《Around the World In 80 Days》 CHAPTER26
by Jules Verne
`From ocean to ocean,' - so say the Americans; and these four words
compose the general designation of the `great trunk line' which crosses
the entire width of the United States. The Pacific railroad is, however,
really divided into two distinct lines: the Central Pacific, between
San Francisco and Ogden, and the Union Pacific, between Ogden and Omaha.
Five main lines connect Omaha with New York.
New York and San Francisco are thus united by an uninterrupted metal
ribbon, which measures no less than three thousand seven hundred and
eighty-six miles. Between Omaha and the Pacific the railway crosses
a territory which is still infested by Indians and wild beasts, and
a large tract which the Mormons, after they were driven from Illinois
in 1845, began to colonize.
The journey from New York to San Francisco consumed, formerly, under
the most favourable conditions, at least six months. It is now accomplished
in seven days.
It was in 1862 that, in spite of the Southern Members of Congress,
who wished a more southerly route, it was decided to lay the road between
the forty-first and forty-second parallels. Ped to have no outlet. The
locomotive, its great funnel emitting a weird light, with its sharp
bell, and its cow-catcher extended like a spur, mingled its shrieks
and bellowings with the noise of torrents and cascades, and twined its
smoke among the branches of the gigantic pines.
There were few or no bridges or tunnels on the route. The railway turned
around the sides of the mountains, and did not attempt to violate nature
by taking the shortest cut from one pc Railroad is joined by several
branches Iowa, Kansas, Colorado and Oregon. On leaving Omaha, it passes
along the left bank of the Platte River as far as the junction of its
northern branch, follows its southern branch, crosses the Laramie territory
and the Wahsatch Mountains, turns the Great Salt Lake, and reaches Salt
Lake City, the Mormon capital, plunges into the Tuilla Valley, across
the American Desert, Cedar and Humboldt Mountains, the Sierra Nevada,
and descends, via Sacramento, to the Pacific - its grade, even on the
Rocky Mountains, never exceeding one hundred and twelve feet to the
mile.
Such was the road to be traversed in seven days, which would enable
Phileas Fogg - at least, so he hoped - to take the Atlantic steamer
at New York on the 11th for Liverpool.
The car which he occupied was a sort of long omnibus on eight wheels,
and with no compartments in the interior. It was supplied with two rows
of seats, perpendicular to the direction of the train on either side
of an aisle which conducted to the front and rear platforms. These platforms
were found throughout the train, and the passengers were able to pass
from one end of the train to the other. It was supplied with saloon
cars, balcony cars, restaurants and smoking cars; theatre cars alone
were wanting, and they will have these some day.
Book and news dealers, sellers of edibles, drinkables, and cigars,
who seemed to have plenty of customers, were continually circulating
in the aisles.
The train left Oakland station at six o'clock. It was already night,
cold and cheerless, the heavens being overcast with clouds which seemed
to threaten snow. The train did not proceed rapidly; counting the stoppages,
it did not run more than twenty miles an hour, which was a sufficient
speed, however, to enable it to reach Omaha within its designated time.
There was but little conversation in the car, and soon many of the
passengers were overcome with sleep. Passepartout found himself beside
the detective; but he did not talk to him. After recent events, their
relations with each other had grown somewhat cold; there could no longer
be mutual sympathy or intimacy between them. Fix's manner had not changed;
but Passepartout was very reserved, and ready to strangle his former
friend on the slightest provocation.
Snow began to fall an hour after they started, a fine snow, however,
which happily could not obstruct the train; nothing could be seen from
the windows but a vast, white sheet, against which the smoke of the
locomotive had a grayish aspect.
At eight o'clock a steward entered the car and announced that the time
for going to bed had arrived; and in a few minutes the car was transformed
into a dormitory. The backs of the seats were thrown back, bedsteads
carefully packed were rolled out by an ingenious system, berths were
suddenly improvised, and each traveller had soon at his disposition
a comfortable bed, protected from curious eyes by thick curtains. The
sheets were clean and the pillows soft. It only remained to go to bed
and sleep - which everybody did - while the train sped on across the
State of California.
The country between San Francisco and Sacramento is not very hilly.
The Central Pacific, taking Sacramento for its starting-point, extends
eastwards to meet the road from Omaha. The line from San Francisco to
Sacramento runs in a north-easterly direction, along the American River,
which empties into San Pablo Bay. The one hundred and twenty miles between
these cities were accomplished in six hours, and towards midnight, while
fast asleep, the travellers passed through Sacramento; so that they
saw nothing of that important place, the seat of the State government,
with its fine quays, its broad streets, its noble hotels, squares and
churches.
The train, on leaving Sacramento, and passing the junction, Roclin,
Auburn, and Colfax, entered the range of the Sierra Nevada. Cisco was
reached at seven in the morning; and an hour later the dormitory was
transformed into an ordinary car, and the travellers could observe the
picturesque beauties of the mountain region through which they were
steaming. The railway track wound in and out among the passes, now approaching
the mountain sides, now suspended over precipices, avoiding abrupt angles
by bold curves, plunging into narrow defiles, which seemed to have no
outlet. The locomotive, its great funnel emitting a weird light, with
its sharp bell, and its cow-catcher extended like a spur, mingled its
shrieks and bellowings with the noise of torrents and cascades, and
twined its smoke among the branches of the gigantic pines.
There were few or no bridges or tunnels on the route. The railway turned
around the sides of the mountains, and did not attempt to violate nature
by taking the shortest cut from one point to another.
The train entered the State of Nevada through the Carson valley about
nine o'clock, going always north-easterly; and at midday reached Reno,
where there was a delay of twenty minutes for breakfast.
From this point the road, running along Humboldt River, passed northward
for several miles by its banks; then it turned eastward, and kept by
the river until it reached the Humboldt Range, nearly at the extreme
eastern limit of Nevada.
Having breakfasted, Mr Fogg and his companions resumed their places
in the car, and observed the varied landscape which unfolded itself
as they passed along; the vast prairies, the mountains lining the horizon,
and the creeks with their frothy, foaming streams. Sometimes a great
herd of buffaloes, massing together in the distance, seemed like a movable
dam. These innumerable multitudes of ruminating beasts often form an
insurmountable obstacle to the passage of the trains; thousands of them
have been seen passing over the track for hours together, in compact
ranks. The locomotive is then forced to stop and wait till the road
is once more clear.
This happened, indeed, to the train in which Mr Fogg was travelling.
About twelve o'clock a troop of ten or twelve thousand head of buffalo
encumbered the track. The locomotive, slackening its speed, tried to
clear the way with its cow-catcher; but the mass of animals was too
great. The buffaloes marched along with a tranquil gait, uttering now
and then deafening bellowings. There was no use of interrupting them,
for, having taken a particular direction, nothing can moderate and change
their course; it is a torrent of living flesh which no dam could contain.
The travellers gazed on this curious spectacle from the platforms;
but Phileas Fogg, who had the most reason of all to be in a hurry, remained
in his seat, and waited philosophically until it should please the buffaloes
to get out of the way.
Passepartout was furious at the delay they occasioned, and longed to
discharge his arsenal of revolvers upon them.
`What a country!' cried he. `Mere cattle stop the trains, and go by
in a procession, just as if they were not impeding travel! Parbleu!
I should like to know if Mr Fogg foresaw this mishap in his programme!
And here's an engineer who doesn't dare to run the locomotive into this
herd of beasts!'
The engineer did not try to overcome the obstacle, and he was wise.
He would have crushed the first buffaloes, no doubt, with the cow-catcher;
but the locomotive, however powerful, would soon have been checked,
the train would inevitably have been thrown off the track, and would
then have been helpless.
The best course was to wait patiently, and regain the lost time by
greater speed when the obstacle was removed. The procession of buffaloes
lasted three full hours, and it was night before the track was clear.
The last ranks of the herd were now passing over the rails, while the
first had already disappeared below the southern horizon.
It was eight o'clock when the train passed through the defiles of the
Humboldt Range, and half-past nine when it penetrated Utah, the region
of the Great Salt Lake, the singular colony of the Mormons.
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