The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-02-01

Albany VIA tho Lake Shore g. Michigan
Southern n ths Nav York Central ~
Hudson River railways. Now. with the
enormous volume OF bnsiness with Chicago.
the great depot of the west, xnd New York
city, the great sOshoard port OF amsl len,
u seems as n asaving Of IA miles in dis
tAncs ana 4 saving OF nix hours lii tims by
exrIrssa trains wonld warrant an outlay
suilcient TO accomplish the construction Of
such Il railway.
The plan would be TO build q double traok
line with the ultimate view Of making II q
four trssk road, having maximum grades
not to sxccsd twenty-aix feet to this miis,
With no d~iverRsrcs from q straight line ex-
cepting In caaez where ench a line would
strlks 4 stream Of considerable size longi-
tudinAlly, aud then tho line would ba
thrown on one eide to avoid the bed of the
strepm. n
Oh course tbs frat objection 10 BE- in
stantly urged la the enormous cost of such
Z road. and, %sucondly, that IL would entirely
ignore localitiss st i'm portanco. Id rsply TO
these objections l will say that, although
no surveys have bsen made OF this line, yet
! belssys that the Same capital represented
by the road from Cleveland to New York,
via Buffalo an dAlbany, would be arnpla to
construct this line. Secondly. that this
line would by ito greatly reduced dis
itanoe command all OF the through
business between Cleveland and Chi
cago, tho great west, and the aouthu sst TO
= gtsat extent. and would the.aforS ba able
to ignore local business for ths present, and
that on = Inns SO prs-eninent in its capacity
losel business in maRnituds would grow
with rapidly along its routr. Cleveland
would be the western initial point, Al all
lines between thoss and the west would fssd
i, and another line between Chicago and
Cleveland is not required, at least for the
prevent.
IT may be said that the limos west Of
Cleveland would not surrender their busi-
negs at Cleveland to this new road, bnt the
position Of auch . road would be 50 strong
that no line could for any length Of tilMo
hold cut against ".
TX ia plscs Of building the Nickel Plate
md tha Wast Shore railways capitalists
had put tina same money into a scheme like
this they would to-day have an good an in
vestment ss any III ths United States. Ii in
not ne sessnry to 30 into statistics showing
the volume OF business that this llns might
comlnana; tho steady and tremendous
growth of the west assures it all the busi-
ness it could do. 1t would be the most
magnificent achievements that has ever been
oonsum snstea on American soil and would
be she greatest railvay in the world.
his article ~ merely tito waiting out OF
rchsme that has basn this study or ths
writer for thu past fifteen yeara, and it is
his belief thar it il only a question of time
a. to when the san will xttact eapisnl to
'tS dCGpAAEAi5AHuSuE. lIb City GI SlbvelaUQ
would reap large benefits from the CON
atructioa of this line and would become
without doubt the largest railway conter
(outxide of Chicago) on. thia continent. :
Cleveland should and San afford to take
this mattsr earnestly in hand and at least
furnish the money to have q survey nade
on tbs line Lersin described md estimates
furnished, which would DO necessary to IN.
LIN: capital. IT IL the bslisf Of this writer
that the men interested in tho lake Shoe
and Now York Central railways arr more
vitality Interested in the construction Of
this line than 'sny other body OF men, for
it controlled by any other company it
would take largely from theis earnings and
would become tho dictatorto them of rates,
while il they built and controlled it they
could defy oil competition between tho
west nj east, could put all their through
business upon it, and devote their existing
lines to local business, which is ,apidly
growing to Dimensions that require all Of
their facilities.
The time is surely coming when this
will a k fern and get itself undsr
way, and although it may not be within the
OF this writer, 1t nevertheless
is in ths future a ce;tainty.
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