The Washington herald., 1908-07-21


allowed 20 run its trains on the Pana-
ma Railroad line
One familiar with the Pennsylvania
Railroad in the States is forcIbIy re-
minded Of IL when on the isJhmUs-
Here is the familiar p. r. r" on
every car. and only the keystone IS
missing from the lettering on the freight
cars. else the uninitiated might jump az
the conclusion that the Pennsylvania had
extended its lines 10 Panama The
coaches are painted the same color. and
are OF the same modern design as those
Of the Pennsylvania system The en-
gines are OF a heavy type. but with
small tenders.
No railroad in America ever under
went such wonderful changes in so short
a time as the Panama Railroad has
undergone When Col GoethaIs first
went across the isthmus four years ago.
he found the jungle touching boughs
ecross the railroad, forming a tree-arched
way almost from Colon to Panama. The
road bed was then as crooked as the
Chagres River. and that is the sUpzrla-
tive degree Of crookedness- The builders
had followed the line Of least resistance
from one side Of the isIhrnus to the
other. and that classic railroad joke
about standing on the rear platform and
lighting a cigar from the headlight Of
the locomotive might well have been
perpetrated by a passenger on a Pana-
ma Railroad train The rolling stock
was antiQuated. and the whole outfit was
at least twenty-five years behind the
time They did not even have q tele-
graph line, but carried little telephone
outfits. ike the one a trouble man
carries, and would stop the train and
ring Up the dispatcher whenever they
wished
When the United States took hold.
there had 10 be a good railroad. Wal
lace and Stevens each contributed his
share TO making il good Wallace bought
the heavy engines. which were criticised
at the time. Stevens doubIe-tracked the
road. established an up-to-date block sys-
TEN. and. IN short. turned over 10 his
successors q railroad which viii compare
favorably with the average road IN this
country.
The improved condition Of the road IS
shown in the increased business Il en-
Joys The total earnings for 1907 were
almost double those OF the previous year.
and the indications are that the annual
report OF the present fiscal year VIII
make even a better showing The in
crease IN freight carried was about 20
per cent and the passengers carried in
1907 were about double the number car
ried IN 1896. Here again the indications
are that 1905 VIII set a new mark. Ne
grOes do not lose their propensity for
travel just because they are on the
isthmus. Those who have the money TO
spare generally travel first class, but the
majority 60 second. OF The ss2. 90 pas
sengers carried in 1907. $500 were sec
oad class passengers. and these included
no whites and few Cinnamon.
The Panama Railroad. owned by the
United States government. owns fl turn
a steamship line from New York TO
Colon. This line operates six ships. with
saiiings from New York and Colon every
five days. The extension Of the Royal
Mail and the NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. lines to
Colon has divided the business by three,
but by one OF those strange paradOxes
OF trade, the Panama Railroad steamship
line has now more business and a better
balance sheet than IL had before the other
lines came into the port Of Colon. The
operation Of the steamship line is profit
able even II nearly all the passengers
carried by it are employees either Of the
railroad OF the Canal Commission. and
are charged but so each. To the out
slider the rates are $50 and $50 one way
as compared with so On the other lines.
The railroad and the Canal Commission
operate Cn a community OF interest plan.
In fact. except that the railroad does a
commercial business. 1t would simply be 4
part and parcel OF the canal project. As
IL is. its president and board OF directors
are the chairman and commissioners. re-
spectively, Of the Isthmian Canal Com
mission. They have good credit with
one another. and whenever the I c c
wants anything the P R. R has. II sim
ply goes and gets It. and the P. P. R
takes the same privilege with the I c. c.
At the end OF the year a balance Is struck
and there IS no great outgo on either
hand
The Panama Railresd IS about the only
railroad II the world that has been moved
almost entirely 70 make way for another
enterprise When the relocation OF the
road IS completed It will have only Is
per cent OF its present location Where
II now crosses the line OF the canal twice.
i VII then be entirely on the east side
OF the canal II II were 70 continue IN its
present location ron CTatun 10 San Pablo
It would ind itself under about eighty
i've feet Of water To obviate this a great
embankTent, eighty-two feet high. VIII
skirt the eastern edge OF the dam This
embenkmeut viii be about $500 feet long
some 26oo,Ooo cubic yards Of earth being