^ T5he Scovirge
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ofDa.meLSC\4s Bv
SYLVANUS
^ COBB. JR.
Copyrighted 18*1 by Robert Bonner's Sons.
CHAFTHK iX—(Conunueu/.
"I remember,” pursued Ulin. "It
all comes to me now. I bathed his
bruised head, and bound up his
•wounds, while you brought the cor
dial which my mother provided.”
"So it was, my lady. I have seen
the slave since—have seen him several
times—he has brought messages to
your father—and I know that his grat
itude is strong. If Osmir has any
power to open the prison door, and I
can find him, there may be some
hope.”
“But can you find him?” asked the
princess. She spoke eagerly, and no
longer sought to conceal the real cause
of her anxiety.
“I can try,” returned the attendant;
“and even here we have a fortunate
X help. Shubal. who has been so long
^ your servant, is a near friend to Os
mir. I will take ShubaJ with me. and
we may find the man we seek. Shall
* I not leave at once?”
"Yes, Albia. Go at once. Be careful,
for all may depend on the secrecy of
your movements. I have entered upon
this matter, and I will now give all
my energies to its consummation. Go
—and bring me answer as quickly as
you can.”
The bondmaidcn left the apartment,
and when I'lln was once more alone,
she started to her feet, and moved to
the window. The flush was back upon
her cheek, and the sparkle was in her
•eye. Her pure blood, was circulating
with new power, as, for the time, she
forgot the king in the memory of the
youthful chieftain.
In less than an hour Albia returned,
and the beam upon her face told very
plainly that she had not been entirely
disappointed.
“My good mistress,” she said, “Shu
bal has served us well. I found him
without difficulty, and he at once
went alone in search of Osmir. He
found him at the royal palace, pnd has
brought him hither.”
"Brought Osmir?”
“Yes.”
“And what does he say?”
“I have not spoken to him of Julian,
y' I thought you had better do that. You
w may have more influence.”
“Very well—bring him up at once.
I will shrink from nothing now."
“In a little while the tall, dark form
«*< glided within the chamber of the
princess. He bowed low as he en
tered, and when he saw the lady Ulin,
* he sank down upon his knee.
“Noble lady,” he said, “Albia In
formed me that I can be of service to
you. Once you served me, and my life
has been yours ever since. Command
me.”
At first Ulin had been startled by
the appearance of the powerful black
within her chamber; but when she re
membered the service she had done
him, and when she saw how gently
the beams of gratitude fell upon her
from his brown eyes, she regained her
confidence.
“I will not command you, Osmir; I
can only ask you to assist me. You
may be able to serve me, and you may
not be able. But I will not detain you
with useless words. You do not yet
know what r seek?”
“I do not, lady.”
“You helped to bring the robber
chieftain to Damascus.”
“Ha—who told you that?” He was
not startled with fear; but he rather
seemed to wonder how the princess
had gained the information.
“Do you know a man named Ho
baddan v
“Yes, lady. He is second in command
of the robber band.”
“He has been here, Osmir, and he
has induced me to use my influence
towards gaining freedom for his chief
tain. I may not explain to you, but
nevertheless I am willing to confess
that I do much desire to free this
Julian from the power of the king.
Can you help me?”
He bowed his head, and pretty soon
arose to his feet.
^ "Lady,” he said, “I did help in the
capture of the young chieftain; but
when I came to know him I would
rather have served him had it been in
my power. I found him a generous,
honorable man and r learned to love
him; but I was bound by an oath to
the will of Judah, and I could not dis
obey. I wish I could save him now.”
“Can you do it, Osmir? I do not
wish that the king should kill him
We thought you might have access to
► his dungeon—that you might, at some
time, be set to guard him.”
“So it is, lady; but I am not to be
on the guard again until daylight.”
“And to-morrow may be the last!”
uttered the princess, painfully. ‘Tf
you cannot help us our hope has an
end.”
Osmir moved back and leaned
against the wall, with his head upon
his hand.
“Lady,” he said, after much
thought, “I have one source of hope.
My companion, Selim—he who was
with me in the work of capture—
stands watch over the chieftain’s dun
geon at midnight. Selim may help
me. If he will, Julian may be saved.
I will hasten away at once, and exert
this only influence I possess.”
“And when can I know the result?"
asked Ulin.
“Within two hours past midnight,”
said Osmir. “That is,” he added, “if
I have any result to bring. If I do not
succeed, I may not return at all."
. "At two hours past midnight,” pur
^ sued Ulin, “Hobaddan is to be in my
garden. You ccn meet him there."
ice., ' returned tne guard, after a
moment’s reflection, “if I succeed, I
shall not fear to meet the lieutenant.
If I am not in the garden at the time
appointed, or very near that time, you
may know that I have done all that
lay in my power. Have you mpve to
say V”
“No, good Osmir. Go to the work,
and do the best you can.’’
He spoke a simple word of promise,
and then turned from the apartment,
Albia conducting him down, and guid
ing him out by a small door in the
garden wall.
“Albia,” he said, as he stood be
neath the low arch—and his tone
showed that he did not speak lightly—
"your mistress does not dream; of the
danger I must undergo in this work;
but I will be true to my promise, I will
do all I can. If Selim will not join
me, there is the end; but if he falls in
with me, then we both put our lives
at stake, and the prize may be won. I
hope we shall succeed.”
The bondmaiden watched the re
treating form until it was lost in the
darkness, and then she closed the
gate, and turned her steps back
towards the house.
CHAPTER X.
In the Dungeon.
The robber chieftain had been placed
in one of the most gloomy dungeons
beneath the royal palace, his legs and
arms loaded with chains, and his feet
shackled to a bolt in the floor. How
long he had been there he could not
tell. Night and day were the same
in the living tomb. Food and drink
had been brought to him thrice, and
a masked mute had been in to remove
the tray. He had but one hope of es
cape, and even that was so feeble that
it would not bear the entertainment.
He thought if his followers should dis
cover where he was, they might pos
sibly dare to attempt his release; but
when he came to weigh all the cir
cumstances, he dared not think they
would do it. In short, Julian had made
up his mind that death was very near
to him.
And what had he to live for? What,
but revenge upon the King of Damas
mus? He had no parents—no rela
tives—nothing on earth of his own
blood which he could claim. There
might be living in the city some hu
man being of his kin; but he did not
know ‘of such. He loved his brave
fellows; but they could do without
him. They were bold, stout men, and
could look for themselves. What else
was there? There were some poor
families in the mountains—some
friends upon the plain—and a few de
pendent ones near the river; but Ho
baddan would care for them. What
else was there?
The youthful chieftain bowed his
head, and pressed his heavily laden
hands upon his heart. There was one
more—one whom he had hoped to see
again in the coming time—one who
had left an impression in his soul
which had warmed and quickened his
whole being. But why think of her?
What could the beautiful daughter of
Aboul Cassem be to him? In a few
short days she would be the wife of
his bitterest enemy.
Thus mused the prisoner, standing
erect, with his manacled hands fold
ed upon his bosom, when he was
aroused from his reflections by the
sound of creaking bolts, and in a few
moments more the door of his dun
geon was opened, and the rays of a
lamp penetrated the place. Two men
entered, closing the door after them;
but the eyes of the chieftain were not
yet used enough to the light to dis
tinguish either their forms or features.
Presently, however, as they addressed
each other, he recognized the two
blacks who had so fatally deceived
him, and his first impulse was to raise
his heavy chains and smite them
down; but they were not near enough
to be thus reached.
“Osmir—Selim,” he said, “are you
here?”
‘ Yes, my master, replied Osmir.
“Have you come to kill me?"
“No.”
“To bear me to the king?”
“What, then? You have the watch
over me?”
“Yes,”
“And the king fears not to trust
you?”
“You see he does trust us.”
“Aye—as I trusted you. O, you are
two ungrateful villains. When you
came to me in the forest, I believed
your tale of woe, and took pity upon
you; and I meant to be kind to you,
and make your lot a pleasant one. I
looked into your faces, and I thought
you were honest. I did not trust you
from your speech, but from your hon
est looks. However, it is past. And
now what seek ye?”
“Good master,” said Osmir, speak
ing earnestly, “before I tell you why
we are now here, let me say to you
that we are not without hearts, and
that we have some store of honesty.
When we went to your camp, we went
in the service of another master, whom
we were bound to serve. We had
sworn that we would capture you tf we
could. But, sir, after we had seen you,
and known you, we would have re
canted had the thing been possible. We
ttsked Judah to free us from the task,
but he refused.”
“Why do you tell me this story
now?”
“That you may know the reason of
our action.”
“You action speaks for itself. Look
at these chains; and mark the fate to
which I am doomed.”
“I meant not the action of the past,
good master; I alluded to action that
was to come.”
“Action to come?”
“Yes. Selim and I are here to speak
of your release from this dungeon.
Hold—let our words be few. for the
time is short. We have promised that
we would lead you forth from Horam's
power if the thing were possible.”
“Promised whom?” asked Julian.
The black hesitated. He knew not
that he should use the name of the
princess, so he finally answered:
“Hobaddan is in the city, and our
promise has been sent to him. But—
there is something more. If we lead
you from this place, we do so in the
face of great danger. '' We have plan
ned for that, and have freely staked
our lives in the work. But, if we suc
ceed, and you are free, we can never
more return to Damascus. If we go
with you from this dungeon, we must
go with you from the city, and remain
with you.”
Julian believed that the black was
speaking truly and honestly.
“Certainly,” he said, "if you lead me
in safety from the bonds that now en
compass me, 1 will give you such re
turn as you may desire. You may re
main with me, if you like, or I will
give you safe conduct into the land
of the Syrians.”
"Your word is enough, my master;
and henceforth Selim and I are your
servants. We change our allegiance,
and the proof of our fidelity shall be
manifest in this first act of our serv
ice. We have dangers to meet, sir.”
“Talk not of dangers,” cried the
chieftain. “Throw off these chains;
give me a sword; and lead me to the
upper world; and I ask no more. Once
again I trust you, and if you prove
true, my gratitude shall be your while
I live?”
Without further words Osmir pro
ceeded to the work he had come to
perform. Selim held the lantern,
while he loosed the irons from Julian's
limbs; and very soon the chieftain
stepped forth witn his limbs free.
“There is no time to waste," said
Osmir, as he cast the chains upon the
floor. We have good swords at hand,
and for the rest we must trust to our
wit and strength. There is danger
enough between this dungeon and the
open air; but I am ready to meet it.”
“By the gods,” cried Julian, as he
grasped the sword which Osmir had
placed in his hand. “I can laugh at
danger now. Lead on, and let this
present hour be the last of Horam's
power!”
• (To be continued.)
HARPOONING BLUE WHALES.
The Harpoon Gun is a Cruel Instrument
of Destruction.
To pursue the blue whale success
fully is, according to an interesting
article in Pearson’s Magazine, a com
plicated undertaking. For instance,
one of the requirements is a boat that
can steam twelve knots an hour, and
which is furnished with a formidable
weapon known as the harpoon-gun.
The harpoon-gun is a ponderous piece
of apparatus laced on a raised plat
form on the prow of the whaler, and
consists of a short, stout cannon,
mounted on a broad pedestal, on which
it can rotate horizontally. The gun
has also a vertical motion, and can be
turned quickly in whatever direction
the prow of the ship dominates. On
the top of the gun are "sights” for
aiming, just as in a rifle. Behind Ls
the stock, which is grasped in the
hand when firing the gun, and be
neath it the trigger. The breech is a
box-like arrangement, situated just
where the stock is fastened to the gun
proper. The gun is loaded in the or
dinary way from the muzzle, and the
harpoon is tightly rammed into it. To
discharge the gun, a small cartridge,
with a wire attached, is first put into
the breech. Pressure on the trigge:
causes a pull on the wire, which ignites
the cartridge and discharges the gun
simultaneously. The harpoon is about
six feet in length and very massive. It
consists essentially of three parts, the
anterior conical portion, the movable
barbs, and the shaft. The anterior
conical piece is an explosive shell filled
with gunpowder, and screws on to the
rest of the harpoon. The explosive
shell is fired with a time-fuse after the
harpoon is imbedded in the whale.
Taken all in all the harpoon-gun is
about the most exquisitely cruel in
strument of destruction devised by the
ingenuity of man! But it is only
when one sees and knows the prodigi
ous brute it is meant to destroy, that
one realizes that it is nevertheless
none too• effective. The gun is never
discharged at a greater distance than
fifty feet, and seldom indeed at more
than thirty from the whale. To be
able to get so near requires not only
very fine seamanship but a very in
timate knowledge of the habits of the
animal.—Philadelphia Times.
Hug«Ht Sea Creature.
Of all the uncanny creatures In the
animal kingdom the one whose ac
quaintance is hardest to make is the
blue whale, the largest of all the
whales, and, Indeed, one of the most
colossal animals, living or extinct,
known to science. You will look in
vain for him in zoological collections,
in menageries, or even in museums. A
brute 90 feet in length and weighing
just as many tons does not lend Itself
to preservation or stuffing, and the few
skeletons of him which do exist give
one no idea of what he is like. The
blue whale is hunted by the Norwe
gians chiefly for the sake of his oil,
and is of considerable value, a full
grown specimen being worth from
$1,250 to $1,500.
NO PUBLIC SUPPORT.
TARIFF REVISION PLAN NOT IN
GENERAL FAVOR.
Advocated by Professional Free-Trade
Reformers and a (-.trotted Number of
Doubtlng-Thomaa Protectionists- - With
out a Peg to Stand On.
One point in connection with the
gossip about alleged necessity for re
vision of the tariff cannot fail to be
observed by those who are considering
the question in all its phases, and that
is that except among the professional
tariff reformers the demand is not vo
ciferously emphasized in any quarter
except where there has always been a
manifest weakness on the doctrine and
policy of protection. You look into
any section of the country where there
has always been a lame and halting
support given the cause of protection,
and you will find all the Republicans
that are to be found anywhere who
are fearful that the trust gobble’uns”
will get the people and the Republican
party if the markets of the United
States are not speedily turned over to
the foreign producers.
With these exceptions, and a few
representatives in congress who are
ready to get into the current of any
passing breeze of popular clamor,
rather than take their part in shaping
public sentiment rightly, there is ab
solutely no support for the talk about
the necessity for revising the tariff.
When the people reflect upon the re
sults of the past year, not only in do
mestic trade, but in the marvelous de
velopment of our international trade,
facts concerning which will soon be
ready for inspection, there will be a
speedy fading of the Babcock idea of
reforming trusts with the aid of for
eigners.
It is well to reflect upon the fact,
in this connection, that not a single
member of either house of congress,
who has any really close participation
in the preparation of laws bearing up
on the tariff or finance, has uttered
one word in favor of the Babcock idea.
This is significant, to say the least.
The preliminary figures furnished by
the treasury department covering the
trade of the United States with foreign
countries have been completed, and,
subject to a few changes, will stand as
representing the most remarkable year
in the experience of the nation with
international trade. One thing is dem
onstrated by the results of the last
year's business, and that is that those
who are of opinion that there should
oe a revision or the tariff must nna
the reasons for such action by the next
congress elsewhere than in the results
obtained in the field of our trade rela
tions with foreign countries. So far
as that trade is concerned the advan
tages, to whatever cause due, have
been largely with the producers of this
country. Our laws of trade have cer
tainly been promotive of the best in
terests of the country so far as inter
national trade is concerned, to a great
er degree during the past year than
during any recent year in the nation’s
life. The most significant fact is the
remarkable gain in our exports of do
mestic products. The returns to the
treasury have not yet been completed
to an extent which makes it possible
to show the relative gains of manufac
tures and farm produce in this in
creased export business, but it is in
teresting to know that during the year
ending June 30 we sent abroad com
modities to the amount of $89,000,000
worth more than were sold abroad last
year and almost double what we sold
abroad during 1895. The influence of
wisely framed laws is also Shown in
the fact that while our export trade
was growing so handsomely, we
bought in foreign countries about $28,
000,000 worth less of commodities than
we bought in the previous year, which
means that the producers of this coun
try had a wider field among our own
people for the disposition of their
products. The net foreign business
done by our people in the twelve
months just ended aggregated nearly
two and a half billion dollars, and the
striking fact which stands out in bold
relief in this connection is thgt the ag
gregate of our sales abroad exceeded
our purchase abroad by the sum of
$664,000,000. The tremendous import
ance of these figures is made clear
when it is considered that this excess
of exports over imports amounts to al
most the total aggregate import or ex
port business of the country in any
year previous to seven years ago. If
there is any comfort in these figures
for tariff revisionaries they are wel
come to it. The fact of the matter is
the trade statistics of the fiscal year
just closed leaves them without a leg
to stand on.
In this connection it is well to note
the fact that the treasury finances
were never in better shape than at
present. The total available cash bal
ance is upward of $171,000,000, and the
net amount of free gold in the treas
ury, the property of the government,
is about $60,000,000. This is a hand
some showing, considering the reduc
tions made in internal taxation, and
the V>nd purchases made by the de
partment during the past three
months.
COMPLACENT UNCLE SAM.
Well Satisfied with the Way Thing* Are
Running at Present.
“Things are rather quiet,” I re
marked to Uncle Sam as I found him
complacently resting in a hammock,
smoking a most fragrant domestic
cigar.
“Yes,” he replied, handing me a per
fecto, “and I think we are entitled to
a rest. My people never worked so
hard before in their lives, and never
made so muc’i money. They are sort
of figuring up the profits these days,
and cleaning up the factories. But they
will all get to work again pretty soon,
for orders keep pouring in for all kinds
of goods.”
“The free-traders don’t seem to be
very happy,” I said.
’No, it’s not their kind of weather,”
he remarked, with a smile, “But I
don't mind them any more than I do
these pesky flies and mosquitoes. They
are gone with a little brush.
“Did you ever notice," he added,
' that mosquitoes don’t like tobacco
smoke? Well, free-traders don’t like
smoke, either, especially the chimney
smoke of the factories. They are a
good deal like tramps. They hate work
and water and soap. By the way, did
you ever know of so few tramps as
there are this summer? Even they
seem to be working at something be
sides back doors and haylofts. What
a bleslng it is to think we are at peace
with all the world, and that every one
who wants work can get it. I’m not
much of a fellow to moralize, but I
never was quite so much impressed
with the blessings o^ a well balanced
protective tariff.”
“Do you consider the prosperity of
the farmers due to the tariff?” I asked.
“Of course I do,” replied the old gen
tleman, earnestly. "I’ll give Provi
dence credit for the continued good
crops, but what do abundants crops
amount to unless the prices are right?
And good prices are the result of the
demand for more food right here at
home. Why, my people never ate so
much in their lives as they are con
suming now. That full dinner pall is
no fairy tale, l can tell you. And the
people are eating all the meat they
want, and they don’t stint on butter
and eggs and fruits and luxuries that
they never hear of abroad. The grain
and other farm produce I sell abroad
are almost insignificant compared to
what I sell at home. I knew wpen
the Dingley law was passed that Liver
pool would not always make the price
of wheat. I’ll be selling them tea and
coffee and macaroni yet.”
“But, Uncle Sam,” I interrupted,
“the free-traders keep telling us that
we cannot keep on selling abroad if we
do not buy more.”
“Don’t worry about that, my boy.
Look at the figures. Those free-traders
either don't know what they are talk
ing about, or else they’re training to
beat Ananias. Those foreigners have
got to buy of me whether I buy the
same amount of them or not. If they
can’t pay in full, I’ll charge it and col
lect the interest at 3 or 4 per cent. I’ll
allow they can't keep on forever buy
ing more than they sell, but when they
get broke, why, perhaps they’ll want
to be annexed. Guess Old Glory can
cover them all. Have another cigar
and a little julep.”
And the old man laughed as heartily
as a farmer at the circus. F. C.
TRADE S RISING THERMOMETER.
Would It Pay?
The New York World is still harp
ing on the old free-trade string—viz.,
that, if we want foreign nations to buy
from us, we must buy from them; that,
in other words, we ought, in order to
retain our foreign trade, to throw open
the American market to foreign manu
facturers. Without bothering, for the
time being, to discuss the merits of the
question exhaustively, we would like
to ask the World if it would not be just
as well not to.get so excited about the
matter until foreign nations begin to
show at least some little evidence that
they are about to withdraw their trade
from us. Just at present there are no
signs which seem to point to that
course of action on their part. Our
foreign trade Is not falling off alarm
ingly. On the contrary, it is still on
the increase. When It begins to de
cline, it will be time enough to take
up the question as to whether it will
pay us to exchange for our foreign
market the market worth fifty times as
much which we have at home.
How Free Trade Would Work.
The only way that free trade would
serve to prevent the tariff war that
may be threatened would be that it
would probably so cripple our Indus
trie^ that they would no longer be
dangerous competitors in foreign coun
tries. The question of the protective
tariff does not enter into the equation
only In so far as It has built up the
Industries that are now enabled to
compete successfully with the manu
facturers of the other countries on
their own grounds.—Helena (Mont.)
Record.
Railroad Receivership.
According to the Railroad Age rail
road receiverships dwindled to three
small roads with only about sixty
miles of track during the past hall
year. Tljis is the greatest height to
which we have attained in railroad
solvency. Monkey with the tariff and
that record will soon go back to the
more than 100 receiverships of '94, ’95
and '96.
UNIQUE UNION PACIFIC EXCURSION.
The Delightful Scenery Afforded by a
Trolley Ride Across the Rockies.
‘A unique excursion was recently ar
ranged by the Union Pacific Railroad
company. About sixty newspaper
men, representing the leading metro
politan journals of the country, were
invited to meet at the Brown Palace
hotel, Denver, Colo., for a trip on the
Wyoming division, "The Overland
Route,” for the purpose of viewing the
stupendous engineering achievements
recently made on that line.
The train was made up of two pri
vate cars, three Pullman palace sleep
ers, a dining car, drawn by one of the
new compound engines, with an obser
vation car—constructed on the same
plan as a trolley Car—ahead of the
engine. »
No more striking example is afford
ed of the progress of today than the
stupendous undertaking of the Union
Pacific.
One hundred and fifty-eight and
four-tenths miles of new track laid,
reducing the mileage between Omaha
and Ogden by 30.47 miles, and reduc
ing gradients which varied from 45.4
to 97.68 feet to the mile to a maxi
mum of 43.3 feet, and curves from 6
to 4 degrees, while a great deal of bad
curvature has been eliminated en
tirely,
A mountain removed and lost Into
a chasm; huge holes bored hundreds
of feet through solid granite; an under
ground river encountered and over
come; an army of men, with all sorts
of mechanical aids, engaged in the
work for nearly a year; the great Un
ion Pacific track between Omaha and
Ogden made shorter, heavy grades
eliminated, old scenery changed for
new, end the business of the gTeat
Cvrv'and route flowing through a new
channel, without the slightest inter
ruption.
Millions of money have been spent
to reduce the grades and shorten the
distance.
This reduction is the result of
straightening unnecessary curves, and
the construction of several cutoffs be
tween Buford and Bear river, Utah.
Buford is on the eastern slope of the
Black Hills, 545 miles west of Coun
cil Bluffs and twenty-seven miles west
of Cheyenne. The cutofTs required the
construction of 158 miles, of which
29.63 miles are between Buford and
Laramie, 15.34 miles uuween Howell
and Hutton, saving 3.11 miles; 3.9
miles on the Laramie plains between
Cooper’s Lake and Lookout, saving .38
of a mile; 25.94 miles between Look
cut and Mad vine Bow, 3iill further
west, saving 12.03 miles; 815 miles
between Allen Junction and Dana, sav
ing 3.87 miles; 42.83 miles between
Rawlins and Tipton, saving 1.44
miles; 10.64 miles between Green River
and Bryan, saving .45 of a mile, and
21.56 miles between Leroy and Bear
River, saving 9.56 miles.
The curvature saved is about one
half, the grading about the same,
while the angles are reduced nearly
two-thirds.
The superiority of these changes is
apparent to the practical railroad en
gineer. It is also apparent to the op
erating department in the reduction in
operating expenses, and to the trav
eler in the increased speed the trains
can make. The change in alignment
of the line is marked. West of Bu
ford the track ran northwestward to
the Ames monument, near Sherman,
and then took a sharp turn to the
southwest over Dale creek, crossing
it by a bridge 135 feet high—an ele
vation trying to the nerves—and from
thence due north to Laramie. The
new line runs due west from Buford,
avoiding the high huls and eighty
eight-foot grade from Cheyenne, and
piercing through cuts and the big tun
nel, crosses the Black Hills at a grade
of less than one-half 143.3 feet) over
mountain altitudes. From Leroy the
country is literally a coal bed. Here
the new line makes another reduction
and enters the Bear river valley on an
easy grade.
From a constructive standpoint Tne
line is remarkable for the amount of
material required in the construction
of immense embankments and the
building of large tunnels through
solid rock. The construction of the
new line between Buford and Laramie
alone has involved the excavation of
500,000 cubic yards of material, one
third of which (exclusive of the tunnel
excavation) has been solid rock, or
something over 160,000 cubic yards per
mile.
Home or tne embankments or tne
new roadbed have been remarkable
for their height and the large quan
tities of material to construct the
same over seemingly short distances.
The two most difficult embankments
were at Dale creek, southwest of Sher
man, and across the Sherman branch
of the Done Tree creek, southeast of
Sherman. The embankment at the
crossing of Dale creek is 120 feet
high, 900 feet long, and Involved the
handling of 500,000 cubic yards. At
the crossing of the Sherman branch
of Lone Tree creek the embankment
is 125 feet high at its point of great
est heighth and involved the handling
of over 290,000 cubic yards.
Too much credit for this work can
not be given to Horace G. Burt, pres
ident of the Union Pacific railroad,
for boldness of conception of these im
provements; for ability to convince
the company of the wisdom of the out
lay, and following the necessary ap
propriation by the company, for the
execution of the work in a phenome
nally short time. Deputizing his lieu
tenants, Mr. E. Dickinson, general
manager, and Mr. J. B. Berry, chief
engineer, to commence and complete
the work, under their direction the
contractors assembled a large army of
laborers and gathered a vast array of
modern, machinery, much of which
was used for the first time in railroad
building. Thus, without stopping for
a day the ceaseless flow of an enor
mous traffic, the Union Pacific offi
cials in less than two years completed
a great work which ordinarily would
have required five years.
The excursion was replete with
many interesting incidents, and the
splendid hospitality of the Union Pa
cific officials was a revelation. The
newspaper men evinced nieir appre
ciation in many ways, particularly in
a resolution of thanks to the Union
Pacific officials while the train was
stopping near the Devil’s Slide in pic
turesque Weber canyon.