The San Francisco call., 1897-11-08
Canadian Government Very
Soon to Construct a
Line There.
To Use Survey Perfected Thirty
Years Ago by George
Kennan.
General Manager Hosmer of the Can
adian Telegraph Here to
Meet Mackay.

Charles r. Hosmer of Montreal Can
ada, general manager of the Canadian
Pacific telegraph, general manager of the
Pacific Postal telegraph Company
and vice-president of the Commercial
Cable Company, arrived here yesterday
and is the guest. at the Palace Hotel, of
John W. Mackay.
Mr.. Hosmer, who has visited this city
IN former years, comes here now, he saws,
principally for pleasure, because he was
recently in Vancouver on business, and
did not care to miss the opportunity to
visit San Francisco, which, after new
York, he prefers to any other place in the
world.
But he brings news OF great interest to
klondikers and prospective visitors TO the
Alaskan gold fields. He says that with in
the next year the Canadian Government t
will undoubtedly construct and com pie te
telegraph line to Dawson City, and by
the Identical route originally surveyed
thirty years ago by George Kennan OF ST.
beria fame.
OF this prospective telegraph line to the
northern gold regions he said:
The Dominion Government is now eri-
ously plating its construction.
There is no doubt that it will soon be
undertaken. At Victoria few days since
| met the Hon. Clifford Sifton, Canadian
Minister OF the Interior. He had just re-
turned from examining ways and means
OF transportation to the KlonGikc.
81 Is all like a romance, this revival of
plan so arduously worked out way back
IN '67 by a man who has since become
famous through his writings and lectures.
Ii 1t were practicable in 81 IL Is now much
more feasible because OF the introd NC lion
OF light copper wire n place OF the heavy
old iron wire formerly used for telegraph
lines.
About So 600 900 was expended upon
the project at that time known as the
Collins Overland line. 1t was the inten-
rion to have q telegraph line from San
Francisco TO the Bering Sea, across which
at place only forty miles wide a
able was to be laid 10 the
Aslatic coast, thus eventually establishing
telegraphiC communication with Europe.
But alter all the surveys were com pleted
the project was abandoned because the
Atlantic cable was success fully completed.
Now the plan may be revived ompletely,
for it is only a little distance OF $50 miles
from the proposed AsiatiC landing place
TO the nearest point of the great Trans
Sibei ian Railway.
'The line at present extends from Ash
croft, on the Canadian Pacific Railway,
200 miles east of Vancouver, up 200 miles to
QuesnelIe, In the Cnce lam Us Carr boo
mining country. From Quesnelle it is
1400 miles to Dawson City by the route
long ago carefully surveyed. and it is
through a country where suitable tim Der
can be had for poles
1T will not cost more than about $780,
600 or $500, 900 to complete the line to DIw-
son CiIy. Probably branch lines will be
run to juneau and possibly ;he system
may in time be extended to Bering Sea
nd hat nf "a iaid
Il expect d great telegraph business
d Iring the coming year. Everywhere
great interest is bein. attracted to this
coast because OF the Klondike excitement,
and l think the EXETER ement Will put this
coast ahead ten or fifteen wears"