The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-01-04
FARM|NGTON-ECH0
SHORT LINE NEXT
Railway Official Discusses the
Merits of the Emigration
Canyon Route.
PROPOSED CUTOFF HAS
THE MUCH BETTER GRADE
Says to Build Otherwise Would
Be Only to Head OF Posi-
bic Rival Roads.

UT ltl' Ill llUuNc.
There are two things that arc against
the LrIon Pacific coming into salt Lake
Wa Emigration canyon, Sald rallroau
official not connected with The oregon
Snort Line Friday one reason is me
nisn grades tnat any road must cncoun-
ter gong up Emigration canyon, ana lhe
other reason Is the lack OF entrance INTO
Salt Lake terminals.
There has been considerable talk oil
late about the Union ractnc interests
Trying to get into the Short Line ter
mlnals unuer the cover OF lranchlse
10 the Utah L.ignt and Railway company
To haul frelgni between the nours OF l
a. m. ana Il. m, 10 ana from tort Doug
las
''It Is pointed out la some quarters
that II Inc Ltan Lignt and Railway com
pany as = street car company got tnlS
franchise mat there is nothing to, pre-,
vent /; from hauling regular railroad
freight cars by electrical power from
Fort Douglas into the present Short Line
or the oregon Short Line had a road
through Emigration canyon connecting
with tne same line east OF ogden.
The Utah Light and Railway company
is just as much a Hartman line, re-
member, as is the Union Pacific or the
oregon Short Line and al me Harrlmen
lines operate together, OF course
Grade Wins Every Time.
Now there might be a good deai II
this except Tor one reason, and 10 ms
mind that settles the question. That rea-
in railroading 1t used 10 be the short
est distance. but that day Is gone; IL IS
now the lowest grade and the longest
curve. almost regardless Of distance,
"On a road in Virginia the other day
one gigantic engine hauled 10 steel coal
cars from Roanoke 10 Norfolk. each car
tons OF coal The train was just six
feet over a mile long. and the total
load OF coal was 5000 IONS.
Now compare that with some OF the
old western railroads In The Rockies,
where one engine can pull only one load
ed car up the worst grades. ! myself
have seen one OF the largest and best
engines on the Hartman line over Mount
shasta Route. between Oregon and Call
In wet weather only three cars were
taken. and at times only TWO. This shows
what grade means.
There Is the Lucin cutoff also TO show
what grade means. One engine can do
the work over that level cutoff that cost
somewheres between sl2, 900, 900 and 500.
900 600. for official figures are never 10
be trusted too strongly. that II takes SIX
teen engines TO do over the Promontory
old route. This is enough in itself TO
show what the Hartman people think
OF the word grade. But the Lucin cutoff
may some day be abandoned.
UP Emigration Canyon.
Now how does this apply to this idea
Of the Hartman people trying 10 get
down Emigration canyon? they can do
Il. and have It in mind. The Utah Con-
struction company: concern that has
done millions of dollars worth OF rail
road work for the Hartman people. have
been doing some very close aguring on
the idea.
But there is 2 better route, although
the Hartman people want the Emigration
ton. the Northwestern. or possibly the
Santa Fe when II gets into Salt Lake,
Emigration canyon Is never TO he for
The Denver & Rio Grande. the Colo
RADIO Midland. and even the Hartman
lines, have worse grades than by way
ton canyon. but for the present look at
the map. at Pennington. Here is open
to00-foot tunnel near the mouth Of
Weber canyon and then up the canyon.
and the Oregon Short Line people will.
without doubt. run line thus indicated
from Pennington 10 touch the main line
east OF Ogden. and that In a short time.
Pennington to Echo.
The Union Pacific VIII be double
tracked into Salt Lake inside OF two
years. One Of the tracks Will be through
come come Into Sal, Lake Via Via &c EehS' INV Weber bi
against Ogden. by the way as the traf-
nc that the Farming ton Echo connec-
tion would divert from Ogden would sim
ply roll right through tnat place as IL
does today. IL consigned 10 Salt Lake
Echo ii must, be remembered, or Gran
lines. has as much traffic going through
il as has Ogden. II is the traffic that
stops; the breaking of bulk that counts,
mol the amount OF tonnage that just runs
through a place. So this Pennington
cutofl will not hurt Ogden in any way,
but Will be great benefit TO Salt
But with double tracks as far west
as salt Lake, the Hartman interests
railroad across the land is like a bridge
across river. and neither can accommO-
date more traffic than can the narrow
est point on either bridge or railroad
Western Pacific West.
The only escape from the situation is
the use OF the Western Pacific and the
northern line OF the Southern Pacific as
a double track clear through 10 the
riman right-of way by purchase for many
miles west OF Wells. and the Western
PACING has full trackage rights over the
TIL The territory OF the Salt Lake Route
in California Is touched. This point is
about Santa Marga rita. on the coast line
lines In proportion
You will see the Oregon Short Line
build northeast from near Pennington
TO probably Echo or near that point de-
pending on the surveys. within a year
two years at the most. The Lucin cutoff
Lake Route tracks used also 10 south OF
the lake. and a new line run from there
70 TO some fa11s point on the main line west Of
Now all this grew out OF an arrange
ment between Hartman and Could Tbe
Tribune was right when Il said that
Hartman and Gould arranged about the
Western Pacific and the Southern Pacific
when Hartman let Could have that 81
short time notes. then just coming due
but that is not all of II. When Gould
got into trouble about his Pittsburg ter
then Hartman went TO Gould-but that
is another story.
This story will. Of course be off,
cially denled'--all such important true
stories In advance of the official an
nouncements always are denied but Il
Is all true, nevertheless. TO sum up