Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1851-12-08

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at once erect Virginia with her diversified
interests and pursuits into powerful en-
pirr. Let them faithfully investigate the
subject and adoptthc best route. whichever
that my be. And here let us take another
4 view Of this question. Ithas been shown
that the line through Lynchburg gives
Richmond the nearest lire, with the best
grades to the mouth OF Greenbrier. The
stock rs already provided, and lurgeror-
ton of the work is done, for road from
Hichnond to Christiansburg, within TIL
miles OF the mouth Of Greenbricr. This
distance alone remains TO arc provided for
and will cost at the utmost Sl,5l5,0oo.
- Now suppose the Central Railroad to
be completed to point I6 miles west Of
Charlottesville. this is within ITO miles Of
.ihe mouth OF Grecnbricr, with the blue
Ridge Tunnel to go through, ard the most
dasorable estimates ever yet made would
warrant us 10 surprising that there was
yet required 100000 per mile for this
whole distance or S3,40o,00o. Deduct
the distance and cost of road between
Chris,iansburg and the mouth of Green
.brier, and it will he evident that the state
must make 92a miles more Of new road
and spend 81 ,S55.00o more money to con
struct this road, than would be required 10
accomplish the very same Object by the
line through Lyncbburg.
In chs comparison the Central Railroad
has received the benefit OF the lowest esii-
mates ever made by any one for it. Malor
Walter Gwynn, Chief Engineer Of the
James River and Kanawha Company, has
expressed the opinion in his late report, that
1T will cost a great deal more. 1t may be
added that the guagc of track on the
Lynchbnrg route gives it a great superb
.ority over hcother, and that all Of the one
is laid with substantial rail. while most
Of the distance between Richmond and
Charlottesville is laid with plate rail.
IT aeems, therefore. that though the
Central Road may be valuable as local
work, and may, in that light, deserve the
patronage Of the State, there can be no
question as 10 the best route, from the Val
ley Of New River to Richmond, heir u
through the Virginia and Tennessee Rail
road. This question, after all, is Of far
greater importance to the State at large,
and especially to Tide Water and the conn
try between the mouth Of Grcenbrier and
the Ohio river, tkan it Is to the Virginia
and Tennessee Eailrond Company. These
tlisiam sections Of the State have deep
and Vital interest ia securing their union,
blythe most certan AMI efficient method
that can be adopted
To complete this scheme. the road from
Petersburg to Nor's!k shond be finished
Then the road siiould be extended down
the Valley Of the kannwha to point be-
low the mouth Of Coal Rieer--lhence one
branch should extend TO the mouth Of tic
kanawha. continuing across the Ohio river
TO Chl'icefhe whore 1t would in,crscct the
great Cincinnati aud Blpre road. An
other branch should 90 10 Guyandote and
he extended to meet the linc of roads run
ning from Louisville, through Frankfort,in
that direction.
1t has been asserted thata Railroad from
Cincinnati 10 Richmond could not COM
pete wilh the Baltimore and Ohio road
because the La.cr is the shortest By few
miles. The Distance from Cincinnati, Ly
way Of Parkcrsburg and the Railroad, TO
Baltimore Is $50 miles. The distance. by
the Virginia Central road, to Richmond IS
GOD mics;-by the Virginia and Tennessee
roodas was shown the distance is "a miles
less. leaving only -. miles in favor of Bal
more. live apply to this case the rule
generally used for assigning to a certain a
mount of accents and Jescents on a road,
their .ccni, alcnt in distance, we viii find
.he rSsttc by lynchburg to be very greatly
the shortest. On the Baltimore and Ohio
Railroad, there is one continuous grade
IL miles long, of l6 feet per mile There
are many other grades on that road less
ahau this, but sGIl much higher than
those on the Virginia and Tennessee Rail
road On this road, as before stated, The
limits are 60 feet per mile in one direction,
aud 6S feet in the other This would Give
AN incalculaLle advantage TO our line. Tic
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company
have tired TO oh, ia,c the difficulty of these
high grades lay the uec of heavy engines
which crushed their track rapidly. The
DAVIS of gravity arc stubborn facts " hich
can neither be removed or oreroome.-
Other things being eiual, the expense of
transportation on a road viii be in proper.
tion I'd that road approaches or departs
from level. To give a clear idea of the
rapid decrease of the effective power Of
locomotive, as .the grade increases, the fol-
lowing table is given, shelving the net
weight tip tons of 1000 hs) which can he
drawn by twcniy-ioar ton engine with
eight driving wheels, on different grades,
from level to t2o Fl. per mile
10 f.
Grade. t.evrlpr mile 20 30l AZ 80 %. 20
Weight GIG iJs 300 ; 81 a0a It's lf;I 1876
Grade. Level pr rs n e. So so0leo lls ,ss
Weight GIG 4oS III 100 90 81 II
Some idea may be formed of the rela
tive cost Of transportation over different