The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1851-05-08

Does not every practical man believe that the
whole trade in Western produce, brought by the
railway 10 be shipped TO the Gulf ports, would be
transferred to jacksonville, if the railroad termi
nate there1 Would schooner be lowed up our
river from the Balize, and pay our heavy charges,
amounting 10 5000 or $500 "trip, when with one
days more time she could reach the depot at Mad
isonville, with 10 other additional expense than
one or two days wages TO her crew! Would
shippers of produce pay the heavy charges of
bringing it across the Lake on these floating rail
ways, its carriage over another railroad, and dray
ages through the city, with all the attendant dam
ages and waste, to ship 1t On vessels thus bur
thened with charges to be assessed on the freight,
when they could roll it on board schooners from
the depot at Madisonville that would take it for
half the freight charged by vessels from New Or
leans 1t is evident then, that If the road ferm-
nate at jacksonville, we must be deprived OF the
trade in Western produce with the ports in Florida,
Texas and the shores of the Gulf, to the West and
South of us,
How will it be with cotton and other products,
from States south of the Ohol There are good
anchorages and harbors at Ship and other Islands
on our coast, where vessels can come, without the
cost of towage, and the other enormous expenses
40
floating railways that are to bring the cotton from
Madsonville to the Pontchartrain Railway, can
slip it out to Ship Island and deliver it on wharf
there at very little more cost of terriage than they
could transport it across the Lake. Will the cotton
factor have his bales brought across the Lake by
ferry boat, delivered to the Pontchartran Railroad
Company, to be brought to the city and drayed to
press, and when compressed, TO be again drayed
to a ship that has paid $1,000 to get up the river
TO receive it, when the same could have been de-
vered to her at Ship Island at about the same cost
that was paid for transporting it across the Lake
We might have the samples of the bales brought 10
our city, and the negotiations for It's sale and ship
ment might be made here, but all the labor attend
| ant on the business--which is the chief value OF
it 10 a city-woud be done the other side of the
Lake, and our port would be transferred 10 Madi-
sonville and some island on the coast The e8abou-
chtre of all the trade, east of the Mississippi with
the Gulf, would be outside of the RgOlets Better
for New Orleans that the terminus of her railway
should be at Mobile, than at jacksonville, if these
views, which have forced themselves upon the
minds Of many practical men, are correct
1t is stated in the reports laid before the public
that the cost of transporting freight on railways al
the South, is four and seveneghth cents per ton,
mile This, we presume, includes the interest on
the cost of the road its repairs, that of its appen-
dages and the cost of experimenting and working
the road The estimate is probably made on run
ming one train each way, per day. If they were tc
run but one train per week, the cost Of freight pei
ton mile, would probably be thirty cents instead
of five cents. If only one train month was sen
over the road, the cost per ton would most likely bt
one dollar and fifty cents per mile. But road tina
is to supersede the use of the Mississippi, fo
| transportation, will probably have as much bust
ness as it can do, and would probably run eight o.
ten trains per day, over its track The Director.
of the Eastern railroads have made the interesting
discovery that the interest their investments i:
the same when they run ten trains per day over
road as when they pass but one. They find the
road deteriorates as rapidly with train passing
over it, as with ten. The locomotive costs but little
more running all day than when housed in the
depot three-lourths of the time. The labor and
superintendent of the road is but little less with
one train daily than with ten and in short, tina
with road in proper order and double track, they
can keep it lined with trains in constant motion
and carry freight for one-enth of the per tor
mile, that it is where but one or two trains pei
day are run Freight, on ton per mile on rail
way therefore, may be reduced to five mills, insteac
of five cents. The following statement of the cos
of running locomotive with train of cars, pc
mile is taken from the reports of the different New
England railways, published three years ago. Th
expenses have since been much reduced.
The writer says all the expenses of workn.
the road for any given time, say month, are usu
ally added together, and divided by the total mum
Der of miles run in that time by engines drawing
trains In this way, the iairest average of working
expenses, are measured by the cost per mile
The expense per mile for locomotive of ifteer
tons with train of cars, on the leading roads il
this country, is as follows: