Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1855-01-27

Viii certainly Iff admitted. inAt ~ Htitt' ~
tu consi Ter the vast amount 81 mechanic Kill
which j. employed in the operation Of finished
road throwing entirely out Of the question the
NUMEROUS aud magnificent work shops of the
country, in which the cars. locomotives and other
machinery for our roads nre manufactured.
The following statement was made in 1851
the Reading railroad employs, 10 ALL about
800 persons. at salaries and wages, respective
lv.of about 100000 per month, or S720,0O0 per
nnnum. 1t consumes materials IN value ~ so.
oDO per month, causing in all consumption Of
materials. salaries and wages) an annual outlay
of 5000, G1O-all expended ON its own ground. 1t
manufactures 30 wheel, a day to perpetnatr lis
machinery and cars. and requircrs annually from
to eight hundred tons of new rails for repairs
olly.n
Let u see nov whit will hc the future de
mand for i.uu Ia pcrPrtuate the track and to Keep
up the supply Of wheels ON our railroads.
There are now 10, 1873 miles of railroad N ope.,
ton in the 'uited States, accnrliug to II careful
estimate published in the Railroad journal, ri
January 9Th. lhe compendium ot lie United
States Census gives l2,526 as the number oil
miles in constructions suppose we assum" ~
600 miles rs the present number, aud 3Oooo
miles l. the number which will have in lS6O.
Take the average demand for new wheels per
mile Of road one hoif of what it is on the
Reading road, and it will show the present de
mnnd to be 225.ODo tons per annuIn, and the de
mand in l-6 to be By jOO tons for re 2dirS alone
Assume loo tons per mile rs the weight ct the
rail, aud , per cent. per annnln as the los, ana
we find .Oil.OO5 taa> per annam necessary tor re-
pairs at this tiGle. aud l50,00O in l96). 1t will
probably require twice "a much for new roads
and double tracts on old roada-maklng de.
mand for many years Of l5O,000 tons of rails and
probably GOO,00O tons of wheels or more than
one million of tons of metal.
There now produced in the United States,
only l,000,OOO tons of iron, III Great Britain, only
3,UDO,0OO, and in the world only 5,sl7,odo.
The demand for other descriptions Of iron is
increasing rapidly, and the uses To which it is
applied are daily multiplying. The production
Of iron i'll Great Britain has been more than
doubled since 1910, and that of the United States
has been tripled.
Is it, not then the interest of the American
iron master to encourage still farther the con.
struction Of Railroads! The fair deduction from
the foregoing facts is that it is in6isprnsahly
necessary to penetrate the coal and iron fields OF
the United States by Railroads, before We can
approximate the supply of iron necessary for
home assumption. And that we should continue
littie longer TO direct our industry TO the sup.
ply of the more profitable descriptions of iron,
taking the rails, which less profitable from
Great Britain.
We have cndeayored to establish the fact, that
each mile of Railroad constructed in the present
condition of the iron business, will be attended
with immediate benefit tn the American Iron
Master, even though the rail, themselves ARE
purchased from abroad. We have shown that
the ultimate effect of importing iron free, and
thus completing rapidly and economically, those
Roads which are now under construction, will he
to increase the annual demand for iron in this
country at the end Of five years, 10 at least :,
UUJ.OOO of tom, double the amount now pro-
duced in the United States.
The iron interest is not only Of the highest
national Importance, in Itself, but l. which
ruu>ly affects every other interest, and it Is there
fore rmineutly entitled to the fostering care Of
Government. Congress Is imperatlYciy called on.
hv every motive that could influence the rulers of
an enlightened nation, to protect and encourage
This interest This can only be done through the
Railroads. by extending them far enough To bring
into market the immense deposits of iron, now
locked up in our back country. ! his means a
lone will enable the iron producer to meet the
croat and growing demand for iron in the United
Statc-.
rhe change Of policy ON the part Of the Fede-
raj Government has operated unequaIly, and
therefore, unjustly While some States made
their Railroads when iron was admitted duty free,
when the price of iron was 50 low as to com
pcnsate, in some measure, for the oppressive
/ duty--ohtr States unfortunate rs to con
>traet their most important works, when the duty
added To the high price OF IRON rendered 1t an IN
tolerahle burden.
II it be just and equitable to encourage Rail
roads by continuing this exemption from duty
for longer period, it is equally SO to refund the
duties paid by those companies which have borne
the pressure of the high duty and the high price
combined.
sarly all the Railroad companies, whose
works are incomplete, have been seriously en-
barrassed by the commercial distress which has
prevailed every whore for the last year; and
some OF them will be unable to prosecute their
work This measure of relief, so strongly
tanned by ever, consideration of Justice and
policy would be attended with the happiest re-
suits in etieetng the speedy completion of the
numerous half finished Roads.
Your mcmorasts, respectfully ask, that
Congress will refund to Railroad companies all
the duty paid ON Railroad iron since the 4th of
March. 1851 aud that they will reduce the duty
ON Railroad iron hereafter to be imported.
\ table is appended, showing the amount of
duties paid on rails during each of the four years
preceding the Both of June, 1854.
CHAS. F. NJ. GARNETF,
PETER Y. DANIEL, Jr.,
y. Is. HILL.