The statements are not described but the conditions of the railroads in the United States after the civil war was not good.
At that time, the president was Abraham Lincoln, and he compromised that the government would subsidize the cost to build a trascontinental railroad. After the war ended railroad construction in the West and South continued for decades.
There were 2 main railway companies after the Civil War: the Central Pacific Railroad and the Union Pacific Railroad. Encouraged by government who provided funds, between 1865 and 1869, the Central Pacific laid 690 miles of track and the Union Pacific 1,087 miles.
Government helped the railway companies by giving them land, as they wanted American to expand west as cities were overcrowded in the east.