The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1872-05-16
ARAILROADLETTER FROM MIR
WHARTON.
Early Wheeling Railroad Projects.
How the City was Defrauded BY
Council in the Matter Of the MARI
eta road Subscription.
MANSFIELD, O, May 10. 1872.

MANSFIELD, o., May 10, 1872.
TO the Editors Of the Intelligcncer.
Holding my reputation of some little
importance, as well as that Of him who
placed fish in the Potomac, wish the
privilege Of correcting an error made by
correspondent in your paper Of yester.
day in the following sentence:
almost twenty years ago the Marietta 4 Gin.
clnnAt and the Hempheld railroads were voted
large subscriptions by our people. These two
roads were contracted for In good faith, and the
editorial fraternity Of the city backed and en-.
dorsGd them In good faith"
The above is incorrect in these facts,
which can be proven by the files of the
Times, now in possession Of the city, and
however 1t may show my want OF intlu-
ence as the then editor of the paper, the
facts will sustain the correctness OF my
judgment. There was no vote taken by
the people upon the subscription to the
NJ. & G. road. did urge subscription
to the G. o. road of $250,O00 in Wheeling,
and spent money and time to secure that
Of Belmont and Guernsey counties. The
subscription was carried by q vote of $40
to IS, and some Of the votes against it
were polled, not from opposition to the
road, but from personal hatred to my
humble self. A "ring" negotiated for
property on Wheeling Creek, in Ohio, at
Bridgeport, Island, s., then influenced
the council to refuse the bonds unless the
directors would bind themselves to bring
the road down Wheeling Creek; whereas
by subscribing to the road they would
have had the power to bring 1t there and
thus save millions to Wheeling. Noah
Wilson for the N. & G. road pledged their
road TO Bridgeport and the Island, and
the Council, unauthorized, gave the bonds
to that road. My opinion was then, and Is
now, that the city ought to have repudi.
ated those bonds as fraudulently procured
and given without equivalent or au-
thOrity.
The Times never uttered word in ia.
Vor oCthe subscription to the HempGeld
road by the city, nor did its editor vote
for it, as he believed the road was only
designed by its engineer, EIet, and some
OF its managers as a fraud upon tue city.
The only way in which the city could
remedy the errors, was to have permitted
the B. & o. and CO. to build a bridge cross.
ing the upper end Of Bogg's Island, and
landing at the mouth oil Wheeling Greek,
which was proposed by the joint com.
panies on the 18th OF April, 1872, and re.
jected by Council.
As to the main matter Of your CORES.
pondent'S remarks, OF course at is not nv
funeral" and I have no remark to make.
The corporators OF tho Mansfield s.
Wheeling road are united in views, as
are the citizens Of our city and vicinity,
on this: We will have cheap coal as
early as possible in such abundance as to
supply the northwestern part ofthc State
from the nearest points. A road in the
direction Of Wheeling secures that. We
have the means at command and shall
use 1t. To us the opening of road to
Wheeling is o secondary matter, though
We know that our stock would be i'm.
proved by 1t, as well as the large stock
our corporators and other citizens hold in
the NJ. G. & L. N. road, now nearly com.
pleted. We therefore shall do our work
promptly as far as necessary, at least and
these facts thus far are worthy of consid.
Grafton in Wheeling. Your objective point
is, of course, Toledo and the North.
west, as YOU have a near route to Cleve.
land. Would 1t not be well, then, TO au.
thorize and instruct your council to sub.
scribe the 100000 10 such company as
shall first give unequival proof that they
have the means of furnishing you a new
ana direct route 10 Toledo and the North.
west, from some point within the corpo.
tA'e limits OF tho city; the said money to
W expended on the road from that point
SSS0,nsecn'ively in the direction proposed,
There will be but 10 miles 10 bniId We
know that !, i. with VIII your subscription and
mat OF 100000 by the county, VIC can
raise the means in sixty days, /, v" sss Hn.
to me that subscription to your hriJ"o o
should be made on similar terms: hn, y, T.
none OF my business. 40
Yours truly, J.E. WHARTON