Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1853-02-05
LETTER FROM DAVID DLONoENECKpR, ESQ
TO CHRISTOPHER FALLON, Esq.
oFrics rHiLA 4 SuSpupY r. r. Co.

DEAR Sir,--The Philadelphia and Sunbury
Kali Road Company will have twenty five
miles Of the road finished, from poin, two
miles west Of Noun, Carmel to Sunbury,
with heavy T rail by the Is. of May next
when the connection with the Reading
Rail Road is completed, (which will be dur.
ing 1854 the Philadelphia and Sunbury
road will form the shorles, route from Phila. |
delphia 10 Lake Erie in connection with The
Sunbury and Erie, being &c miles shorter
than by the way Of Harrisburg and II miles
shorter than BY the Ca,,awissa and Tamauua
roads. BY the way Of the Philadelphia and
Sunbury, will be peculiarly tho Philadelphia
route to Lake Erie, and while our road will
be greatly benefited in connecting with the
Sunbury ami Erie by the through trade and
travel: the point of view 10 which wish to
call your attention, as promoting vastly our
mutual interests is the feasibility of carry.
Ing large anthracite coal tonnage from the
second coal field over part of our road, and
The entire length of the Sunbury and Erie,
on terms more advaniageously than BY any
other channel connecting any of the other
anthracite coal fields Of Pennsylvania with
The Western Lakes. claim that as soon as
your road can be completed, there will be a
demand for anthracite coal on the Western
Lakes Of at least 1000, 900 Of tons per an.
mum, and iha, the Sunbury and Erie can ge,
this tonnage Tor any greater supply from
our Shamokin coal region, so as TO deliver it
AT the harbor of Erie al market price of
81 per ton, and yet enable your company 10
make profit of 81, 5000 per annum from
the carrying of the coal alone, besides af-
fording you peculiar advantages for carrying
freight from the West 10 the East. Although
the use of anthracite coal in steamers on
the Western Lakes has been scare ely intro
duced yet two years, the recent report of the
Committee of the City Councils informs us
that in the past year 300 900 tons of anihra-
cite coal were taken from Philadelphia to
the Western Lakes. This coal must have
been carried distance OF about 700 miles
and cost at Lake Erie over SO per ton.
II the superior qualities of anthracite coal
as a fuel would induce this consumption in
scarcely two years after its introduction
and " hen furnished at cost of over Ss Del
ton, can il be doubted that, SO soon as this
coal can be furnished al 81 per ton, this ar.
iicle, the consumption of which is now ma.
king such rapid progress from its use in pro.
peling steamboats,, and for all domestic and
manufacturing purposes, in the Canadas and
country bordering on the Lakes, will find a
market on the Lakes of from one to two mil.
lions Of tons per annum, with the prospec,
Of an indefinitely greater increase? Assum.
ing, therefore, ,ha, this demand will exist
the next question is, from whence shal
come the supply! That coal cannot con,in
ue to be taken from the SchuykiIl coal field
by the way Of Philadelphia, in competition
with coal sent from the Lackawana Goa
field, by the way Of the North Branch Cana
or the Lackawana Rail Road, via Grea
Bend, 10 most manifest.
The supply must come, therefore, wi,hou
tho Sunbury and Erie, and tho completion
Of the North Branch Canal, exclusively from
tho Lackawana coal fields. With the Sun
bury and Erie propose to show that tn
greater portion of this supply must com
from the Shamokin coal field. This Coz
field will then have advantages over tn
Lackawana coal field in shorter distance
no transhipmen,s, and chiefly and most m;
terially in the fact that with slight in
provement or change in cars for carryin
that can be readily suggested) the coal can
taken as return freight in cars which mu
otherwise be hauled back empty, and whic
on the other principal roads connecting II
West with the East, to wit the Pennsyy
MIA road, the Baltimore and Ohio, the Ne
York and Erie, and Albany and Buffalo, a
in fact, hauled back a, great expense, con
paralively empty. Your road could ha,
this return freight moi only TO save The co
of running empty cars but, in fact, 10 rea
izs the revenue Of ST 10000 per annu
on the transportation of l,Ooo,0oo tons
coal as above stated, which | now proce,
to show.
The distance from Shamokin (about II
average point in The Sharckin Coal fe
from which coal going westward will
sent,) 10 Sunbury is 10 miles That fro
SunbuTy 10 Erie, as at present estimated,
2s6 miles-bui am assured, on the be
authority, that you have ascer,ained by yo
late surveys that this distance can probab
be so much shortened that it will not exec
$50 miles. will assume that il shall
ESQ. The entire distance from Shamokin
Erie will be, therefore, 27s miles. Fro
the Lackawana coal field there will be,
the completion of the North Branch Cam
two double routes. From Scranton 10 Buff
10 or Dunkirk, by way of GEea, Bend, a
from Pil,slon las an average point on /
North Branch Canal to Buffalo or Dunkir
BY the way of Elmira, from Scranton
Dunkirk, continuous rail road, the distan
is 2o7 miles, with grades considerat
greater than on the Sunbury and EIie.
From Scranton TO Buffalo, the entire distan
10 3i4 miles, with transhipmeu at I,hs
from cass into canal boats. Fiom Pitts
10 Dunkirk, with transhipmen, at Elm
from abou, SO tou canal boats, (beine sb
ska n.oitx af