The Wahpeton times., 1917-03-22
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 ur
and distributed by wagon or automo-
bile truck. and it 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 it. I'm quicker
and surer. I can 60 in all weathers.
Avalanches can't stop me-"
Along the 4O0-mile front the tele.
ferica daily does the work of an army
Of at least 100000 men-or 10000
mules. The last figure is interesting
when 1t Is considered that there are
only $4,000 mules and horses used for
transportation purposes in this entire
army that the Italians have organized
I 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 5000 tons.
Each teleferica built can carry rough.
ly 30 tons. There are some 12O diff.
ferent stations, each with line mile
or so in length. The one saw reached
a height of 1000 feet on the side of
Monte Adamello, in the central Alps:
1t did the work of 1000 men every
Gay.
The operation of the teleferica is not
much more difficult than that of an
electric elevator in "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 upor
the overhead cable and the attaching
Of the pulley cable are simple enough
We had been coming up all morning
by burro from the valley, the Alpinis;
colonel and I, riding along narrow
roads built on the side of q huge noun.
tain.
We came at last to small shack
that blocked the road. The colonel dis.
mounted, greeted the officer in charge
of the station, and let me take q look
round. 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. "Well," 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. Wheel:
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 colone-
would not rock the boat. "This thine
wouldn't pay in peace times," said.
The car ran upgrade on n 3O-degree
incline for a couple of minutes an(
stopped. for we had completed the frs,
teleferica section of the three tina,
would take us to our destination. Ir
seven minutes we had traversed dis
tance that on foot required an hour.