The Washington critic., 1890-02-07
THE LEASE OF Thee. so.
HOW 1T WILL AFFECT THE INTER-
ESTS OF GEO 7GETOWN.

Property would Be EuNanced IN Value
by u Railroad TheIr Some ThInk
the Revival of the tnai Would
lie Good for the old city.
The message transmitted by Governor
jackson to the Maryland Legislature,
recommending that the bid for the Chcs !
apeake and Ohio Canal made by the
Cumberland and Washington Railroad
Company be accepted, has created a
profound sensation among the leading
business men of Georgetown.
RAILROAD WANTED.
Speaking of the matter to CRITIC !
reporter, Mr.. Arthur B. Cropley Of the
Pioneer and Cumberland mills said |
MY opinion is that the lease or sale
will be very beneficial to Georgetown. |
The canal Is owned largely by the State |
of Maryland and certain bondholders,
known as those OF 1874 and 1878. The |
canal commences at Cumberland, Md,
and terminates at Georgetown. At one |
time a branch led over to Washington,
but II was never used much and was
filed up and obliterated from that city
long ago. al
II do not understand that the build.
ing of the proposed railroad will dam
age or interfere in any way with the
city's water power. We have our power
rented for ninety nine years, and the
State, being back of the contract, will
make It good The road would follow
the canal bed until 1t reached point
about three miles above Georgetown,
where the canal Is fed by the ri yer, and
there ii would branch off and leave the
canal, which would remain intact from
that point.
REAL ESTATE VALUES INCREASE.
81 am satisfied that mill and ware
house property would be greatly en-
HANGED in value by railroad. and
want to see one come here, by all
| means. This is one of the oldest towns
in America---a place numbering $4,000
inhabitants without single railroad.
Think of it, f..
Mr.. Archibald Greenlees said: II am
| unoialifiedly in favor of the restoration
| of the canal as being TO the best interests
of Georgetown and the coal business of
the District. The new railroad would
in all probability make its connection
with Williamsport, and by that route
| connect with Baltimore and for some
time to come pay no attention to the
| District.
I. II believe that in the hands of re-
! ceivers representing the varied bonded
interests the canal, when restored, can
be protitably operated AS between a
canal and q railroad, the canal is far
more profitable. There is simply no
comparison. We would be glad to
have railroad, but not glad to have
one at the expense of the canal.
THE CANAL MORE IMPORTANT.
| Every canal boat which enters this
place represents an outlay of money
with our business men of $50. Their
manifests are largely settled here and
the money spent upon the ground.
The canal cost $4,000, ,000;. itcan be
restored for $3.50, 900, and can beputin
working order in three months To
build railroad is to put us off indefi-
nitely "A bird in the the hand is
worth two in the bush y
Another gentleman, who desired
that his name be not mentioned, said
that after talking the matter over with
those in position to know best, he
was satisfied that the concensus of opin-
ion was that the business interests of
Georgetown required freight depot
on the Virginia side of the Long
Bridge, where the Pennsylvania Rail-
way could distribute the freight in
tended for the north and northwest
part of the city, and thus avoid long
hauls and also relieve the pressure of
the freight depots in South Washing
ton.
OLD RAILROAD PROJECTS.
Referring to the matter Mr. f. L..
Moore said: "We want road very
badly, and we have wanted one for
years, and have considered many plans.
Only one ever amounted to anything.
!, There was a subscription Of SIS, 800
toward building road from here to
Falls Church, which was to be extended
to Fairfax Court House and on to the
coal fields in Hampshire. The road
was nearly graded to Falls Church; the
contract for ties was taken by Mr..
Proctor, who distributed a large num-
Der along the line, but they were allowed
TO rot or be burned before the money
! was raised TO put down the IRON"
"The project fell through upon the
death of Mr.. p. b. Bost, who was the
originator of it. Since then we have
had numerous projects in view to con.
meet us with the Baltimore and Ohio
and also with the Baltimore and Poto
mac and recently with the Gettysburg
road, but none of them have matured
We want the railroad and canal both
If this would be made the terminus OF
the railroad, with its shops, employing
number of men. It tmight be worth as
! much to US as the canal, which, in its
b best days, brought us customers from
thirty boats daily arriving, amounting
to nearly 5000 day, expended for pro
! visions for the round trip Of two weeks
! and provender for four mules for eacl
: boat.
These boats brought us one yeal
500, coo tons OF coal. which was
shipped in vessels to eastern ports
To these vessels we sold nearly as mucf
as We did to the canal boats.
: cannot ee.how we could sell as mucl
TO a railway which supplanted the
canal, unless they had their wharve'
here employing an equal number Of
men. If a railroad comes and make:
. Georgetown its terminus 1t will have
the effect of materially increasing tn,
value of real estate, but if this is mad,
a way station twill result, as it did il
Alexandria, where business property i
now selling for lower price than it die
before any railroad entered that city
, A THING OF STRAW.
In an interview at Annapolis, Md.
3 yesterday, Senator Wootton said of tn
proposition: "a lease for ninety,nin
years, renewable forever, is virtually
/ sale, and as such must be ratified by tn
1 ensuing General Assembly. The propo
{ sition to lease does not come from a re
e sponsible party The Washington AM
e Cumberland Railroad Company /
simply thing OF straw, just organized
for this specific purpose. None of it
i -. [. L.