Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-05-31
AMONG THE RAILROADS.
THE SQUABBLE BETWEEN THE
CENTRAL AND AUGUSTA.

The Petition of President RaOul to Con-
meet the Port Royal and Augusta and
Augusta and Knoxville Tracks in the
city Denied-The Possible Outcome
General Gossip in Railroad Circles.
The Railroad Gazette reports 451 miles
of track laid thus far during the current
year.
An order Of the Brotherhood Of Locomo-
tive Firemen has been organized in Chat
tanOoga with twenty charter members.
The Central Railroad win place on sale
round trip tickets TO all summer resorts,
good to return until Oct. 81. Full infor-
nation will he given at the ticket office,
No. 20 Bull street, by blr. j. g. Shaw.
Haines City is to have another railroad
soon. Manager COnant, OF the Florida
Southern, has assured Gen. Ledwith that
the road TO Charlotte Harbor will pass
right through this wonderful, growing
town.
The season at Sullivan's Island will
open tomorrow. The Charleston and Sa-
vannah Railway is selling round trik
tickets from Savannah at reduced rates,
the tickets including both transportation
and accommodations at New Brighton.
The round trip fare to the island is 81 30,
with one days board 50 80, and CORE
spending prices for q longer period en-
The Rome Courier announces another
new railroad project for Northern Georgia.
An effort is being made to secure the right
of way and some 100000 subscriptions to
railroad to Chattanooga from Rome via
Dirt Town, which will be nearer by six
miles than any other route. The Rome
and CaTrollton Road, between the same
points, is about ready to be let out 10 con-
tractors. The subscription list has been
narrowed down to few hundred dollars.
Last fall when the railroads were doing
such an enormous freight business, the
management of the East Tennessee, Nir-
ginia and Georgia Railroad advanced the
wages of the clerks in the freight depart
ment in Chattanooga about 7 per cent.
The advance continued through the Win
ter. The employees began to regard the
high salaries as a permanency. They
were sadly disappointed when they re-
ceiyed their paw a few days since and
found that their salaries had been cut
down to the old figure.
The town of White Plains, in Greene
county, has been actively engaged of late
in organizing a company to build a rail
road to connect with the Augusta and
SaudersVille Narrow Gauge in GlascOck
county. in this they have been strongly
aided by the citizens of Hancock and
Greene, through which the line would pass,
and together the incOrpOrators of the road
have awakened quite an interest in
Augusta. The Georgia Railroad, it seems,
is fully alive to the Importance of main
tanning Greene county as an ally and
business contributor. This road proposes
now to survey line from White Plains
to Union Point, a distance of twelve
miles, with comparatively light work, to
flank the proposed narrow gauge enter
prise.
Augusta is in a connection over the pc
tition of President Raoul to connect the
Port Royal and the Augusta and Knox
Vile Railroads through the streets of the
city, over other than the street railroad
tracks, over which he has to pay heavy
royalties on all freights. A mass meeting
OF citizens could not agree as to the eX-
pediency of the connection, fearing Mr..
Raoul would use it to further discrimi-
nate against Augusta. The mass meeting
adjourned to enable the City Council to
ascertain the city's rights in the matter,
and TO find out what inducements Presi-
dent Raoul would offer. President Pat
rick Walsh, of the street railroad, said if
the citizens would stand by him
he would remove all arbitrary
charges against Augusta's industries,
ior which the street railroad has become
famous. AL a meeting of the Council on
Friday the railroad committee reported
that Mr.. RaOul was willing to pay the
city for the privilege of connection % per
cent. OF what he claims he has to pay I'M
justly te the street railroad. 1t seemed
for a while that his petition would meet
with favor, and the Council was about to
refer the matter again to a conference of
citizens and Council, when suddenly the
petition was declined by Mayor May
breaking the tie vote. The war between
the Central system and the Augusta
street railroad is thus fully reopened.
Mir. Ra0ul is quoted rs saying that he
Will run belt road around Augusta II
his petition is not granted, for he will not
stand the street road royalties. 1t is also
said that he has already had the belt
road surveyed. The Chronicle attacks
the Central on the ground that it is not an
Augusta institution and holds up
the interests of the street railroad.
The privilege of hauling freight
from one OF the railroad depOts to another
through the streets of Augusta, it says,
is in control OF the city of Augusta. The
Central Railroad and its leased lines are
not operated in the interest OF Augusta.
They grant few accommodations to Au-
gusta merchants. The cotton factors find
that freights along these lines favor Sa-
vannah. The compress builders are
unable to work up business in
our midst because OF the interest
of this road at the sea coast. and nearly
every class Of trade has some grievance TO
report against the great master Of trans
portation who has triangulated every Sec
ton of the State, and made himself a toll
gatherer at every town. The roads which
were built by Augustus money have not
teen conducted IN her interests since
their absorption by the Central system.
The record of one day should
be sufficient to convince Mr..
Raoul that the interests OF a rail-
road are not so diverse from those of a
section through which 1t runs; that he is
accountable to the public which granted
him the charter, as well as to the stock-
holders whose dividends he strives for,
aud that an enterprise which tends 70
build up the cities along the route will be
most literally treated by its patrons and
in the end secure the most satisfactory re-
turn for itself.