332 



STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



where with a guage of one foot eleven inches, a speed of thirty miles per hour 

 has been safely maintained. The narrow guage road has been ridiculed and 

 abused by engineers and railroad men generally. It was pronounced absurd 

 Avhen first proposed, and now that facts njore than substantiate the theory, 

 they are pronounced fallacious, and we are gravely told that because it succeeed& 

 in one ])lace is no sign it will in anotlier. I projjoso to call your attention 

 merely to a few facts, and from them you can draw your own conclusions. As 

 for me, I lirnily believe tiiat the future (local freight) road of Michigan is a 

 narrow guage road. 



The following table, compiled from various sources, presents a comparison of 

 a few of the American narrow guage roads with tlie Flint & Pere Marquette 

 railroad, a road which very well represents the average standard guage road of 

 the United States : 



ROADS. 



♦Denver & Rio Grande 



♦Toronto & Kipessing 



♦Toronto, Grey & Bruce... 



♦Bingham Canyon & Camp 

 Floyd 



tToledo & South Haven 



tMincral Range 



iFestniog of Wales 



tFlint & Pere Marquette.. 



Cost per Mile. 



810,7-24 00 

 15,750 00 



18,000 00 

 fi,157 46 



31,323 48 



f S12,9-25 001 

 I original cost, j 

 -{raided b y )- 

 i onriiings tu j 

 |,S36,890 00. J 



31,118 43 



Net Earnings 

 per cent ot Cost 



Roinarks. 



.232 



.088 



.087 



r.-29>; on or-1 

 I iginal cost, | 

 -I .l'2>r on total J- 

 I CHiiit'l value, j 

 U£86,]85). J 



.042 



Unfinished Route tO' 

 the raciflc. 



Canada. 

 .052 Canada. 



Utah Territor.v. 



Earnings estnnated 

 by nnilti])lyii)g earn- 

 ings for 3 ihos. by 4. 



In mountains of Up- 

 per Peninsula. 



In mountains of Wales. 



One of our most pros- 

 ])erous local roads. 



♦Poor's Manual. 



t Michigan K. K. Report. 



J Van Nostrand's iMagazinc. 



In Norway railways of 4 feet 8^V inch and also of 3 feet G incli guage have been 

 constructed by the same engineer and worked by the same manager. The fol- 

 lowing table from Vol. VII. of Van Nostrand's Magazine shows the average of 

 six years e.xperience : 



Cost of coiistriiction por tnile 



Receipts per mile (iililie) 



Maintenance per mile 



Locomotive expense per mile 



Receipts above expenses 



Per cent of net receipts on cost . . 



Guage 3 

 feet 6 inches. 



§17,143 00 



27.G00 00 



0,.'iGr) 00 



5,7G0 00 



DiffereDce in 



favor of Narrow 



G uage. 



19,200 00 



60S 00 

 3.666 00 



Narrow Guage 



)HT cent ot 

 Wide Guuge. 



.65 



.001 



.00 



$1,001 00 

 .40 



§15,275 00 



.Oi) 



$4,274 00 



.15 per cent. 



It is to be noted that the narrow guage roail in the above table l»as a guage of 3 feet 6 inches, 

 instead of the usual 3 feet guage. 



