Catoctin clarion., 1917-03-15
BEATS FOOT Travel
HOW ITALIANS ARE MAKING WAY
THROUGH ALPS.
System Of Cable Railways Has Proved
Invaluable for the Transportation
Of Troops and Ammunition
During War.

The teleferica, or cable railway, that
the Italians have contrived to supply
their mountain troops quickly and cas-
lily with ammunition and provisions, Is
one of the most interesting inventions
that the war has brought forth be-
tween high mountain and low noun
tain.
The steam railways, says writer IN
the Railway Age Gazette, run In the
valleys at the foot of the Alps. The
freight, however, has to be picked up
and distributed by wagon or automo-
bile truck, and 1t must go up the high
er mountains on mule and mans back,
and finally on mans back alone, bit by
bit. But here the teleferica steps In
and says, "Let me do 1t. I'm quicker
and surer. I can 60 In all weathers.
Avalanches can't stop me-"
Along the 4OO-mile front the tele-
ferica daily does the work Of an army
of at least 240,OO0 men-or 100000
mules. The last figure is interesting
when. 1t is considered that there are
only 175,OOO mules and horses used for
transportation purposes in this entire
army that the Italians have organized
to fight the Austrians.
According to the official statistics
there are 125 miles of teleferica scat
tered along the front, with total
daily carrying power Of $500 tons.
Each teleferica built can carry rough
ly 30 tons. There are some 120 diff
ferent stations, each with line mile
or so in length. The one saw reached
height Of 1000 feet on the side of
Monte Adamello, in the central Alps;
1t did the work of 1900 men every
day.
The operation Of the teleferica is not
much more difficult than that of an
electric elevator in a "skyscraper."
Once the heavy motors and machinery
are got up the mountain sides and the
three-quarter-inch steel cables strung
across deep valleys and chasms and
rivers, the mounting of the car upon
the overhead cable and the attaching
Of the pulley cable are simple enough.
We had been coming up oil morning
by burro from the valley, the Alpinist
colonel and l, riding along narrow
roads built on the side Of huge noun
tain.
We came at last to a small shack
that blocked the road. The colonel dis
mounted, greeted the officer in charge
Of the station, and let me take look
round. I saw a couple Of heavy mo-
tors with cables. My eye followed
those cables, however, and they kept
going across the valley and up the
side of the opposite mountain until the
eye, dazzled by the snow, could follow
no longer. SWELL" remarked the col
onel, as he cheerily knocked the snow
from his thick, hObnailed boots, Sup
pose we go up"
We climbed into the basket, four
feet long by two wide, with side rails
not more than six inches high. Wheels
began to whir, and our car ran smooth
ly out into space.
I held on for dear life to those low
sides and fervently hoped the colonel
would not rock the boat. "This thing
wouldn't pay in peace times" said.
The car ran upgrade on 30-degree
incline for couple of minutes and
stopped, for we had completed the first
teleferica section Of the three that
would take us to our destination. In
seven minutes we had traversed dis.
tance that on foot required an hour.