The comet. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1877-1882, 1880-09-04
THE YAZOO CITY AND JACKSON
RAILROAD.

RAILROAD,
To the Editor of the Comet
The Board of Trade is about TO ini-
tiate movement looking to the build
lpg of the Jackson and Iazoo City
Railroad, and to invite action on the
part of the City Authorities. There
are no parties here able and willing
to take hold of such an enterprise and
complete the road, and foreign capt.
talists could hardly be induced to IN
vest in 50 small an affair, and one SO
peculiarlarly local in character. The
road can be built if the city will sub
scribe to the capital stock Of the COM
pany to the extent of one hundred
thousand dollars. Ya2oo City will re-
spond with an equal contribution, and
the balance of the means necessary
can be raised by first mortgage on
the franchise and property Of the cor
poration. There can be no doubt of
the result, and certainly the benefit
to our city will be very decided. Prop
erty here will appreciate rapidly in
value, trade will he developed, and
Jackson will become an interior cot
ton market of some importance. 1t
only needs Il little of the push charac-
teristic of western towns to vitalize
ours
But can the City subscribe and pay
100000? We are now nearly out Of
debt, and have heretofore paid, quite
as large an amount with no cores
ponding benefit--at least appreciable.
The value Of the taxable property
within the corporate limit is, in round
numbers, about 81 100000, and the
amount required to inaugurate the
scheme is 100000, or about six per
cent. of the taxable value of our prop
erty. City bonds bearing eight per
cent, payable annually, can be tloated
here at par, and their issue may be SO
guarded that we can secure u mile of
completed railroad for every IS, 900 put
out. This, of itself, will secure road
twenty miles long, running through
very productive region Immediately
tributary to our City. A tax of one
per centum per annum would raise,
say $4,000, which, besides paying in
terests, would retire $4,000 of the
bonds every year. If, therefore, we
could bring ourselves up to the point
of submitting to an annual tax of one
per cent. I'D UdlOrGm for ten cOnsecu-
tive years, the road could be secured
and new life be infused into the aTte-
ries of our trade and commerce. Is
this mpracticable or impossible? Let
our tOwnspeople consider the subject
carefully before giving an unfavora-
bile answer.
Railroads having their terminal
points at Vicksburg and New Orleans
do not, from the necessity Of the case
favor us. They have and will have
the carrying Of our cotton anyhow, and
are not disposed to exert themselves
in our interest. 1t may be that when
the railroad to Natchez Is completed,
we may be in stronger position, and
can, by the squeese of sound judg-
mcnt, exert some Difference to our
views of right, SO as to lessen the bur-
den imposed upon us by excessive
tariffs. But the Natchez Railroad can
not otherwise help us. We must be-
come a terminal point and secure for
competitive biddings trade which
our existing railroads cannot calm as
being their own by sort of "divine
right" The narrow-guage road from
is being extended down
Deer Greek, and will soon reach Roll
ing Fork. The distance across from
Yazoo City is inconsiderable and if
we go into the enterprise from this
point to YazOo City, we may hope to
see complete road to Greenville
within the next three years. This
will help us in two ways. 1t will
bring us cotton, and take our COM
pressed cotton away at living rates.
We will have the water route brought
into direct competition with the rail-
roads, and without some such compe-
bition we have to accept the rates
offered to us by existing railways.
w. l.. n.