Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1874-12-16
nAooN AND CINcINNArInAILRoAp
Interview win Prof y. -. oimsrcd

to the construction OF direct railroad
south from this point, has been so un-
satisfactory "a information on which
TO base conclusions with reference TO
the consumma,un of the work, that,
learning that Prof, Olmsted aul Mr.
c. p. Cowles were va The city, we
sought an interview with tue former
gentleman, hoping to a-corioiu some
postirc Information t. ay b.rYr, cur
reader~,
We we're aware vt the long c1ptiu-
ued alpus Efforts that the Professor
has made ia behalf Of this enterprise,
and we supposed him to bo familiar
with lhrpllns of the lpssces OF tHe *.
& c. II. r.; but it appears, from the
interview, ~ given below, that he Is
90 earnest an advocate Of great
Hrough airline, TO be entrusted with
the secrets Of a company that have it
in their power to make the purchase
of the X. & G. road at 100000, and
that will doubtless cost only $4,000 at
the present price Of bonds, a nice spec
ulatiOn 10y gathering up a quarter Of Il
million fro II Knoxville, two hundred
thousand from the Tellicn Iron Com
pany, another quarter Of u million
from the Ducktowu Copper Mining
Company, &c, &c, and thus connect
ing with the Marietta aud Llliiny
road, and securing Ciccuitous line to-
wards Atlanta, at small outlay on
their part.
In other words, the apparent pro-
ject would seem To be. the making of
the X. and &. road Il link ia south
west road from this city, terminating
Al Marietta, only a few miles from Al
lanta
Thus do purposes change with the
lapse of time. Originally our great
hope was the construction of south
east road to communicate with the At
lantic sea-bnard. Afterwards we were
tlattered to expect the completion of a
direct north and south road, into
which cunverging lines would tend
from both the southeast and the south
west. But now IL seems that the east
and the south are ignored, and the
other horn of the dilemah is seized
upon. If this be the case, let uS call IL
by its true name-the Knoxville and
Atlanta railroad-so that the friends of
a direct north AID south line may
know what to expect and how TO work
In response To our inquiry, What
Is the latest news regarding the Macon
railroad the Professor replied " |
have no news concerning it, aud from
the various newspaper articles and no.
tees of Communications addressed TO
Mayor Staub from General Stuart and
numerous gentlemen South, | hoped
to gather some information in Knox
Vile"
" As you accompanied Gen. Stuart
on his recent trip South, will you give
the exact line on which he located the
road?r
"Gen. Stuart did no, decide on
any line. IL was not his pur,
pose to do 50, and had ii
been, his examination was too limited
to enable him to come to "A definite
conclusion. The people have an err
roneous idea concerning the object of
his trip, and | fear have aided in con-
firming this erroneous opinion. | re-
ceived letter from New York, re-
questing me to meet him here, on the
7th of November, and accompany him
through the mountains for the pUr-
pose of locating route over which u
survey should be made. This infor
nation | published in the Cherokee
Herald before starting and thus many
were led to think he would decide on
the location of the line.
would thank you now to state that
the General informed me that the ob
ject OF his trip was-lirst, to ascertain
whether the general topography of the
country would indicate the feasible
construction OF n road toward the
South-second, what amount of aid
might probably be secured at the ter
mini and along the line-third, what
probable amount of business would ac-
crue to the road, If built"
From your own letters and those
Of Mayor Staub, it would appear that
"A pretty close examination OF the
Ducktown route was made, and il Is
very generally believed that the line
will touch that point. Do you not
think so"'
" / can not possibly. General stu
art is too skillful an engineer, and too
sagaciOus an adviser to recommend a
line that would involve the difficult
ties that would have to be overcome in
that direction and that not he the
most direct line"
ITO what difficulties do you refer?n
"Frst, crossing the high dividing
ridges-eNteusions of the Chilhowee
range-between the Tennessee river
and the old Tellicp iron works. Sec
Ond, the rough spurs of the ynaka
mountains that lie along the north
bank of the Hiwassee river. Third,
bridging that river at the enormous
height of APO feet by a span of not less
than 700 feet. Fourth, reaching Duck
town by crossing the ridges that pro-
ject from the Stauberry and Frog
mountains, and finally, descending
from an elevation of / 200 feet, TO the
Ocoee river at an elevation OF some
/, 800 feet in to miles,
"WOuld not equal obstacles be met
with on any other route?n
by no means. On almost an air
line south from the Tennessee river,
the waters of Citico may be followed
to its source. Then would intervene a
short distance of rough work to the
base OF the Unaka mountains, when a
tunnel of less than $500 feet would
complete the Job to water courses that