Los Angeles herald., 1890-08-02
IN NINETY DAYS.
Work on the Santa Fe's San
Francisco Line
1t is Said Will Be Commenced
In That Time.
Contractor Guthrie -Inquiring for
Teams and Men.
tion in the City-What He Did While
Here-A Prediction.

Mr.. J. A. Guthrie left this city on
Thursday. He had been here several
days on important business. The
importance of his business will
be better understood if who Mr..
Guthrie is be made known. He
is well-known railroad builder--an
actual railroad builder, man who has
the shoveling done and the ties laid and
the rails spiked; railroad contractor.
Mr.. Guthrie some years ago was super
intendent of construction on the Mani
toba railroad; in fact was in the employ
of the road at the same time that Mr..
Allen Marvel was its president. He
and Mr.. Marvel were very good friends.
Mr.. Marvel has way of keeping his
friends who are efficient railroad men
with him, and as he is now president of
the Santa Fe, it is not surprising to see
Mr.. Guthrie appear in this part of the
country.
What did he do here? Well, he made
very close inquiries as to the resources
of Los Angeles as to supplying 400 or
500 teams, as many or more laborers,
and supplies for both at Mojave inside
of the next ninety days. He was con-
clusively shown that all his wants could
be met, and off he went.
''Work on the Santa Fe's line to San
Francisco will be commenced inside of
ninety days." said one of the men Mr..
Guthrie had talked to, to HERALD re-
porter yesterday.
The following, taken from Thursdays
San Francisco Chronicle, is apropos:
''The most interesting and the chief
topic of conversation in railroad circles
is the building ofssthe Santa Fe line into
this city. Not the least noteworthy
feature of the general discussion is the
universal belief that San Francisco is
really to have another transcontinental
line. The route to be followed is vari-
ously mapped out and the exact route is
probably only known to Santa Fe
officials. They have, however, not had
word to say in the entire talk and are
the quietest imaginable of railroad
people.
"a. N. Towne, general manager of the
Southern Pacific Company, and j. G.
Stubbs, third vice-president of the COM
pany, were both seen yesterday and
both expressed their confidence in the
bona fide intentions of the Santa Fe to
build into this city. The contract which
has long existed between the local com
pany and the Atlantic and Pacific has
throug "A all this railroad talk been the
subject OF discussion. The head men at
fourss2 and Townsend streets are all
wei. supplied with copies of the con-
.yeact, and two or three of them, when
questioned yesterday, were able to refer
to the document with an ease which
suggested recent perusal with its pro.
visions.
''The principal features of the con-
tracts were: The purchase by the At
lantic and Pacific of the line from Mo-
jave to Needles, and, as the title of the
Southern Pacific has never been cleared
up, the payment of the interest
on $50, 900 mile of 242 miles at 6 per
cent. per annun, which is virtu-
ally making the purchaser the owner
the securing of traffic rights under the
condition that the Atlantic and Pacific
should give three years notice of inten-
tion to extend it's lines from Moiave to
San Francisco.
'This is only the veriest outline of the
agreements, but it is the gist of them
Whether this notice will be given or not
is question. 1t was stated, however
by one official of the Southern Pacific
Company yesterday that the chances
are that recourse will be had to not
uncommon ruse for the avoidance OF
such an agreement. In fact new COM
pany will be formed with the object OF
connecting Mojave and San Francisco
and having, of course, no visible rela-
tionship to the Atlantic and Pacific"