The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1871-12-30
LAST SPRING, when the matter of sub

SATURDAY, DEC. 30, 1871.
LAST SPRING, when the matter of sub
scribing to help build the proposcsE rail
road from this city to Brooke county was
preached, we expressed the belief that it
would be better for this county to make
an absolute donation of the subscription
than not to have the road The more the
subject is canvassed the more numerous
and obvious appear the benefits the road
would confer on city and county, and the
more we are confirmed in the belief then
expressed. Indeed, as we have already
said, we regard the building of this road
rs a measure of necessity; and that ne
cessity is so vital that if the present move
mcnt should fail the people of this city
will find themselves compelled to build
road over the projected route within
few years, if they have to do 1t without
outside assistance.
But it ought to be well understood by
all who have votes to cast next Wednes-
day, that the subscription, if made, will
trary, so far as it is possible to foresce, it
will be i'll itself a paying investment.
The people of this county will own half
the road. They will have the strongest
motive men acknowledge to make it
profitable They will give it all the patron
age they can. Whoever will take 81 good
railroad map will see that the Pennsyl-
vania Railroad, by the lines directly under
its control, and others with which it con-
connects, Families in all directions
throughout this country. Unquestiona-
bly by the new road Wheeling could
reach almost every part of the country
on as good terms rs by existing lines ;
and of course wherever this can be done
the people of Wheeling will patronize
their own road in preference to others
Now the business of this city by rail
each year constitutes an enormous ag-
gregate; and we may rely on it the
portion of that business that Will be
thrown ON this new road Just rs soon
rs it is opened will make it \ paying line
without waiting for the local frcighting
and local travel along the road that will
be developed and grow steadily and I'M
ceasingly, after five or ten years The
road rs i whole will not be 4 costly one.
According to the best estimates, the
whole cost viii not exceed S25, 600 to
$4,000 per mile. OF course, the lighter
the cost and less the investment, the
larger Will be the per cent OF profit on
that investment afforded by a given bust
ness. Gross receipts of $4,000 . year
viii pay : per cent net on the aggregate
cost of the road. This would be 81, 800
gross receipts per month and when we
mention that the Wheeling business over
tine Baltimore & Chic line has within n
year paid Il revenue ut this station amount
ing tomore than three times this sum per
month, we think it viii be agreed that 4
road which all our people would
have direct interest in patroniZing
will do business enough to pay hand
some dividends from the start.
We leave out OF the question for
the present the design of the Pennsylva-
MIA Company to extend the line down the
river to Kentucky, tapping the Baltimore
Il Ohio Mt Parkersburg and the Chesa-
pealle & Ohio at Huntingdon. That
would make it II magnificent line for
Wheeling, and the cooperation of the
riparian counties is all that is needed to
secure it. We leave out of sight at pres
ent also the Invaluable uses to Wheeling
of this road merely as an arm reaching
no farther than here; for in this article
we have designed only to speak of
the subscription as if our people were
making an Investment only for such rea-
sons rs would influence the Individual
capitalist What we want our people
to think about and figure over is,
that the road itself will pay hand
some dividends on the money put
into it; that ifthe county subscribes, these
dividends will: pay 1.-THE interest on her
bonds after::the first year or eighteen
months; and that when the bonds them
selves mature she can If she chooses to
give up her interest in the road pay the
bonds by the sale OF her stock;.so that
in fact the subscription would never be
anything but loan of credit, except to
meet the interest before the road gets into
operation, and the stock in q few years
would be so good that the premium
would pay that back. All the advantages
to the business prosperity Of the city and
county heretofore adverted to would,
therefore, be clear gain.
THE centre of gravity of population is
term adopted by calculators of statistics
derived from the census returns of the
United States to eXpr ess briefly the fol-
lOIUinnr idnn Snr,r,ncirnr tho cnnr,tr,r 10