The Eureka sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1902-current, 1922-01-21

no figures and indicates no such con
nection between Grantsville and
Wells.
The answer is that the figure given
$3.50 miles) between Salt Lake City
and Reno via Wendover and Wells
is not an Automobile Blue Book mile
age at all but Is a compilation prob
ably made by Mr.. Rishel. However,
reference to Mi. Rishel's official Tour
ing Guide. prepared by him and pub
lished as the official guide OF the
Utah State Automobile Association
for use during 1920, gives the dis
lance from Salt Lake City to Reno
via this same road as $50 miles. Just
why II Is given as $50 in the map put
out by the wendover Route adher-
ents is difficult to comprehend.
The mileage given for the Lincoln
Highway between Salt Lake and Reno
was taken from the Blue Book and Is
approximately the same as the As
sociation's figures for this distance.
Both the Blue Book mileage and the
Associations figures for the present
Lincoln Highway between Salt Lake
City and Reno of course we're reached
by logging the present route and do
not take into consideration the short
ening which is already provided for
in the route of the Lincoln Highway
across Nevada as a result of the ex-
listing contracts between h State OIL
Nevada and the Lincoln Highway As
ISOLATION. These contracts when com
pleted will cut down the distance be-
tween Ely and Reno by close to 20
miles and make the distance from
Salt Lake City to Reno, via the Lin
coin Highway less than $50. The
Nevada contracts mentioned we are
assured by the Nevada State Highway
Department under date of December
22nd will be carried to completion
during 1922.
Thus, using Mr.. Rishel's own fig
ures between Salt Lake and Reno on
the Wendover Road, we get a mile
age of $50, which is almost identical
with the mileage of the Lincoln High
way when completed in Nevada. There
Is little room for augmentation re-
garding relative distances between
these two possible routes. The saw
ing of two or three miles one way or
the other out of close to 500 is not a
material consideration in connection
with such an important artery of
through traffic. Properly serving the
Pacific Coast with a road west out of
Salt Lake is the important ~considera-
ton.
The second reason given for pre-
ferring the Wendover Road is:
at would cost less to build and
less to maintain"
There are no available facts to
substantiate this statement. In Utah,
the Lincoln Highway crosses the
Great Salt Lake Desert at its narrow
est point-a distance of TN miles.
The Wendover Road crosses the same
desert between Knobs and Wendover,
a distance of 80 miles and at al ele-
walton 1913 feet lower. II it is ex-
pensive to build and maintain a road
across the narrow neck of this desert
traversed by the Lincoln Highway,
how much more expensive would 1t
be to build and maintain n more
than twice as long, subjected to an
infinitely greater amount of water?
In Nevada, the so-called Victory
Highway" follows the flats and low
lands where. as any western road
builder knows, 1t is much more ex-
pensive to construct and maintain a
proper road than in the foothills or
in the mountains where gravel and
hard-surfacing materials are abund-
ant. The Lincoln Highway can be
and will be built from Reno to Iba-
pah more in~expensively and much
sooner than the Victory Highway"
from Reno to Wendover. The Associ-
atoms contracts with Nevada assure
that. Nevada will carry out its con-
tracts. The next reason given is:
"It would serve a greater local pop
ulation."
This statement is simply 10 true.
The 1920 census refutes 1t. The CEN
sus shows that the Wendover Route
in Utah serves a population 1893
west of its point of divergence from
the Lincoln Highway, while the Lin
coin Highway from the same point
to the State line at Ibapah r a
population of 4422. In Nevada the
Victory Highway" and the Lincoln
Highway are coincident west of
Wd0SWOTtl. East VI tHdl punt, Inc
Victory Highway" serves a Nevada
population of 1867, while the Lin
coin Highway serves a Nevada popu-
lation of 1886. In other words, the
Lincoln Highway serves a greater pop
ulation in both States, the total fig
ures being: Lincoln Highway, 49,
29S; Victory Highway" 1850.
The next reason given is: ut has
less miles of actual desert"
What this means it is hard to say,
as both routes traverse long mile
ages of arid country in Nevada. II
Utah is referred to, by desert" must
be meant 1.-THE Great Salt Lake Des-
ert." No one In Utah would believe
for a moment that the Wendover
Road crosses less miles of the Great
Salt Lake Desert than the Lincoln
Highway. The figures have been CIV
en- They are repeated here.
Lincoln Highway-17.5 miles,
Granite Mountain to Black Point.
Victory Highways miles, Knobs
to Wendover.