Bedford inquirer. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1857-1884, 1867-03-01

ieet further, sir. / have been taught to be
lieye that the Legislature and the court ar
coordinate branches of the Government
and not subject one TO another, aud th,
preeedents Just instanced, prove such L
have been the understanding of our prede
cessors.
The other objection to this bill, that the
| completion of this road viii divert traffi,
| from this State to the city of Baltimore, is
in the light of facts, as puriie, as the one
| just disposed Of 1t is high time that thi.
never -eeasing cuckoo cry Of Philadelphia
and Philadelphia interests should cease ia
| be bug boo to legislators. The people
tRaF rhffsdaYp pnfass zse-stlY proud as we ore oi
| her, is the entire Commonwealth of Penn
sylvania, or that she is evermore justified
in acting the dog in the manger
! VIII Senators around me, from all sec
tions Of the State, agree By solemn enact
ments, that no portion of the State shall be
| developed, that no internal Improvements
shall be built, unless 10 some way they con
tribute to the wealth, OF force trade into the
lap of Philadelphia And yet this argu-
ment virtually amounts TO this, and nothing
less. Give our opponents the full benefit
however, of their suggestion.
Do they expect to force traffic, against
the laws OF trade
But, as before stated, this suggestion is
not true, in point of fact The completion
Of this road will compel the construction of
another avenue to Philadelphia, which,
judging by past experience, she viii never
have, unless the parties here IN opposition
10 US are forced, By their fears, to complete
| it as a connecting line with the Connellsyille
road Baltimore has now first class road,
leading to Wheeling and Parkersburg In
the month Of December last she procured a
long lease of the Central Ohio, and has
thus under her control as full and perfect
an outlet to the great West as has Philadel-
phia, by the Pennsylvania road and its con
nectlons. She issnot, tharefore, dependent
as many suppose, on the ConnellsYille road
for access to Ohio and the nearer western
States and the polity here urged to pre-
vent the building of the Connellsville road,
will, if successful, drive from our borders,
trade which otherwise would be carried for
one hundred and fifty tlj0l miles through
the State.
Philadelphia cannot drive eur trade away
from her, although for more than twenty
years she has been struggling to do so,
through her mistaken fear OF finding rival
in Baltimore, IN case this read is built.
Then, as now, she supplied our market, and
the goods she sells us are carried through
Baltimore to Cumberland, and thence way
oned over this very route.
She cannot force us from nature great
highway, over the rugged grades and siuous
lines Of the PENNSYLVANIA road but, by her
selfish and timid folly, has only succeeded
in keeping trade with her down to a few
thousands per annum, which, with proper
| fostering and unrestricted facilities Of tran
sit would long ere this have been pouring
millions into the Golfers of her merchants
and artisans What the opening Of the
Schuylkill and Iehigh mineral regions has
done for her would be more than doubled
by the development Of Southern Pennsylva-
| MIA, BY means Of the Connellsville road
which, and only which will ever lead to the
building of the Southern Pennsylvania road
Blind as she is to her own interests, she is
binder yet to the fact, patent to all the bal
ance of the world that the foreign capital
| lists who measUrably own and control the
! Pennsylvania road, viii not willingly assent
to have their fat earnings invested in the
! building of another road not pressingly
| demanded by their immediate interest and
| hence, the project Of the Connellsville and
/ Southern Pennsylvania railroad (never in
/ tended to be built except upon compulsionl
! like puppet is used to tickle the fancy OF
| her portly burgheTs, whenever any railroad
legislation is sought By my section of the
State.
The years the charter for that road has
( been held, wholly amused, justifes this as
| sertion and | risk nothing in predicting as
/ | do, that it will remain unused, except II
/ so far only as it is necessary to preserve ii
/ from forfeiture, until the building Of the
/ r-oaI 4g4y,
/ Of that line, to secure for the Eastern Di-
vision Pennsylvania road the transportation
| which it would otherwise lose
So much by way of reply to the argu
ments adduced against this bill, and in an
syer to the specious sophistries intended tc
alarm and control Philadelphia and Eastern
4 Pennsylvania. | now propose, by the state
ment Of few facts and statistics to place
! the legislation in regard to this road in SC
plain light before the members Of this
body, that the wayfaring man, though Z
fool, cannot err therein.
If gentlemen will sin against the inter
ests of my constituents, and of the western
portion Of the State, they shall sin agains
both light and knowledge and let me as
sure them that, in the creed of the churcl
political to which the Frosty Sons o
Thunder are attached, there is no sucl
thing as plenary indulgence for sins of thi
nature.
BY act of Assembly bearing date Apr
3, 1887, this company was Incorporated anC
authorized to build a road from Pittsburgh
to Connellsyille. and by act Of April lStl
! lS43, was empowered to extend its road t.
the Maryland line. In January 1858, th,
same company was incorporated in Mary
land, with power to build road from tn
Pennsylvania State line TO the city of Cum
berland in MARYLAND.
From 1887 to 1858, various acts of tn
Legislature Of this State recognized the ex
istence Of this company and authorized tn
city OF Pittsburg, the county Of Allegheny
and the boroughs Of NJ Keesport and Con
nelsville, to subscribe to the capital stock O
the company.
In May, 1853, the Legislature Of Mary
land authorized the city Of Baltimore to All
in building this road, aud, accordingly th
city issued her bonds for million of dollar
to the stock Of the company; and in 1856
under similar authority, the city Of Cumber
land was also empowered to subscribe t.
the stock OF the company four hundre
thousand dollars, which it did
During the years Of 1854, 1885,, 1857 an
1863, the Legislature Of this State, repeated
Is, and by different acts recognized the ex
istence and continued the life ofthe charte
Of this corporation; and finally, by act Q
April llth, 1856, il expressly declared tina
the charter Of incorporation Of the compan
shall not be effected or invalidated by an
neglect or omission on the part of the com
missioners or directors to comply with th
n