Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1875-05-13
RaiIroad Raliroad

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,it7-a-s. Railroad! Railroad! ~
II Our people are beginning to talk
railroad in earnest. = An opportunity IS
offered now to st. ClairsviIle aud vi
! .cinity, which if allowed to pass unim-
proved, will be an IA abandonment OF all
hope I'd secure railroad facilities to
com inunity which has the material
within itself to make an enterprise like
ssthisa success. 1t is useless-fo us to at
tempt to portray the advantages to be
gained by every class Of irdividuals by
] the construction of a thoroughfare that
8 will place,us into closer proximity with
the best markets and manufacturing
centres of the country. The thought
! ful man, will discern at a glance, that
upon the construction of the proposed
road, his farm property will be greatly
increased in value; his stock will be
closer to the market; that which he has
for sale will bring better prices, and
that which comes FROM abroad, and
which he Is obliged to buy, will reach
his door cheaper Certainly. no sensi-
5 BILE man will controsert the immense
benefits to be gained. -J =
Again, it is useless for our citizens to
indulge in the hope that a standard
gauge will be butt to any point near
enough to St. Clairsville to be ofsny
practical benefit to it. Our grades are
too heavy to be overcome by any ordi-
nary expenditures. and the money ne
cessary to he raised for such a project,
would be found wanting. With these
patent facts before Us, common sense
dictates that We apply our energies to
the building Ct the ndrro,o gauge road
which is now within our grasp. ~ .
( If tits asked whether such scheme
be feasible, we reply, that the Engi-
neers who have already run,the most
difficult part of the line to this. place,
say that it. is entirely. so, with co;npa-
ratively low grades for a narrow gauge.
Within the limits of this article we
viii not attempt 10. show that this
gauge of road will be amply sufficient
for all of our carrying trade, but We as
sure our readers that the official statis-
tics Of the operation of the narrow
gauge roads, over two thousand miles
of which are now in successful opera
ton in the United States, show beyond
doubt that their capacity tor carrying
is greater than that Of standard gauges,
In proportiOn 10 capital invested, and
fully equal to any demands. Regard
ing their speed we can. do no better
than copy an extract from the Rocky
Jfoui1tdia Nelcs of the 5th inst, which
givesa account OF. tire running of a pas
senger train over the heavy grades of
the Denver 4 Rio Grsnde Marrow
Gauge: .l. 5- -.a
The special train which, by the cour-
tesy of the Denver and Rio Grande
Railway company, had. been placed al
the disposal oi the attendants upon the
Republican convention, made the run
from Colorado Springs to Denver last
evening, distance of seventy-siX
miles, i'm three hours and i've minutes.
Twenty-four m lies were made the first
hour, all up grade, thirty-two the, Sec
ond, and twenty the third and last
hour. Fifteen minutes were lost in
waiting for freight trains. The cars
were all Well-RHei. s.
President Waddell, with an air of
sincerity and business, promises TO
have cars running 10 st. CIairsviIle by
the 1st of October, if the people will
awaken enough to their, own interests
TO subscribe siEty thousand dollars of
stock. -
This is-certainly the golden opportu-
nifty for our people. Will they avail
themselves, of ,it?, Our railroad COM
srittee have carefully considered the
matter, and think that the demand is
light one, compared to the advanta-
ges such an enterprise would bring.
Within ten days the matter must be
settled. The wealthy farmers and bu-
siness men of this vicinity can now
speak to the committee, who have SUBJ
scription books opened, land say wheth-
er they will open their doors for in
creased wealth, or whether they will
stunt the material growth aDd adj
yancement of this section, by allowing
this call to go unheeded. I'VE hope by
their liberal subscriptions to the stock
+. hooks they will show themselves to be
men of progress.