Arizona silver belt., 1905-12-07
GllA WAS A BAD ACTOR
MARlCOPA BRIDGE OUT
Four Hundred Feet at South Approach
Swept Away Damage on the
Phoenix & Eastern

All other flood news now takes a
back seat and the Maricopa & Phoenix
railroad bridge over theGila river again
steps into the limelight. AS was fear
ed Tuesday night disaster overlook it
and yesterday morning it was learned
that 400 feet of the long structure had
been swept away and fears are enter
tanned that the breach will be still fur
Their widened before this morning. The
bridge is between 1900 and 1000 feet
long and is built of piling. The part
destroyed is about 700 feet from the
south or Maricopa side and the main
current was running beneath the south
section thas at last accounts was still
standing. Whether it will remain firm
against the mud, sand, water and drift
wood, no one can confidently p err
diet. The river, with its usual pre-
verseness, has changed its tactics some
what, for in recent years it has been
cutting into the north bank washing
out some hundreds of yards in that di-
rection and making necessary the an
NAL lengthening of the bridge to the
n0rtl'.
Superintendent Bicknel said that
he had a pile driver on this side
and was then trying to get one from
Tucson to operate on the other side.
AS soon as these machines get at work
they are expected to rapidly repair the
damage and it was thought at the rail-
road office that if no more OF the bridge
had been wrecked, trains could again be
run over it in four or five days. But
until another day has passed that ''if'
must enter into all calculations. There
were also five small desert washouts
between the river and Maricopa, a dis
lance of about eight miles. These will
be repaired at once so that the pill
driver will not be delayed in getting to
the scene of the trouble.s
In the meantime the railroad COM
pany has done its best for the conven-
fence of it's patrons. An effort was
made to secure teams in Florence for
taking the passengers now at Maricopa
via Casa Grande to Florence, where
they could cross the ella in boat and
come on to Phoenix via the p. d +.
But not enough conveyances could be
secured so the project was abandoned.
An effort was being made yesterday
afternoon to take the Phoenix bound
passengers back to Cotton, California,
and then here via Needles and the San
/ ia Fe. but with what success could not
be learned here last night.
| By hard work yesterday at the M. q
p. Salt river bridge, the injured APP
proach was repaired and at $50 last
night train was brought in from
Tempe and at $3.50, city time, last night
train was dispatched for the south
side. The Phoenix & Eastern will send
out train this morning at 1920 city
time, and presumably the M. q +.
Mesa trains will run today. Mr.. Drake
superintendent of the p. & f. will &c
to Zellwager, which is the scene OF
trouble on that road, beyond Tempe,
and look over the injury to the ella
bridge there.
Naturally, above conditions have
shot the mail service in these parts al
to pieces. There was no mail from the
south for two days and except from
this valley and Pinal county, there vii
be none for some days to come. The
mails from the south were yesterday
ordered routed via California. Though
the Santa Fe, Prescott & Phoenix trains
are coming in regularly there was NJ
eastern mail from that source, for two
days, so all that was received yester
day was the usual small quantity o!
California mail that naturally comes b.
the Santa Fe. Republican Nov. 30.