The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1899-06-07
As HE SEES IT.
An Observing Citizen Tells a
Few Facts.

! An Observing Citizen Tells a
Few Facts.
He SAYS Morgantown is new in Her
Crucial Period and If We don't take
|, Advantage Of the Present Upp0rtuni-
T ty Real Estate will soon begin to De-
cline.
To the Editor Of The NEW DoMIsIoN:
There appears to be an honest diff
ference Of opinion as TO the best in
terest Of the people Of Morgan District
relative to the railroad subscription,
whether the road will pay or not:
whether or not somebody is to be adj
yantaged more than somebody else by
its building, and many other pros and
cons, some of which are pertinent.
and some falacious. What has Nor
gan district TO gain by the building
of this road? and what advantages
would accrue to the people by build
ing this road over any other road in
cur midst? and when is the time to
do it? These are questions that should
be discussed fairly and dispassionately;
eliminating the personality OF any one
man, and looking entirely to the bet
terment Of all.
Then will this road pay?
Tributary to M0rgantown lies sec
tion of country, known as the noun
tain district, the land is rough, the
people are in a measure poor, under
very adverse circumstances they have
kept pace with the people in the bal
ance of the county taking opportu-
nifty into consideration. Under these
barren hills and mountains they have
| inexhaustible wealth in lime, coal,
| iron ore glass sand, fire clay-and
| largely covered with merchantable
timber, all laying close to market, and
unmarketable for want of transporta-
tion.
The lime alone would justify the
building of this road, and the writer
of this article would desire no more
lucrative position than reasonable
commission on the lime he could sell
to the large factories of Pittsburg,
where the daily con sumption of this
one article is so large that its ship
ment from this county would change
the conditions now existing along the
line, of this proposed road, to such an
extent, that the most credulous could
hardly realize the change.
Aside from the lime you have coal,
and coal OF a very desirable quality.
Does anyone pretend to say we
could open mines and ship coal? We
have fire clay and glass sand, has the
curse of the almighty singled out this
section to the extent that these pro-
ducts are inferior to like products
found elsewhere, and found many
miles away from ready market max
ing the haul much longer, and the
expense consequently, much greater.
If these mines could be opened it
would employ labor, where no labor
now exists, and the resultant effect
would be to aid all who are in bust
ness, or have anything to sell, wheth-
er farm products, merchandise or
muscle, pay day is red letter day al
ways, and its effects are far reaching
and of healthy character
If condition of things such as |
have mentioned could be brought
dbout, uuCh uuc HucSulUu WutbDtI III /
is safe Investment is answered, for |
an impetus given to a producing |
section of country that would be made |
a profitable and producing section,
would keep up and pay dividends on a
short and cheap line of translorta- |
tion and that question is hardly worth !
wasting words over.
Now as to the proposition of who is |
to be most advantaged, that, depends
on the individual citizen. If one
man takes off his coat, bares his arm,
puts his entire energy into the enter
prise and intelligently marks out his
line Of conduct, and follows it per-
sistently to finish, he will, and he
should, be more advantaged than the
man whose every dollar goes out of
circulation the minute it strikes his
palm, and who acts as dead lock on
any and all public Improvements I'M
less there is fee at the back of it.
No man is good leader who never
unloads dollar of his own in an eff
fort to enhance the public welfare.
Show me public spirited man who
is always willing to put up his money
for new enterprises and | will show
you a man who is friend to this pro |
posed railroad. and you can find the (
other gentlemen ranged on the oppo-
site side, | know them, have lived I
many years among them, and would /
think they ought to be sent to the (
dock and have their hulls scraped, for
during life's voyage a large quantity |
nf bnr al l..,xr 80
gathered on them, they need scrap |
ing.
These people cannot expect to be |
advantaged as much as the man who !
goes in to win, and it is their own |
fault, and not the fault of the man,
who realizing that he has but short
time here, desires to make himself |
felt in the world of progress.
Morgantown is just now in a pecu-
liar position, she must go ahead or
go back, and desire to say that the |
building of this railroad would do |
more for Morgantown and the district |
of Morgan than any other road you
could have.
Your trunk line roads leave at
your doors the products of other sec
lions that manufacturers produce
and ship.
The goods unloaded at your depot
must be paid for here, first cost, and |
freight collected at this end of the
line.
"The consumer pays the cost"
while local road whose only object |
is to foster the productions of your
own county would cause the bills to
be collected at the other points, and |
bring the money into your midst to
be paid out for what is now useless
material and for labor at this time |
unemployed. AS SEE IT.
VInUmV EIUE nENNC