The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1867-09-03
Our Western Friends and their Money

Our Western Friends and their Money.
We publish this morning letter from
Colonel FoNTA1NE on the subject of the
subscriptions by several Of the counties at
the western end Of the Chesapeake and
Ohio railroad upon the condition that
their subscriptions shall be expended upon
their end of the line. We have never teit
the slightest alarm on this subject, but
rather felt gratGed at the position as
sumed by the people Of Mason, Cape.''
&C., because it showed that they were III
earnest, and that they believe the ra'iro""
will be built. Therefore We are 'io'0
than pleased with Colonel FoNTAiSh .e'
ter. since he extracts not only consoia'ion'
but encouragement, from the STAND TAKEN
by the people near the Ohio. we uhaef-
stand thoroughly the views OF thc ooio-
nel-many of which are not comihun'-
Gated in his letter. He has vlsi'eo INC
valley of the Kanawba for the first time
5, bis life. and he sees the vast power
and energy of the people and the mex
baustible resources of that country. lie
is inspired with the most unbounded con-
fdence in these elements Of great achieve
mepts, and no longer doubts. He knows that
the western half of the great Improvement,
under his direction, can be pushed rapidly
to completion by the energies of these peo-
nle. He believes that in this way there
will be no necessity for pledging the
property of the eastern division tor the
money to build the western, and he very
logically concludes that the completion OF
the whole line will be very much iacih-
,ated by thus permitting the enthusiastic
and powerful energies of the people OF the
West to be applied at once to the great
work. instead of waiting until we work our
way through the Alleghanies and along the
INNER Kanawha to where we reach the fair
land of promise which they inhabit.
The Colonel is correct. He will be sus-
tanned by his company, and his views will
be approved by our people. The suoscrlp-
tioDs of the counties and towns east of the
Falls, with the loans that may be effected
upon them, can accomplish the part of the
work between Covington and the Falls.
Bv the time tina. is done, the west
ern division will be finished, and
the completion of the entire line will thus
be fastened perhaps two years in time.
The chief cause of this conditional sub
scription at the western end Of the Chesa-
peak and Ohio railroad we have before cx-
planned, and will again briefly notice: The
road is authorized to have two tcrmni.
They separate from the main line at the
mouth of Coal river, on the Kanawha, ten
miles below the town Of Charleston, in
Kanawha county. I'VE find that we have
to be very particular in our geography
The people in this part of Virginia have
been so completely separated from those
of the Kanawha valley by the introduction
of railroads that they know little of that
part of the world. Railroads carry the
people of Kanawha, so lately our fellow
citizens, elsewhere, and they know little OF
us; and you may hunt Richmond steadily
for twenty-four hours and not find man
who has ever crossed Sewell mountain OF
seen the Kanawha valley.l One branch
follows the Kanawha river to its mouth, on
the Ohio at Point Pleasant, in Mason
county. The other takes q direct west
wardly direction, and terminates at the
mouth Of the Big Sandy river, on the Ohio
Immediately opposite Catlettsburg, in Ken,
lucky, where it will unite with The
Kentucky system of roads, and be-
come the outlet to the better part
of the splendid blue grass country
Of that noble State. Now, the people
along the northern branch to Point Plea
SAINT were afraid that if they did not make
their subscription upon condition that
their branch should be built, the line
would be finished to Catlettsburg and they
would be left in the cold. Indeed, the
original line Of the Covington and Ohio
railroad, which has become a part of the
Chesapeake and Ohio road, had its termi-
nus at Catlettsburg, and part of the
road-bed on that line was made during the
operations on the line before the war.
This explains the motive of tho intro
duction of the conditional subscriptions in
the counties on the lower Kanawha. We
have already explained how this move
ment may result in the advantage of the
great enterprise and hasten its completion
by possibly two years. "The work goes
bravely on"