Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1860-04-24

ri! product; har yallies everywhere vocal with
the cheerful hum nt manufacturing industry;
her population doubled: the wliarves Of her
cities Le:uine !he great exchange Of u world:
rite, that should then recall and rival the
ancient glo-ic, Of Sytlon and Of Tyre; her COM
, mrrcr whitening every sea; her moral develop
mcnt keeping pace with her material; Virginia
wonid then attain ts that imperia! grandeur
and opulenrc and power for which God and
Nature seem 10 have designed her. Is this a
Sciiool-boy'S fancy: Is il 2 mere sketch Of TIE
! imagination or Il practical deduction of the
reason? II il be u dream, it was one at least
Of men who vinoicatcd, in their day, title to
! practical sagaclty that none living will venture
/ to call in question. 1t was the dream of Wash
inston, of Madison, Of Marshall, who, each in
! the different, and in many respects dsSimilar,
careers it was allotted them TO run, showed
themselves, beyond al ticr compcerS, fitted
I and able to grappe with the realities Of life
! Who is there, here or elsewhere, that shall de-
ride as visionary Or impracticablc any project
that received their favor and sanction!
| But. sir, If We let this great work FAIL
! what would be the spectacle Virginia would
! then present? Her towns still dwarfed and
| nnimportanl; her fields titled by 4 scattered
and unprospcrous population; her people still
leaving here for more inviting fields Of indus
try; she falls back still rccedius, lower and
lower in the scale Of S,ates-a thing, il may
bc, of scorn o. pity, without power to make
herself either feared or respected subject, it
might be- to aggression or insult which she
could neither punish nor resent.
What is the condition ri this great work
that nov calls on you for aid: 1t is on the
verge. it is in the very jaws Of bankruptcy. 1t
cannot pay It's officers, its contractors ur its
wU!klncn. 1t is alike destitute Of credit rs Of
means. It's absolute necessities have been met
by the private credit OF its President and Di.
rcctorS, and by the iorbearancc, in some III
Stances eninently patriotic, Of the contractors
themselves The evil is not confined 10 this.
Some of its principal works. its dams. two cs.
pccially one near Lynchburg, and another .
short distance above this city, on which de-
pcn'ls the vast products Of the valley Of James
river for the means Of getting to market arc in
! momcntary danger of giving way. And the
SNOW may be even now falling on ron noun
| tainS, which, melted BIZ the coming spring,
may furnish the swollen food that shall sweep
them from ther foundation. And this great
aud imminent catastrophe, which. il il should
happen, won!,! specGi, occasion 10 the State,
losses tenfnld the amount necessary IN avert
them, it dcpcntlS. iinw on ynu and r"n alone
TO preyl nt
But you will say, it has been said, 'Shall we
be called OF 20 aid II company that has 81 mis-
managed lis affairs Us to lead to this state Of
things? that has thuS shown itself Incompetent
and unfit t" he trusted Sir. deny chat the
condition of its affairs is the result Of miSm6n-
ascncn, orprooi "i l'"oinpctency. Not that
! |, OF any man can SUPPOSE that so great
work cnutt he carried ".I tr: more than twenty
years, absolutely witl,,,!l nistakcS--but that
any have GtrurIc, cnl,aiir ~ all oi accounting
for, or Of producing, the state Of things that
now exists, an satisfied canno; be shown.
During This whole period it has been in
Charge Of three, only, Of yo'lr most respected
citizens. John c. Cahell, John Y. Mason and
Thomas II. Ellis, men distinguished for the in
tclligencr, fidelity and zeal with which they
devoted themselves to promote the interests o!
the work committed 10 them. They not only
gave to it all their their time and energies
hut, it deserves tn br nrniiunrt. and 10 be re-
mcubcrcl what Inubi ii can iIc said Of any
work of lis magnitude IN this or any other
country, illa, they rsi>burscd. through period
Of more than twenty years. millions nt money
wIth Il caution "n,t imtecr!: :" rimaikahlr
tina: It 'I;-hG.tr~. - i'"H"'i"@ expenditure. ur
application n' !!ic rd'mranrS funds. has never
been charged. az even i,'en suspected. he
honor of the STATE suffered no stain in their
keeping, and Ia i.iu,ll pi shame need crimson
olr checks Us We rcrirw III this respect. at
least their administration GI the affairs OF the
company.
The Eint which has reduced the Company 10
lt:. present ,lcplorabIc condition, was not the
Company s-nrrUi the management Of It, The
, Iauit was here in this Hall OF the Legislature
itself. The policy on which the Company rested
! its hopes Of success in: noi been pursued
! Why has it not hccn: It was u policy devised
mainly, | believe. by Mr. Cabcll, with the great
abilities Of Chapman Johnson To- aid !lim-was
embodied in the charter granted hv The Lcgis-
la;rr, WHO thus gave il their sanction, and had
! the concurrence and active co-npcration also
Of Mr.. Marshall, whose declining days were
! gidcd' by the hopes this measure inspired
! that his long cherished 'lrcam Of future
glory and power for Virginia, hy means Of II,
was at length 10 bc realized. This policy was
10 carry on the werll upon m adequate basis OF
subscribed capital. 80 be enlarged from time to
time US might bc NECESSARY. Accordingly the
charter provided fora capital If So 000, ,000, with
: ~
ssry 10 the completion of IL: work. No one
over dreamed Of completing work of fifteen
OF twenty millions OH bHsuS Of five. The
! Company never departed from is original po.
| icy It's first application 10 the Legislature,
after eXhanstirg the original five millions, was
| Inr ;,n enlargement Of the capital stock, and
! that policy il has, believe, in all its appiica'
tions invariably urged upon your adoption. II
was the Legislature itself that ovcrrn!cd that
policy, and substituted illstcai tia; miserable
!fomhand-lo.mouth policy Of Borrowing from
! year to year. what was necessary !" keep the
! work alive, on which the Company has ever
since been barely SubSStng, and which has
! finally, rs was to have been expected, rcSnltc"
in it, present exhausted and helpless condition.
! What great work was ever yet undertaken Dy
. individuals, o. corporations and successfully
! prosecuted on merely borrowed capital: II WAS
not, thei;, the management OF the company j
il was not the policy Of the Company, that has
broken down this great work, but it was the
policy Of the Legislature ITSELF adopted against
the wishes and protest Of the Company. but to
which it has no alternative hut to submit.
It comes again bcfnrc you, in its extremity,
asking s,lccor do not think, in view of tho
exiscncies in which il is placed, yon will deny
it. The question is in what form shall 1t be
given The Company still ask n recurrence
10 the original policy, an increase Of capital
stock, and a loan Of as much money as Is need
ed C$5oo, ,ooo) to pay Off mainly its floating debt
But two Other plans are suggested. "nc plan
Is to sell out the Company on the mortgages
YOU hold, and, Of course bny in yourselves the
property. 1t would, indeed, be = smart spec;u.
iai;on. You might make handsome plum by
it. But let ns look into this. Who arc this
Company: They are but your own citizens.
/ Not only So; but undertake to say. that ne
vcr vet was known subscription TO any great
public work where the indncemcnt To 1t Tor
! ;;rrGt. as an Investment, bore so small pro-
portion to the patriotic spirit which prompted
! il Doubtless the former consideration entered,
more or less into the views Of the subscribers
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