The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1861-03-06
8sspsen EY,.st 8md W@ass,-.
The UttIItv of Railroads.

llSnmenG III the IdnQ. 1l0Se VINO are Oluer
can better estimate their advantages for
their recollection goes back to the time
/ when railroads were not, and when the diff
hculties and expense of travelling were
very much more than at present. Let young
men try to picture what the country would
| be without them, and then endeavor to i'm
agine how our enormous traffic could be
carried on if they cease to be. The inhab-
/ itapts Of a new country may very well
comprehend the vast utility of this method
of locomotion they feel that the elements
Of well-being which everywhere surround
them would, with their assistance, be de-
veloped into wealth and happiness, and that
they must wait many years before what
they dream Of can be effected
But railroads do not only support traffic
already in existence-they create traffic, d
fact of which the promoters Of early schemes
were ignorant, and hence many promising
lines were abandoned Experience, how
ever, brought to light the fact that trade
and manufactures lie dormant until means
for transferring the manufactured articles
from the place of production to the places
OF consumption or export are in existence !;
and the further fact, that, when persons can
be assured of being rapidly and punctually
conveyed from place TO place, there is
strong inducemeut for them to become traE-
elers. Hence it may be asserted, that every
railroad has been a benefit to the communi-
ty amongst which it lies. We have no in
tention of defending the reckless expendi-
ture by which some railroads were obtain
ed, nor can we deny that had the cost been
less, the boon to the public would have
been proportonately greater; all we say
is that the railroad, wlfen formed no mat
bnu- i n A,apcEf 70
it.
Let US glance at some Of the advantages
OF railroads, commencing with their con-
structiOn.
First, the construction OF a railroad gives
employment to large number of survey
ors, engineers, builders, and laborers of
many kinds, not only along the line itself,
but also i'll woods and quarres, at forges,
and in workshops where machinery and
carriages, trucks, &c, are made, without
taking account, as ought strictly to be done,
OF the labor expended in producing the tools
employed, or the food or clothing required
by those employed upon the railroad itself.
In France, the average cost per mile OF
forming a railroad has been from &c, 500 to
II, 500, of which one-tenth was expended
in the purchase of land, six-tenths repre-
sented wages and the profits of capital, and
the remaining three -tenths were paid for
materials. In Great Britain, unfortunately,
the cost of constructing railroads has been
much more. In some cases the purchase
money of the land per mile has exceeded the
whole cost of a mile of railroad in France.
In the United States, the cost per mile of
forming a railroad is considerably less than
in either Great Britain or France, but not
SO economical in the cad. We pay a fear
iUl juternct t,,r Our rDOuay- and IoOly II
to the develOpement Of traffic for means to
perfect our undertaking.
If these railroads had not been formed,
all the men employed must have sought out
other occupations, finding which, they
would have prevented others from obtain
ing employment altogether, or the two par
ties would have been less usefully employed.
The construction Of a railroad consequently
creates a new species of labor. And since
the wages expended are replaced by some
thing which is itself an instrument of pro-
duction, there is no loss to the community,
while at the same time the promoters
realize profits, which, when accumulated,
constitute capital TO be employed in new un-
dertakings.
The cheapness, and the rapidity of tram
sit, compared with the old mode of convey
ance, must not be omitted from our summa-
~ OF the benefits of railroads. These ad-
vantages tell not only upon the particular
goods conveyed, but in inducing a greater
amount Of goods to be carried, aud from a
greater number of places. The regularity
with which merchandise can be conveyed
from place to place, and the readiness with
| which a large demand of goods can be OBJ
! tanned from the place where they are stored,
! offer advantages which reduce the cost OF
/ goods to the consumer.
| With respect to passengers, railroads ef
! feet a saving in three different ways list
| in the cost of the conveyance I'd, in the
| other expenses Of the journey; and Sd, of
time. Previous to the establishment of
railroads, the mean cost of travelling inside
a fast coach was twelve dollars the hundred
miles. The average expense OF place in a
! irst-clasS car for the same distance, is about
three dollars ; consequently, the saving et.
fected by the modern conveyance is three
fourths. As to the general expenses of trav-
| cling by the old method and by railroads.
fares not being in que5tion-it is very diff
cult to form comparative estimate with
any approach to accuracy only it is evi-
dent that the longer the journey, the larger
the sum expended on the road. Equally
evident IS the very great saving of time
effected by railroad travelling. Eight miles
an hOur was a nl9l average Tor coach traY-
eling-twenty-fve miles an hour is an aver
age for railroad travelling. All this econo
my Of time and money obtained by The
present mode Of locomotion is attended, no
only by theimmediately obvious advantages
but also with these, that not only doe
J it enable persons previously accustomed t.
travelling to so over much more, but per
sons who never left their homes are nov
) tempted to see the world. Hence the re
mote parts Of the country are brought near
er together, and intercourse between per
sons separated by distance has been yer
largely increased.
From these considerations we may tur
to the increase in value which land has re
2 ceived from the introduction of railroads =
, The benefit which landed property derive
. from the proximity of railroads, natural
: flows from the greater ease with which il
produce is brought to market. The cost {
transport TO the old place of sale being les
. tkan before, either the seller derives th
benefit of greater profit, or the purchase
Of less price. Moreover, the range {