The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1871-12-02

N~a"'
road and the facilities for mining and
bringing the coal to the track "are une.
guaiCd By MoSG Of any OTHER line Of railroad
in Ohio" lie further says that tor the
entire distance from Bridgeport to the
summit of New Athens "thcre is scarcely
n mile OF the line at which coal Of the best
quality cannot with great facility be
brought to the track by grarity alone, and
for the greater part of the distance along
Brusly Fork and Big saltwater the sup
ply Of excellent coal is almost equally
ample"
Wheeling has been unfortunate In her
railroad experience, and Of course is not
disposed to take much as granted in any
new project but rather To look into its
details closely, if not supiciously, before
aIresh into debt and taxation.
This Is all well and heathlul within the
bounds ofmOderation ind rs II taxpayer
l shall certainly not find fault with such
a disposition, General cheapness Of live.
lihOod including low rate oftaxatlOn is
such an element of strength in manulac.
turing city like ours that we can hardly
prizeit too highly And hence we should
be circumspect, now that we are once moro
nearly out OF the woods in the shape OF q
heavy debt, how we proceed to load our
selves up for another series OF years, The
true policy OF Wheeling IS to devcIope and
strengthen her natural resources as a
manufacturing site and not to delude her.
self with the idea that she can ever be.
come through railroads great distribut.
ing center for other peoples manulac-
lures. Hence the great advantage Of
keeping down taxation to such minimum
point rs Is consistent with the necessary
distribution OF our oDn manufactures. OF
course we must be able 10 compete with
points that like ourselves arc engaged in
manufacturing, but that have superior
facilities for transportation. We need
therefore competitive routes by which
TO secure at the cheapest rate such raw
material as we must have and by which
also in return to transport the manuiao-
tured product to the consumer
The question therefore IS, do VIC need
such I'm outlet us this proposed road by
way Of the Wheeling Creek Valley will
give us into tho rich vallies of the Still.
water and TuscarawAs and to tho West
and North West country beyondY This
region of country was once tributary to
Wheeling in The days rthe National road
and the Conestoga wagons, but Of late
years has been tapped and drained into
other channels oftrade, five can not only
re.establish ourselves as regards this an.
cicnt trade, but also ut the same time
extend II, and Willie doing so invest our
money in the stock Of dividend paying
road, we shall certainly 10 consulting our
own best interests 10 encourage the enter
prise. ..H uf .. .....g TN.
The proposed rond, should it be built
from Grafton to Wheeling, will cost about
five millions Of dollars. 1t travCrscs one
of the richest agricultural and mineral
regions in Ohio It's coal traffic will per-
haps resemble that oil the Baltimore e.
Ohio road east of Cumberland, which Is
both enormous and profitable, so much so
that the stock Of that road after selling
down to forty cents on the dollar at one
time since its completion is now readily
sold ut dollar and forty cents. 1t bids
fair to be iar in excess Of the coal traffic
of The Cleveland & Pittsburgh road which
has increased from $1,000 tons in 1866 TO
$4,000 tons in 1871, and has so materially
helped to increase the earnings of that
road from $G27O72 81 in the former year
to the enormous aggregate of %, 100, 600
in the latter year.
Both the COal and ore business, 10 say
nothing about lumber, cannot help be.
coming tremendous trade on this new
road. And these three items alone con.
stitute today eighty per cent of the
freight business on the rood last men.
toned And sec what they have done
for that rOad. In 1857 It's stock was SELL
Ing down as low as ten and fifteen cents
on the dollar To-day you cannot buy 1t
under one hundred and twenty-five cents,
and II pays regular quarterly dividends Of
two and half per cent, equivalent 10 full
eleven per cent interest on It's par value.
The ore trade has increased over It's track
from 1866 tons in 1856 to 231 900 tons in
1871, aud tho lumber trade from nothing
at oil OF the start TO about 10000 tons for
this fiscal year. .. ........,
l am aware, Messrs. Editors, that there
Is divided sentiment in Our community
rs to routes to the Northwest. There are
those who look with favor and even with
preference upon tho route that proposes
diverge from the Cleveland & Pittsburgh
road at Deep Run, short distance above
Martlnsville. have no arguments to oil.
fer against that route per SO, and sin
cerely trust that the Jealous parties who
have II in charge will be entirely success.
ful in their undertaking. Let US have all |
the railroads that capitalists East or West
or Immediately around us are willing to |
build. No friend of Wheeling need object
TO seeing her become n hub; If not The
"Hub" so much talked about, from which |
railroads shall radlate in every direction,
provided their building does not involve
her in sacrifices that she cannot afford to |
make. AT this time 1t is absolutely Ger.
tain that she cannot afford to build two
railroads TO the Northwest unless II will |
suit all parties concerned to have her d.
vide what she Is able 10 give, which Is not
likely. The question therefore comes up |
on the matter Of choice between the, two
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