Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-02-03
Transportation Routes and Systems of the World

Punta Arenas the next point a
which the fleet of United States nava
vessels is expected to touch, is, ac-
cording to Il map just issued by the
bureau of statistics Of the department
of commerce and labor, just 6,543 miles
from the point of the fleets departure
Fortress Monroe, and 6,199 miles from
the point of its present destination
San Francisco. The fleet when ii
touches Punta Arenas will then have
accomplished IL miles more than one
half of its Fortress Monroe-San Fran
cisco itinerary.
This map just issued by the bureau
of statistics, entitled, Principal Trans
portation Routes of the World shows
the chief railway lines and water
routes of the entire world, the dis
tances from port to port across all
oceans and seas anG carries with 1t a
marginal table showing the distances
from New York, New orleans, San
Francisco. and Port Townsend to each
of the principal ports of the world
and from many of the other cities of
the United States to those four initial
coast ports. thus enabling the citizen
of all the principal cities of the coun-
try to determine the exact distance
from his door or railway station to the
docks of any of the principal COM
mercial ports of the world. The dis
tances by which the land and watIr
routes are stated are supplied to the
Of. i,, III, of Ion
water routes by the photographic
Office of the Navy Department. and in
the case of the land routes from Of
fetal tables prepared by the paymas-
general of the war department, the
distance by water routes being in nau-
teal miles. and those by land routes
statute miles.
The map, together with its distance
tables. shows many interesting facts.
A mere glance at its lines which show
the principal railways of the world in
dicates that they are chiefly located In
the Temperate Zone. The total length
given in the document which accom-
panies the map at $4,000 miles, tho
in most cases these figures are for
1905, thus indicating that the worlds
actual mileage at the present time APP
proximates 100000 miles, of which two
ffths is found in The United States.
Another equally observable fact with
reference to the worlds railways is
that by far the largest part are found
in the temperate zones. OF the prac-
tically 100000 miles of railway in the
world, but about 10 per cent are found
in strictly tropical territory and no
more than % per cent are found in
strictly tropical territory and no more
than Is per cen. found within what
would be termed tropical and subtrop-
ical areas The greatest length of rail-
way lines in any tropical country is
that of India Uncluding Burma) 3d.
600 miles; while tropical and subtrop-
ical South America has $4,000 miles.
tropical and subtropical Africa $4,000
miles, Mexico and Central America
1880 miles, the West Indian Islands
$500 miles. the Dutch and French pos
sessions in the tropical orient about
1900 miles each, tropical and subtrop-
ical Australia about 1000 miles, Siam
500 miles, the Philippines about 200
miles, and the Hawaiian Islands about
100 miles, Taking the grand divisions.
North America has, speaking in round
terms, 100000 miles of railway, of
which 1926 900 are found in the United
States Europe as a whole has, still
speaking in round terms, 100000 miles,