Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-05-16

The proposed Pan-Amerlcan railroad
bringing into closer commercial relations
all the American republics, North, Gen.
Iral and South, is not an original idea
with the gentlemen who now have the
stupendous undertaking under consid-
GRAFTON, but it, or rather a more gigan-
tic idea, had birth in the brain of
e man who has made it q life
stndy. The Pan american railroad idea
is simply an outgrowth of the theory of
Ex-Governor William Gilpen of Colorado,
who has spent years Of his life studying
the praoticability of constructing q rail-
road through the American continent
into Siberia and thence through Asia to
the eastern shores of the Atlantic. This
idea was conceived by Gilpen while on
tour of exploration through the
then undeveloped and almost unknown
West, and for forty-seven years he has
made the geography, industrial posslbil-
tiles, resources and the social and politl-
cal life OF North America special
study. During that time he has also
been at work on plans for great cos
mopolitan railrond.
~ =
from its vocabulary the impossible. 1t
has surmounted the greatest obstacles
possible TO commerce on its own CONT
nent, and now looks to other continents
for conquests 1t now looks to Alaska,
in contemplation of a railroad into Sioe-
ria and thence through the empires and
Kingdoms of Europe and Asia. The key
10 this gigantic railway system is Ben
rings straits, and while it has been
claimed that the passage of this channel,
so near the Arctic seas would be diff
cult and next TO impossible, the
claim is merely suppositional.
For years the feasibility of bridging,
ferrying or tunueling this channel has
been discussed, and those who profess TO
be familiar with the subject claim that
the work of bridging the straits would be
less difficult than building the great
railway bridge over the Mississippi at st.
Louis.
is THE COSMOPOLITAN SYSTEM PRAcTT-
CABLE.
In forming the cosmopolitan system of
railroads the question of practicability
would have to be and has been consid-
cred, and it will be observed that the
first, or American division of the sys-
tenn. is already complete on the transoon-
tineutal roads starting from either New
York or Boston and reaching to Northern
Oregon. The plateaus and valleys along
the base Of the Rocky mountains oHer
natural route through Alaska to Behr-
ings straits. Bridging the straits the
line would reach Siberia and
thence run in sOuthwesterly
direction to Il connection with the lines
now under construction to give the Rus
sian government one 10 the sea
TT the mouth of the AMOR river.
From this point there would be
no trouble in completing the system
through all parts of the continental
world.
The great obstacle is Behring's straits,
and two objections to the passage Of them
are offered. First, that the straits are
embraced in the arctic circle; sec
ond, the great distance of water
intervening between America and
Siberia. Can these be overcome? The
straits are about forty EIGHT miles wide,
but in the center is Diomede island,
which is large enough TO contain the city
of New York, and bridge of little
over twenty miles on either side of this
island would make the connection be-
Eween Asia and America. 1t is said the
Water in the straits is shallow-at no
point over forty feet deep-and the bot
tom is solid, aud it is claimed that
the warm water current on the Pacific
%guIf stream having o temperature