Washington telegraph., 1852-06-16
Are we Building too Many Rail

The American Railroad Journal answers this
question in the negative, and gives good reasons
therefor Among Others that the most expensive
roads have been built-that the cost OF railroads
In progress will not exceed 100000 per mile
that the railroad investments we are making at
the present time have no tencency to bring about
financial crisis, feared by so many-that they
constitute the greatest safeguards against excess
sve imitation of prices-that the roads build
ing are mainly in the West and their lines are so
widely separated that they will not be rivals for
the same buslness-that we not building rail-
roads beyond the wants of the people-that while
Massachusetts has mile of railroad to every
seven square miles of her territory, few of them
unproductlve, the whole investment has proved to
be good one, yielding net income of over per
cent. and is constantly improvng--and the Journal
proceeds to compare the cost and productiveness
of Eastern and Western roads as follows
Let us look at the Western States. Take Ohio.
for example; here are from $500 to 5000 miles of
railroad in progress and in operation in State
having an area of 10000 square miles. Yet with
all this extent of line the most captious person can
hardly put his finger upon road that should not
be built If the money can be had that is that
would not pay, if built The bonds of all the
roads recently constructed in that State and of
those nearly completed. are regarded by our
shrewdest and best informed capitalists as the
very best securities in the market Bonds that a
year or two since only netted companies from so
to 50 cents on the dollar cannot now be purchased
at par. This fact is the rule, not the exception
The high estimate placed upon their value is based
upon the results that have followed the opening of
the roads. With their low cost, and with the
rates charged upon Eastern roads, there is not a
road in the West that will not pay 10 per cent
dividend and leave handsome surplus besides
As an illustration of their superior productiveness,
we will compare the cost and expenses of the
Hudson River road with those of Columbus and
CleaVp for 40 month inst dn1.
Costs Earnings for .AprI
HUDSON River S11,000,000 $63.00O
CleavelanG & Columbus 100000 $4,000
Showing result of some 800 per cent in favor
of the Western road In the face of these facts. a
paper in this city, which is the greatest croaker,
and sees nothing but disaster upon our investment
in railroads, finds nothing to censure, but every
thing to commend, in the Hudson River Railroad
project.
There is certainly capitalist any the worse
off for having invested in any of the recently
structed railroads in Ohio, for we presume that
there is no one who could not sell out his invest
ments at large advance. The bonds which he
bought at 50 are now quick at par. Capitalists
have not suffered IN consequence of the Ohio roads
That the people of the State vastly better off
does not require argument to prove. The farmer
realizes from a quarter to third more for his
produce. He effects equal saving upon all the
heavy staples that he is compelled to import
Every klnd OF property mas risen IN value, and
there can be no doubt that every railroad in the
State has increased the market value of the pro-
pSrty of the district through which it runs. to
twice the amount of the cost of the road
Such are the prdctical results that have been al
ready achieved by the roads in progress But
there are by no means the strongest lines in that
State. We doubt whether the 800 miles already
in progress in Ohio possess business capacities
greater than the average of the whole 1000 miles
which are now in progress. Precisely the same
reason exists for completing all these lines that
did for the construction of the first mile in the
State. Ncnphis Eagle and Enquirer.