14 
INDIANOLA 
ty. Should one of the contemplated railroads to the 
Pacific be extended west from San Antonio, with its 
terminus here, Indianola will rank second only to New 
Orleans among the cities of the gulf in commerce and 
population. 
The necessity of giving early employment to the 
large corps of engineers attached to the Commission, 
in the duties which appertained to their profession, 
induced me, among other reasons, to make an examina- 
tion of the country between Indianola and our place of 
destination on the Rio Grande, in order to ascertain the 
facilities it afforded for a railroad. With this view I 
caused a party to be organized to make a chain and 
compass survey, and to carry a line of levels to deter- 
mine a profile of the route from this point to El Paso 
del Norte. The eyes of the South had long been di- 
rected this way ; for whether there might be a more 
practicable route or not further north, it was a question 
of great importance to the southern section of the 
Union, that all the information possible, should be ob- 
tained with reference to the country we were about to 
traverse, and its practicability for the purpose of a rail- 
road. 
The various engineers, surveyors, and assistants, 
were desirous to enter on active duty as soon as possi- 
ble, and received with great satisfaction the order to 
commence their labors in a field comparatively un- 
known. 
Lieutenant A. W. Whipple, of the Topographical 
Engineers, was placed at the head of the party, and 
performed the astronomical duties; while Mr. John 
Bull was the principal surveyor, in charge of this de- 
