Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1859-06-01

of the road under contract, and to carry it
forward simultaneously with the other end.
Can we do it?
FUTURE PROSPECT-CANT THE ROAD
BE BUILT.
And this brings us to the most important
point of enquiry: Can the road be built
Nth the aid no,o asked Of the city? We
answer unhesitatingly that in our opinion it
can, and we hope to present the facts to you
in such light as to satisfy you of the cor
rectness of this opinion. We do not mean
to say that the subscription now asked will
give us stock subscription sufficient of itself
to build the road. What we do mean is
simply this, that with the means thus OBJ
tanned, and the other means now at our con-
troll, and the means upon aOhich every railroad
con fdently relies, we can promise you the
completion of this great enterprise within
the next three years. We propose to sub
nit to your calm consideration the grounds
of this confidence.
The estimated cost of grading, bridging and
cross ties of the entire road from Nashville to
Hickman City has been ascertained by three
distinct engineers, all of whom arrive at very
nearly the same result. According to the
sworn statement of Thos. 81. Millington, Chief
Engineer, filed with the application to the
corporate authorities of this city the
Total estimate graduation, bridging
and cross-tes, is.... 81 ,lS4, 5S5
OF this there has been work done worth,
.................. 100000
Leaving to be done previous to the re-
cent lettings 934,5S5
To meet this we have (remaining unap-
propriated) Weakley county stock. $l50,000
Weakley county, old stock. ........... 4l,259
Hickman, KY, stock. ............... $4,000
Carroll county stock 66,492
Benton county stock. $3.50
Humphreys county, old and new stock. 6,455
Dickson county stock. :.......... $1,000
Henry county stock. $3.50
Davidson county bonds. .......---.. $4,000
Davidson county stock. .............. 1909
Cheatham county stock. ............. 7,7l3
State ali for bridges 100000
City subscription, (now asked, say. 100000
S9Ss,O5s
If then, there was nothing else to be taken
into consideration, our means with the pro
posed subscription from the city would ena-
bic us to pay for the grading and preparing
the road for the iron. The above statement
contains, however, no estimate for Office ex-
penses, engineering, right of way, and loss
upon collections of stock. Suppose we make
a liberal allowance for these items as fol-
lows:
Office expenses, for three years. ........S2 $4,000
engineering .-.-............ ......'.. 4o'ooo
Loss on, and expense in collecting stock. $4,000
And add TO cover contingencies, Ia liberal
allowance, 100000
100000
Now, what have we to meet this addition
al expense Along every line of rail road,
contractors will be found willing to take
work to be paid for wholly, or in part in the
stock of the Company. And even the regu-
lar contractors those who make that their
business, are willing to identify their inter
ests with the Company, by taking portion
of their pay in stock. In the recent lettings,
contractors agreed to receive one fifth of the
estimates in stock, and one fifth in second
= mortgage bonds. 1t is a very moderate cal
culation to allow from five TO ten per cent. of
stock. Again, the Legislature, at its last ses-
sion, expressly provided that any surplus of
State bonds over and above the amount
necessary to iron and equip the road, might
be used in the graduation. Now, consider
ing the length of this road and the extent Of
State aid, and the pre- sent cost iron some saw
ing in this way NAV be confidently expected.
The President of the Company is sanguine
that he can save four or five hundred thous-
and dollars, but allowing for accidents and
contingencies, the one half of the lowest of
these amounts can scarcely be deemed unreal
sonable. Upon these two items, therefore
we think the company may hope to increase
their means, at least thus far:
By stock in contracts about I-IOth say. 100000
BY surplus State aid, say. ............. 100000
If not disappointed in ihsea very moderate
calculations, it will be seen that the means
are provided for all contingencies.
But this is not all. The Company will
still have their credit based upon these
means, and the work which can be accom-
plished by them, and it is clothed with power,
both by the directors and stockholders, to use
this credit TO the extent of one million of dol
lars, by the issuance of second mortgage
bonds. Is this credit nothing, and these
bonds worthless? What rail road has been
built in this State, nay in the United States,
without resort to its credit in the shape of
bonds. We know that the Chattanooga
road used its credit and issued such bonds to
the amount of over a million of dollars. We
know that the Memphis and Charleston, the
Mobile and Ohio, the New Orleans and jack
son, the Louisville and Nashville, and the
East. Tennessee and Virginia rail roads have
been, each and all, compelled to rely upon
heir credit to over a million of dollars be-
yond their stock subscriptions and State aid.
Is the Nashville and North western Rail
Road the only road to be tied down to its ac-
ual cash capital, in the consideration of its