New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1859-03-30
CRY RAILROADS.

Aswe are soon to have q syatem Of City Railroad
y New Orleans, the Council having passed upon q
and u having been approvedby the Mayor, an
authentic Information bearing upon % important
subject will, no doubt, Be welcome to our readers.
In Philadelphia the system has worked Wells
we'll indeed that street railroads are all the fashion
and the citizens could not be induced TO dispense WIZ
them under any circumstances. The papers there
having proved the convenience safety and utility
these passenger railways to the subtraction OF the
public are now discussing the point whether the priv
eees granted, Of proposed to BE- granted cannot be
made source Of revenue, which will result in ma
terial lessepng Of municipal taxation The Phiadel
NH. Ieer o the 18th has the following sensible re-
marks predatory to memorial to the Legislature oil
that state, which may Be Of value il applied to this
city:
CRY PAssExeER RAnwAys MEANS FOR REDuc.
/ ING TAxArIoN.--The city passenger railways have
proved snch source of profit to the owners that the
Legislature is flooded with applications for charters
or new roads in this city Hitherto the privilege OF
laying such tracks has been given away. but the ques-
ton suggests itself whether If they are SO very profit
able TO the stockholders, the city itself should not
share in these profits The occupancy Of the streets
Of the city i privilege which, there is any value
IL it, should be shared by the peope-the tax payers
There is no doubt that sum could be raised annually
for the sale Of the privilege, large enough to keep
/ .
and greatly reduce the expenses of the city and
lessen TAXATION This is the opinion that many of our
citizens now entertain on the subject. In New York
the same proposition has been made, and henceforth
probably, no passenger railway will be laid without
requiring the purchase, at public sale, Of the occu
pancy Of the street for the track That our
railway companies can afford to pay for such priv
leges is evident from the fact that there persons
ready to bid for the privilege The following is
memorial which has been sent to the Legislature,
in which there ia direct offer Of one thousand dol
lars per mile annually for the privilege Of laying rails
10 Fourth and Eighth streets, and in Walnut and
Chestnut There are sixty miles Of railroad already
laid, which, at this rate, would have yielded 1000
to the city. There is probably as large number of
miles 10 the bills now before the Legislature, which
would yield as large sum. Now it, instead Of grant
ing perpetual charters for nothing, the Legislature
were to charter for limited number of years. and re-
qure the purchase at public sale of the privilege in
the first Instance aud at every renewal Of it, the city
would derive very handsome sum annually.
From the memorial to the Legislature above re-
ferred to, which is signed by Joseph Harrison, Jr.,
we make the following extracts:
Your memorialist being large holder Of the stock
Passenger Railroad Co. 18th aud 9th street, has prac-
teal knowledge of the working and value of such i'm
provements. Your memorialist conceives that pas
senger railways have proved themselves to be great
public convenience and he knows them to be largely
profitable to their owners. Under these circnmstan.
ces, he is satisfied that the privilege of constructing
them ought not to be hereafter granted or renewed
without securing to the city, whose streets they oc
cupy, just compensation for such occupation, and
be represents to your honorable bodies that the res
and most certain mode of ascertaing the proper
amount Of such compensation would be to set up the
privilege at public sale. To make such sale for
gross sum would be mode open to several serious
objections, only Of which need be referred to- viz
that it would tend to prevent free competition by
giving decided advantage in bidding, to the large
capitalists. Your me,ncrialist would. therefore, sug
gest that the bddings should be of sum to be an
nualy paid to the city for every mile and proper.
tonay for fractions Of mile, Of the proposed rail-
way, during the continuance OF the privilege of occu
plying the streets and he therefore prays that in all
pture acts authorizing the construction of passenger
railways in the city Of Philadelphia, provision shall
be inserted directing the Mayor of said city, after due
notice, to to be exposed at public SALE in the
manner just recited the privileges conferred by the
espective acts and that the highest bidder and pur
haser at such public SALE and his associates shall be
Untitled to receive charter from the Governor under
uch act.
Such charter ought to recte the annual sum to be
aid as aforesaid, for each mile and fraction of
nile OF the railway. Your memorialist ventures
urther to suggest that the rent annual sum thus
o be paid to the city should be made first lien on
he road and real estate Of the comany, and should
llso be recoverable by distress and sale Of its cars,
horses and personal property.
Your memorialist is<eady, and pledges himself to
bid for the privilege OF constructing passenger
railway on Fourth and Eighth Streets with the
requisite crossings to connect the tracks, the sum of
3ne thousand dollars for every proportion
ute sum for every fraction of mile of such railway
or every year during the continuance of such prvi-
eye, and he will make the same bid for the privilege
# constructing passenger railway on Chestnut and
Walnut streets with the like requisite crossings He
believes that such privileges will produce at public
ale much larger sums
The bidding an annual sum, as proposed by your
nemorialist, will obviously promote the most free
competition, since such annual sum will be estimated
nr0 nj he
tself. and therefore wealthy men will have no
dvantage over others 10 the bddings.