The New York Herald Newspaper, September 24, 1868, Page 5

UNION PACIFIC RATLRO* WOTIQNAL, RAILROAD — pete N- Se HISTORY 4%) prodngss or THE UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD, RUNNING WEST FROM OMAHA ACROSS THE CONTINENT. EIGHT HUNDRED MILES COMPLETE. OHARACTER OF THE WORK. ‘ Pomeueie A FIRST CLASS ROAD, TWO MILLIONS A YEAR SAVED TO THE Gov. MENT. On the “ist of July, 1862, an “Act to ald in the construction of a Railroad and Telegraph Line frem the Missouri river to the Paciflo Ocean, and to secure to the gove: ent the use of the same for postal, military and other purposes,’ was signed by Galusia A, Grow, Speaker of the House, and Solomon Foot, President pro tem. of the Senate, and approved by Abraliam Lincoln, This act was liberal to the projected railroad enter- prise, in that it donated 6,400 acres of public lands for each mile of railroad and authorized a loan of United States bonds to the amount of Ofty mil- lions, for which Goverament was to hold a first™ mortgage upon the road, Commissioners were ap- pointed and subscriptions to tae capital stock were Solicited, but the risk was esteemed too great, and @n amendatory act was passed in 1864 doubling the land grant, and in other ways guaranteeing to the company which should build the great Pacitic line such aid and privileges as had been given to no other commercial or mechanical enterprise. There was good reason for this unwonted liber- ality. Beyond the western banks of the Mississipp! and Missouri are more than two million square miles of the American Union. In 1860 less than half that area, east of these rivers, contained more than ‘twenty-seven millions of people, The far Western States and Territories possess an amount of mineral Wealth that is not even approached in any other country on the globe, and a large portion of their surface produces the most luxuriant and valuable crops. California, the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra MNevadas have already given us over twelve hun- red million dollars in gold and stiver, and are still giving us seventy-five millions ayear. And yet this @reat region, stretching for about two thou- sand miles, from the Missouri to the Pacific, ‘was inaccessible to the great mass of the Beeps and a great part of ite rich domain until,a more rapid and reliable method of communication with the settled States than the emigrant trail should be provided. With these facts plainly manifest no one ever denied that the road ‘was important, while but few admitted that it could de built, except at a fabulous cost of time and money. ‘The lowest estimate for construction was more than $100,000,000, and it is not surprising that the boldest and most adventurous capitalists refused to furnish #0 large a sum for an enterprise whose importance but few seemed to appreciate, and in which fewer yet were willing to risk their money. The usual slow and enormously costly routine of a “public work” ‘Was not to be thought of. For obvious reasons, the government could not do the work, and private capi- talists would not; and it was only undertaken when the interests of these two parties were united. The Gov- ernment agreed to lend their national credit to the amount of $50,000,000. This credit was loaned to the Union Pacific Railroad Company, building from ‘Omaha, on the Missouri river, West, and to the Cen- tral Pacific Railroad Company of California, bulld- ing from Sacramento, east, until the two roads shall meet. DETAILS OF THE GOVERNMENT GRANTS. ‘The very liberal aid granted by the national charter 4s comprised under the following heads:— L The Rights of Way and Material, which include all necessary pubite lands for track, stations, depots, timber, stone, &c. 2. The Grant of Money.—The government grants ite alx per cent currency interest thirty year bonds to the Union Pacific Railroad to the following amounts:— On the plain portion of the road, extend- ing from Omaha to the base of the Rocky Mountains, 617 miles, at the rate of $16,000 per MIIO, 18...+....-ss0006 vesees On the most dimcult portion of the road, extending from the eastern base of the ‘Rocky Mountains westerly, 150 miles, at the rate of $48,000 per mile, is... oe On the So egg distance westwardly to- wards the California State line, at the rate of $32,000 per mile. Estimating the distance to be built by the Union Pacific Company, before mecting with the Cen- tral Pacific, at 1,100 miles, this wonld Veave a remainder of 433 per mile, which is.... Or a total, for 1,100 miles, of. ‘These bonds are issued only on the completion of each section of twenty miles of road, and upon the certificate of Commissioners appointed by the United States government that the road is thoroughly built ‘and adequately supplied with all the machinery, equipment and fixtures necessary to complete a first Class railroad, The interest on these bonds is paid by the United States Treasury, but is a charge against the company, By its charter, the company receives one-half the amount of its claims against the government, for transporting its troops, freight, mails, &c., in money, and the remaining half it placed to its credit as a sinking fund, to be applied to the payment of the interest and principal of these bonds, It should be remembered that both divisions of the great Pacific line stand upon precisely the samb footing in this and in all other particulars respecting the government grants, (See acts of Congress. 3. The Grant of Lands.~The government grants to the company every alternate section of land { twenty miles on each side of the road, making in twenty sections, equal to 12,800 acres for each mile oftherallroad. For @ distance of 1,100 miles, this grant, which is an absolute donation, amounts to fourteen million and eighty thousand (14,080,000) acres, As the railroad follows the rich valley of the Great Platte for nearly 300 miles, a large portion of these lands may be classed among the ‘Most productive in the world, and, indeed, there can hardly be any land along the line of such an impor- ‘tant road that will not command a reasonable price for tiliage, grazing or timber, It will certainly be quite within bounds to estimate them at an average ‘of $1 60 per acre, dnd competent experts value them atamuch higher rate, On the Tth of March, 1863, President of the United States signed a Congres- bill which provides that the alternate sections of land belonging to the government on the line of the Union Pacific Raliroad shail not be sold at less than $2 50 per acre. = A2gk 4 The Loan Grant.—The government grants the company a right to issue its own first mortgage bonds on its railroad and telegraph lines to an amount equal to that of the bonds of the United States issued to the company. By special act of Congress (passed July 2, 1964) these first mortgage Donds are made 4 lien prior to all claims of the goy- ernment or to any claims whatsoever, This gives the Union Pacific Railroad Company the following resources, exclusive of its capital stock, for the con- struction of 1,100 miles of road:— $8,272,000 17,200,000 16,000 per mile. . United States bon $48,000 per mile. Wnited States b $32,000 to same amount. Land grant of 12,800 ac $150 per acre.,......., PROGRESS OF THE WORK. Little faith was at first felt in the success of the Pacific Rauiroad enterprise and it was with mach difficulty that a sufficient amount of subscription to @the capital stock was obtained for an effeotive for- mation of the company. At length the formal Organization was made, with a board of fifteen Airectora, to which five government directors were added, according to the stipulations of the acts of 1862 and 1964, The authorized capital Js $100,000,000, Of which $15,243,800 have been paid én upon the ‘Work already done. The Orst contract for construc. fon was made in August, 1964; but various confiict- fag interests connected with the location of the Itpe delayed its progress and the first forty miles ‘Were not iaid until January, 1866. Since that time Woveed has been built more rapidly than any simb | a ¥ RAILROAD. Yar work in the world. On the Ist of January, 1867, 305 miles were finished; on the 1st of January, 1868, 640 miles; now 820 miles are in operation, and the road is expected to reach the vicinity of Great Salt Lake by Christmas. The passage of the Rocky Mountains has been much more easily accomplished than was supposed possible before General G. M. Dodge, Chief Engineer of the Union Pacific Road, surveyed the route and found how completely nature had prepared the way for the locomotive, In cross- ing the mountains there are no grades exceeding ninety feet to the mile, and these extend for but short distances, while an altitude of more than 6,000 feet is attained by an ascent so gradual as to be en- Uirely imperceptible to the traveller, CHARACTER OF THE WORK. Parties have sometimes expressed a fear that a railroad constructed so rapidly as the Union Pacific must be imperfect, and others, ‘from various un- worthy motives, have endeavored to disparage a work whose risks they were unwilling to share. The Unton Pacific Rativoad is built rapicly because 20,000 men are at work upon it; because care has been taken to provide all necessary materials and have them where they are wanted when they are wanted, and because there are abundant means at all times in the treasury to pay the cost. The road is examined in twenty mile sect ons by sworn Com- missioners of the govagnment, who do not accept it uniess it comes upto the staudard of a Orst class road in every respect, A party of gentlemen connected with the leading daily press have recently returned from a trip along the line, and we surrender a considerable portion of our space to their graphic descriptions, They were invited to describe everything exactly as they found it, and to draw thelr conclusions from their own ob- servations. “ DIFFICULTIES OF CONSTRUCTION. It must be borne in mind that when the building of this road was begun at Omaha that place had no railroad connections with the East, and hence all materials to be used in the construction of the new road could only be obtained at great disadvantage and extra cost. Concerning the difficulties which had then to be overcome, the correspondent of the New York Evening Post says:— “The great obstacles were, first, the fact that eve- rything necessary to building ‘the road must be brought from the East. There was no railroad for nearly two hundred miles from the Missouri river, and that river itself formed a barrier to overcome which would cost often ag much as it would cost to carry materials hundreds of miles in the East. Eve- ry slick of timber, every spike and rail, had to be Wagoned for one hundred and seventy-five miles. It cost more to transport the spikes, cl , &c., than they originally cost at the foundry before the war. The cost of some of the pine timber used was $275 a thousand feet. -'The ties for the first three hundred miles cost $2 each, The engine used now in the ma- chine shops was hauled by mules one hundred and seventy-five miles, There were no workmen—all had to be sent from the Eastern cities; labor cost fifty to one hundred and fifty per cent more than in the East. Missouri coal cost at the levee $11 per ton. Wood cost from $3 to $14 a cord, according to locality, Such was the lack of confidence in the enterprise that at the company could Fea one Gentes tie a ir the railroad ye fini na Gouiicil Bea, and the t delay anc be gd of wagoning was at an end, the Tiver rose so that they were compelled to go up some ites, and a four mule team could only drag With all this, for days they employed a hundred teams, and took over rails for a mile of road a day—one hundred tons of rails to the mile. The first great eter Epes one thing on which the ultimate success of this road depended—was the vigor and rapidity with which it should be pushed. Until it was evident that they had got too far in the desert to come back, there was no certainty that there was a bona fide intent to build the road to the Pacific, Till this was settled no assistance could be had from the public. Government might authorize them to issue bonds, but until the public would buy them there was no assistance, The men who under- took the task were equal to it; they saw that rapid work was the first essential. All this time they were posing ahead into @ hostile Indian territo: jhe surveyors and engineers were attacked or kill the working parties harassed and the subsistence of the working parties had to be wagoned to them, ‘The engineers and ers kept from fifty to one hundred miles in advance of the tracklayers. The bridges are all contracted for, built in Chicago, brought to the end of the track and carried in teams beyond and set np, #0 88 to cause no del: the track. It is this constant prevision, this provid- ieee everything months and miles beforehand, which demonstrates the genius of” those who direct this great work, and enables them to push on the conclusion go rapidly. 1t is a knowledge of this fact the doubt as to the durability of id construction; hundreds work have preceded the ining tracklayers, who are throw- ing their iron filaments across the continent.” «. IS THE WORK WELL DONE? This ts @ point of the highest importance. The un- precedented speed with which the road is being built is @ matter of astonishment to every beholder ; its solidity, permanence and safety are questions in which every financier, and indeed every American citizen, is directly interested. The large grants made by government in aid of the Union Pacific Railroad make it so peculiarly a national work that the fin- ished road will be our national pride or humiliation, according to Its character. But to the emigrant, the miner and the investor in the company’s bonds, the question is more practical. Is the road so built that it will transport the vast products which will ere long be developed along its line? Is it so strongly And carefully built that it will secure and keep the tide of travel to and from the Pacific coast? Has such skill in engineering and construction been employed that @asmail percentage of ita earnings will keep itin prime condition, or will its receipts be swallowed up in constant and heavy repairs and renovations? These are points to which the especial attention of the recent editorial party was directed, ana every possible facility given its members for forming an intelligent opinion, What that opinion was, after examination, may be seen by the quotations below. Charles A. Dana, late Assistant Secretary of War and now editor of the New York Sun, says:— “A of gentlemen have. just returned im an excursion to the present terminus of the ion Pacific Railroad at the Rocky Mountains, Their unanimous opinion is that the road is con- structed in the most thorough and solid manner and that it is superior in firmness, smoothness and capact- tyfor rapid to any other new road which they have ever seen, is 18 true of the parts of the track which were latd the day re the ex- carsion train passed over them, as well as those at the eastern end of the line which have been in use for some two years, The work is well done, both as respects the judgment with which it is laid out and the thorougliness of its construction; and there is no art of it Which could, under the’ circumstances, be ter than it is; all reports to the coutrary are er- Tonéous and mistaken.” He algo says:— “The éxamination of the Union Pacific Railroad was ae The train was stopped at every impor- tant per it, and nothing was anywhere hidden froi observation. The universal opinion was that a more solid, useful and satisfactory railroad then the Union Pacific has never been constructed in this country.”? The correspondent of the New York Trivune Mi have seen and examined more than 700 miles of this road, and I believe it thoroughly built and full; equipped. For 500 miles the des are exceedingly light and the direction an air line, There the road ‘was easily built, but nowhere indifferently or slov- . The embankments are hi enough to secure good drainage an‘ wide enough to make a solid foun- dation; 2,660 ties are laid to the mile (the average on Eastern roads is 1,700); the rails are joined by fish- plates, making @ “continuous rail; the water courses are spanned by substan. Ho’ or by cuiverts of masonry, alth ten‘yeats’ wear. The i bed is being ballasted with broken stone and disintegrated granite, which ie excavated in the passage of the Black Hills, and which makes as fine ballasting material as there ia in the world. The road is arkably smooth, In short, the road shows less 3 of newness than nine out of ten new roads at the Bast, and t, so far as an intelligent observer can judge, a weil buiit, well equipped and well managed railroad.” The correspondent of the Scientyic American gives this testimony:— “In regard to the road itself, the opinion of the editor of the Sun (quoted above) aye just what we all feit after thorough examination. On our re- turn we made the run from North Platte to Omaha, a distance of 200 miles, at an average rate of over thirty-four miles an hour, and ran iifty-five miles in one hour. No railroad officer in the country would dare do that, or suffer it to be done upon his road, if the latter were not in splendid condition. This portion of our trip was made with as much comfort as any cther part of the whole ran from New York to the ky Mountains; and I claim that this one fact will convince any can- did man that it is a gross libel to of the ab- solutely unsafe manner in which the road is con- structed. Here are some of the details of construc- tion:—The ron is of the best American manu- facture; the xie8 number 2,650 to the mile (the average ‘upon th ads of the country is about 1,700); the rails are all by ‘‘fish plates,” of a pattern ay ved the best ‘rail eogincers; The road is lasted with broken atone brou, now ine of sub- the Hills; the oulverts are stantial timber, whids would be good for ten 4 at the CONGrNet J already made for UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD, make, while the freight and passenger cars, which are turned out at the company’s own magnificently Sppointed shops at Omaha, are equal in every respect to any that I have seen in the course of many years’ active travelling.” ‘The correspondent of the New York Express says:— “Figures will not convey, cannot ade- quateiy describe the magnitude of the undertaking Which is now be! carried on in this far Western region, Actual observation alone can serve to thoroughly convince the unbellever of the vigor, the uulinching industry, which is being exhibited in the construction of U marvellous road, and, what is move, coustructing it well, Firm, solid, substantial, we have here as fine a track as can be found on al- most any road in the country, while the traveiling ac- commodations are full of ease and comfort.” The correspondent of the New York Times writes: “The Union Pacitle Railroad is built and equipped tne Very best manner, a: least so far as Wwe Lave yelled Over It, and we have thoroughly examined lous points. * * * ‘Lie Lrst’ class cars, anufactured at Omaha, are equat to any cars to be found on any of the stern railroads, and indeed the whole rolling stock of the company Will compare with that of any other railroad in ihe count The correspoudent of the New York Eveniny sums up his report of the trip in these words:— “We went out, of many minds. But we went to examine for ourselves a great national work, of which we had heard aud read ali soris of stores. We came back, of one mind, pendent judgments had’ moutded ty one unanimous verdict, a conviction Wich ; of a rigid scrutiny and a practical test. Paciile ailroad is a grand jonal sucCes meeption, in the musical sw A the subsimuiial durability of tho wor mus adiuinistration of auairs, in the great results Is alroadly ac pishing for our Western Workd it cuailenges ua miration and cordiat support of every one who takes an houest pride in the success of a grand American enterprise, ‘There is nothing superficial about it—no yeneer, no pinchbeck, no slam of any sort, ‘And 80 say we all.”” The correspondent of the New York Observer says of the road at the summit of the Black Hills:— “We were far up among the clouds, more than a mile and a half above ocean level, and yet riding upon a railroad as firmly and as beautifull built as any road in our country, ‘he track had been very Bt ‘ht across the plains, occasionally diverging to the right or to the left, But across the mountains it is not an airline. In makes a curve or a detour here and there to avoid a cliff or gain a plateau. But at every point of real diiiculty to be overcome the wisdom of the survey and the exact practical skill of the engineer are stri sly conspicuous.’ The correspondent of the New York Christian Ad- voca‘e says:— “Built with such wonderful rapidity, under dimcul- ties that would overwuelim the minds of ordinary men, can this is it, @ well built, safe and tho- pie feo equipped railroad? This is just what your readers aud the general public desire to know. To determine this question by a critical inspection and observation of the entire work was the leading mo- tive that led us into the editorial excursion party over the Rocky Mountains via the Union Pacific Railroad. And whatever may have been our pre- vious notions of this work candor compels us to sa} that to the extent of its completion this road, wil its entire outlit and appurtenances, ls in every ree spect a first class raillroud,’”? ‘The editor of the Boston Transcript says of the condition of the rodd:— _ “Has the road been poorly built as a speculation, and to obtain the grants of land and moneys as has been often insinuated or roundly asserted by 1ts ene- mies and those ignorant of the truth? No; most emphatically, no. The Union Pacific is a first class road, finely led, thorol Ay tied, well ironed and ballasted and substantially bridged, In short, with- out hear into details and without fear of contradic- tion by who have travelled over and carefully observed it, 1t may be distinctly affirmed that the Union Pactic will compare favorably with many of the best roads in the Cana ‘This statement, I think, would be substantially, uf not wholly, endorsed by the impartial witnesses who comprised our ex- cursion party. Large portions of the track havo been tested during a severe winter, and, a8 I have before written you, we rushed smoothly and safely along, always at high speed, and sometimes at tho Tave of over flity miies an hour. This cert sub- jected the structure to a severe trial of its solidity. If any of your readers think I have overpraised the Union Pacific Railroad and overstated its im- foo as the greatest work of the age, in view of its Worth as an instrumentality of trade and com- merce and as an nt of peaceful civilization, let them go and see it for themselves, or, if they cannot do that, let them seek authentic information and listen to impartial testimony, and they can soon con; vince themselves that 1 have hardiy hinted at haif the truth.” The correspondent of the Boston Journal writes:— “Seven hundred and twelve miles of this great thoroughfare | have carefully observed in all its as- pects, ‘a8 respects material, ing, road bed, bal- jasting, construction, &c., and the result of my un- bi judgment is a full justification of the action of the United States Commisal M. White, General Frank P. Major William Buford, mh Aro the same as in all respects a first class road. Mail Blair and. General Ne B. t is built in a thorough and substantial manner, and an evener, firmer bed under the tread of the heavy train will seldom be found, e Will, of course, give it additional solidity.” The editor of the Boston Traveller says: — “It is built in the best and most substantial manner possible, and will compare favorably with any other road in the United States. For a new road, I do not Bemember ever tently Mh ay on its superior. * * The road is well ted, and except in sea- sons of extreme drought, must be comparatively tree from dust. * * Few of the old roads of the coup- try are so easy to ride over as this new one ” The correspondent of the Boston Advertiser writes from Omaha:— “{ shail frankly admit that although familiar with the West this trip has removed cel cobwebs from my mind which decorate every Boston intellect. I concede, for example, that the Union Pacitic iall- road is the greatest wonder of America, There has been nothing more marvellous or more admirabie, both in boldness of Soety wens and brilliancy of exe- cution, since the Great tern steamed away from Ireland with a cable in her hoid and landed it in salety at Heart's Content. People talk of it as selfish specu- lation, and of course it 1s and ought to be; for men who have dared to carry t! h 80 cent an en- terprise should recetve a magnificent reward. Yet ‘as the war for the Union was largely a selfish strug- gie, but would have failed if it had not aroused the enthusiasm and the nobler atiributes of the people, so this great undertaking also has ite heroes and its roll of martyrs. The Sherman of the road is Thomas ©. Durant, of New York, who did not hesitate to cut from his base when the good of the ent Te. quired it, and who dashed into the valley with a Sheridan-like velocity which utterly amazed the cau- tious and yes intellects in the East, but which led by a results, Pp exal at different points some pundreds of miles of the road, either standing on the platform of the last car or sitting above the cowcatcher, Every one testified that it isin every respect a firat class road. There is no indication of slipshod or shoddy work about it, The ballasting of the road is excellent. One can write in the cars with x ease than on any other Western road that [ ve ever travelled over, and I have travelled over nearly ail of them from tlme to time.” The correspondent of the Boston Post says:— “We have travelled over seven hundred and ten of with a d a Lend a ed upon any rn road, and have examined it in all particulars, ‘he bed of the ‘id, the ratis heavy aud well laid, and nothing but the best material used in butiding it; 2,650 cross-ties, or, as they are more familiarly known, po mong aan tee oe mile. All ite equipments, 1on8, ani everything connected with it, indicate that it is intended for work. * * * Without hesitation we can pronounce th itementa made, that upon completion of the road it would Ee useless, Owing to its poor construction, all ise, They have been deliberately planned for pur- poses that would not bear examination.” ‘The correspondent of the Boston Congregationalist writes as follows:— “Is the road, built with such rapidity, a |, sub. stantial road? Mindful of the universal hope and desire on this point of vital importance, | deter- mined at the outset to employ the closest observa- tion upon it. I rode many miles upon tho rear plat form, and many others upon the front of the engine. lemployed the time at dozens of stopping piaces— not only at regular stations, but at other places—in examining the construction of the aud the de od of thoroughness manifest in the work, and the following things seemed to me tobe true beyond uestion:—The road bed is of adequate breadth; the embankments are made with due care; the bridges are substantial; the ties are of cedar and ine and other kinds of wood equally good, and are laced nearer together than is common on Eastern roads, and the rails are of the first quality. * * * In view of these facts, it would be a violence to the truth to deny that the road is what its friends de- clare it to be—a@ thoroughly built, substantial, su- perior road.”’ ‘The editor of the Philadelphia Press says:— “A well laid, safely ballasted road, in rannin, order for 700 miles west of Omaha, with station an division houses, water tanks, round houses, machine shops and an abundance of first class roiling stock is the evidence which the Union Pacific Railroad offers to-day of ite ability to make good ita promises and representations. me state briefly the condition of the material of this road as it last week, The raiia are confessedly of the best quality. Even the open enemies of the road acknowledge their superior character. Many weigh sixty pounds to the yard; are clamped by two spikes to each croas-ti and fastened ther at the ends by the ‘fish pi the com holding to the now generally received opinion In the better railroad circles that the continu- ous rail is the true idea of an iron road. Everywhere the road-bed has been prepared b; plo or digging, and the formation of a joundation, with gutters or trenches on each side, and, aft d with gravel or broken er the rails have stone, The correspondent of the Philadelphia Inquirer been laid down, bailaste rhe first impression the “The vel im which ractical ob- recelves from the road is ‘that of end sit fo ite solidity well settled for Omaha to Chey- NEW YORK HERALD, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 1868—TRIPLE SHEET. UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD. enue and from Cheyenne to Laramie, the road has firm bed of proper elevation and breadth. * * The lines of rail, whether si at or curved, are very even and exact, and we rode at rates of 8 varying trom twenty-five to sixty miles per hour with the utmost steadiness and with a consciousness of entire security. We ran fifty-five consecutive miles in Say minutes in returning from North Platte to Omaha, with less swinging motion than we have often felt at twenty-five miles per hour on other roads. ‘his is due in part to the remarkable firm- ness and solidity of the work, and partly also to the excelient ballusting, whieh is everywhere observable on the settled portions of the wiiole line, * * * The company’s foundries, furnaces, machine shops, construction and repair shops are all planned’upon @ scale commensurate with the magnitude and gran- Bane of thks the greatest, the crowning American rise a whole, viewed in its parts, viewed in iG.ail, the conviction is irresistible that the Union Pacific Raflroad Company are keeping their faith wiih the American people; and as they are Working out the great problem for the people, they ought to be, as they are, sustained by the people,” ‘The editor of the Philadelphia age writes:— ‘night be supposed, from the rapidity with which ork was doue, that it was of a temporary and perishable cuara But such 18 not the case, * * Of the roadway it is enough to say that we traversed it smoothiy, safely and steadily for five successive days, at a rate of speed varying from venty to fiity miles per hour, and between the old and (iit ae the western termipus, which had been tinished but an hour or two, no discrepancy perceptible,? ue editor of the Philadelphia Bulletin sums up the result of close examination by saying:— 1d itself Mas solidly and substantially built as an¥ road in America. ‘The bridges are built with heavy and well seasoned timber; the tles are large ote Joints closely joined with “fish plates; the road is Well bailasted with stone, gravel and earth, accord- ing to the nature of the soil, and the traveller passes over this newly built tréck with as little conscious- - hess of jolting and jarring as if the road bed had een seitied and used fora dozen years. The high rates of speed which can be safely attained over the Union Pacific, when required, attest the excellent nature of the whole work. The rolling stock is built at the Company’s shops at Omaha, * * and ts of the most substantial character. In short, the clos- est scrutiny has failed to discern any signs of hasty or imperfect construction.” The Philadelphia North American says that “The track is nowtbeing laid at the rate of four miles per day, and built more rapidly and better than any similar work in the world.” Says the editor of the Baltimore American:— “It is proper to say just here that the rumors that have been put afloat in the East that the Company is a party of speculators, putting down a rude and Poorly constructed road, that will be useless, or nearly so, when completed, is a falsehood that could only have been deliberately concocted and put in Circulation for reasons which would not bear ex- amination, The road is one, Well and solidiy laid, with heavy rail, 2,600 cross-tles to the mile, over which the cars travel with remarkable smoothness, and the equipments, station-houses and workshops, of which all show that it is being built for use and not speculation.”” The correspondent of the Chicago Journal af Conv merce writes:— “In a word, without going further into details, we unhesitatingly affirm, without fear of contradiction by any impartial person who has seen and examined the road, that the Union Pacific, in its substantial character, and in view of the short time it has taken to “put it through” as far as it has gone, is the greatest indust triumph of the age—a triumph of Which the nation may well be proud, and for the accomplishment of which those who took it in hand deserve the highest praise for the faith, resolution, activity, perseverance and varied business capacities they have manifested.” We could extend these quotations to even greater length, finding in each one hearty commendation of the manner in which this continental railroad has been built. There ts no dissenting volée among ail the jntelligent views which aro given of the road and its appurtenances. It ig to be especially noted, however, that the directors of the railroad company, not content with even so good a road as is here described, have contracted for the replacing of 600 wooden culverts with the best masonry, and at a late meeting re- solved to set apart $3,000,000 of the company’s bonds to be expended in immediate improvement of the line to prepare it in the best possible manner for its immense tram. THE MEANS SUFFICIENT TO BUILD THE ROAD. The supposed great diMculties in the way of build- ing the Pacific Railroad have diminished as they have been encountered. Contracts for the const ruc- tion of 914 miles west from Omaha, comprising much of the most diMcult mountain work, and embracing every expense except surveying, have been made with responsible parties (who have already finished 820 miles) at the average rate of sixty-eight thou- sand and fifty-eight dollars ($68,058) per mile. This price includes all necessary car shops, depots, sta- tions and all other incidental buildings, and also locomotives, passenger, baggage and freight cara, and other requisite rolling stock, to an amount that shall not be leas than $7,500 per mile. Allowing the cost of the remaining 186 of the 1,100 miles assumed to be bulit by the Union Pacific Company to be $90,000 per mile— THE TOTAL COST OF ELEVEN NUNDRED MILES AND EQUIPMENT WILL BE AS FOLLOWS. 914 miles, at $68,058... + + $62,205,012 186 miles, at $90,000. .. ++ 16,740,000 Add interest and miscellaneous expenses, surveys, &c... 3,500,000 AMOUNLE... 6. cseeserecesseeeeereeeseees ee $82)445,012 As the United States bonds are equal to money, and the company’s first mortgage bonds have a ready market, we have as the AVAILABLE CASH RESOURCES FOR BUILDING ELEVEN HUNDRED MILES, United States bonds... First mortgage bonds, oe +» 20,328,000 Capital stock paid non the work now Land grant, 14,030,000 acres, at $1 50 per TOtAl..sesesssssesscreesesesccssesesers + o$93,019, 860 Although the land grant Will not be immediatoly available the company have facilities for supplying ample means for construction, THE OPERATION OF THE ROAD A PROFIT TO THE GOVERNMENT. The prospective value of the Union Pacific Ratiroad as a promoter of emigration and of increased produc- tion of the minerals of the West is beyond question, But its value and profit as a national undertaking are by no means confined to the future, Each year of ita operation, even in its unfinished state, insures direct, unequivocal profit to the National Treasury, as the following figures, furnished by General M. Meigs, United States Quartermaster General, abun- dantly prove:— Previous to the building of this continental rail- road ali government freight, consisting chiefly of supplies for the troops upon the frontier, was carried by wagons under contra¢ts given to the lowest re- sponsible bidders. At the time of the Mormon war the annual expense of maintaining troops upon the plains amounted to about $1,000 per man, most of this sum being chargeable to transportation. Jn 1866 wagon transportation upon route No, 1 (the route now occupied by the Union Pacific Raflroad) cost an average of 23.4 cents per ton per mile, In 1867 an average of 39.4 cents was paid for similar service, while, on account of the increased distance, for the season from January 1, 1868, to March 31, the lowest contract that could be made was for fifty cents per ton per mile. The average tartif of gov- ernment transportation over the Union Pacific Rail- Toad is but 10.5 cents per ton per mile, The amount paid by the War Department to the Union Pacific Rafiroad in 1867, for government “transportation, was $699,608 81. Had this samo freight been transported by wagons, at the contract price for that year (39.4 cents), the cost would have been $2,625,536 41; in other words, the money actu- ally saved in one year in the transportation of gov- ernment ireight, with the road in operation for an average distance of but 386 miles, was one mil- lion nine hundred and twenty-five thousand eight hundred and thirty-seven doilars and sixty cents ($1,925,837 60), Ag has been stated, one-half the company’s charges against the government for transportation are paid in cash, the balance being credited towards the payment of the United States bonds and their interest. The United States Treasury Department officially reports that the total amount of interest which has been paid by government upon bonds issued to the company up to June 20, 1963, was $764,055 75. The amount paid by the company on account of the above chatge to the same period, was $616,014 68, with @ balance then due from the War Department of $55,229 42, one-half of which was ap. plicable to the payment of the interest account. It will, therefore, be seen that the government has paid out only $121,126 46 (which itself will probably be more than paid by government transpor- tation during the present year), while its actual saving in one year’s transportation was almost anne = os Na ~ <- De two million dollars. As the ratiroad is rapidly carried forward, the amount of its government ser- vice and the corresponding saving to the Treasury will increase even more rapidly, while in other re- spects the national gain will be equally manifest. By the building of the road and the emigration which it renders possible and profitable, the value of all government lands along its line will be increasea beyond present computation. Lands which before were entirely inaccessible and therefore worthless, are now brought into direct connection with markets whose demand for all productions of the soil will steadily increase, while those situated near the town sites established by the company will at once be- come of very great.value, The population thus sup- ported and encouraged by the railroad will not only swell our agricultural and mineral productions, but, if the present ratio of national taxation be kept up the people along the line of the Paciile road will, in ten years time, pay not less than ten million dollars ag annual (axes into the United States Treasury. In short, it is safe to assert that this railroad will prove by far the most profitable of ali the internal improve- ments ever aided by government. ESTIMATES OF FUTURE BUSINESS. How large a business is it safe to predict for the Union Pacific Railroad? This is a question not easliy answered, simply because the indications are 80 favorable that the annual traMe will almost inevi- tably be greater than even the most sanguine of its friends now assert, But we can put upon record the estimates of some of those who have given the sub- ject especial attention. Hon. E. D. Mansfeld, Com- missioner of Statistics for the State of Ohio, and a gentleman thoroughly familiar with railroad enter- prises in their relation to the development of the country, makes the following estimates in relation to the prospects of this company. He says:— “We have some authentic facts on which to baso a fair estimate of the business of the Paciflo Railroad when it is completed, In a general view we find the fact of an intermediate uusettied country counter- balanced by the millions of persons and tonnage of products on either side seeking mutual intercourse, nu this point we have the following facts, derived from shipping lists, insurance companies, railroads and general information.— Ships going trom the Atlantic around Cape Horn—100. we Steamships conn California and China—55. Overland trains, st » ho ko. 80,000 tons. Here we have 230,000 tons carried westward, and experience has shown that in the last few years the returned passengers from California have been nearly as numerous as those going. So, also, the great mass of gold and silver flows eastward; latterly there ig an importation of wheat from California and goods from a by the Pacific route. Fairly as- suming, therefore, that the trade each way will be about equal, we have 460,000 tons as the actual freight across the continent. How many passengers are there? We make the following estimate:— 110 (both ways) steamships. 200 (both ways) vessels, Overland (both ways) Number per annum. It might be well to say, y of this estimate, that the Pacitic Mail Steamship Pompany carried 31,897 passengers in the year end- ing January 31, 1868, and 27,000 in the first six months of 1868, while the North American Steaimn- ship Company have carried this your an. average of 1,600 passengers per month, or about 20,000 per year, ‘The total by these two lines for the year 1863 Will prdbably exceed 70,000, Present prices (averaging half the cost of the steamships) for both passengers and tonnage, give this result:— 154,000 passengers at $100...........++ 460,000 tons rated at $1 per cubic foot... Present cost of transportation.......... $31,040,000 There can be uo doubt that the number of passen- gers wiil be more than doubled by the completion of the road; so also the road would take ail the very light and valuable goods, which would be greatly in- creased by the China trade. Taking these things into view—estimating passengers at seven and a half cents per mile and goods at one dollar per cubic foot—we have : 300,000 passengers at $150 each. 800,000 LOMS BL $34.......ee eens Suppose that the proportion accruing to the Union Pacitic is $20,000,000, then estimate the running ex- penses at one-haif, and this would leave a net proiit Of $15,000,000, ‘his may seem very to those who have not examined the subject, but it must be remembered— first, that the longest lines of road are the most pro- fitable; second, that this road connects two oceans, and the vast ulation of Western Europe and Eastern Asia; otra, that. the immense mining Te- net of Idaho, Montana, Nevada and California, just leveloping, Will produce a t! of persons and freight at present beyond belief. We leave this esti- mate on record a8 a moderate (not an exaggerated) view of the business and profits which may fairly expected from the Grand Pacific Railroad.” In support of the soundness of this calculation (made several years ago), it may be said that for the first six months of this present year (1868), the num- ber of passengers carried by the two California steamship companies from this city reached 37,000, or at the rate of 74,000 per year. For many years to come, at least, the Union Pacitic Railroad will be the only railway avenue of communication between the Atlantic and Pacific States and between the great mining districts and the markets whence they derive their supplies, and to which they export their products. As such the through aud the way traffic of the line must be immense, Already, as will be seen by subsequent tables, the earnings of the unfinished road on way business alone have exceeded four mil- lions per year, and every additional completed mile must increase the business and the profit. The popu- lation of the Territories, thanks to this railroad, ta rapidly increasing; the fertile lands along the line are being taken up and improved by settlers who will be good customers of the railroad to which they owe their safety and their profitable cultivation of the soil; the yield of gold, silver, tron and coal will be largely augmented, as the railroad affords im- proved and cheapened mining facilities, and the merchants of the Old and the New Worlds will find by this line the shortest and cheapest route for their interchange of commercial commodities. ACTUAL EARNINGS ON WAY BUSINESS, As no one has ever expressed @ doubt that as soon as the road is completed its through business will be abundantly profitable, it becomes interesting to know, not only what may be expected, but what has actually been earned, by the way or local business, so far as it has been opened. It should be remembered that, although settlements are being rapidiy made along the line, untfl recently the road has run through a wilderness for almost its entire length; but as every year brings an influx of population, this local trafic will have a steadily increasing value, At present its transpertation for the govern- ment and for the mining regions Is the ciiief source of its already large revenue. As these mining re- gions are penetrated the earnings will be greatly increased, and the various branch lines that will soon be constructed will be most valuable feeders of the main trunk, The following are the carnings and expenses of the Union Paciilc Raiiroad for the year ending June 30, 1863 :— From passengers Freight. EARNINGS. For conducting transportation. $517,802 86 Motive power..... 977,010 62 Maintenance of car 20 Maintenance of way. 881,637 66 General expenses, . 149,256 43 TOUAl..s0erseveveseee $2,684,757 14 Net earnings to valance, 1,601,233 69 TOtAlsserssesceveeeevvees seeee ee $4,246,040 73 ‘The average length of the road in operation for the fame time was 472 miles, The amount of First Mortgage Bonds the company can issue on this 472 miles is $7,620,000, Gold interest for one year at the rate of aix er cent Add forty pe TORAL cess sseessersereseererees Surplus for the year after first morigage bonds, . ‘We will now add to the account the interest on the United States second mortgage bonds and it will stand as follows:— Net earnings for one year. Interest on first mortgag: reduced bates oe $631,680 Interest on second mortgage bonds, in curreucy.........+.« 451,200 —— 1,082,880 00 Surplus, after paying all interests...... $478,403 69 ‘The earnings for the first haif of the financial year ‘Were so large that the company reduced their charges twenty-five per cent. If the way or local business produces such results, what may wo expect from the | 1,661,283 69 cic UNION PA EAMUROAD: traffic that must pass over ft from the two aldes of the whole North American continent? THE UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY’S FIRST MORTGAGE BONDS. As before stated, the Union Pacific Railroad Com- pany are authorized by Congress to issue their First Mortgage bonds in the same amounts as are issued by the government to the company on the various sections of the road as they are completed—viz: On the first 517 miles at $16,000 per mile.. $8,272,000 On the Rocky Mountain region, 150 miles, At $48,000 Per MIC...+eesseesreee 7,200,000 On 433 additional miles at $32,000 per mile. 13,866,000 Total for 1,100 MICS, .++.eeeeeeee+++ee+++ $20,328,000 Ail these bonds are for $1,000 each, and have cou- Pons attached. They have thirty years to run, and bear interest at the rate of six per cent per annum ip Gold, payable on the first days of January and July, ‘at Lhe company’s ofices in the elty of New York, PRINCIPAL AS WELL AS INTEREST PAYABLE IN GOLD. While the company have never supposed that the principal of their bonds would be paid otherwise than tn gold, yet, to put-all question on this subject at rest, at @ meeting of the directors, held on the 12th of March, 1863, it was unanimously Resolved, That the President and anthorized and directed to enter in with the trustees of the first mortgage bonds of this company, to pay the principal of said bouds, at ma turity, in United States gold ¢ In accordance with this resolution the President and Treasurer made the following COVENANT: Know ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, That where- as the Union Pacific Railroad Company heretofore executed to Edwin D, Morgan and Oakes tees, a certain ludenture of Mortgage, b the first day of November, one thousand eight hun- dred and sixty-iive, mortgaging thereby the railroad of the said company to the said trustees to secure tie payment of the said company’s first mortgage bonds, and the said indenture of mortgage was duly re- corded; and whereas the said company have issued divers of the said first mortgage bonds, and intend hereafter to issue divers others of said first mortgage bonds mentioned in and provided for by the sald in- denture of mortgage; and whereas by the tenor of said bonds principal sum Payable thereon at maturit; is to) obe paid in lawful money of the United States; now, in consideration of the premises, and of one dollar to the sald company in hand paid, the receipt whereof 18 hereby acknowledged, and for divers other good and valuable considerations the said company there- unto moving, the said oor hereby covenant and agree to and with the sald Edwin D. Morgan and Oakes Ames, as Trustees, for the benefli of all who are or shall be holders of said bonds, and to and with the successors of said trustees in the trust Gre- ated bythe said indenture of mortgage, that the years of all the said first mortgage bonds, bein; 1,000 each, as well such as have been issued hitherto as such as shall be issued hereafter, shall and will be paid by the said company whensoever the same respectively become payabic according to the tenor thereof, in the gold coin of the United States at par, that ia to say, $1,000 of such coin for each of the said bonds. In witness whereof the sald company have cause? these presents to be sealed with their corporate seal, and to be subseribed by their President and ‘Irea- surer, this 14th day of aeroa 1863. ng date VER A JOHN J. Cis . Sealed and delivered in the presence AMIN F. aM. Are these bonds secure? This point seems to have been carefully provided for by Congress. The mort- gage is made to Hon. E. D. Morgan, United States Senator from New York, and Hon, Oakes Ames, member of United States House of Repres:ntatives from Massachusetts, who alone can deliver the bonds to the company and who are responsible for their delivery in strict accordance with the terms of the law. The President of the United States appoints five government directors, who cannot be stockhold- ers, Who take part in the direction of all its affairs, and one of whom 1s to be on every committee of the company. It is the duty of these directors to see that all the business of the company is properly managed, and to report the same to the Secretary of the Interior, who reporta, through the President, to Congress. The President of the United States also appoints three Commisston- ers to inspect the work as it progresses, in sections of twenty miles, to see that it is in all respects a first class road, and that it ts suitably provided with depots, stations, &c., and all the rolling siock neces- sary for its business. The United States bonds are issued to the company only as each section of twenty tniles is accepted by the United States Commission- ers, and the trustees of the first mortgage bond- hoiders deliver the company’s own first moft- gage bonds to the company only on the same conditions, except that the company are permitted to issue their bonds for one hundred iniles in advance of the completed line, to cover a part of the cost of grading, &c. To give every facility for the negotia- tion of the company’s frst mortgage bonds the gov- ernment makes its own bonds issued to tie company @ second lien, and it will be noticed that the Union Pacific Railroad is, in fact, a government work, built under the supervision of government oflicers, and to a large extent with government money. The company’s bonds are not only a first mortgage upon a property that costs three tines their amount, but upon a property of daily iner ing value, and whose income 1s already much more than their interest. First morty: bon ts, Whose principal is 80 thoroughly secured ’nd whose inte- rest is so liberal and so amply provided for, must be classed among the very safest and best securities, A PERMANENT VALU ‘The recent movements in Congress in favor of 10 deeming the government bonds in curreacy, or ing them directly or indirectly so as to reduce the rate of interest and practically compel the holders to fund them at four or four and @ half per cent, have induced many careful investors to exchange their government securities, as a whole or in part, for Union Pacifle First Mortgage Bonds. There are others who always prefer a first mortgage upon such a great, valuable and pro- ductive real estate, to the obligations of any State or nation, which are subject to tie vicissitudes of po- litical action. WHAT ARE THEY WORTH AS AN INVESTMENT? Answer.—Other conditions betny the same, seeu- rities are valuable according to their rate of interest. The recent average quotations for United States ten-forty bongs, bearing only five per ceut gold interest, redeemable by the government in six years, have been 105 to 106, and the United States sixes of ‘81, gold six per cents which may be redeemed in thirteen years, have been at from 113 to 11544. The best first mortgage six per cent railroad currency bonds range at about par, and the seven per cents run to a considerable pre- miam, while the Union Pacific first mortgage bonds are sure to pay six per cent in gold, which, with the premium at 40 (where it has stood upon the average for about three years), pay 8 2-Stha per cent. It will be uoticed that a very important consider. ation in determining the value of these bouds Is the length of time they have to run. It is safe to assume that during the noxt thirty years the rate of interest in the United States will de- cline, a8 it has done in the old countries of Europe, and we have a right to expect that such six per cent securities as these will be held at as Ligh a premium as those of this government, which, in 1857, were bought in at from twenty to twenty-three per cent above par. ‘There is no doubt that the Union Pacific bonds wilt become a favorite investment abroad, for although the company have mace no effort to sell them except at home, considerable amounts have been volunut- rily taken on foreign account, and it is probable that a8 soon as the road i# completed a very large p portion of the whole amount will be taken out of country. It should be remembered that the whole issue of these bonds will be only about $90,000,000, of which over $18,000,000 have been already solu; and witle subscriptions are now received at 102 It is expected that, with a favorable money market, the price may be further advanced at an early ays In addition to their safety and prot there boads offer every convenience of a convertibie javestinent The gold coupons will be cashed by bankers ‘in any part of the country and the ponds th ves ave taken as security for loans at the lowest current rates. Such isa sketch of the history and progress of the Union Pacific Railroad, the eastern division of the great Through Line to the Pacific, At the present rate of construction of this road and the Central Pacific, the end of this year will see a gap of not more than from 300 to 400 miles between the termini of the two roads; which gap, by July of 1869, will be entirely closed, and the National Railroad, which compietes raliway communication from the Atlantic to the Pacific, will be an accomplisued fact.