The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-07-23

line In the Sierra Nevada mountains auu
extends ffty.two miles to the lower plains.
The hume is of V-shaped section, feet
Z inches wide across the top and 81 iaches
deep. 1t is built Of II inch boards and
| is supported upon treStle work, some OF
the canyons being crossed at the hight
of 239 feet. The construction OF the tuIne
consumed about 100000 feet OF lumber,
much of which had to be carried on mems
shoulders over the mountain. In one
stretch of about 900 yards near its head,
the fiume falls nearly $50 feet. Logs are
the chief freight OF this novel trausporta.
| ton, but passengers are often carried. The
boat for the carriage Of passengers or
freight is V-shaped box about sixteen feet
long. The front end is left Off, as the We
locity of the water is such that it will not
back into the boat TO any extent. A plank
is placed along the bottom, and on this the
passengers rest their feet, sitting on cross
seats. When ali is ready the spikes which
hold the boat while loading are pulled out,
and away it goes on its flfty~two mile
| journey. trip that is full Of exciting ex-
periences
Claude w. Kinder one of the engineers
! who built the kaipinG railway OF China, has
written au interesting letter, in which he
| describes the enormous difficulties which
had to be overcome before construction was
permitted in that country. The whole sys-
| tenn of railways in China at the present day
| does not include more than 100 miles, but so
great has bean the superstltious opposition
| to its construction that even now there is no
certainty that an imperial order may not
| issue at any momont to tear up the tracks
| and obliterate every evidence OF modern
| improvement. Mr. Kinder writes to
| the RcIiCuy Age that the China
| railway had its origin in the
! desire of the government to facili-
tate the transportation OF GOAL from the
| Kaipiug mines TO the sea. When the idea
was preached in 1877 the natives were tear
ing up the little road, then year old, that
connected Shanghai with Woosung. Never
theless the ruling power authorized the COM
| pany to build twenty-nine miles from the
| mines to Lutai, town on the river
| Peh- Tang, and there was much elatlon over
| tho concession when orders came TO stop all
work, the imperial sanction having been
| Withdrawn, Solemn discussion resulted in
permission to build a canal within seven
miles Of the mines and tramway to con-
! meet the canal with the mines. But on no
account would locomotives be permitted.
| The work was completed in 1881. The canal
| proved partial failure because it was impos-
sible TO maintain the necessary depth
without constant dredging, and because the
| natives often cut the banks, the company
having no power to stop them. The tram
way was successful, however, and the COM
pany went to work cautiously to substitute
| steam for mule power. An engine was
knocked together in the shops from such
odds and ends as could be accumulated with
out attracting attention, the boiler being
| supplied from portable winding engine
| When completed 1t was called the Rocket of
China, and travelled at the rate of twenty
miles an hour. The machine familiarized
| the people, and permission was event
| ually given to import two tank engines
from England. No more railway work was
undertaken for several years, until
| finally the Franco Chinese war came.
! The government then desiring to expedite
| the forwarding OF coal to the sea consented
to the extension of the line to Lutai and it
was completed in 1887. A couple OF
branches for military purposes were also
| sanctione and now the road is at Tientsin.
In the construction work many difficulties
| of various kinds were encountered.
The surveyors and engineers were con-
stantlv sub ected to all sorts of annoyances.
| One day while surveying the route pole
was planted on the summit Of hill where
the remains of a rude fertilization still
| exist This was reported to the throne
| and several official dispatches
were required before the authorities
were satisfied that no serious rebellion was
contemplated, and that the Tongsan Earth
Dragon was not likely to be disturbed. A
proposition to use certain iron ore found
near the line was stopped as being detri-
mental to tine names Of the imperial dead,
about 1870 miles in totally different direc-
ton. The mere sight of few boring rods,
steam pipes or anything with hole in it
! drove the natives frantic with fear Of
| rebels, and for years they persisted in the
belief that when the time was ripe the
make-beiieve gas and water pipes would be-
come cannon or other implements of war
fare. Pamphlets were circulated accusing
the engineers of attempts to unearth the
treasure guarded by the Dragon and calling
for the immediate destruction Of the works.
Landowners objected to the noise and
| whistling near the bones Of their ancestors
and the sacred remains were accordingly
removed This was not an unmitigated
evil, for it gave an opportunity to straighten
the railroad line. which had been built
with some very sharp curves in an almost
level country simply for the purpose of
avoiding the graveyards.