There were big names that got wrapped up in potential railroads that were going to be the fastest, best, and shortest route to save on shipping. Is this map extrapolating that? Your insight is appreciated.
I don't suppose you have access to a higher quality version? I might take a stab at translating it but some is pretty hard to read.
I tried my best to enlarge the image and show each half, take a look at the images... http://imgur.com/a/EHOGd