The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1903-04-06
BELT LINE MAY Be
COMPLETED SOON
Extension May be Built from
GadSden TO Altoona
WANT TO REDEEM LANDS
Application Filed by H. F. De5ardeIe-
ben In Etowah county-Probate
court-cotton Receipts VIII
be About 1000 Bales.

Gadsden, April 5.-(special.)-A has
been announced the Louisville and Nash
VILE intends to build an extension from
Gadsden to Altoona. which will complete
a belt line which will tap the mineral and
manufacturing centers of north Alabama.
1t will open up the Greasy Cove iron
ore fields and the coal beds of Etowah
ahd Blount counties. That this Is a very
rich section is evidenced by the fact that
all the railroads centering in Gadsden are
making preparations to reach 1t.
The Louisville and Nashville and the
n. c. & st. L. will handle the traffic
over the same tracks. The Southern now
has a corps of surveyors in the field to
survey the Rome and Decatur division
from Alfalfa to Decatur. With this extern
sion completed the Southern would con-
meet with its Memphis and Charleston
division at Decatur and would thereby
form a connecting link which places Mem
phs and nearby points seventy-fiye miles
nearer the seaboard.
1t may be, temporarily, that the South
ern will go over the Alabama Great
Southern tracks to Steele and from there
split the Greasy Cove section to Altoona,
and from there on through Cullman and
Morgan counties to Decatur.
There is a well authenticated story here
that the Louisville and Nashville will soon
take charge of the N, c. & ST. L. road
which operates between Gadsden and
Guntersville and will complete the road,
bridging the Tennessee river near Cum
tersvlle on into Huntsville.
There is no doubt that the Louisville
and Nashville will either build another
bridge across the Coosa here or rebuild
the old one on account of the traffic that
is certain to increase with the completion
of the belt line of the mineral district
If the Louisville and Nashville Is taken
over the NJ, e. & st. l., the new bridge
will more than likely be built and the
old one turned over to the county. This
really seems to be the accepted idea in
railroad circles
The directors and stockholders of the
Alabama Steel and Wire company spent
yesterday at the mines of the company in
Cherokee county. The party made a tour
of inspection of the properties of the
company in this district. and were well
pleased with the progress being made.
The steel people are getting out ore
there much cheaper than in any other
part of the state. The assay shows that
the ore is equal and perhaps superior to
that of the lake region in the northwest.
The supply Is inexhaustible and the COM
pany owns the greater portion of it.
Pickpockets have been getting in their
work here lately. The usual crowd of
pickpockets that accompany the street
fair were here last week, and several per-
sons were relieved of their money. Will
liam Ballew, blacksmith, lost $l0 and
other losses were reported during the
week.
Henry f. Debardeleben made appllca-
tion in the Probate office to redeem TO-
464 acres of mineral land in Etowah coun-
ty which had been sold in 1893 for taxes
The lands lie mostly in the western part
of the county and in the region which
will be opened up by the extension of the
railroads through Greasy Cove section
w. p McCrossin, agent for Mr.. De-
bardeleben, was in Gadsden yesterday to
file the application for redeeming the
land. 1t is estimated that the county
will get fee of something like $4,000 cash
out of this deal.
The* cotton receipts for Gadsden this
season will run to about 1000 bales This
is more than was anticipated, but rep
resents only half the normal crop Su-
perintendent M. e. Jones has a large force
of workmen at work getting ready to in
stall the new 5000 000-gallon pump. He
will have to wait for an s. foot fall in the
river so that the new intake can be cut
in. The water Is very muddy but Gads-
den had rather have muddy water than
be without water protection