, 1900-11-15

VIII American enterprise ever reach
its limit. VIII American brains and
energy capture in the near future all
h contracts of foreign as well as do
nestle capital? This is the thought
which strikes home to us as we read
of the latest tremendous undertaking
carried on by Iankee pluck and ge-
MUS and backed by foreign capital.
should we neal that some adventurous
spirit was to tunnel the way to the
north pole we might almost be per-
suaded to believe it; scarcely less Won
derful is the mighty work now in pro-
cess of construction for n Scotch syn
dictate and engineered by n New Ior&-
bred American.
Away down in Ecuador. n and which
most of us, with our haZy geographical
vision, think of only as "A conglomera-
ton of tropical foliage, bright-hued but
terflies and half-nude natives, IL SER
pentine line of steel track is quietly
stealing through winding valleys and
fertile farming lands, rich with south
ern Verdure; is gradually creeping on
ward through swamps and everglades,
dark wI,h moist, green vegetation; Is
slowly climbing upward over the al
most impossible heights of the haugh-
~ -NiiItN ina llslN' FA'bAi u =
forbidding barriers to the puny devices
Of man, only to be conquered finally
by Yankee ingenuity. \ syndicate of
wealthy Scotchmen and LonLoners dis
covered the possibilities of this lane
of promise; the next thing was to open
up venue of commerce and human
travel.
Guayaquil and Quito are two -four
ishing cities-that Is, in point of popula-
zion, but to get from one to the other,
although only 300 miles apart, is an
undertaking of no little difficulty. Ser
pents and pestiferous yermin lie in
wait for the unwary traveller, n the
ghoulish condor from dizzy mountain
peaks anticipates the unearthly feast
which he may pick from the bones of
some luckless ~adventurer lost in the
gloomy gorges or fallen from some
fearful precipice. The light of civil
cation will soon dawn. however, and
already are the pick II the shovel
the of the steam whistle
and the changing bell, and the snakes,
the centipedes and the condors are fast
disappearing to more c~ongenial re
gions.
James z. Mcdonald. a New York con
tractor. Is h man selected to be Mt
the head of this great engineering en-
terprise. Mr.. McDonald'S experience
in railroad building has been wide and
varied. Many thousand ties have been
laid and many miles of steel rails fas-
tened under his supervision. Born in
New Yorn, he prepared for college i'll
the South and finally took his degree
from the University of Tennessee. The
road from Guayaquil to Quito, which
he is now engineering, Is said to be
but 300 miles long, but he difficulties
in the way maxi the task one requiring
unusual perseverance and knowledge,
and involving enormous expense. Full
ly S25, 100000 will be required to carry
this great project TO inclusion Stone
work and masonry that it is neces-
sary to use TO n great extent are large
ly responsible for the heavy outlay.
At many points along the route the
roadbeu will reach nm elevation of 49,
600 to 1900 feet above the sea level.
Though there are at present but 1.5OO
men pushing the work forward this
number will soOn be swelled by 5000
native Jamaicans, with whom Mr.. Me
Donald Is now contracting.
II Guayaquil were 1000 miles from
Quito the people could scarcely be
more expectant and anxious for their
connection than are the inhabitants of
these two tropical cities. The popula-
ton of Quito is about 10000, while
GuayaquI will double that figure. Yet
these people are living in these days
of quick transportation with only the
forest trails and mountain passes as
roads and pack animals as vehicles.
Mere connection of the two cities. how
ever, is lot the ultimate object of this
enterprise. Along the whole line of
the road lies n country just bursting
to be opened up and developed that it
may coin money for English and Amer
lean capital.
Ecuador is n country so little devel-
oped as n commercial and mining cen
ter that it seems, like all tropical coun-
tries when first laid bare TO the eye of
civilization. a veritable fairyland of
beauty and riches.