The Columbus weekly dispatch., 1907-02-21
INSPECTING THE FINAL SURVEY.
President Fred Herrick Leaves cn
Trip with Party Of Engineers.

President Fred Herrick, of the
Pearl River Valley Railroad Com
pany, accompanied by party of nine
| engineers and surveyors, left Jackson
Saturday afternoon for trip up the
valley of the Pearl for the purpose OF
establishing the final survey o. the
road from Jackson TO Carthage.
The plans of the company are MAX
ing steady progress, and right-of-way
purchases are now being made. u Ir-
ing the past few days the company
has closed a deal for right-of-way
through the property OF L. Brame,
Jr., of Jackson, and other deals now
pending will be closed within a few
days President Herrick and his as
sociates have been operating quietly,
but in very business-lilIe manner,
and the present trip is for the pur-
pose of finally approving the route
mapped out by the engineers, and as
preliminary TO awarding contract
for grading work.
1t is learned that the company has
closed the purchase for depot and
yard facilities in the town of Garth
age, and the purchase price has been
paid over.
Many rumors have been ahoat con-
cerning the corporate interest behind
this enterprise, the latest being to the
effect that the Southern Railway Is
giving President Herrick it's backing,
but it is more than probable that he
has financed the enterprise through
individual influences, as he now owns
more than rs, 900 acres of the finest
timber lands in the Pearl river val
ley, and the road will pass over his
own land for a greater portion of the
distance between Jackson and Car
thage.
A gentleman in the city today from
Leake county brings the news that a
construction crew and a large gang
of laborers are working with all pos@
sible dispatch clearing off and prepar-
ing the right of way for the Pearl
River Valley road. The crews have
already made considerable headway
and are now in the country north of
northeast of Jackson.
This is the first authentic announce
ment here that work had begun on
this line, although it was announced
three months ago that the construc-
ton would be commenced early in
the present year. The syndicate own
ing the timber lands in this section
took out charter for the railroad
last summer and organized it with a
capital of ten millions, but no official
announcement has ever been made
by them and the present work was
begun so quietly that few people out
side of the immediate territory where
the crews are employed had the
slightest idea that actual construction
work was under way.
The charter fixes the terminals at
Jackson on this end of the line and a
point on the Alabama State line near
Columbus. From the work now be-
ing done it is evident that the line
will pass through Carthage and per
haps Edenburg in Leake county and
from thence to Louisville in Winston
county. No bridges will have TO be
built over Pearl river, as the line Will
come into Jackson on the north side
of the river and follow the north
bank of Pearl river. This route Will
carry it exactly midway between the
Alabama & Vicksburg on the south
and the Canton, Aberdeen & Nash
vile road on the north, being about
twenty-five miles from each, and VIII
open a territory which has never been
touched before by a railroad. The
country traversed is heavily timbered
with hard woods of various kinds In
the greatest abundance.-TheJ Jack
son Clarion-Ledger.