The Newtown bee. (Newtown, Conn.) 1877-current, 1890-06-06
WESTPORT.

l
the various opinions submitted to the
press. The project was to connect at
Saugatuck, with the Consolidated road,
line running up the Saugatuck valley
to Newtown and Hawleyville, crossing
the Housatonic and New England and
thence by the Shepaug till the Nauga-
tuck was touched, stopping only when
the great rival of the Consolidated, the
Boston and Albany, was reached. The
plan was grand one and the people of
Westport will never know how great is
their loss in not securing this, the best
offer ever made to a community needing
railroad facilities to aid in its growth.
Some doubted the genuineness of the pro-
| ject. Others said, eff capitalists want a
road, let them build it, and, taking the
matter in its entirety, it received sympa-
thy from but very few and Westport will
wait for something else to turn up and
bring her prosperity, while she stands
with her hands in her pockets complain
ing that the business done is less than 80
| years ago. Saugatuck, ON the other hand,
has much to encourage her and the peo-
| pie do not know of all the contemplated
| improvements by the Consolidated road.
Notwithstanding the popular cry against
large corporations, with the effort to
brand them as monopolies, they under
take and perform great enterprises tha9
are invaluable to the public, both locally
and nationally. The grading for the new
station (Which, by the way, is a matter
| of great interest to the people here, for,
when they pass the superb structures
built by the company at Rye, Mamaro-
neck and Larchmont, they look ON them
with pleasure and pride, hoping that the
day is not far distant when their own
station will resemble one of these) freight
house, switches, ETC., is IA great under
taking, requiring some Is Or 20 feet fill
ing, for more than 500 feet in length and
hundreds of feet in width. To obtain
the filling for these three or four acres,
the company purchased some Is to 20
acres on the east side of the river and,
every day, you may see a train of about
eight cars manned with six Italians to
the car, who fill these cars from five to
six times day, each car holding from
Is to 20 yards of gravel. When you wish
to see laborers in the full sense of the
word, you may look at these men and see
this whole train emptied by the shovel in
seven minutes. The grading on the east
side of the river has reached Compo
street, with the ties and rails all laid
ready to receive the ballast. Some 1000
or 5000 ties are already on the ground
and few weeks more will complete the
grade to Hale's bridge. The heaviest
rails, 73 pounds to the yard, are being
laid and no expense spared to make ev-
cry part the best known to modern rail-
road building. This enormous expense
leaves its ,beneficent results i'm various
localities and homes. The ties represent,
at 33c apiece, (two tracks) about $2225
per mile. These are all, or nearly so,
cut by our Connecticut farmers (whose
farms are not many of them market gar
dens), who need the money they earn
during the Winter, hewing and drawing
| the ties, to help balance up accounts and
keep out of debit If any farm product
costs the producer more hard labor for
the return it brings, than getting out
railroad ties, we do not want to make its
acquaintance.
The rails, ut S27 80 per ton, cost over
$1,000 per mile and, probably, aid in
supporting many Pennsylvania homes.
The grading gives employment to many
local men and teams and thus the COM
munity, directly and indirectly, are being
benefited as the work progresses and.
when completed, it will accomplish MOI e
for Saugatuck than two decades in the
past have done.
Alfred Kellogg of Boston has been in
/ town.
j. Milton Elwood of Brooklyn spent
Memorial day with his parents.
Mrs Frank Darrow is quite ill.
Mrs d. S. Gray of Bridgeport has been
in town.
I D.A. Salmon is having his house paint
ed.
1
Peter r. Foote'S.
Van w. Bogart of Mount Vernon was
in town, Memorial day.
| James Donlan is having improvements
made about his place.
a cornet and flute accompaniment have
been added to the choir of Memorial
church.
/ Charles Fable expected his new hearse,
Thursday of this week.
George S. Adams has the frame ready
for new barn.
Mr. and Mrs Stannard and Mr. and Mrs
Phelps of Bridgeport spent Decoration
day at Hezekiah Lyons.
Mr. and Mrs William Tuttle of Bridge.
| port and Mrs George Dickerson Of Brook
lyn visit Mrs Lorenzo Tuttle.
Miss Minnie Decker Of Stamford visits
Mrs Jarvis Renoude.
Mrs Eli Smith and children Of Bridge
port have visited Mrs William B.Wright
Miss Sarah Allen Of Milford has visited
Miss Celeste Lockwood.
Mrs c. A. Bunnell and Mrs Ball OF
Brooklyn and Miss McNeilof Bridgeport
have visited Mrs e. f. Marvin.
Fred Adams OF New York visits his
parents.
:lMrs Samuel Wood is in stonington.