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MAKING THE WORLD S VI ALLER
The plan of building a railroad across
the Sahara Desert is being pushed by sev
eral of the leading engineers of France.
Several routes are under discussion. M.
roureau, of the Pans Geographical ."so
ciety, who has recently returned from an
African expedition, -has gone so-far as to
explore and survey one line of the pro
posed road. The- enterprise embraces
over 3000 miles of tracklayiiig. it will be I
necessary tn-procecc the roadbed against
sand storms and mn iog dunes. ' 'he
route passes through the territory of many
savage tribes, bitter foes of every white
enterprise. The proposed routes are all
planned to cross oue or more of the oases.
Such a road would be of great importance
in developing Ountr.al fries. It is not gen
erally realised to. at Mr. Cecil Rhodes'
.railroad, which is to connect Capetown
with Cairo, is already complete for one-
third of the dis>a>ice. His telegraph has
reached Central Africa.
ine twentieth ceuruiy . will . po-sinly
witness the Completion of a coctiiious rail
way line through the United States, Cen
tral and South America. A number of
roads are . at present in operation which
will be connected' and " extended. The
qilan of connect ing Cape i-iorne with the ;
United Stat- s in this way is practical, and j
merely awaits greater commercial inter
ests to set it in motion.
There are several projected railways,
much nearer realisation, for connecting the
United States in this way with Alaska,
which would thus place the entire western
coast .line of two continents inclose com
munication. It is within the range of en
gineering possibilities that, with the ex
ception of a ferry at Behring Strait, it
may some day Be possible te travel by rail
from Cape H orn to Capetown. .
The twentieth century may witness the
construction of the long.talked.of bridge or
tunnel connecting England with the .Con
tinent of Europe. Both plans have been
pronounced entirely practicable by expert
engineers, but have been- held ; up for
four nf nnliHital AAmnlifiktinna. Thn nnuin
telephone meanwhie is assured. . We may
expect to talk with America within five
years. The canal connecting the Atlan
tic and Pacific in Nicaragua will doubt
less be realised early in the twentieth
penury.
The great Siberian railroad is even now
a reality. Within a few years the road
wUl doubtless be extended to Port Arthur,
and probably ,,'into 'China. The - privi
leges which will probably soon - be given
by-China; for railroad construction -will
make it possible within a few years to
travel by rail oontinqouriy from Paria to
the Ohippae coaat,
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