The Portland daily press., 1871-01-27

| ~S"@e 1utsOT o. the frees:
The various brief suggestions that have from
time to time appeared in your columns, touch
ing the desirability of central point OF arrival
and departure for all our passenger railway
trains, have commanded the attention and in
terest of our citizens. By those in particular
who in the course of business take and leave
the rail with frequency, the matter is judged
to be one of great i'm portance, one that should
be fully discussed without longer delay, land
that ishould lbe acted upon with promptitude
| as socn as intelligent conclusions can be
reached.
Ifany move is to DO made in this concern 1t
| any time, the present Is that time Several of
our roads have accommodations for passengers,
by themselves confessed to be entirely made
quate, to be at best temporary, and some of
them little better than just subjects for morti-
fcation. Some Of them are so located as to be
little better than positive nuisances, dangerous
to local travel, and productive in the course Of
the year OF an incalculable amount of annoy
ance and vexation. The railroads themselves
as whole, are accordingly in a position to
look without disfavor upon a proposition for
change. They perceive as clearly as the gen.
erai public that change Jean be made with
much less expense now, than when the vacant
spaces Of our territory are filled with DWELLINGS
and when their own works have grown tn a
far greater magnitude.
PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND RAILROADS.
The ruling principle in the constructing and
operating of railroads, and of all I'M.
TO them appertainlng, is public conyen-
aence. 1t is for the pubic, not for cor
D0r1tl0ng oh 81
Cd across the country, cutting farms in twain,
and villages, destroying homesteads, orchard |
growths and the labors of whole individual life |
times. 1t is for the public good that mountains |
are pierced, valleys causewayed, rivers and |
arms Of the sea bridged, and the natural rough.
ness of the land smoothed with iron tracks to
abridge time and distance to mitigate the dis
comforts of travel, and to facilitate the moving
of the products of the field, the forest and the
mine. All this is done for the public and with
an eye to the public, equally whether the pub
lie in its corporate capacity contributes TO the |
expenditure or not. The more the public con.
venience is consulted the larger returns for in.
vestments made can be secured from the pub |
lie. The corporation, therefore, that owns a
railroad is by its interest solicited to have done.
what the public if owning the road would order
to be done.
PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND FREIGHT DEPors
Public convenience oftentimes requires en-
tirely different arrangements as respects the
location of freight depots and of passenger Sta
tions. This is emphatically the case here. Our
RAILWAYS will, it is hoped, go on commanding
larger and still larger amounts of business
frsm the territory opened up by their extending
lines and from advantageous connection with
other roads opening to still wider areas of
productive country. 1t is hoped, it is conf
IDENTIFY believed, that some of them have but
made small beginning of what is to be vast
business, business to be drawn here not
more by our fortunate geographical position
than by our local advantages. This business,
it realized in any proportion to our anticipa-
tons, will require extensive accommodations.
1t must have those accommodations close IN.
on tide water or they will be no accommoda.
TONS The railway van and the ship must be
put within platform distance each of the
other. e--r,.+4
Our shore line accordingly, or that portion
Of it lying upon deep water, will as has been
already suggested 10 the PRESS sooner or
later, and as We hope at no distant day, be re-
public convenience will imperatively demand,
No portion of this marginal area that can be
urned to first-class advantage for tbs hand
log and transfer of freight should be occupied
" tracks or encountered by trains devoted to
passenger use 1t is to be remembered that not
'nly railway constructions are to flnd place
ipon the shore tracts in question, but also ware
houses. elevators, stores and shops all of which,
n large numbers ard of great size will be the in.
'vitable accompaniments ola large commercial
business. Even if a convenient location for
station could be found upon tie dis.
rict referred to, it should not be located there
IN, unless convenient location can be found
'owhere else Immediate proximity to deep
Tide water is OF such paramount Importance
wherever the transfer Of freight to ships bot.
'oms is to be effected, that without 1t no ATTAIN
nc port, whatever may be the advantages of its
geographical position can compete successful
y with rivals more favored in local facilities.
but with respect to passenger traffic the cir |
Of i'm mediate neIghborhood to nav
gable waters is of comparatively trifipg con.
equence. What the controlling consideration
n the location of passenger stations is, and
THAT it requires Of as at the present time, will
'e considered in subsequent communication