The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1853-07-08
VIRGINIA AND KENTUCKY.

~. a.... in TIA commentaries upon our
Railroad connections with Kentucky over
1ook the most direct Of the lines that have oeen
proposed viz: that by way OF the mou.n y.
big Sandy River. We have no oouo' una ~. a.O
two principal lines will be made-sne " me
Cumberland GAP and the other oy Tue DIG
S.ndv The Cumberland Gap route' now
aver. was originally designed 'oi "v'o
S..,hs,n tendency than TO the line oil 'ne
V:,r;,;. R.;lroads; and it makes SO great a
.,r;de South ardy from lexington 'na' 'ne
INT. from that city via the Big Sandy, mus
he considerably the shortest.
The Big Sandy route will also be the snort
"a, fran Memphis. We have several times
taken OCCASION to speak Of the projected road
from Memphis to Bowling Green, in Ken.
,ucky-and from thence to Lexington. Ten
nessee and kentucky have chartered this line,
and the necessary subscriptions have been
q raised in Tennessee to entitle the road in that
Sta ,e TO the benefit Of the $4,000 per mile, APP
propriated by a general law Of Tennessee to
Railroads complying with certain conditions.
Engineers are now engaged in surveying this
road, and we have assn RANGES from persons IN
the localities imme diately interested. which do
not permit US to doubt for a moment the ener-
getic prosecution of the improvement. The
character of the country through which the
road will pass justifes the expectation that 1t
will be a very straight one. From Lexing-
ton, as our citizens are we'll aware by this
time, there is road chartered and soon to be
begun, which connects with our Covlngton
and Ohio Road at the mouth of Big Sandy.
Ii any one will take the map and trace this
route, he will find that it is about as direct
from Memphis as any Other; and unless ien-
nessee is ready to encounter great expense
in building straight road from Memphis via
Nashville to Knoxville, there will be none
other 50 direct.
Another important feature of our connec-
tions with Kentucky by way of the Big Sandy,
is that Railroad will be made from Coving'
ton, opposite Cincinnati, along the Ohio to
Maysville, Kentucky, and thence to the mouth
of Big Sandy. This road is begun. We saw
within the last three weeks the heavy iron at
Covington for it. While looking at the map
to trace the Memphis route. if you will just
glance at that from Covington via Maysville to
Big Sandy, you will see better than we can
tell you, how completely these lines running
to Big Sandy command the commerce Of the
very best and richest parts of Kentucky. We
have recently conversed with citizens of Louis
vile, Lexington, Covington and Maysvile,
who exhibited the liveliest interest in the con.
nection with our Central road, and assured US
that unless Virginia bestirred herself, Kentucky
would reach her borders before she was ready
to meet her.
Our connection with these roads South of
the Ohio, across which produce cannot be
transported without great difficulty and ex.
pense, gives us great advantage in our com.
merce with Kentucky. In winters freezes
and during the low water of summer, the great
bulk of the produce of Kentucky must be
brought 10 the Virginia Roads and the canal,
and by them be carried to the shipping places
in the Atlantic tide-water. The travel too
will stream along our roads, and a throng
will visit our Valley in summer 10 which the
numbers sojournng there in times past can
afford no comparison whatever. The great
Southwest will send its thousands of travel
lers to Memphis, thence to take the Railroad,
which will bring them to the Valley and TO
the towns and cities of Virginia.