The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1885-02-24
rnE LEX RIyER. coMpANY.
'amo q nill now Pending IN tho 1.erI.l

lAfanoue Blu now FendlnE IN tho Iegislns
N turs. ma az
The public Is familiar with the Senate
bin offered by Mr.. Morrison, and passed
by the Senate, ssand now pending in the
House. byswhich the charter of the Elk
River Land and Boom Company Is SO
amended as to do away With the exclu-
aiye grant to the company Of the right to
construct booms In Elk river for the pur-
pose Of stopping logs, etc, This company,
composed 81 Pennsyiyanians, was char
tered by D special act in 1860. The Legts-
iature was induced TO pass this act by rep
reservations that tho company Intended
10 make great improvements in that sec
ton. yi,f
A reporter, in q conversation with Sem
ator Morrison, was informed that the COM
pany hadnotfuiflIed disagreement. They
built but one boom, at the mouth Of the
Elk, and II frequently breaks, and much
lumber is lost. Since tho charter was
granted the country has been thickly
settled butt company aspqrsueda tdog
in the manger policy, neither exercising
It's charter rights or allowing others to
make needed improvements. This isla
great wrong to the residents along the Elk
river and its tributaries, Mr.. Morrison
says, keeping them poor, many OF them
miserably 50, while the one man who has
succeeded TO the company's franchises
bides his time to step In and reap rich
harvest.
Many Of Che children in that part OF the
country are unable to so to school because
| their parents, impoverished by the en-
barge upon their products through the
policy OF this company, cannot bcj them
lit clothes or shoes, $50.
"Why,n said Mr.. Morrison, sit is act.
ually impossible 10 handle any kind Of
lumber without the privilege OF catching
1t on heriver where they can take care o.
it, and to-day there are numbers Of saw
mills established along the creek banks
and the Elk river one hundred miles above
the boom ut the mouth OF the river, fol
the purpose Of saving lumber for the use
OF farmers and the villages, but they arr
not allowed under the law To- erect a packe
or sheer boom to stop and bold theil
logs for that purpose. Consequently
the country is. greatly retarded and 9
number OF enterprising citizens have lef
. the section on account OF not having the
, right to market their timberwithout hav
ing to pay such taritfias would entirely
/ destroy their profits. 1t Is clear TO nii wht
have acquainted themselves with the facts
OF this case thattlle entire profits OF THU
! whole country, have been legislated int
Z the hands OF one individual at q time
when the Legislature did not understand
: what 1t was doing. $50 8
i '..The people have not as yet been ablet II
!, relieve themselves Of this great grievance
4 from the fact that the individual holding
!; this control over these waters gets the en-
tire profits accruing from the labors o
forty thousand people, and then defeat
their efforts for Just relief by employing
such men as Mr.. Mason and others t
lobby in each Legislature and defeat an,
, and all Bills that may be offered for theil
!, relief. He has for the last twelve year
been successful, sometimes by defeating
. the bill and at other times by referring
the bills 10 different committees and caus
!, ing their delay until the adjournment o
the Legislature"