The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1909-03-30
CHICAGO, MILWAUKEE & PUGET
SOUND STEEL LAYING is
COMPLETED.
CEREMONY LACKS DISPLAY
rev Railroad Officials and Small
Crowd Of Spectators Witness the
Connection Of Rails Which Gives
the West New Transcontin ne ntal
Road-No "Golden Spike.

Promptly as the whistle sounded the
! hour of 6 o'clock last night the last
| spike was driven into place by the
| chicago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound
track laying force and the announce
ment officially made that Tacoma and
| Chicago were connected by a contin
| uous stretch of steel.
The driving of the alleged golden"
spike was attended by none of the
pomp. splendor or ceremonial hodge
podge which has been prophesied for
the momentous occasion, and the
spike used was far from being wrought
OF gold. 1t was taken from a keg
| that coptained about 100 others. and
was no nearer precious metal than an
| nealed iron can possibly be.
The rails We're connected at a point
| exactly one and three quarters of a
mile from the west end of the Puget
Sound crossing at the south end of the
| temporary bridge above Higgins ave-
nue.. Rails were laid several weeks
ago by a Japanese gang to the point
where the machine carried steel for
the finishing of the Puget Sound line
Lack of Ceremony.
There was decided lack of cere-
mon1al eclat in connection with the
event of yesterday, and, as a matter Of
fact, the crowning feature of the
achievement of the Puget Sound Rail-
way company was actually witnessed
by only three men officially connected
with the local office Of the Chicago,
Milwaukee & Puget Sound line. These
Were District Engineer w. E
Dauchy, Roadmaster C. H. Marshall.
who has been with the outfit since the
work of laying track was begun at
Garrison, and Resident Engineer
Harold Dauchy Colonel Charles E.
Mitchell, a Milwaukee man from
Marion, Iowa. also attended the finish
ing of the line.
Splendid progress has been made by
the steel-laying machine since leaving
the Bonita tunnel, the distance Of Is
miles having been covered in 10 days.
The only trouble encountered during
that time occurred as the gang got it's
first glimpse of the glistening spires
and towering steeples of Missoula, and
when within half mile of the point
at which the steel connection was to
be made. Here the machinery blew
up and a delay of over an hour was
occasioned before the outfit got
started again. At Ala o'clock the sig
nal was given to start up again, and in
remarkably short space OF time ''tie
buckers," "heelers, stormy enders,..
"fiddlers," "tie spacers," rail steer
ers" and "tie spikers' were as busy as
a nest Of stirred-up bumblebees.
Cameras in Evidence.
The small crowd of city spectators.
anxious to witness the principal event
in the construction of the 2,436 miles
of transcentinental railroad, hoped
about ahead of the workers, much
after the fashion of a flock of de-
capitated pullets. Camera fiends were
there in force. They were found high
up on the adjacent banks and imme-
diately in front of the machine. along
side the steel and tie carrying trans
and mounted astride the cross arms On
the newly erected telegraph poles.
They were there to get pictures of the
final work. and it made little differ
ence from what angle these pictures
We're obtained.
At 5:45 p. m. the last rail length
of the intervening gap was reached
and the cutting of steel to fit the space
was begun. On each side Of the track
men worked fast and furiously to COM
plete the work before the final shrek
of the whistle announced Knocking
Off time. At 5:55 O'Clock the steel
layers swung their material into posi-
tion and, with bride and bolt in place,
gave the signal to the engineer to
move ahead. and at 6 o'clock a spike
maui was raised high in the air for the
final swipe at the spike which acted
in the capacity of the golden" track
fastening.
visitors or the gang connected with
the outfit, and only one shrill blast OF
the locomotive whistle announced that
anything extraordinary had taken
place. Following this the train was
converted into a special to convey the
workers and visiting party to the yards
at 6:15 p. M, the first Chicago. Mil
waukee & Puget Sound train to enter
Missoula from the east.
Start Ballasting.
The track-laying machinery is to be
dismantled in the Missoula yards and
the auxiliary equipment will be used
in the Puget Sound work train service
between Garrison and Missouia. An
official of the road closely connected
with the operating department said
last night that the company had as
sembIed six steam shovels at Deer
Lodge and was prepared to start the
work of ballasting the track imme-
diately. Fifteen construction trains
are to be put in active service between
Missoula and Garrison at once, and
to handle these train dispatchers viii
be installed at Missoula on Wednes-
day The company viii connect its
telephone and telegraph lines today
and have them properly equipped for