Durango semi-weekly herald., 1904-02-25
A RAILROAD WAR OF MILLIONS.

The announcement by the Wabash
railroad OF the practical completion
of the bridge spanning the Mononga-
hela river at Pttsburg makes certain
Gould victory in one of the most
spectacular and costly battles in rail
road history. The bridge is the lar
gest cantilever structure in the Unit
ed States, and assures the Wabash en-
try 10 Pittsburg and ultimately the re
alization of Jay Colds dream of a
line to the seaboard. The battle be-
tween the Goulds, aided presumably
by the Rockefellers. against the Penn
sylvania interests. has been waged so
quietly and strategetically that the
public has had but a hazy idea that
anything out os the ordinary has been
going on in the railroad world
Now that the rumors of the settle
ment of the war are current, Frank II
Spearman story of the fight, given
in a recent issue of The Saturday
Evening Post. is fraught with interest
The story was undoubtedly inspired
for IL gives inside facts regarding the
lions. The prize struggled for is 10,
600 900 tons OF freight which the Pitts
burg district originates annually, a
greater tonnage than that originated
by New York, Philadelphia and Chi
cago combined The Pennsylvania
| railroad on its lines east of Pittsburg
handles daily 10000 tons for each mile
OF road and the earnings of that por
| tion of the line amount to sl65,OO0 a
| mile annually.
Warned by the combinations and
| leases which were being effected. the
| Goulds realized that il they desired
any additional eastern territory foI
forever hold their peace. Ii is small
wonder that they decided TO spend al
least $25,000,000 to secure terminal
| in Americas richest tonnage store
| house. Without arousing suspicion
| Goulds secured the passage of a res
olution by congress reviving the bill
| authorizing the construction of a
| bridge across the Monongahela, and
bought from Myron t Herrick and
| his friends at an advanced price the
Wheeling and Lake Erie. which, ac
cording to report, had shortly before
been offered to the Pennsylvania.
Then President Ramsey OF the Wa
bash began hurling the Gould millions
against the detenses which the Penn
| sylvania interests had thrown around
their Pittsburg stronghold Over IS.
| Oo0,OOO was spent in obtaining termin
| al property there. and the construction
| of sixty miles OF the most costly track
minus of the Wheeling and Lake Erie
at Jewett, Ohio, to Pittsburg. Every
mile OF it is lined with gold; a single
tunnel cost 81 100000; the mountains
| have been traversed by a line with Il
maximum grade of ~ feet 10 the mile
as against 60 on the Panhandle a
maximum curvature of three as
| against seven degrees, and with only
| tifty-six curves as against over 100.
With all their strategy and lavish
| expenditures the Goulds might have
suffered defeat had not fate been kind
10 them. In the midst of the struggle
when the financial world was aghasi
al their persistence in throwing away
millions despite the fact that Pitts
| burg showed hostility to their entry
| there. the greatest freight congestion
in history occurred II came at the
height of prosperity, and 1t took the
personal efforts of President Cassatt
to break the blockade which paralyzed
many of Pittsburg's industries for
months. After that it was not strange
chat the business interests of Pitts
burg welcomed competition to their
city and turned a seeming Gould de,
feat into Gould victory. says the Rec
ord Herald.