The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-04-28

eral Manager Dodge of the Rio Grande
| western to this section in relation to
the building of the Park City branch,
important though it is, is of but slight
moment in comparison with another
project which it is now confidently be-
lieved the road is contemplating if it
is not practically decided upon
| Colonel Dodge arrived from Provo
Sunday night, after having inspected
! the survey of the Park line to Heber,
and it was expected there would be
some important developments in con-
! nection with the project yesterday,
but the developments were of an en-
tlrely different nature. Colonel Dodge
did not stay III Salt Lake long enough
TO any more than say ,''how' dy' to his
subordinates here before he was off on
another mission. He looked in on the
local officers in the morning, and at
1:3O departed in his private car for the
south, leaving no word further than
that he was going to be gone two or
three days and would then be back
again.
1t was learned, however, that the
railroad magnate, accompanied by
Chief Engineer Yard of the Western,
had gone down over the Salina branch
and it is believed that the trip has
much greater significance than merely
to inspect the work eli replacing the
light rails with the heavier ones, which
has been going on for some time and
which was given as the ostensible rea-
son tor the journey to the south.
Briefly, it is believed the head man
of the Western has gone south to look
over the lay of the land for an extern
n no tn l1n or
and the theory is borne out by numer-
Gus significant occurrences which have
been of late transpiring.
One of these is the rumor that the
Western had purchased the Nevada
Southern, line thirty miles long, run
ming from Marvel to Blake, in the
southern part of Nevada, and connect
ing at the latter place with the Allan
tic & Pacific, and though the local
Western officials disclaim any knowl-
edge of such a purchase having been
made, still it is believed by many to be
more than a rumor.
Other reasons are the present opera
tons in the extension of the line from
Salina to Richfield and the fact that
a surveying party recently returned to
Salt Lake after having run a prelimi
nary line south from Beaver through
the settlements to the southeastern
boundary line. These surveyors went
about their work in a very unostenta-
tious manner and were cautious not to
allow any word to escape to indicate
in whose interest they were working.
further than that it was not for any of
the hitherto talked-of lines to the coast. |
These facts put together seem to indi
cate that the Western is seeking an
outlet to the coast, a theory which is
given some further color by the fact |
that one of the first officers of the road
made the statement when a line to the |
coast was first talked of, some two or,
three years ago, that when such road |
was built, it would be the Rio Grande !
Western that would be the first to Go
it.
The sum of the matter is that the |
Western proposes to extend in that di- |
rection before any other road can be- |
gin operations and that it will do so
by first completing the Salina branch |
to Richfield, then strike across to |
Beaver and proceed down through the [
settlements of Paragonah, Parowan,
Summit, Cedar City, Kanawa, Toquer
vile, Washington and ST. George, and |
perhaps touching other places along /
the route, then crossing the southeast
ern point of Nevada, make a connec-
top with the Atlantic & Pacific by the
Nevada Southern, which it is supposed
to have purchased. The Western would
by this means have a direct route to
the coast at an expense in construction
which would be but paltry in compari-
son with that entailed in any of the
other schemes.
Another important thing which lends
still further probability to the theory
that the Western has such designs is
the fact that the road has been &C
ties and rails at Thistle,
the junction of the Salina branch and
the main line, for year or two back
and that far greater amount of this
kind of material is now on hand than
would be necessary to complete the
line to Richfield or re-iron the whole
branch. These, it is now believed, have
been accumulated with the intention
of some day making the connection
with the Atlantic & Pacific as herein
outlined.
Whatever the facts, the circum-
stances, it would seem, justify the be
lief of those who are conversant with
them, that the road is to be built.