RAILWAYS AND THEIR ROUTES
GUATEMALA has more miles of railway than all the other Central American
republics together. And yet there are not more than half enough to
properly develop the country. There are still a number of important
cities and large agricultural districts which have no rail communication
with either the coast or the rest of the republic. Nothing will
contribute more to the prosperity and peace of the country than an
extension of the existing lines into even the most remote sections.
The larger cities are all situated at some distance from the coast and
several of them at an altitude of more than a mile in the mountains.
Communication with the coast and rest of the country is over long,
narrow and rough trails. The transportation of commerce is slow and
expensive and requires thousands of cargadors, mules and the patient
burros. Furthermore, the very isolation of the people and difficulty of
communication keeps them aloof from modern progress, and leaves them
content with things as they are, and with no ambition for anything more
advanced or better than was enjoyed by their forefathers. The Indians
rather look with distrust upon the encroaching iron highways as they
fear they will interfere with their employment. Their opposition,
however, is a mild one and contents itself with looking on at the
advancing track in an idle and listless way. They aid in the
construction work when the mood is upon them, or they are compelled to
by the authorities; at other times they refuse, and the question of
steady and satisfactory labour is sometimes a hard one to solve by the
railroad contractor.
The building of railroads has been encouraged by the present government
both by liberal concessions and the granting of subsidies, and about two
hundred miles have been constructed since Cabrera became President.
Several other concessions have been granted but the government has not
been in a position to meet the payments promised, so that the projects
have been held in abeyance. It is absolutely necessary for the
government to meet a fair proportion of the construction expense,
otherwise railroad building would not be a profitable undertaking
because of the undeveloped condition of the country.
The greatest undertaking before the country at the present time is the
Pan American Railway of which little has been heard in the United States
until recently, and a great many think that it is merely an idle dream.
These people may be surprised to learn that it will soon be an
accomplished fact so far as the North American continent is concerned. A
railroad by that name has just been completed from San Geronimo, on the
Tehuantepec National Railroad, in Mexico, to the Guatemala frontier, a
distance of about three hundred miles. More than this, the road is
already in operation and regular through trains are running to
Tapachula, only a few miles from the boundary of Guatemala. As soon as
the Occidental Railway of Guatemala is extended about thirty miles from
Retalhuleu to connect with the Mexican line at the border, there will be
an all-rail line from Canada and the United States to Guatemala City. A
concession has already been granted for this line and it will be built
at once by the same people who have just completed the Mexican portion
of this scheme so successfully. The present line from Retalhuleu to
Escuintla, about eighty miles, will become a part of the through
connecting system that will be extended at least to Panama, if not
beyond. This much is a certainty, and that it will be completed within a
very few years is my prediction. Through trains will not be a
possibility, however, unless the Guatemala and other Central American
lines are broadened to standard gauge, for at present all the Central
American lines in operation and in construction are built of narrow
gauge width. The Mexican connecting lines are all of standard gauge
construction.
A survey was made a few years ago from Oaxaca, Mexico, to the
northernmost railroad connection in the Argentine Republic, and all of
the Spanish-American republics are looking forward to the completion of
this great scheme at some day in the future. Its construction to Panama
would, I believe, be of great assistance in preserving peace and in
engendering a better feeling between the states of Central America, as
it would facilitate commerce among them and would give them one common
interest. At present there is no railroad in any of the republics that
reaches the boundary of any other, so that communication is generally by
sea and through the ports.
The Occidental Railway starts at the important port of Champerico and,
with the Guatemala Central, forms a through line to the capital city. It
has been in operation for several years and has aided very much in the
development of this section of the country. The first city touched by it
on the way to the capital is Retalhuleu, the capital of a department and
one of the principal cities of the republic, which boasts a population
of twelve thousand inhabitants. The buildings are nearly all
one-storied, and the streets are narrow and ill-paved. The sidewalks are
scarcely wide enough for two people to walk abreast. Door-steps and
window-sills project beyond the houses to such an extent that walking
abroad at night is rather dangerous. It has an elevation of nearly a
thousand feet above sea level so that its temperature is much better
than on the coast. It is now one of the principal shipping points of the
coffee for which this region is famous, and quite a number of Germans
are engaged in that business in the city. There are no manufacturing
industries outside of the small plants needed for local wants.
[Illustration: From the Bulletin of the International Bureau of American
Republics. A SCENE ALONG THE OCCIDENTAL RAILWAY.]
The road passes through many coffee _fincas_, or plantations, after
passing a small junction point, Mulua. From this place a branch line
runs to San Felipe, within about twenty-five miles of Quezaltenango,
which city for a long time was in control of the coffee market of the
country and the second city in the republic. The earthquake of 1902 not
only ruined that city but destroyed many a fine coffee plantation. It
lies in a basin surrounded by hills nearly a mile and a half above sea
level and is shadowed by the volcano Santa Maria. Before disaster
overtook it, the city housed a population of twenty-five thousand
people. It has always been noted as one of the strongest centres of the
priestly power—at least second only to the capital. The road to
Quezaltenango in the rainy season is almost impassable. Take one of our
country lanes, cut ditches across it, dig deep pits in it, throw some
big stones in the centre of it, and run a few streams across it, and you
have a fair sample of what this road is when the rains are beating upon
it each day. A concession has been granted to complete this branch to
Quezaltenango, and it is an improvement much needed. The completion of
the line is promised in the near future by the government.
A number of towns of more or less importance are reached by the
railroad. With the exception of Mazatenango, a town of about the size of
Retalhuleu, and Patulul, they are all sleepy looking places where the
hungry-looking dogs and buzzards are the only creatures that seem to be
busy or even looking for something to do. It is a good thing for these
places that these scavengers do keep busy, for they are the only health
officers in commission, and they have no human assistants. The most of
the dogs are not fed in order to encourage them to forage for a living,
and the number of thin, cadaverous-looking dogs wandering around and
searching for a chance to fill a great aching void in their interior
anatomy is truly astonishing and equals Constantinople. Bernal Diaz, the
historian of the conquest, says the natives used to raise a certain
species of dog that never barked and was very good eating and the flesh
of which was sold in the market.
[Illustration: A WATERFALL NEAR ESCUINTLA.]
At Escuintla the Occidental Railway connects with the Guatemala Central,
which runs from San Jose, the principal port, to the capital. This city
seems destined to be the railway centre of the country for here the Pan
American railroad will cross the interoceanic line. At present it is a
much less important city than formerly, when it was the headquarters of
the dealers in the coffee, indigo, and the cochineal trade. Aniline dyes
have taken the place of the old dyes, other towns have shared its
importance as a coffee centre and the town is said to be only a ghost of
its former self. It is, however, still an ideal, lazy, tropical town
where the greater part of the twelve thousand inhabitants take life
easy. The narrow, cobbled streets are bordered by dismal-looking adobe
huts, and palms line the Avenue of San Luis which were ancient when the
oldest inhabitant was a youth.
In the winter time Escuintla is a resort for the inhabitants of the
capital who come here for the hot baths and a warmer climate, for the
elevation is only about three hundred feet above sea level. In the
summer the temperature at midday is decidedly hot and even animals seek
the shade. The large-leaved plants fold up until about three o’clock,
when the rain begins first with a few large drops. A torrent then
follows which ceases as suddenly as it began, when a new life appears,
the plants open, and the roses are again fresh and fragrant. The Indian
women of Escuintla are quite attractive and will draw the attention of
an American as they walk along the street balancing jars of water
holding from three to five gallons on their heads. They are well
developed and naturally graceful and wear many coral necklaces or
bangles of small silver coins. From ten to thirty they are in their
prime and at forty they are old women.
The Central railway was built by C. P. Huntington and his associates,
and is the oldest and, for a long time, was the only railroad in the
country. It is about seventy-five miles in length and is a
well-constructed road. The most of the traffic from the capital and
interior to the Pacific passes over this line to its port, San Jose,
which is very similar in its facilities to Champerico.
[Illustration: SAN JOSE, THE PORT OF GUATEMALA CITY.]
This road, in connection with the Guatemala Northern, completed a year
ago, makes the third interoceanic railway south of our own borders, the
other two being the Tehuantepec National, in Mexico, and the Panama
railroad. Another road will soon be completed in Costa Rica, so it is
claimed. Over the Guatemala Northern Railroad it is now possible to
travel from Guatemala City to Puerto Barrios, the principal Gulf port,
by rail. This road was the dream of President Rufino Barrios a quarter
of a century ago, as he had already at that time granted a concession
for its construction. The first spike was driven in 1892 and two years
later the line was opened as far as El Rancho, a distance of one hundred
and twenty-nine miles, while the entire distance from port to capital is
nearly two hundred miles. The government finances running low by that
time, it was leased to a private company who operated it for revenue
only. It was not a bonanza for the operators even when they used all the
income for profit and operating expenses without placing any of it back
in the road. The difficulties in the operation of a railroad in a
tropical country are many and they were all encountered here. The ties
soon decayed, and in the rainy season the streams became raging torrents
which washed away bridges and the tracks along their banks. The rolling
stock was likewise neglected and in a few years the road was practically
abandoned. Furthermore, the road being without a good terminus, the
freight offered for transportation was relatively small.
Only one train each week to connect with the mail steamers was run for
several years. Finally, in 1902, the government took up the project with
renewed vigour and secured the services of Sir William Van Horne, the
man who made possible the Canadian Pacific transcontinental line, and
later built the Cuban railways. Hundreds of men were placed at work
reconstructing the road, building new bridges and completing the gap to
the capital of about seventy miles. This last extension was within the
mountain ranges and required some remarkable engineering feats. There
are many tunnels and cuts through solid rock and the longest stretch of
straight track is less than a mile. This last section was finally opened
for traffic on the 19th of January, 1908, and imposing ceremonies were
begun that day which continued throughout the entire week. President
Cabrera and his cabinet, and the diplomatic corps took part in the
ceremonies, and were passengers on the first through passenger train
which was run from the capital to the Gulf on that date. The dream of
several presidents and the despair of many engineers has at last become
a reality, and another ocean-to-ocean line has been thrown open for the
world’s commerce.
[Illustration: THE WEEKLY TRAIN ON THE GUATEMALA NORTHERN.]
There are no large towns along the line of the Guatemala Northern.
Zacapa, a town of about 10,000 inhabitants, is the largest place and
contains the railroad shops and offices. From this city it is the
ultimate intention to build a branch to San Salvador, the only Central
American republic with no Atlantic seaport, and give that republic an
opening to the Gulf of Mexico and the near ports of the United States.
The first rails for this very feasible project have already been laid
and this important line will be of great advantage to American
merchants. It is said that the road will be built without delay and I
sincerely hope that such will be the case. That word _mañana_
(to-morrow), however, cuts a very important figure in affairs in this
part of the world, and money is not always as plentiful as desired.
After leaving Gualan, the next place of importance, the road plunges
into the denser tropics, where forests of the graceful bamboo, and the
palms which are the personification of grace and beauty, alternate with
plains fit for grazing. Ferns, tall canes, and the lianes predominate in
vegetation, while birds with strange voices, insects with equally
strange shapes and noisy lizards become the visible life of the jungle.
The road follows near the Montagua River with its ever-varying shores,
where much trouble has been experienced during the rainy season. The
large bridge across this stream has been torn away twice during the
rainy season, and, in a number of places, the track has been washed away
or has slipped into the stream a number of times. Every few miles there
are section houses for the accommodation of the track employees built in
the sombre forest. The management found it almost impossible to get the
Indians to work in these tropical swamps. Hundreds of southern negroes
had been brought over, being lured by the promise of $1.50 per day, in
gold, and their board. Most of them would leave by the first boat if
they had money enough to get back or could work their passage across. A
party of twenty-two had just come over on the boat that took me away and
a more dejected lot of “cullud gemmen” I never saw, for they had already
heard of the life that was in store for them, and they were trying to
devise ways and means for their return to “God’s Country,” as one of
them called it.
Puerto Barrios, the terminus of this railroad, will be the great
distributing centre not alone for Guatemala, but also for San Salvador,
which is the smallest but most densely populated of the Central American
republics. It is only a four days’ journey from New Orleans and Mobile
with the present service, and the nine hundred miles of water could be
covered in two and one-half to three days easily. At present it takes
fifteen to eighteen days from New York to Guatemala City, via Panama,
and nearly as long by the monthly steamer from that city to Puerto
Barrios. The steamers from San Francisco to San Jose consume almost an
equal amount of time. With proper service Guatemala City could be
reached in four days from New Orleans, which would certainly give the
United States a great advantage over any European country in the
commerce of the future. The distance by rail from the Atlantic to the
Pacific, or from Puerto Barrios to San Jose, is two hundred and seventy
miles. The opening of the railway will also reduce to an appreciable
extent the freight charges which hitherto have been heavy because it was
necessary to transport everything on mule back for seventy miles.
At the present time the real Puerto Barrios consists of a single row of
lazy, steep-roofed, palm-thatched, native huts, that spring from the
very water’s edge. There are four large wooden buildings which shelter
the customs officials, local garrison, commandante and officers of the
transportation company. There is also a very creditable hotel. The port
officers strut around in their gay uniforms and make a very close
examination of both incoming and outgoing baggage. Though the population
is not numerous, the languages are many, and one can hear Spanish,
German, French, English, the sibilant Chinese, and the unintelligible
gibberish of the Carib.
[Illustration: A BELLE OF PUERTO BARRIOS.]
In addition to the lines already enumerated there is a road about twenty
miles in length running from the Pacific port of Ocos inland and which
will reach the projected Pan American railway. There is another short
road extending from Panzos, at the head of navigation on the Polochic
River to Pancajche, a distance of about twenty-eight miles. This road
was intended to be built to Coban, a city of twenty-five thousand
people, and the largest city on the Gulf side of the mountains. It is an
old place founded soon after the conquest, that has been prosperous in
times past but is probably no larger now than a half century ago. It is
also in a rich coffee section which furnishes the bulk of the commerce
from there.
There should be a railroad from Coban to the capital. At present it
takes as long to cover the intervening distance of one hundred and
twenty-five miles as to travel from Chicago to San Francisco on the
overland flyers. There are also several important and fair-sized cities,
such as Huehuetenango, Totonicapan and Santa Cruz del Quiché, in the
mountains which have no railway communication and where such an
enterprise would be welcomed. Nothing is more needed and no improvement
will aid more in developing the country than new railroads connecting
these cities with the outside world.
The engineers and conductors on all the Central American roads are
almost exclusively Americans—many of them, as I learned, having been
discharged from American roads for various offences. Some of them
gravitate that way by a succession of steps on Mexican roads. It is,
nevertheless, a satisfaction to an American travelling there for he has
some one to talk to in his favourite language. There is only one train a
day on any of the roads, and that a mixed passenger and freight, and the
speed is never great enough to alarm the timid traveller.
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