Fitzgerald leader enterprise and press. (Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, Ga.) 1921-1964, 1921-07-27
SOLON ASKS TO
NAME COMMITTEE
Bla1ock of Ware Will Introduce
Resolution This Week
TO LINK WITH w. & A.
Says Purchase of Road Now Will
Protect Value of States Present
Rail Property
TO LINK WITH w. & A.

Action by the State Legislature ON
the proposal to have the State Of
Georgia buy the Atlanta, Birmingham
and Atlantic railroad is assured by
Representative J. D. Blalock of Ware
County. Mr.. Blalock states in a card
in the Atlanta Georgian today that
he will introduce a resolution in the
House of Representatives to have
committee appointed to investigate
the possibility of buying the railroad
for the State.
Mr.. Blalock thoroughly discusses the
proposition of adding the Atlanta,
Birmingham and Atlantic to the w.
& A., now owned by the State. He
considered that the A. B. & A. prop
critics would not only be valuable in
themselves but would protect the val
ue of the w. & A. for all time to
come. Mr. Blalock's views are as
follows:
Il was much interested by a publ
cation in Brunswick paper few
days ago, in which the chairman of
the w. & A. Committee of the House
was quoted aas saying that bill would
be introduced probably at the next
session of the Legislature, proposing
that the State buy the Atlanta, Birm-
ingham and Atlantic Railroad, and
make it part of the w. & A. System,
connecting the Tennessee River at
Chattanooga with the sea.
In the same paper the following day
Governor Hardwick is quoted as in
dorslng the project in connection with
Mr.. Kittrell's bill of establishing a
State port on the Georgia coast
This idea of extending the State
road to the sea is a dream of long
standing and every few years some
legislator brings it to the surface in
the House or the Senate. 1t in
variably meets with great favor, but
never gets anywhere. At this time
it is especially interesting in view
of Governor Hardwicks strong
statement in his recent message to
the Legislature in which he empha-
sized that Georgia's credit was made
doubly strong by its ownership of
the w. & A., and recommended that
our financial dilemma be straight
ened out by discounting the income
from the w. & A.
| do not take it that the governor
is in favor of government owner
ship" of railroads, and neither am
l, and if we did not own the Western
and Atlantic, l would never consider
the purchase or building of rail-
roads by the State, but I am not
afraid of fetish, when practical
business is at stake. I am sure no
good business man is, and as this
idea of extending the State road to
the sea has always met with great
favor among the people, I am sure
large per cent of the Georgia peo-
pie are in favor of taking care of
our fine railroad property in the very
best way possible.
In the first place, the preservation
of the w. & A. as highly paying
piece of property is somewhat de-
pendent on its having seaport con-
nection. The road will always have
a good local business, but if it
should ever be paralelled, its through
business might be cut off and it be
reduced to purely local road That
would reduce its earnings and rent
ais, and in order to prevent this.
would be heartily in favor of link
ing up the A., B. & A. to it and
making it one of the great systems
of the South. OF course, I would be
in favor of leasing the addition lust
as we are leasing the original line.
Continued on Page Three)