The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1914-05-28
MILWAUKEE, MAY Be
BACK new RAILROAD
PROMOTERS SAY NOTHING NEW
IN RAILROAD SlTUATioN-
WHY THE MILWAUKEE.

A few days ago Spokane paper
quoted w. j. Hall and A. J. Devlin tt
the effect that a chief engineer haG
been selected to have charge Of the
construction of the proposed railroad
between this city and Occur d'Alent
and that actual construction would
begin within two or three weeks. Up
on having the matter brought to their
attention by The Miner, both Mr.. Hall
and Mr.. Devlin stated that there was
no foundation whatever for the pub
lication, and that they had made no
thorized to make it. Upon being fur
ther questioned regarding the railroad,
they stated that there was nothing
new in the situation for publication.
Coeur d'AIene Is Confident.
There is a feeling of confidence at
Occur d'Alene that the railroad will
be built this season and the belief is
strong there that the Milwaukee is
back of the enterprise. 1t is stated
that the Milwaukee company holds an
option on the land now occupied by
the Coeur d'Alene Lumber company
situated just east of the Milwaukee
terminal ground on the lake front. If
this is true the Milwaukee will have
an outlet to the eastern boundary of
the city which would bring it to
connection with the right Of way of
the proposed railroad. Color is given
to this belief by the fact that the saw
mill of the Occur d'Alene Lumber
company has long been idle and there
is no evidence of its starting up. On
the contrary everything indicates that
1t will not start up. There are no logs
in the lake adjacent to it, and at the
same time the planer Is kept busy
of the heaviest owners of the mill is
said to have recently moved away
from Coeur d'Alene. This with the in
activity of the sawmll and the activ
ity Of the planer indicates that the
company is preparing to vacate the
property.
Milwaukee Wants Ore Business.
But the strongest reason to support
the Milwaukee theory is that at pres
ent the company is within the out
skirts Of the Occur d'Alene mining
district without being able to share
directly In the great tonnage going
out of it. 1t has never seemed reas-
enable that it would be contented to
permit it's rivals to monopolize the
lucrative ore business Of this district
The great expense it incurred in get
ting into Coeur d'Alene, a field al
ready occupied by three railroads
seemed wholly uniustified unless II
had in view the extension Of it's line
to this district. This impression is in
a measure confirmed by the fact that
the lake city for a long time. it has
not yet built depot nor established
regular train service. 1t is now an
nounced that by July the Milwau-
kee will put on gasoline motor cars
between Coeur dAlene and Spokane.
Looks Like Extension.
But this motor car service, in view
Of the heavy expense of constructing
the line can only be regarded as a
temporary move and only strengthen
ems the conclusion that the company
contemplates extending its line to this
district Such an extension would not
only place the company in position to
secure a share Of the freight business
of the Coeur dAlene district, but it
would practically give the company
monopoly of the passenger business
between this district and Spokane,
highly profitable feature in itself
cMIrA crplkEc ODE