The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-05-21
DENVER MEANS BUSINESS.
A Short Line to BE Built to Salt
Lake
AND ON TO THE COAST.
The Shortest Line from Atlantic Tide
Water to San Francisco.
Favorable Report Approved by the
Denver Chamber of Commerce-The
Deep Creek Road = Important
Changes in Wool Rates.

Changes in Wool Rates.
Following are the material features of
report made last Thursday evening to the
chamber of commerce of Denver, on the
subject of railroad from that city to Salt
Lake and hence to the Pacific coast. The
report was adopted without dissent and
with much enthusiasm.
'sThe shortest line from the Atlantic
tide water to San Francisco will be from
Galveston. when its deep harbor IS I'm
ished, by way of Denver and Salt Lake to
San Francisco, and the shortest practlc-
able route between Atlantic tide water
(the Galveston deep water harbor) and the
ports of China and Japan will be by way
of Denver and Puget's sound, and the
shortest line from Chicago to San Fran
cisco is by Denver and Salt Lake.
Until Texas is fully aroused to the I'M
portance of the direct route from Calves
ton to Denver, it may be well for us to
direct our efforts to building the line from
Denver, by way of the Middle park to
Salt Lake and to San Francisco. This
line would run through the richest part
in natural resources to be found in the
mountains. 1t would be about fifty miles
distant from any other line of road: about
midway between the Rio Grande and Rio
Grande Western on the south and the
Union Pacific on the north, passing
through rich agricultural valleys and
enormous beds of the best bituminous
Goals, as well as large deposits of the
finest anthracite and large forests of tim
Der and also passing near the finest veins
of asphalt, ozolSerite and albertlne Goals,
besides being hundreds of miles shorter
than any other through route. The route
would cross the Wasatch mountains by a
very direct line, following the Uintah,
Ashley and Strawberry valleys, and down
the Provo to Utah lake at Provo, and
thence on an easy line
TO SALT LAKE AND OGDEN.
But the direct route would keep south
of Great Salt lake and in pretty direct
line through the best part of Utah and the
states OF Nevada and California, direct to
San Francisco.
The northering on this line will be
about what is required by the contour of
the globe to make the shortest possible
line from Denver to San Francisco. The
| reason this route has not been adopted
by other companies is simply the impedi-
ment of the high main range of the Rocky
mountains, which lie across the route.
1t has sent the continental lines away to
the north or away to the south of it,.
! These lines having been subsidized by
than cheap construction. Thus a region
of untold wealth and the short line has
been neglected and await development.
There has been great deal of surveying
done an this eby different companies,
so that we know that the best alignment
will pass through the richest region OF
country, and that long tunnel will keep
US below the Objectionable altitude, 1. e.,
| below 10, 900 feet above sea level, and at
the same time give US protection against
any competing road for good many
years to come. Fortunately, on two OF
the best alignments for such a route to
| two or the best tunnel sites yet found
there is conformation that will give sup
port for very uniform ascending grade
without an excessive amount of mean
| dering or
| OF HEAVY WORK.
| In distance from Denver to the site
for the tunnel of about sixty miles it is
believed that the ascent required, say
q, 600 to 5000 feet, can be attained little
over 1 per cent, at most less than pei
cent, grade, and that grade will be the
maximum required for the descent into
the middle park on the other side, and, il
fact, all the way to- Salt Lake. Securing
an approximation to such a maximum
grade and saving in alignment of from
200 to $50 miles in the distance TO Sal
Lake and from 200 to $50 thence to Sar
Francisco, a tunnel of four or five miles
becomes matter of insignificance. Anc
the fact that it runs through the noun
tain in one of the rich gold and silver
mining districts and is likely to cut veins
of precious metal of untold wealth, which
by virtue of a tnnnei under our mining
laws, would belong to the railroad com
pany. Not only SO, but at each end o
one of these tunnels is abundance O
water power to drive the machinery tt
excayate the tunnel
IN THE CHEAPEST MANNER.
Nor is this the greatest benefit of tn,
tunnel, for it brings Denver and all thu
plains country tributary to it within 1O
to 100 miles of the largest deposits of thu
best anthracite and bituminous Goals We
found in the Rocky mountains and with
in the same distance of a very fertile re-
gion OF farming country, 100 miles long
by so miles wide, and immense deposits
of the best of bituminous and large veie
of anthracite coal within $50 miles o
Denver, with extensive forests at severa
points, makes it look like the most at
tractive field Tor profitable investment.
And what Is the duty of the city o
Denver and its chamber of commerce an'
board of trade? 1t is certainl.
to organize and build shor
through line, the shortest practicable
from Denver west to Salt Lake and Sal
Francisco to accommodate the traffic ant
travel of the Chicago & Alton, the Mis-
souri, Pacific system, the Chicago & Rocl
Island, the Burlington q Missouri river
i. e., the Chicago, Burlington q Quincl
system, and when they extend to Denver
as they certainly will, the Chicago &
Northwestern ard the Chicago, Milwau
kee q st. Paul lines.
The experience of the past is at hand
and the possibilities of this enterprise ar
greater for profitable investment thai
those of any other (either railroad o
mining) that has ever occurred in Colo
RADIO. The elements of great success ar
in it and an honest and judicious man
agement is all that is required to secur
large profits and confer great boon upo
the country.
Mr.. Evans suggested that the chambe
of commerce take hold of the enterpris