Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1872-04-05
RAILROAD NEWS.
The Memphis and 1t. Louis Read.

Inc AGAApMAB Blu ME AfVUAM R0tAla
EDITORS AFPEAL-In the Avalanche of
this morning Zone OF whose editors. l be-
lieve, is q director of the so-called Kansas
City rsilro&dl, is an article against the
Memphis AMIDST, Louis railroad, the writer
Of which, like most wise men, asks ques-
tons, 1t IL hardly necessary TO notice
the a~rticle-not at all, so far as to persons
informed On the subject, because 30 utterly
ridiculous and contrary to the facts, of
which the writer is evidently ignorant
but which he could easily have known by
the slightest trouble, and saved himself
this vigorous etusion, that is hurtfuI only
to the Kansas City scheme.
The charter of the Memphis snd st.
Louis road continues b board Of COM
m~issioners in-of6ce for all the purposes Of
and as q board Of directors, and all vacan-
cies have been regularly filled, the board
at present being E. h. Porter, NJ. J..
Wicks, NJ. e. Cochran, A. Woodruff, a.
B, Edmondson, W. B. Waldrsn and VIII
liam Dickson, all true, sound, thoughtful
men, whose brains, most of them, have
laid the foundations ofthis city andits pros.
perity, managing well their own affairs and
not dishonest nor given to wild vulgarity.
So much for that question. And further,
the company have not sought individual
or county cash or bond subscriptions,
except In Crittenden, where they refused
to resort to the appliances necessary to
obtain success through the propertYless
colored voters, and where the subScrip-
ton, even so obtained, would perhaps not
build two miles of road. Tit whole vote
was q handful only, and, I m informed,
this road failed In it by q very few votes,
If at all, on q fair vote. Also the official
notice did not describe the road, and
friends of the road in that county did not
know 1t was being voted for. 1t is be-
lieved that three -fourths OF b inter-
ested and intelligent people of that county
are warmly for this rosd. The company
have not sought such subscriptions here
tOfore because it believed its lands would
be made available to build the o with
out such burdens, and they preferred first
to have the road under well assured con-
struetion. They have not taken "deeds"
to peoples lands because they preferred
to be honest enough to pay them first q
consideration in stock and bonds made of
value by such construction, but they
have title bonds answering all the
puTpOses) to perhaps over q mil
lion OF acres and nearly all good
solid men who own lands in ATksn-
sas, have them in this company, which
has protected them from taxation and
where they are satisfied to have them, q
very few only being disquieted by some
disturbers or other till properly posted.
The "implOrations'' of the Memphis and
Little Rock Railroad Company as to the
levee bonds, are news. Why did not
others take them as wellP The fact is,
the least said about the bonds, as q meas
ure, the better. It is understood they
were sold in Memphis at fifteen centsi
How obtained or obtsinable was also An
other question which such price may in
dictate. This company would not do an
immoral set for forty roadB or millions Of
boLds. Its funds will be valuable.
III - - A-EnN - "a
lands and the road will belong to the
stockholders and buildsra, and It Is not
unfortunate that the public, counties, or
corporations have no money or stock in IL
or business with 1t. If hut little work
has been done on IL, that is not the fault
of its good and earnest workers, but
owing to mistaken confidence in the sbil-
ity of parties to various building contracts
al approved, / believe, by every city pa
per In unstinted words. The company has
no contract with "Hsrtsborne, Kerosene
& Co." nor with any less reliable parties
who may be assuming to build ohter
roads, which will be built fifty years after
this, II ever, and by other agents. The
bonds of all the poor counties Of ArkRn-
sas could not build perhaps three miles,
respectively, in such counties. The Cairo
and Fulton road was chartered in 1858,
with g large land grant, and the Little
Rock DAD at the same time, with a like
grant. The onei is just finished, the other
Is not, mol any work done or 1t till last
year. This Is the experience of railroads,
especially among us of the South, as our
own editors ought to know. lei believed
from recent action taken that Kansas City
wants connection with Memphis no more
thar Memphis needs 1t with Kansas City.
We need to 60 into the rear of Kansas
City and get the trade that builds up
Kansas City and st. Louis. The Mem
phis and Northwestern road Is the road
In that direction, with strong influences
and friends, who are pushing 1t this way
and viii bring it here, and need this levee
road, rs every road in the "bottom" does,
for protection against overtiows for per-
haps twenty miles Of distance. The pres
ident's seventy-fvs thousand dollars
Items are also like the rest-s mere fancy
piece.
Finally, the levee road will reclaim
three million acres Of land that will pro.
duce three million bales Of cotton, all of
which Memphis viii get, being three
fourtbs of the present entire crop of the
United States. There Is no rosd of such
consequence to Memphis and Arkansas.