Republican vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1857, 1857-02-14
The President and late Superintendent
of the Va. Central Rail Road.

,
efficient officers.
We have hitherto taken no part in this
controversy, feeling, as we did, the deepest
regret that it should have occurred. But
justice to enc Of the gentlemen concerned,
makes it Our duty at length to say few
words, not as the partizans Of the one or the
other, bat as the friends of great State
work whose interests we have at heart.
We have always looked upon Col. Fon-
tame as most valuable officer, to whose IN
domtable energy and devotion, more than
to any ether one cause, this great work is
indebted for It's present state Of advance
mont and usefulness He may have COM
mi;ted error, but who who would not have
committed mere, under the trying circum-
stances in which he has constantly been
placed ever since the company formed the
design Of extending their Improvement to
the Ohio. We win not discuss the question,
whether the change Of the passing point for
the cars from Gordoasville was wise or not
That is question that does not legitimately
belong to the issue, and enc with which we
have rot sufficient acquaintance to decide
But, We are satisfied that change did not
necessarily involve the danger of collision,
which Mir. Iimberlake supposes. It is alb
surd 70 say that the up and down trains, can
not, BY properly framed schedule and time
tables, pass each other safely at any given
point on the road and it has been satisfae-
tqrily settled. that the late collision did not
occur from any defect in the schedule, but
from disregard of it by one of the conduc-
tors We are satisfied, too, that in the in
stance in question, the President did not
interfere with the appropriate duties of the
superintendent. 1t is the province of the
President and Board of Directors to regu-
late the speed of the cars. and the change
of the passing point was intended to effect
that object How far the change was cal
culated to promote that end, is another
question. Bat, it seems to us, if that was
the aesign. the President and Board were
acting within the province of privilege and
d@y to order it. and the superintendent was
bound to carry out the order without COM
plant, and making the experiment in good
faith, instead of taking the untenable posi-
ton no place would be safe for passing but
Gordonsvlie. In refusing to do SO, and
proplesying collision, as a necessary con-
sequence, he was guilty of characterization,
and of contempt 1--WE are sure not inten-
tionaD of the higher authorities of the Com
pany. His present pretension that, at the
date OF the collision he had resigned his Of
fee IS superintendent is wholly untenable,
unsustained, and eontradicted by the evil
dence be adauees 10 prove it. He refers to
bis letter of resignation, dated 18th of Nov.
But it is not pretended that either the Pres
iaent o. the Board accepted the resignation,
anl, to say nothing of their understanding,
that he was satisfied aud determined to held
on, his witnesses prove. that as late as the
18th Of December, and afterwards, he said
he l9oala leage the service of the company
if, &c. Early il September. after tie date
Of the letter of resignation, Mr. Timber
lake told his witness, Sumner, that i the
President insisted on the change of the
schedule, he would resign. On the 10Th Of
December, he told II. W. Fry, it seas has
Intention TO leape the road in fec days,
that he had resigned his Office at the last
meeting of the Board, but had been request
ed to hold on short time, and the substance
of this conversation he repeated to Mr. Fry
on the 25th. On the 18th of December he
told Mr.. Lobban that he had sent la has re-
signatioa, expressed disapprobation of the
course of the President towards him, in re-
gard, more particularly, to frequent, and,
as lie thought, improper changes. There
fore, as he found he could not run the road
as he thought the interest of the company
required it should be, he could no longer
be regarded as superintendent.
The whole evidence adduced by Mr. Tim
berlake to prove his resignation, it seems to
us, only proves high, or as we think, I'M
proper degree of dissatisfaction with the ar
rangements, not of the President alone, but
of the Board of Directors-in consequence
of which he sent in his resignation, which
was not accepted. That he afterwards con-
scented to remain, at least for short time,
and that he was still superintendent when
the collision occurred. The simple question
submitted to the stockholders by his defence
is, whether they prefer that President and
Directors elected by themselves shall be the
judges Of their true interests, and whether
those interests shall be handed over to the
arhitrament of any superintendent We
think Mr.. Undertake has committed a fatal
error, not only in concluding there could be
no safe passing point, except at Gordons-
vile. but in suppoaing that he, and not the
President and Directors, was the sole guar
dian Of the interests of the company. For
those errors, and for the insubordination