Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1867-10-05

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as a friend at our elbow suggests. The
Little Rock railroad has dragged its slow
length along, weighted to damaging ex
tent by the incubus foistad upon it by
Fremont and his grand project of III Pasc
notoriety. That has, however, passed
away into bankruptcy, and fttingly, too
in the very city--New York--where u was
conceived, and was born, it was said'
amid much jingling of specie and loud
loud promises, and baptised with high
sounding title All that has been : used
up," and the nursling of so much pro-
mise has been gobbed by that giant with
awful appetite for failure-the Commits
sioner of Bankruptcy. That has all
passed away, leaving the fathers of a
more reasonable project and a more
modestly named pet to indulge their
fancy, and push to what for Memphis,
will prove for the present more solid
conclusion. The Little Rock railroad
will be rapidly, as the means at hand
will permit, finished, and so bringing
our city nearer broad extent of country
whose people are our kindred in sympathy
and desire to aid us. And better still, the
Memphis and St. Louis road, so little
spoken of lately, is Immediately to be
commenced and pushed rapidly to COM
petion, levying large and productive
section of alluvial land, which will thus
be brought into use; now almost i'm
penetrabe swamp be reduced to the
sway of man and brought into subsection
to the kindly influences of high culture
The Memphis and St. Louis railroad
is no longer the myth that for so many
years men have talked about 1t
has actually and in fact, been initiated.
The contracts for grading have been
"let," and a few days at farthest will
find the hardy laborers at work with
pick and spade, throwing up a roadway
for the iron horse, and at the same time
a levy for the reclamation and ultimate
protection Of thousands of acres of land |
now lost TO use. Quietly indeed, but
none the less quickly and energetieally, |
Col. Porter has prosecuted his work, and |
in the face cf daring opposition from the
friends of the Fulton and Cairo railroad,
and the friends of the Helena branch,
and at last has the satisfaction of wit.
Messing a commencement of scheme of
much merit and to be the source Of
abundant good for Memphis.
Commencing nearly opposite this city,
making curve at point half way from
Mound City and Marion, the Memphis
and St. Louis railroad leaving Oldham
on the right will intersect lake and
avoiding the deep elbow of the Missls.
sippi above Cat Island, make almost
straight line to the Iron Mountain.
Looking at the map, the reader can
form no adequate idea of the number of
acres thus to be rescued from overflow.
1t is an already well settled fact, and
one that has time and again been urged
as showing the inexpediency OF levying
as far down as MemNlis or below that
nearly all the overflow that occurs comes
from above; and that this overflow,
passing into the St. Francis river and
its hundred little and big tributaries,
gorges their channels, and in time is
thrown back upon the low lands whence
it was drained, there to remain until the
Mississippi below falls sufficiently to
draw upon its southern tributaries for
sustenance Times out of number the
States above, as on the Mississippi and
below Cairo, have been called upon to
levy; but not convinced that they could
derive any immediate advantage there
from, they have been slow 10 respond,
and, responding, have done their work
in so slovenly q manner as not to afford
the relief desired by their more southerly
neighbors. The National " (ss it has
come to be called Government has been
petitioned; but its attention being ex'
clusively given to North and North
western improvements, we have little
to look for or hope for from that quarter,
unless indeed it be proven that levying
is necessary for the immediate benefit OF
the negro.
What States have failed in, and the
" naytional folks won't "hear to, the
Memphis and st. Louis Railroad Com
pany will give to the owners of aud
sauatters upon the now swamp lands of
Crittenden, Mississippi, Greene, Craig
head aud other counties Of Arkansas
protection against the floods that threaten
and so often destroy the results Of their
labor; and that, too, at the same time
that they bridge, by good railroad the
country through which this grand levee
will pasa: lessening the distance, and
making tributary to Us people whose
interests are now and have been com
PEELED in other channels by season Of the
difficulties of instrumentation that
have interviewed between Us.
lis something to have thus much Of
improvement to chroHicle, especially in
these days Of dependency and political
gloom. 1t is an inspiration almost at
least /; is an encouragement, resting