Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-05-04
An IMPORTANT PART
Washington's Position in Ex-
pansion of the South.
SOME RAILROAD MEN
ASTONISHED AT MAGNITUDE OF
IMPROVEMENTS HERE.
All Traffic Must Pass Through This
City Going North and
South.

Washington has frequently been describ-
ed the gateway between the north and
the south. Railway men say that the term
is to have added significance in the future,
and that the city, by reason of its increas-
ed railroad facilities, is to play an impor-
tant part in the expansion of the southern
states. They go on to say that naturally
there will be increase at the same time in
the commercial prosperity of the city.
Some of the visiting railroad men. who
have looked over the progressing and con-
templated improvements in and about the
city are astounded at the magnitude of the
work. Between Washington and Alexan-
dria the face of the whole country is being
transformed and immense yards and side
track facilities are being put in. North
and east of the city the Improvements are
going ahead upon vast scale.
A large proportion of these improvements
are necessitated by the fact that Washing
ton is the gateway to the south for three
great trunk lines-the Southern railway, the
Atlantic Coast Line and the Seaboard Air
Line. Another great trunk line, the CheS-
apeake and Ohio. running from Louisville
and Cincinnati to Norfolk, also has access
to the north and east through this city.
There is no other roadway to the south
this side of Cincinnati, where the Queen
and Crescent and Louisville and Nashville
take up the business.
Must Pass Through This City.
All of the immense volume of freight
business and the steady stream of summer
and winter travel between New York, New
England and the southern states must pass
through this city, which will become the
halfway place on the journey. Western
Pennsylvania and West Virginia will send
their business to Cincinnati for entry to
the southern markets. Visiting railway
-sai1 to ha r.lN cod
with the future of the railway interests of
the city.
The Importance of the southern states as
a field of railway operation cannot be over
estimated. No other section of the coun-
try is forging ahead in the same proportion
OF industrial progress as the southern
states, and that section is especially IA
vored in the growth of railroad building.
Recent official figures of railroad building
in the United States made the following
showing.
Under contract or construction. Miles.
New England states 81
Central northern states es.................... 6Si
South Atlantic states 1 I5e
Gulf and Mississippi valley. ey................1,l10 ,l10
Southwestern ......................2 2 500
Northwestern states. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. 62S
Total. 500
Thus the southern and southwestern
states are shown to have under construc-
ton or contract a total of 4, 766 miles of
railways, while the northern, eastern and
western states have only a total of 2,I24
miles.
But that is not all 0ftthe story table
Of live projects" that is projects that are
likely to go through and which only await
few details or a few months to be put
into operation, has been compiled from Off
cial sources and that table makes an
cellent showing for the southern states The
live projects are as follows:
Miles
Middle Atlantic states. Observation-Disclosures. 81
Central northern states. s..................-.. CO.
Gulf and Mississippi valley ............ SO2
southwestern states 2 93l
nOrthWestern states .......-.-1 243
Faelhc states. .2.0O0
Thus the southern states have contem-
plated live projects involving the con-
struction of $3.50 miles of railways out of
1882 miles for the other sections of the
union. All of which is taken as collateral
evidence of the well-known fact that the
south is forging ahead at a remarkable
rate in every branch of industrial progress.
Growth of Business in South
Every southern congressman or busi-
ness man who comes up from the south
these days has something to say about the
wonderful growth of the section in busi-
ness. The banks and the people have more
money in general circulation than was ever
known before; crops have been good and
the farmers are contented But labor!ng
men of all classes, from the crew of the
section boss on the railroad to the skilled
operatives in the cotton factories are pros
pering and every class of business invest
ment IS returning good profit
All of which comes back TO the original
proposition that the south is the scene of
the greatest business prosperity and that
Washington is the gateway of the south.