THE SIBERIAN TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD 



By Genkral A. W. Ghkkly, 

 Chief Signal Officer, United Stales A rnu/ 



Recent advices from tlie East point to tlic early completion of 

 the great Siberian railroad, which will be the next strong link 

 to bind indissolul)ly together the commercial interests of the 

 world. It therefore seems an opportune moment to present to 

 tiie readers of The National Geographic Ma(;azi.\e a resum^ of 

 the advices lately forwarded to the Dej)artment of State by our 

 consular officials, Messrs Karel, Monaghan, and Steplian. 



The Russian budget for 1897 assigns 65,000,000 rubles to the 

 continuation of the Trans-Siberian railway, and its opening will 

 be an event scarcely less important than tlie completion of the 

 Suez canal. Five thousand miles of steel rails have been laid 

 already at a cost of 350,000,000 rubles, and in 1898 trains are 

 to run to the Amur river. Passengers, post parcels, and freight 

 will be pushed on by fast steamer to Chaborowka, and thence 

 over the South Russian section of the Siberian road to Vladivos- 

 tok, making the distance from London to the Japan sea in 17 i 

 days. After the first few years, when high rates <4' speed across 

 Siberia are attainable, the trip will be made in nine days. 



Travelers to and from the East will prefer to make the journey 

 in eleven days overland to making it, as now, over seas in tliirty 

 days. Tickets from Warsaw to Vladivostok are to cost only 120 

 rubles, first class ; from London to Warsaw costs now 150 marks 

 (S35.70). The ticket from London to Vladivostok is to cost 

 about 500 marks ($119), first class ; second class is to cost con- 

 siderably less. A ticket to Japan today via Brindisi and Suez 

 costs 1,800 marks ($428). 



That the world is so soon to enjoy trans- Asiatic travel is due 

 to the energetic and successful negotiaticms of Russian diplomats 

 witli the Chinese government. At the beginning of the work 

 the Trans-Baikal and Amur section was i)lanned to extend 

 from Chita, through Sretensk, to Pokrovskaia; thence aK)ng the 

 river Amur to Khabarovsk to join the Ussuri railroad, running 

 south to Vladivostok. The construction of this line involved 

 such technical ditliculties as would greatly increa.se the ost of 



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