Elko independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1915-current, 1915-05-18

the people of Ogden, yet your own re-
ports show that Ogden alone gave you
SO per cent Of all the money you re-
ceived in Utah. Why do you demand
so much from Ogden and so little from
Salt Lake City. Can you blame us
if We feel that you are trying to hold
us up as a preliminary to switching
the Lincoln Highway to the Overland
trail?
Now, let us see what the evidence
is! Ny paper has never refused to
print any statement concerning the
two routes west from Ogden and ev-
cry statement made to us so far has
been favorable 10 the north route and
against the south route.
B. ]. Wyatt, of the Denver Stock
Yards, Denver, Colo, In attempting
the Salt Lake route, in driving after
dark one night, stepped out of his
car to search for the road when he
| fell into an arroyo and lay there un-
conscious. When he did not return,
his wife became nervous and started
| to search for him. She fe!i into an
other hole at the side of the road and
was SO seriously injured that it was
necessary to keep her at the hospital
| for sometime thereafter. Had it not
been for another car following close
ly behind, these people probably
would have perished.
S0 MANY fha CT nP
and distress on this route that it is a
positive pity to send people over it
who are not acquainted with condi-
| tions. 1t is reasonably safe to pre-
dict that, If only small percentage of
the people travelling west this year
60 over this highway, there will be
deaths as we'll as injuries. This must
be pleasant for the vice-president and
secretary of the Lincoln Highway as
sociation to contemplate.
You say you selected the route
| through the great desert because it is
shorter. Is that true? You make the
route shorter at one place but actual
ly make 1t longer at other points.
Look at the facts:
From Evanston, Wyo., the Overland
trail via Ogden and around the north
end of Great Salt Lake to Reno, New,
is 677.4 miles and the same journey
via the Lincoln Highway is 6S2.5
miles. This shows your route to be
over five miles longer, and you must
climb a number of mountain ranges
and pass through deserts with no wa
ter or supply stations.
See the automobile Blue Book for
proof of the above figures.
This road authority-the Automo-
bile Blue Book-after sending a man
from New York City to the west to
20 over these various routes, makes
very positive recommendations in
favor of the Overland trail which
runs north as against the Lincoln
Highway running south from Ogden.
The gentleman who made the inves.
tigation was absolutely unbiased and
made 1t in the interest of the Amer
ican travelling public. His recon-
mendations are positive and his pow
erful organization is back of his rec
concentrations, which follow:
The Auto Blue Book Says:
There has been a good bit of dis
cussion as to whether the Overland
trail or Lincoln Highway was the bet
ter road across Utah and Nevada for
transcontinental touring, and, in the
late fall of 1914, the Blue Book repre-
sentative covered both routes. To
the average eastern tourist, inexpe-
rienced in desert or mountain travel,
we advise the use of the northern
route, due to the fact that IL follows
the railroad practically all the way,
therefore making It a much more con-
venient route in case of accident to
the car; also, there are numerous
places in which to get supplies and
good accommodations. The Overland
trail has been graded across Utah and
permanent bridges and culverts have
been built. Nevada has continued the
good work by grading the road in
various places and also by the use of
approximately 100 miles of old rail-
road grade, therefore making the en-.
tire road, from Ogden to Reno. very
fair one, except in some parts Of the
country where the soil Is of such n
peculiar formation that after long
dry spell 1t will be rough and cut up
by chuck holes.
On the other hand, the Lincoln
Highway from Salt Lake City to Reno
traverses sparsely settled district
and there are numerous long stretches
without water or supplies, which may
cause trouble to the inexperienced
eastern tourist although the roadbed,
with the exception OF the stretch
ecross the Great American desert, is
very good and may prove superior in
wet weather owing to the gravelly
formation of the soil The desert will
be absolutely impossible after a rain
Continued on Page Four)