The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-04-19
Gauge Questions.

When the late FRANCIS B. DEANE, Jr.' ra'Se''
;,c question OF gauge, and he ana co'''''
yo<TArxE fought over it in tue Les'.'"'"
,3crc was little thought OF Tue s',s zoe"
,,.,,ncr in which this question "o"'u p'.
can, ;,,o,f IN after times. If Mr. DhASh
,7:3 no, live 70 see the troubles that "c'e ~
.rrny ont Of difference of gauge, MS io"o"''s
certainly begin 10 sec them.
Daring the war over the SUBJECT OF Tue
,.,;, ofthe Richmond and Petersburg !a'lroao
.. r1rrgs. NEWCOMER, and Others, General
,f,uaSc made the alleged probable change OF
,,.,. c,urc Of the Danyllle railroad strong
Min, against the sale 1t was commended
init il the Danvile railroad changed its gauge
from five feet to four feet eight and a halt
inches that road could not interchange
cars with the A, NJ. & 0. ROAD al
r1rknyille, and Richmond woaid be
C,:..i 10 submit 10 cAlrSe' ana decays
o..,.ionsl by a break Of bulk III frcl@htS n
E,rscyilc, or would he compelled TO scnd
,i,yse trci-hts ria Petersburg. That event.
j, yr.s c,n:en. led. should be provided Tor;
.n,j N order 10 do so General MALONE, n
representative OF the Atlantic, Mississippi:
an! Ohio Company, should have control OF
the line between Petersburg and Richmond.
rac Legislature wisely paid no respect TO
,'yn tar-fctchcd reasoning. and we of Rich
m,nd considered it merely ridiculous.
What do we see now: Why, instead Of
tie nanville railroad changing its gauge, the
president Of that company is enjoincd against
rnau:.;ns the gauge of the North Carolina
railroad between Greensboro and Charlotte,
\. G., TO make it correspond with the gauge
Of the Danvilic railroad!
What. then, comes of General MAuoNE's
argument: Nothing. Il was worth no
1,;;nr when made, aud it could mol Dc worth
less now.
Again, in illustrating the confusion Of
these gauge questions General MAHoSE-
rather strapped just now-wants 10 help
lIr. HUNTINGTON to build the road from Cliff
ton Forge to Lynchburg; and what is the
condition of the mutual relations Of tie two
Io.;lI>-thc Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio
aul the Chesapeake and Ohio railroads.
when they meet at Lynchburg? Why, the
Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio is five feet
.saE-c and the Chesapeake and Ohio is four
fee. eight and Il half inches. How are they
II Interchange freights and cars and avoid a
break OF bulk:
We note these facts rs involving very
Great foliy-a folly representing the visionary
m'ad> OF the men by whom il was inaugu-
rated. All, and not only this, but that idea
with lis vicious tendencies -which assumed
,..af by increasing the difficulties of trans
porlat;on by compelling break Of bulk in
Virginia we should increase our own pros
paiity and wealth. We tlud it difficult to
:,,.;ilc tie question where Is the gauge to
cnan-c and where the break OF bulk shall be
forced: The instructions Of narrow minds
come TO plague the Inventors. d.
\ wise aud liberal public Judgment should
sweep these cohwebs into the maelstrom Of
lo>; ;hings. Why ob5truct commerce: Do
l..a Instructors gain by it: No; they only
s,>rccd in intiicing injury upon themselves.
The cHtcrpri>ng and liberal world will pass
iI!t.!, rs they would the plague, aud leave
,,r. t. grope in their own darkness.
There should he no break of gauge in this
N.ioic Union, and every package sent by
;.Ny citizen to any part of it should be con.
,.vrd speedily and surely to its destination.
We lave not doubt that this will be the
rilc and the law OF this country, if it holds
together ten years, and we hope it may.
This gauge conccit-thiS idea that break
al -ati-c is beneficial 10 local iutcrcSts-is
"; Virginia is TO foster only eastern and
western lines. The idea is ABSURD enough :;
i.,.; 10 say that WASHINGTON was the founder
.. hat policy is the supremacy OF presump-
lion upon popular ignorance and prejudice.
NA~HiHGTUS did not dream of railroads. He
knew ,eutor communication as the only one
st.;"l for heavy 1reightS, and seeing that the
rivers We're favorable to latitudinouS line in
VIRGINIA, he favored it. Had he lived on the
Mississippi, he would have advocated
northern and southern liIe. That IS all that
lnaY nc said Of WAsHMGroS's policy ard i:
i quite IN offence to the public good sense
- cncavor to make more Of it.
But railroads have been fortunately in
vented and brought to stare of the
L!-Ac>t success. They liberlte man from the
duuntDion of til. waler-coulscS, and enable
EI:il 10 traverse the rivers and transport his
p"oiaci, and his goods in any direction he
may uc':rc to go. so we may 80 east, west,
n"i'r. o: south, as p.cases us. We are con-
Macd 10 40 one course. 1t is Il great blessing
10 society; and The man who Uses at this
day, and upon anybody's authority pro-
nounccS that great community must be
bound to one line of travel aud trade, Is
lnboiing under mental hallucination or
something worse.
These are matters for US to think over.