Southern shield., 1854-02-11
Arkansas Road-State Pride and
 State Interest"

The comparison between the Little Rock and Cairo road and the Little Rock and Memphis road or ''Branch," as it is now called, was brought in our last issue to the connections that are ac- complished by the Cairo road on one side, and those that mag heredtter be accomplished by the Memphis road on the other Before touching on this head -' the subject we will refer briefly 10 the circumstances vf rlIo prospective road from Memphis to Louisville, for as that IS the on'y alked-cf-connecticn by which the MeInphi, and Lit.ie Rock "branch' can be made to compare with the Little Rock and Cairo road, 1t be- comes necessary to offer few remarks on its condition and prospects.
 Some few months ago an organ zation was obtained for the construction of a road from Memphis to Louisville; but the value attaching to this fact is neither more nor less than that conveyed in the explanation, that the Directors elected are all resident aCithin 60 miles of Hem phis. Louisville cannot contribute to this road; the Louisville and Nashville road alone costing some $7 100000 gives that City quite as much as she can ac complish. For about eighty miles out of Memphis the counties along the route will contribute literally to the construction of this road; but with the exception of Christian county in Kentucky, already burdened with her proportion of the Henderson and Nash vile road, we dc not know of any other county between Trenton and Louisville that can be of any material assistance 10 the project. Every one knows that the poorest counties of Western Tennessee and Kentucky lie on each side of the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers; and so also of the counties between Green and Salt rivers on the line of this road. The Constitution of Kentucky forbids the expectation of State-ad 10 any public work: and with such set of facts com bined with the local character nf the orsomi7asior. ivad iIresisIabIy 10 the con clusion that notwithstanding the lauda- ble zeal and public spirit of the friends of that project. its vitality does not nor can extend beyond Trenton on the Mobile and Ohio railroad. Memphis sees doubtless that in commercial sense the Mobile and Ohio railroad in furnin 2 the Mississippi river back of her, has set the mark of the destroyer over her doors; and therefore not only the mean ing, but in all probability the inte,at. of all we read of Memphis and Louisville railroad is simply popular method of securing the construction of road from Trenton to Memphis as q tap on the Mobile and Ohio road. The gentlemen who act for Memphis in these things are men of tact, zeal, and shrewdness. With agulph of from twelve to fourteen mill ions of dollars yawning between Mem phis and Louisville on the line of that road we may, while utterly unwilling 10 breathe doubt into an ear resident on the route, hisper conidentially to our railroad from Memphis to Trenton ever reaching Louisville is simply moonshinp "a soft light under which the Memphis tap of the NJ. & O. RR looks, however, like we!I-placed picture, to most un- questionable advantage-n'impor let us,conceding all this with child like faith, assume the Louisville connection re- ulity.
 Distances measured on maps are al- ways open to dispute, we have therefore, with the assistance of one of the Engl- neer corps of our railroad, obtained all the airline or great circle distance enter ing into this enquiry, by calculation from the Latitudes and Longitudes of the res pective points. Our data are as follows: and even though little in error them selves, cannot have any sensible effect on the general results of the calculations; Little. Rock, Lat. 34o A Lon. l50 l2'I Memphis, 350 Os' l30 0l'I Cairo, 370 OS' 12o TT Vincennes, 3S0 43' O 34'i Cincinnati, 390 O6' ]" 7o 32'I Louisville. 3sO 20' |" 80 5
 The airline distances resulting from these geographical positions are as fol- lows: Cairo to Vincennes l43a to ciOGin. in. 'ncennes to Cincinnatii654 Cairo 536 ,hItlleRock to Memphis l264 Lit!le Rock Memphis to Louisville 3l74 hv 10 o'IvIn Men,