Salt Lake Tribune | 1917-12-30 | Page 19 | Huge Productions Handicap Railroad

HUGE PRODUGTIOHS imp mm Shippers and Transportation Transporta-tion Officials Co-operate to Obtain Best Results. MUCH COLONIZATION Estimated 200 Cars of Emigrant Emi-grant Properties Brought Into State in Year. i i BOI.IO. Idaho. Deo. lif. Th year just J closed was an especially busy one fr ;he railroads In ibis state. They were , taxed to their utmost capacity to i meet the shipping tie mauds. The main ! carriers are the Oregon Short I-inc; Oregon -Washington Railroad and Navigation Navi-gation company; Chicago, Milwaukee and Si. Paul; ("treat Northern, and Northern Pacific. All are supplied with numerous feeders reaching into the shipping territory. ter-ritory. While there was practically no j new construction by any of them, several millions of dollars were spent in maintenance, main-tenance, industrial tracks and bridge renewals. re-newals. Th Oregon Short Dine, the sreuter portion of which is in eastern, southern and western Idaho, is the main transportation transpor-tation medium. The principal occupation of tha t railroad was the transportation of Idaho's tremendous crops. Most of the crops went so far ahead of the early estimates esti-mates that both railroad and shippers were seriously handicapped in their efforts j to take care of it. For example, the apple crop in the territory served by the Oregon Short Lino in northern Ida ho was esti-jnated esti-jnated as late as September I at not to j exceed 2500 cars. T'p to December 1, 21 I cars had been moved. In ordinary years ! fi;50 boxes of apples eonstituted a carload. Jn 101 7 . however, shippers gladly co-op-' crated with the transportation company i and loaded their cars very much heavier than the ordinary years. There were j ; numerous examples of cars carrying as high as 1400 boxes of apples, and it was not unusual for cars of 1000 boxes to move. It will be seen. then, that the cars listed as shipped this year really represent about 3000 minimum cars. Situation Trying. In addition it is estimated that from S00 to 1000 cars of laie winter apples are being held now for future shipments. The potato situation was almost equally equal-ly trying. During' the entire year of lf'11 the Oregon Short T.ine moved approximately ap-proximately tlufiO cars of potatoes. This year it is estimated that 'eii0 cars will have ,o be moved before the crop is sent to the eastern and southern markets, t'p ic December 4, nearly ;iian cars of Idaho potatoes bad gone to those markets. mar-kets. A firea t many of the pot a (ops were frozen in the ground, but the :;reat majority of thoe not shipped are now in sale st or;-, i;e and will move during the winter anil early spring. An example of the increase in the production pro-duction of apples is found in the 'act that in :!.'.. which was the last apple year, tli ere being none in i!Ut. the 're-go 're-go n Short 1 anc moved only 1 1 ;." cat An interesting fact in connection with the movement of Idaho products is tound in the statement that Idaho shipped this year seventeen curs of celery, mostly from Hoise valley. This is an increase of about twdve cars, and those who :ire : in charge of the industry say that the y : expect it to grow rapidly during the 1 next few years. Idaho's celery is be-; be-; coming Known throughout the oumry, and those who have once tasted it seem to prefer it above the product of any 1 other state. Effective Work. The colonization department of the lnkn Pacific system did very effect ive work for Idaho during 1 1 1 T. . It is estimated esti-mated that 20t cars of emigrant movables mov-ables were brought into the state, and every ear means at least one new family for Idaho. In addition, most of them mean one new farm brought under cultivation. cul-tivation. This in itself accounts for the largely increased agricultural product ion. The wheat crop t his year shows n smaller yield per acre, but by reason of increased acreace the total v. ill not fall far short of liHfi, when more than f.rmn cars were moved. The Oregon Short Line will handle the bulk of this as well as the stock shipments, wool, etc.. in spite of the shortage of labor, of equipment equip-ment and the interruption in tho normal flow of tra f f ic ca used by the movement of troops, mu nit Ions and government supplies, the crops generally have been taken care of, assert railroad men.