The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1876-03-23
GheQ1telIiqstreer
MARROW GAUGE RAILROADS.

NAISIGON NhNNH As'A
We publish below copiOus extract
from an address lately submitted to the
Chicago Board OF Trade by the Nict
President Of the Chicago, Millington q
Western Railways narrow gauge roaC
designed to run from Chicago to the Miss
i..ippi river. After giving briefly thu
history and progress OF the enterprise
and directing attention to the growing
favor with which narrow gauge roads ar
coming to be, regarded, the address pro
cceds 10 discuss their advantages as fol
lows;
TO secure and maintain cheap sys
TEN Of transportation two elements are
necessary:
/. The ability to carry cheap, and at
the same time afford Il reasonable return
10 capital honestly invested, for without
reasonable compensation no system can
permanently endure, and, -.
A law compelling low rates. lOr
whatever the ability to do business cheap:
iy mans cupidity is no safeguard
nn,inst thc temptation to obtain the
"soa,cst ro4sibIc compensation for the
nas, nosstbIc service. This law may not
bc EXPRESSED in statute. but more
forcibIy in general laws OF commerce,
arisinG from II sound and healthy com.
You are to enquire then:
/ Can the Chicago, Millington and
Western, when built, afford cheap trans.
portatiOn?
=. Will it be compelled by law to do
50?
These questions eau both be answered.
in the affirmative, MS | shall proceed 10
show. As the word cheap is compare
tive term il can only be answered com.
parativcly.
The ordinary three feet gauge road can
he built for two.thirds Of what the stand.
ard gauge road can be built. The stand.
ard gauge roads can be built for half Of
what they have been built, Therefore
the cost OF n narrow gauge road, built at
the present time, is two-thirds OF one.
half, or onc.third OF the cost Of the pres.
cnt broad gauge roads.
The excessive cost Of the broad gauge
roads being due in part to high prices Of
labor and materials at the time OF their
construction, but much more largely to
the vicious system OF watering stocks in
the case OF old roads, and the credit
mobilier system Of construction in those
more recently built.
will lay down two other PROPOSE.
lions bearing upon this subject, and
equally susceptible Of proof to the fore
going:
/. The narrow.gaugc road is capable Of
doing as much business as the broad.gauge
road.
.. The narrow.gauge road can do the
work for three-iourths Of what broad.
gauge can do it.
Ii may be well to state that the twenty
five per cent saved in expense Of trans
portation, as have claimed, is not en-
tirely due to the narrowing Of the gauge,
but quite largely TO the tightening OF the
rolling stock and other reforms incident
to the system, and admitted 10 he such
by the advocates aud managers Of the
broad.gaugc roads, but which they car
not adopt without rcvolutionizing the
whole system and cntailing an expense
30 enormous ms to preclude its serious
consideration.
will make u few figures which ex.
perience has verified, and will prove the
position have taken.
Average length of broad.gnuge car
twenty.cight feet; weight, ten tons.
Average length OF narrOw-gauge car,
twenty-five feet; weight, four tons.
These figures are little above the nc
tnal weight, but comparatively correct
and stated in round numbers for the sake
Of cIcarness and brcvity.
The broad-gauge car will carry in
freight ten tons.
The narrow.gaugc car will carry in
freight eight tons.
A train Of twenty broad.gauge cars
carrying ten tons each gives live freight
two hundred tons. A train OF twenty
five narrow.gauge cars carrying eight
tons each gives live freight two hundred
tons.
Weight Of broad.gaugc cars two hun
dred tons.
Weight OF narrow.gpuge cars, 100 tons
Gross weight OF broad'gange trains 4Ot
tons.
Gross weight OF narrow-gaugc trains,
300 tons.
The same amount Of live or paying
freight being carried in each train, whit
narrow.gaugc has only threc-quarters The
actual labor to perform, or clear saving
of % per cent in a loaded train, rs in cast
of coal.carrying and many other branchc!
Of railway service. II the trains return
empty, the narrow-gauge,would have q still
greater advantage, its train weighing bu
half rs much as the other, or saving o
so per cent on the return trip.
This would seem to prove the ability
Of the narrow-gauge, with its improved
rolling stock, to do business at rate n
least 20 per cent below what the sam,
business can be done on the broad.gauge
and as We have less than onc-third OF TN
bond or stock Indebtedness upon which 4
pay interest or dividends, these conclu
sions are forced to point beyond con
tTOversy.
will now proceed to show that III
narrow-gaugc road can do as much bus
mess MS the broad.gauge road. Let u
take the same train to illustrate--2
broad.gaugc cars, 2S feet each, $50 fee
length OF tram; % Harrow.gauge cars
% feet each, $50 feet length OF train
each train carrying tho same number o
tons, and the latter ten feet shorter.
With this statement will leave you L
draw your own conclusions.
The following tables, showing the lead
ing items transported to and from Chica
go, by five roads, whose trains have beef
accessible, will give some idea OF til
benefits to result from n 20 per cent re
duction OF rates. For the year 1874 I'll
Chicago and Northwestern and lllinoi
Central, the Chicago, Burlington an
Quincy, the Chicago, Rock Island an
Pacific, and the Chicago, Milwaukee an
st. Paul Roads moved
Flour, SIolb,$
Wheat, %IfuI, e
Corn and other grain, bu..... ,.''.."'." 49, ~
Merchandise, live stock, etc, lbs.,""Gai $50, q
Equal to 5,2Sl ,26O tons. Which amour
on an average haul Of 100 miles at thrc
cents per ton per mile (thc average rate {
special car loads, gives $2S, 1851
Twenty per cent less rates would give