The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-03-18
IMPORTANT PUBLIC MEETING.
Matter of River Kavfgation-An
Ugly Looking ~Ffre-News Notes.
Correspondence Of The Nessenger.)
Fayetteville, n. c., March IA.

Correspondence of The Aessenger.)
Fayetteville. N. c., March Il
Last evening there was a large gath
ering OF the representative men OF Fay
etteviIle in the county court room, TO
take into consideration matters peril
nent to the Industrial and business de-
velopment of this city n section. and
especially to discuss the vital measure
of upper Cape Fear navigation Mr.
A H. Slocomb. president OF the cham
Der of commerce. was in the chair, and
Mr.. T. R. Rose acted as secretary. The
former. having forcibly set forth the
object Of the meeting. declared it ready
for the transaction Of business, where
upon the following were appointed a
| committee to draft resolutions express
sive Of the sense of the people Of the
upper Cape Fear section Of the para
mount importance Of congressional aid
for river navigation; Nessrs. q J.
Hale. Hon. J.. G. Shaw. Messrs. L. =
| Bash and III. R. Horne.
During the absence of the COMMITTEES
| from the hall for conference, brief but In
teresting speeches were made by Rev.
III. T.. Graham. Hon. G. NJ. Rose. Colonel
c. w. Broadfoot. Captain J.. D. MCNEIL
and Mr.. E. R.. McKethan, at the close
of which the committee. through the
chairman, Major E. j. Hale. submitted
the following report: The preamble
succinctly sets forth these facts: 1.
That from 1876, when a charter was
granted to the Cape Fear Navigation
Company. UP to about twenty years
ago. the river was under the control Of
| The state Of North Carolina; that at
that time the general government
bought out the navigation company,
took control of the river. made Fayette-
| Vile a port OF entry, and adopted a plan
| for the improvement of navigation at an
estimated cost of SITE. 900, of which $685.
900 has been eXpended-a plan which
was but the enlargement of the Did
work with p~etties. rendered Intellectual
by deforestation along the hea waters
of the Cape Fear. and pronounced by
Captain p. VanC. Lucas, gocernment
engineer practically worthless. 2. That
every possible objection has been over
thrown to the contention that the gov
eminent has bound itself. as public
duty, to maintain the Cape Fear river
as a navigable highway; that the last
general assembly of NORTH CAROLYN, by
resolution to it's senators and represen-
tatives in congress unanimously endors-
ed this improvement; that our senators
and representatives, sitting as a deliber-
ative body on the 18th of January,
bound themselves to use every effort
to secure the needed appropriation, and
to ask that $3.50. 600 out of the WHOLE
moun of $515. 900 needed for North
Carolina. be given to this particular
work. 3. That in the opinion of Hon.
John D. Bllamy the committee on ap-
propriations was controlled in its action
by the report of Colonel p. G. Hams,
division engineer. to the effect that the
whole amount of traffic. approximating
$165. 900, 900. existing in the territory
tributary to Fayetteville, would not be
diverted to Cape Fear by the proposed
work . and, if so. it would only be
changing business from one port to an
other. 4. That it is within common
knowledge that the government has ap-
propriated elsewhere several times as
much as is asked for for the Cape Fear,
securing only one-siXth as much traffic
thereby: that the lewiston of business
from one port to another is the effect Of
all such improvement-notably in the
case of New York spot cotton, diverted
to southern ports by the Improvement
of southern harbors
Hon.. John G.. Shaw, Capt. J. d. Nc
Neill, Messrs. H. Med. Robinson and
saa Muchison spoke in behalf of the
resolutions, and after their adoption
Maj. E. G. Hale and Mr.. A. H. Slo-
comb were appointed a committee to
go to Washington to present the sub
ject matter therein, the town and
county governments being requested
to contribute towards the expenses.
Hon. John G Shaw spoke effectively
on the bright prospects of direct rail-
way connections with Raleigh and
Charleston; and. to promote and CO.
operate with iris enterprise. the fol-
lowing committee was appointed:
Capt. A. B. Williams, Col. w. S. Cook,
Messrs. H. r. Horne, F. r. Rose and
A. H. Slocomb.
Capt. J. D. Mcneil then addressed
the meeting on the Importance of the
April good roads convention to as
semble here. with Governor Aycock
present.
The meeting adjourned after the rep
resentative Of the Long Distance
Telephone Company had spoken
briefly in behalf of his enterprise.
At IL o'clock this morning a fire
alarm carried the department to
Ramsey street, where the dwelling
house OF Mr.. Mack Johnson was de-
stroyed. Mr.. Johnson, who was bed
ridden by illness, being carried from
the burning building on n litter. The
firemen a their hands full of work.
two small houses on each side catching
once or twice, while a blaze was ex-
tinguished on the roof Of Mrs. L. r.
Dyes residence across the street.
The congregation of the First Bap-
fist church will meet in the session
room this evening to organize a liter
airy and reading society, and music,
Rotations, ETC., are on the programme
of exercises
Fine stock reached here yesterday
for the Myrtle Hill farm.
During his brief stay here, State
Superintendent Joyner visited the Col
ored Normal School, of which Prof.
E E. Smith is PRINCIPAL. and made an
address to the pupils.