Middletown transcript., 1869-09-18
ANOTHER RA11 ROAD PROPOSED.


ANOTHER RAIL ROAD PROPOSED.
The following account of reconnoi-
sance of the Eastern Shore with the view
of establishing more desirable connec-
ton, between.this rapidly improving por-
ton of the State of Maryland and its COM
mercial metropolis, is given by the Kent
News.
We understand that Mr.. j. B. Win
gate, Engineer of the Kent County Rail
Road, at the instance of committee of
the city council of Baltimore, has been ex-
amining the routes over which additional
railroads would have to be built to connect
the Queen Annes with the Maryland and
Delaware road, and the latter with the
roads below on the peninsula, in order to
afford more direct communication with
Baltimore by way of the proposed railroad
from Massey's to Elkton; and that after
examining these several routes, he has
recommended another and shorter way of
reaching Baltimore, and one which, in
his judgment, would secure to that city
larger share of the Eastern Shore trade
than any other that could be adopted He
proposes to start from Salisbury, and
thence by way of Sharptown and Federals-
burg to Denton, thence to Greensboro,
Beaver Dams, Church Hill and Chester
town, to Rock Hall.
This route has the advantage of COM
mencing at Salisbury with S. miles of
railroad now built and in operation, viz
80 miles to the Eastern Shore and % of
the Wicomico and Pocomoke road, both
of which are having additions made to
them. It crosses the Dorchester and Del
aware Road at fredericksburg, and the Ma
ryland and Delaware Road at Greensboro;
also crosses the Kent and Queen Anne's
Road near the Hewett farm.
The distance by this route is 66J miles
to Chestertown, there connecting with the
Kent County Railroad, 128 miles to Rock
Hall, making distance of 70 miles by
rail, and 20 miles by steamer to Balti-
more, or a total distance of 80 miles against
lib miles by way of the Delaware Rail-
road to Wilmington and Philadelphia,
Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad to
Baltimore showing saving of IA
miles from Salisbury to Baltimore The
route passes for the most part through
fertile section of country, which is at pres
ent destitutes of railway or water commu-
nication, except where it crosses rivers or
railroads at right angles
The route is said to be very favorable in
all respects for building road, the most
costly part being between Church Hill and
Chestertown, and that is not extravagant.
Mr.. Wingate has made an approximate
estimate of the cost of the 665 miles of
road, and makes it $3.50, 900, or about
$4,000 per mile. This covers every
thing complete, ready for the rolling stock,
including depot buildings, &c.
The Cecil Wig makes the following OBJ
jections to the proposed road There are
three grave objections to this new route,
which are insuperable objects to its success.
No route which meditates both rail and wa
ter carriage will ever rise to the dignity of
a successful freighting line. The immense
labor and expense. to say nothing of loss
of time in shifting the freight must forev-
er defeat such project In the second
place winter effectually blocks all routes on
the Chesapeake for several weeks at least
in the year. And the third objection is
that the route there proposed leaves all
that section of country lying between the
line from Chestertown to Rock Hall in
Kent Co. and the P. w. & B, Railroad in
Cecil county in its present condition, as
far as facilities connecting it with Balti-
more are concerned, which is very large
part of the most productive region of the
Eastern Shore. The above route would
only add another steamboat line to the nu-
merous ones which now ply between the
Eastern Shore and Baltimore in the sum-
mer months, and would utterly fail to have
any appreciable influence on the trade or
travel between the two points; but if the
iron track were extended, making con-
tinuous and unbroken rail to Elkton, thence
by the p. w. & B. Railroad to Baltimore,
then the latter city would have railroad fa-
cilities with the Eastern Shore equal to
those now enjoyed by Philadelphia in ad-
dition to her present advantages of water
communication. Baltimore city may as
we'll make up her mind to this at once, or
abandon this periodical decision about sue
cessfully competing with Philadelphia for
the trade of the Eastern Shore. No ANAL
gam route of rail and water will ever com
pete successfully with continuous rail.
There is very sharp controversy be-
! h. VI, -, A At