Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1883-03-24
RAILROAD SPEECHES.
Three Prominent Citizens Address
am Enthusiastic Meeting.

am EmthuSkaSEAC Meeting.
The meeting of citizens called by
the railroad committee, assembled
in the Court house Thursday night.
There was full attendance of the
business men of the city with a
considerable sprinkling of the solid
yeOmanry from over the county.
Judge Smith, as chairman of the
committee, called the meeting to
order. He stated that at a meeting
of the committee and others inter-
ested in the railroad scheme,
held Tuesday night, it had been re-
solved to call this public meeting.
The programme agreed upon for
this occasion was to have speeches
from Hons. James e. Bailey, John
f. House and d. N. Kennedy.
COL. BAILEY
was first introduced and spoke at
some length. He begun by consid-
ering the feasibility of the Gordon
proposition, and pointed out its
great advantages. The Gordon's,
of course expected to make money
and the people of GAINESVILLE had a
similar purpose. In schemes like
this there was always question of
interest. He told about the early
days of GAINESVILLE, when the only
market for the whole Mississippi val
ley was New Orleans, and showed
how things had been changed by
the building of railroads. Without
the Louisville q Nashville Clarks-
vile would be no better off than
Dover. If the Edgefield & X en-
lucky road had passed through
GAINESVILLE the town would have
had $2,000,000 trade to-day. The
completion of the Nashville d Chat
tanooga road caused a considerable
rise in the price of wheat in this
section. Indianapolis was a great
inland city that had been built up
entirely by railroads. The Louis
vile d Nashville had served its
mission and done all it possibly
could do. We need competing
line. Col. Bailey showed the profit
of the lumber trade the new rail-
road might bring. Union City had
been built up by that trade. The
Kentucky coal was to the north of
us, and Killebrew and many others
said that to the south of GAINESVILLE
not more than 80 miles there were
beds of the finest iron ore, more
abundant than in the famous Iron
Mountain of Missouri. The new
road, simply as a means of bringing
more tobacco to GAINESVILLE would
be valuable. The people could af-
ford to pay $4,000 annually to keep
the Louisville d Nashville road
from being moved from here, if
that were possible. He spoke of
the security offered and thought it
very good. He told under what
difficulties the Edgeield and Ken
lucky road was built and showed |
how it had prospered. One mining |
having shipped 100000 |
tons of freight over that road annu-
ally. He concluded by urging
everybody to join IN the enterprise.
Every man who expects to remain
in GAINESVILLE should subscribe.
COL. HOUSE
Made a short speech. His absence
rom home had kept him from be-
ng well posted about the new en-
erprise. He spoke of the great
sarnestness necessary aud thought
large part of the money would
nave to be raised in GAINESVILLE. The
,ity had reached a crisis and now
vas the time to act.
MR.. KENNEDY.
This gentleman on taking the
tand said: 81 will try not to weary
,ou or keep you out of your beds
90 long. | generally talk fast and
Ion't hang on the corners. 1t is
hardly necessary that should spend
me moment in speaking to you of
he necessity of building a new road.
believe you are all alive to that
act, all want railroad. / wish to
peak a few words as to this partic-
lar line and show the advantages
f this road over a local road. | am
Or local road if that is the best we
an get, but there is no comparison
S to the two plans. Some people
aem not to have considered the
dvantages of the road running
outh. | believe that a road 80
niles South is more important than
miles NOrth-it will increase
rade more-but we are to have it
30 miles South. A local road will
My relieve the disease from which s
ne city is suffering, but the through
bad will eradicate it. When this .
trough road is built we won't need
ny more roads. | assert, and no ,
ian dares deny the fact, that no
own can become manufacturing
)Wn without two railroads. We l
ant a competing line. [ appeal s
, the manufacturers present if they '
ont need cheaper rates. When we
ct the new road then we can be- {
)me a manufacturing people. | 1
ont war on the L. & n. railroad, a
nd have no complaint to make of
, but L want a through line to ere
e competition. The Cumberland =
yer is wholly inadequate to that
lrpose.
Now / will consider the Gordon
1t is not worth while q
repeat it as you are all familiar a
18th it. l am not going to oversay b
about the advantages of this in Il
will not accuse me
that-but / will say this: with
o miles of that road completed q
If mortgage interest at 6,per cent. p
ill be paid then and forever. APP L
ause). Understand me now / say N
hen 100 miles is completed. |
i'll 60 back to the building of the &c
G NJ opI COW SSn, ofhior ahOut -