The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1868-04-11
SAaIl as,sy F0rlt Have 2 RTyaT- on TIE
Seab9aFd

among the people In that contro-
yersy has been developed the fact that
consolidation is the order Of the day,
and that a gigantic monopoly is likely
to be the resuito the struggle. Com
modore VANDERBTLT has already
consolidated three Of the most promi-
nent railroads in the State of New
York, <aud is now straining every
nerve to monopoIize the great trade
of the West and Northwest by OBJ
tanning control of the New York and
Erie Road and making that harmonic
with the interests of the Central. The
people of the West cannot help see
ing that the success Of Mr.. WANDER
BILT must prove one Of their
greatest nisfortunes. Yet SO rapid
ly have the consolidatiOnists car
ried out their plans, during the
past year, and. so successfully, that it
Is not unsafe to conclude that the
railroad freightage Of the West and
Northwest, having an eastward des-
tination, will soon pass into the hands
Of one or two gigantic railroad mon
opolies, precisely as has been the case
with the express and telegraph bust
ness of the country. Such, at least,
are the Indications as we read them.
These railroad corporations are not
content with simply transporting such
freight as legitimately comes to them,
but they are using every instrument
ality to obstruct navigation on ma
lures highways, and in this way pre-
vent them from becoming rivals
in the transportation of produce
aud mercantile commodities Of all /
descriptions Thus, there are numer-
Gus projects for the obstruction Of the /
Ohio and Mississippi rivers at differ
ent points by Railroad bridges. In
deed, we may safely say that when
the Padueah bridge over the Ohio is
completed, the navigation Of that
river will be virtually at an end.
Large boats will fud business I'M
because of the dangers and
occasioned by the
bridge, and small boats will not be re-
garded as sufficiently prompt and re-
liable to be trusted with the COM
merce. Consequently it will be placed
IN the hands of the Railroad Conn
panies.
But, conceding that the carrying
trade of the country is hereafter to be
done by railroads, it is of vital i'm
portance that the great Northwest
have more than one outlet on
.he seaboard. Hitherto, and es-
oecially during the war, New
Z ork swallowed up all the surplus
products of the West, and the people
If that section have been made the
yictims of the Gold, Stock and Pro-
luce Gamblers of that great metropo-
is, without being able to help them
elves. They have had to pay just
UGH rates for freights as the Eastern
Railroad combinations were disposed
o charge, and such commissions as
he consciences of the New York
commission meu would allow them to
ssess. There was no competition on ,
he part of other roads or other cities.
We are gratifed to observe, how
yer, that the attention of the people
f the Northwest is now being di. !
ected to the necessity of another out
ct on the seaboard, iu a direction :
iferent from New York. For the
asst two years shippers on the Ohio
nd Mississippi Rivers have been :
experimenting with New Orleans as a 4 {
ort of shipment for their foreign
rade and the result has been so sat
sfactory thata large number of capt. !
alists from Chicago, st. Louis and +
Jincinnati have gone there and in /
ested extensively in real estate, with +
view Of Immediately erecting ware =
ouses, grain elevators, and other n
ABILITIES for the immense trade they +
ope to divert in that direction What \
needed to make this experiment an p
ssured success, is the completion of !
ne or two great trunk lines of rail .
Dad from the Northwest to the Gulf. T
We need hardly say to the people Of
Evansville, that the immediate com
Ietion Of the F,VansviIIe Henderson / 7