Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-06-14
PAN-AMER|CAN LINE
Railway Construction Going on
in the Southern Continent.
LINKS IN A GREAT CHAIN
By January, 1910, There Will Be
$3.50 Miles in Operation.
MANY SPURS ARE PROJECTED
Few Persons in the United States.
Keep Posted as to Progress Made
in Latin-American Countries.
LINKS IN A GREAT CHAIN
MANY SPURS ARE PROJECTED
RY WILLIAM z. CURTIS.

BY WILLIAM E. CURTIS
Special Correspondence of The Star and the
Chicago ord-Herald
NEW YORK, June .. 1908
'Very few people in the United states
keep themselves informed concerning the
rapid improvements in South America.
said Mr. Charles NJ. Pepper. special agent
of the Department of Commerce and La
Dor. who has just returned from one of
his frequent trips among the cities or the
Andes 1T would be greatly to their
profit if more of our merchants and man
ufacturers would do SO. ] confirm all
that was said in a letter to The Evening
Star the other day about the possibilities
of the mail-order houses in the United
States building up a big business down
there If they would advertise properly
and send down catalogues in Spanish. The
parcels post system will enable them to
send packages of eleven pounds weight to
any of the west coast and Central Amer
lean countries for twelve cents pound
and if the people down there knew that II
were possible they would do great part
of their buying by mail. just as the $50
lated farmers in the west and the officers
families at distant military posts are In
the habit of doing.
We know practically nothing about
what is going on down below the 18th
mus" continued Mr.. Pepper. Our news
papers have no correspondents in any OF
the Latin-American countries except Cuoa
and Mexico, and If they get any ex-
changes they do not read them. The press
associations do not receive cablegramS eX-
cept when there is a revolution or an cpl
demic or an attempt is made to assassi-
nate somebody. They never refer to
events Of importance. but only to those of
a sensational character. Not long ago
new railroad was opened between the two
oceans. and 1T was considered such an I'M
portant event that the government of the
United States sent a special envoy in the
person of Maj. Gen. Davis to assist at the
ceremonies but you saw scarcely an al
fusion to it in any of our papers, but
few weeks later there was thrilling &C
count of an attempt to aSSasSinate Presi-
dent Cabrera. And that is the character
of the news We usually get from those
countries. We are told about the unfa-
about their progress and development.
We ought to show more sympathy with
their enterprises. We have deep inter-
- est, material as we'll as political, in their
welfare. and their progress ought not to
pass unnOticed.
The Pan-American Line.
For example. take the railroad con-
struction, and much of it is being done by
American engineers and American con-
people in this country are aware how rap
Idly the gaps on the great Pan-American
trunk line that is to unite the three
continents are being filled
The distance from New York to Buenos
Ayres. as surveyed by the engineers of
the Intercontinental Railway commits
sion a few years ago. is 1O,4OO miles. |
From New York to the southern boundary
of Mexico the track is laid $40 miles, |
and trains are running. with the exception
five Ia or lie sir n Nft h<t
Guatemala boundary, and the grading
is entirely done.
Between the southern boundary OF
Mexico and Buenos Ayres 1850 miles are
in operation and about 400 miles under
construction which in all probability will
be completed next year. so that by the
LIST Of January. 1910. there will be $50
miles In operation and $3.50 to be built
Honduras. Venezuela, Brazil. Para
quay. Uruguay and Chile are not on the
main trunk line. but some day will build
branches to connect with it, and in several
of those countries railway construction is
now going on at rapid rate. There are
also many cross lines and feeders being
built down the west coast all the distance
from Mexico to Chile.
In Central America, between the
tsthmus and Mexico. are about 300 miles
In operation, disconnected, but important
links In the main line.
Colombia Is making connections from
Bogota eastward to the Magdalena river
and from that river to the city of Me-
dellin, the center Of a rich mining dis
trict. American capitalists are establish
Ing terminals for the Colombia Central
crailway on the Gulf of Uraba which will
be the outlet of the Pan-American trunk
line on the Caribbean sea. An American
syndicate is building line up the Cauca
valley. from the Pacific port of Buenaven-
tura toward Bosota. and l understand
they have about twenty-five miles in
operation. A line from the Canal Zone
In Panama is projected southeastward in
to Colombia
In Ecuador and Peru.
I'm Ecuador about 200 miles of the road
now in operation between Guayaquil and
Quito will be available for the trunk line
1t has been constructed by Archer Har-
mon. a Firginian. with American and
British capital and American materials,
and it is proposed to build about $50 miles
northward TO Ibarra and a smaller dis
lance southwark to Cuenca in the great
Andean basin to develop the country and
secure traffic. This is absolutely neces-
sary for the prosperity of the road for
the business of Quito and the country
along the present line cannot sustain it,
In both directions from Quito, however
there is a very rich territory and capable
OF producing vast crops IL market could
be afforded for the produce. The mineral
resources are also very valuable, but havs
been allowed to remain idle because they
can not be worked profitably by the prin-
tive native processes, and can not be
reached by modern machinery because
there is no transportation. When a rail-
way Is built up and down the great
plateau between the two ranges of the
Andes Eucador will tempt the capital of
the world.
Peru is now doing great deal of rail-
way construction. continued Mr. Pepper
"One or the mos; important links in the
Pan-American line. along the famous
highway OF the Incas described by Pres
colt. between the terminus of the Pc
ruvian southern road at Puno and Cuzco.
the ancient Inca capital. is now in opera
ton for $50 miles and the remaining
sixty-Six miles is graded and the iron 10