Los Angeles herald., 1890-06-30
The Object for Which Will
lam Gilpin Labors.
The Building of a Railway
Round the World.
His Visit to the Coast in Its In
tereSt.
The Life of a Remarkable Man--An Ac-
count of His Career and Its Results.
He Visits Los Angeles.

nent character in the history OF the
west, has been stopping at the West
minister. Last evening he left for San
Francisco. He is accompanied by his
wife and family. He plans to make a
thorough tour of California and the
Pacific coast, including visit to
Alaska.
His visit to this country is for pur-
pose in which the citizens of California
are likely to take no small degree of in
terest. Although the name of William
Gilpin is well known and full of sug
gesting "reminiscences to those who have
spent their lives in the far west, yet
there are many readers of this paper
who are not perhaps familiar with the
what part he played in the development
of western civilization.
Mr.. Gilpin was born in Philadelphia
in 1922. Much OF his boyhood was
passed in Europe, and on his return to
this country he entered West Point.
In 1886 he took part in the Black Hawk
war. Afterward he was an officer in the
Seminole and the Mexican wars. In
1843 he set out alone from Independ-
ence, Missouri, on an exploring expedi
tion across the Rocky mountains through
to the Pacific ocean. He accompanied
Fremont in his memorable march to the
great west. From Walla Walla he
travelled alone through country inhab-
tied by hostile Indian tribes, and made
thorough study of this then unknown
section.
Upon his return to Washington he
was cordially received by President
Polk, with whom he had long been on
intimate terms, and at the request
of Mr.. Buchanan he made an
elaborate report to Congress upon his
discoveries in the west. This report
was afterwards often quoted in discus
sions which took place on the subject OF
the development OF the western terri
tory.
While engaged in this tour OF discov-
cry the idea dawned upon Mr.. Gilpin,
which afterwards became the moving
spirit of his whole life, and which has
again brought him to this coast. 1t was
first the plan of railway to the Pacific
and afterwards of line up through
Alaska, across Bering straits, and
from Asia into the heart of
Europe. He was the first man
to assert that such a road could be built
and that it would be built. His
prophecies Of the development of the
west and the connection OF the Pacific
slope with the country east of the rock
les were at first regarded as the vagaries
of an enthusiast. He has lived to see all
that he expected and described come to
pass, and now at last to see the idea of a
railroad encircling four-ffths of the
globe accepted as feasible undertaking
by engineers and capitalists of the
world. Iron rails have girded the con-
tinent, and the west has grown from
''the region of savages, wild beasts, of
deserts of shifting sands, of whirlwinds
of dust, of cactus and prairie dogs" as
described by Daniel Webster, to
great and fourishing en-
pire. All that remains of the
great plan which Mr. Gilpin thus early
outlined is the building OF the line
through British America to Alaska and
across Bering straits. The Russian gov
ernment has undertaken to complete the
connection into Europe.
Mr.. Gilpin's plan is outlined in this
fashion:
Spread the map of the globe upon
plane and it is seen that the isothermal
axis of the temperate zone passes
through the United States near the CEN
ter, the temperate belt covering all the
populous portion of the North American
continent. Passing in it's irregular
course through the Pacific ocean, it cov-
ers all Asia, large portion of Southern
Russia, and all the rest of Continental
Europe. Within this belt of the tenn
perate zone is gathered the grand aggre-
cation OF active, intelligent, industrial
peoples of the world. Here the learn
ing, the arts, the sciences, and the in
ventive genius of the world have their
homes and their life. On either side of
the isothermal axis is seen the great,
restless, striving, moving army Of en-
lightened humanity, unified in one COM
mon pursuit and purpose.
Along this line, marked by the north
ern and southern limits of the temperate
zone. is the worlds highest stage OF civ
ilizatiop. The industrial masses of the
progressive march which demands
closer and more literal relationship.
The fleets OF commerce and of war can
never lose their dominion of the seas
but, according to Governor Gilpin, the
fullness of the time has come when the
necessities of this age OF human progress
demand quicker and more universal car
rying facilities. America can feed and
clothe the starving millions in the lands
OF the plutocrats OF the old world.
The American, intelligent and self
reliant, has banished forever the impos-
sible from his philosophy. He has sur
mounted the greatest obstacles possible
to commerce upon his own continent.
He now looks to other continents for
cOnquests, and his attention is directed
to Alaska in the contemplation of rail
way into Siberia and thence down
through the empires and Kingdoms OF
Europe and Asia.
The passage of Bering straits is the
only obstacle, and two objections are
offered: First, that the straits are en-
braced in the arctic circle; second, the
great distance with water intervening
between the American and Siberian
shores. These objections present no
impossible or very difficult problems.
The straits are only forty-eight miles in
width, with the Diomede island nearly
midway. This island is large enough to
contain the cities OF New York and
Brooklyn. A bridge of little more than
twenty miles on either side of this
island would make the connection. The
water has a shallow, solid bottom, in no
place exceeding depth of forty feet