New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1859-03-22
RAILROADS IN CITIES.
I,A.sr.Kry. March rs. 1859.

referred various bills authorizing the consrocnou OF
railroads. ,hroosh toe streets VI the City
Of New York, made the following
REPORT;
That your Comm. tee has given much time and at
ter,ioo 70 the iteration Uf these yetOos dIs-in
counsel favor Of end gsbst TIE pei Onere,
have been heard, AID doe weight has been given u
Their o. sumeIts.
Your COMMITTEE, after nature deG5erstoD, hsve,
by meaDs OF a lev histoIIcsl and geosrapbcal facts,
and simple process Of iea-oniDg from these facts,
reached conclusion In which, Il Is believed, tas
House Will concur.
Wheel the City Of NSR-Yofk extended no further
north than Car street; and no further east than Cor
lesr's Hook, public convey snces IN that city we're
aluost unknown. Bot IT. pppulsiijh inc'sa ca tod
tie boundaries sX'eBoec, backs bryan 70 mllt'p'yi
cabs too Lad bTie' eIstsDCe. Soon, however, C7Os
aud hscks though found upon every stand and At the
eOTDsTs Of the stree,s wholly osuhlceht 70 &C
cOmmOdsts a city gro SIng with Unparalleled 11Pi'lJ,
inhabited BY population Gltn active, suffi1S uaO1s'
A httle NOE than thirty years ago, "hen Tue Guy
red te lees 81 ODetbifd VI ils present. pOpu
lauOn, the Omnibus was inJO1Dce1. by 4 cObs,sh'
and rsJid multiplication OF lines the pubncW accom-
mOdatsd for Five years. Toen TIE necessity ir
ncre az ed facilities led 10 the introduction VI Guy ran
roads Grants for railroads were reslited ss any lm-
provenent, and al pre- gr,s have been resisted IRON
the be ginning of time by honest I'll, whose pfejuicss
can Only be conquered by eIpereIc CO. But Tas we're,
nevertheless sld through five Of toe great avenues OF
the city few, II eBy, OF those sho objected 10
them taken up; while TO the eemiog acd busy tees OF
Thousands who work down aud live up tosn, these
railroads iLdspe Ossble as got end ar or ioOl
and f1el. Bnt for the Fourth sno SIthaSenue hsll,
roaos, broadway, low dangerously oOstrueied, would
be rendered impossible by oeadlocked carriages. For
the Conveyance Of the passengers low carried throoSn
tie BoWeIy by the ThDd ana F.urtn-sveLue RaIfoad
care two continuous, uDbrOben lines o. stsees, ree
lies in extent wOold be entirely insafiicieut More
than twenty FIVE thousand passengers carried over
the THIRD. avenue ROAD alone daily. Tnis, TO say
nothing Of the busLess OF The Second aDd Fourth
avenue ROads, whose cara run IN part through the
BoHery, ~OUd require more stages than coald pos
sibly make their way through that broad thorough
fare.
The existing city railroads are there FORE undeDisby
n present, permanent and overriding pubic necessity
IT. then these roads Indispensable, may II not be
assumed that the policy Of CITY railroads. has been de-
termned by law OF public necessity, and are es'ab.
lsted IN accordance with the pubic convenience aud
the POI uar viii And #, as yOur Committee believes,
railroads needed by the people for their oTn bene-
ft ana convenience, why should these franchises be
either withheld OF restricted in number
It'll well known tlat it is scarcely necessary 20
remark that the railroad lar more accessible
convenient pleasant and safe, Tor al classes OF pas
sergers, than stages. The car, with thirty or forty
pAsseI gers occupies more space. aud is even less
Oh obstruction, tbap stage with twelve pssseagers
The City Of New York 10 reases 80 rapidly IN its
area and IT'S population, that the CITY ontioas must
sOOn become obs Jlee, mere tenoer on by-sreets
We have without reaching the hmit sppOhtei OF
thu years ard teD lived TO see the cab, the
hack ard the omnibus, as modes OF conveyance 10
large oiues fall far behind the requirements OF the age
While 10 the country, grass grows upon the beds OF
turnpikes, whose gates without keepers; plsnk
roads VOID wearing out; and stage coach Is kmonS
" nass Of thngs remembered, but not distltcly:'
The Central Park, that nunibcent and benehcent
enterprise whic1 through all time is 70 Furnish luog5
for city destined to contain millions Of Inhabitants,
will soon be far completed TO invite fOIth AL who
wish 70 breathe the iresh air. and enjoy fragrant at
mOsphere. Toat the most erect ano agreesole 81
well the cbeapss st and safest mOce OF cOnVeyaoc5to
and from the park may be ready, rails should be laid
and cara run through ali or nearly all the avenues
reaching TO the park. In view Of tue certainty that
ere lorg the whole of Manhattan lslsnd will be con-
thuous compact and densely populated city, railroad
lines should be extended through the Eighth, Ninth,
ana Eleventh aver ues, and Bloomingdsle roads as
they have already been through the second, Tnird,
ana Fourth avenues to Harlem nver. And it is TO be
regretted that rails have not already been laid through
streets leading 10 the Battery snd the Ferries IN the
lower portion Of the city. There should, 10 the jnog
nent Of the Committee, be continuous and unbroken
chain Of railway extending IRON Botol1 TO the Bat
teiy thus uniting Lake Enc to the Atlantic by an iron
bond, as they were Uuited by water baptism, upon
the completion Of the Erie Catal Toe opening of
Churchttreet or of Vert Broadway 10 the Battery,
ard the extension Of the Hudson River Railr0sd from
Chambers street to Gaelic Garcen, would realize tins
al tcipstiOn.
With an enterprisng, busy population, whose every
impuhe prom pts to mOtlOnfestess ceastlcss, ire
esii ole mutCn-hundre0e Of Thousands OF whom muet
and will traverse the city, morning and evening at
least with railroads the acknowledged and estab.
hshed moce Of conveyance provided for the accom-.
moe alton Of portions of her citizens what provision
lie to be made for otners VIII you refuse 10 sec
ton of the city, and 10 part Of s inhabitants, what
has beer granted TO, and is enjoyed by othersl If
railroads necessary and useful, why deny to such
need them As the city advances In population aod
distances requires no argument TO prove that the
necessary faculties for travel should be augmented
a..Nk Nn, 4.
should go farther II right to grant one, tsO
or three four five city Isilfo1 1t is Just as
right ard even more Necessary, 10 grant as many as
the general welfare ard the public convenience re-
Quire.
Conceding the necessity and usefulness of railroads
in our great metropolis, II has been urged before your
Committee, by citizens Tor Whole opinions they enter
tsian great iespect that these franchises Instead OF
being granted 10 associations, individuals should
be tOld for the beteft Of the corporate authority of
TIE city. Tie arguments advanced upon this point
have failed 10 convince your Comm tee Of the soand-
of the view, or the Wisdom Of the policy Of sell
ing legislative franchises. The obiec. and effect OF
Iairoacs has been and is TO afford he people rapid
convenient, and cheap mode Of convey ance. In sell
ing the franchise, those who purchase II obtain
guaranty under which they ia and maiataa high rates
Of fare This, thereioie is bat an INDIRECT mode of
tslation-tax stion too, the burden Of which falls on
the proouciIg and laborpg classes, o' these consti
tue three foIths Of all who city rail cars Let it
be settled by the Legislature that city raro ads to
be measured of and sold for corporation beteft and
the peol lie will look in ain for low fares.
Bot on the other hard grant railroads freely, where
they are needed, and where the public coIyenien "
vii be promoted by them, add the question Of fare
lsuhjset slsays to uuuiopAl CONTROL Will regulate it.
self Competition is the great regulator the lnsstsbe
leveler. strip all granite aud privileges Of their
Iopoy character, and the enterprise and rivalry Of
Iita will do the rect. AL experience is eloquent in
seschng this truth. The omnibus hoes When first
tabshed, received twelve cents fare. They uos run
more than double the distgice for six tive aud even
four cents fare. Railroads receive FIVE cents fare
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