The weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1869-18??, 1869-11-10
President Smiths Defence of the Lease.


| Inanother part of to days STANDARD We
printa lengthy communicated from Presl-
dent SMrrH in which the lease of the North
Carolina Railroad is defended. We have
before expressed our views in relation to
this matter. and should not have again al
luded to it, had not portion of Mr..
SMITHS production been devoted to ourself
and the STANDARD.
When we opposed the lease, we did so
because we believed that the proposed lease,
if ever consummated, would result in evil to
the State at large, however much it might
conduce to the benefit of the parties engaged
in the transaction. But We 10 not even adj
nit thai the road would b. benefited
Mr.. SMITH says that this arrangement
would make great through route,n which
would "enhance the value of property and
build up the State" We fail to perceive
why it is necessary to lease one road simply
to make it a through route There are
many through routes" in this country, but
they are not composed of one road only, or
of different roads under one management.
| Nor has it been found necessary for one road
to lease all tile rest The management of the
different roads can easily make arrange
ments advantageous to all alike, and any one
road can sell tickets good for passage over
all the Others, and the Through route" is
all complete. Therefore it is evident that it
is not necessary to lease the North Carolina
Road just to make through route, for, upon
the same principle, the Raleigh and CASTOR
Road would be obliged to lease all of the
roads from New York to Neao Orleans before
it could have through route" We are
of opinion that the North Carolina Road
can be made portion of the great through
route" without being leased to smaller
portion of the same arrangement.
Mr.. SMITH next asserts that the freight
and passenger tariff cannot be increased and
that, consequently, our fears that the people
of the State will be subjected to gouge
game are groundlcss. Having no desire to
misrepresent the contracting parties, we give
entire the clause referred to by Mr. SMITH
that the people may read and judge for
themselves. Here it is:
And for the consideration aforesaid the
said party of the second part. doth covenant
with and oblige itself unto the said party of
fret hot fbo 49, nf ,l,o
second part will not at any time during said
term, fix or establish the rates of freight
called Local Freight" at a higher price or
rate from Station to Station than the print
ed rate for Local Freight" tariff as fixed
and established by said party of the first
part on the first day of September, A. D.,
1869: and the local passenger fare shall not
exceed the present local rates.
The whole thing turns on the meaning of
the word local" as defining the kind of
freights and passengers upon which the
tariff shall not be increased. What construc-
tons might be placed upon it by Court, or
to what extent its meaning might be per-
verted by skilful lawyer, we cannot tell
nor can any one. Therefore we are by no
means inclined to consider it the safeguard
against expressing the people, which Mr.
SMITH seems to consider it. Therefore we
are by no means satisfied upon that point.
As to the rest of Mr.. SMITHS production,
it will be seen that it is simply an appeal to
support measures which he thinks will con-
duce to the benefit of the North Carolina
road without any regard to the interests ofthe
people the State. To Mr.. SMITH the little
streak of rusty iron that runs from Colds
boro' to Charlotte is North Carolina, and
beyond what may affect the interests of that
little strip he does not seem to look.
There are many other things in which the
people of the State are interested besides
the North Carolina Railroad. The State
owns two thirds of that road, it is true, but
she also has many other interests compared
to which the amount she owns in the North
Carolina road is but small, in a monetary
point of view, and when considered relative
to the development of the State-nothing.
There are vast sections, intellectually rich in
their mineral and agricultural resources,
which but need the aid of railroad commu-
nication to add hundred fold to the wealth
of the State and which will uuadruple her
population. The people of these sections
gave their proportion of the money the
State invested in the North Carolina road.
and they are not willing, in order to hoard
that little, to remain without privileges en-
joyed by other portions of the State-priv-
ileges which they helped pay for and which
are now sought to be denied to them. The
Interests of the whole State and the whole
people are of far greater consequence than
whether one railroad makes five or six per
cent. profit. Therefore, while this portion
OF Mr.. SMITHS production may help the
lease with few of the private stockholders,
it is the strongest argument which could be
brought to convince the people, who own
two-thirds of this road, that the lease, and
the measures it will induce, will result in
great injury to the State and to the prosper
ity of the people.
And now with regard to the interests of
the road
MI. SMITH gives several statements which
show that the profits of the road have been
steadily increasing ever since the war, and the
expenses decreasing. More than this, there
has been steady increase of business.
Thus in the last two years the profits of the
road have been s2G491S22 The profits of
last year, as stated by Mr.. Stage, the Secre-
tary of the Company, were s1ss,O33.56 or
much more than double that of the proceed
ing year. 1t is known that there is a large
increase of business this year and decrease
of expenses, hence, it is but fair to presume
that this years profits will be over tuo Aun-
dred thousand dollars The price which the
Raleigh d CASTOR Road is to pay is but
S24O.OGO. With the business of the road so
rapidly increasing-and with the increased |
prosperity of the country its business will
continue to increase, despite competition-it
will be seen that the road will in less than
five years be earning much more than the |
amount which the Raleigh & CASTOR road |
proposes to pay.
For these reasons VIC believe that the
lease of the North Carolina Road would be
an extremely bad transaction both for the
Stockholders of the road and for the people
of the State, and, unless Mr.. SMITH is able
70 bring much stronger reasons in its favor
han he has yet been able to bring, we shall