The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1885-07-02
Southern Atlantic States, as the same are
grouped in railroad statistics, are almost
identical, as appears by this table:

Popn. Ne R.R.
Jersey, Pennsylvania, Dele
Ass9sss.s ss%ss wSis Vi.russ yIsiRRa R615 caro- os
Alabama, Florida. Mississippi,
Louisiana, Tennessee, Ken
..........,..........i2.2+.ss 1888
But the similarity in the conditions of
the railroad problem in these two sec.
tions Of the country ends here. For we
find that Mr. Poor giyes the net earnings
of the
Middle Atlantic group for 1888 as...sl07, 1852 2s3
While in the Southern Atlantic group
The yrniroaIs in the former siSiea 5''''''S
carried during tho year 1888 Of pas
The railroads in the latter = carried
Tho railroads In the former moved tons
Tho railroads In tho latter SsoSosss
There is again almost identically the
same number of miles Of railroad In
proportion to population in Connecticut
as in this State; there being in Connec.
ticut one mile to every CAT inhabitants
and in this State one TO every 646. But
in Connecticut the railroads carried In
1883 10,684,374 passengers and moved
5,005, ,16S tons Of freight, while ours car.
ried 1,033,697 passengers and moved
l 1,404 ,624 tons. We must bear in mind
too the important fact that of the $780,
SIT of the population of this State 604.-
332 are negroes, and but 39l, ,245 of the
like industrious and thrifty people who
support the Northern and Western Rail
roads. Do not these statistics show that
we have railroads enough in this State
already to do five or ten times the busi-
ness which now offers +? And ought we
to tax the people to build more when
those already built have not business
enough to do?
It'll urged that If we build more rail.
roads the population and business will
increase and furnish them with "a many
passengers and as much freight as they
will be able to carry. But does expert
ence warrant such an expectation This
was the theory upon which the vast
amount of capital was invested in the
new Western States, aud in those States
there were exceptional grounds on which
to base such calculations. There was
the immense multitude of emigrants
seeking homes in the West, and virgin
soil awaiting but their coming to yield
untold wealth in grain. But even in
that section there was o limit to the profit
able building of railroads, as is shown
in the case of Colorado, notwithstanding
her silver mines. In our case there are
no ouch conditions on which TO base rail-
road speculation. We can expect no
wonderful results which followed railroad
building in some of the newly settled
territories.
We must remember, too, that the capi.
tai sunk ia Colorado was foreign capital,
t-n In
seeking great gains, in the face of possi.
Bile loss. The capital we risk in these
new enterprises is to be drawn from our
own people, for the most part unwillingly,
by taxation. We, ourselves, are not
without some severe lessons in railroad
enterprises in this State. We have
already city, town and county debt in.
Cured for the building of railroads of
$4,137, ,579, to wit:
BY tho City OF Charleston
Blue Ridge Railroad. ,o4o. 900
Chcraw and Darlington Raiiroad........... 100000
c6ariostoa and sarannaI Rsiiroad SGo sSSGOo
Memphis and md Charleston 2SoSSS
Grecnville and Columbia, Charlotte and
Louisville. Cincinnati and Charloston... $4,000
50 2s77, 400
In the rest of the State large indebt-
edness has been contracted in the last ten
or fifteen years. In the report of the
comptroller general for 1884 we find the
following which, however, is not given
as complete statement of the town and
county debts:
Andcrsonasavannah Valley Railroad: S $4,000
Chester-Chester and Lenoir Railroad
$4,000, Cheraw and Chester Railroad
and Chester Raiird 'SS SSsS
CoIleton-Green Pond, WATERFORD and
Sdsnc R.;;o.d Ga 100
600, Edgeaed, Trenton and Augusta
Railroad 6,4eo
Railroad. .... ............... $4,000
willie Air Line Railroad-.....Sl7O,0o0
Greenville and Laurena Rail-
areenviiio rUSa Ciy~Ic m. m cnd 'OO00
and Danvillo Air Limo Rail-
GrssnviS and Lsarens Rail: ''0''
LancasterwChoraw and ches. '''
LaurensMGresnviiio Iaurcns '''
and Spartanburg Railroad $4,000
Greenville and Laurens Rail-
piefsnsxir no Railroad 'oOO ieooSo oSo
Spart anburg-Atlanta and
Richmond Air Line Rail-
spsstsnSars ii;i ana ;'i;iii;,' XsIeviiio 4'''v''
Greenwood, Laarens ndspsr: '00'''O
spalssnsssfs cisy~xii Line ''O0o
Union-s5Pa rta n burg and
AshSvJlle Railroad. 145,2oo
York Chester and Lenoir
RaiIrond................ es.4oo
16o,l7o
In addition to these there remain the