The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-07-30
LINK
One Of the Railroads That Will
Unite Minnesota and
Patagonia.
The Great Central Railway of Mic
aragua and What It
Will Do.
Brooklyn Eagle.

More important than the canal that is to
unite the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific
and more dazzling than Cecil Rhodes cape
to Cairo dream is the project to link together
the three Americas by an intercontnental
railway. For years 1t has ben regarded as
an enchanting but impracticable dream; but
the child may now be living that shall make
the journey in Pullman car from the north
weste territory to Patagonia. Recent devel
opments have given the project very prac-
teal appearance. ~" *....'-
1t is estimated that the route Of the pro-
posed railroad from the southern boundary
of Mexico to Buenos Aires would be about
$500 miles long, divided among the various
countries thru which 1t would pass some
what as follows: Guatemala, 22O miles; Sal
vador, 220; Honduras, 20; Nicaragua, 224;
Costa RIGA, 1868: Colombia; 1872; Ecuador,
1865; Peru, 1871; Bolivia. 774; and Argentina,
LAB OF this 600 miles, perhaps 1900 miles
in operation, leaving about $500
miles to be built. The total cost of the enter
prise is estimated by competent engineers
at in the neighborhood g<of $4,000, 900. By
this all rail route the distance from New
York .ork to Buenos Aires would be about 49,
500 miles, 81, 40.
The railroad provisions of the latest con-
cession form the point of the greatest public
interest. The line will be known as the
Great Central Railway Of Nicaragua, and will
be 800 miles long, ultimately connecting the
r..
The company was incorporated the 1st OF
May, under the laws of the state Of Maine,
with capital Of $1,0o0,oOO. Among the in
corporators are former United States Senator
John NJ Thurston Robert Pitcairn, assist
ant to President Cassatt, of the Pennsyl-
vanta Railroad; Durbin Horne, M. K. Sails
bury. T. M. Armstrong and Francis J. Tor
renee. I'LL -.. ...-.~r --.'
A corps Of fourteen engineers are new on
the ground making the necessary surveys;
and James Rees & Sons, of Pittsburg, have q
stern wheel steamboat almost ready to be
dispatched for service on the Coco river,
and are at work building another of similar
pattern, and also tugboat for the same des-
I.tination. .-
The construction Of the Great Central
Railway in connection with other works now
Pan-American Railway within the hopes OF
men Of the present generation. Railroad
1a
to be after the lines of Yucatan, merging
then into one system with the intention Of
bringing them into harmonious connection
with those of the rest of Mexico. When this
is done comparatively short link will have
| to be built to join the whole system to the
| Northern Railway of Guatemala, now under
construction by an American syndicate. !,
| 1t is little unfortunate that both the
| Northern Railway of'Guatemala and the Hon
| duras Railway are transisthmian lines. run.
| ming from ocean to ocean, SO that neither
can, be utilized to any great extent for the
intercontinental route. It is also undeniable
| that the engineering difficulties to be over
come in crossing the alternate swamps ane
mountain ranges between Yucatan and Cen
trail Honduras considerable. Still the,
are far from being insuperable, and are, II
fact, trifing in comparison with those tina
were surmounted by railroad builders in thu
American Rockies.
1t will, therefore, be seen that the Grea
Central of Nicaragua will close up one OF tn
widest gaps between the railway system Q
Mexico and the Isthmus of Panama. Will
San Salvador, Tegucgalpa and Managu'
| Joined together, there remains but the com
paratively short stretch to Punta Arena t
I give thru connection as far as Port Limon
Costa Rica. From that point long, rugge'
and difficult route lies zigzagging among tn
It is in South America that the most diff
cult part of the Pan american Railway re
mains to be built. The lines Of Colombo
appear to have been built ut IN aia arnrta
| Around Cartagena and Bogota are severe
possible to unite these in such manner a
to make them of service for the inter-conti
mental route From Bogota south to La Pa
Is a trackless and unexplored wilderness
Widest it and most savage portion Of the west
ern hemisphere. Should Peru succeed
( her present attempt to build line thru tn
Acre district as su1veyed an 9y vi
be robbed of much OF It's terrors, ana IN
problem of the Pan-American Railway wi
/ be greatly simplified.. .
lively little remains to be done. The raj
! way system Of Argentina Is the most com
and # Is s s2Hte &c
that Of Bolivia. The railways Of Chile woul
; not form part Of the New York, Buene
; Aires route, but would undoubtedly be cor
aggregate mileage Of 1900 miles, extendin
as far south as valdivia, near the forfeit
parallel Of south lat attn aa, wn1cn MARKS u