The weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1858-1860, 1859-02-15

s."s current OF the river during the late seaso,
unusually bigh watsf-by the gradual, br
sure and certain attrition of ice.- by the wreck.
1 aae o. RATS upon the bridge. aad other causes
ss learn from she Company that one pier 10 set.
ulng and cracking, and the whole structure in
oa0ger Of total destruction. II, therefore, the
Court hadrllowed the Company 10 make per-
. manent :epairs. the present structure must have
eeen maintained at IN immense cost
But this is not all. Suits have already been
commenced for damages to boats and cargoes,
sAsts, &C., &c. TO the amount Of nearly million
OF dollars. and the Railroad Companies owning
It must be mulcted in costa Of litigation and
damages to . very large sum in any event.
What With the large debt hanging ever it in
sne shape Of mortgage-with the imperfect
masonry and unskiliul engineering which now
call for large expenditure for repairs to main
tain it,-and with the claims for damages, now
large and conssastly increasing, g,-the combined
war upon it By the whole steamboat and COM
mercial interest Of the Mississippi river, it will
nave to be abandoned and 60 down, or destroy
lts owners in maintaining it. Both roads have
already been seriously crippled at this early |
day.
These Railroad Companies are at an expense.
for this bridge, ten times greater thaa that Of |
sns most expensive ferriage, on all the passen- |
gers and freights carried. The Chicago 4 Bur
lington and Burlington Missouri River Rail
roads do not pay, and their business ia larger
than that at the Bridge, sum even as large as
the interest account of the Rock Island Bridge
COMPANY upon the construction of their mser
able bridge, for all their ferriage at Burlington.
Our road is therefore able to carry freights lower
tnan the Rock Island road. And this fact ia
very clearly established by reference to the
books OF the forwarding merchants Of this city. .
Large shipments Of goods were made last sea- j
son from Chicago and the East ria Burlinoton |
20 Dasenportl This tells the whole story. The :
bridge is not only serious obstruction to ma 4
'ieauon-at embargo upon the Commerce of a
me great artery Of trade, the Mississippi river !,
'ot u is SO heavy tax upon the freghts which !,
PASS over 1t as not only to destroy its value to a
. owners, but most seriously cripples them 4
mo renders it impossible for them to compete :,
nth rival routes not thus encumbered. r.
The Rock Island Bridge was built no. be- -
ause 1t was demanded by the wants of trade
mot because it would pay dividends upon its ii
obstruction and become q source of profit to
ne TWO Railroads having the joint ownership. N
Is construction was part of the great infla-
ION which eliminated in 1857. 1t was one of
10 grand and magnificent schemes of that
azzing and gaseous period, which was to en-
ance the value of corner lots in Chicago, Da- in
enport and elsewhere, and put up the price Of 81
owa lands. Had it been Well built by scien- =, ~
nc aud well-iniormed men, in the proper place oy
I'd the proper manner, it might have stood not vi
My against the assaults of the current of the 10
yer, but against all other contendng elements =,
opposition, for it could have been built so 70
to be but slight obstruction to navigation tn
ut even then it must have been q most un- oe
and therefore unwise investment W