Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1852-07-24
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Nh DsAa CAsrTfE~-Sinrs writing my lAst
hsvs.sseesved yeprsissse Of the nth, and AAvt
glanced d. The yublishsd Charter Of the Crosse
Te,s and Baton Rouge Plank Road Company
and d the proceedings Of . public meeting O
your citizens, having In view the construction N
! similar road from your bssatifu, little city "a
The thtiving and pleasant town Of Clinton, with
crest deal OF interest and pleasure. have ever
| been A strenuous plank road sdyoesfe, and - ]
have fr.auen,ly had occasion 10 witness their be-
n.heial INFLUENCES upon various sections Of eout'.
try, and ~ 1 have :never known one which did
not weld a muniheent dividend 10 it, stockhold-
en-, my predileetions In favor Of the Fsriners'
Railroad grow stronger sna stronger. u cenear-
rent evidences Of their Waite and usefulness b..
come more and more manifest. fuA sa
Promising that your readers take . deep int.
rest Ii the building OF the Two proposed improve
rpen,s, I have cohcludsd that II would be agreea-
bic. II no, instructive. to furnish 4 brief seeonit
Of an invention which does away with the only
solven, objection 70 plank highways. In Canada,
and some Of the Northern States, the rapid des-
~sruction Of these roads by the sharp shoes on the
feet Of horses, have caused doubts Of their ulfi-
mate ,seonomy to arise. While the wheel tracks
refusln nearly in their original state, the horses
tracks are cut through and Il IL evident that II
thi. rapid wear could be avoided. the plsnks
would last many years longer. Whist 10 the re-
medy ior this syili II II the Steam Carriage, .
late invention, possessing all the recommends
tions Of economy, durability. and adaptation, and
now presented TO the people by the American
Steam Carriage Company. Ths carriage Of the
American Company may be described ~ follows
"A passenger carriage win carry about Thirty
persons, or u many al can be borne upon four
wheels, with the machinery, without injury to
III. road. The boiler Il placed behind, and the
engines outside. Immediately In front Of the
hind or driving axle 10 a space Of about FIVE feet
In length, between The engines, In which the lug.
gage will be slowed. In front Of this IL the main
body Of THE vehisls, with seats like Al, omnibus.
The entrance IA In front. The steering wheels
are attached 70 the body by two springs, one
above the other, by means Of an upright spindle,
through which the axle passes, snd In which Il
weftsby q Joint that sdmi,s Of the required mo-
tons. The stettsrnaa si,sin front, sraby means
Of . lever, aided by a nsa, and simple application
oh the screw, turns the wheels AZ occasion may
require. AZ his right hand iss lever by which
he ~eoutrcls the s,eam, so a. TO run forwards OF
back wards, last or slow and also to stop suddsn-
iy, OF 70 cheek Che speed when descending hills
No breaks are ased, the steam i,sslfbsiag Directed
at pleasure either In favor Of Oh against the for.
wasd, mosien; aud this arrangement renders u
practicable 10 dispesse with the braskman, who
was seeaised on the Esglish steam carriage. Thu
Gre ssea from . hopper or reservoir Of fuel In the
upper tast 81 ths furnace, and the supply OF wa.
ter 10 the boiler, and air TO the Gre, are regulated
BY the naehiaesy 90 that no a~itsntion IL re-
asaaed except 1t the places for rerlsaishins with
water and Fact AZ IN the case Of some English
carriages. sueh provision IL also msds that no
s,peke Of steam will be visible, and nc putting
heard" i4 s .ati
The machinery sf such a vehicle, will, IL IL
computed, cest. not more than one thousand dol.
lars; and As Il will be very durable the question
arises whether Il would not 10 cheapest, both ~
regards the cost Of horses and the durability Of
the read, 10 ernrley that description Of power for
the transportation Of freigh, and passengers. Al
all events, have given you an account Of the In
v~entsosa, which I came across the other day, and
IL IL 10 worth anything, use il, IL not, cast ], aside.
The above description especially applies to =
passenger coach; bu, Of course Il viii DO obvious
to your readers that the same power could, with
equal advantages, be applied 10 a freight car.
Myself, and one OF two others acquainted with
the circumstances, have enjoyed q hearty laugh
over the attempted democratic newspaper canon
i.ation Of a couple Of " bolters' in your Parish.
The hrs,, . nsmesake Of one Of your editorial
predecessors, " boi.ed' desperately Ia 1850, and
was formally rcct lived into the Democratic
cha,eh, by . ~r,eesing held at the Court House, At
which the chief priests oticiated with solemn
joyousness, betting the momentous OCCASION,
From the doubling bsneh to the anxious seat, and
thence to the altar Of conviction, was he transfer
red with marvellous rapidity, and soon the un-
dimuisd glories Of the heaven Of modern Demo-
craey shone upon his enrsptursd vision. ofice,
fess, patronage, &c, lent enchantment to the fa-
turs. and the glowing hours seemed rsdolent with
promise to the newly-made convert. The occa-
sion was in consonancc with the actoFs, and the
actors with the secession Over the intellectual
features Of I" Young Demosthenes" land he 10
one, tooa 4 pcnsive joyousness seemed 10 steal,
rs though he rrjoieed, In his Utmost soul, over
/" the brand caught from the burnins"--ths too
glorious Majors looked a. though they felt like
the father did at the return Of his prodigal son,
and were willing to kill the taised cali, Or any
other calf, or even take zone, two, tree, several
juleps," in commemoration Of the illustricus con-
version-ths Doctors eyes twinkled with unu-
sual delight, and the Judge pulled two sxtra hais
from his whiskers TO illustrate his intense salts.
faction at the event Oh, it was . rich and rare
spectacle, and there 10 only one person on earth
who can depict it properly, Ham. r. Is the man;
and if you want to enjoy q bit Of genuine fun, get
him to daguesrsotype the scene for you. So much
for the one-now Tor the other . bolier." A re-
mark win Said the snsdersconvert, Re.
ferring TO the Court House seens l have feebly
attempted to portray" Gentlemen, 4 man should
never think Of changing his politics when he il
over fifty years Of agep How much s~der fifty
was MajoF-- last fall, when, Il is understood,
he first got an the anxious seatf However, the
idea was I good one and, in conclusion, permit
me TO express the sincere hope that both of the
excellent and worthy gentlemen may be happier
and more prosperous in the black-lack forest Of
modern Democracy, than in the fertile meadows
of whiggery.
Speaking Of g balters'' puts me in mind Of poli-
tics, and kindred subject& The canvass is beeom-
ing animated in most of the States of the Union.