Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1866-12-06
EDITORIAL CORRESPONDENCE.
General Amnesty-RaiiroadS Schemes before
the Legislature-Work IIouses-EIe ct ION
of Councillors of State-U. S. Senator--Ru-
mors in Regard to Federal Matter. Sc.

tant legislation have been introduced dur
ing the past week, bat none have been
finally acted upon. Between the Senatori-
al election and resolutions and discussions
upon sine die adjournment the week has
been almost consumed. The House, IN
deed, has passed bill granting Gene
raj Amnesty and Pardon to all officers and
soldiers of the State OF North Carolina, or
of the late Confederate States Armies, or of
the United States, for offences committed
against the criminal laws of the State of
North Carolina" which is now on the
hands of the Judiciary committee Of the
Senate. The bill will most probably be-
come law It's title indicates its object
and meaning, and it would be sent for pub
| lication, but the Senate may amend it in
some particular. AS enrolled, it will be for
| warded.
The subject of railroads is the great ques-
| ton of public interest Finance and taxa
| ton are quiet as yet, waiting the publica-
| ton of the Revenue bill and report Of the
| Public Treasurer, which will not be laid
| on the desks of members until tomorrow.
But the railroads are in full blast. The Of
fcials of every railroad in the State, built, IN
| course ofconstruction, or proposed, savethe
woroads running North and South through
Wilmington, have been in attendance up
on the session of the General Assembly
since its meeting I am glad to say that Il
proper spirit is manifested to encourage
all the works where completion will devel-
op the great wealth and resources of the
State.
The Western North Carolina Railroad,
in bill introduced by Mr.. Avery, the at
tentive and intelligent Senator from Burke,
asks that the Public Treasurer be author
lied, that whenever it becomes his duty,
under the acts Of previous General Assem-
blies, to issue to this corporation bonds to
theamount offfty thousand dollars OF more,
to mortgage an equal amount of the stock
which the State now holds in the North
Carolina Railroad, as collateral security
Also asks the privilege of making mort
gage of all its property for the payment of
bonds to run for thirty years
Mr. Mckay. one of the Commoners from
the county of Cumberland, has introduced
| a bill in the House to enable the Western
| Railroad to complete its road from the
| Coalfelds to some point on the North Car
| DINA Railroad. This bill authorizes the
| Public Treasurer to subscribe to the capt.
| tai stock of the Western Railroad Company
| the sum of six hundred thousand dollars,
| a, no H.
road Company is indebted to the State, to
| be paid in the bonds of this Company,
which the Treasurer now holds, and with
| the surrender of the bonds the mortgage
now held by the State be cancelled. And
also, authorizing mortgage to be made
upon the road.
| Mr.. Jones, the Senator from Wake, has
introduced bill to grant the aid Of the
| State to the Cheraw and Coalfelds Rail-
road, authorizing the Treasurer, that when
ever five hundred thousand dollars are sub
scribed by other States, counties, respon-
sible persons or corporate bodies, to sub
| scribe similar amount, to be paid in the
stock held by the State in the North Caro-
DINA Railroad at the par value thereof
Also an additional subscription of five hun
dred thousand dollars in sums of one hun
dred thousand dollars, whenever and as of
| ten as this Company shall expend within
| the State, for its construction, a similar
sum; the payment to be in the stock of the
| North Carolina Railroad, or some other
completed Railroad whose stock is Of equal
/ 1,,boJo op,o,7D+ 70 ba tol-a,, of
it's par value, and to be paid for in certifi-
Gates of stock in the Cheraw and Coalfelds
Railroad.
| Mr.. Whitfield, one of the members from
| Cleveland, has introduced bill to enable
the Wilmington, Charlotte and Rutherford
Railroad to complete its road, pay its debts
to the State, and extend its road to the
Tennessee line. The bill is drawn in ac-
cordance with the views SO ably urged in
the reports of Col. Cowan, the President
of the Company, to the late meeting of the
Stockholders held in Wilmington, with
| which your readers are familiar.
4 Mr.. Love, the Senator from the extreme
| Western District, has introduced bill to
consolidate all the roads, finished and I'M
finished, from Beaufort Harbor to Duck
/ Town and Paint Rock, to be called the
| North Carolina Central Railroad Company.
This is a scheme to sink the entire value
of the property owned by the State and in
dividuals in the North Carolina Railroad
Company one-half to give some value to the
} Atlantic Road, and the other to be wasted
to no purpose upon the attempt to complete
| the Western end of this mighty road nearly
six hundred miles in extent
All of these roads are before the commit
tees of internal Improvements of the re-
spective Houses, and as yet none of them
have been reported upon. But this hasty
synopsis will enable you to see how vast
; and various are the schemes proposed to
) aid the great lines of railroads in our State.
, None of them ask direct pecuniary assis
lance, thereby acknowledging the true con,
dition of our people and the utter impossi
: bility to raise by tax the amount necessary
: to complete these works.