The daily citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1889-1890, 1889-12-17
YANCEY MOVING.
AN ENTHUSIASTIC RAILROAD
MEETING IN BURNSVILI.E.
Capt. Matt Atkinson Addresses a
Large AssemblaHe In the Court
HOuse-A subscription Seems a
FOreYOne Conclusion.

On the first Monday in this month the
commissioners of this county believing
that the time had come for them to move
in the matter of giving aid to some rail
road or roads determined to call the JUS
tices Of the peace together to act with
them in this important matter, and to
meet at the court house in Burnsville on
Saturday, 14th inst. At the same time
a committee composed of one person
from each township was appointed to
prepare and report suitable resolutions
and papers for the action of the ioint
board.
The commissioners and a considerable
number of the magistrates together with
large number of the citizens meet at
Burnsvillc on Saturday when the rail-
road question was fully considered and
disposed of after the following order:
Between eleven and twelve O'Clock the
court house bell summoned the people and
county officials together to proceed with
the business that they had met to trans
act, and when the court room was well
filled the chairman OF the commissioners,
knowing that the Atlanta, Asheville and
Baltimore railroad company was the
one the people had most at heart, called
upon Capt. Matt Atkinson, it's president,
for an address, not only on the matter OF
his oed, bur for arguments and reasons
why the people OF Yancey county should
vote in aid of railroads through that
county. Although suffering from deep
and severccold Capt. Atkinson responded
in one of the best efforts of his life, and |
wish every man i'll Yancey could have
heard his speech. For more than one
hour and half the audience was held
almost spell bound, and at the close.they
were so well pleased that if the PROPOSE
ton had been put, the subscription would
have been given to the A, A. and B. road
without dissenting vote.
He first spoke of the South and the
Southern people who had come up out OF
the ashes as it were since the war and
were manfully battling in times of peace
as they did in war for the honor and
prosperity of this section, and notwith-
standing our adverse surroundings we
were again on our feet and ready under
all circumstances to do our full duty.
That duty now was to possess ourselves
of those advantages enjoyed by our
brethren in other sections of our dear
Southland. He showed us what a great
country we had, what a great people we
were and we only needed to be informed
that railroads and the other Convenicnccs
of life were possible and we would have
them.
He called attention to the fact that
Yancey county had ever since she was
county, been paying taxes to build rail
In, of Ia CT
in every portion, from the mountains to
the sea, and they had never given cent
to build railroads or anything else for
themselves. He showed what grand
line the Atlanta, Ashevile and Baltimore
railroad was; that it passed 400 miles
through section that had no roads,
and through the finest timber and min
eral belt in the continent of America, and
that it is 100 miles shorter than any other
line from Atlanta towards the northeast
ern cities. He told them that old Bun
combe had met in mass meeting and in
structed the commissioners of that coun-
ty to submit proposition of 100000
to be voted for their road. He then
showed that this road would run twenty
miles through Yancey county, and that
the tax on the railroad property would
almost pay the entire tax on the bonds
of $50, 900 which were to be subscribed
to build it. He showed them how such
a road would build them beautiful lit
tie city at Burnsville which would in
few years pay two-thirds of their taxes,
as Asheville was now doing for Bun
combe county.
He called their attention to the great
fertility of Yancey soil, and its adapta-
bllity especially to fruit raising. He
showed that if the county would cult
vate one single variety of apples eXclu-
sively, they would within twenty years
be the richest people in the Southern
States. That apple was the Newtown
or Albemarle pippin; that apple grows
to greater perfection i'll this county than
in Virginia where it sells by the car load
at four and five dollars barrel, and not
one barrel in hundred that is wanted
could be gotten.
wish you had more space to permit
other strong points of his speech to be
given for the benefit of those who did
not hear. At the conclusion OF Capt.
Atkinsons speech the meeting adjourned
till after dinner.
Again the bell called the meeting to
order when G. d. Ray, vice-prcsident of
the Atlanta, Asheville and Baltimore
railroad, was called to the chair and l..
H. Smith was requested to act as Secre-
nv. When this was done Capt. W. NJ.
Moore, chairman of the committee was
appointed to prepare proceedings for the
action of the joint board presented for
the consideration of the board the result
of their delberation to wit: That Yam
cey county subscribe $4,000 to the At
lanta, Asheville and Baltimore railroad
company.
When this proposition was submitted
Col. McElroy was called for and made
an excellent speech i'll favor of railroads.
He showed the people the great advan
tages Of railroads and at the conclusion
of his speech he was heartily cheered.
Then Capt. ]. NJ. Gudger came to the
front after being loudly called for, and
gave us one of his level best, and that
means a good deal.
Then Col St. Clair, the attorney Of the
three C's railroad was called for and
made most impressive and unanSwera-
BILE speech in behalf of railroads and es-
peciaIly his road that was then making
its survey in this county. He impressed
the audience very much and made many
friends frr himself and his road. At the
conclusion of his well received remarks,
Mr.. Ramseur came forward and said he
had no speech to make as he had written
to the commissioners what he had to
say.
At this juncture Captain Moore, the
attorney for the county, announced that
there was not a majority of the justices
of the peace present, which the law re-
quired to make their action legal. and
moved that the meeting adjourn for
final action till Tuesday after the first
Monday in February, 1890.
The SECRETARY was requested to pub