Herald of the times. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1830-1846, 1831-04-20

nH'np iiIdt lurIplhc Sol1pdnF WIN tle
East Turnpike leading TO Pawtuckct-l
feel it IA duty ! owe TO myself, and to the
other stockholders with whom am as
soCiatcd in that Company, to say; that
the Providence and Pawtucket Turn
pike Company never appointed any Com
mttee to attend on the General Assem-
bly, in reference to any act having such
a union in view; nor was any such pcll-
ton or act ever submitted to that Com
pnny for their consideration or decision
to my knowledge or belief, by Mcssrs.
Iemuel III. Arnold and James +. SIM
mons or any other person. did not ar
pear on the part ofthat Company before
amy Committee on the subject of such
an application at the said Jun" session,
or at at any ether time; nor did attend
the General Assembly at any part OF tie
said ScsSion-iiow Mr.. Potter could
have been so mistaken, | must leave
him to explain.
| am yours, sc.
THOMAS BURGESS.
Mr.. Potter SAYS, further in this letter,
was p,'cpared." lie supprosscs the fact
that he was chairman of the committee
and did himself, not onl Y report in favor
of the petition and of the act for uniting
the roads, but did strcnuous!y advocate
that act in speech, part of which was
IN the following words viz: Gle (Mr
i'ottcrD was of the committee who report
ed the act of union, and saw 40 objection
to the Houses adopting it, All the par
ties had been represented before them
(thc committcc) and he believed that the
public interest would be promoted by the
contemplated union of the iw" roads -
This speech was heard by the whole
house and the audience present, aud was
reported and published at the time
Let me ask, does he tell the truth in his
letter when he says 81 merely consented
to the act rs It was prepared.
Again Mr. Potter says, that the petition
crs did mol disclose 10 Mc CommiIce any
Of Ike facts IN relation 10 the old road; and
that he was thereby orer-rcdched 0"d de-
c,ircd rs 10 Mc oLjcct Of Mc petition. |
am warranted in pronounclng this To be
Hnoihcr wiliul unlruth. Neither the Com
milicc of onh-l'royidcnce, nor the
East Turnpike petitioners had any more
access to the books oi' the Odd Company
than Mr Potter himself had !; mr. did
they know amy better than he what was
the stat" of that Conrpany's accounts
And vet Mr. Potter assumes it MS a fact.
that the gentlemen he impcachcs, were
acquainted mlh oH Tie facts in rr'oi;oa 10
IRE old roud, and concealed their know
lcdgc from the C0mni,H,c II, oIrlu H. Orcr'-
ryrch Gnd d,ccirc thcm. And upon no
better foundation than this understandable
assumption of facts, which had no exist
cncc, Mr. Potter allows himself publicly
to pronounce the charge of fraud and cor
ruption against gentlemen high y respect
ed by the community, and for whom he
himself had always proicsscd great re-
Srcct and regard up TO the moment when
he supposed that the sacrifice oI their
characters might be made to serve his
party purposes.
Tie fact is, that, although the prccis"
state of the accounts of the West Turns
nike Company was not then known IL
any body but the Company asc!l', yet it
was wcii known to every body, that the
travel on tha; road was 50 great, that III
order 10 keep down the surplus profits
and prevent tie roads revcrtlng to the
State, the Company had been long
obliged to reduce their tolls very low, and
to make large expenditures ior repairs
and improvements. MI this Ii" been
frequently talked about by members OF
the General Assembly, and was known
to no one better tIan to Mr. Potter; for
when that gentlemen presented the act
referred to, and by which act the United
Company was to take upon itself the
making and repairing Of the Iawtuckci
bridge, he said that ii anything was to be
given bv the Company, he should have
preferred that the State should have It,
instead ofthc town of Noth-proyidcncc;
but that he was rcconcilcd to the act, be-
cause he should be for tasting (topp'"% o'
bleeding was his cXprcssIon) those TcH
companies, and drawing from them al
additional revenue to the state. lhu'
was Mr. Potter so well acquainted viii
the extra or surplus profits of the old road
that he contemplated taxing both road,
when united, and drawing from thcm Il
revenue to the State. Vet he says, lu
his letter, that he was ignoraRl herc ra'
on iMcrcSi; meaning the interest OF the
State. The petition itself of the Fast
Turnpike, so far iror con"caIing, was
prcdcatcd upon the fact of the large cX-
ira profits of the West, or old road and
it was palpablc to every member OF the
General Assembly, that but for those
great extra profits and the d'i',c"''y "'