Morning journal and courier., 1882-03-30

Mr. Williams, Ot Lebanon, said that he had listened to all the evidence and argument be- fore the committee. He entered the hearing without the slightest prejudice either in favor or against the Parallel road. From what he had heard he was convinced of the need and of the new road The old road had claimed that it was doing a great amount of freight business for less than cost and yet they are making more than three times as much money as any other road in New Eng land. There was not one freighter before the committee who had not testified that the old road discriminated in it's freight rates
 These men might be satisfied, but it was at 1 the great disadvantage of the general public
 that they were so favored. He believed that
 the petitioners for the charter were honest in
 their purpose to build the new road. The
 idea that there is not business enough for the |
 road is ridiculous. This is an age of pro-
 gress and development, and the more railroad |
 facilities the people can have the better. This |
 road will enrich all the towns through l
 which it passes It will develop large viii 1
 lages and active industry It will be the l
 quickest line between New York and Boston, l
 and will absorb large and increasing pas i
 senger traffic, which is now accommodated
 by water routes. He would leave it for the
 House to decide whether the company could
 build under the general railroad laws. Un-
 der the law there no objection to build
 ing railroad from New York to Boston.
 But the navigable waters should not be
 bridged. This would be equal to building 8
 telegraph line to St. Louis, and prohibiting
 the joining of the ends by forty rods A
 great hue and cry had been made over the
 fact that the Parallel men would not disclose their plans If they had done so he should feel that they were destitute of sufficient sense to manage a charter, if they had 1t. The old line had taken possession of every thing 1t could get hold of in the interest of ui5 and nrnbonG HhaU yv011l6 lima get hold of everything in the State, swallow up the Legislature, and even consolidate it's rivers. The situation reminded him of 6 maiden lady whom he had heard of She had seen the light of 80 summers, and by the
 way she was firm temperance advocate. One day her friends found her weeping as if her heart would break Why, they exclaimed, what can be the matter? Oh, said she, have just been thinking if I should get mar ried, and my husband should turn out to be miserable drunkard Oh it would be
 awful. Now the Consolidated road are cry ing: Now if Pool should prove rascal, and Jewell 6 Go. should turn out to be thieves and robbers, the State would lose millions. What an awful thing it would be, and the old road is shedding tears, actually shedding tears over it.
 l MT. Cooley was accorded the floor, and said that before he commenced his argument he would reply to the statement of the gentle l man from Waterbury (Mr.. Gillette) as to the recommittal of the report on the general rail road law. The bill was for a more liberal law as represented by the friends of the ] measure. It had been urged by the counsel for the Consolidated road, and had been reported this morning. But yesterday Judge Briscoe of Hartford, counsel for Mr. Olm- sted oe Norwalk, had asked for hearing on the bill and the committee had voted soldly 5 to 3 to report the bill without giving the hearing. Here was 8 citizen of Connecticut asking to be heard on the bill, and he was in favor of giving every man fair hearing. This was the reason why he asked for the recommittal
 Speaker Hall in the chair.
 Mir. Cooley commencing his speech said: The question is between the railroad and the people. After a long and tedious hear ing upon this matter under discussion we are drawing it to a close. The question before us is, shall we or shall we not have this much needed competing line of railroad Now in mechanics our first instructions are to be sure that you right and then go ahead. And I know of no good reason why the same rule should not apply to so grave a question as the one under consideration. question that involves the interest of every town, city and manufacturing interest, and every other in this good old State, and of all of the New England States combined. Be- leving this, then, you are to choose this day whom you will serve-this great interest, those who have personal interest to satisfy. With these considerations let us pass to con- sider the main question. We were reminded in the committee that we must be satisfied that it is or is not needed. We were also reminded that we should do duty as representatives under oath. Tn coming to my conclusions I was led to inquire: First is there necessity for another through line from New York to Boston, and will it pay I believe there is for several reasons. First quick transit is demanded among manufacturers There are six thousand miles of railroad in New England that have to seek an outlet through the Consolidated :oad. There is no place in Connecticut that has connection with New York except through the Consolidated line. There should be con- petition. It is demanded by the manufactur- ing interests of the State. There are gentle rnen on the floor of the House who know that in the city of Meriden, where there is no com petition, frsighters have to pay 20 cents per hundred, and in Middletown, where there is 8 competing line, the same class of goods are carried for 123 cents per hundred. He would ask if this is the right sort of thing for railroad corporation to be engaged in :? Quot l ing from the railroad returns he showed the number of accidents which had occurred dur ing the year, and thought the ratio was larger l than on any other line in New England At 1 o'clock MT. Cooley gave way for ] motion from Mir. Ripley, of Norwich, author ! izing recess until p. m, when the debate would be resumed.
 AFTERNOON SESSION.
 The House was called to order at p. m. by Speaker Hall.
 MT. Cooley said it had been his purpose to l discuss the bill at length. But as there are 1 many who wish to speak, he should yield the floor after a few statements. He would ask, who that knows Governor Jewell would for l moment suppose that he would be enlisted in a cause to defraud the State. Ex-Lieutenant Governor Douglass of Middletown, Mayor Bulkeley of Hartford, president of corpor- I ation that has over $17O,OOO of stock in the l Consolidated road, ex-Mayor Osgood of Norwich and ex-Mayor Lewis of New Haven are among the corpora tors of the new road. Who would say to either of these gentlemen that he was in cause to defraud the State. It had been proved before the committee that not over four miles of road had been constructed in
 the State in ten years. The general railroad law is a fraud on the people of the State, and made so by the officers of the Consolidated road. It had been shown before the commit tee that four different attempts had been ! made to construct Parallel road from New Haven to New York, but they had been de- feated by obstacles thrown in the way by the general railroad law. He believed that the purpose to build was bona fide and honest. MT. Coogan, of Windsor Locks, said he should be false to his constituents if he should fail to support the passage of the bill. The building of railroads will promote more and more the development of the State, give impulse to business, and establish additional facilities for increasing wealth and prosper ity. The New York, New Haven and Hart ford road has built up the towns ann cities
 along it's line. Mr. Coogan presented statis-
 tics, showing what the railroads of the State
 had done for it's prosperity. Now what is it
 the petitioners ask? Honorable, upright and
 conscientious men, who have enjoyed the
 highest honor and confidence in the State,
 come here and ask for the privilege of build
 ing another road. Who opposes their having
 it. Is it the manufacturers Is it the working
 classes? Is it the people of the State ? No. It
 is the Consolidated road creature of this
 Assembly. That corporation with unblush-
 ing effrontery and arrogance comes here and
 attempts to dictate what charters shall be
 granted or refused. Its money power is felt
 In every town of the State It's favors are
 scattered like showers of gold, corrupting
 and weakening all within the reach of it's in-
 fuence. It is an agency of oppression. Strip
 this Consolidated road and show what it is
 With all it's wealth and arrogance it comes to
 this Legislature with pocketbook in hand and