Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1871-02-23
Remarks of Mr.. COusens or Kennebunk.

road to Portland.
Mr.. SPEAKER Although the granting of
this charter is a matter which deeply inter-
ests my immediate constituents, yet l am
aware that its acceptance or rejection must
mainly turn upon the question whether or not
it is for the public interest. / shall therefore
confne my remarks more particularly to the
question whether or not the public interests
are to be subserved by the passage of this bill.
Yet | must also be permitted in brief to show
how that part OF the public through which
this road is to pass is to be affected by it.
In the year 1886 the Boston & Maine Rail-
way was chartered to run its road through
Alfred and Gorham, to Portland.
In 1887 the p. S. & p. Railroad was char
tered to run from Portsmouth through York,
Kennebunk, and Saco, to Portland.
The B. M. Company pushed on north
easterly with their road and reached Exeter,
New Hampshire, before the Eastern Railroad
reached Newburyport.
The p. S. & p Railroad Company desirous
of stopping the progres of the b. & NJ road
| came to the Legislature and obtained an
| amendment to their charter so as to allow
| them to start from kittery and run north
west course through Elliot to South Berwick,
instead of coming on in northeasterly di-
rection through York, Wells, &C., as first
contemplated. Striking South Berwick the
F. S. & 2. road intercepted the Boston &
| Maine road, heading it off. And as railroad
| ing was then an experiment, and business
| very light compared to what it is now, the b.
| & NJ. concluded that two lines would not pay
| and contcnted itself with connecting with the
| z. S. & p. and has ever since that time run
| into Portland over that road.
If the p. S. & 2. road had gone on the
shore line as they were first chartered to do,
they would have passed through or near by
all the following villages, viz: Kittery, York,
Cape Nedick, Ogunquit, Wells, kennebunk,
Kennebunkport, Biddeford, Saco, Scarboro,
| Cape Elizabeth to Portland. Instead Of this
it went up a northwest course, some six or
| eight miles out of its way, and after pursuing
| its course for fourteen miles from kittery, it
| struck point in the territory of the town of
South Berwick, called now the junction, only
| about two miles from the New Hampshire
| line.
| From the junction the =. S. & z. road
strikes out on bee line for Portland, cut
| ting across the upper ends of the tier OF sea-
board towns. not even touching single vii
lage or settlement in its entire route from
Portsmouth to Portland running through a
sparsely settled country all the way, and
through as valueless a tract of York and Cum
| berland counties as could have been selected,
| purposely stunning villages and valuable
lands, and saying to the community through
| which it passed you must come to us, not we
to you.
| BY this arrangement to intercept the B. &
NJ. road and obtain cheap route, the follow
| ing villages were left between the 2. S. g. Z.
| road and the sea, and away from all railroad
| facilities, as follows, viz: York, 7 miles;
| Cape Natick, II miles; Ogunquit, IL miles;
Wells, miles; Kennebunk, 3 to miles;
kennebunkport, miles Biddeford and Saco,
| l mile each; Old Orchard, miles; Scarboro',
| miles. And now for the past thirty years
| the towns along this line have with as much
patience as possible borne the inconvenience
of this up country location of the p. S. & 2.
road, and maintained at great expense liues of
| coaches and teams between these villages and
the several depots to convey the passengers
and freight, while this road and the roads op-
perating it have been reaping a rich harvest
| in fat dividends.
much responsible for this state of things as
| the p. S. & z. or the Eastern, l might, per-
haps, with some propriety answer, that ''when
rogues fall out, honest men get their dues"
| But the B. & M. road is in no way RESPONSE
| Bile for the up country location of the 2. S. &
| p. road, but we repeat, the p. S. & 7. ran up
there in order to head off the B. G NJ. and
thereby increased their own distance to Port
land, about six miles, and incOmmoding the
people on Its entire route.
But there is demand now for shore line
which did not exist when the p. S. & 2. Rail-
way was built. 1t is well known that it has
become very fashionable in these latter days
for a great many of our city people to leave
the hustle and heat of the city in the summer
| and seek the refreshing sea side resort. In
every town from Kittery to Portland, there
| are these watering places, where thousands
resort in summer and they are constantly in
creasing. There is large hotel now being
built in York. In Wells another nearly as
| large as the Augusta House is going up, as
well as others along the sea-board towns. But
these hotels are from four to twelve miles
away from the depots of the z. S. & Z. road.
The road proposed by this bill will much bet
ter accommodate this class of travel.
But it is said, if the charteris granted, they
will not build. think they WILL for the fol-
| lowing reasons lst.-Because it is clearly for
the interest of the B. & M. to build. 2d.-Be-
cause President Cogswell and three Directors
have told me they will build. 3d.-Because
| it is evident all ill feeling of rivalry exists
| between the b. & M. & Eastern roads, caus
| ing their interests to clash and Mr. Cogs-
well testified before the committee, that sit is
| very difficult to do business with another road
when our interests clash" And Mr.. Barrett,
Clerk of the p. S. & p. testified, that "the
Eastern would have nothing to do with the
| B. & NJ. in a new contract" Mr.. Cogswell
further testified, that he had "no doubt, if we
| obtain a charter every stakeholder will vote
| to build" With these assurances from gen.
| tlemen of such undoubted integrity as Presi-
dent Cogswell and his associates, coupled
with the overwhelming evidence, that it will
be good investment for them, and that it
| will give them an independent line, always of
| itself very desirable, we cannot doubt that if
| the charter is granted, they will Immediately
build.
EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS.
In their opposition to this bill, the 2. s. &
P. Railroad Company, seem to assume that
they have chartered rights which cannot, or at
least, ought not to be infringed upon by the
people of this State.
But is this so? In granting them an act of
incorporation there is not one word in that act
that even tacitly carries the idea of exclusive
ness; or that the Legislature was not left
perfectly free to grant to any other company
the same right to build road contiguous to,
and parallel with it. Yet it has been gravely
asked me since this controversy began, by