Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1845-12-25

All Ne urst pidces as 10 distance, the route
propose IS shorter by 30 miles than that by Lynch
: burg, Buchanan and Covngton, and IS miles nea
Z er than that by the Horse Shoe. Add to this tina
b we have % miles Of railroad already laid and i
I. active use, from Richmond to Gordons Vile, an,
IL gives you one hundred and three miles les
road to lay than that by Lynchburg. Buchana,
. and Covington, and one hundred and forty-eiph
/, less than by the Horse Shoe and Red SulpRu
Springs. This, though perhaps the least of th
: advantages, is OF itself sufficient TO determn,
, the question. Another consideration in favor o
: my plan is, that il is a rival 10 foreign compa
ny, while the other must prove destructive riva
} 10 our own most important improvement, in whict
: the State and individuals have embarked so man,
. millions OF money. And if the State I.egisla
I ture will take lesson Of wisdom from eXper
: ence, they will look to the Portsmouth and Roam
, oke Railroad as rival TO the Petersburg road
and In contemplating the consequences of the
policy then adopted, may read the fate of the
lanes river canal, whenever ii allows the rival
! improvement to come in competition with il.
have no idea that IL can obtain favor for mo-
! ,nent; and in my humble judgment the I.eqis;a-
tore would be extremely short sighted if il did
will say nothing here Of the chartered rights
OF the subscribers to the James River and la
! nawha Canal, or of the plighted faith of the
STATE, 10 carry the canal as far Covinuton, as
originally contemplated by the charterSall of
which, 1t might be alleged, would be violated by
adopting the course that has been proposed by
the resolutions of the former meeting, of maxine
deflexion from Buchanan TO the Southwest to
! reach the Horse Shoe. and leaving Covnpton
! unprovided for and, if am asked how avoid
the same difficulties by the plan propose. an.
swer, that, so far from my route being rival to
the canal, and thus interfering with the chartered
rights OF that Company,1 will shew how il may
DC made an auxiliary improvement, that will re-
suscl'ae Its capital and make it vet the preat
channel of trade between the East and West
- IN fhp Mi okt al E,t, &c a..
The canal to Covineion, that faith is redeemed,
when the State offers them another and more eli.
gible way 10 market.
But again BY the route proposed by Mr.. Nc
farland S resolutions, you offer two costly lines
! OF commuDcation-one by canal and ,le other by
Railroads.&c. the Southwestern portion of the State
while you do not offer crumb to the Northwest
J What more does The Southwest ask at your hands
10. the present, Than Macadamized road from
the Tennessee line through Abingdon and Salem.
to connect with the James River Canal at Buch
anan! While yon insist upon giving them a
railroad, also, (for that is part of the plan not
yetiu'ly developed and which will not be denied
TO come, apprebend, by Lynchburg and Farm
VILE, to connect with the river road just complet-
ed from this city to the Chesterfield Clover Hill
coal-pits, owned by few private individuals:
while with little more than half the sum tina,
would be necessary for this purpose, you can con-
struct road for the Northwest intersectinp their
would answer all their present purposes; and, if
line and circumstances should require il hereaf-
Ter, these turnpikes might be converted into rail-
roads, at least as FAR might be. practicable -
lhus, by combining the interests, the means, and
the energies of the various sections of The conn.
try, something may be accomplished for the benz
eht OF the whole; while, without it, nothing can
he done for either. No, sir; while YOUR left eve
locks TO the Southwest, do not blind your riuht
eye to the Northwest; but look with both eyes,
and take disinteresled, an enlarged, liberal en-
| lighted patriotic view of the interests of The
whole, and administer 10 all their wants at the
same time.
Another point of view in which this subject
may be considered as presenting an advaniaue
by no means TO be overlooked, is the fact that
the Gordonsville route passes immediately in the
neighborhood of nearly all the principal Watering
places In the State, especially by the White Sui
phnr, certainly the most frequened and fas,iona-
Die, and perhaps the most important of the whole.
Contemplate the difference that would be made
In few years 10 our people, now locked I'm in
the mountains of Virginia, if the facilities should
be afforded and the invitation and inducement
held out, to all those thousands of the South and
West, the East and the North, in search of plea
sure, of health. to come here amono ms every
summer, where they pass daily from one
pace oil fashionable resort to auother-thns en-
Toying change oil company, change of scene
~, change Of climate, and change of waters.
rather than that system that would furnish no
such facilities, and by which, instead Of having
Their thousands and tens Of thousands spent ~
mong US, we are now induced 10 90 off and spend
among them.
Let me say one word upon the subject of the
proceedings oil The late liarrisonburg Convention,
and shew not only how entirely The plan pro-
pose would accommodate them, but how much
better than their own.
They propose an extension Of the railroad from
Gordonsvile TO Harisonburg, if practicable il
not, railroad TO the eastern base of the Blue
Ridge mountain, with Macadanized road across
the mountain TO Harrisonburg or if they cannnt
get that they then ask for Macadamized road
from Harfisonburg to Gordonsvlle.
apprehend the difficulties TO be encountered
in the passage Of The Blue Ridge by railroad will
be found too great to justify its prosecution I'M
| less the line OF improvement to be continued
greatly beyond Harrisonburg. Then as to the
extension of the railroad TO the eastern base Of
the mountain, with a Macadamzed road from
! that point TO Hanisonburg much expense wonld
necessarily be incurred in the construction both
Of the railroad and Macadamized road across the
mountain; but if the railroad of 46 miles was
already built to the base of the mountain there
| would then be 10 miles of Macadamized road to
make 10 reach Harrisonburg; while they are
within 25 miles Of Staunton, with Macadam-
ized road already made up the Valley to that
1 point; and as they could carry heavier loads
and in perhaps the same or less time, on Mac
adamized road % miles up the Valley. then 10
miles across the mountains, think it likely, if
both roads were now built, there would be more
produce waggoned TO Stanton up the Valley,
than across the mountains To- the termination of
the railroad at the eastern base of the Blue Ridge
particularly when the distance Of railroad travel
ling would be very near the same. And if ] am
right in my views on this subject, surely they
would not be willing 10 encounter the expense Of
r either OF the Improvements they have proposed,
as The benefits would be altogether inadequate to