Daily Davenport Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1864-1874, 1868-02-10


hDiroR or DEMOCRAT: Your report Of
,De proceedings n ,he Peoria & Rock
Island Rsilsos3 meeting yesterday. while
eorr.c'ly stating the Proceedings and quot.
aans literally ihe lang usse used BY the Presi.
uent . ana Other speakers, conveys N incof.
'eG' impression which wish TO remove.
Ietsr 70 the statement that the PenDsyl
s' .snIs Sen'fai Railroad Company. had o..
.sieu 20 iron and stock the Peoria road. pro.
% s.ueu the company procured on the line
sou terminl sufficient subscriptions to
s'sre, pr'dge and Tie the road
-, ms was doubtless Z mistake, uniateotios-
=. ,;ao on .ne part Of the speakess-as - the rass
s,es mAking the offer. and making NO diftsr-
Trce 20 This place in the eubstantial result.
Inc facts are these:
.ne Ooiunbus IndisnapOlis Central
CM.y oom9any open direct line from
ov.Imuus' =, oaio, to the Staie line o. Illinois
VI .n'ies wtst OF Loganspcrt. lnd.-besidee
".ou.e Irom Columbus 10 Indianapolis. and
'vn 'ne state line, have formed close anil
1ssuu VIM ilne from thence via Peoria 70
so Mson1n ~ ana Warsaw. The portion lying
soulo h'ty miles southwest from Peoria Is
Wr.ns Iapiuiy built, and 81 miles from
"r,ss~ 'oWaris Peoria, are now In use.
Vo'nNanies are-or at least tnre-
snous oi hsying an QUILT to the Missis
ppi 2, point which would enable them
ioacn .he Omaha Union racihc Railroad
% ''a Tue y. IL. p. Il. K and by river or
sn eohhect tLeu with Northern Iowa,
Ainnesota and Western Wisconsin. The
.o:mpanies named are abandantly able
HwauouI aio ifoM tie Penn .y.A.a Klilroad
Oo11pany-to build SOME ninety miles OF
lon', II necessary TO further their interest /;
one PERSONA Interviews With several officers
:.. anu Ap'saiists connected with those lines
Jusuy Me IN saying they were disposed to
uO ~ .nst Was reasonable-Hud they may
uc 20 etiii-but while the citizens OF kOck
Island and Davenport hsse been hesitating
.nu oeiioefating. doing--so far a. those who
VIII reap the Chief benefit is concerned
h"e@ nothtns, the Columbus Company have
Deen acting, and on the l1lh INST, at Colum.
QUE, articles OF consolidation will be con-
summated between the Columbus 4 Indiana
Centrai hailrosd and the Chicago & Great
A.:seIn company, who own Q road from
CnlcAgo to Richmond, Indiana, and virtually
70 CINCINNATI, thereby securiDga direct out.
!et 20 omaha, AZ Wisconsin. Minnesota and
northern Iowa, ritloM coming to Rock
!sdhd, except via Chicago, which they can
90 with but little dsad vantage In distance.
Heing some what friendly 10 the Penn.
eylvaniA Central Railroad, | am glad the
speakers recognized the advantages 70 &C
cfue from . new, additional connection
win that line but candor requires me to
~ that they would not receive the exclu-
sive benefit Of road 10 Peoria; for ct Lo-
gansport, I72 miles east Of Peoria, this line
Interested BY the Toledo, Wabash &
Western Railroad. running to Toledo-1G0
miles nofthsast-giyinR choice Of Lake navi-
cation, or the New York Central. Grand
Trunk, or Erie Railroads. TO the Eastern
citiee. At Columbus. Ohio-a great Rail
road center-the New Yolk Central, Erie.
and Baltimore Il Ohio Railroads, compel.
itors OF the Pennsylvania Railroad 20 that
special advantages 10 the Pittsburg route
can only be obtained by their affording bet
ter iaciiisies-not otherwise. The now con-
solldated company-the Columbus, Cli
cago u Indiana Central kalroad--would
probably still aid literally in the completion
OF the Peoria 4 Rock Island Railroad,
though 1t is not n0e o necessity; but those
who expect this viii be done without the
full CO operation OF the terminal cities will
surely be disappointed and those who. on
this unreliable hope, withhold aid they can
well afford 10 give will be responsible II
there is any failure TO buili. When saga
cious business men build roads to any point
without the sympathy and help Of the peo-
pie who will be enrich,l or benefited
thereby it is to places with stronger at.
fractions than this locality, and where the
traffic 10 indispensable TO secure return tor
the money invested.
II the citizens oi Davenport an1 Rock
Island stand stig linle loEr there will be
no complaint that ore good Railroad is in
sufficient for their proper accommodation.
And as we should and can do, by in
cressing outlets east, and extending and
multiplying facilities from the west. and
two roads will each carry hence more than
one now does, and this vicinity will aug
mcnt Its population. extend its manufac
tures.s enlarge its mercantile operations,
enhance its wealth, and psomote the mate
rial and social prosperity uf this region for
IN area embracing aany miles. Ii Was a
maxim Of those We tern ancient hea
thena, that the gods helpthose WHO help
themselves Wise men low know and
&C. as did the gods Of forerer age.
" II. Holmes
d .yenport. Feb. 9Th, 1s9