The Springfield herald., 1909-09-03
new RAILROADS
FOR COLORADO
HILLS MILLIONS WILL AID IN
BUILDING CONNECTING LINES
IN STATE.
OPEN Way TO THE GULF
HUNDREDS OF MILES OF NEW
ROAD TO CONNECT WEST
ERN POINTS.

Denver.-James j. Hills plans for
making the Colorado & Southern sys-
TEN part of a great gulf-to-coast route
have at last become definitely known
and inside of two years millions of
tons OF cotton for export to the Orient
will be moving through Denver, says
the Denver Times. The enormous ton
mage OF cotton from Alabama. Missis-
sippi. Louisiana and eastern Texas,
which formerly moved over the Great
Northern and Northern Pacific. via
ST. Paul, will be diverted through
Colorado and Denver and this city will
be on one of the greatest railroad
highways in the country.
The actual construction of each and
every necessary connecting link will
be under way within the next thirty
days and the main line will be an en-
tirely different route from all conjec-
lures which have been made in the
past. Instead of passing through
Cheyenne this tonnage will move over
new lines which will be constructed
from q point few miles east of Den
yer, on the Burlington, to connec-
tion with the Colorado G. Southern at
Guernsey, Wyo.
The plans reveal the real signifi-
cance OF the purchase of the Colorado
Il Southern by the Burlington and
chow that it was a strategic move
made by Hill to secure traffic over
short route which his roads lost when
the control of the Illinois Central
passed into the hands of L. II. Harri-
man.
The main line OF the through route
will follow the Colorado & Southern
system from Galveston to Denver,
from which point it will connect with
the main line of the Burlington to
Hudson, a small station on the main
line twenty-nine miles east of Denver.
The burlington will build due north
from Hudson to Greeley, in Weld
county. and continue on north to Tor
rington. Wyo.. small station on the
Guernsey branch east of the town of
Guernsey.
This line will pass through Glover. a
station in Colorado. on the Chey-
enne branch, and forty miles east of
Cheyenne. The main line will con-
tinue from Torrington over the Guern-
sey branch to the town of Guernsey.
where connection will be made with
the Colorado & Southern.
The Colorado G. Southern will then
be used from Guernsey to Orin juno
ton, where connection will be made
with the Chicago 4 Northwestern.
trackage agreement has been negoti-
ated with the last named road and the
Hill roads will use the Chicago K
northwestern tracks to Shoshoni, Wyo.
The Burlington will build north from
Shoshoni to Thermopolis, where it
will connect with the Kirby branch.
The Kirby branch will be used as far
north as Fannie, where a cutoff will
be built. connecting with the main
lines of the Hill roads for the North
west
These plans will not interfere with
the connecting up Of the Colorado &
Southern from Wellington. Colo, to
Cheyenne, and will not prevent the
carrying out of the plans to operate
from Denver north through Cheyenne
to the Northwest.
The line running from Denver north
is known as a high grade" line. while
the new road will be of less than 1
per cent. grade and will be known as
a low grade" line. Its mileage Will be
a little greater than the other route.
but the low grade will be much
cheaper and offset the advantages lost
by the shorter haul.
A new significance is given to the
deal by the fact that the cotton will
have to move from Alabama, Missis
sippi and Louisiana to the Colorado e.
Southern's lines in Texas and new
traffic agreements or the purchase of
additional lines to form link with
New Orleans is considered almost
certainty. The Importance Of these
deals to Denver cannot be overesui-
mated, as thereby Denver will be on
one OF the most active of the Hill
through routes.
One fact in connection with the
plans is OF vital importance to Denver.
The new lines to be constructed from
Hudson to Torrington. Wyo.. are to
run through an immensely rich terri
tory which is practically undeveloped.
This land comprises much of the 30O,-
900 acres to be brought under irriga-
tion by the big Pathfinder dam in
Wyoming and the Burlington company
expects to develop this land on big
scale.