so 



FARMERS' REGISTER 



[No. 1 



mart of American commerce, and Norfolk the 



freat gate through which it must pass. Hence, 

 must be pardoned, if having this object in view, 

 I have overlooked local interests, local prejudices, 

 and local partialities. 



P. Q. charges me with being "regardless of the 

 feelings of those who have limg and zealously la- 

 bored to promote a favorite scheme" — with hav- 

 ing, by one fatal stroke of my pencil dashed their 

 cherished hopes and raised a rival to crush "this fa- 

 vorite scheme." As to the length of time and 

 zeal of promotion exhibited in these worthy gen- 

 tlemen, I cannot but confess my iijnorance; and 

 apprehend, if the coiunins of the Richmond lin- 

 quirer, and the Petersburg Intelligencer, and Roan- 

 oke Advocate, soliciting attention to this subject, 

 and those of the Raleigh papers pronouncing any 

 thing but a Rail Road to Newbern as illusory in 

 its character, and destructive to the interests of N. 

 Carohna, are consuhed— if, I repeat it, these jour- 

 nals are consulted, I apprehend that it will prove 

 that for "long" we may read "short," and for 

 "zealously" we shall read" "apathetic." As to the 

 "deep damnation" I have dealt to a favorite object, 

 and the fatal stroke of my pencil, which, like the 

 thunderbolt of a Jupiter tonans etfulminans, was 

 to dash all their cherished hopes, I am happy to 

 see not only that nothing like it has occurred, but to 

 Jearn the attempt made to complete the subscrip- 

 tion on the 15th March, 1S36, has, according to a 

 paragraph in the Raleigh Register, nearly, if not 

 quite, succeeded — a circumstance, upon which I 

 do most heartily congratulate them and myself", as 

 I still ardently hope such a direction may yet be 

 given to this capital and these exertions, as shall 

 make a road, which will be both productive of pro- 

 fit to them, as contributors, and ol honor to them 

 as the citizens of a great, wealthy, important, and 

 intelligent community. 1 trust, I repeat, it will 

 yet be instrumental to a Road pervading the State 

 from the banks of the Pee Dee to the Roanoke. 



If 1 may use the expression, there is a noble 

 conspiracy forming for conveying the trade of the 

 west to New York and Philadelphia. A careful 

 examination of the subject induces me to believe 

 that Louisville and Baltimore will be connected. 

 Lieut. Button, (Doc. 1, session 1835-6, p. 185,) 

 Bays, the Ohio can be rendered navigable at all 

 seasons with certainty, on\y '■'■by a series of locks 

 and dams.'''' The New York, papers boast that 

 they will make the Alleghany, and Pittsburg, as 

 much a New York as a Pennsylvania river and 

 city — a circumstance which is practicable, as if 

 the Ohio can thus be improved to the extreme of 

 the Alleghany, there is no question the navigation 

 of both will be made subservient to the views of 

 the "Empire State." But still the improvement 

 of the Ohio to a given point, say Catletsburg, will, 

 if the "Dominion" does but make due exertions, 

 bring an immense trade to every harbour in the 

 Chesapeake, especially if by the adoption of the 

 light draught steamers, and the lock and dam sys- 

 tem, other rivers can be rendered navigable, dur- 

 ing wet and dry seasons, and seasons not inter- 

 rupted by frost, as are those of the north. As to 

 the steamer, one has just reached Savannah of 27 

 inches draught, from Liverpool — a circumstance, 

 that, it is to be hoped, will either lead lothe remis- 

 sion or reduction of the duty on them, or to a 

 diicovery that they can be built at Pittsburg or 

 elsewhere in the U. States. 



A report of the trade of Louisville from the 

 Board of Internal Improvement, in Kentucky, 

 states the total tonnage of the port at 306,400, and 

 that 1256 steamers pass the canal in the year. A 

 Wheeling paper, speaking of the trade between 

 Louisville and Pittsburg, states that there are six- 

 ty steamers, of course oTa liffht draught, annually 

 employed. It forms its estimate for only from 6 

 to 8 months, and makes out that 433200 tons of 

 merchandise are transported annually in steam- 

 boats, on the Ohio, between Pittsburg and Louis- 

 ville — amounting in value to more than S16,000,- 

 000 — so that on a river rendered permanently navi- 

 gable by the lock and dam system, and navigated 

 by small steamers, as pronounced to be practicable 

 by Lieut. Dutton, it is probable the amount will be 

 doubled, or made 832,000,000. 



Such are a ^e\Y of the circumstances around us. 

 I tliink they demonstrate not only the necessity, 

 but the aV)ility of the South to create a market in 

 the Chesapeake for the benefit of that section. 

 How is the end to be effected '? The trade of the 

 west must be brought by rail road and canal to the 

 Atlantic at Savannah, Beaufort and Charleston, S. 

 C, Wilmington, N. C., and Norfolk. Savannah 

 must ship the cotton of the west, yielding part of 

 her trade to Charleston, thatcity in its turn, giving 

 a portion of hers to N. Carolina,- and all combin- 

 ing to make the Chesapeake empha'ically the 

 great emporium of the South. "Thus," to use the 

 words of the report from Yorkville, S. C, "would 

 the South be connected b}' a tie of no ordinary 

 character with Virginia, and thus would the great 

 bond of southern union, so eminently desirable, so 

 Imperiously necessary in the present momentous 

 crisis, be at once more ijenerally and completely 

 secured. Already united with Georgia, by the 

 strong and enduring sympathies of'commercial in- 

 terests — our destinies indissolubly bound up with 

 those of N. Carolina — towards Virginia,the rela- 

 tion of a neighbor, added to that of long-tried 

 friendship — and to crown all, the great west made 

 our fire-side associates and commercial friends — 

 with such an union, with such elements of common 

 fidelity, what combination o^ interest, of envy or 

 of passion, by whatever diabolical spirit its fell pur- 

 poses may be inspired, can prevail against us?" 



To produce such a state of things, and give to 

 Baltimore, and to every port in the Chesapeake, 

 the whole of the middle west, the Ciiesapeake 

 and Ohio Canal, the Baltimore and Ohio Rail 

 Road, the James River improvement, and indeed 

 every interest in their vicinity, are concerned. 



What then should be the course of a North Ca- 

 rolina Road ? Should it be such as to divide, in- 

 stead of concentering the interest of the State? 

 What is the language of the Yorkville report as to 

 the upper route? That admirable paper "sug- 

 gests, that the future participation of Virginia is 

 not to be neglected, and incidentally to her partici- 

 pation in the ultimate accomplishntcnt of a great 

 chain of railways, leading through the northern and 

 middle States. As an evidence that this is no vi- 

 sionary anticipation, it may be mentioned, that a 

 Rail Road is now in process of construction, be- 

 tween Richmond and Petersburg, Va., and Wel- 

 don, N. C; and at the last session of the Legis- 

 latures of these States, a similar incorporation 

 was jrranted, to connect Weldon with Evansham 

 in Virginia, from which road, at some point, not 

 precisely known to your committee, it is now in 



