The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1860-04-11
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WEDNESDAY, MORNrN0 APRIL II. 1850.
RlchmsnA anA LyneAhars Railrsad.
a litsie more than thirty years ego, The city
OF Baltlmors was aboat a. large - the city OF
Richmond Is at this day. There seemed TO b
but . slender prospect Of it, ever arriving At
such 4 degree Of prosperity ~ would enable II
"a ssptre 70 the title which IL now claims ~ it,
own-the q ueen City Of the South. Its peo-
ple. however, were very fortunately not OF
that class who are willing TO 80 to mill all their
lives with atone In one corner OF the bag and
a bushel ofcorn In the other, becAuse such had
been the practice OF their fathers before them.
They were not content TO let well enough
alone, or 70 rspose confidence In any of the
time.worn proverbs which indicate entire in.
dolencc a. the only proper state of existence
for man. They were the first people on the
contiaent to light mp their city with gas, and
they were among the frat to perceive the i'm
inense effect that the railroad system was des-
tined to have upon the fortunes Of cities and
the destinies Of nations. They caught at the
idea wi<h ,ha. intuitive quickness OF percep-
ton which has been always distinctive char
acteris,ic OF their city. They saw that II they
could reach the Ohio by great railroad, they
would drain into the city OF Baltimore many
IF those enormous sources of wealth that eth
or remained undeveloped in the West, or had
directed their products to other markets. The
difficulties were gigantic, the labor was enor-
NOUS, the distance was great, the cost almost
fabulous, the way INSTRUCTED by the interven-
ton Of territory belonging to other States
Yet nothing daunted the courage, or shook the
determination of these resolute men. They
resolved to reach the Ohio, and firm resolu-
ton is In most cases Of dificulty. at least half
the battle They commenced the work In the
midst of difficulties almost appalling to think
of, but they persevered TO the end, and what IL
the result! Thirty years ago Baltimore
counted 81, 600 inhabitants; this day her popu-
lation exceeds 3Oo,OOO. From the days of the
CALvxETs she had been slowly gathering her
$4,000 in thirty years che had added the re-
manning 2so,OoO. She is now the third city in
the Union, and before the end of the present
century, the great probability is, that she will
he able to boast of one million of inhabitants.
She Gag fairly say that she has done 1t all her
self. Her citizens have every right to feel proud
of her prosperity, for it 10 the work Of their own
hands. The great Baltimore and Ohio Rail-
road did ii all, and, almost unassisted, she ac-
complished that stupendous work; work,
taking everything into consideration, the great
est that ever was accomplished by city of the
same size For when before did any commu-
nifty, no larger than that of Baltimore was at
the time the work was begun, ever conceive
the idea Of entering upon an enterprise that
was to cost thirty millions Of dollars
We fancy ourselves, sometimes, the rival OF
Baltimore; at least we are sufficiently exer-
cised whenever any important source of trade
which through our own incidence and dog-in-
the manger habits of thought has been secured
by the energy Of her people. What, then, has the
city of Richmond ever done to entitle her to
that good fortune which she so much envies
in Baltimore! Where is the great line that
she has undertaken and pushed TO the Ohio
What have been her efforts to secure that
trade which is properly her own, and which
other and more energetic adventures are APP
piece by piece, until she is in
fair way to have nothing at all left =! Why,
she su bscribed, about ten years ago, S3OoO0 to
the Danville Railroad, and shortly after, at
two separate votes. S250,OOO to the Central
Five hundred and fifty thousand dollars-less
by fifty thousand than the comparatively small
town Of Augusta, in Georgia, subscribed the
other day to a single railroad-represents the
sum total of her exertions in the railroad line
Five hundred and fifty thousand dollars, for
a city of $1,000 inhabitants, in which not less
than five different railroads have their termi-
nus! OF all these railroads not one is Richmond
capital, and in every one of them Richmond
capital cuts but poor and insignificant figure
Ane yet they have built the town up. Rallied
at, decried, ridiculed, voted against, they have
covered her old fields with houses, made seye.
raj towns spring up in her vicinity, given life
and activity to her commerce, increased the
value of real estate several hundred per cent.
and difused an air of enterprise throughout
her community that has reused her from the
dull repose in which she had been dreaming
for more than century over the days of vir-
ginia's greatness, gone through the listless in.
dolence of her own sons. The very men who
have profited most by these Improvements
the property holders of the city-have been, in
general, the most violent enemies of all steps
proposed for the purpose Of bringing trade
here. 1t is remarkable that not one road de-
signed to tap the great West, has it's terminus
here The Central Railroad is but a continu-
alton Of the Covington and Ohio. the Danville
goes to the borders of another State, and is
stopped short, the Richmond and Potomac is
merely link in the great Southern route, and
20 is the Petersburg, while the York River
Road, though most important and most val
uable improvement, is designed to draw hither
trade and travel from the Eastern portion of
our own State.
The people Of Richmond owe it to them
selves to make some exertion, independently
Of what the State and country stockholders
do for them, to secure at least q portion of
that enormous trade which renders the great
valley OF the Mississippi (including all its
the marvel Of the universe. They
ought to have terminating here, a railroad
which can command the trade of the great
States, to a certain degree at
least The opportunity is presented now, ofac-
this desirable result. The Virginia
and Tennessee Railroad terminates in Lynch
burg-Eastern terminus. 1t connects at its
Western terminus with a system ofimprove-
ments, running entirely through Tennessee
to the Mississippi at Memphis. BY manner
able branches, 1t has access to every portion OF
Mississippi, Louisiana aud Georgia.
In the course Of very few years, it will con-
meet with one unbroken line of railroad, all
The way to aud through Louisiana and Texas,
ind even to California, should there ever be
Southern route to that land Of the precious
metals. All the travel that comes now from
that direction, is swept of by the Orange and
Alexandria and Lynchburg and Charlottes-
Vile roads, to Baltimore. With railroad to
Lynchbur1 we could secure nj least a portion