The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-07-28
PROGRESS IN AFRICA.
Railroad end Telegraph Construo-
tion In the Dark Continent

thousands of Native workmen Busily
Engaged In Opening Up tho
Traclsless wilds to
Civilization.
The great progress OF civilization Is
marked in nothing more plainly than
In the vast extent of tho railroads built
or contemplated. At this time thou
sands of men arc ut work in different
regions, levcling o course for them.
The rapids of the Congo will soon be
passed by railroad from Matadi, at
the head of navigation in the lower
Congo, $40 miles to Stanley pool, which
Is at the foot Of steam navigation in
the upper Congo river and its great
affluents, through which steamers of
different sizes may be run for 5000
miles So that when this railroad Is
built there will be steam communion
tion by this route into the very heart Of
Africa
The work Is being pushed by force
Of about u thousand blacks directed by
ton Transcript Before next spring it
is expected that the worst part will be
completed and locomotives running
through the Moose valley to the plains
above After crossing this Wiley the
road will run ON q plateau several
miles south of the Congo oil the way to
Stanley pool. Here it can be easily
constructed In South Africa 5000 men
are levcling the roadbed for railway
from the diamond fields of Kimberly
north toward the Zambesi, through u
country which was only visited by
hunters and missionaries few yeors
ago
These labOrcrs are accompanied by
hundreds of wagons loaded with vari-
GUS kinds of implements, explosives
and everything required in road build
ing. Such scenes of bustlinR activity
arc altogether new In these regions.
The road is already completed for 125
miles from Kimberly to Vryburg, and it
is expected that II will be extended 100
spring to Mafeking, prosperous town
with bank, newspaper and thriving
trade, where O few years ago was only
the homo of o native chief.
Kimberly Is future railroad center.
It has now rood that connects 1t with
Cape Town ON the south, and another
pushing toward the east, besides the
one mentioned going north. Tho East
e1n rnilroad runs through the Orange
Free State, and before long will extend
to Pretoria, the capital of the South
African republic, A Dutch syndicate
hos taken contract TO build railroad
to join Pretoria with the Portuguese
line from Delagoa bay ON the east coast.
When these are finished Kimberly will
have direct railroad communication with
both tho east and outh coasts. In n
short time the railroad from Natal will
be completed from the south coast to
the Transvaal frontier, and thence TO
the capital of the Boer republic.
These railroads will be the main chan
nels Of communication, which will ex-
tend in every direction through en- ele-
waited country Astounding with every
thing essential to comfort. The Portu-
guese are soon to build railroad from
the head of the navigabie waters of
the Bus river on the east const to
gold fields of Manica- It is said that
the Germans have about decided upon
the route of their road, which is to con-
meet one of the coast ports with Mount
kilmanjnro, near the edge of that enor-
nous plateau where cattle thrive The
british are already building their line,
which will meet the German road ut the
great mountain and then push over the
plains and through the forests to the
shores of Victorin Nyrlnza-
Some forty or fifty miles of this line
will soon be In operation, and the Brit
ish road will doubtless have the distinc-
ton of being the first to connect the
heart of Africa with the 500 coast. For
some time there has been q railroad In
operation from St. Paul de Loanda al
most to Malange running through the
Portuguese province of Angola Soon
this will extend TO the rich mountainous
coffee district OF Cazengo, which will
then be but days ride from Loanda,
which has the best harbor On the west
coast.
The WORK of building telcgraphs has
far exceeded the railroad enterprise A
telegraph line will soon be finished
which will reach the new cupital of
King Khama, LOO miles IN On air line
northeast Of Cope Town; 4GO wagons,
each drawn by ten or twelve yoke Of
oxen, have taken their way to the north,
latibuN WIFI HOCiiuiS DuC Telegraph
wires. To support the whites now en-
gagged In these tasks and the TOO armed
men sent by the Imperial British South
African Company to open Mashonaland,
1900, 600 pounds of provisions have been
cartcd. The most glowing reports are
made Of the healthful climate and of
the riches in gold and agricultural re-
sources of this Mashonuland
No recent cntcrpris cs of the sort sur
pass in magnitude, or In the energy with
which they are being pressed forward,
these railroad and telcgraphic projects