RH i^ .i.%^- ..«> IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) !.0 l.i '"lilM ||||]M ; 56 Ifsi III O 9 U IM 1.25 ! 1.4 2.0 1.8 1.6 % signifie "A SUIVRE", le symbole V signifie "FIN". Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les carteif, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtre film^s d des tsux de reduction diffdrents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour §tre reproduit en un seul clich6, il est filmd d partir de i'angle sup6rieur gauche, de gauche h droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m^thode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 a f) mi CONFIDENTIAL. •• • • • . . • • ! . . I • * • •".••• • . .,• • • • • • > I » • I , , ON THIS |anadian |acific Iailway, BY SANDFORD FLEMING, ENGINEER IN CHIEF. •-^z- '/.-■• i J. v' ';■ OTTAWA: PlUNTEl) BY [. B. TaYLOH, 21), 31 & 33, RiDEAU Stbkkt. 1874, 263543 1 1 • * • < L 1 I . * c * ' I * 1 < - I * » . < ,• • • • . t • t • . . • •• • ••• ;** •:* • • » # • * » • • r/ B M 1 NVi^ s. t 1} • r I ^ I! I, I I ^^ !M t I i ,.'. ,v <'**.-, j^-j^"<»**<*» M E M O Iv A N D U M , -:o:— CANADIAN TACIFIC RAILWAY. The undersigned has been requested by the Premier to sii]>mit, ibr the inJbrmation of the Grovernment, a Memorandum giving the Aiews he has formed with re- spect lo the best means to be followed in the construction of the Canadian racilic li-aiUvay. The attention of the undersigned was first diawn to the subject some t v, el\ c years ago, at a time when the press was agitating the public mind respecting the Hudson Bay Territory, and urging the immediate construction of a line of Hallway from the then Province of Canada to British Columbia. On that occasion the under- signed drew attention to the magnitude of the projected line, the cost of establishing it, the difficulties he foresaw in maintaining it, in the then condition of the country, and he ventured to submit for consideration some observations and suggestions, having in view the establishment of the Railway on xirinciples which would not load it with too heavy linancial burdens, and whicli it was believed would satisfy all the demands of the country and secure a progressive settlement of the A'a.st Territory and as rapid a development of its resources as possible. Soiiu' (jf tlic observations then made may not be wholly hiapplicable at the present time,* * 'I'o (.'luciVhitc tlie uliulo subject Sft* extracts from tl o article ivfirred tu, Appendix A. Again ill February, 1873, but under very different circumstances, the undersigned liad occasion to give expression to the opinions which he then entertained respecting the building of the Railway. The circum- stances which existed at the beginning of 1873, may be briefly alluded to : — (1) In bringing the Pacific and Atlantic Trovinces into one Tolitical state, which took place in 1871, it was, amongst other things, agreed and determined that the Provinces on the two Oceans should be united by a Railway. (2) The Province of Manitoba had been created, in- tending settlers required improved means of communi- cation, not only to give access to the country but to afford an outlet for farm products. Hence the increased importance of the Pacific Railway, if not the immediate necessity of a considerable portion of it. (3) The Parliament had prescribed that a continuous Railway should be constructed wholly within the limits of the Dominion, and through the ;iiistrumentality of a Company. (4) A company had been chartered by the aovern- ment, and was about to commence negotiations with capitalists in England for the purpose of borrowing funds. (5) Surveys had been vigorously prosecuted for two years between the valley of the Ottawa and the Pacific Coast, and a great deal of information respecting the physical features of the country had thereby been obtained. (6) The undersigned had made a journey across the Continent through the Districts intended to be traversed by the Rail v ay, and thus, besides j^aiiiiiig detailed infor- mation from the surveys made under his directions, had the additional advantage of a personal examination of the leading features of the country. These were the circumstances under which the under- signed drew up the Memorandum of February last year * The object of that Memorandum was to moderate the somewhat extravagant ideas of some parties interested at that time in the Railway project, and prevent the launch- ing of a financial scheme, which In his opinion could not fail to result most disastrously. The writer had in view the initiation of a system of construction which, while comprehensive enough to embrace the whole project and secure the completion of the Railway throughout its entire length, at as early a day as practicable, would keep down financial burdens to the minimum, prevent the waste or misapplication of funds, and to the greatest possible extent promote the settlement of the country, and thus as speedily as possible render the line self- supporting. Circumstances have again materially changed. The Policy sanctioned by Parliament, of building the Rail- way through the instrumentality of a Company has not succeeded. The Company chartered to carry out the undertaking no longer exists. The Grovernment itself has changed and is free to adopt and recommend to Parliament any course, which, in the interests of the Dominion, may seem most ad- visable. In view of present circumstances, and with the light of all the information acquired from personal reconnois- * Appendi B, 6 aneo, and from the snrvoys which have boon continued nndor his directions, the nndersio-ned has, as requested, given the whole subject very full consideration, and now has the honour of bringing under the notice of the G-ovcrnnient, the following suggestions and recom- mendations: — He may first, however, observe that the surveys between Manitoba and the country south of Lake Nip- issiug, demonstrate that through that section of country a perf*>ctly practicable lino for the Railway may be had. Between Manitoba and Lake Superior, there is indeed a choice of favourable routes, and the information now acquired, or which will b(^ acquired before the close of the present winter, will, it is believed, be sufficient to enable the Grovernment to decide iinally respecting the location of the Railway, and to adopt such measures as may seem best with regard to the commencement of construction, when the Spring opens. In British Columbia a great deal has been done, and a vast amount of information has been accumu- lated, but the field of encjuiry is so exceptionally diflicult that the subject is not, as yet, by any means fully understood. True, a favourable passage through the l^ocky Mountains has been discovered, by which a Railway can be carried from the North Saskatchewan, to the central plateau of British Columbia, with gradients as light as those on Railways in Ontario, and with works of construction scarcely heaA'ier than on the Intercolonial Line ; we are thus enabled to project a satisfactory route from the Railway system of the Atlantic Provinces to a j^oint within about two hundred miles of the racific tide water ; but the great " Cascade range " of mountains intervenes and presents formidable obstacles. It must not be undertsfood that the difficulties met with im» are insuperable, but they will without any dou])t prove costly to overcome. The Cascade Mountains have indeed been pierced by four lines of surveys extending from the central plateau to the coast, showing that at least two lines within the limits of practicability have been found, hut the question of construction on either of these lines is one which will involve such an enormous out- lay that more exhaustive Surveys should undoubtedly be made, before anything more is done. The under- si«nied could not advise a hasty decision. The most recent explorations we have been able to make indicate that a hxrge expenditure, even a considerable length of time in the final completion of the Railway may be saved, by postponing a selection of the route and the commence- ment of construction, through the Cascade range, until more information of a definite character has been obtained, and the difficult problem more satisfactorily solved. To render the suggestions which follow more intelli- gible, it should farther be explained that the main, almost the only, road capable of being used by wheeled vehicles on the mainland of British Columbia, is known as " the "Waggon Eoad." It extends almost due north from Yale, at the head of steamboat navigation from the Gulf of G-eorgla, through a cleft in the Cascade range, to tha central plateau above referred to, and thence to Carriboo. A telegraph runs along " the Waggon Road" connect- ino: Carriboo with New Westminster and Vancouver Island. A branch to "the Waggon Road" some 50 miles in length, has recently been formed to Kamloops, at a point opposite the mouth of the North Thompson River. 8 It may farther be explained that a " Territorial Koad," hereafter referred to, is an expression nsed and fully explained in the article, to which reference is first made in this memorandum.^ It is employed, in the ab- se-ice of a better term to express what is intended, and to distinguish this from any other kind of road : it is Intended to mean a road laid out through new Terri- tories, with so much care and forecast, that, although in its very first stage, it may be little more than a trail or bridle path, it may eventually be developed into a Railway. A Territorial Road should be understood to mean, simply a E ail way in an incipient stage, capable of being used as a means of intercourse from the first, and equally capable of being rendered more and more perfect as expenditure is progressively made thereon, until the time arrives when traffic warrants, or the exigencies of the country demand, the laying of the Rails, the furnishing of Rolling Stock, and the opening of the route as a line of steam communication. In the case under consideration, a Territorial Road would from the first serve as a Post Road at all seasons of the year ; it would afford the means of making and maintaining a telegraph line, would serve for Introducing men and supplies for building the Railway, and this being the ultimate object, the expenditure from time to time may be so regulated as to produce the desired result in the most economical manner possible. SUGGESTIONS. The establishment and completion as soon as practic- able of a continuous Railway from Ocean to Ocean on the most eligible route, within the limits of the Dominion, should be accepted and laid down as a settled national policy. * Appendix A, ! L r i It would, however, be inadvisable to push on the work or construction more rapidly than expoiuliture conld be advantageously made. It is considered that the most advantageous expendi- ture at present would be in carrying- out the iollownig services and works, all of which would form important portions of the main scheme or be auxiliary thereto. Commencing at the Pacific Coast, the surveys to be continued vigorously in order to gain more detailed informaiion respecting the routes through the Cascade Mountains and the approaches thereto, across the central plateau of British Columbia; the object being to enable the Government to select the route which may be found in everx respect most eligible, and begin works of con- struction at the Coast at as early a day as possible. From some convenient point on the Waggon Koad a Territorial Koad and Telegraph to be established ma the North Thompson Tliver and Yellow Head Pass across the Rocky Mountains, through the whole of the wooded country to a point on the River Saskatchewan. From the point last referred to on the Saskatchewan, a Teleo-raph to be built across the Prairies on or near the probable line of Railway, as far as the Southerly end ol Lake Manitoba. Such portions of this distance as may require it, to be rendered availabi for the passage oi carts or carrlao.^s by bridging the smaller streams, and establishino- iVrries on the large rivers In addition to this line of communication across the Prairies, the River Saskatchewan and the LakesWiniiipegosis and Manitoba , to be utilized for the purpose of intercourse and traffic by means of small Steamers, tugs, and barges, on such scale of navigation as these waters will admit of. and to 10 accomplish this object the Moss^^ portas^e, four miles in Iciii^Ui, between Cedar Lake on the Main vSaskatchewan. and V/innipeg-osis Lake, and also Meadow portage be- tween the latter Lake and Lake Manitoba, one and a hilf miles in length, to be improved so as to facilitate easy trans- fer from one water to the other. To make this line of communication as complete as possible, it would likewise be necessary to incur some expenditure in deepening- the channels at Coal and Tobin's Eapids ; and at other points where obstructions would be found to interfere with the navigation of the Saskatchewan at low water. From the South end of Lake Manitoba ;[ where navi- gation terminates, the Railway to be at once undertaken, on the most direct and most eligible line, to the navi- gable waters of Lake Superior ; and, as a necessary ad- junct to the Railway, a Telegraph to be built so soon as the clearing away of the timber through the wooded districts w^culd admit. From the terminal point oi the Railway on Lake Superior, a Territorial Road and a Telegraph to be estab- lished to a common point noar Lake Nipissing, and from ihence to diverge, one branch to the Northerly c nd of the Railway system terminating at Toronto, another branch on the mosl direct line to Ottawa and Montreal. A few concluding remarks may be allo^^, ed. But first it may be vrell to form some rough estimates of the expenditure which the foregoing w^orks would involve. Not taking into account the Section between Lakes Superior and Manitoba, on which it is proposed the Railway should be constructed w^ith all speed, ari leaving out of consideration the cost of Surveys, still necessary to be done, more especially in British wWCBKU*«i:^'-^ 11 Colnmhia, tho maximum amount that could bo judi- ciously expended during the year 1874, may be set down at 1500,000 or 1600,00.0. This expenditure might be somewhat increased in 1875 and 1876, and it is believed that a total sum of J|2,000,000 might be expended within three years on these works, so as to result in estaldishing a Telegraph and Tost Pvoad along the Hallway line, the whole way from the Waggon Ivoad in British Columbia to the settlements south of Lake Mipissing. The Railway from Lake Superior to Lake Manitoba would of course cost a large sum. The exact amount it is impossible as yet to estimatr, except by the simple rule of proportion and on the assumption that one nnle will cost a round sum ; hi this way, the cost oi" this Section of the Railway could scarcely be placed at less than, say— r^ 15,000,000. Of this amount, owing to the peculiar circumstances oi the case, it would scarcely be possil)le to spend advantageously more than $1,500,000 during the first year; however, in subsequent years, the annual expenditure might be largely increased, and it would be quite possil)b^ to lay the rails throughout in four years. According to the above an appropriation of ^2,000,000, for the yenr'l87l, would not only be sufficient to beuin operations generally, but it is probably the maximum amount, that could be judiciotisly expended on con- struction dttring the iirst season. By the end of 1S74, the Surveys in British Columbia will it is behoved be so complete as to enable the aovernmeut to decide on the route throuii-h the Cascade range and allow construction to be commenced irom ihe Coast towards the interior. The progress made too during the year in other Sections iMMM 12 and the additional information acquired, will in another year, better than any conjectural estimate that can now be Ibrmed, guide the Grovernment in making an appro- priation for 1875. In the suo'o^estions above submitted, the undersigned has avoided entering too minutely into details. He may now, in conclusion, be allowed to add that the main objects aimed at are as follows, viz : — Fl7^st.— Doing everything that is possible to keep substantial good faith with the new provinces of the Dominion. Secoivl — The speedy construction of that Section of the Eailway, most urgently needed, to give an easy and direct means of communication between the Prairies of the Interior and Lake Superior. T/iiril—Commeiicmg the construction of the Railway at the Pacific Coast so soon as the best route through the Cascade Mountains can be determined on. Fourth. ' -The immediate construction of a Telegraph and Post road along the entire length of lino of pro- posed Railway, from the Waggon Road in British Columbia easterly, thus in two or three years connecting the road and tel(\graph system of Ontario and Quebec, with the road and telearaph system of British Columbia. /^-/^■/i ,_-Iiegulating the expenditure of the above objects in the most advantageous manner and so as to substantially commence the constru.ction of the Pacific Railway, throughout its entire length. Sixth.— VtilwAiig the River Saskatchewan and adjacent waters as far as the character of the navigation will 13 admit and thus, as soon as that portion of the Railway between Lake Manitoba and Lake Superior is completed, providing a means of steam conimunication, during the Svimmer months, from the 8t. Lawrence to the base of the Rocky Mountains ; from thence by the proposed Road through the Mountains, every Town and almost every Settlement in British Columbia may be reached with comparative ease, while the Railway it&elf was being constructed. All these objects will no doubt at once appear sufficien- tly important to render comment unnecessary, except perhaps the opening of a road through some of the wildest Sections, but if it be admitted that a continuous Railway, from Province to Province is desirable and must eventually be built, if it be conceded that a telegraph, will soon be indispensible, the importance of a road, even a bridle jiath, will also be apparent. A road of some kind is necessary in building a telegraph and in keeping it in repair; the trees must be removed, so that they may not fall on the wires, and, with ^the trees removed, very little more in some cases will make a common road. The Railway when built, will require traffic to ^sustain it. The development of the resources of the Coun^" .-i§ the most important, if not the only means of providin^.^, traffic, where none now exists. A road will give access to those regions now inaccessible, and who can say that when " prospectors" find their way into the rugged trackless regions, which must eventually be traversed by the Railway, they will not discover as valuable natural products, as hav^e been found in the exposed margins of the Country ? By this means it is reasonable to suppose, that the now hidden resources of the Country, might become known and developed, thus creating traffic, and paving the way for the Railway in due time. 14 These remarks simply point to the impovtaiice of form- ing a Road along the whole line of Railway instead of confining it to certain sections. The cost would be small compared with the advantages, amongst which would be the opening up of the Mineral Districts, now little known, and although the most forbidding, some of them might hereafter prove not the least valuable sections of the country as centres of industry and sources of traffic. Another branch of the sul)ject should be noticed, viz : — The time required for constructing and completing the work. A perusal of the papers written by th«*. under- signed at dilferent tines, and to which reference has ])fen made in this memorandum, will show that from the first, he has entertained very decided opinions with re- gard to the inexpediency of attempting to construct the Pacific Railway within too short a period. Sabsequent experience and additional information acquired respect- ing the country, has strengthened and confirmed these o];)inions. To show how difhcult it is to realize calculations in these matters, when they are based on too sanguine exi>ectati9«is ; the Intercolonial Railway may be referred to ^^ ample. •r • t In the ; ear 18H7, it was publicly affirmed by some of the most prominent men in the country, and by the Press, that trains would run through from Montreal to Halifax in three years ; more than six years have already X^assed away, and the line will scarcely be completed for, at least, two years to come. The Intercolonial Railway, certainly, might have been completed in less time than eight years, but every one admits that to have driven construction at a hij^h rate. 15 ill order to secure its completion by llic time origin- ally contemplated, would have completly Tailed, and ii' seriously attempted, would have had the efiect of in- creasing the cost enormously. If this be the experience in connection w:l:h the Intercolonial Railway, what would it be with the Pacific Line ? The former is 500 miles lono-, while the latter is 2,600. The Intercolonial passes throagh a country which has been partially settled for one or two genera- tions, it forms a direct communication between four populous cities — Montreal and Quebec at one end, Hali- fax and St. John at the other, and runs near the navig- able waters of the open sea, throughout its entire length, rendering it easy of access for all purposes ; on the other hand, the Pacilic Line is accessible at extremely few points, it glasses through a country, which, for hundreds of miles has not a civilized inhabitant — and the whole X)opulation now existing within a long distance of any part of its route or Terminii, may be numbered by not many thousands. It must not however be inferred from a comparison of the circumstances which obtain c the two lines that the one work must inevitably take *2tiahy times longer to construct than the other. The comparison points out the true nature of the difficulties in the case under con- sideration, — the sparseness of population and the inac- cessible character of the country — and it indicates the double necessity of overcoming these difficulties, by some such system as herein proposed, in order to secure the Railway as speedily as possible. However important it may be considered to have a continuous Line of Railway through the Dominion, c».'n- necting the two Oceans, the magnitude of the work and 16 the circumstances of the country and climate render the undertaking one of no ordinary kind, and to which ordinary rules will not apply. To prevent disappoint- ment, it may be necessary to modify preconceivea ideas ; it would certainly be futile to attempt impossibilities, when the great work in hand can be accomplished in another way. It is believed that the work could best be commenced in the manner herein suggested ; the course proposed would stimulate immigration and assist settlement; as population poured in the pro,g"ress of construction could be accellerated, — thus, and thus only, could the Railway be iiiosf satisfactorily completed throughout its whole ex- tent, "without intermission and with all practicable speed." The foregoing remarks are respectively submitted for consideration, in the hope that they may prove useful to the Grovernment in connection with this gigantic and most important undertaking. The suggested appropria- tion for initiating construction during the present year is as liberal as circumstances would appear to warrant, it would, expended in the manner contemplated, practically and substantially commence the Railway in every Section, it would promote '3ettlement generally and materially aid in the early dev elopement of the mineral and other resources of the country, even in quarters which are now entirely inaccessible. By the end of another year, the best route to the Coast in British Columbia would be determined, fresh information and experience would be gained, and the Grovernment would be in a position to decide respecting future appropriations, the mode of ex- penditure, and the system of construction which would appear most advisable in order to secure the comi)letion of the Railway at the earliest practicable moment. ^ SANDFORD FLEMING. Ottawa, January 1st, 1574. I APPENDIX A B Pif!' ■ ■ ■ ^— 1 EXPLANATION. The following article (Appendix A.) wa„s written in 18G2, when the question of opening up a route from the late Province of Canada to the Red Kiver Settlement and British Columbia, had become to be generally and vvarndy discussed. It was the object of the writer to point out, how, in his oninion the great work could be undertaken in the most advantageous manner, having in view the circumstances which then existed. Events have marched rapidly since that time, in conse- (pience of which the mode of proceeding with construction may, in s' ne respects, be considerably modified, and under the altered circumstances the rate of progress then contemplated, may now bo greatly accelerated. The system propounded in 18(12, however, embraces certain economical principles, which appear as appropriate and applic- able to-day as they did twelve years ago and, therefore, they may profitably, be again considered. It was at first intended to make only one or two extracts from this article in order to illustrate the advantages of what is termed the "Territorial Road System," but the whole subject is so important and of so much interest at the present time, that it is ^considered advisable to print the article in extenso Ottawa, January, 1874;. APPENDIX A. OBSERVATIONS AND PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS ON THE SU]JJECT OF A EAILf il mOll&ll liillli^ll NOinil AlEllCil. Suhmitted to the Government of the Proiince of Canada, by Sandfoiid Fl]':mIx\(>, in the year 18C3. A communica.tioii for commerce between tlie western and eastern .diores of North America, tin-ongh the great hasiiis of the St. Lawrence, tlie Saskatchewan, and the Columbia, has for nearly two centuries been a dream of the enthusiast. So far back as 1679 Robert Cavalier de la Sale formed to himself the magnificent scheme of opening a way to China and Japan through the Lake Regions of Canada; and curious enough, the rapids and village of Lachine, near Mont"eal, took their names, either in honor or in derision of La Sale's project, when he set out on his grand enterprise. About fifty^ years later Charles Man^uis de Beavdiarnois, Governor of New France, projected an attempt to conannnicate with the Pacific, and in pur,.Liance of which Pierre Gauthier do Varennes set out in 1731 and was the first to reach the Rocky Mountains. Of late years the project has been brought pi-ominently before the public in England and in Canada by many_ writers, amongst others, Lieut. Millington Henry Sygne, R.E., in 1848 ; Major Robert Carmichael-Smyth, and Mr. Wilson of the Hudson's Bay service, in 1849 ; Allan Macdonnell, Esq., in 18*0, and Captain Thomas Blakiston, R. A., in 1859. Each i 20 T ' lid their views before the public, and warmly advocated the importauoe of opening up the interior of British North America by a highway from ocean to ocean. In 1858 tlic Provincial Legislature of Canada incorporated a joint stock eoinjjany for the piirpose of opening up the interior and trading therein Tliis body, entitled " The North- West Transportation Navigation and Railway Com pan v," was granted most extensive powers; besides trading in furs, tallow, buffalo meat, hides, fish-oil, and other articles of commerce, tlm company was empowered to improve and render navi- gable the various channels of w^ater communication; to construct links of roads, tramways, and railways, between navigable lakes and rivers, so as to provide facilities for transport from the shores of Lake Superior to Frazer's lliver. I'hoy had likewise the right to own and employ vessels of all kinds "upon Lakes Huron and Superior, and upon all the waters, lakes and rivers lying to the northward and to the westward of the latter, thereby offering to their energy and their enterprise a new and vast field for commercial adven- ture." The directing board of this company was the same year fully oiganised, it embraced some of the leading names connected with Canada, but from some cause it has as yet made little ]irogress in the objects contemplated. From the above brief sketch of the history of the projects of establishing a highway from Canada across the continent it a])pcars that it has from the earliest settlement of the country bordering on the Atlantic, been considered a magnificent scheme for the extension of commerce and civilization ; the ^allisser expedition across the Rocky Mountains, as well as the Red River, the Assinnil)oine and Saskatchew^an expedi- tions, show that it has very lately received the attention of the Imperial and Colonial Governments ; the recent discovery of gold on both slopes of the Rocky Mountains, gives it much additional interest, and lastly, the difficulties between the United States and the Imperial Governments, for the present happily set aside, have not failed to show its vast importance as an engine of military defence. It seems likely, then, that although the means of transport for nearly 2,000 miles arc as yet scarcely better than they were when La Sale attempted to travei-se the continent almost two centuries ago, the time is rapidly approaching vvhen Cj highway across tlie continent will no longer by any one be viewed as visionary. lieforo proceeding to consider the construction of the work practically, it will be necessary to discuss its character, and profitable to view its magnitude. 21 ITS CHARACTER. A CONTINUOUS LINE OF RAILWAY ADVOCATED. Tho early French projectors appear to have had the idea of opening a water communication to tlie Pacific through the lakes and rivers of Canada and the interior. Nearly all the recent writers on the Buhject have proposed in ditierent Avay» to improve and render navigable the natural lines of water coramunication. I am not aware, however, that any of the latter, by reason of their knowledge of the great Rocky Mountain barrier, have contemplated a route wholly by water ; they have generally advocated a mixed system, employing the water channels as far as possible, and connecting tliem by in- termediate links of roads or of railways. On the other hand. Captain Blackiston appear^ to be much in favor of a land route, for the present, at least from the north shore of Lake Supei'ior to Red River, by the North end of Lake of the Woods, at some distance inland from tho international bound- ary line ; and Major Carmichael Smyth in 1849 boldly urged the construction of a "British Colonial Railway" to connect without break Halifax on the Atlantic with the mouth of Eraser's River on the Pacific. All the schemes proposed may be reduced to two kinds, viz. : partly water and partly land ; and wholly land routes ; the former may possess the advantage in point of cheapi^oss in construction, but certainly not in regard to efficiency. By using the lakes and rivers as far as navigable or capable of being made so, and by constructing connecting links of roads or railways where necessary to complete the chain, it is more than likely that a line of communication could be formed from ocean to ocean at less cost than could a continuous land route ; — a mixed land and water route would, however, be always open to the following objections : it would to a great extent, confine colonization to the banks of rivers and lakes where the soil is not invariably most suitable for culti- vation. It would involve many transhipments, and be liable to frequent interruptions. It would necessarily be consider- ably longer than a direct land route, and, as means of transport for " through traffic," would be slow and tedious, — it would too, and this objection is insuperable, be only available for any kind of traffice during less than six months in the year.* It is well known that serious delays frequently arise on canal * The navigation of the lakes and rivers on the line of route are closed from the middle of Novamlker to the let of Juno, — Blaeihton. 22 navi'^ation l»oinro the season toniiiiiiitoH towarf^H the cl oho of naviSitlon l>v ivasmi of tho ^ircss of l.iiMiiioss. The Unv^in- t,ho the "loute tilt" {,'i'uaU'r would l»o tliese ililliciiltics ; iiHTch- juits at citlicr o\u\, niiwillinL,' to run the risk of haviii*; (.•oods ;nT('st('(l ill tlic intci-ioi for lialf a year, would m coiise(iU(M-v be (Icl.anvd from s(>n(liii,<;- coiisio-tiuKMjts a(!ross tho country for some coiisi^lcrahUi tiiiic licfoi'o tlic water chaiuiels wer(! completely closed, :ii>d hence it i.s believed that_ a partly hui-l and watrr route would not be really service able 'for " throue-h trallic"ov(vr five montliH in the year. The local trallic of the interior would likewise be suspended foi' lonu' peiiods, anle line that the })hysical features of the country would admit, — it would have uo transhipments be- tWi'cii tide water on the two oceans, — it would in most in- stances be c;iiried through the heart of the cmuitry at some distance froni lakes and rivers, and wouhl thus open valualdo tracts of land foi colonization which could not be reached by navigable waters ; when it touched or intersected water chan- nels.these would form natural blanches to it, and be available to their fullest extent in laying open the land along their banks tor settlement. It would, as an essential and independ- ent ])art of its e(|ui|)ment, be provided with an electric tele- graph ; tlu! telegrajdi, as on other lines, would be available for purposes beyond the immediate requirements of the i-ail- way, and without doubt great benefits would result from the ■possession of this instantaneous riieans of conuminication.* ^iie raUway would throughout the year be open to transjtort ' through " as well as " local " merchandise and passengers, and would, taken with the telegraph, in a military asj^ect, be avail- * A. telegraph would be much more expensive in the first phice, and almost im- possible to maintain (»n any line aci'oss the country other than a railway or other travelled land route, if carried around lakes or through hundreds of miles of un- cleared forest, the wires would constantly be l)roken by fallen timber, and the posts fre(]uently destroyed 1iy I'unninj,' tires,inconvenient interrui)tion.unighttlms occur when the tele;!ia])li was most in need. On a railway it is part of the duty of the trackmen to look out for fallen trees, and a break is thus speedily repaired when it occurs : when the line is cleared to a suliicieut width, interruptions fr«m this cause are not frequent. 28 rIjIc at Jill times and seasons, and would undoulttcdly piove an important as well as a |)ei'manent measure ul'defenee to the eountry. it is not, however, to be supposed that tii(i o[>eratin;^^ of a railway thiough this extensive eountry would he entirely Tree from difiiculties; the ])ermanent supply of fu(d would be a qnestion of no little moment, the intense frosts and the snow drifts of a Ioul,^ winter woidtl hav«' to be 'ontetidcd with, Th(.' latter is fcjuiid in (>pt'ratin not entirely njmove the evil efiects of the agency referred t;). These questions will be more particularly noticed in their ])roper place. Taking all things into consirleratiou, and, notwithstanding the diHiculties last nientioned, it seems as clear as a demor.- stration that a continuous line of railway, with its electric telegraph, extending across the continent, is nuich to be pre- ferred to a mixed system of navigation and railway coml)ined ; ami therefore in the foUowinsf observati.jns it will be under- stood that a line of railway is the character of the highway ultimately in view. It is true that in preparing the countiy for railway service ^he natural Avater channels as far as they go may bo advantageously em[)loye(l, but it would evidently be unwise to incur nnich exi)enditure on any route other than that best calculated to accommodate the permanent wants of the country and highest interests of the Colonial Empire. ITS MAGNITUDE. COST AND MAINTENANCE OF A RAILWAY AND TELEGEAPH LINE Having determined the character of the means of communi- cation most desirable to be established, it may be well now to glance at the comparative dimensions of the proposed work, and to consider the cost of its construction as well as the annual expense of maintaining it for ever afterwards. Measuring on the map along the general route of the pro- posed line from the mouth of Eraser's River, through one of ' ':idSi^T u pa?^RCR yet discovered in the Rocky Mountains, along iral direction of " The Fortik> l>elt," keeping south of the hest the general direction ot " The Jf ortiie lieit, Keeping the Nt)rtli Saskatchewan, crossin*^' the Red River near the Settlement, bridging the Winnipeg River at the north end of the Lake of the Woods, striking through the country to the most northerly bend of the shore of Lake Superior, thence in a direct line to a crossing on the French River west of Lake Nii)issing, and from this point connecting witli the existing railway systeu )f Canada, either at the Town of Barrie, or at Peterboro, or at the City of Ottawa ; the distance thus ineasured will bo found to be in round numbers about 2000 miles, and although a railway between the two oceans on British territcny, cannot be considered perfect without ths completion of the road between Halifax and the most easterly extension of the Grand Trunk in Lower Canada, yet as there is some jirospect of this section being made independently, it does not appear necessar^^ to embrace its length in the present consideration. That a just conception may be formed of tiie real magni- tude of ihe project under discussion, and tho means necessary io its attainment, attention may for a moment be drawii to a few leading d<'tails. The construction of 2000 miles of railway measured by the average standard of similar works existing in this country implies the perfomiance of labourers' work sufficient to give employment to 10,000 men for five or six years, — it involves the delivery of 5,000,000 cross-ties or sleepers, and over 200,000 tons of iron rails for tl o "per- manent way " — it comprises the erection of 00,000 poles hung with 1000 tons of wire for tho Telegra])h — it necesitates the creation of motive power erpnvalent to over 50,000 horses, which power would be concentrated in iOO locomotives— it inv^olver the jroduction of from 5000 to 0000 cars of all kinds, which, coupled with the locomotives, would make a single train over 30 miles in length — and lastly it im])IJes a gross expendi- ture on construction and e([uii)mcnt, of not less than $100- 000,000* _ It will likewise serve as a salutary check on hasty conclu- sions to weigh before hand the cost of operating a truly gigantic cstal >lishmont of the ki nd at i.er its perfect completion ; a few figures derived from actual results will sliow that the : first coustructioTi of a railway through the iiiterior of British *rnm M -Tf <^'^™lf bael-Smytli c*.iinated tlie cost of building a line of railway btrth.n h'^ ol^\ ^r:l'' '"' '-■l^'?.vO0O,0(X) sterling, o.,nal to over 8700,000,000^ monevL ',?'! f ) •'' ^■"'i:^"!^^^*""" ^« «" English railwRys. where mor. r«nmie.ts ^1 Sf,i- "'.r P"-'1"'J\"''^'T ^'^I'OUROS an-l kviHliod on architectural 21 along til of the id of the North America is even a less formidable undertaking than that of keeping it afterwards open in the present condition of the country. For operating the line successfully, the fuel alone required in eacli year, and estimated as wood, would considerably exceed 200,000 cords — for keeping the road in repair a regiment of 2,000 trackmen would constantly be employed in small gangs throughout its entire length ; for the same purpose there would on an average bo annually required G00,000 new crossties as well as nearly 30,000 tons of new or re-rolled iron rails — the annual repairs of Rolling Stock would not cost less than one million dollars — over 5,000 employes of all kinds would constantly be under pay, and as these men would usually represent each a fan.ily, there would not be far short of 20,000 souls subsisting by tlie operation of the road. The aggregate amount of wages in each year after the road was in operation Avould swell out to nearly $2,000,000, while the gross expenditure for operating and maintaining works would annually exceed $8,000,000. Again, if to this last sum be added the ii;terest on first cost it becomes evident that until the gn^ss earnings of the rail- way in each year come up to the enormous sum of $14,- 000,000, it could not pay the interest on the capital invested ITS IMPORTANCE. A GRE.Vr NATIONAL WORK, A FIELD FOR LABOUR, AN ENGINE OF MILITARY DEFENCE. The above computations taken by themselves are more than sufficient to deter any one from casting a second thought on the subject of constructing a railway througli the unpeopled wilds of British North America; but when we again reflect on the vast importance of this great national work the belief is foi'ced upon us, that at some period, let it he a remote one, the undertaking will certainly be accomplished. While most authorities hi..ve very fully dwelt upon the commercial advantages to be attained by a speedy means of communi- cation across the country — while they have shown its value as a connecting chain between British Columbia, the Gold Fields on the 8lo])es of the Rocky Mountains, the Settle- ments at Red River, and tlie Atlantic Provinces, as well as a link of connection between China, India, even Australia, together with other Dependencies on the Pacific, and the Parent Land — while they have advocated it as the key to a new and almost boundless field for British capital, energy and 2G enterprise — as a great instrument of colonization, opening up a territory of vast extent for the superabundant and ra])idly increasing population of the Eui'0})ean States, and in this respect involving tlie tuture and permanent interests of civilization — yet it has nut been the good fortune of the writer to peruse any article in which this undertaking is viewed as a most im})ortant measure of defence ; as a work which may at some period save many nrilions sterling in carrying on a war, whicli may, if it does not prevent a war, save the Colonial Empire from dismeiuberment. In times of Peace we are a] it to overlook the impoitance of being able to concentrate troops and munitions of war at any given point on our extended frontier, but the recent ditticuities between ^he British and American Governments, could not fail to illustrate the military value of the several Canadian railways as well as the isolated and defenceless condition of the tar interior. Had war not fortunately been avoided, it is dilHcult to see how that vast and prospectively most valuable territory between the Lake District and the Rocky Mountains could have been protected from invasion and permanent occupation, and we are forced to the conclu- sion that until a highway is formed the interior of our country is indefensible. The Romans paid particular atten- tion to the construction of roads through the distant Pro- vinces of the Empire, and while the construction of these roads was una of the grand causes of civilization intro- duced into barbarous States, the great leading principle that actuated the builders of them, was that of maintaining their military supremacy; the first efforts of that people were directed to piercing new acciuisitions to the Empire with good roads, and these r'>ads wherever practicable were connected in unbroken 'lues with the seat of goveiument at Rome. The remains of these roads are still to"' be traced in various ramifications through Europe, and so substantially were they constructed that they have for fifteen centuries perpetuated the power and foresight of their originators. In modern time, Najioleon, oiie of the greatest, if not the greatest military authority, announced the maxim that the highest effort of the military tactician Avas to concentrate a given nui\iber of men at a given i)lace, at a given time. It requires no argument to prove tha'. the Railway and the Electric Telegraph are the most jicfect means for concen- tration of military power that could possibly be desired, and we can easily perceive with what conii)arative ease forces could be brought to bear through the instrur.ientality of these agents, on any point threatened with invasion ng up i])idly n thi.s its of )f tho ing i,s work 27 True, we are again at peace with our neighbours to the south, and perhaps likely to remain in that happy state for a considerable time, but possibly not always ; some good authority has laid down as a maxim, that to maintain peace, a nation must be well prepared for an opposite condition of things, and therefore we must see the value of the railway route to bind the several North Ameiican Colonics of Britain together. But it is not alone as a work of defence that the British Pacific Railway would be serviceable in a military sense ; it connot be fargotten that within a very few years back Biitish troops had to be transported with the gi-eat est possible rapidity to India and again to China. Such exi- gencies may at any time occur again, either in the same lands or at other points in the same hemisphere, and it must be of the utmost importance to the Imperial Government to possess the means of carrying military forces move rapidly by a route over entirely British soil, than by any other route along which they may come in contact with antagonistic nations. I have already overstepped the limits of space which these preliminary remarks should have occupied, but I cannot proceed to the more practical part of the subject without first alluding to the efforts Avhich for moie than half a century have been made by the Imperial Government to discover a means of communication by water between the Northern Atlantic anfl the NorthciU Pacific Oceans. Althougli the perse- vering and sometimes heroic attempts to find the north-west passage have resulted in no direct advantage, beyond a trifiing contribution to science and geographical knowledge, yet they are undoubted evidence of the high commercial and military value which the British Government has long placed upon the possession of a means of communication between the two oceans in the northern hemisphere ; and while the expenditure of a sum considerably over a million pounds sterling has only proved that a passage through the Arctic Seas cannot be established, the very im})racticability of the passage whicli the outlay ot so much treasure as well as the loss of *^;o many valuable lives has demonstrated, must without doubt add immensely to the impoitance of the only practicable route across the continent, on British soil. ft 28 SCHEME OF CONSTRUCTION. THE COMPLETION OF TlfE RAILWAY A \ 'OIIK OF TIME. The idea of constructing upwards of 2,000 miles of railway in the manner which has characterized the establishment of similar undertakings heretofore, through a country almost uninhabited except by scattered bands of wandering Indians, may well be viewed as a commercial absurdity. It has been shown that the maintaining and operating of a railway of this extent, after its perfect com[)letion, would cost not less than eight million dollars per annum, and that its traffic would have to yield in gross receipts fourteen millions of dollars every year to enable the work to pay interest on the capital invested. Could it be satisfactorily shown that these receipts might e'^en bo approached, the work would undoubtedly be a legiti- irate investment for private capital, and we might fairly expect to see it undertaken by private enterprise ; but at present no such inducement can be held out ; however import- ant the line would bo in many respects, the business of the country traversed could not for many years yield more than a fractional part of the revenue required to Iceep it open, and the traffic from ocean to ocean could not be exjiected even by the most sanguine to give constant and profitable employment to a force of four hundred locomotives, without which the road would scarcely pay. It appears conclusive therefore that the immediate construc- tion of a railway from Canada to the Pacific is in a financial sense impracticable, seeing that it would not at present pay ; and however important it may be considered as a great national work, its successful operation as a commercial under- taking cannot take place until the country is better prepared for it. It must not however be implied that the idea of establish- ing a continuous line of railway from ocean to ocean should even at the present time be set aside. It may be laid down as a maxim, that wherever traffic can (fxist sufficiently extensive in any section of country, to render tne application of steam power profitable, through that section, a railway will sooner or later be constructed. The country betv/cen Canada and the Pacific is, according to reliable authority, in every respect capable of supporting a large industrial population* * Aesuming that only that portion of British America weet of the Lake of the Woods and south of the main or North Saskatchewan River is capable of being popula«ed to uo greater density than Russia, the least popultfus oountry in Eur#pe, 29 ME. ail way lent of almost ndiaiis, s been way of ot less traffic ions of on the might I legiti- fairly but at impoit- of the than a en, and jven by ioyment lich the Dnstruc- inancial nt pay ; a gr< \at 1 undnr- )reparcd itablish- L should, d down Bciently plication ;vay will Canada in every ulation* iftkfi of the le of being in Eur«pe, half as large perhaps, even at a moderate computation, as the population oi the whole United States — the population of the whole United States sustains over 30,000 miles of railway, and therefore we may reasonably conclude that long before the interior of British America is fully occupied, a leading line of railway communication through it may be successfully operated and profitably sustained. The question of opening v.p new territories for settlement by means of some comprehensive and economicftl road system engaged my attention a few years ago, when I had the honor to read two papers on the subject before the Canadian Institute, and I cannot but think that some of the conclusions then come to, apply with peculiar force to the subject under discussion. In one of these papers a retrospective view was taken of the proeess by which the Province of Canada had become habit- able and inhabited, so far at least as lines of internal communication had been instrumental in producing these results ; and an analytical examination of the existing road and railvi^ay systems was made, as well as an enquiry into the means employed to produce them. From these enquiries, instituted with the view of arranging some more perfect system of road development, for advantageous introduction into unoccupied districts, certain deductions were drawn, of which the following may at present be submitted. In carrying railroads, the most perfect of all roads, into remote unsettled districts, two great difficultiea have to be encountered at the outset : — First, their construction ; secondly, their maintenance. The former may be overcome by a process which strongly resembles a law or principle in mechanical science, by which we are taught that time is an element of equal importance to power in the performance of mechanical operations. The construction of a railway with all its parts is nothing more than a complex mechanical operation, whilst capital or money may be designated the force or power employed to bring about the desired result; a large expenditure of financial force is undoubtedly required to accomplish the object within a short period, but owing to the peculiar relation between power and time the employment of a small amount of force or capital Norway and STveden exceijted, within these limits a papulation of 15,000,000 would be contained, (the density of the population of llubsia is only about one- liiird that of the settled i)ortion of the Canadas). The occupatio» of this portion of the country need not be considered a great encroachment on the territory from which the Hudson's Bay Fur Company derives its revenue ; it would still leave 2,000,000 Kquaro miles, an area four times greater than that assumed to be popula- ted ; an area quite at extensive as Russia, aadaburdaiitly sufficient, it is presumed, for a hunting ground- 30 would equally accomplish the same end in a longer period ; both of these elements arc indis]ic usable, but they are not necessarily recpiircd in fixed pro])ortions ; if we use the maxi- muni of the one we only need the minimum of the other, — if circumstances in any particular case will not justify a large expenditure of capital, then time may l)e extensively employ- ed to accomplish the work in hand. The second ditHculty above referred to, viz. : that of maintaining a railway in a new district after its completion, although by far the most serious of the two, is one which fortunately can be removed by a particular solution of the first. It is obvious that to put a railway in a condition of being self-sustaining, the traffic of the country through which it passes must firot be developed; ior however important and promising the "through traffic" (f any projected line may appear, experience has shown on nearly all railways that the " local " or " way traffic " is that upon which they must mainly depend for a revenue. The local traffic of a new territory can only be developed by the introduction of labor and inhabi- tants ; this is a work of considerable time even under the most favourable circumstances, but until this be done it is useless to expect sufficient traffic, and without sufficient traffic the railway cannot maintain itself. In applying the foregoing to the question of forming a railway'- connection between Canada and the Pacific, it would follow that whilst the completion of the work at the earliest period possible, wovdd absorb an enormous amount of capital, and leave the line for many years without the means of earn- ing svifficient to sustain itself, the gradual process of construc- tion would draw ujjon ca})ital only to a limited extent, and it would leave the railway finished when the traffic was sufficient to keej) it in profitable operation. The former course may faii'ly be rejected as incompatible with the first principles of economy, the latter being perhaps the only alternative, forces us to the conclusion that the gigantic \york under consideration, to be constructed at all nnist be viewed as a work of time ; and it remains for us to consider how the time at command can be most profitably employed to bring about the desired result. period ; arc not 10 iiiaxi- thor, — if a large employ- n that of iipletion, le which of tlie ition of h which taut and ine may that tlie t mainly itoiy can I inhabi- idcr the one ifc is nt traffic >rming a it would ) earliest r caj^ital, of earn- :'.on8truc- it, and. it sufficient mpatible perhaps that the d at all :>v us to •ofitably ■Ca THE ROAD SYSTEM OF CANADA, CONSIDERED IN VIEW OF A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN FOR NEW TERRITORIES. In pursuance of the object m view, it may be satisfactory and profitable to refer briefly to the leading characteristics which have marked the origin and improvement of the roads as well as the introduction of railroads in the settled portion of Canada. The settled or partially settled portion of Canada embraces an area estimated at 35,000 square miles ; its road system or means of inter-communication, exclusive of naviu-able chan- nels, consists of nearly 2,100 miles of railway in full operation, of probably 3000 miles in the aggregate of improved roads, comprising those made of broken stone, gravel and plank, and in round numbers of 50,000 miles of what are termed road allowances ; of the last it is estimated that considerably less than one-half the total length is cleared of the timber and so far improved as to be passable for waggons, the remainder being as yet uncleared and in part permanently impassible. The road allowances demand some explanation ; they are invaribly one chain (06 feet) in width, and are left between the square or rectangular blocks of farm Lots, into which the whole comitry has been subdivided for settlement ; they are consequently in parallel lines, and in two sets, the one crossing the other at I'ight angles, leaving blocks between, of two or more farm lots of 200 acres each. The aggregate area of these road allowances is extremely liberal, as if cannot be nnich less than 400,000 acres, but from the manner in which the allowances are laid out they cannot in all cases be employed for the purposes intended ; they are, however, much used by the farmers in common for pasturing cattle. Where the country is level and free from lakes, rivers or other obstructions, the road allowances have been converted into good summer \vaggon-roads by the animal })erfo nuance of statute labour, and they give ready access to the farm lots ; where the ctmntryis hilly or broken on the other hand, great difficulty has been experienced in makingthem passable, and in many instance this is impossible, wh 1st in some cases, after a great deals of money and labour hid been expended, the original road allowances have been abandoned for better locations. As the settlement and trade of the country advanced, a demand wa.s made for a more improved class of liighways on the leading lines of traffic; this led to the construction of 32 plank * f,M-avel, or broken stone roads through ditferent parts of tli«; (•oiiiitry and may ha said to cojistitutc tlie .second stage in the dovolopinent of tlio road system. As tlic loid allowances were left in the origiual Hurveys more to maik tlnj limits between blottks of land than to acc it will different 3f traffic, ad allow- roads in ite inde- lat three separate rho only ave been but the exceptions have perhaps been even more expensive to the country tlian wlion the rule has not been do[iartod from. * It may also bo obsorv(Ml that the system adopted has in minor details unavoidably resulted in many permanent inconveniencies to the ti-ade of the country, which uuder other aiTan_!:,^omcnts might have been obviated ; as an illustration it may for the i>resent be sufficient to allude to the mcon- N'cnicnt distances which nearly all the railway stations are from the t,o e.camine the country and to lay out a roass to tanii lots iVoiii the leading linos last nunti<">nod/ ( Joncossion roads might ho laid out iMuor.Uly aoross tln^ colonization roads, and hot woon the several blocks iiito which townships are iisnally s\ih-dividod. In pre-arranging a system of internal connnnnications for a now territory, it wouM he i\eeessaiy to take a ]»rosi>ectivc viiw of the charact-r of the (raihc which might exist wdieii after a lajise ot years tiie district heconies populated ; in this wo mi:^I\t he guided, hy drawing a <;omparison hotweon the naturai'ad vantages of soil, climate, and ]>osition of the Hcction of country to he colonized, with those of any similar section which has hecomo occupie(l and to some extent developed. In this numner we could form some idea of the nature of the future commerce of the country, and co!»so(pientiy of all the classes of roads wdiich Avould ultimati'ly he rocpiired to accom- modate it. 'riie loading direction which tratlic may seek, or the directiolitical sense it may apl)ear expedient, to guidt» it, would -piescrihe the general direction of the main line of road through the territory, and other considerations won hi determine its cliaracter. This is the first thing to he estahlished, as upon it the direction and character of all minijr lines mainly depend. Assuming that the tract of countiy to he colonized is such as to justify us in the helief that in due time a railway may be constructed through it, the first stop would be to lay out a '• Territorial road" between the more important points in the general direction of traflic previously determined. The terri- torial road ought to bo located with the utmost care, and in all that relates to curvatures and levels, on the l)est railway location in an eiuihieerinq aspect alone, wliich tlie country traversed could afford. Iv. this resjiect there would doubtless be less than usual difiicaivy, as there would bo neither right of way obstacles to guaid against nor local interests to serve, and c(jnsc([uently no undue influences to twist or warp the intended line out of the most advantageous location. The main artery of traffic for the future service of the country might thus be determined uj)on umlei n\ost favourable cir- cumstances. It would next he necessary to select at proper intervals the most suital)le points for stations and villages, and from these as diverging points, " Colonization Jioads " might then be laid out to tlie right and loft with as nmch care as the location of WL s iV)i' a jxM'tivc t wluiii in tbis ecti the section section ped. In , of the f all the ) accom- seek, or it may general ory, and r. This bion and [ is such ay may ty out a bs in the he teni- I, and in railway country Icubtless ler right to serve, -varp the on. The i country L*able cir- rvals the rom these ;ii be laid )cation of 37 1 ' gravel or nmcadatui.ed ^^'^^ l^;;;;;;;;;JI^ ;ri^!n-e!lbarn'tUnes latiou roads thus la.d (.ut and «; ' 't ^ l^^^ ^^^. ^^,^,,^.^^.,. of the locality, avouhng ^^^^V ^ '^^i^ g;verMing lines upon Bary river crossuigs, uiight loim u ntie ^ i r, ^^^^.j^^i.-^.s to be ::iL the township. n.ayV>e I'-U;^^-;.!^^': ,a.,u his with suh-divi.l'Ml in the usual vvay mto bods ^^.^^^ ^^^^ concessini. ronds between, drawn so a. culoiii/ation roads. ,11,, ^.nnuio of a roa > ^aditiouul point cate it with t..o many detads, stUl 1 1 h i e ^ ^^^^^^^ .^,^.^.,^,,y which scenes too iuM>ortant to be J'^^f \ \ ;,,,ting railways alluded to the ditUcu ty ^^^V^^rT!^ , "[ah st.ow-drifts ;- where the read is nable to *'^''';'^" *"' '' , ' ^ify of making some andImaynowrefert.)theextrenu a ss^^ ^^, ^^^^ provision for the p.-nnanent ^"''^ ;^';^^^';;,"!;,,ti\l ag^ th.3 for fuel and general repairs^tJ^s_^;_P^^l ; ^-^ drifts iH to proBerve tl.o ^v<.o.lH =| •; f, J^t .'w uvei.lv faU-u throiW^ J-' j,^. „„y fences. Trains are «^'1<1'""/I''<^'^"^f. J ' eel. " between trains a« t of the country, as it scarcely ever '^^^ /'f^ „, ,n.nv' always occurs i» '' .^'^.a inconvenience. The cletenti-m t< t^^'J^a^^^.^y .-u,.! no ob'^trnction is 1 countrv where tiie woo.ls have be''" cit, -^^ positions. ^ ,^^„,a as fuel, to tlie formation of --^Z'^^^lZi^l^n .J>nse.,nenco w-k ;18 former, and as an ample ])rovisi()n for the latter, I would snjrgest that a l)elt of woodland along the territorial line of sutHcient breadth should be reserved for shelter and the pur- poses above mentioned. The belt of Avoodland to be at all etfeetive against the worst etfects of snow should be of a con- siderable width, suthcient in fact to shelter the line of road and arrest the snow-drifts beyond the limits of the line of traffic. In open sections of the country it might, in view of the same end, be advisable to enccmrage the growth of timber on reserves to be left for the p\u'[)Ose along tlie line of road. The uniforndy even falls of snow M'ould of course always occur, 1iut on railways these are (easily overcome by light snow ploughs attached to the front of the engines, and they seldom interfere with the regular running of trains. These continuous tiu'ber reserves along the sides of the territorial road, whilst they woidd greatly lessen the difficulty of operating a railway along the same line in winter,* as well as provide a permanent supply of wood for fuel and general repairs, they world, moreover, result in sciX'eral incidental advantao-es favouraljle to the construction and maintenance of the futuri' railwa}' as well as to the safety of the public. As all the roads in every section of the coimtry along the line of the intended railway would connect through the " Coloni/.ation Roads" directly with the stations, the ti-affic would natural!}^ centre at these points, and at these points only would railway crossings by public roads be required, Aoaiu, there would be no inivate or " farm crossing's " needed, as the farm lots being laid out subs'jquent to the location of the road, would of course be wholly either on one side of it or the other, liesides being .sej)arated from the road by the tindier i-eserve. The ated by any plan which would diminish the number of road crossings. In any country sub- divided for settlement in a manner similar to CJanada, before the railway lines are laid down we cannot avoid having the road crossings almost one in each mile, so that on every one hundred mi k!s of railway we have probably in the aggregate over 5,000 lineal feet of track not only destitute of protection but exposed day and night to waggons, foot passengers, and cattle passing to and fro. Besides which the groat number of cattle guards required is an important element of danger. These )»eing made of timber beams are equivalent to small wooden bridges, and their great number swells out the total length to something very consideralJe. On all the railways in Canada the cattle guards, it is estimated, cannot measui'e less than 1^0,000 lineal feet of track, and are probabl}^ not much less dangerous than the same length of wooden bridges. In addition to the public road crossinirs above alluded to, tlie^e avb a very great number of ordinary " farm crossuigs. which in point of safety to the public travelling by rail as well as to the property of the railway companies, are perhaps equally to be feared, for although they are protected by gates the.so are constantly liable to be left open, either through the design or negligence of farm servants.* In the road system reconnnended for new districts, the rail- way whenever it came to be o])eratod would be entirely freed from farm crossings, and the ])ublic road crossings would oidy occur at stations, where the danger of accident is always least, from the fact that the speed of trains is invariably reduced at these points. Before proceeding to consider how the road system suggest- ed would apply to the wide areas of unoccui)i'^'l lands in the interior of British America in view of colonizhig them, as well as ultimately establishing a leading line of railway from the settlements of Canada to the Pacific, I may observe that two principal objections present themselves to the system advocated * "One of the most fruitful sources of iiccidt-nt are the great number of cross- ings of street, highway, and farm roads at the level of giade. Ihe total numljer of these is over eight thousand and there is an average of tliree to each mile of road in operation, and more than one public road or street crossing to each mile. It is believed that nearly ten per cent, of all the accidents by which peiscms weie killed or iniui'ed, is due to tliis cause. ,., i fi,,. "The expense of maintaining watchmen at many of these crossings, -i ^ t'^^^ damage to the property of the companies by collisions caused by them, lenclti * '"The plucy of reducing t!ie number of those at grade, is generally t'«"^eded ; and it is rec,.mmendelan has a double object in view ; it has in addition to the i)urposes contem])latcd by the old system, that of making every ])art of th^i country accessible in the read- iest May at the luinimum expenditure, and with the greatest permanent advnntages attainable. Auother objection ai"ises from the proposal to kee]i the territoiial road lines wooded on both sides excel it where stations may occur, thus rendering the road less agreeable to travel on than if the cultivated country was allowed to be immediately adjacent. This is undoubtedly an objection, but I think that it cainu^t weigh much when the benefits to be expected ultimately from the preservation of the wood is fully considered. A HIGHWAY TO THE PACIFIC. A PLAN OF ORADUAL DEVELOPCMENT RECOMIMENDED. In the foregoing observations it has been my endfiwor to shinv. as briefly as ]mssibh' the following points : — 1st. That the project of a highway to the Pacifiv. is as old r;8 the first settlement of Canada, and that recent events show its increasing importance. 2nd. That a continuons line of Railway, with Electric Tele- gra])h, is better calculated to meet the permanent, wants of the Country and serve the interests of the Colonial Empire than any cMir-r -ueans of communication l)etween the two oceans. 3rfl. That although the magnitutle of a scheme for a Rail- way across the ccmtinent is V( '-v great.yetthe vast importance of tie work in a commercial, military, and national view w>.\i'd d.Miianrl its coust^-ucfion were the resources of the country, and the trade sufficiently developed. 4th. That the immediate comjlletion of this woi'k cannot be seriously entertained in the ],r(\sent condition of the country, the c )st of maintenanco without sufficient trafHir l)(>ing so very great, and that therefoiv, to be constructed at all. the Kauway must be a work of time. rdh That the Canadian Eoad and Railway system has il- lustrated tlie advant; ges which may be derived from the ado|.lion ofa comprehensive Koad seheme,in laving open new distncts for settlement. " / 41 oJand 1 tliat tlien rect- ifHe or I it has ysteni, ■i rcad- |i"catest ^irises idod on I'H'^'tllC ouiitrv btodly icn the 1 of the ED. avor to as ohl s show ie Tele- s ot'tho "0 than cans, a Rai]- I'tanco 1 view ^f the not he imtiy, so tlie ng I as il- II the 1 now i,'- Otli. That a scheme which embraces the ultimate completion of Railways and less perfect lines of conimnnication, by a jiro- gressive system of construction, possesses many features favorable to the fii'st settlement, as well as the future require- ments of the trafHc, of new Territories. 7th. That the system proposed for the developemcnt of the h'ghways of a new country by progressive stages corresjjond- ing with the progress made by the country itself in general advancement, is one peculiarly applicable to the case under discussion ; and while it might be expedient, in the first instance, to employ some of the natural water channels as a means of introducino- settlers and laborers alonu' the line of road, until the latter became in some degree serviceable, it would not l)e advisable to incur any gi-eat e\])enditure on works beyond the limits of the great thoroughfju-e ultimately in view. That the lirst effort should be made to construct an Electric Telogra])li along the precise line of the future Railway, that the Telegraph should be the precursor of other means of communication, beginning, it ma}'" be, with a Bridle Path or Indian Trail from post to post, and ending with a perfect line of Railway, when the ti-aftic of the country, or the interests of the nation requiied the most rapid means of steam com- munication. With these remarks I will now attempt to show how the work, in its different stages, may be proceeded with. The first step re((uired is the location of Avhat has been designated a "Teriitorial Road " between all the more impor- tant or governing |)oints on the line of route. (Commencing at the Western Terminus, these |.oints would probabl}^ be, the mouth of the Fraser River, or the best Harbor on the Paciiit. coast, north of the 49th parallel — the best ])ass which has Tieen or may be discovered across tlio Rocky ^lountains contiguous to a line which would run along the general direction of the "Fertile Belt"* of the interior— the most southerly bend of the * "Till re is a broiid strip (;f fcitile (•(unitry vh-h in water, W(\irl and paatnrago. drainod l)y the Xuitli S.■l^k;lt<■1le\van and .sumc of its affluents ; and beinji; a eon- tinuution of tiie fei'til- iir.irios of I'ed KiviT, the eastern Avater slied of the Assinilidine and iCiil iJeer liiver, with the outlying i»atche.s called Touchwood Hills, File Hiil, o]>n- lation from one extremity to the other. "No other part of the American Coiatinent possesseB an approach even to this Hingid:irly favor.ilile dis]>osition of soil nnd climate ; which last feature, nolwith- st.'inding its rigour during the winter .season, confers, on account of its humidity, inestimable value on British America, south of the 54th parallel. I mn 42 North Saskatcliewan River — the best crossing of Red River between its conhiience with the Assiniboine and the southerly end of Lake Winnipeg — The best crossing of the River Win- nipeg near the nortli end of the Lake of the Woods — the most northerly bend of the shore of Lake Superior — the best cross- ing of tiie French River b'^tween its junction with Lake Huron and Lake Nippissing — and lastly, the most desirable point of connection with the existing Railway system of C'anada either at Ottawa, at Peterborough, or a,t Barrio, all of which points are directly connected wdth the Grand Trunk Railway by means of the bi'ancli lines running southerly to it. On the location of the "Territorial Road,'' which could only be done on a careful survey of the country, the next stef) would be the determination of Station points from whence to lay out Colo- nization Roads to the right and left, wlierever the soil was favorable for settlem.Mit. U[)on the Colonization Roads the townslii})S should i^^xt be projected. So soon as an} i )n of th<> road can be finally located, together with its bm. es, the introduction ol settlers might road should be cleared through the wooded commence. The districts to a width of two chains or lo® feet, in older cliiefty to preserve the Telegrapli, when erected, from being injured by trees falling. The clearing would at once give employment to settlers, and witli subsequent work in improving the road, greatly aid them in paying for their land and in supporting their families until theii farms produced sufficient crops. Throughout the o[)en })rairie country, which is more than one-third of the whole distance, the trouble and expense of clearing would be avoided ; but as the great natural obstacles which isolate the interior and prevent the possibility of estab- lishing a Telegraphic communication through the country are the wooded and broken districts at both extremities, it becomes iiulispensable to force a way of coiinnunication through them: this is doubtless a work of considerable labor and corresponding ex[)enditure, but without it no satisfactory progress can be made. This preliminary stej) is especially- requisite to the east of the Reil River valley, so that settlers might obtain access to the central plains, and in view of the construction of a continuous line of Telegraph at an early day, to be followed by a wa^i^^gon road as soon as circumstances would allow, the Territorial line should be cleared through the western division likewise. •'The natural resource.s lying within the limits of the Fertile Belt, or on its eastern l)or.lfrs, are theiiiselv.'s of great value as local elements of future wealth ami i)rosi>ent.y ; Ijut in view of acouHiumicJitioji ucroHSthe continent they acquire parauiount imim-timw. "—Narratii-e of the Vanaiian £xpU>rtnenditure of a small capital in the first place, with a systematic direction of industry afterwards, would cause a great national highway to be developed by a natural and unfailing process. Were such a scheme as that proposed once adopted, and a comparatively small sum expended on the construction of a simple, even a rude, waggon road, and on the erection of an electric telegraph on the best railway line within British territory, there would be no fear, it is confidently believed, of the final result. The rude waggon road would be more than the embryo of a Railway from ocean to ocean, it would be the rudimentary spinnl column of a country covering no less than sixty degrees of longitude, and which, in the provi- dence of events, may become an important power on this con- tinent, — while the telegraph would at once resemble the spinal cord of a national nervous system which mist yet ra- mify in many directions throughout this great division of the Colonial Empire. mmmummrmmmmmmmmmmi APPENDIX B. mSm EXPLANATION. Thefollowin,^.MemoiMn,hiin (Appoiidix B.,) was prepared with the view of guiding- the Bcwd of Directors of the Pacific Railway Conipany, organized under the Cliarter, dated February 5th, LSTS. It was also brought bofore the Govern- ment and thus became an official public document. WP'fsSS!?'^^"^ rrn'^'^P'^ipiiiwpimpi APPENDIX B. CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY, Memorandum by SANDFORD FLEMING, Feby, 1873. The undersigned having been requested to submit his views with regard to the principles which should be laid down in organizing the scheme for the construction of the Canadian Pacilic Railway, under the Charter recently granted by the Government, the following observations are pi'esented for consideration : — It may be assumed that it is the desire of the Government, the Company, and the people of the Dominion generally, that this great national work should lie successfully completed ; that it could not be held to be successfully comjileted unless constructed in such a way as to leave it when finished in a condition lo do its work properly and remuneratively. This certainly would not be the case if, in the process of construc- tion, all the liberal resources granted by the Government were swallowed up, and the road lefc burdened with a debt which no future traffic could support or remove. As it is not intended to build the Railway in the first p'ace better or more im]ierishable than Railways are ordinarily built through New Torr!tories in the United States, it should be borne in mind, that after the line is o])cned throughout, a large annual outlay will be required for works of repair and renewal. The periodical expenditure of new capital on wo^-ks of repair and restoration is a very common occurrence ca^cii in this portion of Canada, where the Railways were originally constructed in a much more ])ermanent and substantial Avay than tiio standarl which it is proposed to adoj^t for the Pacific Railway. It must be further borne in maid that all the traffic for the line under ('iscussion haw to be createci and although the writer confidently believes that in time ti^e traffic will be created, and will ultimately yield a return which would i-end(M' a prudently constructed Eailway self-sustaining and ])rofitabl(*, yet this could not possibly be the case for many years. It appears to follow therefore that until this period arrives, there must be an annual deficit in operating the line, to be periodically added to the debt of the Railway. 54 It cannot in the opinion of the writer be reasonably ex- pected that the Canadian Pacific Railway can become self- sustaining until a considerable population, (say 3,000,000 at least) has been thrown into the country through which the road will pass. Assuming this theory to be correct, and it must be so, to a greater or lesser degree, then an estimate of the length of time required to thr(>w into the now unpeopled territories, the necessary population, will give an approximate idea of the length of time during Avhich the operating ex- penses must be expected annually to augment the debt upon the ropd. Considered under its financial aspect the undertaking pre- sents four great sources of future difiiculty. It is W(dl from the outsoi/ to look these difiieulties fairly in the face, in order that we may sec how thciv can l»est be met. We cannot in- deed ex])ect to remove them altogether, but l)y prudence and foresight we may hope to reduce their infiuence. The four sources of financial difiiculty, are : — 1st. — The original Bonded debt. 2nd. — The interest on the same. 3rd. — Additional debt for renewals, 4th. — ditto for operating losses. The first two are by far the most serious as they will keep on compounding and accumulating year by year, and it is self-evident that the larger they are in the first place, the more rapidly will they become unmanageable. An originally heavy Bonded debt, with an interest debt accumulating yearly, and with fresh debts periodically added for the renewals of perishable works, and for operating losses, all compounding year by year, and augmenting the original debt, would he apt tr, lead in a short ])eriod to a disastrons state of tliinu's. Now is the time to consider how to avoid such disasters as those foreshadowed, disostevs which every right thinking man in the Dominion wuuld regard as a nationalealamity. With the view of securing all the capital required for the completion of the work, it has l»een seriously pro})osedto issue bonds to the amount of 8180,000,000. Now what does this imply ? It implies $10,800,000 interest annually, and how is it to be met ? would the whole subsidy in cash", and the net pioceeds of all the. land, if sold, pay this amount of interest for ten years^^ and where woidd l)e tbu-.d the additional capital requn-ed for ncce.^.^ary repaii-s and renewals and to make up operatmg losses ? Would not all these items of expenditure, compoundmg year by year, roZ^ ivp a formidable dehfJLopelesaly beyond the abihty of any tmfic to bear. o5 Tliese considerations are presented, not Iw way of dis- couragenient but in order to sl.ow the imperative necessity of commencing tins great enterprise, witli prudence, foretliono-ht and good management, in order that the issue may redound to the credit of all concerned, and those final disasters to which avoiXr"''^'' '''''''''^ '''"'* inevitably lead, may be happily The undersigned having given the whole subject the fullest consideration and made himself moderately familiar with much oi the country, through which the Railway is to be built has arrived at the conviction that in oi'der to make the under- taking as great a success as possible^ the folloAving i^ointsmust be kept prominently in view. (1) All interest bearing liabilities must be avoided as far as it IS possible to ao so, they must at all events be kept down to the loAvest minimum. (2) No more money must be raised in any one year than can be judiciously and prudently expended in that year. ^ (3) Construction must not be unduly forced, so as to enhance its cost. ^ (4) In order to prevent the waste or misapplication of caintal in the construction ol the road, it should be laid down as a rule, that in no case should the construction of any part of the line be commenced, until the necessary surveys, so far as practicable, are thoroughly made and the best possiljle Lx-ation selected ;^ this rule should be especially observed in all the more difficult sections ol the country Oirough which the rail- way will pass. As all Boxids issued must necessarily bear interest and as the money realized from the sa of Bonds will generally be subject to charges of various kin.U, it is ]daiii that the i'i'wcr the Bojh'c issued, the lighter will thesr harges be and the s^nallt. will be the interest which the enterprise will have to canv. The major part of the expenditure on the actual constnK ion of the Railway will be for labour and as much of the labour will be performed by men who will it is expecte6,000,000 ' L. Nipissing to L. Superior Junction ... 23,000,000 ' ■ Rocky Mountains to Pacitic 35,000,000 $100,000,000 Should however the attenq^t be made to push on the build- ing of the road with undue haste, the undersigned would not be surprised that double this estimat(^ would in th(; end be found insufficient. The increase of cost would, of course, de- pend upon ths degree of undue haste enq)loyed in forcing on the work. Taking as a basis the estimate above given, the next im- portant enquiry is, what portion of the amounts assigned to each section would it be possible to expend advantageously in each year. ^ After giving this branch of the sulyect most careful con- sideration, the undersigned submits the acconi})anying table. #■ as indicating, as nearly as the data in his possession will enable him to do, the amounts which it may be practicable to expend annually, on each of the secticms "of the road, the probable poi'tion of the subsidy available for each year ; an estima'-e of the value of land which may be sold, or the land scrip issued for work done, and the amount which it will be necessary for the Company to provide annually by the sale of bonds or otherwise. With reference to the annexed Table the undersio-ned de- sires to say by way of exi)lanation : — (1) In estimating the amount of work which can be done advantageously on any Section in a year, it mu •it not be for- gotten that the circumstances of the country, will as a general rule, necessitate the begining the work at the end of sections and working from the ends towards the centres. From this cause it will be impossible to exceed a certain limited expen- diture in any one year upon a section without expending ca]>ital, most disadvantageously. (2) The amounts set down in the Table as the ]ii-obable amount of expenditure on each Section, are considered by the undersigned as the maxi'mii'm limit, of the possible judicious expenditure on each Section. He should state, however, that this niaximuTii limit is indeed rather exceeded in the amounts set down for the first three or four years, a« the estimate of expenditure on the works of construction East of Red River, but the object of reaching the central plains without any delay by the most direct steam communication, is deemed so important that every reasonable effort should be made to ac- complish it. It may not be possible to expend the funds estimated in each year on the line between Lake Superior and Ked Biver, but it may probal)ly be considered advisable that the progress of this particular Section, should be accelerated in every way possible and that there should be no danger of it being retarded for the want of a liberal provision of funds. (3) It is not expected that during the first or second years much work could be done by the instrumentality of land scrip, but it is confluontly hoped that after a few years a considerable portion of the whole cost could be met in that way, especially after the comphtion of the Lake Superior and Red River Section, and when the line was being carried across the fertile plains. Indeed when the road has reached this stage, it is hoped that not far short of one-half the entire cost of construction may be met by the sale of laud or the issue of land scrip. ' •kS ?;••?, Acoordiiio- to tlie linaucial sehem issue of bond s would he in the order Issue in 187:3.. .Sl,00(),()(H)...say ditto 1874 2,0()(),0()() ditto 1875 2,5()(),{)()() ditto 1870 2,75(M)0O ditto 1877 ;;,()()(),()()() ditto 1878 :3,oo(),()()() ditto 1870 3,()()(),()0() ditto 1880 8,000,000 ditto 1881 2,750,000 ditto 1882 2.500.0i.O ditto 1 88:; 2,5O0/)OO ditto 1 884 2,500,000 ditto 1 885 2,500,000 ditto 188() 2,500,000 ditto 1887 2,500,000 ditto 1 888 2,000,000 p heroin submitted, the Avhioh follows : — sterlino- £200,000. ' 400,000. 500,000. 550,000. 000,000. {)00,000. 000,000. (J00,000. 550,000. 500,000. 500,000. 500,000. 500,000. 500,000. 500,000. 400,000. Total $40,000,001) £8,000,000. The aii,'3regato issue Avill represent a loan of say £8,000,000 sterlino, and it is suo-gested that in addition to "the security of tiie Hallway itself, and all its tralhe revenues, eight millions of aries of the best average agricultural land (or one acre for each pound sterling borrowed) Ije reserved or appropriated for the puri)ose of paying oft' the bonds. This it is considered would b ' auii)le security. It is confidently believed that the land so reserved would long before the "bonds matured, be worth many times the proposed loan, and by linuting the lien on the Company's land to this aggregate area, 42,000,000 acres would be left free to be disposed of for construction foi- interest, for rcMiewals^ ind for the other purposes indicated herein. The suggestions submitted in this memoran(hnn will be found to ])oint to three objects which a})pear to the under- signed, mattej's ol' paramount impoitance, namely : — First — To keep down to the lowest minimum, the bonded debt and the other pecuniary l)urdens whicli the Comi)any will liave to carry. Second-So to i-egulate the woi-k of constructing the road, that the fund eiupjoyed for that purpose should not be wasted or misapplied, but should ])ro(luce the maximum result. fhiyd—To promote incidentally the settlement of the country, through which the line passes and in this way hasten the tnne when the road will become selt-sustainino- ^ f tr 59 In conclusion, the uiulpv«io'TiPrl J^ ^f\. • • n . •/. . incr on fhi^ m-AoV ,. " '^^*:l'^'S^ff' "< f^* opinion that if in carry- Cttaiva, February, 187;^. SANDFORD FLEMING.