The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-12-09
RAILROAD NEWS.
Bids for Building Santa Fe
Cutoff Are In.
Will Work by Electric Lights
at Night.
IN FAR OFF CALIFORNIA
Santa Fe Charters an Impor.
tant New Line.
Covers the Northern Part of the
Golden State.

ALBUQUERQUE, N NJ Dec. y.-(1. M.
Jones, chief field engineer of the survey
ing crops that has been doing work on
the Santa Fe cutoff. said this morning
that the line of survey had been COM
pleted and the road would cross the
Rio Grande at Belen, which is the short
est possible route He stated that the
bids for the construction were in, and
that the building would begin as soon
as map of survey is filed at Los Lunas,
the county seat of Valencia county. The
construction of the new road will be a
feat in railroad building. He said that
800 men would be at work in Abo can
yon, the western approach to Abo pass
within the next sixty days. Although a
greater part of the rock work first de-
clded on has been avoided by change
IN the survey, and bridges used instead,
1t Will take eight months to do the work
In Abo canyon. Work will be pushed
day and night, the night gangs working
by electric lights. The =AbO land com
pany is locating a townsite on the crest
OF Abo pass and are now sinking wells.
Just how the proposed cutoff of the
Santa Fe line will affect railroad mat
tiers and routes in the southwest cannot
be certainly stated at present but there
are many guesses as to it's full meaning
and many explanations are being made.
A railroad man in this section, who is
- 1'cS-eAOA1 ~ HCCP III tOLiOn With LIlSS0
matters said:
You can put it down for a fact that
the Santa Fe system will soon have a
direct line from Galveston to San Fran
cisco and other California points There
is now considerable business coming by
way of the New Orleans and Galveston
gateWays for California, which the
Santa F'e at the present time is prac-
tically unable to bid for on account of
the roundabout route which that COM
pany now has from Galveston to the
west coast.
AS the route now stands. the Santa re
company has to haul freight from Calves
ton to Newton, Kan, over the G. c. ard
2: +. ana then turn it oyer to the Santa
re proper for transportation to California.
This route is not only expensive but 1t
takes time and the Santa Ee company can
NOT secure Its share of the California bust
ness moving by way of the gulf gateway.
In order to be able to control a larger
re company viii extend the eastern rail-
! way OF New Mexico. which line that COM
pany is now building between Belon on
the main line and Portales on the Pecos
4 system on to connection with the Texas
/ Central railway, which line runs through
] northwest from Waco to POINT called
/ Stamford, a distance of about e25 miles
/ At Morgan station this line connects with
| the Gulf Colorado and Santa re. which
1 is also a Dart Of the santa re ,svst.sr1
/ which point is about 800 miles north OF
Galveston. This swenld make <625 miles OF
/ the gap and only leave a Short piece Of
work to be finished TO give the Santa Fe
company an almost direct line to Califor-
MIA
This new line would mean great thing
for the farmers i'll the Pecos valley. They
great consuming markets of Texas ard
the east and be able to dispose of their
products to a much better advantage than
SANTA FEES CALIFORNIA PLANS.
The future plans of the Santa Fe in
| northern and central California are be-
ginning to be revealed, says the San Fran
cisco Chronicle. Articles of incorporation
| of an extension of its system from Stock
ton to the Nevada line. via Sacramento,
! Oroville and Beckwith pass, have been
filed at Sacramento The incorporatora
are practically the same as those who
recently obtained a franchise to enter
/ Oakland on the east and occupy COM
manding position on the harbor on tho
south side of the city, where new ferry
| to San Francisco, is to be established.
/ No concealment is made now of the fact
that these incorporators represent the
Santa Fe company. Having obtained the
terminal facilities it desires at tidewater.
and secured the right of t.. way to reach
them, the company has evidently in
tereSt to serve by further cOncealment of
its relations with these new projects.
The Santa Fe is seemingly determined
| to occupy the northern and central part
of the state as thoroughly and aggressive
! ly as it has the southern counties. This
means more to these sections than can be
expressed in words. From Stockton to
! Oroville the new line will practically
/ parallel the roads of the Southern Pacific
| company. But the country covered is
rich enough and sufficiently extensive to
| support more than two competitive rail-
roads Between these two points it will
probably appear later that certain short
and Independent roads. apparently begin
ming and ending nowhere. will dovetail
naturally into the main. trunk and form
| important feeders. many of the fag-
| end railroads in southern California did
when the main line entered that territory.