The Goodland republic., 1907-03-29
GARDEN CITY SURVEYORS HERE
RUNNING LINE FOR NORTH AND
SOUTH RAILROAD.
Two Surveys Show line From Il
Reno, Okla, to GOOdland-Out-
let to Gulf OF Mexico.

The gang OF railroad surveyors for
the Garden City, Gulf & Northern rail-
way Incorporation reached GoOdland
Sunday and spent the day here. Like
ali vanguards OF railroad enterprises,
they kept their mouths closely button
ed up whenever a leading question was
asked, preferring to let the inquisitive
public decipher the future from the
mute line Of stakes that line the coun-
try.
From letters received in Goodland
from Garden City business men, some
time ago. it would seem that these
surveyors began their work out Of
Garden City, or maybe that was not
the meaning intended. However, the
surveyors said Sunday that they came
from Meade, the second county south
and one east OF Finney, in which is
Garden City.
The fact that they came from
Meade even makes the building Of
the road the more probable from a
theoretical standpoint Meade is a
station on the southwest trunk line Of
the Rock Island, and a survey from
that point to the east and west trunk
line to GOOdIand, makes the proposed
railroad a more direct north and south
line than as through it were run TO
the Bucklin-Dodge City stub. But
Meade, on the southwest line, is real
ly incidental to the purpose Of this
new road The intention Of the
scheme behind all this, is merely to
tap the southwest line at Meade, and
then extend the road direct to FL
Reno. Okla, a little southeast, where
the Rock Island has a line that runs
directly south to Fort Worth, Tex 1t
should be remembered here that at
FL Reno the Rock Island has east
and west lines, as well as north and
south, and that that town is a flourish
ing center Of Rock Island activity in
the west From Fort Worth, the
Rock Island, under another name, has
access 20 Galveston, Tex, a port on
the gulf Of Mexico. A glance at the
map viii show that this is an ideal
course in the effort Of the Rock Is
land to reach the sea
The Meade-tO-GOOdland line is but
half the story.
In the Daily State Capital Of Guth-
RE OF March Is, the following press
dispatch from Oklahoma City ap-
pears:
cit is stated by FL Reno authority
that arrangements have been cOmplet-
ed for the building Of the Oklahoma
& Canadian I;iver railroad, which is
TO run from FL Reno to Meade. Kan
The head offices Of the road viii be in
Fl Reno, ard IL is stated that con-
st-uction work VII be begun within
thirty days. The officers OF the new
1cad are " a LoE OF Topeka, presf
dent; secretary. c. o. Blake, FL Reno,
and treasurer, George H Crosby, CHI
cagO- Mr. Low IS the general counsel
for the Rock Island, with headqUar-
ters at Topeka, and c. o. Blake is
counsel IA Oklahoma for the sans
road
BY the construction o. these two
lines. a distance Of about 500 miles,
the Rock Island would re the only big
western road to reach the gulf IL any
thing like direct route. This survey
ed line seems to be one OF the near
future necessities Of the Rock Island,
and some OF our longest headed busi-
ness men believe that the farmers
wheat OF Sherman count in 1903 will
be shipped south over this very route
The question may properly be
asked, why should the Rock Island
run their north and south line into
Goodland, when they could run it
north at a point a hundred miles or
so east OF here Just as well and pene-
trate q denser population and heav-
ier traffic along the line?"
The answer is, in the first place, the
junction Of these two lines must nee
essarily be a division point where are
larger facilities for handling and re-
pairing engines and cars, and the fact
OF the very great Improvement OF the
railroads. works here in the last year,
with additional purchase Of about
loo acres Of vacant grO-Jnd- attests
to the future intentions Of the Rock
Island managers with regard to this
point In the second place, the main
purpose Of the north and south line is
not for local traffic, but for the had
ling OF through freight destined for
southern points and originating both
east and west on the two trunk lines
that the new road would cross
As has been frequently pointed out
Godland lies in the heart OF an i'm