The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1871-07-06
Winchester Notes


whom we feel proud, speaks as follows
in his Winchester Letter to the Gin
cinnati Commercial
The good city Of Cincinnati in her
much talk about a Southern connec.
ton, reminds me Of the tabled mule
(or perhaps it was an animal With a
trilc long = cars) which stood between
Two tempting hay STACKS, not knowing
which one TO 90 to, until he starved to
death, Before Louisville gobbled up
six hundred miles Of roa& direct to the
heart of the South, it was necessary
that Cincinnati have u Southern con.
n"cction Of her own, and since that
event it is doubly 50. She must have
ii, or haul down her sign which reads
"Quecn City," The people Of Win
chester, and Of the entire section Of
country from McMinnvilIe to Hunts
vile, Alabama, are much exercised
over the Cincinnati railroad question,
and believe that this is the region for
her to strike for. To-day in company
with Chancellor Marks, / rode out a
short distance into the country TO the
s vance steam tanncry, for the pur.
pose Of seeing Thomas Sharp, Esq,
who has given the Cincinnati railroad
question n good deal Of attention.
And right here u word as to the leather
business will not be out Of place. We
were shown through the tannery, which
is m aIlcrthe war c&pcj iment, but from
which leather is already shipped to
Chicago, Cincinnati, New York and
Boston. That shows what there is in
this country if it is brought out. The
leather is all oak tanned, and there
fore possesses a great advantage over
Northern hcmlock tanned 1t ON
mands in Chicago twenty-five per cent.
higher figures than leather, otherwise
of the same quality, tanned from hem
lock. All through this country are in
cxhaustablc quantities Of oak. Cum.
bcrlald mountain is covered with oak
forests, which can be bought, land and
all. for q dollar an acre. When there
are such vast quantities of oak forests
here, and when hides are as cheap us
in the North, why should not tanning
be profitable? 1t is, but the difficulty
s found in the scarcity of capital. In
speaking OF this, Mr., Sharp said
Southern men have no capital to EN-
bark in the business, and northern men
seem afraid to come here" There is
truth in this, but there ought not to be.
There is nothing in Tennessee for an
honest man to be afraid of, whether he
comes from the North or from Egypt.
Mr.. Sharp explained to me at what
comparatively light expense Cincinnati
could have a railroad direct to Hunts.
vile, and from Iherc to all sections of
the South. To have a southern con
@nection TO Huntsville, it is only ncccs.
sary to build two gaps Il long one
and Il sholt one. The long one is from
NicholasviIIc, Kentucky, to McMinn
vile, Tennessee, via Sparta. The OK
act distance ! do not know, but the
reader, who cares, can consult a map,
IT. mistake not, the route between
Nicholasvillc and Danville is graded a
portion Of the way Danvillc being the
proper terminus Of the Central Rail
road, The Southwestern Railroad,
for which II charter exists, from
McMinnville to Danvilc, has already
been graded as far AS Sparta, twenty
six miles. The short gap referred to,
is that existing between the Winchester
and Alabama Road and Huntsville
which is only seventeen miles. These
two gaps filled, and Cincinnati will
have u direct route to the South, via
Lexington, Danvillc, Sparta. McMinn-
vile, and Winchester to Huntsville.
That would be about as good a thing
rs Louisville has got, and, while it
would not be a direct route to Chatta-
nooga, it would be more direct than
the present and only one, via Louisville,
AS n glanrc at the map will demonstrate.
Here is the advantage ofsuch q route
in a few words. BY it the distance
rrom Huntsville to Cincinnati is 33l
miles, and from Huntsville to Louis
will, via Decatur, it is 1873 miles,
making a difference Of only one mile
in favor of Louisville, whereas it is
now over a hundred.
Such Il road could be built ut a com
parativcly small expense, one half per.
haps Of what it would take to go direct
to Chattanooga. In fact, it is already
built rs far as NicEolasvillc, and a
charter exists to Danville. This road
i controlled by Cincinnati for all prac-
iiclc purposes. From Danvillc to
M~cllinnWlle a charter already exists,
and ~twcny.six miles have been graded
From McMinnvillc to T~ullahoma, a
road already exists, is in running order,
and can be bought dirt cheap. From
TullahOmn to Dcchcrd, twelve miles,
the route would take about the course
Of the Nashville and Chattanooga roam,
4 road that could be used for that dis.
lancc by paying rental or laying double
track. From Dccherd, two miles from
here, a road is already built to within
seventeen miles of Huntsville, called
the Winchester and Alabama road.
This can be bought for Il song, as all
the stockholders want is that their road
should go somewhere.
Let those Of the Cincinnatians who
are interested in eyer having u road to
the South look into this matter and
ponder. Nothing will have to be asked
of Kentucky. Charters already exist
all the way through. Put on your
spcctacles, solid men of Cincinnati ;
look at the map and see what you think
Of thanking Louisville via Danville,