Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-11-19
|GUATEMALAN RAILWAY
Through Line Soon From Re-
pubIic's Capital to This City.
NEARLY ALL COMPLETED
600 Men Working on % Miles Of
Unfinished Track.
CHINA TAKING FIRST CENSUS
Estimates OF Population Based on
Conjecture Believed Wide of
Facts-German Emigration.
NEARLY ALL COMPLETED
CHINA TAKING FIRST CENSUS
RY WILLIAM r. CURTIS.

BY WILLIAM p. CURTIS.
Written for The Star and the Chicago Record
| Herald.
Willard p. Tisdel of Washington, who
has had charge of American railway in
| terests in Guatemala which formerly be-
| lOnged to the late c. T. Huntington, re-
| turned to his post last week to complete
a line which will connect the Guatemala
system with the railroads of Mexico.
Before going Mr.. Tisdel promised that
| It will be possible to go from the capital
of the United States to the capital OF
Guatemala by railway before the 4th of
July next.
The surveys were completed some time
ago. Rails and other supplies for the
last twenty-eight miles of track are now
| on their way by steamers around the
| Straits of Magellan. Six hundred men
are making the dirt fly on the grade and
| laying the steel.
This railway is constructed by the In
| terests which for quarter of century
! have controlled all other railways In Qua
| temala. The principal owner is Thomas
| H. Hubbard of New York. Associated
with him in the Northern railroad, which
runs from Guatemala City to Puerto Bar
| rios, on the Caribbean sea, is Minor e..
| Keith, president Of the United Fruit Com
pany, commonly known as the banana
trust.
That company has a fleet of fine steam
ers sailing between New Orleans and
Puerto BarriOs. A large amount of the
| coffee crop of Guatemala is now coming
out that way.
The steamers make the journey across
| the Caribbean sea in five days, stopping
| one day at Belize, the capital OF British
| Honduras. They carry merchandise from
New Orleans and bring back vast Quanti-
ties of bananas.
Most Of Road Completed.
The Pan-American railroad, running
southwark from the Isthmus of Tehuan-
tepec. was completed to the city of
| Ayutla, on the boundary between Mexico
and Guatemala, on the 4th OF last July.
Trains are now running to that point.
The Guatemala extension runs from
Ayutla to QueZaltenango, the second city
in size and importance in the country, and
there connects with the east and west
trunk line to the capital.
Mr.. Hubbard and his associates have re-
Gently gained control of short spur
which runs from Ocos, a little port on
the Pacific just east Of the Mexican
| boundary, twenty miles into a productive
coffee district. That road will be rebuilt
| at once and extended to connect with
the trunk line, which will give the Pan.
American railway an outlet for the prod
| ucts Of the southern part of Mexico to
the Pacific That is a matter of grea;
Importance.
The President Of Guatemala has given
Mr. Hubbard and his associates a CON
cession for the extension Of their rail
way drought the eastern provinces to
the republic OF Salvador via Jalapa and
Jutiapa. both important towns. Work OF
construction will be undertaken soon.
The President of Salvador has promised
to extend the railway of that country
westward to the Guatemala boundary AT
| once. AS the gap Is short. there ought to
| be a through line from New York to the
city Of San Salvador within the next
year or so.
Political Value Great.
These railways are of great Importance
commercially and still more so from
| a political standpoint. Nothing will do
| as much to promote the peace Of the Cen
| trail American countries as the extension
| of their transportation facilities.
At present a disappointed politician can
raise a revolutionary army in one of the
| fore the government can send troops on
! foot to prevent it. Whereas If there were
railway transportation facilities such
| matters could be attended to before they
| grow to such proportions as make them
difficult to overcome.
| The development Of the Guatemala rail-
| way system has been slow. There is now,
| however a line extending entirely across
| the country between the two oceans ana
| three lines running up from the Pacific
| coast into the interior to bring the coffee
| down for shipment That road Mr.. lis
| del Is now building will give an all-rail
| connection with the City of Mexico and
| make accessible the long stretch OF terri
| tory that lies between.
| Passengers are now being sent in dill
| gences across the gap Of twenty-eight
| miles between the termini. and make the
| journey in a single day, which will he
shortened gradually as the track is ex-
| tended.
A comfortable and interesting winters
journey may be made by taking one o.
| across to Puerto Barrios then the rail
by railway and stage to Ayutla and
thence on by rail to the Isthmus of Te-
hauntepec and the City of Mexico, re
turning to the United States via FL Paso
| or San Antonio.
| There has been little railway construc-
ton In Central America of late years
outside of Guatemala. Although distances
are short and surveys have been made
and concessions granted, the work OF
construction is postponed from year e
year. The governments devote more at
tention to politics than to internal i'm
provements.
Pan-American Railway.
The Pan-American railway, which runs
from the Isthmus Of Tehuantepec through
the southern part OF Mexico to the border
| of has recently been pur-