The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-12-20
RAILROADS
 OF NEW CUBA Extension Building Has Been Done. DATES FROM THE WAR They Wtli Help to Maintain
 Order. There are 44o 1-2 Miles of Main Line In Cuba Most of which Was Built by American Energy
 and Anseriean
 Capital.

In an effort to govern themselves which will begin next February, the people of Cuba have chosen for their President General Maxine Gomez, a well and favorably known leader of the Liberal party, and strong hopes are expressed fhat President Gomez will be able to establish a firm and en- during government.
 In this he win be by the fact that the island has now railways run ming from one end of 1t to the other which was by no means the case under Spanish domination. The first conces- sion granted for railway was in 1837 when Governor General Miguel Tacon gave one for line from Puerto Prin- sipe (Gamaguez) to Nuevitas. This however was not opened until 1851. The next line, connecting Matanzas with Sabanillo, was opened in 1854. When the United States occupied the island, January 1, 1899. Cuba had seventeen public and TOT private lines of railway. The private lines were for the transportation or sugar cane in the vicinity of the large centrales, or grinding mills. These represented an investment of about $12,000,0 ,000 and consisted of 965 miles of trackage.
 The. public lines covered 1I35 miles and had g valuation of $58 8.00O.000, nine-tenths of which was In the west ern part of the island. At that time, with the exception of four short lines, with about 100 miles of track, con meeting Puerto Principe, Holquin, San Luis and Guantanamo with coast har- bors, the two great eastern provinces of Puerto Prinicpe and Santiago were destitute of railways The war had left all the railways in a bad condition and many CubaA and Spanish stock holders were quite ready to part with their holdings. A number of American investors looked the properties over, but decided that the prices asked were unreasonable, and therefore declined to purchase. Three English com panies. owning respectively the Vest erp Railway of Havana (Idmited,) from Havana to Pima del Rio, 100 miles in length: the United Railways of Havana 100 miles eastward, and the Cuban Central Railway. further east. ward yet, did something in the way of reconstruction and improvement, but nothing in the way of extension.
 How Roads Were Built.
 The important feature in railroad de- velopment during the intervention was the construction of a line from Santa Clara, where 1t made connections with the western systems. westward to Sam tiago de Cuba, on the southeast coast, and NiRe Bay on the northeast coast. This line was inaugurated and carried out under the immediate supervision of Sir William Cornelius Van Horne, K.fC. M. G., to whom Canada is indebted for the building of it's great transoontis mental line--the Canadian Pacific aFaaii. way A number of American capita lists took hold of the enterprise, among them being P A. B. W5dener. of this city, and furnished the capital The companies have charters h1nder the laws of New Jersey.
 Two companies were formed One the Cuba Company, was incorporated April 25, 1900, to operate railroads and electric railways in Cuba, and this is the company of which Mir. Widener is a director. The second company, the Cuba Railroad Company. was incorpor-