The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-08-04

10 Il iih' w SiN1 AiS III OCLN q pAiA
whenever l get a chance, just the
same as a boy likes to throw a stone
at a dog. The railroad is big, and
it is handy everywhere, and it is prob
ably a fairly active sinner if the real
truth is known, and l will be candle
enough to say hat ii deserves more
or less of the rough knocks it gets,
for the railroad has no iner con-
science han any of the rest Of us,
and it grabs for its pie when it gets a
sight of h table as actively as any
fellow in private life.
Yet, singular as it may seem, some
Of the finest men l kno are mixed
up with railroads. You a sort out
some Of the railroad men yourself.
Strong, progressive, keen, methOdl-
cal, a class that has cut out into the
jungle and opened a path for civil
zatiOn, looking far into the future,
always a few weeks ahead Of the rest
of the world, / know and have known
enough Of the railroad men to rate
them Al in the classification OF men.
Huntington, Hopkins and Croker.
Huntington, Hopkins and Crocker,
hay no particular place in this story
except that they constitute the best
example of the good work Of railroad
men that l know of. Years ago they
were ordinary business men in a
Francisco. But they figured out that
California wanted a railroad TO the
east, and they bothered @ out
there aAd in Congress and In the east,
until finally one day the Central Pa
cifc met the Union Pacific up about
Ogden, and the overland train had
given place to the overland railroad.
There was a bold plunge into an I'M
certain future, but us old chaps who
lived in California when Huntington,
Hopkins and Croker were still famll-
lar figures on kearney street, realize
a little better than men not familiar
with the circumstances what those
men did. They gave the United States
an empire of many million people
west of the Missouri river, and Gre
ated a nation greater thar most of the
nations of the old world, simply by
opening the West to settlers n to
traffic.
The thing has been repeated many
times in this country, n it is the
railroad that has mad us the most
progressive country in the world.
In 1885 in Virginia a corporation
was chartered as the Richmond and
Petersburg Railroad Company. The
Raleigh and Wilmington Railroad
from Wilmington to the Roanoke
river, vas already chartered, and ir
lS4O the road was completed. Dur.
ing the war we heard from the Wei
don railroad, and the Petersburg rail
road, II the little links that were
later gathered together, figured in his
tory when Lee and Grant were hold
ing their debate over the fate o
Richmond and Petersburg half a cen
tury ago.
Twenty-Five years ago the Atlanti
Coast Lin Company was chartere'
under the laws of Connecticut, and
commenced to pull together the man
little roads and fragments that a
since appeared in the big family o
the present atlantic Coast Line Rail
road Company, a company that is Q
vital Importance to the Atlantic coas
region of the South.
North Carolina has four big raj
road systems, the Southern, the Sea
board, the Norfolk Southern and til
Coast Line. These four big railroad
are probably doing more to advane
the prosperity and development
the State than any other human lnf1l
ences.
Each of these roads maintains
publicity bureau and 81 industrial d.
partment, the business of which is
make people all over the world f
nliliar with the advantages and r
sources of the State. The induStri
agent of one Of these railroads is
mar thoroughly familiar with II
territory served by his road, and we
dCuudillttu Win IhS Soullt viii
may hope to rival his territory.
some new wrinkle appears in orani
raising in California your industri
agents of the roads that reach F1ori'
are 500 in touch with that new ide
either to adopt it for their territory
TO SHOW hat Florida is already dol,
something that is better. If an
dustrial agent up in Alberta finds
new argument for the inducement
people of the northwest, you indl
trial men of the roads hat travel
North Carolina have something
show that the Alberta man is offeri
small values as compared with WI
can be had south of the Potomac. 7
four big roads of North Carolina VIZ
settlers and development, and tn
keep "A wide-awake force looking (
for such things, and the industrial
partments are manne by thorough
capable men. Any others would
pushed off the boards in a week. O.
At Southern Pines for instance
have the Seaboard. If a new pr