The northern galaxy. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1844-1848, 1845-06-25
RAILROAD NEWS.
RAILROADS.


Hen. William Jackson recently made an
interesting speech at meeting oil the friends
OF Railroad from Worcester TO Providence
MIR. Jackson has long heen familiar with ran
roads, in the capacity al st"ckhotder and d.
rector, and lew men are more competent ,o
enIghten the public upon the subject OF rail-
roads. His speech abounds with interesting
facts and illustrations. He illustrated the
cheapness and facility Of railroad transporta-
lion as follows
'Every morning in the year except Sun
days you may see an engine with train OF
cars containing about 100 tons Of merchan-
disc, passing from Albany over the Berk-
shire mountains at the rate oil III or II miles
all hour, or 100 miles per day, stops included.
One of your horses might carry 1900 lbs.
over these mountains at % miles per day.
Divide the load of this engine by 1900 and
you will have the requisite number oil horses
for % miles in day, say 1o!; and four
times this number, or 66S, could carry this
load 100 miles in day-and hence the iron
horse is every day, fair or foul, doing the
work Of 66S OF your horses. And he does
the work with the aid of only four men;-
yours, with four-horse teams, would require
1877 men. The interest on the cost OF such
an engine, amount expended for It's repairs,
wages of the four men, with wood and oil,
show the annual expenses oil maintaining
this team to be about $1,000. Similar
items in relation 10 your teams show an an
nual aggregate expense oil about $780,
O00.'
With such facts before the mind, it is no
matter of surprise that railroad transporta-
ton is cheap. Coal is transported 80 miles
tha Daa Do II
45 cents per ton, and il is expected that the
expense will be reduced to 81 cents.
In regard TO the estimates of the passen-
gers which will pass over contemplated
road, Mr.. Jackson gives good many inter-
esting facts, showing that the actual always
exceeds the estimated number of passengers
The estimated number of passengers be-
tween Boston and Lowell, before the Low
ell road was built, was 37,44O. The actual
average number between those two cities
alone, for the last six years, without inclu-
ding those brought TO the Lowell road by
other roads, has beer over 100000 The es-
innate for the Worcester road was 23,500.
Before the opening of the Western and Nor
witch roads the number reached 7S,000.-
The original estimate ofthe eastern roadw was
ZOO. The number now exceeds 100000.
The estimate for the Fitchburgh was II, 79l.
The first half year OF running about half the
road, 10000 more passengers were carried
than were estimated for the whole road a
whole year.
The increase Of passengers on all our rail-
roads, said Mr.. Jackson, has surprised every
body, and yet there is no necromancy or
mystery about ii 10 any one who has been in
a position where all the elements which are
working to produce this result are in sight.
His own experience and example, he OBJ
served, would perhapsafford as good an illus
tration as any other. He was seven and
half miles from Boston, and carried on man.
ulacturing business OF the same kind and
about similar extent for twenty years.
Before there was railroad, he went TO he
city once week with horse and chaisc and
spent whole day about it. Instead ola
hours hard work for himself and horse, he
now went in twenty two minutes-couId stay
half an hour, one hour, or more, and return
when ready, without the loss oil a minute.
Hence, he now went every day, and some
times twice o day. The same is the case
with multi.udes.
Mr.. Jackson presented another fact, which
is the most important 10 the capitalist, viz,
the value of railroad stock as an investment.
All northern railroads pay good dividends,
but the Stonington, Norwich and Housatonic.
In reference 10 two Of these roads, Mr. Jack
son remarks, that they are competitors for
the same business. Either, without the 9TH
err, would be good property; together, they
afford o practical illustration of the folly OF
two charters Tor the same business, with
view OF cheapening transportation, by the
encouragement of competition between two
railroads. lfthey act as competitors, they
destroy each other. By a division Of the pro-
ceeds, as is now the case between these
two roads, they are only doomed 10 half pay,
and the public 10 high charges forever, which
single road, doing all the business, could
afford to reduce greatly Allsouthern roads
are also poor properly, as none pass through
territory sufficiently populous 10 supper.
them.
The costs per mile, value of stock, and
dividends of the New England railroads
which stand we'll.
rOSt nor valua Dividends arc