beyond over the line Of the lat
ter company as above described. Mean
while tho Northern Pacific is parailei,ng
the contemplated line of the Oregon
Hallway & Navigation Company from
hissoula into the C@ur d. Alenes, so that
II all the contemplated schemes are car
riod out the railroad building in Mon
tana for the next year will be considera-
Bile, and it looks as though Missoula
would be railroad center. With it aal,
however, the Northern Pacific does not
contemplate moving its main line south
via Rutte and leaving Helena off on a
side track. There is nothing whatever
in this report, although. the Northern
Pacific officials are asked on an ge
of about once o day If the Mulian tunnel
is not to be abandoned as soon as the
Gallatin a. Butte line Is completed.