Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1852-09-24

roads, and divert much very much Of that
trade to New York and Baltimore from our
own commercial metropolis, thus placing our
railroads and canals in q position directly
hostile to the best interests of Philadelphia.
And why is ali this done2 Why has the
State of Pennsylvania turned common carrier?
The answer is, to enrich Bingham {; Dock
and their confederates, and for ought we
know, the Canal Commissioners themselves
if they are shrewd enough moi to allow their
masters 10 cheat them when the affair comes
| to final settlement.
This thing Of leasing the public works to a
monopoly Of few men, is a rev doctrine
with the Canal Board. 4 few years since,
when an association of men, with Wm. B.
Foster at their head, as high minded and
honest a man as there is in the State, pro-
posed to lease the public works not only the
railroads, the paying part of the public works,
but our canals which never have and never
will pay, he was informed this thing could not
| be done. He was informed there were legal
objections, aye, and there were objections
which had the force Of law with these men.
Mr., Foster was too pure man to serve the
purposes Of the Canal Board he did not be-
long to the right party; he was not a near re.
lation Of Gov. Bigler's, and did not entertain
the kindliest feelings for some of the leaders
in this county.
And here We will ask you to read as full
an extract from the protest Of Daniel Miller.
Of Lancaster, as our limits will allow. We
need not say who Miller is all who travel
know that the reduction of fare on the Co
lumbia railroad from time to time has been
the result of his energy Of character and pub
lie spirit. He says.
If we were not doing the business Of the
road, on terms which pay much more TO the
State than Il now receives, under the contract
with Messrs. Bingham & Dock, VIC would not
complain. According to The terms of that
contract, they are to carry all passengers !
from West Philadelphia, at ) mills per mile. /
precisely what Our Line receives for carry
ing them from Eighth and Market streets.
We have been paying 70 the State cents
per mile since the lSt day Of June iAst. and
We're charging passengers cents and mills
per mile fare, thus leaving to US but mills
over the State toll to pay all expenses, Of Of
ice rents, depots, car hauling, agents and
city toll, all Of which expenses the State un-
der the contract will have 10 pay in addition
to the mills per mile from West philade-
phla, allowed to Bingham i Dock, and the /
travelling public will now be compelled to
carry their baggage to and from Schuvlkill |
Fifth street, which is ten squares further out /
than our Depot, and are thus subjected to the /
inconvenience and expense Of cab hire. For /
this distance it will cost each passenger so /
cents according 10 City Cab regulations, and |
cabmen never charge less.
| desire now u say a few words in regard (
to the secret manner in which the letting of /
the passenger business was conducted | |
have been carrier on the State Road lUr Is /
years, during which have run three different /
opposition lines, and the public well know /
that each resulted In a reduction Of the fare /
The first opposition line was placed en- the /
road in 1889 by myself solitary and alone /.
against the Old Pioneer Line After this /
then monopoly had succeeded in running & |
new line called the Washington line of the /
road, and its Cars, been sold fer tolls by the |
Collector OF the State Road, purchased them. /
and started the Accommodation Line The /
fare then charged by this monopoly was g to |
Lancaster, $3.50 to Columbia and 8 to Har- (
rlsburg. | Immediately reduced the fare /
down to what | considered Just price. ac- .
cording to the tolls then paid the State, /
and charged the following rates. viz Prom I
Philadelphia to Lancaster $3.50: to Column /
bia, o2.S73 to Harrisburg, 81. Immediately .
after | started my cars, the Pioneer Line put .
the fare down TO the State toll. and ran at /
that TuinOus rate over one year. with the view !
Of driving me off the road and after losing .
over twenty thousand dollars in an effort 10 F..
accomplish their selfish purpose, and finding
that ! was rather more spunky than they at /
first supposed, they finally agreed to compro- .
mise the fare and run all their lines at my
reduced prices, thus making difference TO
the public Of one dollar from PHILADELPHIA 10 .
Harrisburg. so cents to Lancaster, and 623 .
cents to Columbia.
The second opposition was run by our Phoc- /
nix line, against Kr. Pam Hamilton and slus-
dry Sleeping partners, which resulted in
further reduction OF fare, viz from 81 cts. /
per mile, to 3 cents, or so cents less on all .
through passengers
On the 23d day of April, 1851, tsis present .
Line, known as OUR LINE was started .
IN opposition TO the Central Railroad Monop-
oily. This was supposed by all my frinds to |
be hopeless and vain attempt they con-
sidered it but little short of madness in me
TO run against such mammoth corporation /
and all advised against it; bnt, recollect-
ing that David slew Goliah, concluded that .
nothing was impossible, and determined to .
make the attempt, and took in as partners |
with me Mr., Thomas Jefferies, of Philadel- /
phia, and Capt. D. Herr, of Columbia. The |
result is well known to the travelling pub !
he After fruitless attempt of the former
directors of the Central Railroad Company to I
drive individual enterprise off the Road by |
running eleven months for the State toll, and +
losing over Thirty Thousand Dollars to the |
Stockholders, the new Board of Directors, |
who were then elected, took different view |