Republican vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1857, 1857-12-12
THE VINDICATOR.
STANTON, VA.
For"the Ttndicator
A CARD.
Col. CrOZet and the Blue Ridge Tunnel,

tHNUs
Col. Cr0zet and the Blue Ridge Tunnel
In the Wind icator of the 2Sth November
Col. Crozet charges Messrs. Nelson, e
fIanover) holland and Wood, of Aibemarle
with making false statement in Repor
they made to the Board of the Va Contra
Rail Road Co., OF fac Goth Of October, eel
alive to the gross ties he had caused to b,
laid in the Tunnel, which Report the Di
rectors thought it was their duty to lay be-
fore the Board of Public Works, and h,
also assails the motives Of the Directors 70.
making that communication
The Board of Directors think i proper t.
say few words in vind.eation eff their mo-
tiyes, leaving the Committee to defend the
of their veracity in their owr
way and dismissing that part of his lette,
with this single remark, that his case would
have worn better aspect, if lie had not
not permitted a month to elapsc before he
challenged an examination of the premises.
In 1904, when the Directors desired tc
use part of the Blue Ridge Road, reso-
luton was adopted, Gas they learned, by
the advice Of Col. Crozet,) declaring that
when the Central Company commenced using
it, thereafter, all expenses of Keeping u.]
the track were to be betrayed by them
some of these, they thought, belonged more
properly to ''Constrpction' than REPAIR"
10 avoid getting into similar difficulty,
on the 23d Sept, then, believing from what
they had heard, that the Tunnel was nearly
ready to be transferred, they adopted the
following resolution
Resolyed, That in taking the Blue Ridge
tunnel and road under our charge, it is dis
tinctly understood, that whatever work may
be deemed necessary 10 render Kelly's Cut,
and the embankmeit at Robinson's Hollow,
and at the eastern end of the long tunnel
safe for the present, as well as the repairing
IF any slides or unusual settling which may
occur at said cut or banks, should be done
at the expense of the State TO explain
more definitely the views of the Board, ref
ercnee is made to the accompanying report
Of the engineer of this Company.
This report of the engineer gave detail
ed statement of several imperfections in the
work then supposed to be ready to be sur
rendered by Col. Crozet.
Again, on the 10Th October. the Commit.
tee, addressing the Roard of Directors, say,
I'VE feel that we should not be faithful to
the interests cf the Company, il we did net
Icommanicate all tie information we h&ye
acquired, though not deputed by the Com
Ipany to make any report On the subject"
1.-The facts which we think ought to be
known to your Board are, that after getting
several hundred feet into the Tunnel, at
each end, the track is laid on ties, q large
proportion of which are much smaller than
usual. We noticed some that seemed less
than i inches in diameter, and some not
tlatted except simply the removal Of the
bark. !" .=''''' =,
1t was stated that these ties, some Of the..l
mere round poles, were all fastened down
to the iron with four heavy spikes each land
filled up with broken stone. This, surely,
looked as if COL Crozet had done all that
he intended, and the Board of Directors
were expected, silently, to receive the work
with such imperfeetions at that most dar'-
gerous point They decided otherwise.
They thought that duty to he Stockholders,
and proper respect for the Poard e Public
Works, who were ignorant of the state OF
the facts, demanded that they should be put
in possession of the information received
from the Committee. Byt Col. Crozet seems
to think 1t strange, Indeed, complains. that
the Directors placed more confidence in the
statement of the Committee, than in him.
This Committee was composed of three in
tellisent, respectable gentlemen. whose
statement must command respect, even il
disputed by him.
The object of the communication to the
Board of Public Works was, simply, and
plainly, TO protect the Company against the
danger of having 70 inanr heavy expenses,
to correct defects in the construction Of the
work. Col. Crozet says there are no small
ties there nor, and that the embankment is
now full wide. If SO, .Sle oljeet on these
points is attained
AS to the size of the Tunnel, reported to
have been less tSan original specifications,
and when the track was laid through it, too
small fer q car to pass, Col. Crozet insists
that it never was too aarrew. Ifthc trains
had been tried to run through, and it was
found they .coe'd not pass, the Directors
think, it would have been a metter of very
little concern to the passengers, whether
they were stopped by the Tunnel being too
Maroon or too iom-.the consequences world
have been the same in either case. Let us
see what are his notions about the proper
size of the Tunnel, lie says that he '"tried
frame alons this track to detect such
points, and found few to interfere, 2 or 8
inches, with the upper corner of the frame,
either one side or the other, circumstance
which did not concern in the least the Cen
trial Rail Road Company, as it would not
prevent the RAINING of tie trains Does It
require, Messrs. Editors, great share of
intelligence to conceive that DETECTING, tenn
.porarly, the track few inches. Gptl they
are removed, would have allowed train to
pass p The Directors think, that if a small
share of intelligence might conceive the
Idea, it would require very larg share of
indisqretiop, recklessness and stupidity, to
undertake to put it in execution Suppose
train to have ran of at one of these defiee-
tons, ION one side or the other" which
would have been extremely probable, what
punishment would have been thought toe
great for the Engineer whe built, or the Di-
rectors who allowed trains to run on such a
f'worm. fence Inc [" They think the cars
ought not to squeeze through, but have a
good deal of spare. loesa each side.
II seems, tilen, that the rumor was rela-
h1a that cors could mot pacs throvob Tho