Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1873-02-26

what? They come here and ask the Bay 3
River road to 60 up on level with the road
at Belfast on the same grade, and what II the
result! And of course you must connect with
the other road, if you went up at al. The
result Is, you get to the depot grounds and
you can get no further. challenge any gen.
tleman in the city of Belfast to say II yeu
can get an inch further unless we 20 upon q
grade OF 20 feet higher, and the road through
the heait OF the city of Belfast, where they
know they cannot go, only at land damage Of
amillion of dollars. Il this block, or IL It not?
if it is such, if such thing were possible, to get
by that road, (and deny that it is possible,)
then whatT You get to a point where your
engineer tells You curve cannot be made;
although it was stated before the Railroad
Committee that he stated that curve could
be made. l deny that he ever said 80; for
he said to the contrary. Then if you could
make curve, what then? Where are you
going to get across? Any man that has ever
that on the Eastern side there il . high hill,
or elevation of land that is one hundred feet,
perhaps, above the level Of the water; 90
they would arrange it so that it would be ut
teriy impossible, in any view of the case you
may take, for this road to get through the
city OF Belfast by that other route. And the
reason they came here and protested against
gong across below the lower bridge is that
the Maine Central is interested, and deter.
mined that they will have the business Of that
little locality, and we shall have none Of it,
and drives us back of the city. That is the
sum and substance of the whole matter. and
II driven back of the cty-what? Then the
gentlemen who are interested in the Georges
Valley railroad and its extension, will come
IN. Then the parties who offer to build this
Bay and River road will say-what? They
| a,,JI
your road; we would have assisted you in
building the Bay and River road, but unless
we can have the business Of the Belfast which
has been taken from us, and which has been
robbed from you by this other road, we can.
not build the road" Then, if we are driven
back Of the city on high grade of land, we
can never get down to the water to make
bridge. and what is the result? We are
forced away up to the head of the tide, four
miles above Belfast, before we could 60 east.
ward at all; that is the truth, and challenge
| the gentleman from Belfast to contradict one
word say here in relation to the matter.
1 do not wish to weary you with longer
speech in relation to this matter. have
talked earnestly, because | have felt in
earnest. feel deep interest in this road.
The city of Rockland has deep interest in
H. Every man along those shore towns
has a deep interest in it, and they do
feel that this attempt, after they have
failed to block US in every other way-after
we have s;riven, and begin to see our vay
out, and they have persisted in fighting US all
the way through-the friends of the road feel
that this last di;ch-the ditch of Belfast,
should not be thrown in our face to defeat
our road.
Now, why say go above that bridge? Why
say that the harbor of Belfast will be destroy
ed! Why force us away up above the fats,
and above the point where the citizens Of
Belfast few years ago contemplated build
ing highway bridge across, at point where
we propose to go with this road2 Belfast
papers advocated building a road across at
that time. Why force US up to a high
er point, if they do not wish to kill our road.
IT that road would have destroyed the harbor
why did not they think of it? Why our rail-
road bridge destroy the harbor any more thsn
the highway bridge?
But we are willing to be fair with them. |
pledge my word for the directors and stock
holders OF that road, that they will build that
road and bridge where it will least dscom.
mode the citizens of Belfast-where any COM
petent engineer will say that we can cross,
whether 1t be below or above the present
bridge. But l say that they know that we
cannot cross above the bridge-that we must
OF necessity cross below, and this coming
here with weak case and false plan, and at
tempting to prejudice the minds of the gen.
tlemen OF this House against this enterprise
is unfair.
have endeavored, in my weak manner, To
explain how this matter stands. am ac-
quainted with that barbor, and of the FEAST
biity of getting in and out. l wish every
member knew it as well as do, for know
then that the vote would be unanimous to let
that road go across there, whether it be
little injury TO the Maine Central, or the own
ers Of certain wharves. The question il
simply this: Shall few individuals be in
jured perhaps few dollars, although the road
will have to pay for all the damage done to
them, or shall the prosperity Of the State be
injured, for if they effect their object in COM
peiing us to go above this bridge, you might
as we'll take away our charter, for we cannot
run our road?