Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1859-05-06
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MN iiASa't 1fe
honor due him.
/ am, yours, &c, Nick.
For TIE Ehquirtr.
Baltimore and Ohio Railroads. Connections, &c
We know Of no portion OF the community
more thoroughly imbued with Young Amcrl'
canism than the so.called VILLAGERS II 4
line OF ocean steamers be projected, scores Of
villages, on streams flowing occanward, enter
their names upon the list Of contestants, the
inhabitants dream of wealth and prosperity
rivaIing Carthage Of old, and lots suddenly
rise to an enormous per centage. This failing,
if a railroad be projected to run through 4
country somewhat contiguous, it must wire
in and wire out" 10 secure the trade and travel
of each, and a few years Of experiment only
prove that the patronage of the whole would
scarcely pay the oil bill.
A writer in the last semi.weckly issue Of the
Enquirer, over the head Of "Chotank,' invites
an air line road from Baltimore 10 Richmond,
through sport Royal" His article struck us
as being very remarkable in its reasoning,
which We propose to give 4 passing examine
tion-not, however, before saying, let us have
it By all means, prorided Virginia is to be bere.
fitted more by that than by any other route.
But il, on the other hand, it tend to dcrange
the system Of internal improvements already
commenced and in operation; if it is TO result in
a still further depletion ofour g%roaning treasury;
If it is to render valuclcss or injure any other Of
Yirginia's interests, without the likelihood OF
an ample and speedy remuneration, We say, As
would every other lover Of this venerable Com.
monwealth, away with it, And we assume that
! these three direiul results would accrue from
the building of the road from lIooe's Ferry
to Milford. The State, Of course, would
have to contribute two-tifths Of the CAPT
tai stock, and this might be an objection
in the present condition Of the treasury, even
if there were no loss TO be sustained in conSe-
quence. But the Fredericksburg road, now
SAID to be in q better financial condition than
any other in the State, just emerging from its
embarrassments, and paying dividends of more
than 6 per cent, per annum would be render
Ell nearly or quite valucless. The States and
also the individual interest in that road would,
perhaps, be ruined by a parallel line, and the
example would be such as 10 deter citizens from
ever again assisting the State in carrying on
her improvements, seeing that by this step,
two or three millions of dollars had been will
fully bartered away, and for what? For an air
line road, which cannot by any possibility
be as profitable to Virginia, as one nearly pa
rallel, but passing through a region Of country
far more populouS and wealthy.
That the old Fredericksburg road passes
through q richer and more productive region
than the proposed Port Royal" route would, is
plain to any one acquainted with the two sec
tons; and it follows, therefore, that the tOcal
business is larger and more important, which
would be killed off by substituting the other
route. Now let us see whether the through
trurel would be any less. 'Chotank' says
that the Orange and Alexandria road would
take all the travel from the proposed Ac-
quia route or junction"-an assertion which
is simply ridiculous, when we remember that
the proposed Acquia route, or junction"
would be a shortening by some fifty. or
sixty miles, or moro, of the present route,
which almost monopolizes the travel between
Richmond and the North, to the exclusion OF
the Orange and Alexandria route.
'Chotank" is vastly mistaken, too, in sup.
posing that the counties Of Richmond, West.
moreland, Northumberland, Lancaster and Es-
sex, would 30 North by his proposed route
They would find it cheaper, more comfortable
and more convenient to so to Baltimore and
return by their own steamers which regularly
ply from their shores to that city, carry their
grain and bring back their merchandise
Those counties would be in no manner bcne.
fitted BY the road; their means Of tranSporta.
ton could not be made more ample or cheaper,
and they would infinitely prefer a lessening Of
taxes to a railroad, which could not even conf
pete with their steamer and sail vessels in
carrying passengers and freight. But the
most remarkable of "Chotank's" ideas, is tina;
OF making the stock Of the Fredericksburg
and Acquia road very valuable" by connecting
with it ut Milford depot-or, in other words.
by running one.hulf and adding very little, il
any, to the other half!
To sum up the advantages, then. which
would accrue to the State by the air line road,
over the connection with the Fredericksburg
route, We see none for certain in favor Of the
former, and the possibility Of only one, which
is, that passengers would, perhaps. be hurried
through the State in less time by a few mo-
mentS. A second ferry, We presume, would
as a bridge over so large and important n river
would be both ilnpractIcable and unlawful. The
time daily lost at this second ferry would make
the route no quicker than the other. .Anc
now. We think, it is plain that the air line road
would not bring the first adrantage, which :
connection with the Fredericksburg road would
not afford.
But "Chotank's" enthusiasm again causes
him to crr, when he says that "%llooes Ferry
is the only part Of the Potomac from the Bay
to Alexandria conveniently iordable." This
position would probably hold good, if there
were now no better or safer means OF transpor
tation than in the days Of Jno. Randolph, or Of
the Indians. But at present there is hardly o
point on the river, on which 4 wharf cannot be
made to deep water, and that is all required fol-
the ferry. No ordinary wind could prevent 4
tolerable boat from crossing the river, nor would
she fail to keep an open passage IN the %sevcrest
weather, by crossing four times or more in "a
hours.
In conclusion, we would ask, would it not be
absolute folly in Virginia, to charters road run,
ming parallel with an old and established route,
rendering it valueless, and thus sinking two or
three millions of money, Of which the Com.
monwealth would be the loser Of two-flths,
while the substitute which she would make q,
a second cost equally as great, would possess
no material advantage over the old route
Let us have, then, the Baltimore and Poto-
mac Railroad terminating at a point opposite,
or nearly opposite Acquia Greek. The line
from Baltimore to Richmond will then be a d.
rect one; its deviation from an air line route
will be unimportant, and 1t will possess advan-
tages aud be free from disadvantages which the
mir line route could never boast