The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1903-05-13
COMING THIS WAY.
Morgantown to be on the Wa
bash Lines After all.
Lines will run South Prom Mouth Of
Ten Mile Greek up the River to
Belington-Big Coal Purchases in
This Section Have Impelled tins
Move to be Taken-Parkersburg is
loss is our Gain.

Morgantown will probably be on the
main seaboard trunk line of the Wa
bash as the result of orders issued by
George j. Gould and President Ram
sey. All work has been stopped on
the Little Kanawha and the proposed
extension through western West Vir-
ginia, which was To have been part of
the seaboard extension. James w.
Patterson, President of the Greene.
County Railroad, has been directed to
make all haste In the awarding OF
contracts for the construction of that
road through TO connection with the
West Virginia Central al BeliDgton.
An immense tract of coal land has
been purchased at Fairmont by Mr..
Gould and his associates In the new
enterprises In order to insure a good
tonnage for the proposed trunk line.
Tracts over 120, 200 acres in extent
were purchased in Lewis and Gilmer
counties, w. Va, by the Little Kan
awha syndicate, Of which ]. T.. Blair
is President, the idea having been to
Sc it in connection with the Little
kanawha and connecting roads.
The reason given for the sudden
change are the expected long delay
10 the construction Of the big bridge
across the Ohio at Parkersburg and
the high cost OF labor and material,
but more particularly because the en-
gineers have discovered that the
Greene County Railroad will be much
shorter THAI the Little Kanawha
route, will have easier grades, will
have larger and more concentrated
tonnage and will ID more import
ant tonnage centers.
The Greene County railroad must
be built to reach the Cennellsville
coke region, AID short connection
along the Monongahela only is nee
essary to reach the West Virginia Gen.
trial. The building of two long lines
at this time was deemed unwise, and
the decision to make the trunk line
pass through this way was arrived
at.
A change in the connection OF the
Greene county road with the Pitts
burg, Carnegie & Western near Hick-
DRY will be made, and five corps of co.
neers Will endeavor to have all work.
ing plans ready for the contractors on
the Greene county road within the
next 10 days. The Buckhannon &
Northern, which will connect with
the Greene county road at the mouth
OF Ten Mile creek, will run along the
Monongahela to a connection at Bel
ington with the West Virginia Cen
trail. 1t will cut through a tract Of
coal of $1,000 acres just purchas.
ed at cost Of over$l 900, 600.
). d. Brady, who has been working
on The Little Kanawha, has been
transferred to the Buckhannon &
Northern, and he now has a number
OF engineers corps at work preparing
for contractors. The work on both
roads will be rushed through at once
1.-The reasons for the change of
plans" said Mr.. Ramsey, s'is that
our bridge over the Ohio is not sutfic-
iently far advanced to make it neces-
sary that we should continue work
there at present and, further, that
some Of our plans in that district
have not yet been passed by the Gov
ernment. We have removed these
contractors to other work, which will
give US connections with our new coal
fields in West Virginia and in the
Hooking Valley district and also hast
en- our entrance into Pittsburg.
"Itis not true" he added, ''that
we have abandoned work on the Lit
tie Kanawha extension. We have on
ly postponed it. We are not neglect
ing work necessary to complete our
trunk line to the seaboard as soon as
possible.
"With regard to our purchase OF
the Fairmont coal lands, this was
completed quite recently and involved
a sum reaching some millions of dol
lars. -