The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-02-20
THE PROGRAMME OF A GREAT
CELEBRATION.
COLONEL TAYLOR, OF NORFOLK, TO GIVE
THE SIGNAL FROM THE CAPITOL.
&c., &c., &C., &c.
Mr.. Chairman anl Gentlemen Of the Com

M. Chairman AMI Gentlemen of the Com
miHee:
When my honored friend Judge Ould.
last Saturday, from his place, as he called
it, at the other end of the table, threw this
big book documents, House of Delegates,
1850 OF me go suddenly, | was struck not
with the book, but with his indiscretion !;
and when asked him to tell the commit
tee on the spot who it was that owned the
Richmond, fredericksburg and Potomac
Railroad Company, and who owned the
Seaboard and Roanoke (then called the
Portsmouth and Roanoke Railroad Compa-
Ry), that the committee might know, con-
poraneously with his speech,
WHO WAS THE MURDERER AND WHO WAS THE
VICTIM,
he declined, and said he would leave it to
me to tell. l doubt very much whether
the Judge then knew. But we have on
these same pages recorded the history of
that
CALAMIToUs OCCURRENCE.
At that time, Cs46) and for many years
before, Mr.. Moncure Robinson, then, as now,
O resident of tho city of Philadelphia, with
the aid of friends, and pooled stock now pub-
licly confessed to be 30 pledged that no one
share can be sold without the consent OF
all the others, controlled the Richmond,
fredericksburg and Potomac railroad as
absolutely as his son does now. Being
called in the year lS46 to testify before 9
Joint committee of the General Assembly,
when the Portsmouth and Roanoke railroad
had been slaughtered three or four years
before, was obliged to tell what he knew
about that murder. At the time of Mr.
Moncure Robinson's examination the Ports
mouth and Roanoke railroad, or ut least
that part Of 1t which lay in North Carolina
between Margaretsville and Weldon, about
seventeen miles, had been lying out there
in the sunshine and rain, O row OF rotten
stills without rail upon them, grlnning
ghastly like lipless skeleton, and Mr.
Robinson was asked, "Who did 1t !" MT.
Robinson says, on page SO OF Pub. DOC. NO.
A, as follows suI
~ was called on early in October, l843,
bv Mr.. F. E. Rives, with letter from Mr.
Bird, the president of the Petersburg COM
pany, urging strongly the companies north
Of the Petersburg uniting with the Peters
burg company in an arrangement for OBJ
taininr possession of the Portsmouth rail.
road in North Carolina, which MIR. bird
stated had been advertised for sale 10 satls-
fy certain judgments. = sug-
eested, with view of securing perma-
nent through ticket exclusively Dy tne
great mail line, to agree in advance when
ever the whole through travel from tne
Wilmington and Weldon railroad should
pass over the railroads north OF Petersburg,
that the Petersburg Railroad company
might make charge Of twenty-five cents
in sddition TO it's pro rata fare On eaen
through ticket, TO be disposed OF as tnss
company might deem fit"
Following this testimony Of Ar. Robinson
there is printed in this record, the oticial II :
solution of tho President and Directors OF
the Richmond, Fredericksburg and foto-
mac Railroad--l will not read the whole
of it-agreeing the Petersburg Railroad
Company shall make charge OF twenty
FIVE cents at Weldon or some point south
of it, and at Baltimore, on the ticket o1
each frst-class passenger, and propof-
tiona.e charge on the ticket Of each
second-class or other passenger, servant
and child, going to or coming from the
Wilmington and Weldon Railroad, and
passing the whole distance between Vel.
dom and Baltimore, to be apportioned be-
tween the companies between Petersburg
and Baltimore four several companies
guaranteeing that the Baltimore and
Washington branch would bear its pro.
portion of the chargel, in the ratio in which
the fare on through tickets may be at the
time divided between them, the SAID
charge of twenty-five cents TO be paid 70
the Petersburg Railroad Company or their
assigns, and to commence 50 soon and
continue so long as the whole trase! be-
tween the Wilmington and Weldon Ball
road and Baltimore shall pass on the lae
of railroad and steamboat communication
between Petersburg and Washington by
the whole traFsl aforesaid We mean me
great body Of the traysi, not less than
nnine-tenahs q Of the same /,
On the next page of this record ! ane!
the letter sefsssad 10 By Af. Rshiasons sHa