Monday, October 2, 1905 The Globe (Toronto) Page 1

Its own at last Brantford gets.

Telephone city now on Grand Trunk main line.

A splendid celebration.

The prediction made by General Manager Hays.

Thinks that in the next ten years there will be more miles of railway built in Canada then in past quarter century.

(Special Despatch to The Globe)

Brantford, 1905-10-01.—Because fifty years to some residents of Brantford insisted on receiving a price that was considered unreasonably high for their property along the route that had been surveyed for the old Great Western Railway, changes were made in the location of that line that placed the city completely out in the cold. Ever since it has been side-tracked by the Grand Trunk Railway, which took over the Great Western, and is has achieved its splendid position to-day in the list of Canadian manufacturing centres in spite of great difficulties, not the least of which has been poor railway accommodation. Now that is has a population of about 20,000 and industries which have a total yearly output of over $11,000,000 in value and which pay out over $2,100,000 annually in wages, all owing to the indomitable pluck and enterprise of its business men, it has compelled the consideration of the railway authorities and has come into its own at last.

Brantford is now on the Grand Trunk main line from Detroit to Suspension Bridge. It has been placed there at a cost of nearly three-quarters of a million dollars. The first trains on that line passed through the Telephone City on Saturday [1905-09-30], and the occasion was marked by one of the biggest celebrations ever seen in the city. General Manager Hays conducted the official opening in the presence of a large number of distinguished visitors from sister cities and thousands of delighted citizens. There was general jubilation, with all the accessories befitting the occasion.

In the course of the speeches that were delivered, predicting for Brantford greatly increased prosperity as the result of the change, two statements by Mr. Hays were regarded as most significant. After confirming Sir Wilfrid Laurier's assertion that two transcontinental lines would in a short time be inadequate to take care of the business of the great west of Canada, he prophesied that in the next ten years in the Dominion there would be a greater mileage of new railways constructed than in the least 25 years.

The new route.

The old main line of the G. T. R., as everybody knows, used to pass through Harrisburg and St. George to Paris. Now the main line will describe an arc to the south, taking in Brantford and rejoining the old line at Paris. A new track has been constructed from Lynden, the first station east of Harrisburg, four and a half miles to a point on the Harrisburg-Brantford line, thence on the latter the main line runs another four and a half miles to the city. The old Buffalo and Goderich line has been double-tracked and the grades lowered as far as Paris, where the former main line is rejoined. The reducing of the heavy grades on the latter track was done at considerable cost, and the necessary raising of the big bridge at Paris required an expenditure of about $200,000. The new main line is three and a half miles longer than the old.

The passing of Harrisburg.

All the passenger trains both ways will be run through Brantford in future, and the business men of that city, who, to use the characteristic remark of Mr. C.N. Heyd, ex-M.P., have "wasted years of their lives in waiting at Harrisburg for connections," have said good-bye to that point forever. There have been intermittent negotiations between the Brantford authorities and the G.T.R. officials extending over a quarter of a century, but it was not until the advent of the Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo Railway in 1895 that the city obtained the favorable ear of the company. Two years ago the negotiations were brought to a successful isue, and the ratepayers of Brantford passed a by-law of $57,000 to assist the company in making the change. Nearly the whole of that sum has been spent on the new station, which is one of the most complete and certainly one of the prettiest in Canada. It is built of vitrified brick, and the interior has been decorated with unusually good taste.

A special train, freely decorated with bunting, left Toronto a 1 o'clock on Saturday carrying Mayor Urquhart and a number of prominent citizens and newspaper men. The private car of Superintendent Brownless was attached to the train, and all of the high officials of the line in this district and many from Montréal were included in the party [illegible] Hamilton Mr. Carseallen, [illegible] headed a delegation from that city.

At Harrisburg the train was [illegible] a reception committee from Brantford. Here there was an amusing incident [illegible] by the Brantford representatives [illegible] whole party sang "Auld Lang Syne" [illegible] in the future only the "hog [illegible]" pass that way. When [illegible] the train special [illegible] the new main line [illegible] southeast to Brantford [illegible] to the [illegible] the officials.

Guns [illegible—Boom].

The [illegible] at [illegible]

special from Buffalo containing Mr. C.M. Hays and other officials and guests. The arrival of these trains was the signal for all the factory whistles and church beels in the city to be set going. A salute of twenty-one guns were also fired, the boom of which was heard in between the gigantic cheers of the five thousand people who had assembled to witness the ceremony. The officials and guests proceeded to a raised platform that had been erected on the lawn in the station yard, and here the formal opening took place.

Formally declared open.

Mayor Waterous in opening the proceedings, said that, with the remarkable growth of the industries of the city and the necessity for rapid communication with all parts of Canada, the change just completed had become imperative. No longer would Brantford have to do business on a back street; they would be on the front street, an occupying premises second to none probably on the continent.

Mr. C. M. Hays was glad to be present on this auspicious Brantford day. It might not be improper to refer to the lines of that old hymm: "This is the wasy we long have sought and mourned because we found it not." Why Brantford should have remained so long a town on a branch of the G.T.R. it was difficult to say, but the change have taken place at last. Yesterday they were a town on a branchline; to-day they were a city on the through line of the G.T.R. System. Applause.) With that advance he trusted they were all appreciative of the fact that they had taken over larger and advanced responsibilities. They had joined the sisterhood of active cities—London, Hamilton and Toronto—and must now place themselves in the ranks with them and be prepared to emulate them in their progressiveness. He believed they were able to hold their own with these other cities, and they would certainly not be handicapped by lack of railway facilities. The G.T.R. management would watch with some interest the returns from traffic as the result of the large expenditure of money that had been made. He believed they would not be disappointed. "It is with the greatest hope for your future progress and prosperity that I now declare the main line via Brantford and this new passenger open to through traffic." concluded Mr. Hays, amid applause.

Provincial Secretary Hanna, in a brief humorous speech, expressed surprise that he had not been presented with an address congratulating the Government to which he belonged for having brought about in a few months this magnificent change in Brantford's railway situation, while they had been side-tracked for thirty-two years under the previous Administration. (Laughter.) "In the past the people of the east and west have been giving you the go-by; now you will have the new experience of having these same people going through you, and it will be interesting to see which you enjoy most. Mr. Hays has declared the new line open; I declare it wide open and going some." (Laughter and applause.)

Mayor Urquhart of Toronto said this was but one of the marks of the growing time. He offered the congratulations of Toronto. Toronto was prosperous, and it was glad to know that the towns and cities throughout Ontario were prosperous, too.

The proceedings closed with cheers for the Grand Trunk, having lasted but twenty minutes.

City of factories and homes.

Immediately afterwards the couple of hundred guests were taken for a drive around the city, during which they were shown the magnificent factories that are to be found in every direction. A fact that was impressed upon them during the tour was the large number of prerty detached and semi-detached dwellings occupied by artisans, and in the majority of cases owned by their occupants.

After the drive guests and citizens to the number of about 400 sat down to luncheon in Wyekliffe hall, at which Mayor Waterous presided. The luncheon was provided by the ladies of Brantford and the ten long tables were waited upon by them most promptly and effeciently. A number of toasts were proposed and responded to by Hon. James Young of Galt, Mr. Robert Henry, ex-M.P., Mr. T.H. Preston, M.P.P., Mr. C.M. Hays, Mr. E. Fisher of the T., H. & B.; Mr. John Muir, President of the Brantford Board of Trade; Mr. Henry Carscallen, M.P.P.; Mr. F.D. Reville, Rev. J.A. MacDonald of The Globe and Mayor Urquhart.

Mr. Hays' prediction.

Mr. Hays in the course of his speech said the keynote to the whole problem of transportation was found in the one word co-operation. The railways were sellers of transportation, and they must get an adequate return on their securities outstanding before the could sell new securities. Let the people help and enable the railways to show that they were remunerative investments and they could tap the Bank of England. "I think," he said, " that Canada is on the eve of her greatest transportation development. In the next ten years there will be more miles of railway built in Canada than in the last twenty-five." Referring to the Grand Trunk Pacific, he did not think that one additional railway was going to begin to take care of the additional business of the great west. He believed, with Sir Wilfred Laurier, that the G.T.P. was going to be followed by a third and a fourth transcontinental railway, and they would all do well. The railways did not mind competition so long as they got a profit on the business that they did. A Saskatoon resident had written to him, saying that they needed the Grand Trunk Pacific to wake up the Canadian Pacific Railway in the west, as the Grand Truk Railway had been awakened by the C.P.R. in Ontario.

Cheers for the Limited.

When the International Limited, going east at 6.40 and west at 8.30, passed through Brantford for the first time, there were immense crowds at the station, who cheered their arrival and departure. In the evening the city was illuminated by Chinese lanterns strung on each of the main streets, and there was a fine display of fireworks, which was witnessed by ten thousand people from the Jubilee Terrace.

Railways: G.T.Ry.

Stations: Brantford

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