Goldsboro weekly argus., 1908-12-10
BELONGS TO The
REALM OF Fancy.
The South to Be No Longer
Hampered By Peonage
Prosecutions.
Work on the Completion Of the
Great Florida East Coast Rail
way, Following the De-
cision of Judge Hough,
to be Resumed.
to Be Resumed.
{specia,correspondence of the AReUs.)


Especial correspondence of the ARaUs.)
New York, Dec. Hundreds of
men are being rushed Southwark to
work on the completion of the great
Florida East Coast Railway, following
the decision of Judge Eough of the
United States CirtIuit Court, i'm dis
missing, as without cause of action, the
so-called peonage cases that had been
brought by the United States Govern
ment against the labor agents of the
railroad.
While these actions were pending in
the courts the men in charge of the
construction work on this sea-going &
railroad, which is to be Henry w.
Flagler's greatest achievement, were
loath to push forward with the same
amount OF energy that had been dis
played prior to the action of the Attor-
ney General in taking cognizance OF
the reckless charges of labor slavery
that had been made. Every effort to
make up for lost time now will be put
forward by Vice President Joseph r.
Parrott, who has been in charge per
sonally since the work began in June
OF 1905. Fully 1900 men now are en-
ployed south OF Knights Key and
more workmen are being sent to the
field OF operations each day.
Vice-President Parrott, who now is
in New York on business connected
with the great extension which is
jumping over a stretch OF thirty miles
of open ocean and over thirty miles
more of submerged keys and lagoons
to connect Key West by direct line
with Miami, now estimates that this,
one of the most novel engineering en-
terprises of modern timaes, will be%eom-
pleted and trains running for it's full
length within year.
Already the line is completed and
trains are running for eaghty-tou1
miles south OF Miami, right down to
Knights Key. Work also is being
pushed forward from Key West up;and
over forty lAiles of road bed has been
constructed by the gangs that are
working northwar ard to meet the otbe,
workmen who rapidly are moving
south. This means that q total of 124
miles has been completed out of the
156 miles of road surveyed from Miami
to Key West. The greatest of sAl the
engineering teats on this wonderful
line, however, is yet to be completed.
This is the eleventh mile gap from
Knights Key to Bahia Honda whel
the line is being carried over the ope n
ocean on concrete arches.
The effect of the great extension on
traffic to Havana, however, already
has been felt because now the steamers
for Havana meet the trains at Knights
Key and take passengers and freight
from that point to the Cuban capital
instead of eighty four miles north OF
Miami. When thesline is completed to
Key West huge railroad floats Will
take entire trains across the Flerlda
Straits to Havana, Substance of ninety
miles, without compelling passengers
to leave their car seats or sleeping-car
berths and withouts the necessity OF
breaking bulkson q single consignment
of freight. ThisIrwill mean that the
Cuban sugarH planter will be enabled
to load his product on a freight car
side-tracked at his plantation, have
the car hauled by rail to Havana,
hoatea to Key West and then rail-
hauled right to New York or any other
point without any of the expense, ,treu-
bic or damage dangers of second
handling.
This great project. which is being
financed, from beginning to end, by
MIR. Flagler personally. generally is
regarded by engineers as the most ex
pensive stretch of railroad ever built,
the average cost of construction, from
end to end, exceeding $1,000 mile.
while the additional capital require
ments for docks, channeling, car floats
and equipment will bring the total
cost approximately to $40, 900. 600. Al
ready Mr.. Flagler has expended up
wards Of $15 200, 900 on the work.
II was more than wear and "a half