Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1881-06-23

The village OF Warren, fifteen miles be.
low Steubenville, town of 500 inhabitants,
was completely submerged and the people were
driven from their homes. No lives have been
lost as far as can be learned
Mr.. Best and his Railroad Enterprise.
-- 1t will be remembered that last Win
ter, Mr.. Best, in behalf Of himself and some
northern capitalists, purchased the States
interest in the Western N. G. Railroad,
special session of the Legislature having been
called by the Governor of North Carolina
for the purpose of ratifying the contract. Mr..
Best failed to comply with his obligations
at the. specified time, and the road passed in
to the hands Of the Richmond and Danville
Railroad Company. Many persons thought,
at the time, that the whole transaction was
scheme on the part of the Richmond and Dan
vile Road to obtain possession of the West
ern N. G. and its connections; but the follow.
ing from the Raleigh Observer would indi.
cate that Mr.. Best was acting in good faith,
in his proposal to complete the Western N.
VI leOoo ouu ITO COuuCCLlOIoJ dHO clSO w
new road from the sea coast to Salisbury:
"On Saturday last, Mr.. Best, on behalf of
the construction company which proposes to
carry out the original North Carolina system
from Beaufort harbor to Tennessee connec-
tiops at Paint Rock ahd Ducktown, deposi.
ted with Senator Z. B. Vance, Governor T. j.
Jarvis and State Treasurer J. NJ Worth,
commissioners of the Western North Carroll.
ma Railroad, elected by the General Assem-
bly, at its special session in 1880, the sum of
$3.50, ,000 with which to reimburse the Rich
mond and Danville Railroad Company for
all expenditures made by that corporation
from the time Of the detection of Mr.. Best's
! first associates up to the present.
"Mr. Best has called upon the Richmond
and Danvile Railroad authorities for an &C.
count of such expenditures (Which has not
yet been rendered) with the view of rendering
the exact amount which wsuld repay them
for the money they have disbursed in prose.
cutting the work on both branches of the
Western North Carolina Railroad, with inter.
est, and also make proper compensation for
any trouble thrown upon them by their COM
ing to his assistance.
"While the construction company have
good reason to believe that the sum deposited
is amply sufficient to cover every possible ex-
pense, they have signi6ed to the commission
ers their willingness to make an immediate
deposit of any further sum which the Rich
mond and Danvile Railroad company may
show to be necessary for that purpose.
1T is impossible to believe that any com.
pany of gentlemen who are so entirely identi.
fled with North Carolina, and so largely de.
pendent upon North Carolina patronage as
are the Richmond and Danville Railroad
company, would think for moment of hinder
ing scheme of such vast Importance to the
State for sure the public would look with
grave disapprobation upon any such course y
Knoxville and Augusta Railroad.
"A called meeting of the board of di.
rectors of the Augusta and Knoxville Rail,
road, was held in Augusta on Saturday last.
The President recited all the facts connected
with interviews recently had by himself with
the representatives of the Virginia Midland
and the Richmond and Danville Railroads.
He submitted written proposition from Col.
Barbour, in behalf of the Virginia Midland,
which looked to an Identification of the inter
ests of the Virginia Midland and the Angus
ia and Knoxville.
Mayor May addressed the meeting, express.
ing his individual desire that the city should
retain its interest in the road. Several prop.
ositions had been made by other parties to
secure the city's interest, and the propositions
had been submitted to the City Council, but
he would candidly say that in reviewing all
the propositions that had been submitted, he
saw nothing in any of them that was particu-
larly inviting. As regards the proposition
by the Virginia Midland Company the fol.
lowing resolution was adopted
Resolved AS the sense of the Board Of d.
rectors of the Augusta and Knoxville Rail.
road, that it is expedient to entertain no
proposition looking to transfer of the prop
erty of this company, or of controlling in.
terest therein to any party or parties whatev-
er other than the present holders, until the
line is completed and in operation to Green.
wood, and, in no event, will this Directory
entertain any proposition that's not preserva-
tive of the interests of the bondholders of the
Augusta and Knoxville Railroad Company.
In connection with the proceedings of the
meeting, the Chronicle says:
We understand that the proposition of the
Baltimore and Ohio was, in effect, that it
would subscribe 100000 to the stock of the
Augusta and Knoxville, such subscriptions
to be used for the building of railroad to
Elberton, the books to be formally closed and
no more subscriptions received when $4,000,
in addition to that taken by the Baltimore
and Ohio, is subscribed. The Baltimore and
Ohio pledges itself TO vote for the present
managers of the road until the line to Green
wood is completed, when it will take control
of the road This, in brief, was the PROPOSE.
ton. which, in its full terms, was not made
known outside of the Board.
"The proposition of the Clyde Com bination,
it will be membered, was not made to the
Board of the Augusta and Knoxville, but to
the city authorities for the control of the
city's stock. This proposition included a
number of items. The syndicate proposes
that the city shall transfer to them its two
thousand shares of stock in the Augusta and
Knoxville Railroad, but such transfer is not
to be made until the necessity shall arise for
placing q mortgage upon the consolidated
line, from Knoxville to Augusta, and when
such transfer is to be made, satisfactory secu-
rity shall be given the city for the completion
of the consolidated line from Knoxville to
Augusta, and for the carrying out Of the 9th.
er provisions of the contract. The syndicate
proposes to give to the city, in exchange for
its stock, shares in the consolidated line,
equal in dollars to the amount of shares |