The Portland daily press., 1889-04-02
A GRAND CHANCE FOR PORTLAND.
Great and Important Step Towards
Making Her a Summer Resort.
A solid VestIbuie Train to Run from
the Lake City.
me Chicago and Grand Trunks
Great Work for Our City.


The people of Portland have long been of
the opinion that nowhere ON the Atlantic
coast Is there a combination of natural beau
Ties and physical advantages more favorable
10 the development of a great summer re-
sort than right here on the shores and islands
OF Casco Bay. While summer tourists have
been going in headlong rush to places to
the eastward they have been neglecting
region no less beautiful and far more easy of
access, all within few minutes or few
hours sail or ride from large and commo-
dious city and railroad centre. Casco Bay
has beauties. but until this year they have
been born to blush unseen by the great
world Of leisure and fashion that now looks
to Maine for its summer resorts. 1t there
fore gives US more than ordinary pleasure to
announce this morning an enterprise which,
If properly sustained, will make the vicinity
of Portland great summer resort of itself,
and also will make Portland the distributing
point for Maine for summer visitors from
the West, as it already is for the -four and
beef of the West. This enterprise comes
from the West, from great railroad, the
Chicago q Grand Trunk, which has been adj
vertising Portland throughout the West all
this winter. Commencing on the 26th of
June this road will begin to run a solid yes
tibule train of ten cars direct from Chicago
to Portland. This train will leave Chicago
every Wednesday afternoon and will arrive
In Portland on Saturday noon. This arrange
ment will continue throughout the season,
until September.
The train will be the most elegantly
equipped ever turned out by the famous Pull
man company; and in its running time and
in the route it will take will afford one of the
finest if not absolutely the finest excursions
on the Continent. This train. as it starts
from Chicago every Wednesday will consist
of six sleeping cars, dining room car a
library car, a smoking car and car with
bath rooms. BARRIERS, etc. 1t will be
nearer moving palace than any other train
that has ever run into Maine This train is
| loaded in Chicago and takes none but
through passengers and no passengers on the
| way. Like the famous Raymond excursion
that leave Boston for the West and South
this train and its excursionists will be under
the charge OF an official, who will be, how
ever, an officer Of the Chicago and Grand
Trunk Railway. The train will run direct
to Niagara Falls, where stop of half day
will be made to allow the passengers to en-
joy the beauties of that place, Then the
train will proceed to Kingston, where those
OF the passengers who wish to view the
beauties of the Thousand Islands may take
st. Lawrence steamer for Montreal The
train, meanwhile, will proceed to Montreal
where 1t will await the arrival of the steamer
Then it will be ''all aboard for Portland.
At Gorham in the White Mountain region
short stop will be made; and then the ten
vestibule cars will roll down to Portland and
on the shores Of Casco Bay at noon on
Saturday.
The fact will be appreciated readily that
this will be the greatest enterprise ever I'M
dertaken to bring the shores and islands Of
Casco Bay to the notice of the people of the
West. The Chicago & Grand Trunk ranks
second to none of the roads of the West in
the enterprise and ability of its manage
ment. 1t is closely allied to the Grand
Trunk, and no doubt its influence and its
connection will have an advantageous effect
In turning the attention of railroad men to
Portland. All this winter the Chicago &
Grand Trunk officials have been busily adj
vertising Portland and the islands and coasts
neighboring. The response has evidently
been such as to show that the advantages
OF this region are appreciated in the West,
and to encourage the Chicago & Grand
Trunk to undertake the great enterprise of
running special and elegant train every
week during the summer. In the whole his
tory OF the summer resorts of Maine there is
no instance OF so great an undertaking
to bring distant people here. The great ex.
cursions in their palatial trains have always
rolled from the East TO the West and the
West 70 kifes they and is to be t t
objective point and the centre from which
they will be distributed to neighboring re-
sorts.
The beginning of this enterprise by
Western railroad brings close upon its
heels another subject which is a proper one
for consideration by the capitalists of Port
land. 1t is to this city that these excursion
lists Will be brought, and in this vicinity they
VIII naturally remain if there are for them
proper accommodations. There are already
many good summer hotels around Portland:
but thousands might be accommodated |
where hundreds are now. Within radius
OF five miles. or even less, there are scores of
sites Tor hotels that would command, in the |
beauties OF sea and shore. prospects suffi- |
GENTLY beautiful to detain here all the visi- |
tors that Western enterprise may land at our
door,
Those who imagined that some day the |
Cape Shore. the Foreside and the Islands of |
the bay would be thronged with summer Wis. |
itors have not necessarily been hugging a |
phantom. Opportunities will come, which,
II improved. will lead to this result. This
is one of the opportunities, and very great
one.