The Republican journal., 1907-02-14
THE B. { A. EXTENSION.
It Will Lead Through the Heart OF the
Maine Jungle. A Land Of Game, Lumber,

10 TAKE tue pidCt VI VIC toIo-lodu UCoH.
The woodland creatures will hear the boot
OF the bullgine's whistle, where up to now
The big bull moose has called his cow.
And old Katahdin's long fin-back
Will echo loud with the clickety-clack
OF wheels that merrily catter and clash
Through the sylvan wastes to the Allegash.
Holman F. Day, in spine Tree Ballads"
When Names "homespun poet
dashed off these lines, more than 10
years ago, he got his inspiration from
filmy rumor that a railroad was to be
built from some point above Bangor
through the woods to the Allegash
region. Up to the closing weeks of
1906 Days poem was all that remained
of the Allegash railroad project.
On Dec. 14th last the Bangor & Aroos-
took railroad petitioned the railroad
commissioners of Maine for permission
to build a branch line from point on
its main line to st. Francis plantation,
distance of about 145 miles.
Early in May small army Of engi-
neers will plunge into the woods little
way north OF Bangor and blaze trail
as near due north as the line of least
resistance will permit until they reach
the st. John river the considerable
stream which marks the bounds of the
domain of Uncle Sam, the northern
line of the State of Maine.
1t will take all summer for the sur
vey, if not longer.
The route will lead through the heart
of the Maine Jungle: through miles and
miles of unbroken forests, skirt the
shores of beautiful lakes, jump great
gorgeS. glide through meadows and bot
tom lands, over the feet of mountain
peaks, chase along old Indian trails and
tote-Toads and on the hOmeStretch
snuggle close to the ravishlngly beautl-
full Allegash for miles, and past It's
merry meeting with the great and
mighty St. ohm river.
THROUGH MOOSE YARDS.
There'l be a great disturbance among
the forest folk in the next few years,
for the new railroad will rent in twain
one of the finest big game tracts in
America The engineers Will drive
their stakes across many centuries old
game trails, through scores of moose
yards and the favorite feeding
grounds of bruin.
To be more explicit: the route Will
start at point near W est SeboelS, a
small way-station 65 miles above Ban
gor, known only as point OF departure
plorers for the wilderness waterways.
Much game is also brought out and
shipped from this station.
From West Seboeis the road will
plunge through one of the choicest fish
and game regions on the continent,
known to almost everyone who goes to
Maine for sport. Running between the
10 Mary and Twin lakes chain it Will
skirt the shores of PemadumcO0k lake,
then on to Nahmakanta with the rich
and beautiful Dedsconeag and Rainbow
lakes close at hand, finally coming out
at the foot of the big Chesuncook lake,
finding way across between that lake
and Ripogenus, where rises the mighty
west branch of the Penobscot river.
The trail then leads along an old tote |,
road almost due north to Chamberlain |
and Churchill lakes, large sheets of
water surrounded by mighty forests,
and then comes the parting OF the
ways. Thus far the waters have flowed
southwark, eventually reaching Penob-
scot bay. Here is the ridge OF the
great northern Maine water shed.
There may be two tiny springs a stones
throw apart The waters of one flow
down the Penobscot valley southwark
to the sea, while the other sends its
tiny flow northWard to the Allegash to i
commingle with the waters of the st.
John and Oh to the DAY of Fundy.
VALLEY OF THE ALLEGAsH. +,
The remainder of the distance is
through the valley of the Ailegdsn.
This stream furnishes canoe tIip
which people come across the sea to
take, and those who know say that
there's no stretch of water IN the world
to compare with it in scenic grandeur.
The northern terminal Will be III or
near the little French Canadian village
OF st. Francis, which happens to be at
the logical end of the road, on the banks
of the St. John river. Directly across :,
the river is one end of the great Cana
dian Pacific system, the Temiscouta
railroad, feeder /
A rather astounding fact is that not
a rod of the 145 miles of railroad will
be in an incorporated town, although 1t
will enter 80 different townships or
plantations. From Seboeis to st. Fran
els there are not now permanent resi-
dents enough within 10 miles of the
proposed right of way to fill one pas
senger coach.
The only signs of human beings are
at the sporting and lumber camps, with
here and there solitary farm and semi
hotel along the wilderness roads but
not schoolhouse, church, factory, store
or anything but woods and woods Cor
ali Of this 145 miles.
1t will cost about S6O00,O00 to build
this road and it is easy to see that the
prospective passenger traffic would
hardly warrant any slch outlay. There
would be deer, moose and bears enough,
with raccoons and wildcats to support
several trains, but Pres. Cram and his
Associates would object to having this
referred to as "wildcat road"
To come to the key to the situation,
the basis upon which the project OF this
remarkable road rests to large extent,
with many contributing propositions OF
course, is the vast lumber supply in the
valley of the Allegash. AS noted above,
the waters of the Allegash flow north
ward to the St. John river and into
Canada. The lumber cut i'll Maine
miles from the Canadian boundary, is
thus whir!ed out of the State, manu-
featured in Canadian mills, giving en-
ployment to Canadian labor, and is
shipped back into this country lii manu-
featured form to compete with Ameri-
Can lumber.
All that the people of Maine receive
from the vast timber wealth of the
Allegash is the "stumpage,' pay for