The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-02-12
BUSINESS IS IMPROVING
A Heavy Passenger Traffic on the
Northern Pacific.
1T is A RECORD BREAKER
Trains Are Heavily Laden Each Way.
A Large Amount of Business Over
the Occur d'Alena Line-Better
Yard Facilities

.Missoula, Feb. 1.-THE business of
the road is much better this month than
it has been in February in several
years" said a Northern Pacific official
this morning. The passenger business
is certainly record breaker. Ever
since the Christian Endeavor excur-
sions of last summer. the road has had
all that ii could do To handle the peo-
pie who have been travelling eastward
and westward all the time. Each
month since last July the prediction has
been made that the end of the rush
would soon be seen but each month has
passed and the overland trains have all
been loaded to the platforms. The
Alaska excitement. Of course. accounts
in a measure for the rush of travel, but
this cannot explain the heavily laden
east bound trains. There is little differ
ence between the number of passen-
gers travelling toward st. Paul and
those going West. The trains are all
full and the conductors kick because
they cannot get more coaches. The
freight business. while lighter than dur
ing the holiday season. is still better
than it has been at this time of year
for several seasons. The increase in the
volume of the Oriental trade reported
by the merchants of the North Pacific
ports has been an important factor in
this increase and the shipments of sup
plies for the Alaska trade has added
more. With the heavy local business
that comes from the branches that cen
ter here. Missoula's yards have been
taxed to their utmost of late.
The Occur dAlene and the Bitter
Root branches have done a large bust
ness all winter. and the prospects are
that the amount of traffic over these
lines will steadily increase this year
The Occur dAlene business has never
been as great as il is at present, and
ii has reached the limit of the one train
that now runs on this branch each day.
If there is any further increase, there
Will have to be additional facilities pro-
vided. Nearly every day the train from
Wallace is obliged to set out cars along
the line that it is unable To bring
through on account of the heavy road.
1t takes two or three doubles" to get
the trains over the Lookout divide and
the train men on this run have to keep
on the jump to get through. To their
credit however. be ii said. that the
trains reach Missoua nearly on time
nowadays. and the passengers get a
sample of good running from Iron
Mountain to DeSmet these times. Bust
ness on the Bitter Root branch this
week has been light on account of the
inability of the transportation depart
ment to secure sufficient fiat cars to
take care of the business. To-day. how
ever, 30 cars We're sent up to Hamilton
for lumber. and 1t is thought that there
Will be enough from now on to keep
the business of the branch up to It's
normal figure.
As the volume of business that CEN
ters here increases, ii becomes more and
more apparent that the company will
lI..1
cllitles at Missoula. As is generally
known, there are plans ready for the
rearrangement of the yards here. which
II carried out. viii give the city ample
room for the business that is handled
here This work would have been done
two years ago had 1t not been for the
destruction OF the new de-
pot by fire. The yards We're 10 have
been ready by the time the depot was
but when the uncompleted
structure was burned, all work was
stopped and the yard crews have since
been chasing up and down the poorly
arranged side tracks that reach all the
way from the round house to the stock
yards, and have made the best of a
poor thing. There is certainly enough
business here to warrant the improve
ment of the yards.
1t is but natural that the Standards
Montana Union by the Northern Pa
cific should have occasioned much fla
Norable comment in this part OF the
state, but the discussion of the matter
has been more enthusiastic than would
have been expected. The operation of
this connecting link by the Northern
Pacific will give Western Montana
what il has wanted for may years.
direct connection with Butte and Ana
conda. the cities that are so closely al
lied to the Missoula and Bitter Root
valleys commercially. 1t will avoid all
OF the annoying and VeXatious delays
that have been experienced at Garrison
and will make the shipment of the
produce of the gardens and orchards of
this section much more satisfa Glory
than IL has ever been before The peo-
pie of Western Montana are looking
with pleasure to the time when
the Northern Pacific trains will run di.
rectly TO Butte and Anaconda from
here. The new order of things will no
doubt increase the amount of business
that is done between these two Sec
tons of Montana. People will be
anxious to travel back and forth now
that the bugbear of the wait al Garri-
son Is removed. They can come down
from the busy cities up the river in a
short time and will feel much more
than il has been possible To
feel heretofore.
The new time card that will be i'm
effect on the Northern Pacific next
week. treats Missoula very kindly The
Eastern mail and express will reach
here early in the morning and the re-
turn mail Will not leave till late i'm the
afternoon. Both the eastbound and
westbound trains are through by day
light here and there is plenty of time
between them for the accommodation
Of those VINO do business with the
trains. The Occur d'Alene people. too,
will be benefited by the change. They
will get their Eastern business day
earlier than they have been doing. The
standard will now reach the Occur
d Alene cities on the afternoon of the
day that il is printed. Here i'm Mis-
soula the subscribers of the Standard
Will have their paper for breakfast.
The Bitter Root train service will not
be changed at present 1t is expected
that. as soon as the milling season
opens, the old double service on this