Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1874-01-20
The Baltimore ara Ohio Railroad Com
pany at Harper's Ferry.

= communication to the Baltimore SIN. of
Tuesday. says:
We gather tic facts in regard % the mat
ter noticed in your Issue of yesterday to he
nearly as follows: When the road was about
to he constructed up the valley of the POI
tnra1c, crossing into Virginia at Har7cr's
Ferry, the importance of the road 10 the Gov
ernmcn' works nt that place was too apparent
not ~ make the Secretary Of War and other
officials a. willing as the company vas de-
s'rnuS to arthorize the construction in front
cf the arsenal and workshops in the bed Of
the river and ct thn upper end of the property
on its southern bank. About the cDmnanv's
rig!It to the easement thus oEtlined no one it
is supposed, ever entertained u doubt until
the abandonment Of the site for an arnOrv
threw the land into the market. when certain
parties. seeing possibly speculation. became
the bidders and purchasers, paving not one
cent nnsSihI7 again expecting 20 obtain fram
the Baltimore and Ohio corurarv's desire for
'pea"P money enough 70 meet their obligations
growing ont OF the purchase Then. for the
first time. it was pretended that the license to
the company to build the road was ravoca>
bic one, ard accordingly tie purchasers vvho
By that time had obtained a corporate cxiS-
tCnCP, gave notice Of revocation. and threat
encd if the Baltimore ard Ohio did not take
IN the tracks and stop the u<a of the road the
transit would be rendered impossible nv the
removal Of the bridge then in course Of con
structlon, or in some other way The railroad
company is is understood on this took addi-
tlonal precautions to guard the road hut
nothing more, when an ingeniously imagined
telegram from one Of the cOTporaturs of the
new company, then at the Ferry, asking that
arms DC sent to the purchasers. or something
to that effect, fell as it was no Doubt intended
it should do. into the railroad company's
hands. which. instead Of disrpgardipg i, as it
ought TO have done as an idle bravado. obtained
an injunction from the County Court of JEFF
forson county, Va. restraining the water
power company, their agents, &c.
Litigation thus commenced went on in the
usual course; great deal Of testimony was
taken, and the case came on for trial ar Mar.
'inshurg. General Banks and Nr. Andrew
Hunter representing the water power COM
pany
The result was tina. surveyors were ordered.
surveys agreed upon, aud ample maps re-
turned, showing that, with the cxcrrtion of
portion of the road al the west end of the
government property, the main part Of it-all
of it, indeed in front Of the workshops was
in the State Of Maryland, that is in the he'd
of the Potomac. aud not covered by grant to
General Washington, under which the United
states cid the pr0lrrtY, that being limited
to the STATE CT Virginia. TIE Proceedings
OF the surveyors having been duly returned,
the court. in due course, passed 4 fua! decree
making tie injunction perpetual and so far as
the water power company was concerned. set
Ting the question finally against that corpo-
ration. PGwerlcss to effect ANYTHING rs
against the railroad company. the aid of the
United States has been invoked. it now seems.
and the present LITIGATION NAV be looked upon
By the Cuchari'ahle as another attempt to oh
tain from the railroad company the amount
ct the purchase money due the United States
OF course this is 4 supposition. 1t appears,
strange. however, tina: at this late day the
United States should revoke. if it had the
Dower now to do so. the grant made near
forty years ago and equally strange that the
travel upon one Of the great highways of the
country Shonld be dependent upon the ca
price Of purchasers, the worst misfortune that
could happen to whom would he the rrStnra>
ton ct the pron"rtv to what il was before the
Baltimore and Ohio railroad was constructed.
or its great tributaries, the roads of the Val>
ley of Virginia.