Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1898-03-23
HIGH WINDS AFFECT SPEED.
BOTH FLYERS ARRIVED LATE AT
DENVER YESTERDAY.
Rock Island AbOlfshes Time Card Be-
tween LimOn and Denver and
Runs on Special Time
Overland RestrinEinE
It's Denver Train.

postal authorities, all mail for the territory
reached by the Denver & Rio Grande road
south of Colorado Springs, and by the Rio
Grande Western and the Colorado Midland
roads, originating at or passing through
Kansas City, was given last night to the
Rock Island instead of the Union Pacific.
AS the weighing of mails by the govern
ment preparatory to awarding the contract
for carrying the same was begun at Kansas
City yesterday morning, the first mail for
Utah, much of Colorado and a small part
of New Mexico was weighed to the account
of the Rock Island.
The details of the fast train fight for
mail contracts between the Union Pacific
and Rock Island. as published exclusively
in The Journal yesterday morning. attract
ed general attention among railroad men
yesterday. 1t is understood that it is a
mail rather than a passenger war and that,
although passengers may take advantage of
the fast train schedules to make quick
trips to and from Colorado points. the con-
tracts with the government for carrying
the mails for the next four years, which
are to be awarded soon, were the occasion
for the establishment of the fast trains.
Under the present time cards Kansas
Cityans may spend their Sundays in Dem
yer. Colorado Springs or Manitou, leaving
here Saturday night and returning Monday
morning. This is the first time in the his
tory of Western railroading that such a
thing has been possible. Under the present
cards near four hours time between the
incoming and nutpoino trains uo11H no
given passengers at either Denver or Col
orado Springs, and it is likely that between
now and next Saturday both the Union Pa
cific and Rock Island will clip off consider
able more time, so that the stay which may
be made at Colorado points between trains
will be considerably heightened.
Neither the Union Pacific nor the Rock
Island would give out any re-
garding proposed new time cards yesterday,
although ii is known that both roads have
been restringing their Colorado flyers with
a view to making absolutely the fastest
was stated, but not officially, that the Union
Pacific would revise its time card to arrive
in Denver at 1880 instead of LEO. as under
the present time card. Tn Rock Island is
running on special instead of schedule time
between Limon and Denver. a distance Of
ninety miles. Its Through train runs
the. Denver train, with which it connects.
at Limon. is held on the tracks there ready
tSs start thrdI Immediately trli w upon the arrival Of
the right-of-way, and makes. the fastest
time pssible to Denver, as it does no local
business whatever between the junction
point and the terminal, and has no chedule
and the right-of-way- -.,
The Union Pacific. on the contrary, has
been attempting to care for much of its
local business with its fast Denver train.
and in doing this has allowed the Rock
Island to beat ii into Denver. 1t is reported
importance of the Rock Islands shrewd
move, which was explained fully in ThS
Journal yesterday. and that 1t is likely dur
ing this week to put on a Kansas City
Denver flyer, the sole purpose of which will
be to leave Kansas City at the latest hour
sible, with a view to recovering whatever
advantage 1t can in the fast time war for
mail contracts.
1t is conceded. however. that in the light
for the mail contract the Rock Island has
an advantage over the Union Pacific so
far as the territory of the Rio Grande roads
with their trains at Colorado Springs.
while the Union Pacific would have to reach
Denver not later than $40 a. m. to make
the same connection. 1t would seem to be
impossible for the Overland to reach Den
Yer two and one-half hours earlier than the
Rock Island reaches Colorado Springs; yet
vent the Rock Island from making the
closer connection for Rio Grande territory.
The fight between the roads now seems
to be on the mail business to Denver
proper and to territory beyond Denver not
reached through Colorado Springs. Postal
officials say the orders given here yesterday
for sending mail over the Rock Island in
| stead of the Union Pacific will affect the
most important points in Colorado outside
of Denver. the whole state of Utah and a
small section of New Mexico. The same
order has been given in ST. Louis and Chi
cago. and affects business passing through
Kansas City as well as that originating
here.
The high wind which prevailed in Kansas
Friday night prevented both the Rock
Island and Union Pacific from making
schedule time. The Rock Island was one
hour and t%hirty-five minutes late at Phil
lipsburg. but made up forty-three minutes
of this lost time between that point and
Limon. reaching this junction point ten
minutes ahead of the Union Pacific. The
run from Limon into Denver was made five
minutes faster by the Rock Island than by
the Union Pacific. and Denver was reached
by the Rock Island fifteen minutes ahead
of the Union Pacific. the Rock Island being
thirty minutes behind time and the Union
Pacific twenty-five minutes late.
An interesting feature of the fast train
war is the fact that the Rock Island runs
over the Union Pacific tracks for 100 miles
of the distance to Denver: from Kansas
! City to Topeka. siXty-seven miles. and from
! Limon to Denver. ninety-three miles. The
distance via the Union Pacific from Kansas
City to Denver is six miles greater than
via the Rock Island. 633 miles via one and