The Raymer enterprise., 1915-06-17

the United states coast and ge.
odetie survey. Mr. Riggs selected because
OF his familiarity with the region and on account
Of the part he took in running the Alaskan.Ca.
madam boundary line. finished but two years ago
Associated with Mr. Riggs in the railroad sur
yey Lieut. Frederick Nears of the limited
States army and William c Edes As result
of the work done last summer and data preyious
~ gathered In the same territory by other ex
heditlons OF the coast and geodetic survey the
route now to be followed is to run in part along
the susitna and the cantwell rivers and through
the foothills OF towering Mount Mckinley The
experts predict great prosperity for the Who'll.
territory and declare that the ultimate cost =,
s26SoO.oO0 for the system complete will be nm.
ply compensated for BY reason OF the resiItir.
benefits
Whatever may be the ultimate economic sIp
hlhcanee of this aforementioned railroad In
"iasS1 there should be no question about our
present interest in the work done in runnins
the preliminary survey and that which will Ia,ar
follow as the steel rails are led farther and f.r,b
er northward In that rugged region
FROM past experience II has been am,Iy m
tAoDshed that surveying in Alaska il ant n n.
tuii OF thrills. First, the open season is a shor,
one ana great deal OF action has to be- crowded
INTO Drief period BY the surveyor His ia M,
the task merely of the explorer who n1sbas
ahead by the shortest route to his objective bp,
instead is that OF choosing the easiest gradients
for the Intrusive locomotive. spanning the short
esi valleys and bridging the rivers or torreutiai
streams where the foundations or the approaches
can be built Tor the least amount OF money com
panble with present strength and durability
some OF the most towering peaks in North
America are In southern Alaska and from
their snow-clad shoulders in the spring and sum
ms tbp uat anu urd In,
with much violence. Then the stricken timber
Is washed down into the flooded channels ana
this wealth of logs rushes onward like yeritable
avalanche when the way is clear or what Is
even more menacng, these millions of mighty
sticks Jam In some narrow pass penning up the
waters and themselves until ruptured by the
titanic forces they have halted for the while
Then the jam is broken onward tears the
roaring stream and the whrIing timber until the
broad reach OF some vide channels robs the tor
rent Of its turbulent fury
The surveyors have not only 10 avoid these
dangers In planning the right OF way and the
points for bridging. but their work will demand
that they actually some of these streams
when blazing the way for the line The waters
are icy and the currents swift while means OF
rescue are apt to be woefully scant
Mr Riggs has given us some spectacular In
stances of the hazards confronting the civil engi
neer In that part of the world, and what has been
experienced In the past up there Ia a pretty good
index OF the difficulties TO be faced IN running the
line inland from the rail head OF the existing
road II miles long which will form the nucleus
OF this great government undertaking,
But torrential rivers loaded with millions Of
logs are not the only forms Of titanic masses
with which the railroad builder in Alaska has TO
count There are the slow marching but ire
sistibly advancing mountains Of Ire, the glaciers
and some OF these have taken possession OF the
very valleys through which the railroad engineer
would preferably choose to lead his line. Indeed
the Copper River and Northwestern railroad In
Alaska gives pretty good notion OF some OF the
difficulties to be faced by the surveyors and pro-
vided for by the government when 1t comes to
actual construction. That road is 1875 miles long
and yet in that distance there nearly 275
trestles. bridges tunnels and fills Indeed there
are sections where mile OF construction has
cost as much as 100000
There is a steel bridge hanked by two glaciers
that cost a million and half dollars to build.
and before bit OF that structure was reared
the engineers spent three years In studying the
pcculiarities OF those moving mountains OF ice.
One Of the most serious phases Of Alaskan sur
yey work is the problem of transportation. As
Mr. Riggs says. There Is food to be carried for
the party, which is a big item. and oats for the
horses At some time during the life Of the
Alaskan boundary survey every known form OF
transportation In the North was used, In sum-
mer we have been known to adopt the Indian
orac,ice and pack dogs. One year. at the close OF
The season, practically all our horses had died.
and we journeyed down tho White river for
distance OF 100 miles on RATS.
early one May start was made from White