, 1859-12-21
PROPOSAL TO SELL MISSOURI RAILROADS.


tFton TIC St. Louis Republican, lsth1
The Commission House 1t Jefferson City, pro-
pose to sell ont ii Free State capitalization
nobods else can buy then-three Of our roads
for eight million Eve hundred Thousand dollars.
These roads cost nearly twenty-five millions Of
dollars. They then propose to giye to the new
Companies to be organized, in the following
proportions: To the North Missouri extension,
si1 hundred and sixty thousand dollars to the
Pacific extension, one million two hundred and
sixty thousand doliarB; to the 1ron} Mountain
extension. eight hundred and sixty thousand
.foflars. Now what do the roads US they now
stand ask: The Pacific asks one million and fire
hundred thousand dollars, aud the payment of
interest until January 1861; the North Aiasou-
dollnrs, and the Iron Mountain one million of
do1lurs, with the payment Of interest 10 1anua-
r. 1861. Then, 50 far as the bond account is
concerned, the Commission House, in order to
lessen the issue OF Stale bonds to the amount Of
one million nine hundred aud thirty thousand
dollars, proposes To sell roads that cost nearly
twenty-five millions Of dollars for eight millions
five hundred thousand dollars. There is rare
economy for You!
Thrse are tns main points Of bill to sell ont
the State Of Missouri to foreigners 4 more
iniquitous and damoing measure never was in-
troduced into our Legislature. Without cause
without any possibility Of carrying any such
Law into e1ecution-when no road has been de-
clared forfeited TO the State, gentlemen, 1ho
great interests Of the state, come forward and
propose to sacrifice roads, which cost nearly
twenty-five millions Of dollars, fur the pa!try
sum ct eight millions tigehundred thousand dol
lars. In selling tlese roads they do not take into
account the immense loss upon individual, coun-
II and city subscriptions; the great loss to the
Statc on bonds granted to those roads, but upon
which full interest has nevertheless to be paid.
They seeM, in short, to care nothing about the
interests of Aissouri, 80 that their view may be
h6seErcd By the purchase Of the roads at not q
great deal less than one.tl1ird Of their cost and
HAT the trhoie may 9kt ssade,. tie control aj
..svrtAxrn dbolittohists. Neither State psj3e nor
\ desire to save the State ffcm e4orbitaut taxes
no regard for the interests Of the people Of
St Louis, whose millions Of dollars hare been
contributed for the building OF these roads-no
iorcthought for the prosperity, if the State
should 70 On and complete these roads, seems
to have entered into their calculations. The
very men who are most prominent il, this IT.
rangenlcnt. it may be observed, come from a
>ectlop Of the State which Aas received al! that
it wanted from the State in lands and bonds,
and their road is now owned and controlled BY
Hack Republicans outside Of the State, with no
interest III common with those Of our own citi-
zeus. In this way, By the sale Of these roads.
abo[Itionlsts are to get possession of al! our
roads, just NJ they hare possession of tlle Ian-
mimi and St. Joseph, and the Cairo and Fulton
roads.
fFron The ST. LouIs Democrat
II the Rpubiicaa, which is now making spas
nsodic Efforts to atouc for its delinquency during
the past three weeks, eau be relied npou as au-
thority, there il a powerful combination Of East
ern capitalists laborinc to get possession OF the
four roads, That combination, We are told, en-
braces the Hannibal + St. Joseph and the Cairo
brnnches Of tie General Assembly. Ne hive
only to say. that it the groycling. plundering
slave democracy Of Missouri are Determined to
bring the cherished enterprises uf the State
under the hammer as well Us the free negroes,
they will give the world assurance that they are
ready to sell themselves to any political eonhi-
nation. North or South, that may think it worth
while to purchase them.