The Republican journal., 1904-02-18
the people of foreign land" The Com
missioner says further:

Too much stress cannot be laid upon the
value of railroad transportation as an adj
junct to the successful handling of the tim
ber product Of the State of Maine. In
these days of rapid development in the
utilization of forest products, the old-time
and rivers from the places where cut to the
places of manufacture is considered too
slow for the enterprising, sagacious and
far-seeing manufacturers of the present
day. 1t is not too much to expect that be-
fore ten years the greater part of the stock
NEEDED oy our pulp, paper and lumber mills
will be transported by rail from the forest
to the doors of the mills. Nor is it too
much to anticipate that lumber mills and
pulp mills also will be erected in this terri
tory where material is so plenty and that
railroads will be built to transport the
manufactured articles to the markets of the
country.
This lumber cannot all be marketed in
New England. Much of it must go to and
south of New York, and tn It will not bear
the long rail transport. Unless it can be
hauled to Maine port by the shortest cut,
there to have cheap water transportation,
it must continue to be tloated in the log
several hundred miles out of the direct
route to the markets and then when manu-
factured be as far out of the way to market
as when in the wilderness where the timber
was cut. And of course there can be no
more building of railroads into the timber
until means are provided for reaching
points where alone the increased output
can be marketed. Such an outlet it is pro-
posed to establish at Cape Gelison. We
fen hor IL,
Commissioner:
Careful estimates made during the past
season, taking each town by itself, from
recent explorations, show that there are
standing today on the land in the townships
which drain into the ST. John river system
in Maine, 6,942, 100000 feet of spruce; 427,-
000, 600 feet of pine, and 1,S3O,OOO,0 900 feet of
cedar. This is exclusive Of about 200, 900. 600
feet located on the headwaters of the Allie
cash which will be turned into the East
Branch of the Penobscot by company now
operating on those waters.
The spruce was estimated at size of
nine inches and upwards breast high. 1t
was Impossible to get an accurate estimate
of the hard woods in this system, but it is
enough to say that there are immense guam
titles waiting for transportation facilities
to make them valuable.
An occasional vessel frame has been cut
in ArOostook for builders in this section :;
but with direct and economical facilities
for reaching tide water much more would
be done in that direction. Then if to the
above estimates were added small spruce,
fir, pine, cedar and hard wood the quantity
would, it is thought, reach twenty billion
feet, to say nothing of logs which should
come from Canada to Maine mills. An av-
erage OF 10000 feet per car would give ten
million carloads from the St. John and its
tributaries in Maine.
Much might also be said of the vast un-
used water powers of this section, now alb
solutely dead SO far as contributing to our
wealth is concerned, but which are such
sources of wealth in other States. These
may be referred to at another time.
The Fort Fairfield Review says of this
railroad move:
This change means lower freights for
Aroostook. With men like President Cram
at the head of affairs, who believe thorough
ly IN the resources and consequent future
OF ArooStook, this extension is sure to come
in the near future. This is no "scheme" 1t
is IN one way almost an accomplished fact:
for the conditions warrant such project,
nay, lmperativey demand them. The road
that has this shorter route can do the bust
ness, for it will simply be in position to do
il more cheaply.
Aroostook real estate is already worth
more than it was before this idea was Sc
riously entertained. 1t will be worth still
more as soon as the idea has become an ac-
complished fact, as we predict it will be in
side of remarkably short time.
1t really looks as if the Bangor & Aroos-
took is going to prove an even greater bene-
ut to Aroostook county than has ever before
been dreamed of, and the prospects of Aroos-
took in the future are truly brighter than
even the sunny pictures that have been skill
fully and correctly painted in the past have
shown them.