The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1867-07-18

tee. West Virginia led on IN - brlei
speech from the Hop. Samuel Price, OF
Greenblier, one of the iiost intelligent
as we'll as one of the most sincere and
upright men in the State. He avowed,
what every man knew, that he was an
ardent friend of the great work, having
! devoted the best part of his life to IT'S
support. He, however, expressed his
| fears that West Virginia would not be
! able TO rise the two and "a half millions,
while if the same amount only were al.
lotted 10 Virginia, that State would
I tween the Central Railroad Company
and the commissioners, which required
that five millions should be raised
would he forfeited. This was the canse
of great concern viii II him. He thought
it would be better to leave out all re-
ference to the amount be expected of
either. and leave it toboth TO do their
best.
Mr. Magruder, of Albemarle, objected
10 the naming of an amount to he raised
hy Virginia, the more especially be-
cause it might operate as restraint up
on her, since il was expected that the
amount of her subscription would ex-
ceed two and q half millions. Richmond
city and Augusta county alone proposed
to raise that sum. Therefore he desired
that the clause allotting this amount to
Virginia should be omitted from the res
olutions. He would leave it altogether
to West Virg:nians to say what that
State could do.
Mr.. CapertOu stated that the appor-
tionment had been determined npon in
committee after much dclibcratiou. 1t
had been contender with force that AS
Virginia had already bnilt in good part,
out Of the private funds of herOw citl-
zens. 200 miles of the 130 miles Of road
which would constitute the Chesapeake
and Ohio railroad, and as the remaining
23C miles were almost entirely located
in West Virginia, therefore the people
of West Virginia might vel and reason
ably contribute half of the five millions
necessary to construct the work to the
head of steamboat navigation on the
Ohio. Mr.. G. stated also that West Nir-
ginia in her subscription might have as
sistance from Ohio and Kentucky,
whose aid the committee had in view in
their apportionment. Indeed, large
subscriptions were anticipated from
Cincinnati and other commercial COM
munities in addition to the liberal sub
scriptiOns from counties and towns on
the upper Ohio aud Big Sandy immedia-
tely in the vicinity of the ter.ninii Of
the great railroad. Incidentally he paid
a glowing tribute to Virginia for the
nOhleness and generosi V of her charac-
ter, and for l,er resolution and intrepi-
dity in resolving, in the midst of her de-
sola ton, 10 pledge her property and her
industry to the completion of this great
work.
Mr.. c. thought West Virginia was
equal to the task allotted to her, and
hoped that the resolution would not be
amended Other gentlemen concurred
fully with him in the ability of West
Virginia to raise S2.500,0O0 Virginia
nigh raise more than that if she chose:
it would he needed to go on with the
work: but West Virginia they all, save
Mr.. Price and Mr.. Newlin. of Monroe,
declared would accomplish her work.
| never listened 10 more harmonious
and emphatic expression of opinion and
sentiment than | heard from all the de-
hatcrs whenever they touched upon the
Importance of the work. Mr.. LyOns's
resolution declaring that it must be bnit
Thdtercr II cost was the condensed eX-
preston of the unanimous determina-
tiOn of the Convention. The best
speech of the day was that of Mr.. Will
liamS, of Greenhrier, i'll which he an
nounced a donation from himself to the
Chesapeake and Ohio railroad OF o,Uoo
acres of bluegrass land in Greenbrier.
The Convention, which consisted
chiefly of very solid and sedate gentle
meI, showed very great entl usiasm,
and drought down the house" with its
applause.
Another poiutt brought out in the de-
bate was the provision in one OF the
resolutions (Which were afterwards
adopted, as my report shows,) which
prcscribes that stock subscribed for by
counties and cities shall be paid for in
bonds to be received by the railroad
company at discount not greater than
ten Dcr cent. You will readily under
stand the object of this. The apprehcn-
sion was that if the corporations or
counties were required to raise their
entire subscriptions in money by selling
their bonds that they would be driven
to incur all immense debt by the forced
sale of those bonds great sacrifice. 1t
was considered that the railroad com
pany might readily use those bonds at
a moderate discount by backing them
with its own credit; and that the loss of
ten per cent. was liberal assumption
on the part of the counties and cities.
Indeed, Mr.. Caperton, who was the
principal speaker, expressed the conf
dent opinion that the moment the tve
millions were raised III this manner the
credit of the corporate bonds would
rise in the market, and that their depre-
citation would be inconsiderable. He
believed that the determination OF the
people to finish this great work would
attract the attention of the financial
world, and would establish the enter
nriSe and the securities connected with
il in the confidence of capitalists as
amongst the best in the United States.
| The location of the work was the best
of all the lines ofimprOvement connect
| ing the Atlantic with the Mississipp; its
grades were the easiest, its line to tide
water the shortest, and its operations
WOulu Ol Necessity Dt iHost SuN'eS''ui
and profitable, Let the subscriptions
be raised and the work commenced, and
he had no apprehensions of financial
difficulties.
The argument on the other hand was
simply that the bonds were not mon y,
and since the contract called for s5,OOO,-
900 in money, they would not meet the
requirement. In answer 10 this, again
it was contended that they could be
readily used by the company as money.
Yet that they were only to be offered to
the company in this manner, and If the
directors or stock holders Ofthe Central
railroad declined to take them, there
was an end of it. But those who sns-
tanned the proposition expressed the be-
lief that they would be accepted. To
refuse them would be indefinitely to
defer the work; and as the speakers be-
lieved they could be readily used by
the company, they confidently autici-
pated that they would be readily ac-
cepted.
Ii must be confessed that in no other
way can the subscription be so readily
raised: and certainly the company can
do more with the bonds of the counties
and cities than could those counties and
4 4 aGNn dali