The People's vindicator. [volume] (Natchitoches, La.) 1874-1883, 1874-07-25
g. Communicated.
The Railroad Question.

Mr.. Editor Your railroad figures
Of last week are, Of course, correct as
an arithmctica| calculation. But as Mr..
Cndgrind failed to develop the bet
ter qualities Of human nature bu re-
duclng human action to strict arith-
lnetical standard, so, it seems to me,
you have narrowed down your CAL
culatipn to q limit which does not dO
full justice to the airoad question.
If it 5cannot BE- demonstrated that
there els likely to be some reciprocal
benefit to be received by the people
for the proposed donation, then we
had better reject it at once, whether
it is $500, 900 or $SOO,OO0.
Let us admit that yonr figures are
correct, and that the town and parish
must eventually pay SS2S, 900 in bonds
and interest. OF this sum the town
must pay $27G,OO0, and the parish
$685., WO-within twenty years.
No man can doubt that tho town
will be compensated for it's donation
long before the expiration Of the term,
by
LIST, The special and temporary in
crease of business in every depart
ment, from the building of the road
through the parish, from money spent
here by the employees of the road, de-
rived from grading, cross-ties, trestle-
work, oculvcrts. the construction of
depots and other works, &c.
I'd, The permanent increase of bus
mess, attracted from new sources by
the facilities offered for trade and
travel by our (atpresent) inland town.
|! 81, The rise OF value in town pro-
pcrty, especially in rents.
4th, The influx of new people and
new wealth, to help us bear our pre-
sent local burdens, as we'll us to share
with us the payment of the proposed
donation.
5tll, 1t is matter Of life or death
to the town. If the road should miss
it even by half a dozen miles, its fate
would be forever sealed. ~
The donation by the parish stands
upon a different ground but by as
suming a very reasonable basis of
probable development, it can be
shown that the $751;, 600 will not be a
very grievous burden to the present
population-if, indeed, it cannot be
demonstrated, that, apart from the
general benefits to be derived from
the road, it will be no burden at all.
In support Of the argument, it is
necessary to view the question from
O single standpoint only-that is,
the accession of new wealth by new
owners, within the average of twenty
years. First, then, Sec. ID Of the
Act Incorporating the La. Central
Railway, provides for the taxation Of
the road according to total value of
stock compared with it's 'lineal
length" through any parish. The cost
of construction within this parish will
be very nearly u million of dollars,
and it is fair to assume that the assess
ment will be for half that amount.
Thus, the road itself will bear one
third of our local taxes from the very
beginning. Next, tits certainly rea-
sonable to presume that other new
wealth will amount to half a million
more-if not, We should reject the
donation without hesitation, and go
on in our old slip-shod way, century
behind the civilization of the world,
buried in our little Acadia of rural
felicity, ''the world forgetting, by the
world forgot" If this second as.
sumption he admitted, then We should
have a new accession of wealth of
81, 600, O00-equal to the present va
luation Of property within the parish.
This new wealth would relieve the
parish Of the half the tax iii behalf of
the donation, or $276, 00O-leaving
the same amount to be paid by the
present population Of the parish. This
new accession Of wealth would, 1,er
contra, pay one half the parish taxes,
or S3OO,UW, within the same time,
without materially augmenting tho
parish expenses-leaving a small bal
ance III favor Of the people, to be ad.
ded to the general benefit t. he de-
rived from the road. And, "a Mr..
Gradgrlnd's figures could not encom-
pass the whole scope Of human action,
aud control tho emotions and passions
Of the human heart, *, our states can
mot compute all the advantages which