Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1851-01-07
RICHMOND ENQUIRER.
, ,T7ip1.1 MORNING. JANUARY i, 1851
1.-THE Enquirer may now CO.
L,n,rnn1 EhSher III .Soi Y 81

80, ,,,h which will combat self evident Propositions =! 'e
hor and reuce the cearest easoner TO good at
ouiescence by the ingenuity and Qulxonc com
h;s seEdeceplion. His theories are oil al a"'i :.
those of all other they are antagonS.i' "
He ia himself contradiction Quaker-he assumes I'M
hidden the championship OF an institution % 81 wv
mos, offensive TO his sect pserdol Southern ho'spuT
h ,comotion Of white girls with black men,
ord h.ds legislative minority of six in resisting law Tor
i.s suppression ,,,.,
He has discovered variety of curious errors INTO winch
the rest of mankind have fallen For example, 'nat Tue
great State New York has decreased her aggregate
,, Tho ~. twelve yeors-thnt the Erie Canal Is mag
,,sn, bmbup and most wreched piece of property that
yireiuin Is better Off without pubic WORKS han We" o'h
with ,hem that she owes her freedom from these nearious
,,mo,ero If nover,y 10 the presence of the Allegheny
mountains; and ,ha, all the world denies these iheores
sin,py proyes that Mr. Fisher Is the only smart man.
! We yentured week or two since, TO controVerl 'f
g;sbea posions In respect the internal improvements OF
yironio 70 show ia the pubic works OF New orR con-
rary 10 his assertion had produced immense wealth 10 a
Stale and TO argue from her example like result rom
,donn the same policy In Virginia. Wheroat MI flshef
has fallen into passion and sends back his newspaper 10 US
ith two full columns of assertions as wild ana aacous
as those we Gre, overthrew We shall quietly and gooana
uredly examine Of them not indeed win Inc nope Vi
convincing Mr. Fisher but for ths sake oil the ie" oou'e
Sancho Panlas, VINO sun conHue III NO
Weld TO his eItravagances.
M Fisher cnp, 20 the assertion that the New York Ca
nails nav only five and half per upon their cost he
marshas figures and manufactures facts with wonderful IN
senuy and facility prove its truth He estimates le TO-
cal nett revenue up 1892 at Sl 02Ss0 allows interest
upon this the amount of 3d. and brings out an
aggregate principal interest Of earnings ut that DATE OIL
SIG 23 From 1912 TO 1884, he makes the nett revenue
0OO which, added the above aggregate makes the
total nett earnings up to ls47, s25,432
Mr. Fisher will US for overhaung this Calculation
Ii he will page III Of the canal commissioners re-
Dor, In January $780, ne viii find statement Of the canal
tolls since 1929 amounting at tine clore OF lsls TO grand
total Of i3 If he will turn to page 81 OF the report
of the Commissioners of the Canal Fund In February fol-
lowing he will find table of the total annual expenses and
repairs since 1896 showing them 10 have been So per cent
of the gross coils deduction Of this per centaee from
434 leaves 82s 10 which, 4 we add eight
years interest the earnings up lSa9 according 10 MI
Fishers principles will be s42702635 Mr.. F. rates them
at s25 432 1856 md thereby makes mistake OF s2Iu's
So much for credit edo of his oun now for the debit
| side
To 4e The officially reported of oil The New
York canals (which includes Sr Fishers salt auction aud
steamboat ,ases our saisican adds twelve years interest
or s74 O0 and makes their aggregate Cost up to e4
O1009O If Mr. F. will refer table No. 10 in the last
mentioned reecri he will find that the actual OF in
torres, which was paid uron canal debt UP lSa2
but go 493 instead of 0g0 he conecured-
Here /, an error millions In his compuationa II he
thrown sback BY this discovery he will nd MS estimate
still moro riddsd and his interest computation PRIOR 10 lci
utterly exploded BY hs fact that since the year s5 three
years after the completion 81 The Erie canal, the nett
Of the canals have exceeded the interest paid upon
their debt BY amounts ring from sl3i75 the excess in
that year. compare tables 70 and Is Of the report last men,
toned 81 1874 55 the In 1919 This excesss the
amount paid by those and above six cent d.
ydends II wiped out tn whole Erie ta:a debt by 1885,
and is now cutting down the debt incurred BY the enlarge
ment in proRrcsa at The rate OF 8 per ahhu'n'
| Alas for aIr. Fishers interest computation
But 10 proceed Mr. Fisher will fEd in the document al
ready mentioned that total interest that he's been ac-
tualv paid upon of the New York Canals up to
lS4e Is S65Sll07 which aided IL that cost namely
l46 makes the total up 10 ei9, according
TO his principles s4s,795.255. Oils frs; estimate was
$50 900 0OO for 1870 which allowed Blu; In his second
dissertation he maintains that was s5 Goo as far back
as o42 and doubt that in his third If M Is not too
sick OF ts crject undertake third ne Will lind that
was s75 900 Oooin 1881 The produc, of the canals
10 1919 we have shown 70 kcve becn s28e53 l33 Mr. F.
claims credit for the salt, auction end steamboat duties
which we're applied TO the debt embraced in
the 1913 2l4lss of cost that has been mentioned We will
credi, him with this again. by claiming no interest
upon the above twenty millions OF nett revenues
These revenues, deducted from tile aooIo mentioned
$40 255 OF aggregate COST would leave S1u9i.i- LOT
the present canal debt according TO Mr. Fishers principles
of calculation Well, the nett reyenus OF the canals Tor
lsi9 was 02 which is l3 per cent of In
stead of Mr.. Fishers IRE and half per cent! But Inc
cost of the Erie enlargement which yet pays nothing Is in
cIuded IL the above s2092l2 The actual expenditure
upon that work was up 1919, sl46244S almost the
IF m sil
cost interest for the eight years intervening Upon Mr. Fs
principles therefore, work makes present debt ofup-
wards of twenty millions, which wipes out the s20si
above menoned and leaves The present debt of the ope
rating canals which produce the ne revenue OF S2ioV2
according Mr. Fa prncplesnohng As 10 these ope-
rating canals therefore, their nett revenue SO far from being
but fire and half per cent, upon their cost is clear sur
piuo income
That New York has canal debt of SIG sos 345 still un
paid very ruc ba, il represents the heavy expenditure
she has nade in the enargeme of her main rnna which
Is We, incomplete and unproducve. VS. referred Mr. Fish
er Mr. kecls article for lucid demonstration of the
fact that the of the operating canals Of New York
have only been sufficient TO wipe out their own cost,
but would Also this ime bur for gross extravaganza and
financial Encouragement by her Legislature have paid off
the debt incurred for this ye, unfinished unproducve
Erie enlargement. AR Fisher will know where TO find
the canal debt have mentioned, unless inform him;
has undertaken instruct the public but Is ignorant
of the sources of authentic information concerning it, We
him. therefore, page AZ of the Report of the Commits
siones of the canal fund.- made February 1850 In all this
discussion feel that have been engaged very useless
very singular undertaking. more less than
reasoning mathematicay with crazy man. We smile to
reflect what tho merchants of Nav York will think Of
labored effort prove the producvenes of the Eric Canal
We pass the egrcgious blnnder Mr. Fisher
committed in his fret article which he endeavors shuttle
out of and up with much Industry in his second
To ascertain the protabeness of investment after twen
y6ve years. our nnncier makes aggregate of the orgi
nal laid and the interest upon for all the inter-
venng PERIOD und compares the dividend for the last year
with that aggregate taking account Of antccedent dvi
dends If Mr. Fisher had been living fifty later and
made his computation for 1899 instead Of lS49 his aggregate
cos, of the New York canals would have been
three hundred millions and the for the last year.
bowoyer large an amos, nntesima per cenage of tina,
cost although sufficient In the time to have paid of the
deb, of construction half dozen times Won't Mr. Fisher
confess that such computation would be very absurd and
that HE computation for $780, upon the principle
E-~- 49,