The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1892-06-09
To South America by Rail.

From the Hartford Post.
There is something captivating to the
imagination in the thought of great
railway to unite the Northern and South
ern Americas between which, in spite of
the narrow isthmus, there has been
great gulf fixed. The streams of settle
ment from older countries have flowed
into two regions far apart and hav.
ramified, each from it's own centre, then
from new minor centres and so ON in the
usual and inevitable way of growth until
great communities of many millions OF
souls have developed ON the same conti>
nent, free communication between which
would be mutually advantageous, but
which are separated by thousands OF
miles of country, for the most part thin
ly settled and Offering an obstruction
that has thus far been more serious than
an ocean Of the same extent.
Now comes the scheme for the in
continental railway, which is to furnish
a continuous line about 5000 miles long,
binding together New York and Buenos
Ayres, and connecting all the great cities
of the extreme north and extreme south
in America. The surveys have already
covered a great part of the route, includ
ing much of that in which the greater
difficulties were expected to be found,
and they indicate that the project can
be carried out more easily than was sup
posed. 1t is to be noted that of the
5000 miles of line about g. 800 are already
provided. Roads extend now from New
York into Mexico, and that country has
guaranteed the immediate comrletion of
line to Ayutia on it's southern boundry.
This disposes of 5000 miles. The Argen-
tine system covers about 8, 900 miles more,
and this leaves gap of 5000 miles ex
tending through Central America and
down into the northern part of South
America, as far as Jujay, the northern
terminus of the Argentine system. This
gap, however. contains various short
railroads. of which those running in a
proper direction to be utilized in the
through line cover nearly or quite 800
miles more, leaving a distance of about
$500 miles to be covered with new lines
Starting from Ayutia on the southern
border of Mexico, the route as now laid
out along the Pacific slope of Central
American through Guatemala, Salvador,
Honduras, and Nicaragua, crossing in
Costa Rica to the Atlantic side, and
thence on that side to Columbia, and SO
on down to reach all the great countries
of the southern continent.
The engineers reports thus far received
show that the difficulties are certainly
no greater than had been anticipated.
But to build $500 miles of road, largely
through wild regions, encountering tropi-
cal swamps and mountain ranges, I'M
broken forests, and all the difficulties
that attend work far from basis of
supplies, and with none of the convent
ences that belong to a region in which
manufacturing and railraod building
have become traditional is a colossal I'M
dertaking. OF course, it is possible. The
only question is whether it is worth the
money and the labor involved. AS to
this the promoters of the enterprise hold
that the benefits to accrue are almost in
ctlculable; in a word. that they will jus.
tify any expense that is necessary to
carry out the plan.
They point to the practical control of
trade of millions that already exists,
and especially to the fact that enormous
regions rich in resources but now with |
out trade, because cut off from the rest |
of the world, will be developed and pour
out floods of products that are in de-
mand, SO that an immense addition to