Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1853-12-15
DONALD. EDITOR.
The Virginia and Tennessee Railroad-The
z,outh- West

road and the South West In continuation OF II
we will alude. as proposed, more particularly to
the rad and the progress Of the work upon it.
The graduation and masonry very nearly
finished, to Abingdon. and will be in readiness for
the superstrucmre 10 Tennessee dnring the next
summer That portion of this kind Of work UNI
finished, with the exception of one or two sections
on the branch of the Holston, in smylhe county,
is of the lghtest character.
1t is almost superfuous TO mention that the
cars are now running TO Big Spring Depot
seventy three miles from this city. The rails
have been laid from that point 10 the large tun-
nell about eight miles, near the summit pass of the
Alleghanv. The tunnel being finished, with the
exception of short supporting arch necessary in
a part of it, will offer no obstruction to the con
tinuation Of the superstrueture beyond it, bat
from the best information could gather, the
track will probably not be in readiness for the
cars to Christanshnrg before the first of next
MAY. Many heavy slides have occurred To dc
lay the work in the deep mountain cuts on this
part of the road. and the above estimate of the
time of reaching Christiansburg is in anticipation
of other slides, q freezes during which the super
structure cannot be laid. Against these slides it
is evidently Impossible that the 60. could have
guarded. without mourning an onerous and IN
necessary expenditure in making the excavations.
They are caused by the peculiar position of the
rock strata through which the road has been cut
These strata, having smooth surface and fire.
quently lying very deep, dip in monS instances
parallel with the sides of the mountains aud hills,
and hence afford in such cases, on the upper
side of the cut surface from which the musscs of
earth above them must of necessity either slide
or be thrown before the track can be secure
The latter expedient will be resored to-and
with economy. 10 remove the earth after the track
is laid.
From Chrisiansburg through the heavy work
in the cliffs of New River and Peak Creek Val
ley, in Pulaski. to Wytheyillc the iron will be
more rapidly laid but. taking into consideration
the many slides which will probably occur also
on this portion of the road, it j. very probable
that the strongest force which may be put upon
il will be unable to carry the track Ia the hitter
place earlier than year from this time. 1t may,
consequently, be looked upon rs uncertain wlreth-
er the road will be opened 10 the Tennessee line
before the Autumn Of $3.50
Having been heretofore without the benefit of
personal acquaintance with the character of the
work ON the Virginia mud Tennessee road, in
common we believe, with many others, we haye
entertained the opinion that it, progress toword.
completion unnecessarily slow. And though
the available means Of the Company my hnyc
been such as possibly to have been used for its
earlier completion, can but express the per
suason, alters personal observation of the work
ON the whole line, Tint its final opening in 80
will be triumph nike 10 the present and
ast executive officers of the Company There
i, road of the same length in the nted States
which has been completed within the same period
aud at "A cost So low; and when We consider
length, and the physical features of the work
TINT il crosses the two great mountain ranges di-
,lding the waters of the Mississippi Wiley aud
the Atlnntic-an enterprise accomplished bat in
three other instances, and at an expense more
than double the cost of this work, We are forcibr
Impressed with the conviction that it will Justly
be considered. not only as having been speedily
constructed but as the cheapest railroad in the
world.
In this opinion we believe the members of the
present Directory, most of them newly appoint
ed, and who have personally examined the whole
line, very generally concur As WE hive said
no road in the United States, of a. great length
and encountering similar obstacles has been con
structed in short time. The cost Of it may
now be very nearly opproximaed. aud will not
exceed (incuding equipmcnt twenty three, or
twenty-tour thousand dollars per mile This is
sum less than the cost per mile OF two third, Of
the roads built over the prairies of the Western
and North Western States. The average outlay
for construction and equipment Of the seven or
eight thousand miles of railway completed in the
United States, as compute from a table in the
Railroad Journal, is more than forty serea thou
sand dollars per mile. None of these roadsmorc-
over, it should be remembered, cross a noun
famous region extensive rs thai eut through by
the Va. and Tenn. road--while the only three
which have been built across the Allegheny range.
the Baltimore and Ohio, the Pensy lyuniu Cen
trail and Erie, New York; cost respectively,
with equipments over $4,000. S5l.00O, and
$4,000 (the latterincudng, we believe portion
of double track) per mile.
We repeat then, that the completion of our
road, within the time and at the cost above csti-
mated, will be "A triumph to all the parties con
eerned. The public mind of Virginia has been
directed with much socitude to its earlier COM
pletion. Erroneous estimates, in which il was
impossible TO foresee the cmbarrassments and
difficulties which have been encountered. were
made, and they have served TO flatter that soGci
tude. Every thinking mind, however, must
grant on reflection, that it is ungenerous and UNI
just to allow this feeling, 80 unayoidably disap
pointed, to degenerate into one Of prejudice
We alIn1a n, tba dSuositinn nt,a,,,. . T. B,