The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1877-11-01
From the St. Louis Daily Republican, of Oct Is ~
a Practical Railroad Mans
IDEAS on RailrOadS.


Ideas on Railroads.
Col. W. R. Arthur, general mana
| ger of the st. Louis, Iron Mountain
land Southern railway, and formerly
! general manager Of the Kansas City
and Northern and other roads in
this vicinity, is one Of the best known
railroad men in the West. He is
not only an eminently practical nan
in railroad workings, but he is q man
Of deep thought and most eOmpre-
hensive views in all things, Learn
ling, accidentally, that Col. Arthur
had lately given forth some rather
new and startling theories relative
to railroads and systems Of railroads
in this country, a REPUBLICAN report
er yesterday afternoon waylaid him
land proceeded at once to put into
use the interviewing pump. The gist
of the colonsl's views put into a very
few words, would be that geOgra-
phical and physical conditions have
made the cities of this country that
our inland commerce has and newt
ably will travel in belts that there
must be direct and sharply defined
systems of railroads. to accommodate
] this commerce !; and that railroads
built without consideration of these
well defined systems must fail as in
vestments, and hence as railroads.
The following are nearly the words
of Mr.. Arthur, as taken in a con
densed form, In a conversation Of
something like an hours duration.
While neither indorsing nor opposing
them, they are yet worthy the perus-
al and earnest thought Of every rail
road man in the country. The fate
and fortune of hundreds Of railroads
can be adduced to substantiate the
views therein contained:
Observation-Disclosures.
The failure of many railways may
be found largely in the fact of their
not conforming in location and con-
struction to laws governing the di
reetion of trade. There are other
causes for financial failure-sueh as
mismanagement, extravagant con
struction, and the building of lines
not required by the demands of com
merce-which are not only necessa-
rily failures in themselves, but en-
barrass legitimate enterprises. The
traffic of this continent seeks geat
centres, and lines of communication
between these centres are necessary,
and can be made useful and profta-
ble. Any others will be of local ac-
commodation and convenience mere /
~, and seldom directly remunerative. |
Exceptions may exist where large
local productions are found.
The direction of traffic is from the
to the consuming points. |
In so great an extent of territory
many centres will be or established
for convenience of transactiDg bust
ness, and which are determined BY
physical or geographical advantages.
The great centres of concentration
for consumption and ezportation Of
the agricultural products of this
country are New York, Philadelphia, |
Boston and Baltimore. These are
the tocj of the great systems of the
railways of the country. These ma
jor points are also centeres for the
collection of merchandise and manu-
factures for distribution.
The greet centre for collection
and distribution in transit would be
st Louis, Chicago, Pittsburg and
Buffalo. There are subordinate cen
tres, q mean centres of railway sys-
tems) such as Milwaukee, Kansas
City, Indianapolis and Louisville.
To these centres systems of trans
portation belongs. The West and
Northwest of the south end Of Lake
Michigan belongs to Chicago; the
West and Southwest of St Louis to
st. Louis for the South Louisville
and Indianapolis become the cuImin-
ating centres of the Southern sys-
tenn.