The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1870-01-22
The New Orleans, Mobile and
ChattaaEDoxa Railroads.

The New Orleans, Mobile and
Chattanooga Railroads.
7
The objects contemplated by the osigisa-
tors Of this enterprise are to secure to
themselves the soatrol and operation, with
it's prospective pseHt, Of she most direct
route between. the great commercial cities
Of the Eastern States and the city of New
Orleans, the commercial centre Of the great
and then to push the route
through Louisiana, through Texas and
then to the most eligible seaport on the
Pacific coast.
So, beginning at Chattanooga in East
Tennessee, the central point at which the
various routes from the cities Of New York,
Philadelphia, Baltimore, Richmond, Savaa-
nah and Charleston. towards the different
points in, the Southwestern States, al radi.
ate and diverge in their differskt directions,
the Company propose to build an airline
route to Mobile. and thence to New Or
leans, and thence directly west to Houston
and to San Antonio; and from that city to
the Pacific Coast, making this road when
completed the Southern Pacific, terminal
ing on that coast at enc Of two certain
points, Mazatlan in Mexico, or San Diego
in California, which Of the two has not been
definitely been made known, though it is
most probable that the latter point is
the one contemplated. The erigjna
tors Of the enterprise, are q few wealthy
men in New York and Boston, N Of whom
is a large shareholder in the great Pacific
road between st. Louis and San Francisco,
and also q prominent member of Congress
from Massachusetts,, and another also q
member of Congress, from New England,
and widely known as a large manufacturer
and nailpoad operator; the remainder are
all men of large capital andknown through
out the country by the extensive railroad
operations in the great railroad enterprises
of the North and West -8. q"
Their first move in the State was iaaugu-
rated some eli. hteen' months since, and was
affected by an act passed by the State
Legislature in June 1868, recognizing a
charter granted them by the State Of
Alabama, and granting them corporate
powers and privileges, and authority to
appropriate the necessary land and the
right Of way, &C.. .''a 1864. Y H"'l
At the following session Of our Legisla-
ture an act was passed in February 1859,
granting the company additional concessions
and privileges, and guaranteeing the pay
ment Of, and endorsing their second mortgage
bonds for the sum of twelve thousand five
hundred dollars for every mile in length
of the road built from New Orleans to the
Texas boundary line Of this State, and al
lowing them to issue FIRST mortgage bonds
to an amount Of IL, 800 dollars which have
precedence Of those guaranteed by the
State. These second mortgages being pay
able in not less than forty nor more than
fifty years from their date. All of these
concessions and privileges are dependent
upon the Company's constructing and hav-
ing the rails laid upon forty continuous
miles of the road west of New Orleans,
within twelve months from the 18th day
Of January, 1870, and completing the whole
within three years from that date.
The State of Alabama, it is said has made
liberal concessions to that part d
the road lying in that State, and the State
Texas has far exceeded this in inducements
offe ed and advantages conferred. 52@ 81"
Now, as we are ~endeavoring to ascertain
the prospect Of the carly construction and
Of that portion of the road
which runs through our parish, BY inves-
the progress already made BY this
Company and the amount Of labor already
accomplished, we may be enabled to ap-
proximate quite closely the period of its
The route between New Or
and Mobile was surveyed and located
some time in 1858, the route selected "
as direct and as close to the Gulf coast
rs practicable, sometimes immediately near
The shore and varying in. distance through
out, from q half mile to ten miles from the
coast. The route is almost . direct line
through fats and marshes, and
several rivers and smaller streams
which necessitate, at several points, the
constructing Of heavy entertainments, trestle
work and causeways and several bridges of
N expensive character, in fact the route
vas at one time before the late war pro-
louounced BY engineers Of good standing,
Utterly impracticable as Q railroad. route.
The contracts for that portion of the road
wing between Mobile and New Orleans
vvere let and operations commenced about
he LIST of November 1868, some fourteen
months since. The distance between the
wo places is fully 165 miles. The road
ROSES, besides many smaller streams re-
bridge work, the Pearl and Passa-
rivers, and the Bay Of St.
.ouis, where the work IS ola very exren-
i've character, running for many hundred
ards across the water on trsstle4 work, |
be piles supporting which have in many
iaces 10 be driven as deep as forty feet in
rider to secure q firm foundation on &C
cunt Of the q~ulcksand, the water being
% more than from two to eight feet in
epth. Following the coas, the road eros
Is the outlet known IS the Rigolets which
the waters Of Lake Ponchartrain