The Pacific Railway.

Cromwell Argus, Volume I, Issue 24, 27 April 1870, Page 7

The Pacific Railway.

The Central Pacific Railroad Company has completely rebuilt the 8000 feet—over one mile and a half-—of massive snowshedding which was destroyed by fire a few months ago. The company has considerably extended the shedding beyond the old limits, so that it now aggregates about thirty-five miles in length, and protects the track through a large part of the deep snow belt in the high sierra. The Union Pacific Company has also been erecting more defences against snow. Through the region of deepest snow-fall on that road, which is about 150 miles long, about half of the track has been fenced. A writer in the Bee says that the fences, made in part of stone wall and in part of lumber, are put back from the track 15 or 20 feet, and parallel with it, over such places as are most likely to cause drifts, the sole object being to prevent drifting of the snow by winds in excess of the average depth with which the snow ploughs can deal. If one fence is not sufficient to break the drift outside the track, another one is made farther back. The wooden fences are usually made in the form of panels, with the board-covering put on either vertical or horizontal. A part of the panels slants inwards towards the road, and a part away from it, the whole fence being usually braced. The greater part of this fencing is on the highest portion of the road, lying principally over the Black Hills. Some of it has lately been blown down for want of props.