Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1870-05-06

first built, the great coal basins of Pennsylva-
MIA and the products of Maryland were en-
tirely useless; now almost the entire product
is used on the Atlantic seaboard. The ST.
900 900 worth of coal would soon be $lO,-
600 900, and that also would seek the sea-
board And it has been fairly proven that
all products requiring transits will take the
nearest route to market.
He took it for granted that the saving OF
two hundred miles, as the Point Lookout road
would save, from the mines Of Pennsylvania
to the seaboard, would guarantee the building
of the road, anc that saving made this road
inevitable.
The proposition was to give aid to the per-
sons who propose to build this road, and 1t
was to the interests of the city to build It,
There was not doubt but that this road,
when it was connected with the mines, would
be paying road. If, however, it was not ID
the interests of the city, they should have no
thing to do with it.
The road would open seventy miles into
three counties, all Of which would enhance
the value of that land thrcefold, and nothing
can be- done to benefit them that would not
accrue to this city. At the eastern terminus
of the road were oyster beds that now made
trade that employed at least ten thousand
men, and in five years the increase will bring
the number up to fifty thousand. This road
opened at once direct aud quick line to the
Mississippi. -!
II the road were built, in very short time
there would spring up at its eastern terminus
Is. 900 or 10000 inhabitants, and it would
make Washington seaport town, and throw
millions of dollars into the hands of The lie 'ple
,c a. o;t,, <b,t nod bod hoon construct.
ed during the war it would have saved the
Government $5O000,000. This road taken
through to the coal mines would give the in
habitants of the metropolis communication in
two hours with the great field for fuel in this
country.
The road, then, must be built, and the
question was, would Washington aid it? He
had spoken as he had that the people might
know that there was no risk; and if the aid
was extended, the road would be built imme-
diately. This was to be an expensive pro-
ject, but it would take the coal trade from the
hands of the Baltimore and Ohio road; that
road could not keep it, because the Southern
Maryland road saved 200 miles of freightage,
aud opened a market to the entire eastern Sec
ton of Virginia.
The speaker said there we're in this city
two kinds of peope-extravagan and eco
nomical The latter class when they carried
their economy into railroads made it much
worse than extravaganza. The three counties
had every disposition to give but the Consti-
tuition of Maryland so bound them that their
help could not much be relied on; but if the
city gave their aid the road would be built by
next fall, and in few years it would add
more than the cost of the road to the value of
the property of this city. He hoped that they
would give it their consideration. The road
would run to this city, and form junction
with the great western system. He did not
think that any road could of itself be profita-
BILE.
The length of the line wonld be about nine
ty miles, and it would take about $3.50, 900
to construct harbnr at Point Lookout. The
entire road wonld cost about $500. 000.-
There is already 81 100000 of the stock sub
scribed. The cas- on hand amounts to $780,
asked the city tof ]an its credit, or to suaran-
tee the interest on the bonds of the road. He
felt positive that there was not section of
country in the United States that could con-
tribute more largely to the benefit of Wash
ington than the counties of Maryland through
which this road passed.