Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-05-29
Z Railroads.&c.
GREAT CHANGE
IN The ! ORIENT
American-built Locomotives
Take Place Of
Caravans.

Washington. May 29-NNest and
east alre meeting daily in The orient,
where American-built locomotives
connect at kalgan on the hor.ter OF
Mongolia, with caravans fronithe far
interior of Asia.
Steel rails have broken the artificial
boundary of the Great Wall Of China,
which remains only a relic of he
past, while long trains go putting
ing t the, sea priceless furs, rugs.
wool and turquoise, and to the interior
the manufactured products of he
United States and other foreign ma
tons.
The story of railroad development
i'm the orient and the possibilities ooen
there to American. enterprises are set
forth In a series OF reports to the
bureau Of foreign and domestic COM
merce by Frank Rhea. formerly con-
nected with the Pennsylvania railroad
and the General Electric company.
who recently returned from a tour as
the Philippines. New. Zealand and
Australia.
In all China there are $500 miles
Of railroad. of which $500 miles are
Chinese government lines. Most of the
railroad development has been in
north and central. China: All except
one of the government lines are
American type. of the standard four
feet. eight and one-half inch guage,
and on the. line to kalgan. which
pierces farther into the interior than
any other. 60 of the &c locomotives
are American made. Giant Mallet
tive effort of $4,000 pounds. parallel
the Great Wall to- Ching-Lung-Chiao.
then pass beneath it until they meet
the eaSt-bound caravans of camels,
Eaily caparisoned Mongol horses and
the queer camel-drawn carts of Mon
golia at Kalgan. which is one of the
strangest I'M greatest markets in the
world.
Japan has about 5000 miles of
railroad. which cost 100000 a mile to
build through the steep mountains of
Nippon. All Of 1t is government owned
and organized On a military basis, like
the German roads. each employe hav-
ing distinct. rank and being RESPONSE
BILE to his superiors like a soldier.
Many electric lines are being built in
Japan. Locomotives and electrical
equipment have been purchased from
the United States. but freight and
passenger cars have been bought
largely in England or built at home,
because the roads are of three feet,
six inch guage. The Japanese govern
ment is considering widening the
railroads to standard guage as a mill
tary measure. at a cost equal to the
original construction.
In the Philippines, American equip
ment has been used except on the
island Of Luzon, where the railroads
were built by British capital. All the
roads are organized on the English
system. In the hill country Of the ISL
ands, where official society spends the
hot season, American motor buses are
used.
Australia and New Zealand have
followed their mother country in
building railroads. A peculiar feature
Of the Australian roads is that, in the
total of $4,000 miles. there IRE three
different guages n in only one in
stance do any two states nave con.
Meeting lines of the same guage. 7
traveller from Brisbane to Perth mus
change cars eight times.
The disadvantage Of different tracl
widths in the orient was strfkingly IL
Illustrated when there was talk of Jap.
an undertaking operations against the
Germans in Russia. In discussing
plans 1t was brought u that the rail
o from Port Arthur and" Dairen
which, the Japanese forces probabl,
would use to reach Chang Chun, thu
connecting point with the trans-con,
tinental line is five feet three inches
wide. Trains cannot be transferred
from one line to the other and in an,
operations there would be much los
Of time in unloading and loading
equipment.
Great difficulty also was experienc
ed in adapting for American use loco
motives manufactured in this countr.