The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-07-20
BY RAIL TO coLLEToN NECK.
THE ROAD To- CROSS SAVANNAH,
MAY AND NEW RIVERS.

IL viii Pass Near BIuntOn-SeveraI
surveys Run and the Route
Agreed Upon-SurveyOr's Now at
Work Neur May and New Rivers.
The projectors Of the proposed rail-
road from this city to Foot Point or Col
Teton Neck. Beaufort County, South Caro-
lima. appear TO be in earnest about build
ing their road. Several surveys have been
run and one agreed upon. The road viii
be about . miles in length and viii cross
the Savannah river, and May and New
rivers, and pass near Burton. S c.
II the road should be built it would not
only reach one Of the deepest points on
the waters of which Port Royal is the en-
trance, but will open up to settlement
beautiful, productive and healthy country.
Reports from Button state that sur
veyors are at work running up all land
lines between May and COlleton rivers,
probably in the interests Of the railroad
syndicate.
Benjamin Jeans. the oldest guard on the
Great Western railway, if not in England,
has retired after ffty-three years service,
during which he has Travelled some 4OOO,OO
miles in his guards van.
Under the new ruling Of the postoffice
department against the transportation in
baggage or freight cars of mail concern
ing railroad business, excepting waybills
and correspondence pertaining to freight
carried the railways will hereafter have
TO contribute large addition TO the pos
tai revenues. The railroad exchanges,
which have for years been conducted at
the principal centers for the purpose of
promptly distributing interchange mail
matter among the different railway head
quaters, Will go out OF business, except
as to the exchange of local correspondence
by messengers, and the companies will
comply with the demand that they pay
the government for the privilege of carry
ing their own business correspondence, as
long as the ruling is In force. 1t is very
probable that the long established r.. r.
b." mail business has given rise to some
abuses, and the radical attack now insti-
tuted may result in a new ruling which
Will admit legitimate business correspond
ence to free carriage between officials Of
railway, while prohibiting any extern
sion Of the privilege to personal matters
or TO exchange between different roads.
American railways, as a whole, earned
more in the first six months of 1896, than
in the corresponding period Of 1895 or 1891.
If they had not their condition would
have been discouraging indeed, for both
the previous years were bad years, and
1894 was marked by a tremendous falling
of in earnings from the totals of several
previous years, says the Railway Age.
The fact that there has been considerable
improvement this year and that too, in
spite of the depressing effect upon bust
ness of campaign agitation, is some en-
cOuragement, and when the returns of
net earning are in it will undoubtedly ap-
pear that most of the roads are rather
better off than they We're last year or the
year before At present, however, the
number of lines which have reported
either gross or net earnings is not suffi-
ciently large for very positive statement
as to the comparative results
for the railways as whole.
The gross earnings for the six months
from Jan. l TO June 30, are given for 121
roads, with 1858 miles of lines. OF this
total 9. 1903 miles belong to Canadian roads
and 1897 miles to Mexican roads, leaving
for roads in the United States only 81, sos
miles or about A per cent. of the entire
mileage of the country. But, although
many great systems are thus far lacking
the list is fairly representative particu-
larry of the western and southern roads,
and gives an interesting basis for compar-
isons. The l2O roads enumerated show
earnings Tor the six months of 1921, 6i3 900,
an increase of SIS, PCS 900, or about 615 per
cent. OF the whole number, ninety-eight
roads show gains, many of them very
large, while 1872 show losses compared with
last year, but in the majority of cases
the decrease is small For the month of
June ~ roads, operating 93,0S6 miles, re-
port an increase of 81 404, 933 or 6.S per
that of any previous month in the year
except January and February; and as an
exceptionally large harvest is now begin
ming 10 be moved there is reason to hone
that earnings will continue to improve
somewhat for the remainder of the year.
]. w. Oglesby, president of the South
Georgia railroad writes that one mile of
track has been laid since Jan. !, on this
road between Heartpine and Whitman and
In daK
to put down 2l12 miles more Five miles
OF road were completed previous to Jan
], making six miles now in operation.
Grading and bridging are in progress, and
by Sept. 10, 1t is expected to have the road
completed to Whitman, a distance of 27Ib
miles from Heartpine. The road will do
regular freight and passenger business.
In its issue of June 27. the Railway Age
published a table summarizing its records
of tracklaying in the United States dur
ing the first six months of the year, and
showing a total of 1852 miles laid on So
lines in % of the states and territories
On the same date the Railroad Gazette
printed its summary for the same period
which declared that only 717.3 miles of
track, or Il miles lesssthan reported by the
Age, had been laid since Jan. / in % states
and territories, the number of lines not
being stated
A Knoxville, Tenn, dispatch says it is
learned that the Norfolk and Western
road has secured the Marietta and North
Georgia property and the s. and o. at
Bristol and will build to Knoxville and
run trains straight through 10 Atlanta
The story is thought to be straight since
the agents of the company have bought
upward of 2e0 eco acres of land in Cooke
and Sewer counties and paid cash for If
Newman Erb is said to be the agent of
the new company
POLES QUIT MIssLER COLONY.