The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1884-03-01
The I.and.nIoIdcr and the n. n.

IS suffering with the dry rot Tor lack
of railroad facilities; which is separ-
ated from the world by twenty miles
of mud; and which is now ctntem
plating the chances of a railroad as
matter Of life and death, the chief
obstacle in the way of such boon
should be that of obtaining the right
of way through its territory.
But that is the situation as it pre-
sents itself to-day, and that is the
one paramount difficulty that threat
ems the defeat of our hopes and pros
poets of deliverance from this condi-
ton of isolation and decay.
OF course there are rights and
wrongs in this matter of "rights of
way" and the rights are not all on
the side Of the land owners or the
wrongs all on the side of the railroad
companies, or uice versa.
We take it that the proper position
for the landowner to occupy may be
thus fairly stated:
l, If he parts with portion Of a
tract of land and that which he re-
tains is benefited to the value of the
portion taken, he ought to be willing
to call it square, and make a dona-
ton to the company asking it for
the purposes of railroad.
2, Ii the part taken is of more
value than the benefits which will
accrue to the residue, measured by
the difference between the one and
the other.
3, II the company takes the whole
of his land he ought to ask and re-
ceive the fair, present market value
thereof.
This, we think, is fair statement
of the case from business stand
point; but a man of public spirit, who
is interested in the general veal and
feels that he shares any benefits he
may have to confer on the commu-
nifty at large, can afford to do better
than this. He may, and should take
into consideration the prospective
benefits, the prosperity and thrift.
the personal comfort and pride which
he and his fellow citizens would share
together for all time by promoting
such an enterprise. The indirect
are as considerable as the direct
benefits which flow to the citizen
from such a source. Every mans
prosperity is enhanced by the pros
perity of his town, and his individual
interests are just as certainly bound
to suffer by that which depresses the
prosperity of the town.
A community will always prosper;
its individual and general interests
will progress and flourish just in the
proportion that its citizens are pos
sessed Of that element we call .spublic
spirit" Where every fellow in a
town is looking out only for mo Il"
where every fellow is envious of every
other fellows prosperity; where the
controlling public disposition is mar
row, mean. and sordid and nissan
thropic such community may be
said to be conspiring with itself for
a general overthrow.
A western community, with it's
characteristic spirit of enterprise and
progress, if situated as Morgantown
is, would not suffer any difficulty, or
at least, any unreasonable obstacle
to be put in the way of a company
which was proposing to furnish it
railroad facilities. No individual
citizen dare face that public senti-
ment if he put unreasonable impedi-
ments in the way He would lose
character and standing that would
cost him more than he could make by
such a course Moreover, the whole
community would be united, hand in
hand to break the way and compel,
by fair means or force, the removal
Of all such Instructions. n.
Western towns grow through such
public spirit. They don't grow so
rapidly in this latitude.
There is not that degree of public
spirit in our town at this particular
epoch, that we would like to see.
There is not that unity of effort and
action we have right to expect un-
der the circumstances. Either the
railroad companies are unreasonable
in their demands or our citizens are
unreasonable and illiberal 10 their
concessions. If the cause of com
plant is with our citizens it is a pub
lie misfortune If the companies are
asking more than they are reasonably
entitled to, we hope they wont get it.