The Oskaloosa herald., 1909-08-12
.OSKALOOSA AND
TAMA MTERQRBAN /.
New Plan Offered to Build the Oft
Proposed Line.
TO BE DONE BY SALE OF BONDS
Messrs. George E. Wodehouse and
Samuel w. Strubhar Are En-
gineers Back of the Pro-
ject-outIine Of Plan. -
TO BE DONE BY SALE OF BONDS

The following circular letter has
been addressed to the business men
and farmers along the proposed in
terurban line from Oskaloosa to
| Tama:
1--WE, the undersigned, upon arriv-
ing at Oskaloosa several weeks ago,
had our attention drawn to the crying
need of an interurban railway, north
and east of this point, by several OF
the business men and active members
of the commercial club of this city,
and were induced to look the ground
over and report to them what we
thought of the situation, and in this
circular will endeavor to give our
views as briefly as possible. Starting
at Oskaloosa, we travelled northeast
through Mahaska county to Barnes
City, from there we went to Monte
yuma, the county seat of Poweshiek
county, thence due north to Malcom,
we continued on our course north
through Sheridan to Tama in Tama
county. This done, there was no long
er any doubt in our minds in regards
to the great need of railway through
this section of the country, nor could
there be in the mind of any sane man
after he had driven ovec this route,
for we are frank to say in all our ex-
periences as railway men, We have
never driven over finer farming and
agricultural country in our lives, and
the only question in our minds Is how
such vast and exceedingly fine coun-
try has existed so long without any
railway transportation, AMI at the
same time bringing their beautiful
farms into such high state OF cuiti-
walton, with fine BUILDINGS, big harms
and fine residences, good fences and
IL every way up-to date Win the ex-
&C ption Of transportation. Niih those
facts firmly Impress. d upon our minds
that no one could dispute the fact
That this section OF The country Is in
great need of r1ilN ay, the mex. inn
7 portant thing to decide was how to
get it, and what kind of railway
would best serve this great scope OF
country, and at the same time cost
the least. We have made careful
study of all these questions, and we
have also had the advice and CONSUL
tation OF local engineer, and many
of the best business men and farmers
along the proposed line, and it is the
unanimous opinion of all, that there
Is way, and one way only, for this
community to get railway. We are
also of the same opinion that 1T Is
absolutely useless to go on in the
future as in the past, that Is to make
small contributions to the same, to
some promoter with the hope that
he, will furnish the balance of the
money to build the road. 1t is SIM
ply waste of money, it matters not
how sincere the promoter may be, IL
cannot be done that way. so we must
devise another plan, that is to raise
all the money locally to build the
road. This at first may seem almost
an impossible thing to do (no nothing
is impossible), and we will now pro-
coed to outline the plan to raise the
necessary amount of money to build
this road. The road as now proposed
Is to start at Oskaloosa, from there
to Barnes City, from Barnes City to
Montezuma, from there to Malcolm TO
Tama, passing through Sheridan, and
| If every man who will be benefited
| by this road will do his part, it will
he an easy matter to raise the neces-
sary amount OF money. You must not
infer from this remark that 1t is pro-
posed to ask the people in the locality
in which this road is TO run to donate
enough money to puild this line. Not
| so, we are not asking dollar OF do
nation from any one. we simply want
cooperation. 1t is proposed to build
what We call combination road, in
which the passenger business will be
handled by Gasoline motor cars, and
the freight business will be handled
by steam locomotives, the same as any
/ steam road, the motor cars that are
to be used on this road are known
as the McKeen Motor cars, and are
built by the Union Pacific Railway
I company at Omaha, Neb., .ao9u $40
/ These cars are built upon the same
line as the automobile. and are guar
anteed to carry from seventy to eighty
passengers to the car, and will climb
a grade of per cent loaded, If neces-
sary, although We do not expect to
have any such grades on this line.
By using these cars We can give pre-
eisely the same service as the cleo
trio interurban, and greatly reduce
the cost of construction. We have es-
umated that an electric road through
this section would cost, at present
market prices of material at least
$4,000 per mile net. while the road
we propose can be built and eqipped
for $4,000 for each mile OF line built.
or saving of $1,000 per mile oil track