The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-02-13

Company and the Baltimare Steam-Pa
Company, and upon terms exacted By him.
Does this proposition need argument /?
Can enlighten the Judgment OF this com
mittec upon a subject of this sort? Can 1
help you to understand so simple PROPOSE
ton as whether the public interest should
permit any man alive to own and control the
whole Of one line Of transportation between
Weldon aud Baltimore, while he holds as a
monopoly, and to the exclusion of every
body else, the only other line that can COM
pete with it, or that can compel it to charge
reasonable rates, perform quick and satiSfac-
tory duty, and to seek
TIE PUBLIC INTEREST AS WELL AS PRIVATE
GAIN.
don't know how our proposition can be
made any palmer The bill does not ask
that anything that is now Mr.. Robinson's
shll be taken away. 1t imposes no coercion
upon him; it suggests no restraint; it at
tempts no compulsion. 1t simply asks that
you give us the power to say to 1lr. Robin
son, VIII you agree to consolidate and put
our roads together2 Mr.. Robinson is free
to say No. We then ask permission to say
to bin, If you will not consolidate, will
you lease to US your road at seven or
any other per cent? He has leave to
say yes or no; and if be will not agree TO
consolidate or lease we want to say, "Then
will you not sell it to usy You offered it to
Tom Scott for $4,000,0O0, vauing the road
al SS,00O.000 and the exemption from taxa
ton at s1,000,00o. 1t is generally under
stood that the only question between you
and Tom Scott is the amount of money to
be paid for your road, and your stockholders
put their stock into ring, pool, with the
agreement that not one should sell without
the consent Of the others. But If you won't
sell, then, the General Assembly has given
US the right to build another road alongside
Of you, and we will do It."
1t passes understanding that any nieh
who hayp
FOR NEARLY FORTY YEARS ENJOYED A MONOPOLY
Of profitable business, or business that
was profitable until the superior interests Of
the Baltimore Steam-Packet Company and
Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad Company
destroyed its dividends. should complain
when citizens of the State ask only 10 be al
lowed to compete with them. Why should
men vino have enjoyed d monopoly Of an In
tllstry for near 7 forty years think it hard that
another man should establish on adjoining
land a similar business {? II have kept 4
blacksmith's shop forty years and enjoyed
monopoly of the business of shoeing horses,
should be outraged that another shop should
lie set upin the same village. and call upon the
town council with vehemence and energy not
to lett be done. Mr. Robinson and his father,
for nearly forty years, have had the exclusive
privilege of carrying passengers between
Richmond and Washington, under mo
nopoy franchise which, thank the Lord, ex-
,,ir in l:1t q fran t..l a.
enforced in tue ceults until that time. Can
you tell lie what great objection I, as Pc
terSburg lawyer, should have to another
lawyer commencing the practice there, be-
cause, forsooth, have practiced there fer
nearly twenty years. Would it not fill you
with amaZcniept: What more smazemcnt
there shouit, bc. then, that solitary Legislator
should hc found who would not say to Mr.
Robinson, Yes, sir. YOU have possessed this
monun0!t for forty years; but that Is no rea-
son Why / should not allow another man to
build another road ard compete with you.
Ifa license is granted hya court for tavern.
keeper to keep the oGlr tavern i'll town, and
it is discovered that his object was to keep
that tavcrn only to compel people to go to
another tavern owned by himself, and III al
other town five miles Of, and to divert trade
ana business from hat place and send it else
where, how would lie stand bctore the court
IL he asked that no other tavern be allowed
to interfere with him. Many man has
bought tavern and kept it locked up in or
der to keep 4 monopoly at another place.
That is the history Of this road and the Bay
Line; the fact has been developed that this
road has been locked up to divert trade
down yonder!
/ nave made these few general remarks,
disregarding frivolous matters and minor
causes Of complaint such as have been
brought out in the course of this inycStiga-
lion. | have not attempted to knock Il small
chip of Of anybody's head. But there arc
other poiots to which the attention Of the
General Assembly ought to be directed.
You have an opportunity which, venture
to say, you will not disregard. From Wei
don to Petersburg is SO or G4 miles, from
Petersburg to Richmond is 223 miles, from
Richmond 10 Qusntico is S73 miles. There
now abidcs upon Virginia soil this property,
worth SG,GOO,O3o,
NOT PAYING ONE CENT OF TAX.
In six months this, added to the taxable
wealth OF Virginia, would 20 fer towards
raying the interest or the coupons Of the
public debt. In passing this bill there is an
oprortunity to annex TO il, as your duty
must induce you to do, a condition that the
acceptance Of the amended charter shall be
deemed consent to subject the property
acquired by this road to taxation. OF course,
if a man buys property exempt from taXa-
tiou. he will clairl that exemptions; but Mr..
AIoncure Robinson is the only man who !Ets
CAPITALIZED THE STATES GENEROSITY,
and offered to sell it to, liked to have said,
Ioreirncrs-but I decline to use slapg ex-
pression--for gold and greenbacks; mean
to Tom Scott & Co.; and here allow me to
saw. Mr. Chairman, that this legislative slang
about "Virginians" and "foreigne!s" IL
becoming offensive to the public t;lsie. Here,
now, is an opportunity by passiug this bill
to add TO the assessors books SIX millions OF
taxable property, which, in the way of coun-
ty, city. aud S!a'e taxes, wi greatly relieve
the public burden. / have never seen any
reason ,ciu the property gf the rsch, 1chO
geaeraily o,c,. the railroads, should be er-
empt from taxation, tchile
TIE PROPERTY OF THE POOR is TAXED TO THE
LAST CENT.
This consideration I press upon you.
Iwould further suggest, and by instruc-
ton, that n passing this bill yon should pro-
vide that the States interest in the Rich
monl. Fredericksburg and Potomac railroad
shall be conserved. The details of such
an amendment your own minds will Of
course suggest. l expect that the committee
vii! in its wisdom also suggest snch reyula-
tions affecting local ;nc through freightS rs
will nrotect the communities alDnS the line
from any possible injurious discrimination.
By passiug this bill with such amendments,
YOU would open up a new highway of COM
mnrce heretofore blocked, and remove an
obstruction which has heretofore diverted
-...L a.. tra da ,rhich Shnnld have DlSScd