The San Francisco call., 1907-01-27

SHOWS OF the Antarctic.
u is no impracticabic dream. tbis
Pan-Amcrican road with It's remote
terminals in the eternal SHOWS ana SIS
halfway stop at the equator. Tho
resistlcss can or greater commerce
bids us lead our iron horses down TO
drink from the waters Of the Isio de
Ia Plata
Longer taan tho combined lengths of
the Trans-siborian and the visionary
Cape-to-Cairo roads is this limo that
NNdi reach from psvson 10 Patagonia.
NO car or empirc-dream - forcing
dts completion. 30 captain or Industry
IS backing &C. Not irrcsistibIy tile
separate parts OF the --holo that IS to
Dc arc reaching towerd each other as
Though animated bY a ilying desire.
Few people realize the forces be-
hind this enterprise beside which the
undertakings OF halc century or
great railroad hwld;uR sink iuto pale
insigniGcsncc. Crril Rhodes vision or
double band ~ ralI uniting the Brit
Ssh possessions at The Cape with the
BRITISH possessions at Cairo vas born
OF imperislistic fancy u was the
romance ~ au empire strong 20 carry
oct its plan upon The dense African
jungle.
liat tae Ian-American T. Tire child
90 commercisl flesh. Already half the
undertaking is accomplished. i be-
gan in fact not in imagiusueu. and
The task which remains is the con-
uectfou ~ two Ereat systems OF rail-
roads. each teeming with the COM
ueroe of q now world 10 ioe-clad
steppe Is TO bc crossed. no African
1uugle 10 DC penetrated. From ArEen-
1ina Co Alaska twelve republics are
ricA in their own resources.
brief comparison OF this with other
great railroad systems shows at n
gaauce the superiority Of the Pan
American ia mere miles. The follow
lHg table gives the lengths OF the
greater roads as well as those which
nre proposed and those in process OF
construction.
Pan-American from San Francisco
ii, io Buenos Ayres ...-.--. $500. .-lo.66T miles
Fr.acisco io Dawson eesiiuaatedl.. $500 miles
Lnu American. from Dawson 10
l-s1s ,as- As- ". ,.is a,s. sos5 os5 mile: mile:
Great siberian Railway from Moscow
- yad,,or,ok ....----...-.. 5000 miles
Proposed iraa- Australian r,iivsr ssy ME- ME-
i.s mated cesi % the proposed Pan
l-stiniated eost or the proposed cape
Cost of lie Great siberian Rsilwsy
,fr2m MOSCOW 3 yiadivostolj =. 27o.oooooo
- mated "'s>t # the trans-Austrs-
han railway dncompleted sectionl.. %. 600 600
From Dawson 70 Guatemala there is
not a single mile remaining over which
"a road is not already in operation or
about 20 be opened to tranac.
Activity in Mexico
OF the whole length OF completed
track at the northern end the greatest
activity IS exhibited in Mexico. Forcing
her policy of national lines along the
plan adopted by the Pan American Con
Grcss, Mexico is keen for the conple-
1ion ~ the long line 70 the south The
completion OF the Tehuautcpec Railroad
across the Mexican isthmus from ocean
70 ocean lis the most remarkable piece
~ railroad construction OF tee age
when viewed en- the light Of the volume
~ freight 81 viii transport from the
day the first train IS run from tbs
Atlantic 10 the Pacific This Tehuante-
Dec line is az the northern end OF the
great gap OF untraversed distance he
tween Guatemala and Argentina. Bat
the end OF the south-reaching tentacle
S. not dead.
Separated from il bv 5000 and more
miles OF uneNploited land, down at
the southern end Of the map is another
network OF steam lines reaching out
from the capital city Of Argentina, only
smaller than the giant web that has
spun its rays over the northern half
Of the continent For Argentina has
her transconunental railroad as well
as Canada Twenty-eight times as
large IN territory as the State Of Ohio.
Argentina has her connecting and in
terconnecting lines reaching to the
lands ~ her neighboring states.
Or this magnificent distance that
equals the length OF four OF our trans
continental lines strung end To end. al
ready there are IN operation over 1000
miles OF railroad, 5000 more arc def
nitoly undertake. or else under actual
course of construction. and there re-
mains OF this total length OF over 1900
miles an insignificant 5000 still 10 be
built 20 make the connection complete
from Alaska 60 Argentina
From san Francisco 20 the southern
boundary OF Mexico. lines are operated
which are TO be a part OF the great
system when IL is finished North
ward from San Francisco one travels
over lines IN operation as far as the
Fraser River in British Columbia
There connection IS soon TO he made
with the proposed Grand Trunk Pacific
which viii run straight to Dawson
Stretching toward each other the
tcntacIes OF these two systems are
reaching ever farther and farther out
Like the arms Of an octopus fed by
their own strength they strain 10 a
union. Imagination did not create the
dream nor did empire hunger inspire
IT. Ii Is born ~ the strength Of two
great commercial Dations-that OF the
south only smaller Than that of the
north.
such is the strength Of the two foci.
remote crom each other. from which
flows tho impulse that is TO build the
connecting link. Il is not desire 10
force commerce where there lis none,
but the necessity OF two virile organ
t-.,~ IA rrrffe. the attraction Of con-