The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1893-12-19
Through The Continental Divide.

One of the greatest engineering
enterprises of the decade has just been
completed in ColOradO-an enterprise
fully as great as the tunnelling of the
Hossac Mountain, whose compile ton
was celebrated as u great national
affair. But these are the days of great
enterprises, and the piercing OF the
great divide by u tunnel nearly two
miles long in one Of the widest noun
tain regions in the world has scarcely
attracted attention outside of Colorado.
The road itself-the Colorado Mid
land-which passes through the new
tunnel is one of the most wonderful
pieces ofengineering in the world. All
the way from Colorado Springs to
Glenwood it is Il succession Of surprises
to the traveller, and that part of it
which runs from Leadville over the
great continental divide is only the
climax of II series of surprising victor
les over the most apparently inSur-
mountable natural obstacles. The
Hagerman Tunnel at the top of the
pass, which has been used since the
road was open about seven ear ago,
is 2O64 feet long, and 1923 feet above
sea-level and the Midland is here the
highest standard-gaugo railroad in the
world, and the highest of any gauge
ShSSpU oIIO III ~ <NI1ucS. II1S llIuSlId-
lions on page 1873 give an idea of the
approaches to the present tunnel, and
show how the new tunnel substitutes
two miles of rail for the ten now in
use. The big trustle shown in the
view from the east end OF Hagerman
Tunnel is 200 feet high, cost $780, 900 to
build, and would have to be rebuilt
every eight years. Besides this, i'm
mense rotary snow-ploughs have to be
kept in operation at both ends of tho
old tunnel all winter, the snow on the
west side of the divide being often
thirteen feet deep on the level. The
new tunnel it is estimated will save in
operating expenses So 600 every year,
besides insuring the continuous opera
ton OF the road, SO that the 81, 00O, 900
spent on the tunnel is expected to be q
good investment.
The Busk-lvanhoe Tunnel, as the
new is called, pierccs the main Sagu-
ache pronounced sab wash Range,
which here forms the continental
divide, about twenty miles west of
Leadville, at n height of lO,S O feet
above sea-level, 1900 feet below the
crest of the mountain, and 72S feet be-
low the Hagerman Tunnel. Its length
is 1891 feet. Work upon it was begun
October 8, 1890. and since hat time
has DccH puSncu ulfclnlUJlnply from
both ends, twenty hours u day, with
the most modern scientific apparatus.
The backbone OF the continent is of
solid granite, and comprcsscd-airdrills
and dynamite have lone the work of
excavation There has been quite u
rivalry between the gangs at work on
the two ends as te which should reach
the centre first. The Busk. or eastern,
gang won the race, for tho Ivanhoe
men were retarded by water, and the
final Junction "a made a thousand feet
west of the centre. The dividing wall
was pierced by the drill at $50 Tues
pay evening, October 18th, and at 6.15
the next evening the blast was fired
which broke the wall down.
The man who conceived the idea of
this tunnel was Mr.. b. II. Bryant,
chief engineer of the road. The mar
who, as engineer in charge, directed
the work was Mr.. w. H. L%cl1ingwell.
The tunnel took three years to build,
and cost 81 .0G0. 600. 1t is little less than
two miles long. The plans of the en-
gineers worked out with great accur-
acy, and the alignment, when the last
partitions were cleared away, was per-
fGc~t.-IIarper'S Weekly.