The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1877-02-08
THE R. R. QUESTION.
Sound, Practical Views OF
a Business Man.
The Last Chance to Main"
tain Our ProSperitY.


well known and public spirited townsman
Dr. David Noble, in which he gives hi
views on the Railroad question. They al
wcighty, true and eminently practical. ans
are worthy of careful reading and earnes
consideration by every business man, an'
every other citizen of Hillsboro:
David Noble, of Hillsboro. will reside wit
his brother, DR.. A. Noble. in Winchester, here
after. splendid suit of rooms has been Gtte,
up for his use.
We clip the above from the Yves
Union Defeader of January 24th, an'
must confess our surprise at learnin:
we were about to lose one of our mos
energetic and public-spirited citizens
On interviewing the Doctor, he s;,i'
he saw but little encouragement in tn
future business prospects and prosper
| ty of Hillsboro, and her material ad
tancement in this age of progress
Heretofore having no rival, and beinr
located at the terminus of railroad
she controlled the business of three
fOurths of the territory on the south
bordering on the Ohio river. To sup
ply the wants of the people of such I;
vast extent of area compels her mer
chants to do jobbing as well as re-.
tail trade. Located in an agriculture
country, the necessaries of life cheal
and rents low, enables her merchant
to compete successfully with any o
the surrounding towns of equal popu-
iation. For example, her grocerymen
purchase from the importers, and
have such staple articles as coffee, SUI
gar, molasses, rice and salt shipped by
the carload. Hardware men purchase
their nails and bar iron, agricultural
implements, &C., in like manner. By
buying in such large quantities, anG
getting rates on freight, enables them
To sell at such prices as not only to i'll
duce farmers at distance to come here
to purchase their goods, but also retail.
dealers in the surrounding towns. Hc
was credibly informed by country mer-
chants that they can buy dry goods as
cheaply as they can in Cincinnati, and
thus save the time and expense OF
transportation. From present indica-
tions this state of affairs can not long
continue. The Narrow-Gauge Rail
road now being constructed and skirt
ing the southern border of our county,
and terminating at Winchester, Adj
ans county, will divert the current o!
trade in the towns of BufOrd, Price
town, Danvilie, Taylorsville, Mowry-
town, Sugartree Ridge, Fairfax, Bel
fast and Locust Grove and all the ter
ritory south of those towns from Hills
boro; hence our enterprising mer-
chants will have a less extent of coun-
try to supply, and as u consequence
fewer customers instead of purchas-
ing from the importer or prOdacer, and
having each Of the staple articles ship
ped here by the carload, will be COM
PEELED to purchase of second hands ="
and pay local rates of freight, and
hence would be compelled to sell at
propOrtionately higher rates than un-
der our present state of affairs, and not
only would the business men of the
town be effected, but the price of real
estate in town would deteriOrate, and
those four cabalistic words, "For Rent, !"
"For Sale" would embellish many
front doors and windows in our town.
On our suggesting to the Doctor that
he looked on the dark side of the pic
ture, he replied that there was only
one chance for the salvation of the
town and county, and the farmers are
as much interested in this matter as
the citizens of the town, as their inter-
ests are mutual. You can not benefit
the town without enhancing the value
Of landed property in the county, and
rice Uersn.
He said there is now being construct
ed two lines of Narrow Gauge railway,
nne from Dayton to GalIipoIis and
PomerOy, with branch line to Wells
ton; the other from Springfield to
Jackson, they intersecting at Wash
ington &. H., but the indications now
are that only one of them will extend
beyond the point of intersection. From
the well known shrewdness and busi-
ness qualifications eff the Dayton man.
ayers of their line, and from present
indications, it is extremely doubtful
whether more than one line of road
will be built from the point of inter
section, and indeed it would be to the
interest of both Dayton and Spring
field to have but one line from Wash
ington G. H. to the coal fields run mu-
tually i'm the interest of both, as they
being manufacturing towns will have
attained their Object-chedp coal. IF
both roads are built. it would be to the
interest of our people to tap the one
most accessible, everything else being
equal-our initial point being at New
Batavia or Williamsburg,
or else one of that network of Narrow
Gauge railroads now being constructed
or projected north of Cincinnati.
On our expressing skepticism of any
project benefitting HillsbOro at this
late day, as we had waited too long
and were already surrounded by rail-
roads, the Doctor replied, "'Tis true
we have let the golden opportunity
pass because of obstacles which it is
now unnecessary to mention-but all
is not lost. Editors, as general thing,
are short-sighted in everything except
in foreseeing the success or defeat of
their party, and are prOverbially
poor, ~ so they affirm and as it takes
money to build a railroad, it is not ex-
pected of them to know much of the
drcdnd of railroad building or its man
agement. Let but this ROAD be built -
'e did not say by way of Fayetteville,
Batavia, NewtOnville or Williamsburg
whoever gives the most money ~
He was sorry to say that commodity
has much to do with the affairs of
Church and State as well as railroads.
Let this road be built from either of
these points through here, he would
venture the assertion that before five
years railroad will pass through here
from Columbus to Maysville, thus con-
Meeting the Capital with the system of
southern railroads which is so rapidly
the resources of the South
under the aggressive, stimulating en-
ergies of Northern capital. Columbus
to-day is as much railroad center as
indianapolis her manufacturing in
terest and capital is as great as any
city in the West; in fact she is the
great rival of Cincinnati in all her
industries, and hence
will seek another connection with the
South other than that city. The fruit
is ripe. Let Hillsboro reach forth her
hand and pluck.
At this juncture some parties entered
the office, and we retired, being kindly
advised to see that Tilden jhad "fair
count" We purpose interviewing the
Doctor again.