The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1868-12-09
CHI A r L E S T ON .
WEDNESDAY MORNING. DECEMBER 9, 1858.
The Cost Of Completing the Savannah
and Charleston Railroad.

vannah and Charleston Railroad, which
memorializes the Legislature, not for money,
not for guarantee, but for simple post
ponement of the statutory mortgage held
by the State, will, by it's completion, i'm
prove trade and lessen the general ratio of
taxation, and develope the resources of a
section of country which has hitherto been
comparatively neglected. The question new
suggests itself, what will be the actual cost
of this great public work which is to exert
so important an influence upon the slow
country" and the State?
The whole length of the Savannah and
Charleston Railroad, from city to city, is
one hundred and four miles, et which
eighty-nine miles are in South Carolina and
fifteen in Georgia. Sixty-one miles of the
road to Coosawhatchie are open for traffic,
and about pay their operating expenses.
At o point distant three miles from Savan-
nah the road strikes the Central Railroad
end runs over the track of that company to
that city. This reduces tho actual length
of the line to one hundred and one miles,
of which forty have yet to be opened. But
eighteen miles Of track were not dis
turbed during the war, and for this dis
tance only new ties are needed.
The estimates for completing the road
are: First, for the section from the present
terminus at Coosawhstchie to the Savan-
nah river; and second, for the section from
the river to the junction with the Central
Railroad The first of these is twenty eight
miles in length, and the estimate for rails,
ties, tracklaying and trestlework, is one
hundred and ffty-eight thousand dollars.
Only ten miles of new iron are required on
this section, there being eighteen miles
which were not displaced or injured. The
second section is IL 57-100 miles in length,
and the estimate for its completion, inclu-
ding forty thousand dollars for substan-
tial bridge across the Savannah river, is
one hundred and eighty-three thousand one
hundred and seventy dollars. So that in
reand numbers three hundred and fifty
thousand dollars in cash would complete the
road throughout.
With ready money, the road could be
opened to the river in very short time,
and the company would at once be able to
run from city to city in about six and half
hours-allowing two and half hours for the
trip by steamer from where the bridge stood
to Savannah. The road would Immediately
make profit on its business. Travel would
grow accustomed to the newly opened route,
and by the time that the bridge was finish
ed passengers and freight would pour stoad-
lily over it, and the company would be
placed in sound and solvent position.
Five months time would see the road opened
throughout, at cost of about three hum
dred and fifty thousand dollars, for want Of
which sum-one-tenth the actual cost of the
road-ths whole of the country between
Savannah and Charleston is without sufi-
|
pie of the low country are who'll unable
to better their present unhappy condition.
And this sum of three hundred and fifty
thousand dollars would set Charleston and
Savannah within four or five hours of each
other.
In consideration of the Importance to the
State of the Savannah and Charleston Rail-
road, the company might have gone before
the Legislature and demanded, upon public
grounds, State guarantee Of new bonds to
enable them to reopen their road, which,
however profitable it may hereafter become,
will always give the community at large a
hundred-fold what it gives to its stockhold-
ers. But the company did not do this, nor
would they have asked for any help if they
could have finished the road without assis-
tance. This, however, was impossible, and
they now beg the Legislature to allow the
claim of the State upon the road to be over
ridden by new mortgage for halfa million
of dollars. The Legislature can do this
without imperilling its own safety, for the
whole debt of the road would then be-say ::
New first mortgage bonds, first lien. s500,000
Bonds guaranteed by State, second lien 5O5, 600
Arrears on interest on do. o.............. 250, 600
s1,255,oo
Upon which the annual interest would be,
FIVE hundred and five thousand dollars, at
six per cent, thirty thousand three hun
dred dollars, and seven hundred and fifty
FIVE dollars, at seven per cent, ffty-two
thousand eight hundred dollars, making a
total annual charge fer interest of-say
eighty-three thousand dollars. This the
road, when completed, could meet without
difficulty, as a glance at the earnings of
similar railroads will show. The gross
earnings of the Northeastern Railroad are
over three thousand dollars per mile, and
the same rate would give the Savannah and
Charleston Railroad, which connects with it,
q gross receipt of three million dollars, aad
and a net income of one hundred and fifty
thousand dollars, equal to seven per cent
interest on about two and quarter millions
of debt
At this moment, the road is earning moth
Al - Qo MI