The evening herald. (Klamath Falls, Or.) 1906-1942, 1919-04-25
FRIDAY. APRIL ~ 1919.
SHALL KLAMATH REMAIN
ISOLATED?


Journal is interesting to the peopl,
of klamath county, from the fac
that We occupy an almost similar sit
nation TO that of the Malheur-Har
ney country:
1T almost seems as IL effort is be
ing made by the Oregon Short line
to make the Malheur-Harneyc countr,
Idaho territory.
Railroad geography has made Kla.
math and Lake counties a CONNER.
cial annex to California and Nevada
though in the long slope downhill
TO Portland nature made them a log
ical port of Oregon.
Because of circumstances over
which the people had no control.
Coos Bay has long heen a satrapy of
California commercially.
The train service over the Crane
branch of the Oregon Short line is
gradually annexing extreme Eastern
Oregon to Idaho. The Crane branch
leaves the main line at Ontario and
extends 127 miles southwest to with
in 81 miles of Burns. 1t is stageti-
cally suited to route the agricultural
and livestock output of interior Ore
gon. not into Oregon. but into Idaho
These products cannot reach tide
water except by a roundabout route
to the northeast and then westward
to Portland or other Columbia river
ports.
The projected Strahorn line from
Burns to Bend would be q connect
ing link to bind the Harvey country
To Oregon and to give 1t a short, d.
rect downhill route to tidewater.
"But 1t is the train service on the
Crane branch that thickens this
seeming plot to tie the Harney coun-
try to Idaho. There is one mixed
train each way per day over the line.
1t leaves Ontario 20 minutes before
the night train out of Portland
reaches Ontario. Why it does not
wait 20 minutes for this Portland
train, nobody seems to know. Mail
or freight or passengers arriving on
that train must wait at Ontario 23
hours and 40 minutes before start
ing for Burns, Crane and intermed-
late points. Portland newspapers
must wait the same length Of time,
while Boise city papers and Boise
city freight have quick connection
xhd 23 hours end 40 minutes start
over Portland.
There is single train over the
line each way every day. and there
is no particular arriving time at the
Crane terminus. A start of 20 min
utes later would make the Malheur-
Harvey country part of Oregon
instead of a province
of Idaho"
klamath county has an opportun-
ity to get from under the construct
ing control of the Southern Pacific
company, through the construction Of
the StrahOrn line. Some believe that
all of our ambitions will be served
thru the building of the Natron cut
off, but in this they are mistaken .
II the Natron cutoff were an accomp-
lished fact, we would be little better
off than we are now, for we would
still be one-railroad city-which .
means a town Of very limited size.
With the Strahorn line to Bend, or
some other point in the vicinity of
our perfidius neighbor. we would
have the benefit of the Hill line.
With the full development OF the
Strahorn system, We will have the
Western Pacific. When we secure
these two connections, we will also
get the Aatrt u cut off ana the Mo- 4
'loc Northern and not be..n-. T.
has always been the policy of the
Southern Pacific to "kill' Oregon,
md this has been quite successful .
Ind will continue to be until the
of the Strahorn line,
which will open Up the ye'i hrart Il
he greatest undeveloped territory
q America.
Klamath Falls must not go to sleep
IN this great work. Every moment