Weekly Arizona journal-miner., 1906-07-25
Santa Fe May Construct Another Branch In
 Arizona
Surveyors Now at Work In Vicinity Of
 Williams

A correspondent from Williams writes: Last Saturday S. F. Cochran, engineer for the Santa Fe coast lines, with headquarters at Los Angeles. arrived m the city with a party of some dozen men, and this morning. securing the services of n team belonging to Harry Cargilc, started to unload their car and cstab- fish their camp in Quaking Asp Flat, n few miles southeast of town.
 Mir Cochran was in this section for some weeks last fall and went over the country thoroughly from Oak crcew to Hell canyon. At the time nothing could he learned of the intcn. tions of the company, but Mir. Coch. ran stated recently that the intention of this survey was 10 locate n suitable route from Davenport station, n few miles east of Williams, in south. westerly direction into the Hell can yon country, crossing the old line of the Saginaw southern road nt n point about seven miles south of Williams. Just what arc the intentions. of tho company in this matt-S is not known, but as there hns been some talk of n road building from the south connect. ing Globe, Jerome, Williams and Grand Canyon with the coal fields in southwestern Colorado, it would seem that tho steps now being taken by tho Santa Fc are for the purpose of protecting its own or tributary terri tory.
 IL has long been known that Sen ntor w. A. Clark was dcsirous of nov ing his smelling plants from the hills to the Verde river valley, and also of escaping the cost of transferring every pound of freight at Jerome Junction to his narrow gauge road But before the plants could be moved n standard guagc road will have to loo construct cd frSm the Verde valley to some point on the main line of the Santa Fc, or the other proposed road from the south will have to be constructed.
 IL is entirely possible that the Santa Fc, while contemplating the quashing of it's proposed adversarics, also has important moves for its direct advant- age in view. By building n road south from Davenport or Williams, it could connect with tho Santa Fc, Prescott & Phoenix road at Cedar Glade, which would give a direct line from Phoenix to the Grand Canyon.
 The trip could be made in n day aud the long wait for trains at Ash Fork would he eliminated, and the ope- rating expenses of the road materially cut, as all trains could be run through, thus doing away with at least two train crews. The Santa Fe realizes what drawing card it has in the Grand Canyon and will guard it jcai. ously. and give the best service to that point possible in order to discour. age competition.
 From somo point on the line be tween Davenport and Cedar Glade n branch line will doubtless be run in southerly direction to tho Verde. Surveys have already been made over this route, and have shown the build. ing of narrow gauge to be practic. able. By the building of this branch the Santa Fe will continue to handle the large volume of tn. Clark business in Jerome.
 While Mir. Cochran is reticent as Co tho intentions of the company, it is \ patent fact that some steps such as these enumerated will have to he talk. en in the near future, and the Santa Fe seems to realize this.
 Tho traffic Co the Grand Canyon is increasing steadily, and many i'm provements in the hostelries at that point are being made. The roads and drives tc the places of intcrst are be ing newly graded and put into first class condition. Incidentally, vii. Hams, the gateway to the Grand Can. yon, is prosperiug. While the business from the tourist traffic is not what it
 might be were the trains operated diff. fsrently, the receipts amount to quite . considerable sum. The conditions will be somewhat changed here when