GRAND TRUNK PACIFIC RAILWAY COMPANY. This Canadian company was incorporated by act of the Dominion Par liament, 24 Oct. 1903, for the purpose of con structing a railroad from Moncton, in the prov ince of New Brunswick, to some suitable port on the Pacific Coast, in the northern portion of British Columbia. It is the joint enterprise of the Canadian government and the Grand Trunk Railway. The route of the line from Moncton to Quebec runs near the northern extremity of the State of Maine; from Quebec the line runs in a westerly direction to a point on the bound ary line between the provinces of Ontario and Quebec, south of and near Lake Abittibi, thence in a westerly and northwesterly direction pass ing to the north of Lake Nipigon, to a point in the city of Winnipeg, thence westerly passing Edmonton, and on through the Rocky Moun tains to Prince Rupert on the Pacific Coast.
By an agreement entered into with the Cana dian government, the latter undertook to build the section from Moncton, N. B., to Winnipeg, Manitoba, and lease it to the Grand Trunk Pacific Company for a period of 50 years at ren tal of 3 per cent on cost of construction. For the first seven years the company was to be subject to payment of working expenses only (the gov ernment waiving the rental). For the remainder of the period, the company pays rental at the rate of 3 per cent on the cost of construction, except that in the event the company fails to earn the rental due for the first three years, fol lowing the period of seven years during which the company pays no rental (the 8th, 9th and 10th years of the lease), then the rental so un paid shall be added to the capital account and interest paid thereon at the same rate— 3 per cent.
On the section Winnipeg to the Pacific Coast the Canadian government guaranteed for 50 years the payment of 75 per cent of the princi pal and interest of an issue of bonds not ex reeding $13,000 a mile for the prairie portion (Winnipeg to the foot-hills of the Rocky Moun tains, a distance of about 1,200 miles) and guaranteed for three-fourths of the cost of the section through the Rocky Mountains. The remaining 25 per cent is guaranteed by the Grand Trunk Railway Company of Canada. The
Grand Trunk Pacific Railway is to provide the equipment for the entire line. The capital stock of the company is fixed at $45,000,000, of which $20,000,000 is preferred' stock The $25,000,000 of common stock is held by the Grand Trunk Railway Company of Canada.
The railways— although located in a more northerly latitude than any of the existing transcontinental lines — passes through a terri tory in a lower altitude, considerably lessening the cost of operation, The line crosses the extensive region of the Canadian northwest, which is enormously rich in agricultural and mineral products, at or about latitude 55°. The distances are as follows: Moncton to Winni peg, 1,994 miles; Winnipeg to Prince Rupert, 1,746 miles.
Receipts on the Grand Trunk Pacific for year ended 30 June 1916 were: Passengers, $1,029,580; freight, $4,959,573; operating ex penses, $5,902,843.
Construction, however, proved very ex. pensive, the endeavor to establish low grades which would permit maximum train loads to be hauled causing greater expense to be in curred than in the construction of either the Canadian Pacific or the Canadian Northern. The line was completed 7 April 1914, at a point 375 miles east of Prince Rupert, and through sleeping car and freight service began 2 Sept. 1914. Owing to the inability of the company to operate the line with any hope of financial success, the eastern section, from Winnipeg to Moncton, a distance of 1,994 miles, was turned over to the Canadian government in 1915, and is now operated as part of the government rail ways. (See NATIONAL TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILWAY). In 1916 the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway Company requested the government to take over the line from Winnipeg to Prince Rupert, but this proposal was declined. An offer by the govertunent to °advance by way of loan sufficient money to supply any deficiency in the amount required to meet the fixed charges of the Grand Trunk Pacific for a period of (say) five years," was met by a declination on the part of the company to accumulate further liabilities.