The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1871-03-02

when she, at the same time. by so doing. vii.
reap advantages worth ten fold the amount of
her outlay? Is She not wiling to do good
turn t, her neig hbors nay to return a favor
received when well paid for so doing?
Bat suppose the despa;ring efforts of Rock
bridge, BotetouIt and Roanoke should event
ually succeed in securing the road, and Au-
susta get the road for nothing, could she, in
honor, stand by and sec her sister county of
ockbridSe stasger under her burden Of
S4o0OO0,OO, and complaccntly pocket the
81 100000 90, which would be expended in
building the road through her territory, pock-
ct the savings, in transportation and travel,
caused by the construction Of the road, reap
immense indirect and collateral advanta-
gcs of the road, go on in the enjoyment ofthe
advantages of the Chesapeake and Ohio road
which Rockbridge was heavily taxed to build,
ard that without mpcnsation-continue to
pocket the annual appropriations to the insti-
tuton-which ockbridgc will continu. to be
taxed to pay-and enroll herself in the huml
ation of such a position, by the reflection
that all these advantages cost her nothing?
VIII a gallant, high spirited and generous
people, willingly, deliberately and knowingly
exhibit such spectacle of cold bloodcd sell
tishncss?
Would it avail to vouch experience,
analogy, logic, and arithmetic, to convince
the people of Augusta, that the construc-
ton Of the Valley road will put more
money back into their pockets, than the
tax will take out? No one will venture to
deny, that in every age, in every country,
in every branch of human industry, CON-
petition has operated to reduce prices.-
Competition is simply plenty, monopoly is
scarcity, and competition reduces prices
as certainly as plenty reduces prices, just
as monoI oily enhances prices, as certainly
as scarcity enhances prices. Why will not
certain cause, which has inevitably and
invariably, without a single contradiction
produced certain effect, produce the samc
effect in Augusta county?
But we are not even left to infer that
the operation of the road will reduce
freights. We see before our eyes, and
know as fact, in present actual eristence,
that the trifling competition created by the
construction of the Railroad to Harrison
burg has reduced freights, on both that
road and the Chesapeake and Ohio Rail
road, in eUe,y instance where the COMPETE
ton operates. The Mount Vernon Iron
Works Company, who can resort to either
road with equal facility, get their iron
transported for little over one-half, what
the owners Of Elizabeth Furnace have to
pay, who can resort to the Chesapeake and
Ohio Railroad alone. Flour is transport
ed from Harrisonburg to Alexandria for
nineteen cents less per barrel, than from
Stanton to Richmond, the distance being
almost exactly the same that nineteen
cents of difference, being, by remarka
ole coincidence, the identical cost of ship
ment from Alexandria to Richmond. The
reduction of freights being just exactly
enough to put Rockingham -four into the
Richmond market, at the same cost that
Augusta -four Is taken to Richmond; and
the hauling from Rockingham to staunton
being sufficient to induce the Rockingham
farmer to take the Alexandria route Give
Augusta the choice of the same route, and
unless the Chesapeake and Ohio Road re-
duced freights, the Manassas Gap Rail
road, would as certainly reduce and take
the Augusta freight, as it has reduced and
taken the Rockingham freight. And d
very small reduction upon the enormous
freights to and from Augusta county. will,
as short calculation will prove, annually
aggregate more than the tax. Here, then,
is proposition, promising the county large
advantages, with much more security than
farmer has that he will reap crop when
he sows the seed, and which, in addition,
will demonstratively more than repay its
actual cost in dollars and cents. Is there
rational ground of hesitation to accept it