Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1882-02-09
NEWS.

NEWS.
The Wheeling Register OF Tuesday,
contains the following, which will be a
refreshing bit of news to many Of our
readers:
A very prominent and influential cit
izsn of Martins Ferry, said to Regis
ter reporter, yesterday, while talking
about the county seat problem: There
is little scheme on hand ceHcerning
the removal question, that none OF you
lynI-eyed reporters have ever got on.
You may have remarked that this city
and Bridgeport have never been very
enthusiastic in their support of the Bell
aire pretensions. This has appeared
rather snigmatical to many, from the
circumstance that the removal from St.
Clairsville to Bellaire would be very OBJ
viously advantageous to both Bridge
port and this city. What has been the
real motive of this luke-warm sup
port, however, is this: st. Clairsville
cannot hope to retain for any length of
time, the county seat. There are physi-
cal reasons innumerable against this
retention, to say nothing of the
inclination of the majority of the
people in the districts of the county re-
mote from the city CD upon the bill" !"
St. Clairsville people are beginning to
get this fact through their hair, and are
now casting about tor Tie next best
thing to do after gracefully tumbiing to
the fact.
Bellaire, on account of her aggressive
policy in the removal matter has-aliena-
ted utterly and wholly all st. ClairsTille
and her following. which 1 assure you
is not insignificant by any means.
Bridgeport and Martins Ferry are al
so opposed to Bellaire. BarnesvilIe will
do nothing for Bellaire, and that portion
of the county lying between the Nation
al road and the counties on the north
will antagonize Bellaire. In short, my
my youthful pencil propeller, Bellaire
has not walk over. All this, however,
has been patent for months, OF. in other
words, is the development of the cam
paign. But what you ask, does it all
signify? l will tell you. We are not
without very substantial hope tha1 a
court house and Jail may some day be
erected on one of the bluffs that over
look the river between Bridgeport and
the Laughlin mill. Many a more i'm
probable thing than this has happened
And why notf Our pretensions are not
inferior to Bellaire in any particular.
Bellaire may say 1.-The geography is
against you" That is the only tangible
thing she can urge. But let US lock at
that for minute. The roads leading
from various portions of the county will
strike Bridgeport or Martins Ferry
about as soon as they do Bellaire. OurI
river facilities are as good. The Tusca-
rawas road will deliver passengers In
this city sooner than il will to Bellaire
The current of travel to Wheeling is Ell
ther through Bridgeport or Martins
Ferry in larger proportion than by
way of Bellaire, and with the compile
tion of the Lake Erie road our facilities
will be vastly superior to to those of
Bellaire. The erection of the bridge |
from this town-to Wheeling will give us |
facilities that are beyond the dreams of |
3ven the ambitious town of Bellaire. |
Then, too, with the completion of our
bridge the Tuscarawas Valley road will
IS surely come up here to cross the riv-
ar to Wheeling as water runs. The C. |
& P. road will also likely 20 into the
;ity of Wheeling by the same route, and |
N the latter event where will Bellaire
De? All this talk is predlcatcd upon the
that Bridgeport and Mar
,in's Ferry will consolidate. They havei
! boundary in common at the Crawford |
and the erection of the new
sheet mill on the site of this homestead |
will have a tendency to build up that
stretch of cornfields and merket gar
lens intervening between Ktnaville
Ind Martins Ferry. In the two towrs
here is now population of between
1000 and 5000, nearly that of Bellaire
1t the last census, and with the impetus
hat the new railroad will give us we
will, in the next two years, catch up
With and pass Bellaire in point of pop
llation. Our manufactures SO far as
hey go, are fully as important as those
# Bellaire, and We predict that in the
Iext five years they will be in all re-
poets superior The erection of the
lew sheet mill will have tendency to
sting between Bridgeport and this
lace, and each will cooperate with the
ther in securing, if possible, the cree
ion of the county seat at this place, and
n the event of success, the court house,
1ill come up to this town. 1t is, as L
ave said, as convenient as Bsllaire in
very particular. and; in fact, it will be :
lst rs convenient for that town as ,
hough it were located there. So far .
here has been very little done by us.
We have been quietly watching things,
nd at the proper time will move"