Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1914-04-02
LIksly To Get RaIlroas.

than generation, Southern Maryland
Is about to get the railroad upon which,
more than anything else, its develop
ment depends. w. Bernard Duke,
vice-president of the National Bank OF
Baltimore, with some business asso-
ciates, has secured an option on the
Watson interests In the old Southern
Maryland road, officially known as
the Washington, Potomac and Chesa-
peake, which operates little jerkwa-
ter line between Brandywine and Me-
chanicsville and which has franchise
for line extending from Washington
to Point Lookout with a connection
TO Baltimore via the Pennsylvania
line. IL is proposed by Mr.. Duke and
his associates to rebuild the line from
Brandywine to Mechanicsville and "a
extend the road north TO Washington
and south to either st. Mary's CITY.
on an estuary of the Potomac, or to
Esperanza, on the Patuxent
IL has been estimated by the eng;-
neers employed by the syndicate that
the line will cost tut 81, 2OO. 600. OF
this amount IL Is posed to have the
counties OF st. MAYS, Charles and
Prince Georges subscribe 1915. 600 and
the syndicate is to put up the remain
der, approximately $4,000. Most of
the money Is to come from New York.
Bills have been introduced In the
Legislature providing for a subscrip-
tlon OF sl5O,OoO by st. Mary's county.
the money to be available when the
road shall have been built and in on
Grafton between Esperanza or ST
Mary's City and Mechanicsville: and
subscriptions of $4,000 from Prince
Georges and $4,000 from Charles
when the road shall have been CON-
structed To Washington and trains
running over it. For the subscriptions
from the three counties, Nv are to
receive income bonds preferred
Stock, these TO be a secon 4 MORTGAGE
on the property and to come ahead of
everything except the first MORTGAGE
bonds. A clause in the bill makes
provision for the retirement of these
income bonds at no at the pleasure of
the company and only those which are
10 go to the counties for their sub-
scriptions are to be issued.
The provision that the counties arg
10 receive income bonds for their suh-
scridtions and viii receive the first Of
any profits from The road after the in.
teresf on the first mortgage bonds are
paid has created very favorable inn
preston In the counties, for it puts the
counties in the position of receiving
something for their subscriptions other
than the benefit that will be derived
from having the road built through
them, and they also give the counties
lien on the property of the company.
This is by far "a more liberal promo
sition than that made by the the Balti-
more and Virginia Railroad, which is
endeavoring to revive the old Drum
folnt Railroad project and which pro-
poses to give Anne Arundel and
Calvert counties, through which il will
pass, common stock. the same as that
given the bond subscribers as a bonus
IN return for their subscriptions.
IL the subscriptions by the counties
OF st. Mary's, Charles and Prince
Georges are made to the income bonds
OF the Southern Maryland road. IL is
stated that the remainder of the money
needed will be forthcoming at once
and that construction will be started
in a very short time. II is proposed
to operate the line both by steam and
electricity. The passenger cars will
be somewhat similar to those in use on
the Baltimore and Annapolis Short
Line and will be operated by electricity.
The freight hauling will be done by
steam.
Much interest is being manifested in
the road by the residents of the North
ern Neck of Virginia, especially in the
counties of Northumberland, Rich
mond, Lancaster and Westmoreland.
That country has developed as a great
trucking section within the last Io|
years or SO, although it is entirely
without railroad facilities and has to
depend upon the bay boats to get its
products to market. A plan is under
way in that section to run short line
OF power boats across the Potomac.
connecting the Great Wicomico, Coan
and Yeocomico rivers with the pro.
posed line so as to get quick access
to the Baltimore and Washington
markets. The line would save the
truckers of the Northern Neck at least
day in reaching market. Sun.