Muscatine journal. [volume] (Bloomington, Iowa) 1849-185?, 1853-07-22
Railroad Matters.

NSlIrOaQ M6ItorSs
A synopsis Of recent railroad proceeding
and correct view Of the matter IL given
our correspondent below. He is right in
cor; occurring that the statement in the Jour
nal Of the 9th was a mistake---inadverte
made-whether by ourself our the compos.
itor we cannot now determine, not have
preserved the original manuscript:
For the Journal
Mr.. EDITOR In the Journal of tho 9th, in
speaking of the Company who have offered
to assist US in building our railroads, you
say +: "This Company have offered to build
two roads from the Mississippi rirer to Zowa
CITY, and from thence on to the Missouri :
This is a very great mistake. 1t was bad
enough for the Davenport papers to mis-
represent these Railroad matters as they
did when they said there was to be built, by
this same Company, road from Daven-
port to Iowa City, viM two branches one
to Muscatine and the other to Cedar Rapids.
The first, suppose, was q mistake. But
the latter, we must believe, was a wilful
Misrepresentation winch has caused much
anxious inquiry by the people of Muscatine,
and what benefit Davenport has derived
from that falsehood would be difficult to
come at. I send you the, " Chicago Jour.
nal" Of July 9th, with request that you
copy the two short paragraphs I have
marked:
I've R4iIsoADs.-Hon John A. Dir, sub-Trsas.
ursr Of New York city, has been made President Of the
Davenport Iowa Railroad, known rs the Mississippi
ana Missouri Company. connecting the chicago and
Rock Island Road, at Davenport with the Nissouri
river: Hon. A C. Flagg.. City Comptroller, is the
Road. Messrs. Farnham, j. E. Sheffield and Others.
programme:
THE Company agreed to construct in Iowa three
Roads. l. From Davenport to Iowa lity, with view
to its ultimate extension westwardly or northwardv
.. From Muscaine, westwardly by way Of Oskaloosa.
TO the Missouri river, or to more sonth westWariy
connecting with the Great Pacific Road running west
rom St Louis and g. From the city of Muscatine to
Cedar Rapids. The Company agreed to furnish two.
thirds OF the amount Of capital necessary to the con.
ruction OF these and required the people along the
LINES 70 contribute the other third-or the construc.
ton OF their own road, of course All these lines are
to be extended towards their ultimate destination inst
as lar and just as fast the people along them fur.
nish their quota-one thrd-for that purpose Neither
road to be diverted from its course to favor either
the three points, Davenport. Muscatine Iowa City,
Newspaper paragraphs are not always to
be relied on; but from al the information
| can gather from our own citizens, this is
precisely what the Mississippi and Missouri
Railroad Company is, and what roads they
propose to build, and where they are to be
located. do not believe the location of
these three roads is the most judicious
which could have been made. l believe a
more judicious, economical, profitable, and,
eventually, more satisfactory arrange
ment, would have been q road from Day.
port to Muscatine, from Muscatine to Iowa
City, from Iowa City to Cedar Rapids and
from Iowa City to Oskaloosa and the Mis-.
souri, river-and thus to deviate the roads
to suit the interest of all these places. But
it appears that the wisdom of this ssMissis-
sippi and Missouri Railroad Company" is
to take more direct routes for the Missouri
river. Be it so, we are content as il ia.
Muscatlne has long labored to prevent Da.
venport from locating road across the
prairie north Of us in order to shun thi.
place and detract business from us. Il
seems mad folly to build road from De.
vsnport to the Missouri river without com.
ing through this place, when we are 90 near
direct limo. But the die il cast and we
need not say another word against it. The
evil is not without its good.
Here comes to US this Mississippi and
Missouri Railroad Company, and proposes
to assist US to build the very roads we want,
and more too. Now the two roads from
Muscatine-the one to Oskaloosa and the
Missouri river, and the other to Cedar Rap
ids-are, either of them, greater evils to
Davenport than the one from Davenport to
Iowa City is to Muscatine. The evil to
Muscatine, (if you will allow me for mo.
ment to be selfish enough to call it 80,
we must have. Shall we be 60 blind to our
best interests as to reject the good, and
have the evil alone? They propose to To-
cate our road. precisely where we want
them and to put in two dollars to our one in
building them! And yet men tell us we can
do better. We'll, can we do any better I?
We have sent to Chicago and to Michigan
to see if the other Michigan Company would
no do better by US, and the reply was, that
''they had no interest in railroads in Iowa,
nor did they wish or expect to have" Now
we have waited six weeks since this propo.
sition was made to Us, and those who were
opposed to it, have had time enough to got
their better proposition, and they have had
our money to trace! on, and our men to tr0pel,
and now we hope and trust that this little
gun, the agitator, is spiked and sllenced on
this subject, and that the opposition will put
US to no more trouble and costs. We would
ike to say word to our City Council,
and our Iowa Western Railroad Company
about sending men OF on errands at CTS
s-piece, when this same srrand could ha vo
been dene-by letter at three cents postage,
md should have been long ago. We have
suffered greatly for information which
should have been got by letter and publish
ID, that when We are called on to vote mon.
~, or Subscribe. We may do it understand
Ingly. We are sorry to say that some Of