The Belmont chronicle, and farmers, mechanics and manufacturers advocate. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1848-1855, 1854-01-06

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and proposes to give the tohttruction TO tina
company which will build itfor the least sur
In the way OF aid from the Government; tbn
aid to be afforded ia 8 per cent. stock, re.
deemable after 20 years at the pleasure Of the
Government--tho company to own and man.
age the road under certain conditions. These
are: LIST. That The Government may take
possession Of II at any time by paying the
company It's expenditure upon the road, with
10 per cent. interest on the investment; and
I'd. That Congress may control the lares so
far es to keep the net income down 10 10 per
cent; 81. That the rates for The transporta.
ton Of the mails, aud OF troops. military stores.
and other things for the Govern
mcnt, shall be established BY the Secretary
Of War.
ii. The Company undertaking the con.
sruction Of the road, are to lodge five mil.
lions of dollars in the hands Of the Govern
fnent, in form Of State or Government Stocks,
by way of security for the fulflnert Of its
contract. "|
III. No grants Of land are TO be made to
the Comaany beyond stropi sufficient far a
road way.
Nv. The road is to be built nortl orthe
parallel OF 40 > to be commenced within IS
months from the date Of the contract for liz
construction, and be completed eouippcd
and put in operation within five years.
V. The company is to be bound to exuend
a million Of dollars on the road at the start
before receivi ng any portion of It's bonus. It
is then TO be entitled TO such proportion of
the entire sum the Government propoeo, 60
furnish, as its own expenditure bears to the
contemplated cost of the entire road. In
other words, Government will pay no faster
than the com ,vny. The expenditures Of
each will 60 atong pari passu.
VI The various stations are TO be fixed
upon by the Secretary Of War, and village g.
city plots to be laid off and thrown open to
public competi ton. All lands lying within
six miles of the road are to be advanced to
81 80 per acre, and all lying beyond that
limit and within IL miles are to be fixed at
81 S7a. These are the main features ol the
plan.
Mr.. Stewards bill resolutely shuts the door
against plundering and bargaining OF all sorts
in this vast and important work, and puts
every man and every company disposed to
embark in earnest in the construction of the
Pacific Road on footing OF perfect equality
1t avoids the mschiefs and evils that would
result from making the company constructing
the road the holders of the only valuable land
along its route. 1t extinguishes all monopoly
features of an offensive character, and yet it
confers every power necessary to the full and
complete achievement Of the enterprise
The fact that Mr.. Stewards bill makes no
gigantic land monopoly of the company, but
withholds the territory along which the road
passes for actual settlers at fixed and moder-
ate prices, is most commendable and impor-
tant feature Of it. The bill thus ciiers a
solution of two difficult points in the great
railroad problem. 1t presents in the first
place plain method Of building the; road
without danger of committing the Govern
ment to untold expenditure, and in the second
it secures the road without thereby creating
great land monopoly to sit like an incubus
astrdo the Continent As respects the route,
this must depend upon the bearing of the
accumulating g information from the various
exploring parties, and the results of scientific
surveys yet to be made. Across the precipt-
Gus gorges of the Gla. favored by friends Of
Southern line, it can never go, To the
Texas route the insuperable objection lies
that it makes the western terminus at San
Diego, when that terminus must be at San
Francisco, or further north. But we do not
enter upon the question of route as something
invinciby fixed by Mr.. Stewards bill. This
question is not yet fully ready for settlement.
". Y. Tribune.