The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1853-04-20

u.6nesday Morning. April = 10 1900.
SIcHNOND AND ETHAN RAILROAD.
Rocks for subscription to this road were
.,eoed on Monday by the Commissioners. at
,ns American Hotel. We hope our citizens
I'll, give IL a lift. II will be all the better for
this CITY that we be placed in communicable"
--ailroad communication--with the famous
Work river. and the famous country watered oy
:, .ra lie tributaries. There is disposition 10
rnas,,a,e these advantages, by those who are
m, fnlly aware Of them. But independent o'
them aIl-and they are very creative. sug'
- o,r citizens that there is one OF para
.,o,n, ;mnortance, and that is, that 1t we do
ID. the road from Richmond, the Central
po;,,oad will. at some day, most assuredly be
.a,,;,,sd from some point in Hanover to the
York river. Let this fact be borne IN mind.
Nc vs make the road we think there is no
chance for the connection which we know
xould be so detrimental TO us as the connec-
ton with the Central Road. Therefore our
citizens should use their best exertions to help
the country along the line of the Richmond
and Ethan Road to make up the subscrip-
,;on and accomplish the work. The State, let
!, be remembered, takes three ffths of the
stock, and there is only tteoJflhs to be made
up by private stockholders.
Our people are prone to an undertaking Of
the productive capacity of our tide-water
counties. The reason is that our intercourse
with them is limited by the circumscribed ia
eiIties of communication with them. How ma
nv OF the people of Richmond know anything
5y personal observation of Gloucester, York,
James City, King and Queen, King William
and New Kent These counties produce, by
comparison, greatly more than counties in
the mountain districts. Nor do our citizens
know much of the people that live in those
counties; yet they are a strong-backed PEG
ple-they have means and are first rate Gus
toners for they buy largely and pay prompt
ly. The Ethan Railroad would put US in
The closest intercourse with those people and
we should moreover be able TO command a
considerable part of the trade of Mathews and
Middlesex. We may even look across to the
Eastern Shore with a very confident expecta-
ton that commerce not 10 be despised will
be opened between the capital and that part of
the State. At the present time the people in
the counties we have named have but few con-
veniences for travel. The stage lines are in.
different, and most of them rely upon their own
private conveyances. The want Of regular
steamers deprives them of the advantag afe
forded by their rivers for travel, and it is a con-
siderable undertaking for them to leave home.
Now, the road to Ethan will afford new con-
venience, for travel. They will, with great
alacrity, avail themselves of it-and where
will it take them ? why to this city. Here
they will come, in few hours, at trif1ing ex-
pense, make their purchases, and return home
without loss of time. Their commercial &C.
counts will be opened here, and their produce
will of course be sent here for sale. 1t will
either come over the railroad, or 60 around by
water. But the railroad, bringing the farmers
and country merchants hither, will secure for
US the chief trade of country of very great
productiveness, and whose productiveness will
be wonderfully increased by the new facility
Of commerce afforded them.
These are considerations independent of the
supposed advantages of York river, for ship
ment, and they are alone sufficient to justify
the building If the road. 1t has been clearly
ascertained that railroads derive their chief
revenue from passengers from the through or
local travel. The Louisa Railroad did fine
business entirely upon local resources of trade
and travel before it reached GordonsyIle.--
The Ethan Road will pass through a better
country than the Louisa Road did. 1t will &C.
commodate richer people, and people that
will travel much more than these on the Loui.
ga Road. In short, this road will give facili.
ties to rich country which is very much in
want of them, and will give us trade that
will be greatly beneficial to US, besides adding
to our means of access to the Chesapeake
Bay and the Atlantic, one of the noblest
rivers fer the navigation of sail vessels in the
State! Therefore, let as help to build the
road.