The Florence tribune., 1901-11-16
RAILROAD NEWS.
New Line from the
 Pass to the Pacific.
How the San Diego Men Were Received at Fl
 . PasO.
From the Fl Paso Times.

Before Colonel Ferguson left Fl | Paso he was asked by Secretary Rus sell of the Chamber of Commerce for specific statement of the advantage to Ei Paso on securing the proposed San Diego trans-continental line as compared with the advantage of se- curing the proposed Stiilwell iine Colonrd Ferguson replied substantially as follows:
 ''I am personally acquainted with Mr. Stillwell and his methods He has a genius for doing the apparently impossible in railway promotion aud building. He may be able to carry his proposed railway through from Kansas City to the Gulf of California, but see DO immediate prospect of it The building of line across the tremendous rugged backbone of the Sierra Madres to Topolonampo Bay, or indeed the building If any lipe to the Pacific coast in Mexico, is au excessively costly and difficult undertaking know, because have looked into the matter, aud also know what conclusions were reached by Mir. Huntington when he had his engineers figure on the prop osition years ago. It has been pro- ject dear to the heart of President Diaz 10 get railway across Mexico to the Pacific. He has offered great i n- l ducements to that end, but thus far without avail. Every route across the Sierra Madres of northern Mexico yet considered includes many miles of road that will cost $l00,000 to $l5o,0O0 per mile for construction, as against $l0,000 to $15, GOO per mile for the pro- posed San Diego line. And railroad that is costly to construct is always costly to maintain and operate So as yet regard the Stiliwell road as by no
 means assured
 Moreover, Stillwill would probably
 not be able to get across the Sierra
 Madres with less than to per cent
 grade, while our maximum grade will
 probably not exceed 11a per cent.
 Again, Mexican ports are not go-
 ing to be ports for the arrival and de-
 parture of the large vessels engaged
 in the Oriental trade. sYe are safe on
 that proposition, That Oriental busi-
 ness will be don't through the Pacific
 coast ports of the United States. And
 any man who dared today predict the
 magnitude of that Oriental trade would be regarded as an idle dreamer.
 "The harbor of Topolobampo is not
 to be compared with that If San Diego and for vessels to reach ro2olohampo involves ronnda bout voyage np into the Gulf of California rhs port of , Guaymas, with its railway running : northward to connect with the South ern Pacific, has not developed any importance And even if the ports
 and other advantages were compara- : lively equal, the excessively heavy !. grades and long cireuitous routes I across the Sierra Madre mountains be . tween Chihuahua and Topolobamps ]. must involve excessively heavy freigh harges and long time in transit a 5 compared with the more direct route !, easy grades and quick time betweer ,. San Diego and El Paso.
 n "There is also the farther fact that a T Fl Paso line from the Pacific coas $ would connect with half a dozen grea b trunk lines to the east, north an ). south, consideration which of itsel ai shonld have controlling weight. < "Of course, Fl Paso wants all tn