Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1873-06-12
From the Hickory IN. C.) Press.

1he damage TO the building ana furniture
will probably reach FIVE hundred dollars.
From the Hickory IN. c) Press.
RAILROAD MEETING AT LENOIR.
A large number of the citizens of Caldwell
county assembled in the Court House at Le-
noir on Tuesday the 9th of May, 1873. On
motion of H. G. Hamilton, McCaleb Cofey
was called to the chair and E. W. Faucette
and W. F. Avery requested to act as secre-
taries.
At the request of the Chairman, Ed. Jones,
Jr., stated that the object of the meeting was
the furtherance of the scheme to build mar
row gauge railroad from Chester, s. c., to
Lenoir, N. c.
Maj. G.. W. F. Harper then made some
statements in regard to the organization of
the Company, the amount of fstock subscribed,
the proceedings of the late meeting at Hicko-
ry, the proposed survey, &c.
Rev. w. M. Robey, President of Davenport
Female College, was called for, and respon.
ded in an able, amusing and instructive speech.
Mr.. Robey after stating that he was accustom.
ed to appear before the public but not in the
capacity of a secular speaker, convinced the
audience that he was quite at home in his new
field. He said if there was not some change
in the railway system of this State, that North
Carolina would soon be seven hundred miles
long and three-fourths of mile wide; that
all the wealth was concentrating along the
line Of the railroads, and town twenty miles
from railroad was in the backwoods. No
road running east can be of any benefit to
our section. What was wanted was a cross
railroad that South Carolina was the natur-
al market for all we had to sell. Hyde coun-
ty in this State made corn enough to supply
all Eastern North Carolina, while South Car
olina wanted our corn, as they turned their
attention almost exclusively to the culture of
cotton.
The w. N. G. R. r. had been an eating
cancer to our tax-payers-giving nothing in
return. Beef sells in Chester from 10 to IL
cents, while in Lenoir it is worth only and
8 cents. Corn in Chester $1.10, in Lenoir
40 and so cents, and no market for it at that
price.
Watauga and Caldwell had built up Hick-
ory Tavern-made her what she is. She had
no selfsustaining trade without them. The
people of that town have had chill ever
since the subject of our narrow gauge railroad
has been talked of. They are shaking because
we wish to have little of the money ourselves
that is going; they wanted it all and are un-
willing to divide. Quoted from Judge Mack
ey that "the world was made up of two classes,
the skinners and the skinned" He thought
the people of Caldwell should have little
skin and it made no difference whose skin it
was.
Col. Armfeld, of Statesville, was called out
and said it had never come within the scope
of his duty to investigate railroad matters.
Alluded to the geographical fact that if North
Carolina, with Roanoke Island as pivot,
wereswitched round, Cherokee county would
knock Boston into the ocean.
He had no sympathy with that spirit which
would have every railroad stop at ones
own town. They want you to plod their
muddy roads through sleet and snow and sell
your produce at low prices so they can make
big profit off it. Towns away from the line
of railroad are so lifeless that tin box has to
be tied to strange dogs tail to get up an ex-
citement. If Hickory Tavern or any other
town opposes your road because it does not
stop at the right place, get an OK team and
move it to the stopping place. 1t was impos-
sible to drive trade from its natural channel,
either by legislation or otherwise. South Car.
olina was our natural market. Wagons from
our mountains paid no attention to railroad
running east, they would drive over twenty of
such to get to South Carolina.
South Carolina wants all you have to eat,
and more too; they propose to clothe the
| ~ ohoI1y tN TooA
They get nothing to eat, as it is, but what
Charlotte refuses. The beef that Charlotte
can't "cha.O" is sent to Chester and Yorkville.
and ,uhat Charlotte ,oont eat IS nonstrous bad.
Ed. Jones, Jr., in response to calls, made
some interesting statements in regard to the
practical working of the narrow gauge rail
roads in Wales, and their advantages over
the broad gauge roads. Alluded to the
vast expenditures of this State to build rail
roads all to no purpose. Spoke of the in.
creased prices that would result from the
building of this road-that Chester prices
would be brought to Lenoir.
The difference in the prices of vegetables,
lumber, &c. Potatoes selling in Chester for
$3.50 per bushel, and common pine lumber
at $2500 per thousand feet. Said South
Carolinian told him he paid 163 cts for beef
once and had to send it to the lanyard as it
had never been skinned. Corn is worth thir-
ty-six cents more in Chester than here. With
this road the freight would be six cents and
we would put the other thirty in our pockets
DR.. Beall made an impressive effort in ia
vor of this movement. Gust here the Secre-
taries were interrupted and cannot give his
speech as full as they would like.) DR.. B.
showed the great advantage railroad would
be to our agricultural interests.
Fl. G. Hamilton, Major G. W. F. Harper
and Ed. Jones, Jr, made several statements
of facts, the latter giving notice that there
would be a railroad meeting at this place on
the oath of June, at which place and time
many friends of the enterprise from Chester,
Yorkville and elsewhere would be present.
M'CALEB COFFEY, Chairman.
E; E; ". Y FAuoErrE, }secretaries. ."