The Republican journal., 1905-07-06
The NEW RAILROAD.
Its Progress and its Future. What May be
Done With Sears Island.

| sion to stockton last Thursday after
noon and inspected the wharf and other
railroad operations at Cape Jellison.
This is said to be the largest individual
wharf in this country and it has been
constructed m the most substantial
manner. with oak piling, hard pine caps
and planking, strongly bolted together.
The Castine landed her passengers on
the wharf, where the big five-masted
sch. Horace A. Stone was discharging
cargo of steel rails from Baltimore,
the second cargo of this kind to be
landed here. The Stone was an object
of interest to the Belfast visitors as,
launched at Brewer late in the fall of
1908, she was towed here to be rugged
and have her top and houses finished.
Astern of her was steam lighter. At
the shore end of the wharf a construc-
ton train was bringing earth over a
temporary track for grading, and on
and around the wharf in every direction
men were at work-Italians, shoyeling
dirt, train men and pile driver men,
stevedores; and here and there group
of surveyors with their instruments.
Above and below the wharf booms held
large numbers of logs for use in the
construction work, and big passenger
engine stood on the wharf headed for
La Grange and ready to start when the
rails are laid.
This is an outline of what may be
seen 10y those who make the trip to
Cape Jellison by water. \ better idea
of this enterprise, which means so
much to Maine. and to Waldo county,
may be had by diving from Belfast to
the Cape though Stockton village and
via Mack's Point. The writer was
fortunate in making this trip last
Thursday in company with gentleman
who is greatly interested in the work
and who has made weekly visits to the
scene Of operations. 1t will be remem-
beyed that when this enterprise was
first mooted many doubted that rail
road was in view, and insisted either
that the New York Yacht Club was
to locate a station and build a club
house on Sears Island, or that sum-
mer resort was to be esta blished in this
most picturesque locality. One man,
who ought to have known better, de-
clared that there was not water enough
in Stockton harbor to float a roWboat,
and that it was all nonsense to talk of
establishing railway terminal and
shipping port there. There were others
who held this opinion, although glance
at a government chart would have
shown them their error. Those who
had inside information as to the pro-
jected railroad, and who knew it's
promoters, felt assured that no mis-
take had been made; and subsequently
it was learned that this location was
selected only after careful surveys and
that many other places on the coast had
been examined before a final decision
was arrived at. The location is Ger
tainly an ideal one. Take Mack's
Point, where a round house with
nine stalls has been erected and a
wharf and coal pockets are in course
of construction. There are acres upon
acres of level ground here over which
to run the necessary tracks; there is
water enough Off the wharf for the
largest vessel that comes into our ports,
and unrestricted navigation to or from
sea by way of the western bay. The
freight yard at Stockton is also locat-
ed on broad plateau, and when the.
difficulties experienced elsewhere in OBJ
tanning yard room are considered, often
involving heavy expense for excava-
ting or filling, the natural advantages
here must be appreciated. Then Stock
ton harbor is so protected that no
wind that blows can disturb the ship
ping that will be seen here later, and
there is a fairway to the sea via the
eastern bay that will take the average
freight steamer to the broad Atlantic
in little over two hours time over
well-lighted course. Freight that now
goes to st. John, n. B., over the Cana
dian Pacific can be put on board ves-
sci here and escape the tides and fogs
of the Bay of Fundy and the dangerous
lodges off Cape Sable, the southern end
of Nova Scotia. After passing Isle au
Haut a course may be shaped for ''the
other side'' with only the dangers of
the open sea to encounter.
In laying the tracks and constructing
the various spurs between Cape Jellison
and Mack's Point there are many cuts
and fills: but these are child's play to rail
road men when compared with the con-
struction of roads over and under noun
tains and across deep ravines. Earth is
easily handled and steam shoveIs per-
form the work of many men. While the
rails may be laid to La Grange and
trains running by the time snow flies, it
would seem to al outsider that another
year will be required to complete the
terminal facilities and get the roadbed
in shape for heavy traffic.