Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-12-13
CITY Notices.
tho EdgeneId and Kentucky Rail
road.

The EdgelIeId and Kentueky Rail
road.
To the YoArs OF DaTid-on County:
As the time Is now close at hand when
the citizens Of 0dr county viii be called on
10 vote for the ratification Of tie sale made
by the County Commissioners OF the INFER
est the county owns in the Edgefeld and
Kentucky Railroad, it may not be inal ,oro-
pirate to urge upon our people the necessieSS
of ratifying It BY majority Of the legal
voters Of the county.
A short account explanatory Of the trans-
action by which the road was sold viii sat
isfy the most careless Of The sIl Importance
of prompt attendance at the polls on the
18th inst.
Under the act Of the Legislature providing
for the sale Of railroads in the State bill
was fled by the States AttOrneysto subject
the Edgefeld and Kentucky railroad to a
sale for the satisfaction Of its indebtedness
TO the State. Davidson county issued stock
in the road t0:the amount Of 100000, she
hsying subscribed that amount many years
ago when the road was first constructed.
To raise the money necessary to pay up this
stock, she issued two hundred bonds Of
the value Of 81, 600 each and by selling
them realized the money which enabled
her to make the payments as they were
called for. The greater part Of these
bonds are Etill IN circulation and have never
been redeemed. Wien the State sued the
road the county was, of course, made a
party and resisted the sale by all the de-
lenses which such able counsel as A. L.
Demoss and Ed. Baxter could devise. Many
OF their objections were substantial an d
more than technical, and when the Chan
cellor decided against them they threatened
an appeal to the Supreme Court. This IN
duced the solicitors Of the State acting in
the best interests of their client to agree to
a compromise by which the county Of Da-
wilson and her associate stock holders were
permitted to purchase the road at the mini
mum price Of nine hundred thousand dol
lars in State bonds. 4 sufficient
number Of State bonds were Dsgoti-
ated IN New York to make the first
payment, the county being compelled
however 10 borrow the money at the rate
Of ten per cent psr annum, in order 10 pur-
chase them. Afterwards many Of the asso-
ciate stockholders paid up their pro rata OF
this liability which reduced the cCunty's
liability about one-ffth. At this juncture
the commissioners and the paid up Gssoctc3e
purchasers sold the road upon the most adj
vantageOus terms, the sale having been
made through the fundamentally OF the
commissioners, Mr.. Caldwell, Mr.. DemOss
and Chancellor East, for whose disinterest-
ed labors in this behalf the county will al
ways owe debt of gratitude.
By the terms Of the sale the AmeEcan
Contract Company agree to assume the
liability already incurred by the county and
its associates, and pay bonus to them Of
two hundred and twenty-five thousand dol
lars in State bonds. So far as the individual
stockholders are concerned they have agreed
to accept this proposition, es have also tse
commissioners aud the County Court, 50
far as they are able. The County Court
ratified it to the extent Of their ability by q
unanimous vote and have submitted it to a
vote of the people at an election to be held
on Wednesday the Goth of this month
for their ratification or rejection as requir-
ed by sections 1,I42 to 1,148 inclusive Of
the Code.
We nov propose TO state briefly
our reasons for urgins the ratification Of
the sale upon our people:
In the first place, it win relieve the county
Of considerable portion of its indebted
Hess IlH VI bbC
COUNTY In their last statement, report the
bonded Indebtedness Of the county at ST.
050,OO0 upon which an interest of S63, $40
is annually payable. If this sale is ratified
the county Of Davidson will receive fOr its
interest about one hundred ana eighty-three
State bonds, the nominal value Of which
Is one hundred and ei5hty-tbree thousand
dollars; when sold at their market value they
would bring over one hundred and twenty
thousand dollars in currency. With this
! sum the county could redeem at least one
hundred and fifty of its bonds, upon which
the county pays an annual interest Of nine
thousand dollars. An of this would be
saved to the county without the slightest
expense TO her, by the ratification Of this
sale. If from any cause, however, the
county fails to ratify the sale, it viii be CON-
PEELED to make provision for the payment Of
at least four-fifths Of the 100000 in State
bonds which she assumed to give the State
for the road, and in addition to this she
would have to expend between two hundred
and fifty and three hundred thousand dollars
at the lowest calculation in repairing and
equipping the road.
With these facts and ficITes staring them
In the face, let the people take interest
enough in their financial affairs for once
in our history, and carry the ratification by
an overwhelming vote.
decl3-eOd-tdec20.