Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1851-03-20

| OF the Boston and Albany road. The
reason for this is that they viii save Is
miles of distance and obtain grades of 6S
feet per mule, instead Of IS, which is used
on the Western road.
In the case under consideration, let us
suppose that the road, from Huntsville to
Winchester, was completed and in opera
ton. A community like that of New Eng
land would certainly make an entire new
road from Huntsville to Grow Creek, be-
cause the distance to market would be
shortened by l6 miles,, and grades of AZ
$4,000 feet per mile would be substituted
for grades Of los clio per mile,
Trade and travel will always seek the
shortest line, and when roads are con
structed without due regard TO this plinci-
pie, their business has only to become
very profitable and they will beinjured or
entirely superseded by rival lines, more
judiciously located
Under the influence Of these principles
the Board viii scarcely hesita,s to adopt
| the line through jackson county.
From Huntsville to the Nashville and
Chattanooga railroad near the point where
it crosses Crow Creek, is 60 miles, and
will cost S6l7,6l9,70. No grade exceed
ing ~ 2I-l0Q feet per mile need be used
and the curves will be as moderate as is at
| all desirable
The county travcrsed is as fertile as any
part of the Tennessee valley, and abounds
in timber of the best quality for railroad
purposes.
From Huntsville West,the cheapest and
shortest line surveyed was that which
crosses the river at Browns Ferry and
strikes the Memphis and La Grange road
at La Grange. By this route road may
be constructed from Crow Creek 10 Mem
phis In distance of 2Sl1 miles, aud cost
Of So, 1893, ,29l,24.
Between Huntsville and Big Bear
Greek, the grades and curvature will be
the same as those east of Huntsville, but
between that creek and the Tuscumbia
fork ofHatchee, grades of 52 $40 feet per
mile must be resorted to. These could
not be avoided on any OF the lincs run
through Mississippi. There is however
one favorable feature on this line which
does not exist on some of tho others. This
maximum of grade is confined to short
distance, and this space is more than 100
miles from each end Of the road. BY di-
viding this line into three equal parts, we
will have about SO miles for each division
This is as far as one locomotive ought 10
run, and by us. .ng heavier engines or run
ming a greater number of trains on the
middle division than on the other two, the
So $40 feet grades will be much less OBJ
jectionable than if they We're distributed
over the whole extent the road.
The route through Athens, Florence
and by the Line Ferry, will cost S61J,
949,79 more than the other, and would be
2 80 miles longer.
From Huntsville to Florence is 651
miles, and would cost $500, ,556,21, which
is greater than the cost of hne from
Huntsville to Tuscumbia by $74,S14,9S
The cost Of bridge, and 81 miles of road
from Florence 10 Tuscumbia, would be
$4,000. Therefore to go frum Hunts-
vile to Tuscumbia by way of Florence
would be Il loss of 4 miles III distance, and
an increased cost of 1896, ,S149S.
If the Valley railroad is valued at $780,
900, the amount now demanded by that
Company, the line from Huntsville to Tus-
cumbia, by way Of Decatur, will not ex-
ceed the distance Of the Browns Feri
Line by more than one mile, and VIII cost
more by $4,000. Fthat Company would
take 100000 for their road, the two lines
would be equal in value. Something
might be added to this sum for the value
of their warehouses and other buildings Of
which no estimate has been made.
The line surveyed through Holly Springs
is | 4 miles longer than the one through La
Grange, but it is confidently believed that
this distance could be reduced to 10 miles,
but the cost Of that hne must, in any event,
exceed the cost of a line through La
Grange by Sl95, 1906. This route would
be hlble to another objection from the
fact that our maximum grade would have
to be used, in rising from the Chewalla to
Holly Springs, which would defeat the
plan proposed Tor the other route
And here l would beg leave to quote,
from my last report on the Virginia and
Tennessee Railroad, some remarks on the
value of distance saved, which are equally
applicable to the Memphis and Charleston
Railroad.
The value of the distances saved, has
been variously estimated on the different
roads In the United States, at from $780, 900
per mile to $50. 500 per mile, depending on
the amount of travel and tonnage which
is to pass over the road To illustrate this
more fully, it has been assumed that the
value Of mile saved, is that capital sum
which will produce annuaiipterest, suf-
ficicnt to cover the annual cost of transpor-
ting the whole tonnage and travel of the
road over that mile, and keeping the same
in repair. All the Railroad companies in
the Union, are in the habit of keeping an
accurate account OF their annual expenses,
from the salaries of their officers down to
the oil used 10 grease a locomotive, inclu-
ding the cost of repairs to the track; then
this who,e aggregate is divided by the
number of miles run by all the engines
1t has been found that these two items bear
a relation to each other, re narkably uni
form
The following list will show the result
OF this calculation on eight Of the principal
roads in the country.
Comparison Of Me cost Of operation upon
eightefthe leading Pqilrgpds IN he United
fiStdtcs
Name of Road. Cost per mile run.
Cents 100dths
|. Boston & Lowell. md branches, I05 A
,. Boston and Providence, and do, sc 80
3. Boston and Worcester, and do, 81 81
1. Eastern Railroad, 81 IS
). Western Railroad, 80 81
6. Georgia Railroad. 63 %
Z. Boston and Maine, and Branches, 66 II
s. Baltimore and Ohio Railroad "a 95.
it will be seen that 55 cts. per mile run
=. Il. l i IL 4 I