The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1872-05-31
THE ELECTION ro.MoRRow.

Struction Of o railroad bridge and the
Wheeling 8 Lake Erie Railroad.
The present Indebtedness Of the city is
upward Of 100000 The assessed value
Of the taxable property Of the city Is up.
ward Of $1SOOOOOO. 1t will be seen,
therefore, that this addition to the city
Indebtedness will make the debt approx.
mate very closely to ten per cent OF It's
taxable property.
The question to be decided, therefore, Is
q very grave one, and should be very
carefully considered.
30 far as we are concerned, the only
question Tor consideration Is whether the
guarantees offered for the completion Of
the proposed works are sufficient to JUS
tiIy SO heavy an expenditure. In our
Judgment they are not
As to the bridge, not dollar of the
stock has been subscribed, and the com.
pany is not organized. There is no pledge
or promise Of any additional stock from
any other source.
Mr.. Wilson's promise was that he
would advise or recommend to the Wal.
E. R. R. Co. to take 100000 Of the bridge
stock, but expressly stated that he was not
authorized 10 pledge the company to dose.
The First Branch of the City Council
expressly decided by majority Of more
than two to one, that they would not re.
qulre any subscription from other sources
as condition precedent to the subscrip-
ton by the city. 1t is agreed on all hands
that the bridge will cost not less than
100000, besides the right of way for the
approach to 1t on both sides Of the river.
The only hope ofsecuring any additional
stock beyond the city subscription Is that
thew Gle. R. r. Co. will take the add.
tional 100000 as suggested by Mr.. WILL
soN. Ifthis is done it Is with the expec-
tstior, that the Railroad Company will
take the contract for building the bridge
Havlng.$4OOOOO out of the 100000 that
will be thus subscribed, the Railroad Com.
pany will have the control Of the organi.
cation, and will, Of course, elect their
own board Of directors. Whatever may
be said about this as to the vote
OF the contractors in electing directors in
the Railroad Company, there can be no
question about II as to the bridge COM
pany. The directors will have the con-
troll Of the location of the bridge, the
kind ofbridge that is to be built, the price
to be paid for building, and the accep-
lance OF the work when it is completed.
Whether it Is prudent for the voters OF
the city to invest 100000 upon such
guarantees as these, is for them to deter
mine. But It is said that all these matters
may DO safely entrusted to the City Coun.
Gil. And 1t will DO observed that the
written pledge ofthc members Of the City
Council that they will require certain
guarantees before they will subscribe to
the stock Of the railroad company does
not apply 10 the bridge company. The
only expression we have from the City
Council is tho vote in the First Branch.
refusing to require any subscription Of
stock before making the city subscription.
Our own experience and observation Of
the action OF municipal bodies, is, that
when power is given to them to make
subscriptions, the parties interested never
fail to get them upon some terms. And
the experience Of the city has not been
such as to give the most unbounded con-
adence in such bodies.
So far therefore, as the bridge is con
cerned, we have no hesitation in saying
that with the total want Of all guaran.
tees and assurances as to the expenditure
Of the money, vote for the subscription
would be to the last degree imprudent
and unwarranted.
As to the railroad subscription, 1t stands
upon different footing. The conduct Ct
the parties who haYe the affair in charge
has not been such as to inspire the most
implicit confidence in the enterprise. In
the first place the men controlling the
movement in the city are not the manu-.
taeturers, merchants and business men Of
the city who would be mainly interested
iniis construction.
Not o dollar Of individual stock has
been subscribed in the city, unless Mr.
BE1Lmay have taken q share to make
him eligible as Q director, and whether
he Is any longer a resident OF the city,
may be a matter Of controversy. And If
there is man in the city who pays 500
Of taxes for State, county and city pur.
poses, who intends to vote for the sub
scriptiot1, we don't know it On the con.
trary the parties who are CONTROL.
ing the movement, seem to have
been anxious to defeat the pur-
poses and objects Of the business men
and capitalists of the city. They were
ready to subscribe 100000 OF individual
stock to the capital stock Of tho Wheeling
&Tuscarawas Valley R. R, Co., II the City
Council would have put that Company on
footing that would have given it any
prospect ofsuccess. But the parties who
are controlling this road refused to give
the people permission to vote subscrip.
ton to the capital stock Of that road. The
reasons for preferring that road werc so
palpable that intelligent business men
could not fail to see them. 1tapproached
the center Of the city by the ravine Of