The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1877-02-08
THE TRADE OF BURNET AND
THE AUSTIN AND Ed PAsO
ROAD.

The people OF Burnet county confess
lively interest in the proposed action
OF merchants and property owners o.
Austin in reference to the improve
racnt Of roads leading to this city. 4
coAmittee should ascertain on what
terms the Smith charter of the road
! i:om Austin to the northwest can be
secured The grant expires, unless the
road be begun, In March, and it is too
valuable charter to be needlessly
lost. Very little action under it per-
fects the land grant and secures
privileges that cannot be exercised un-
der Rutabaga constitutional law. A
road can be built under this charter
which will cos:, all told, not more
;han $500 per mile, aud it will sub
serve every purpose Austin and the
country about the city that could be
attained by the costliest broad gauge
railway. Such road, costing little
more than perfect turnpike, will con-
stantly augment its own length and
rapidly quadruple the number of farms
and homes along its route. The wag-
oning business will be anniEilated, TO
the great profit of the farmer, whose
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT rapidly enriches the
merchants OF the city. Little towns
aud villages will spring into existence,
all trading with aud retailing for the
city from which these will draw daily
and weekly supplies. In 1852
Memphis had G000 inhabitants.
When the war began the popula-
tion was 50, 900, and now, despite
most Infamous systems of misIule and
five aud even six per cent. taxation,
and despite rcmorseless robberies prac-
ticcd by rabble government, the place
has boosted Of fifty and sixty thousand
inhabitants. When the wagons and
plank roads and turnpikes disappeared
in the presence of locomotives, the city
grew great By the magical forces of
railway commercial power, ard it was
the vices begotten OF war and thieves
in office that have staggered the me-
tropollS Of Tennessee. All possible
evils that man and Providence can in
tict have failed to destroy the COM
mercial power of the place. In the
presence of one competing railway
turnpikes and plank roads disappear
and are forgotten, and people should
accept lessons lnculcated by the eX
pcrience of Northern and Southern
towns and cities, not one of which
paves or planks highway. Even the
streets of cities arc being given
over to iron and ste am. If
money be scarce and times hard, we
should remember that iron and labor
and cross-ties and locomotives are rela-
lively cheap. Iron has fallen more
than half in value, and labor abounds,
and railway built and owned at
hpLHC, uhu SOSIlhSSlCSS Iuah YAO,O
per mile, will pay enormously, es-
pecially if the company secure lands
mt present prices along its route. II
Paul Bremond aud Cone and House
and Douglass can build cheap rail
ways from Houston and Tyler, in
tinitelY easier the task that Zimpel-
man or Brueggerhoff or Castleman or
Hirshield would assume if either
could be induced to take the lead in
constructing such a road as the Burnet
Bilietm would have. But If we cannot
have the modern narrow gauge, such
as Houston and Galveston aud Denver
and Tyler and intelligent, progressive
communities construct, let US have the
turnpike. The accessibility of Austin
must be perfected or the capital go to
lnnou