Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1906-09-21
HILL is
AFTER
HARTMAN
Will Build From Butte TO San
Francisco Through Cent
raj Oregon

The second move in the great war
of two railroads has been made.
The Hill interests have gathered
their forces and are contending with
might and main to wrest from Harri-
man the control of the rich districts
of central Oregon. The purchase of
the California Northeastern by the
Southern Pacific was the first move
in the game, and was designed to
forestall the plain of the Hill inter
ests, who had announced the inten-
| tion of building from Butte, Mont,
to Boise, Idaho, down through CEN
Itral Oregon, and finally ending at
San Francisco. This road, which
would be a branch of the transconti-
mental system of the Great Northern
and the Northern Pacific, would pro-
| vide a short cut for good to San
would considerably eat into the prof
its of the Hartman system. The
Southern Pacific seeing that the new
move would give the Hill interests
control of the heart of Oregon, de-
termined to check the plan before it
had been fairly started, and with
that end in view, bought the Cali
fornia Northeastern, now building.
hoping to push it to completion and
secure control of the threatened ter
ritory before the Hill crowd was
fully awake.
Contracts for Steel.
But word has reached the local
officials of the Southern Pacific that
the Hill interests are not asleep.
They are very much on. the alert,
and will put up a stiff battle before
they give up their cherished plan.
The officials of the San Francisco,
Idaho and Montana railroad have an
nounced large contracts for bridge
work and structural steel, and say
that the whole route has been sur
veyed and cross-sectioned, and that
actual construction work will begin
in few days. So far the Southern
Pacific has an apparent handicap in
the war for the rich heart of Oregon,
but If the statement of the officials
of the Hill line is true, that they are
ready to go ahead with the actual
construction of the road, they are
not far behind the Hartman crowd
and the race bids fair to be an ex-
citing one. The Southern Pacific has
made few surveys beyond Klamath,
and has really advanced but short
distance along the main route into
the heart of Oregon, but seems to be
waiting until the proposed line of
the California Northeastern to Klam-
ath Falls is completed before work
goes ahead on the main line.
Struggle of Great Roads.
The Hill people are terribly in
earnest and announce that they have
unlimited capital stock back of them
in the struggle, and consider the
country contested for the most i'm
portant in the United States still
undeveloped by railroads.
One of the new bridges ordered by
the road will be over 564 feet long,
across the Snake river. The new
road will give the ores of the mines
of Idaho and probably Nevada a
shorter route to the worlds markets,
and will tap the rich coutry to be
opened up by the United States re-
clamation service in which over $11,-
100000 will be spent.
The result of the contest between |
the two great roads will probably be.
according to the judgment of rail-
road men, a tie, and both roads will |
enter the new territory and share
the profits. Hartman has hoped TO
discourage Hill by the purchase OF
the California Northeastern, already |
under construction, but the move
only urged Hill to greater efforts,
and the race will now be exceedingly
close