The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1882-03-08
RAIERoAD Needed

y long cherished idea with us that
TO perfect her great railroad system,
and in fact to crown it all, the State
Of Tennessee needed an airline road |
to pierce the State from East TO
Vest. And we are going to talk
About it. Tho Tennessee Pacfhe
looked to this grand end--was char
tered, we believe, with view to its
accompIishment-but unfortunately,
either that enterprise was begun
decade or two too soon, or else 1t
was allowed to fall through too ear
", so that, with the exception OF
The bnilding of local stem of thirty
miles or thereabout, connecting the
town of Lebanon with the capital of
the State, nothing has been gained
by il and unless the owners of that
charter-privilege, with its thirty
miles of rail attached, will them
selves undertake to supply our State
need of an East and West central
railroad the thing is rather in the
way of the real work needed, than
any help to it's early attainment.
We do not know what the terms
are of the lease of the so-called
Tennessee Pacific, or how long it
has to run, but if the Louisville and
Nashville company (whO became
owners of it through the purchase
of the Nashville and Chattanooga
DO not choose to use their privilege
under the charter to complete the
road to Knoxville, the originally in
tended Eastern terminus, if we mis-
take not, then they ought to be
willing to make liberal terms with
any Independent company who may
be induced to build the proposed
railway.
There has been some talk in the
Nashville papers lately hooking to
an extension of the Tennessee Pa
cifc so as TO penetrate the coal re-
gion of the western slope of the
Cumberland mountain. While this
would no doubt be OF immense ad-
vantage to the people directly in
terested, and of some benefit to-the
manufacturing interests of our grow
ing State capital, it would be of no
great advantage in q general way
but the building of the road through
the heart of East Tennessee, while il
would accomplish the same thing
for the counties east of Lebanon.
and for the Nashville cOal and man
ufacturing interests would do i'm
measurably more for them, even in
a local point of view, by opening up
10 the city of Nashville, and to the
intermediate country, the rich min
eral and marble treasures of East
Tennessee.
True, we have an admirably con-
Quoted railroad access to and fro
now, by way of Chattanooga. But
that is too far around, skirting as it
does the border counties of Alabama.
That cannot be the permanent line
o. railroad communication bettCeen
the State capital and the Eastern
end of Tennessee. 1t is absurd to
think of such thing; and the leg
islators, and others, the multitude
of people residing in this end of the
State whose business o.. pleasure
calls them from time to time to
make the long and expensive cir
cult at present travelled to reach
Nashville, have already borne with
the heavy tax, both upon money
and time, and the Inconvenience far
longer than they ought to have
done.
1t is high time that this subject
was generally vent Hated through
the press and other channels of
communication with the people,
with view to the early organiza-
ton of an effort to rectify the evil,
and at the same time give the so
much needed finishing touch, so to
speak, to our Tennessee railroad
system.
If the Louisville and Nashville
road will not undertake the compile
ton of the Tennessee Pacific to
its eastern limit, then we must look
to the other great railroad compa-
ny most directly interested, the
East Tennessee and Virginia. But
if neither of these will undertake
the work, because of its clashing
with interests already secured to
them in either case, then must we
of necessity look beyond tAem-for
surely Tennessee is not wholly de-
pendent upon either of these parties
for the successful accomplishment
of tae proposed enterprise.
Not only The press and people of
the counties to be traversed by the
proposed line of railway, but the
whole State is deeply interested in
it. Only agitate the subject and
make the necessity appear, and the
both to the parties who
shall undertake. to build the road,
and to the State of Tennessee, and