The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1894-07-01
SUNDAY. JULY L, 1894.
AN INSTRUCTIVE CONTRAST.

There is an immense element of the
present population of Los Angeles who
have no ides of the tremendous ad-
vancas which this city and section have
made during the past twenty years or
go. The temporary cessation of nearly
all our railway connections enables us
to indulge in N ost instructive review
which will illustrate our progress with
the vividness of a calcium light.
How many of our people know that,
when the order went out from the
American Railway union, that not q
wheel should turn on road with which
they had controversy, that fully one
hundred and 6fty-four passenger trains
entered and left this city daily? This.
OF course, includes only trains which be-
long to railways that have nothing to
do with our street system. In addition,
there is a colossal freight business done
which would swell these figures to met
ropolitan proportions. In fact, all that
an Angeleiio has to do is to look into
the matter to find that he is indeed
living in metropolis. 1t ia not every
resident even of considerable cities that
can boast he lives in place which has
such an imperial railway system.
But the situation is greatly improved
when we take note of the fact that much
of our unrivaled system is OF transconti
mental magnitude. The exquisite City
of the Angels is infinitely more FORUM
ate than San Francisco in the splendid
scale Of her railway equipments and ex.
tensions. The city by the Golden Gate
has only one transcontinental railway.
Los Angeles already has three, with the
promise OF fourth almost in the imme-
diate future. The first OF the three is
the Sunset route. which runs directly
from Port Los Angeles to Galveston and
New Orleans, the shortest line from tide
water to tide water in the territories of
the United States. If this country owned
Sonora and Chihuahua, and several
other little strips of Mexican territory.
it might be possible to build q slightly
shorter line than the existing Sunset
route, but even then it would not be
built-would not have been built if the
choice were still open-because the
Sunset route would be Commercially
shorter" 1t was this consideration that
led Col. Tom Scott, in 1872. to select the
San Gorgonio pass for his Texas Pacific.
The direct route by way OF the bay Of
San Diego and Milquatay was deliber-
ately rejected BY him because OF its
great expense and imprscticability.
That controversy was settled long ago,
and it has left Los Angeles in possession
of one of the shortest trsnscontinental
lines in the United States. Not only
that, but the rami6cations of the Sun
set route, through the inland connec.
tions with the Texas Pacific, Santa Fe
and Atlantic and Pacific roads, practi-
cally give US still another transconti-
mental railway.
But we are not obliged to piece out
transcontinentsl railways. We have
through the Southern Pacific, Central
Pacific and Union Pacific railways, q
transcontinental system absolutely in
dependent OF San Francisco. 1t Is as
much ours as hers. 1t is q very long
road, it is true, but it gives US valuable
markets in the great Salt Lake basin.
in Wyoming, Nebraska and in all the
qualifications of the Denver and Rio
Grande railway.
Perhaps the most significant OF all our
transcontinental systems was the ad-
vent in our midst OF the Atchison. To.
peka and Santa Fe railway. This meant
transcontinental competition and was
certainly OF inestimable service to our
merchants. 1t also embraced the full use,
in all it's rami6cations, OF the Atlantic and
Pacific system.
We might here point out the i'm
minency OF the completion of the Coast
road, which will give US a most agree
able means of reaching San Francisco
without the necessity of enduring the
summer heats OF tie San Joaquin val.
ley. We have also the opportunity te
refer. in passing, TO the Nevada South
ern railway, which will undoubtedly al
some not remote day give us another
transcontinental road through q con-
nection either with the Union Pacific,
the Denver and Rio Grands, or with
both of those roads.
1t world be actually fstiguing il WI
were to refer to the innumerable loca
roadu whose passenger traffic is embraced
in the one hundred and fifty-foUr train
that enter and leave Los Angeles daily
many of them destined to travers'
upwards of three Thousand miles before
they reach their destination. while
others go scarcely thirty miles. WI
nave sad enorgl to indicate the pro-