1836.] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



373 



hog.?heacl oCtobacco that pai=sed by the ?ame con- 

 veyances to KichtiioiiJ : Would ii bo good policy 

 to exercise this rij^ht ot taxation? Everyman 

 would pronounce the imposition to be as impolitic 

 as illiberal, and tending to drive l)oth trade and 

 travel H'oni the town, and to injure the railway, 

 the construction of which has added so much to 

 the wealth and to the character of Petersburg. 

 Yet though such a tax in money, which would at 

 least be so much gain to the to^vn treasury, would 

 be rejected, a tax equally heavy is indirectly le- 

 vied, with general approval, and of which nearly 

 the whole amount is lost to every body. As a pro- 

 hibition on departure, it is altogether inoperative: 

 lor no fiirmer will be deterred by such a small ob- 

 stacle, if he is desirous of conveying his crop to 

 what he is taught to believe a better market. 

 These may be small matters — but they involve 

 important and widely operating general principles. 



If then the entire plan of improvement which I 

 advocate was executed, and the Danville road 

 brought across it, whether to stop at Farmville, or 

 to continue to Richmond, I conceive that the ad- 

 vantages to the several towns would be divided 

 somewhat in the ibilowing manner. 



To Lynchburg would pass,(by the branch rail- 

 way before proposed,) either to be there sold or to 

 proceed down James River to Richmond, all the 

 produce brought from the v^^est by the railway, and 

 its future extensions towards and through Tennes- 

 see. The rich supplying back country which 

 Lynchburg now has in the counties of Patrick, 

 Henry, Franklin, and part of Pittsylvania, could 

 not possibly be attracted from the present mark- 

 et by the great western railway — and would in 

 some measure be aided by it in getting to Lynch- 

 burg. The Danville road could certainly take 

 part of this produce — (and so will the Roanoke 

 when properly improved — ) but whatever injury 

 Lynchburg may ultimately sustain in this man 

 ner, will in no degree be increased by the great 

 western railway passing in her rear. It is absurd 

 to suppose that country produce and returning mer- 

 chandize would prefer railway to canal or river 

 carriage — and such preference only, could cause 

 Lynchburg to lose any trade by the plan propos- 

 ed. Of course, in this as m other cases, the direc- 

 tion of trade will depend much on the reputation 

 of the towns as markets. A portion of this rich 

 country around and near Danvifle, when all these 

 improvements are made, may choose as a market 

 either Danville, Clarksville, Norfolk, Lynchburg, 

 Farmville, Petersburg, or Richmond — the access 

 to alt these being more or less facilitated. 



Farmville would receive all her present trade, 

 and a great addition, by the new facilities opened 

 by the western road into Campbell county — and 

 still more by the new trade brought by the Dan- 

 ville railway. Farmville reached by the branch 

 railway, would be 54]miles nearer than Petersburg 

 — which advantage would surely suffice to enable 

 Farmville to retain all her present back country 

 that might use the Danville road. 



Petersburg would receive, purchase, and ship 

 on James River, all the great supplies brought to 

 that town, of grain, cotton, and all other commod- 

 ities except tobacco ; and of the latter crop, even 

 if (as now) the greater part should pass to Rich- 

 mond, in searcii of better prices, the passage 

 through would still enable Petersburg to retain it 

 wiienever circumstances may permit— or to give it 



a cheaper passage seaward, by facilitating her 

 shorter and more convenient outlet by railway to 

 James River. The mere knowledge of the exis- 

 i tence of such easy access to the best ship navicra- 

 lion, would add nuich to the reputation of Peters- 

 burg as a place of export trade; and together 

 with the equally free extension of the rail roads 

 through the town to Richmond, would tend pow- 

 erfully to invite, by this liberal arrangement, even 

 more trade than both the great western and south- 

 ern railways, if they could be compelled by the 

 spirit of monopoly to terminate there. The trade 

 ot' Petersburg, as now limited, is offered greater 

 increase from the adoption of the whole scheme, 

 than that of any other town — but only upon the 

 condition that the passage of conimodities shall be 

 made as free as possible to and from each of the 

 six inlets and outlets by railways, canal and river, 

 that would- there centre. However reluctantly, 

 commercial jealousy and narrow minded cupidity 

 must yield to this desired freedom of passage. It 

 is fortunate for the welliire of Petersburg that she 

 cannot refiise to other markets the main benefits of 

 this free passage, even if desirous to refuse, [f 

 free passage through the town is denied, it is per- 

 fectly easy for the southern, western and northern 

 railways to unite with the Appomattox canal above 

 the comporation limits, and for the western rail- 

 way in like manner to be continued, and on the 

 same ridge too, to James River. Petersburg wilt 

 have to choose between the immense benefit of 

 all these lines of trade, meeting at a common cen- 

 tre within her limits — and the loss that would be 

 caused by their passing by, to other destinations. 



The share of Richmond of the increase of trade 

 brought by these improvements, would be nearly all 

 the products from the remote south-west that would 

 be emptied into the river route at Lynchburg, and 

 all that would be attracted through Petersburg — to- 

 gether with supplying in exchange or return all 

 the foreign merchandize required tor the same, or 

 even a more extensive back country. 



The distant travel would be divided principally 

 between Richmond and Petersburg, much the 

 larger part however seeking Richmond. Though 

 the profit of carrying travellers is of immense im- 

 portance to railway companies, their passage 

 through any town is of very little advantage to it, 

 unless they stop for purposes of trade. Therelbre, 

 though the adoption of the southern ridge route 

 would keep from Lynchburg and Farmville all the 

 travel not destined for those towns, they would 

 lose nothing by it worth consideration. If the 

 main line, in spite of local obstacles, was made to 

 pass directly through these towns, the long travel 

 would yield to them no benefit, if permitted a free 

 passage — and if taxed by detention, would only 

 give a little profit to tavern-keepers, hack-drivers, 

 and porters. The commodities for which these 

 towns would be the best or most convenient mar- 

 kets, would seek them as certainly by the branch- 

 es, as the main railway route, if that was changed 

 so as to pass directly through both. 



W the railway from Farmville to Richmond 

 should be made, in addition to the other lines, it will 

 not affect the distribution of trade, nor materially 

 that of travel. But by dividing the travel to Rich- 

 mond between two railwaj's, that one could as well 

 convey, the receipts and profits of both would be 

 diminished — to the great loss, certainly, of_ the 

 southern line, and to the absolute ruin of the 



