The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1903-11-24
ENTERPRIsiNG COLORADO NEWS
PAPER EXTENDS BURLINGTON
VEIL OF MYSTERY RAISED
Billings to Be on Great Line Running
from Valdez Bay
South.

1t is a strange sort of day when
an enterprising newspaper cannot
"dig up" material for railroad story,
particularly in the way of construct
ing new line into the city of it's publi-
cation or extending one already there.
OF the many western roads that come
in for extensions and new lines, per-
haps, none is so generously dealt with
by the newspapers as the Burlington,
with the Milwaukee good second
short time ago all the papers west OF
the Missouri were extending the Mil
waukee, and some of them have not
yet suspended operations for the win
ter. Now few are doing work for
the Burlington The ones that are
helping the company at present are
in Colorado. Here is what one OF
them, the Denver Times, contributes,
under date of November IL:
ga great deal of secrecy and con-
siderable mystery envelopes the plans
of the Burlington railroad for build
ing a branch north from Akron, Colo,
to connect with the Burlington line
running from Brush, Colo, to Alliance,
Neb. The branch, if built, will run
through rough country, practically
uninhabited and apparently without
resources to attract settlers. The con-
struction of the branch would present
considerable engineering difficulties
and heavy grades would be unavoida-
ble whereas the line oul OF Brush
follows the Platte valley and runs
through we'll irrigated country. No
reason for building the branch can be
given"
An Answer Is Given.
An answer to the Times surmise
is given by the Logan County Advo-
cate, published at Sterling, Colo This
paper says:
"An amendment to certain articles
of incorporation, signed by prominent
Burlington men, July %, 1900, and
filed in the office of the county clerk
in this city July "a, 1900, may throw
some light on the matter treated in
the Times. 1t would seem that the
building of the line north from Akron
is one of two links in a great Inter-
Alaska-Gulf railway that will sooner or
later be built by the Burlington, CIV
ing the central western portion OF
the United States direct outlet by
rail north and south. And it will ap-
pear that Sterling is to be located on
that great thoroughfare and pathway
of a mighty commerce that can from
the nature of it's location stand sec
ond to none in all North --merica. The
amended articles of incorporation re-
ferred to are as follows
On to Alaska.
"'The Akron, Sterling & Northern
Railroad company, corporation, duly
organized and existing under and by
virtue of the laws of the state of Col
orado, has adopted the following
ration:
'Third-The object for which our
said company is formed and incorpo-
rated are for the following purposes:
"'(a) The locating. constructing,
maintaining and operating railroad
with single and double tracks, side
tracks and telegraph lines beginning
at a point of connection with the
tracks of the Burlington & Colorado
Railroad company at or near the town
of Akron, in the county of Washing
ton, state of Colorado, thence extend
ing northwardly through the counties
of Washington and Logan, in said
state, to a point of connection with
the tracks of the Colorado & Wyom-
ing Railroad company, at or near the
town of Sterling, in the county OF
Logan, state of Colorado.
"'(b) The locating, constructing,
maintaining and operating of a rail-
road with single and double tracks,
sidetracks and telegraph lines, be-
ginning at point at the head of Val
dez bay, in the territory or Alaska,
thence extending up Lowe river twelve
(12) miles to keystone canyon, thence
for distance of three (3) miles
through said canyon, keeping on the
left side, or west canyon wall, thence
through Dutch valley a distance OF
four (4) miles, thence thirteen (13)
miles along the benches on west side
of Lowe river drainage through
Thompson pass"
Sure to Be Built.
Having it's amended articles of in
corporation on straight, the Advocate
proceeds to build the Alaskan line
and does it in the following breezy
manner:
even casual glance at a railroad
map embracing the western portion
of the United States would be sufi1-
Glen to convince one of but slight pow
ers of Imagination that great Inter
Alaska-Gulf line was originally in
tended by some master mind OF the
Burlington and that such line is now