The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1876-04-06
make q road to the North Carolina line.

out an important interest. Ihey nave
sent none but married men on their dele
cations to this point, although the young
people are as much interested as any in
railroad, for it is fine counting ma
chine, as it makes so much fuss that peo-
pie cannot hear what is being said by
those who are around. I was once on a
courting expedition on a train, and there
was bald-headed preacher who was be
hind me that looked like he had one of
the kind of wives that the gentleman
from Charleston says he has. Railroads
dive into all sorts of things. They cult
yate our social relations, and improve
our country. We used to carry our girls
on horseback behind us to church, &c.
Then came the stage, and carriages, and
buggies, and last the railroad. We do
not intend to make business enterprise
only of this. The two sections of our
country will not be fully united until our
boys come over to see your girls, and
vice versa. We have various lines of road
now in different stages of completion, to
connect Knoxville with the West, SO all
that is needed to finish our railroad sys-
tenn is the building of this road. have
to travelled over three hundred miles 10 get
here, when the distance is much less. If
this road were built, you could buy corn
for not more than sixty cents per bushel,
for it is selling at forty-two cents per
bushel in Tennessee, and the freight
would make it something less than sixty
cents here. If we lie idle about build
ing this road, our own interests will suf-
fer, and those of our children, also. We
have assurances that if this end of the
road can be built it will all be completed
soon.
Judge ]. P. Reed was next introduced
as a distinguished gentleman from
Charleston, S. c., and spoke as fol-
lows:
Mr.. PRESIDENT, LADIES AND GEN
TLEMEN: / am sure my name should not
have been on this list of speakers, for
this people have been accustomed to
hear me in years gone by nearly every
night upon the subject of railroads, and
since that time frequently upon other
subjects. I have been connected with
railroads for nearly forty years. In 1888,
I was present at the celebration of the
completion of the South Carolina Rail-
road from Charleston to Augusta. Itwas
built on stills, with thin, fat iron rails.
Its engines had little boilers about like
wash kettles, and the cars were some
thing like the ambulance wagons of this
day. This road was the second and long
est road in the world-a short expert
mental road having been constructed a
short time previous to this in England.
Soon after the completion of this road, a
grand through trunk was projected from
Charleston to Cincinnati long before the
Baltimore and Ohio, or any other road to
the West, was contemplated. A conven-
ton was held in Knoxville in 1886 in
the interest of this movement, and was
largely attended by such representative
men as Calhoun, Hayne, Preston and
others of National reputation. Mr.. CAL
houn procured the survey of the Rabun
Gap route, which is the same as present
Blue Ridge, and great efforts were made
to effect its completion. A company was
organized, and Governor Hayne was made
president. A short time afterwards, how
ever, he died, and for time nothing was
done. After three or four years this road
was extended from Branchville to Colum-
bia. Here it remained for some time.
The next thing was the origination in
1874 of the Greenville and Columbia
Railroad, at one terminus of which we
are tonight. 1t was chartered in 1845.
In 1876 efforts were made to raise fifty
thousand dollars, the amount of capital
stock required under the charter. Only
thirty five thousand dollars was raised.
Laurens County only gave five hundred
dollars. In the fall there was a meeting
at Greenville which decided to allow the
stock holders to locate their own road,
and under this arrangement in lS47, the
requisite stock was more than raised in
Anderson and Abbeville Counties. An
derson gave one hundred and fifty thou
sand and Abbeville two hundred and
fifty thousand dollars. I attended bar
becues from Columbia up to this point,
and made speeches in favor of this road
almost every day. From my experience
in building that road, l think I know
what is necessary to build this road. You
are pursuing the right course in discuss
ing this matter, and keeping its impor-
tance before the people by frequent meet
ings. All that you have to do to insure
ultimate success is to keep the ball in
motion. I think can safely say that it
will be proposed to hold q convention in
Charleston some time soon, then another
in the mountains in the summer, then at
Knoxville and Chitwood, and possibly at
Cincinnati. By thus stirring up the
spirit of the people in this enterprise,
there can be no sort of doubt that the
undertaking will be success. The en-.
thusiasm will run from the. seaboard
across the mountains to the lakes, and
the road will be built. Mr.. Calhoun was
right in selecting this route, for men have
not been captured from it by rival route
to the East. The love of the. men Of
South Carolina lis here, and if aroused
Charleston will do her whole duty. II
she were to give one-fourth of her whole
property to this road, she would be REIN
bursed in one year by the increase in her
population and business, to say nothing
of the increased value of her property.
The arguments of DR.. Love and Prof
Smith show the road will pay, and if il
is once completed to Knoxville, it is sure
to 90 on to Chicago. Cincinnati has al,
ready voted six million dollars to increas-
ing her Southern connection, and part
of this amount is to go to this line. Cap.
italists must see that it will pay. If COM
pleted, the Port Royal road will be built,
and thereby the road to Charleston will
be shortened some seventy or eighty
miles, and connection given to Port Roy
al, Savannah and Augusta. 1t will give
a competing line to this place, and the
return freights will give the West its trop-
ical fruits and supplies. 1t will be a
nearer, better and cheaper route to the
sea for the people of Tennessee and the
Northwest. Although our people are
poor, if this subject is properly presented
to them they can raise the money. Il
will never do to regard the word fail. Il
this meeting is in earnest it will succeed.
There was State aid given to the Green