Mexico Missouri message., 1912-09-12

- \ the heart of South America one
of the most remarkable railroads
ever constructed has Just been
IA completed II runs straight
through virgin forest, does not
connect one settled area with another,
and Is only 200 miles long. Yet on
this little bit Of a line, running APP
parently from nowhere to nowhere.
enormous commercial possibilities de-
pend
The interior OF Brazil ia probably
one of the richest countries on earth.
II Is marvellous rubber country,
there are plenty OF mines, and pretty
nearly everything will grow there. 1t
Is near the equator; but there are
mountains. and the climate can be
| changed by going up a thousand feet
or so. II could supply the continent
with beef or cotton or cocoa, and any
number OF other necessities and lux
uries of life. This Is Just what 1t Is
going to do before long, according to
the projectors OF the Madeira-Mamore
railroad.
A railroad 200 miles long, get down
In the middle of the United States,
would be little good. but the case Is
quite different in South America. The
Amazon is navigable by ocean going
steamers for more than thousand
miles beyond it's mouth. Boats that
come from Liverpool and Hamburg
can deliver passengers and freight far
in the heart OF the country. Not only
that, but there are numerous tribu.
aries of the Amazon equally suited to
big steamers. One OF these Ia the
Madeira river which unites farther in
and with the Mamore, but there has
been one almost insuperable obstacle
to tapping the vast wealth OF the ter
ritory drained by these rivers.
For 600 miles above it's junction
with the Amazon the Madeira river
runs broad and deep and placid. Then
II goes quite mad. and raves for 200
miles over cataracts and rapids.
Eventually 1t subsidies again. The diff
ficulty has been to get men and
freight past this dangerous area.
Tradesmen have estimated the loss
Of men and cargo in the rapids at
from 20 to 30 per cent. II one figure
Ia too high 1t is equally certain that
the other is too low. Navigation was
possible only in specially constructed
boats, and even then the chances were
about even that everybody and every
thing therein might find the bottom
of the stream Rather than face the
risk, tradesmen would leave thell
boats above the rapids and drag then
200 miles through the jungle. launch
! ing them again on the safe side o.
/ the rapids.
Melvllle's Story.
Not even the most enthusiast,
7 tradesmen or the most stoical NATIVE
t cared for that sort OF thing, and a
long ago as 1868 an Englishmal
} named Church projected a railws.
: that would carry men and carg
through the forest past the dangerou
part OF the Madeira river. Thousand
p Of men laid down their lives in tn
I jungle attempting to make this raj
road a possibility. Now. pretty neal
ly a half century after the inception o
the daring idea, American skill ha
been able to accomplish the task tina
i seemed almost impossible.
j. Dennis Melville, one OF the eng
' neers just returned from Brazil, tol,
the story OF the adventures the me,
5 have met I'm the course OF their work
"To build a railroad through a Bra
lillian jungle requires colossal nerve
. said Mr.. Melville
THE -Mamore railroad
= built for the Brazilian government
now opens up the richest rubber coun
try in the world. This road has beef
constructed by an American firm 0
T, contractors The engineers, number
ing several hundred. were all Ameri
cans, and all of the equipment-the Ell
gines, rails and most of the ties
! was imported from the United States
Some years ago, the French trie,
q to build a road through this sam
a territory in Brazil. and failed-prot
ably for reasons similar to thos