Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1891-07-22
DENVER & RIO GRANDE.
Some Practical Suggestions Relative to
the Extension Of the Little
Giant Southwark.
A PopuIous and Productive Route Out
lned-Fertile Valleys that will
Yield Productive
Traffic.
To the Editor of the New Mexican.

o the Editor of the New Mexican.
We hear much of the projected extern
ion of the Denver & Rio Grande railway
ystem to Albuquerque, for the mutual
,enefit of New Mexico and Colorado; and
indeed 1t is questionable which of these
wo great countries would gain most by
he construction Of line that should
,ring those two cities into closer COM
nercial contact. 1t would seem, how
'ver, that in selecting a route for the con-
truction of the connecting line, attention
hould be paid, in the first place, to the
OF local traffic obtainable in sup
,ort of the new line, and not only to the
shortest ultimate connection of the two
Hence it appears that there can be no
loubt as to the preferability of the line
shi ough Santa Fe, Cerrillos and San Pc
lro over that which, following the course
Of the Rio Grande, would traversea coun-
try devoid of towns,
and, in fact, uninhabited, because of the
irreclaimable savagery Of its nature. But
Notwithstanding the advantages derivable
from the route through Santa Fe, they are
not sufficient to compensate for the pur.
chase of the existing line of the Santa Fe
Southern railroad at double the necessary
cost of constructing it new. That line
indeed, traverses nearly forty miles of ar
and uninhabited tract, neces
sarily unproductive to the railroad, which
depends solely for its maintenance or
such through traffic as it can obtain be
tween Espanola and Santa Fe.
The desolation of the route is only thu
more vividly impressed on the travele
by the nominal stations quoted on th'
time table, at which the unwary wsndere
looks out OF the car to see, instead of
comfortable section house or way station
perhaps little side track, perpaps pill
of old sIeepers, possibly not even these
We would ask, why was such lin
ever built? Are there no
OTHER PRACTICABLE ROUTES
to traverse between the fertile valley O
the Bio Grande and Santa Fe? And cal
not new line he made to connect the D
& r. &. railroad system with Santa f
which shall be in itself source of profit
or at least of sslf-maintenance, instead 9
being q burden on the main line?
seems to US that the D. & R. G. railwa
should have crossed the Rio Grande yer
shortly after making the wonderfr
descent of Comanche canon, in lieu c
keeping on the west side of that river t
Espanola. Notwithstanding that +
Paso was their ultimate objectiv
point, due examination of the flourish
ing country around San Pedro and Coz
rillos, with its
IMEMNsE POSSIBILITIES
in the near future, and the relative in
portance of Santa Fe as the capital cit
of the territory, should have prevente
the costly error fallen into in the surve
of White Rock canon for the prolongs
ton of the railroad.
But apart from these considerations, "
have the fact that on the east side OF tn
Rio Grande, and lying in almost
straight line between the Comanch
canon and Santa Fe, there is continut
series of settlements in the midst
flourishing orchards and we'll cultivate
fields; namely, La Joya, La Villita, Lo
y.uceros, Plaza Alcalde, San Juan, lie
r, >nchitos, Santa Cruz, Pojoaque, Guys
mn, ,gue and Tesuque. The populatio
Of The >se towns and villages numbers b.
tween
SEVEN AND EIGHT THOUSAND INHABlTANT'
without counting the adjoining village
of Ouemados, Las Truchas, Chimayt
Nambe and others, which lie but a sho
distance from che line indicated.
The "Sanctusrio," a spot much vene
ated by the largeRoman Catholic populs
ton of this territory, and now, on accour
of the great expense of the pilgrim ag
onlv visited by the wealthier familie
would bring thousands of pilgrims ov'
the railway each year from the souther
counties OF New Mexico, should this liz
be adopted, as the 50 uctuary is only te
miles from Santa Cruz.
Most of this country is susceptible
irrigation from the Rio Grande or stream
flowing into that river. 1t is the olde
farming country in New Mexico, chose
for settlement as long as two centuri
ago, and is surely destined to becon
the
PRINCIPAL SOURCE OF SUPPLY
for Santa Fe and the south, as we'll as fl
Antonito, Alamosa, and even Denver
the north, because the spring season
the valley of the Rio Grande below En-
budo is full month earlier than at an
other part of the Denver & Rio Crane
railway system.
Crossing the Rio Grsnde by a bridi
near La Joya, the railway following tt
route above sketched, would reach San
Fe through rich and fertile country
ready we'll settled, but which has amp
facilities for supporting more than treb
it's present population, and this by rou
from twelve to fifteen miles shorter tbs
the present line through Espanola.
fact, we firmly believe that this emit
new line could be constructed for lie
than the cost of the unfortunate Santa
Southern, with it's forty miles Of tra
meandering through an irreclaimable d.
ert. TRAVELLER