The Somerset reporter., 1906-09-06

cerned? BY the aid granted the road.
it has built UP IN this State a system
of railroad, which at the end Of the
twenty years contract in 1911, viii be
source OF revenue forever 10 the
State, to the extent of at least 500
10000 TO start with for in that year
this whole railroad system will com
mence paying in to the State treasurer
the full amount of its legal tax.
But what has the State received in
the meantime. The valuation of the
county of Aroostook in 1870, before
the projecting of this road, WAS So
900. 900. In 1904 it was 32G.590, 39l.00.
an increase of 6.590,S91.00. trace
able almost entirely to the building Of
this road. The mere fact that it was
to pc built ran the valuation up more
tan seven millions between 1890 and
1892.
But this is not all. The road is not
confined to Aroostook County but eX-
tends into Penobscot and Piscataquis.
In the same period the valuation Of
Piscataquis county increased about
50. 900. 10000 and that Of Penob-
scot about sic, 000, 10000, making a to-
tai increase in these three counties Of
$35, 100000. large portion Of
the increase in Penobscot ana Pscata-
quis Is directly traceable to the building
of this road.
The whole town of Alillinoeket has
grown up where, before this road VAS
built, the forest primeVal covered the
earth. and this is in Penobscot COuu-
ty. More than 5000, 100000 eXpend-
ed upon the building of this road WAS
obtained from outside OF the State. land
more than $40 100000 of capital from
outside the State has been invested i'll
private enterprises which have grown
up upon the line of this new road. Up
on all this great increase in valuation
| the State has collected the State tax
| through all these years and will go on
collecting In the future.
| There Is another thing worth not
Ing. The increase in population in
Aroostook County attributable to the
| building of this road has been far be-
yond that in any other portion of the
| State. Had It not been for this in
crease the State In the last apportion-
ment would have lost one of its rep
resentatives in Congress. II is d
rectly as a result of the building of this
road that we now have four memb ers
In the House of Representatives in
| stead of three.
Someone may say that this road
would have been built any way but if
he does. he little appreciates what il is
to project and build a railroad, The
experience of Maine in this direction
has shown that as a rule the building
OF roads results in loss to the original
| stockh olders perhaps the second set
OF stockholders, and that only a por-
ton of the investment can be saved
The Bangor & Aroostook Railroad
/ has been an exception to this rule.
| 1t Is true, that up to the time that
| this road was projected and built, the
| history of railroading in Maine WAS
not such as to make il easy to obtain
the funds necessary for such work.
The building of the Knox q Lin
coin by the aid of the towns along lis
| line of the old Somerset road, By
| CT nv 10 thrnnpb
which 1t ran. and later the building of
the Washington County road. to say
| nothing of the earlier enterprises.
have all shown the great hazard at
| tending such enterprises
The aid which the state granted to
the road in the way Of exemption Of
taxes which was only foregoing the
| possibility of taxing road which
might never exist without the aid.
seems little indeed for the whole State
| to do in securing such great adVan-
tages for the country of Aroostook and
| for the State as a whole.
The history OF the Washington
County road, built later on. empha-
sizes the risk which the county of
! Aroostook took In the building OF the
Bangor & Aroostook road. The coun-
! ty of Washington contributed toward
! the building of the Washington Coun-
| ty road, and the State extended the
same aid to them as to the Bangor x
Aroostook, but even with all this aid,
! the road was not elf-sustaining, and
| the county of Washington was the
! loser by the venture, so far Is the di-
rect investment was concerned; but
! does any one believe that the county
! of Washington to-day would have the
| Washington County Railroad removed
from its soil if thereby it could be re-
! imbursed for what it contributed tow
| ard its building?
The same business reasons present