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Show ROCK ISiii TO GO THRfllGH .Hi! A glgantft project Involving the extension ex-tension of the Rock Island railroad to the Pacific coast and the development of a wonderfully rich country In southern Utah Is contemplated by that great railroad system. Latest activities activ-ities In southern Utah indicate that tho Rock Island proposes to proceed with Its plans without dolay. H. N Cowes, a well-known cattleman cattle-man of Escalante, brings news of recent re-cent movements on the part of tho Rock Island officials. "On the Sth of this month," Bald Mr. Cowles, "I took across the river Mr. GIddlngs, for a long time a high stato official of Michigan and now in tho banking business at Taos, N M., and W S. Wanamaker, also a banker of Taos. These two men are Intimately Intim-ately associated with the Rock Island people and know their plans Mr GId- me to guide thom along the proposed route of the Rock Island's extension, and when we had completed the Journey, Jour-ney, Mr. GIddings said that the plan was to begin work at once "TJio plan Is for tho Rock Island to build northward from Cortez, Colo., which nlace will bo reached by a line from Ute Park, N. M., at the end of the Rock Island's branch from Dal-hart, Dal-hart, Okla. From Cprtez the proposed pro-posed line northward and westward will reach the Utah line In the southeastern south-eastern part of San Juan county. Then It will come westward by way of Grayson, Gray-son, which Is south of Montlcello and north of Bluff. Skirting tho southern ond of the Elk mountains, the road will cross, the Colorado near that stream's" confluence with the San Juan, The Colorado at that point Is about 800 feet wide, and there is an ideal site for a rallroa,d bridge. Find Easy Grade. "The line will then strike northwesterly north-westerly just south of the Kalparow-Itz Kalparow-Itz plateau and reach Escalante by a direct line from the Colorado I was told by Mr. Giddlngs that the grade from Escalante to the river crossing will be less than one-half to one per cent "From Escalante the now road will make from Panguitch just south of the Aquarius plntoau, cropslng the south fork of the Sevier river Then the route will be west to Parowan by cither the Bear valley or the Panguitch Pan-guitch lake route. Leaving Parowan, It tiM1 rMinM flir. annth anrl rf PnaH lake and continue over the desert Into In-to Nevada. Ploche. will be the first Nevada town touched. "Following out the plan to build to the coast, the understanding is that the Rock Island will, In a general way, probably use the southern route surveyed sur-veyed when tho washouts crippled tho Salt Lake route two years ago. "The Rock Island's coast extension will be a total of about 1400 miles from Cortez. The line from Cortez to Escalante will be about 100 miles In length. It will be one of tho most wonderful regions In the " world. Right near Escalante-there Is a coal area thirty by sbcty miles In extent, whose deposit Is eighteen feet thick. All the way to the Colorado river there Is tho finest fruit land to be found anywhere. That section is In the same bolt as the Grand Junction fruit district. Is Rich Country. "Experts have been in the Escalante Esca-lante country looking over the oil situation and they tell us that the prospects In our country are better even than those that are the rulo either at Bluff or Green River. "The building of the Rock Island bs I have Indicated would mean tho development of an Immense area or as fine a country as the sun ever shone on. There Is really no limit to the resources down that way, and tho only thing that has retarded development de-velopment has been tho lack of transportation trans-portation facilities. "For the last eight years' Rock Island Is-land railroad surveyors have been In the field ai various times, but it seoms that they always wont back with the report that the routes pre- onted tremendous engineering difficulties. dif-ficulties. Mr. Giddlngs tells mo that.' these engineering difficulties do not exist In fact, and thqt there 1b a perfectly per-fectly feasible route along tho general gen-eral lino I havo outlined. Tho people peo-ple down our way certainly woifltl hall tho coming of a railroad 'with delighL It would mean millions for them." |
