Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1847-11-12

e bridge. The question is not, Iapprehend, wheth-
: or bridge or ferry is more or less q" conve-
8 nent' for the interests of the Railroad, but
o whether Me Interests Of The People Of Vermont
= will be promoted by the obstruction which the
: building of the bridge over her navigable waters
would create, and, especially, tcheiher The bust
!. ness Of The Railroad pouM not be performed wih-
: om that obstruction. If you will demonstrate, or
even assert, that the Ogdensburgh road, when
constructed would not transport, over its whole
o line from the st. Lawrence TO our Lake, as many
l. passengers and as large an amount of freight
S ,oithotH the bridge, as it would with it, you will
furnish one argument in faror of the bridge. IF
). it could, permit me TO ask you what conceivable
l. motive the people of Vermont and New England,
y who are not holders of Central, Northern and
u Ogdensburgh Railroad stock, can have to inter-
- pose distractions to the free and unimpedcdnav-
" igation of Lake Champlain? Not one. To-day,
i thousands of her citizens, and millions of COM
merce that contributes to her prosperity have a
!, right to the unobstructed use of her navigable
!. waters ); you would deprive them of this right
If to-morrov, YOU are bound to show them that the
l, public good demands it.
~ The embarrassments which the advocates of
10 the bridge encounter from this view of the case,
id obviously suggest the second and only remain
r. ing argument they urge in favor of it land
that is that the refusal of the bridge involves
N the abandonment Of The Ogdensburgh road and
le "the Gripping, if not the stopping" Of every
m one of the Vermont roads, except the Central.
The success Of the latter road, you assert in the
4. Journal Of the I'd inst, is mol dependent upon
" this contingency. Let us see how it is with the
$. others.
lie The Rutland stock was taken without regard
to the practcability or impracticability Of dry
connection with the Ogdensburgh, by means oil
IS, bridge over the navigable waters of the Lake
he Its stockholders, both in Boston and in Vermont
u. feel entire confidence that ts stock will yield
ho them at least 8 per cent WuhOm that connection
er and its speedy construction is absolutely certain
he It's friends and managers, both in city and coun
o. try are quite content, whichever way the bridge
=. question may be decided.
,te The interests of the Passumpsic road are
IT. manifesty hostile to the bridging project, which
OF as You unhestatingly proclaim contemplates g
80 connection with Montreal ria Rouse's Point
IN Its success, therefore, Gf there were any doub
,r- about it would be rendered more certain by the
ey defeat of that project.
~ OF the Vermont and Canada road It is sufli
he cient TO say that it is before the Legislature
he the sole applicant for the privilege, the grantin!
a. or denying of which supplies the whole topic o
~ controversy To assert that lis success, there
ter fore, depends upon the bridge, amounts TO jus
m, nothing at all. That it ought to be, and will be
ad constructed between the points designated il
''e the charter already conferred upon the compan
by the Legislature, there is no room for reason
as able doubt.
ns So far, then, as the Vermont railroads are cor
cerned, not one of them is dependent for its sue
led cess upon the granting refusal, Of the author
lin ity asked TO bridge the navgable waters of LAX
oh' Champlain. That the prosecution Of the o.
~ densburgh road must depend, for the present
ort least, upon the result of the existing appcatio
Sc, for a bridge, those who have that enterprise i
,ne charge confidently assert. and it is not for
- to deny it. Those who have placed this projet
:. in such position Of dependence have no RICH
certainly, to complain that its success has bee
jeopardized by their own voluntary acts. Tina
if constructed, it would do as much bushes
transport as many passengers, and as large a
> amount of freight, on its whole line, mhether
- had direct and continuous connection wth Il
is Vermont roads or not, presume you will NJ
.oH deny. If, therefore, its projectors and frient
HE have chosen to hazard its success upon I'll
HE granting Of privilege that is not essential to i
prosperity, the reproach must fall where it b.
- longs. The Legislature of Vermont cannot
called on to share the unpleasant responsibility
In this view of the existing condition Of ii
the several railroad enterprises in Vermont, it is id
, of to attempt to argue such disastrous results
I is are pointed out in the Journal as being inevit
on bic upon the refusal Of the BRIDGE
5 OF believe have thus, fairly and Justly, reptile
sin to the only arguments that the applicants for Il
rty bridge make of to sustain their applicatio
an agree with the editor of the journal, that Il
policy of oostructing the navigation of our Lal
OF is to be determined by reference to the hghe
ion, STATE INTERESTS of Vermont.
pom But this whole discussion in the Journal, HI
been conducted without the slightest ausion
'He the considerations which furnish, after all, Il
browning and conclusive objection to the brdg
, ,am, The commerce of our Lake. large and impo
,use tant it is, and prodigiousy as it has been
ao,' creased since the date of the somewhat mus
own statistics of lsl5* that are spread out in 4
en Journal of the 4th inst is, comparatively, in
i'm feeblest infancy. 1t is speedily destined to
augmentation, both in amount and importanC
re- that NEVER could result from the construcio
1ore under the most favorable circumstances ask
con. for, of the Ogdensburgh Railroad. The INN
S. date and energetic prosecution of the gre
r. by work-(great in its results, though demand
the an outlay Of expense but one:fjih as great
ton that required to build the Ogdensburgh road
this Of constructing the SHIP CANAL from the
n. TO Lawrence to the navigable waters of our Lal
es- at ST. Johns, is rendered absolutely certain Il
ues completion of this noble enterprise will at on
We. open an uninterrupted SHIP NAVIGATION fro
less Lake Champain to Lake Michigan, and pc
than into our State trade absolutely incalcuable
,igh amount and in commercial value, to our pr