The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-05-22
Speeches by Governor Scott, General
Harrison, J. b. LATTE, E. ID.
Mansfield and Others.


| Chattanooga;) Colonel Adrian Terry, Engineer
of the Knoxville and Kentucky Railroad; DIR.
j. W. F. Parker, Vim. Harvey and VIM. Wood
cock, of Somerset, Pulaski County, Kehtuckyi
Colonel Cav, Of Chattanooga, representative
of the route from Chattanooga northwarlly
via Emory Gap, Chitwood, &C., besides Mayor
Terrence, members of the City Council, prom
inent railroad men and citizens, who, during
the morning session, completely packed the
room.
W. 81. Harrison, Esq, chairman OF the com-
mittee, called the meeting to order at ten
O'Clock, and announced that they were again
assembled to listen to propositions and sug.
gestions from representatives from the South
who were interested in the projected Southern
railroad.
Colonel John q. Crozier, of Knoxville, was
the first speaker in favor of the Knoxville
route, and was followed by Colonel Terry, Chiei
Engineer Of tie Knoxville and Kentucky Rail.
road, who urged the claims Of the Chattanooga
route.
SOUTH CAROLINA AHD THE sEABoARp.
Colonel John P. Low, Chief Engineer Of the
Blue Ridge Railroad Company, next addressed
the meeting.
BE said there were three main advantages
offered to Cincinnati by a Southern railroad
communication
1. The extension Of the area to which she
may supply her manufactured articles, the
grain and provisions for which she is q great
market, and over which she may distribute
q. A connection with South Atlantic ports,
through which she may with advantage export
and import.
5. A connection with Gulf ports for West In
| dia trade.
! mercial interest, then, seem to unite IN urging
YOU by no means to neglect the Knoxville con-
nection. We are not here to dlsparage the
merits Of other routes which are here advo-
Gated. II the means were at hand for their
construction. all Of those proposed could be
built with advantages toyour city beyond tue
most extravagans statements which Aeve been
made to you; but you can design but one
terminus. Knoxville offers advantages which
no other point can pretend to do. and which
have been admitted without controversy, Dy
your most able and far-seeing business men
and statesmen for forty years during which the
subject has been discussed.
It appears that you can secure the most I'M
portant of the advantages that you GEEK by
line OF 112 miles less in length to build, and
s., 600 600 cheaper than by the line which would
abandon Knoxville.
CHARLESTON CONDITION, HARBoR AND FUTURE
pRosPECTs-CNcINNAT1 CHIEFLY INTERESTED
IN CLOSE coNNEcr1oN-sPEEcH OF MR.. La
FIrTE.
j. B. LATTE, ESQ.,, of Charleston, was next i
called upon, and said that as those who had
preceded him had fully explained the advanta-
pes OF the Knoxville connection. 80 far as the
| distance and compare tive cost were concerned,
he would con1ine his remarks to the CONNER
| cial advantages to be derived from close con-
nection with the port Of Charleston. He would,
however, venture to express the decided opin-
| ion that should Knoxville be selected as the
| Southern terminus of the Cincinnati Road, the
| Blue Ridge Railroad would be completed quite
| as soon as the former road would be built to
the Tennessee State line. On the other hand,
should Chattanooga be selected as the termi-
nus, the Blue Ridge Road would, he thought,
| bs abandoned. The people OF South Carolina
had pushed forward the work upon Their road
with much energy, so long as there was req.
sonable prospect that Cincinnati would fulfil
her part OF the original agreement; and had
the road to Knoxville have been completed,
the Blue Ridge Road would long since have
been finished to that point to meet them. The
failure to complete the Blue Ridge Road long
of the people OF the State that after com pleting
it they would still be as far from reaching their
much desired connection with the great North
west as they were at present.
He said that since his arrival in this city he
had learned that the great object aimed at by
| the people Of Cincinnati in building the pro-
| jected road was to command the interior trade
of the States lying south and east and south
west of this city, thereby Offering new markets
for her manufactures and surplus products,
and making Cincinnati the great distributing
point for supplying all those sections, which
should naturally obtain their supplies from
| !his contre.
, Rerecognizcd the geographical position of
Cincinnati as being such as to warrant her
merchants in claiming for her the position OF
the great distributing centre for all the central
part of our great country; but to accomplish
| this they must not only be prepared to supply
| them with the articles OF her own manufacture,
and with her surplus products. but must also
be prepared to supply them with all other arti-
| cles they may need, whether of domestic or
| foreign production or manufacture. II you
wish to make tbs city the great central dlstrl-
buting point of the country, you must be pre-
pared to sell to every conner every artlc'e he
may need; for il You cannot do that, he must,
| OF necessity, 90 to other markets where he can
supply those wants, and in dong so will oe
apt to make all of his purr lases there, to the
! your own product and manufacture.
Cincinnati, being porto entrysand already
| importing considerable amount Of goods from
Europe, it is only necessary that she should
| open communication with some Southern
Atlantic port, through which she could import
all her foreign supplies at the lowest possible
cost.
He felt warranted in saying that no port
would offer equal adva ltages with Charlesto n
| in this respect and felt sure The morsthe mat
ter would be investigated, the more clearly
| would this be made manifest
Charleston, he claimed, had always been ac-
knowledged to be the cheapest port on the
Southern Atlantic coast, and the ports in the
| Gulf could bear no comparison in this respect,
as they we're all much more expensive than the
Atlantic ports. Freights from the Gulf ports
we're as a rule much higher than from Charles
ton. For brief periods. and owing to e2cep-
tional causes, this might not Invariably be the
case; but usually the difference OF European
freights was twenty-five per cent. IN favor OF
Charleston, as compared with the Gulf ports,
| and 10 O less extent as compared with other
Southern Atlantic ports.
The cause OF this difference in frelshts was
the moderate expenses OF ships visiting that
port. Our bar is quite narrow. but so situated
that vessels need scs rcely ever employ the SER
wees ofa towboat; and when once over the
bar. the capacity OF and depth Of water in our
harbor is such that they can move about at will
under sail alone. The depth OF water at the
| beads our yyharves heinz not lesa than forty IN