Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1869-06-18
THE BARGE LINE,
Facts aad Figures in its Favor,
Howehe 0Id-Style MOnOpOlies May
be Defeated.

Howthe Old Style MOnOpOlies May
be Defeated.
Something for Every Merchant to
Read. -tsIsft
: MEMPHIS, Jane Il, 1869.
! Editors Memphis Appeal:
; II is a source of pride to our people to
see Memphis at last awakening from her
2 lethargy. There is nO city in the South
west possessing so great natural facilities
for trade, and there is no city which mas
been so hampered in by old fogyism. An
effort is now being made by her live Inef-
chants 70. form an organization Tor the
purpose OF obtainingcheap frelghts. Nheh
This is accomplished we can open MP trade
ON an eNtensfve scale with our bordering
States and country. The movement mas
hao1In and il only remains 10 be seen
whether there is enough Of public enter
prise in Memphis to push 1t TO
Snccess. Hthe carriage of freight can be
| cheaDened, the excessive charges are
corrected or escaped. II is a question
of so much import, going so directly 70
the pockets of every consumer, thal IL
must engage special and general attention
1 and result HldliN ~ INT AAANAtSA vi SNA
CITY. We have permitted ourselyes-yes,
we might saw, have been forced into al
lowing a monopoly. caring but little Tor
the interests or the future welfare of
Memphis, and charging what they choose,
to carry the greater portion OF our 1relghts.
Well NAV his st. Louis monopoly be
alarmed at the efforts being successfully
made to form the Barge Line. Employ
ing the facilities which nature has a V
ished upon us, engaging our own capital
and barpes. we produce the great result
tor building w our " interest ana re-
| lieving ourselves, not only Of a monopoly,
which is always Odious, but also OF any
and all excessive charges.
It can be proven beyond the possibility
OF a doubt that f%reighting by harges VIII
and can, as far as c~heapness goes, defy
any and all other modes of transportation.
Having fifteen years of actual experience
in ransportatiO matters. and withtheng-
ures and facts learned by this experience,
we can show and prove 10 the most skep-
teal that the barge system is correct, and
that by il freights can he delivered at
Memphis from st. Louis for s. per ton,
and twenty per cent. profit made for the
carrier.
For example, We viii give the actual
cost of running a towbOat and two Darges
with a canacitv ofI0OO tons, allowing seven
days 10 make the trip III, which is ample
time. We will now enumerate the costs:
Captain. ......-.- 80 90
pilots 20 90
Mate II so
Waterman. IA w
Twelve mon ST 90.
Fnal 500 90
Stores, cook and cabin.."-.---..- t5 90
| 30 90
Port expenses, wharfages, agents,
etc I54 DO
IONS ions il' a'O 500 90
81 $40 so
we have examined the expenses of sew
| Fral towboats, and find that many boats
| are actually running for much less money
/ than The above figures; and by careful
| management and economy We have no
doubt whatever that the above figures can
be reduced twenty-five per cent. after a
little experience. The above toWboat, al
an expense of Sl579 80, viii deliver at
| Memphis 1000 TONS Of freight at - per ton,
ten cents per 100 pOundsG, and clear, over
all expenses, an actual profit of $40 30,
and this gain is exclusive Of what receipts
for sueh " up freight " rs the towboat
may have for st. Louis. There IS always
more or less freight for up the river at all
periods Of the wear. and in cotton seasons
we could carry cotton to Cairo and 81.
Louis at hftv cents per bale and make
money. Say that the -" up stream re-
ceipts were only 500; that would make
the earnings for the trip 500 30. N those
remarkably low rates of freightage Just
| one-half we rave paid this ST. Louis mo-
nopolyi our barge organization would lii
q short while become q powerful and rich
corporation; though this. Is not what we
now are striving TO attain. Cheap frelghts
are what we are now after-a transpOrta-
! ton line that will enable our merchants
to vie with those of 81. Louis. Cincinnati,
Chicago, Louisville, etc, and these the
Barge Linz VIII secure Us. Let the weak
kneed who have been worked on by par
ties in the " monopoly INTEREST," look at
the fact that il is an every day occurrence |
for freight to be carried by barges over
1000 miles. up and down the Mississippi
river. at the rate of six
cents Der 100 pounds, or 81 - per ION.
Think Of that. We d" crOakers!'
We have the figures and facts in our
possession to prove TO those that are
versed in transportation matters, that the
barge system is the only r way to cheap
lreightS. Pittsburg gets her great COM
modify. coal. freighTed by the barge sys-
TEN to New Orleans 5000 miles or more6 |
at five cents per bushel, and at this low
rate the towbOats clear SS000 to $4,000 on
q thirty-day trip, exclusive Of up stream
receipts, which frequently amount to more
than one-half of down receipts. Il st. |
Louis and New Orleans Barge Line is to-
dav carving freight twelve hundred
miles at same figures we are paving /
the 81. Louis and Memphis Packet Com
panyand very often for muchleSs. lfanY Of
your readers will take the troubletO glance
at the St. LOuis Republican for a year
back, they viii find the rates Of freight to
al points given regularly in every issue
OF the paper, and can then see for them
selves that We We're compelled to pay the
st. L0uis Packet Company double The rate
that was chargedtON New Orleans, although
we were only one-thirdthe distance. Only
last winter Pork was carried from st.
Louis TO New Orleans for p cents per bar
rel, when we were paying 20 cents per
barrel from St. Louis to Memphis.
The barge system is our only salvation,
and TO this enterprise we must stick cher
ish il, keepit afoat and agoing. Manageit
with shrewdness and economy, n we
viii find after six months experience that
it IS " just the thing and wonder for the
life Of as how stupid and blind We have
been for years in thus paving such eXtor-
tionate charges and rates of freight.
The writers have been residents Of Mem
phis Tor twelve years. and since the WarI
have nSficed The fact, ame and time again,
that ithas Seen the fate of Memphis to be
bled and " beat " by nearly every cou
drel that came along; and worse than all,
these very vampires have the ~impudence
to tell yod'that they have 1" done thus and
so for MemPhis;'' thai we are . greatlyl
indebted 10 them, ? and really insist that
their claims for patronage are Just etc. Wei
have observed their movements. and have
almost cried with shame TO think our
merchants would permit such a state of
affairs without some slight protest. In
the one ubject-transportation-alon VIC
can show clearly where Memphis has
been Disseminated against to an incredi-
bic amount. The St. Louis and Memphis
Packet Company, that claims 10 have
lifted Memphis out Of the mire, etc, has
been the greatest curse Memphis ever
had. There is not a packet in their line
whose books, on examination, would not
exhibit instances where many wicked dis
examinations have been made, and not
only has this st. Louis Company done us
injuries, but many of the very boats call
ing themselves local packets have assisted
largely in carrying out these wrong To
the interest Of Memphis. Thus the St.
louis line will say 10 the packets here:
We must keep out ali opposition
for freight atSt. Lonisfor Memphis. White
and Arkansas river, and we win agree to
take IL through to the destination. saw
Des Arg, on White river, for such a figure
fhof No hao4 qqn RIM from Ct TA,f- =,