New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-11-27
THE CHATTANOOGA RAILROAD.
from the Price Current. !

This first class road with iron weighing
about seventy to the yard. with patent fish
joints, and tlOored OH cross ties chiefly of
cypress has been completed between New
Orleans and Mobile. Why such a road
should have been built through a swamp
and in pine barren, and in immediate com
petition with the Gulf and bayou craft that
seems adequate to convey any commerce on
its line. is difficult to conceive. 1t must
prove that the through business Of passen-
gerst, mail and express is sufficient to main
tain it. We have never doubted that
railroad would make its own bushes where
soever built. so it we conjecture that the
whole population between this city and
Mobile should become locomotive in its
habits they would not till train, and if all
their exportable products were shipped by
rail, instead of the ocean which lies at their
door, it would not employ much rolling
stock to transport it.
There is another anomaly in this road
why it should have taken the name Of the
Chattanooga Railroad rather than Of the
North Star Railroad! 1t may be that it in
tends to go to Chattanooga via Mobile, but
that route will not shorten our time to
Chattanooga over the present route by way
of Meridian. We will tell the directors of
the New Orleans and Chattanooga road a
historical fact, which will show that Mobile
does not lie upon the direct route between
New Orleans and Chattanooga. In 1874.
the federal government made a survey OF
locations for a turnpike road between Wash
ington City and New Orleans; the engineers
made an astronomical admeasurement, and
stated the geOdetic distance at 96O miles.
This air line fell upon certain pOin Is, among
which were Nicojack. equivalent to Chatta-
nooga, and Cahaba, the old seat Of Alabama
government, equivalent to Selma. The line
of location ran through the Indian country
to Lake POntchartrain.
This road has been in great part completed
by rail from Washington to Selma. and to
Tuscaloosa. From either of these places
to New Orleans, the road will be, COM
pleted, of less distance than by way OF Mo-
bile. Perhaps the Chattanooga Railroad
Company may throw off q branch from the
RipoIets crossing, or from Mississippi City,
which will secure the Northern mail, and
secure their title to their chartered appella-
ton But with our grateful surprise that
any parties should have COME from abroad
and secured the construction OF road
which expedites SO much our cOmmunica-
ton with sister city, and which greatly
fayors the development of a territory capa-
bic of contributing SO much to the comfort
and economy Of living in New Orleans, VIC
can vet f0resce some results perhaps not
taken into account by the enterprising pro-
icctors. We do not allude at this moment
to the encouraging prospect OF running the
Chattanooga Railroad to Ell PasO, and very
probably to the Pacific Ocean. This extern
sion has also received their intelligence and
energetic attention. We anticipate the
same god-send Of road wanted from here
to Texas.
Our merchants seem content to be quar-
antiued out of their Texas custom by town
ordinance of Galveston: road endowed
with great liability by State and city sub
scription seems to have been changed mys-
teriOusly into a steamboat line, and shows
no symptom OF further western extension.
Possibly these enterprising men OF Chatta-
nooga may relieve the city from its depend.
ence upon monopoly and rivalry. We will
not 90 further without noting that the Chat
| tanOOga road has made the experiment OF
laying a rail along the leyee. They have cut
| the knot that has SO perplexed our city law
| makers. We shall new see whether rail
| along the levee, with turnout tracks to
every section of the wharves. whether shell
| tered wharves, union depots and sucll facili
| ties for direct connection between ship and
rail as are now i'll use or being adopted IN
all our port cities are really advantageous
| or not.
So this road rushing through our city fore
and aft, upsetting the opponents, dismay
! ing the fOgies, and in fact attacking the OBJ
structives in rear, has come unexpectedly
| and acceptably to the rescue of the friends
| progress. 1t has solved those problems
which were yet in argument. What wer,
the motives of its projectors, or what vii
be their compensation we need not inquire.
| New Orleans has number one railroad t
| Mobile, which she never would have bull
| herself, and for this we arr thankful. w,
will now pass to q phase in the future o
this Mobile and New Orleans railroad
which has not we think attracted the atten