Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1902-08-21
News of the Railroads.

A good many persons have not been
able to bring themselves to really be-
lieve that the Baltimore & Ohio Rail-
road is to be built through Shepherds
town. They admit that the new cut
off will be constructed as far as the
Cumberland Valley road, because the
right Of way has been bought and
work is actually going on. but they
think it will end there. The REGIS
TER can assure these doubters that
there is practically no question about
the building of the Shepherdstown
section of the cutoff. We have been
told on reliable authority that the
work has been actually authorized by
the B. & O. company, and Engineer
Sisson's men, under instructions to
push the work as expeditiOusly as
possible, are DOW at work on this end
making the permanent location of the
roadbed. They have finished the sec
ton between the Cumberland Valley
Railroad and Opequon creek, and on
Tuesday were at work on the Tabler
farm, this side Of the Opequon. They
will probably reach Shepherdstown
within a couple of weeks. Miles w.
Starr, whose farm near Billmyer's Mill
will be pretty badly cut up by the
ew road, has been hoping against
hope that the railroad would only be
built on paper. The other day he
found a wagon load of surveyors pins
dumped on his place, and now he
gives up.
A special term of the Berkeley Cir
cult Court was held at Martinsburg
on Monday by Judge Faulkner, in
order that condemnation proceedings
might be instituted by the Cherry
Run and Potomac Valley Railroad
for land it desires to obtain from Mrs.
Sarah E. Gerliug. The court ap-
pointed Gilbert Kitchen, G. W. Nc
Kown, James H. Fulk, James II.
Smith and E. W. Lupton commission
ers to ascertain the compensation
which Mrs. Gerllng is entitled to. In
a majority of the cases the company
has been able to come to an agree
ment with the land owners through
whose land the road passes, but the
price set upon it by few persons Is
higher than the company is willing to
give,
George Gould and the Wabash
officials have ordered their legal de-
partment to examine the contracts
which the Western Maryland has with
the Baltimore and Ohio and Reading
roads for interchange Of freight, to see
if an injunction will lie to prevent the
Baltimore and Ohio from carrying
into effect the notice which it has
served on the Western Maryland,
that on and after September l it will
discontinue interchanging freight with
the Western Maryland at Cherry Run.
The contracts have existed for about
twelve years, but were renewed about
two years ago. 1t is said that the new
contracts have sixteen years yet to run.
The Cumberland Valley Railroad
is pushing the work of building new
sidings and double-tracking its line
in order to provide for the increase
of freight, but scarcity of laborers
embarrasses progress. The Pennsyl-
vania Railroad has lent the G. V. a
construction train and big gang of
Italian laborers.
The Norfolk & Western Railway
has issued useful and interesting
pamphlet, entitled THE Business
Of Farming in Virginia, written by
Paul Scherer. 1t Is a study Of the
agricultural resources Of the State
and of this valley, and is filled with
practical information and valuable
statistics.
Contracts will soon be awarded by
the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad for
100 new locomotives. There are now
1874 new engines under construction
for the Baltimore and Ohio, and this
order will make 254 to be delivered
by next summer. They will represent
an outlay of $4,5OO,000.