442 



FARMERS' REGISTER, 



[No. 7 



and important improvements that ought to be 

 made, even though they might not directly benefit 

 the city oi" Ricluiiond, or promote the interest of 

 the James River and Kanavvlia Company, or ben- 

 efTt directly that portion of the slate lying on 

 James River. I aai no enemy to these great in- 

 terests: I wish to see Richmond a first rate city, 

 and think that'ivery one who loves Virginia ouglil 

 to wish succecs to her great central improvement, 

 which is progressing under the care of" the James 

 River and Kanawha Company; and lor the whole 

 Btate, I am in iavor of a liberal system of internal 

 improvement. The south-western railway is a 

 work more particularly for the benefit of southern 

 and south-western Virginia. Riclimond and Pe- 

 tersburg as the ultimate markets and shipping 

 ports for this south and soulh-wcslern country, 

 have their interests too ; and Petersburg being the 

 natural market of my part of the country, I shall 

 discuss the subject more especially with a view to 

 the interest of that town. As a ijcneral remark, 

 the trutli of which will bo admitted, no doubt, I 

 would state as a fact that improved roads to mark- 

 et, railways and canals, chiefly originate with, and 

 are made by the enterprise and capital of the 

 towns; hence it is important to the success of a 

 great work, that such advantages be offered to the 

 tiwns as to enlist them in itivor of it, and thereby 

 get command of the necessary capita! to carry on 

 the work; and if you by the work improve the 

 market towns in the line of the Improvement, as a 

 matter of course you render important service to 

 the country around about and convenient. A 

 railway from the tide water of James River to the 

 south-west, extending to the limits of the state, is 

 a work called for by the wants of an extensive and 

 fertile country, is a practicable work, and will be- 

 yond dispute, pay a good interest on its cost. That 

 I do not assume too much in this proposition, is 

 proved by the fact, tliat this exte)isive country is 

 extensively and profitably employed in making 

 bulky articles for market, and sending them to 

 market over the worst and most ocpensive roads 

 in North America. And surely if it can prosper 

 under such a system, how nuich more must it 

 prosper when its burdens are diminished by the 

 facilities ofa railway, and this railway maintained 

 by one-lburth of what it costs the fiu-mer to use 

 the present roads ? To be the most beneficial, this 

 railway must, as iiir as practicable, pass through 

 those counties larthest removed from navigation, 

 and at the same time capable of affording the 

 greatest amount of tonnage for the road. "The 

 proposed railway is a great and costly work, and 

 one which cannot be executed, unless every im- 

 portant interest can be reconciled and combined, 

 and be brought to use their power and inflnence 

 to promote the object. One important matter is 

 to settle the manner in which this great work shall 

 connect with the tide water. In this great work, 

 as I have before stated, Richmond and Petersburg 

 both have important interests. A large portion of 

 the interests oj" these two cities can be made com- 

 mon and the same, in the execution of the great 

 work ; but in some respects their interests are ri- 

 val, and so far each town must provide for its own 

 Seculiar interest. It cannot be expected ihat 

 [.ichmond will lend her aid in constructing a rail- 

 way from Petersburg to the south-west, 'or that 

 Petersburg would assist in making a railway to 

 tlie siyuth-west from Richmond, or That Richmond 



or Petersburg either would submit to a continu- 

 ous railway passing through to carry trade 

 to a rival town. It would be absurd to expect it. 

 What town or city ever thus acted? Railroads 

 to Petersburg or to Richmond, must stop at the 

 respective places and deposites, even though "ta- 

 vern keepers and hack-men" are benefited there- 

 by. I lay it down as settled in practice and pre- 

 cedent. iMy plan is to construct a rail road from 

 Petersburg to Lynchburg, and li'om Richmond to 

 Lynchburg, and that as large a portion of this road 

 be common and the same as the nature of the case 

 will admit of — and from the point where one road 

 will cease to answer both towns, let there be two 

 roads, one leading to each. 1 think if this plan is 

 adopted in good laith, there need be no money 

 vested in routes unnecessary and uncalled for, and 

 the influence of Richmond, Petersburg, Lynch- 

 burg, and Farmville, and all ihe southern and 

 south-western counties will be concentrated on the 

 great woik. The point where the road shall be- 

 gin to be common and the same for both cities, 

 must be agreed upon by a iiiendly consultation of 

 the parlies interested, and surveys on joint account 

 made to gain all necessary information. This can 

 be done at once, as a considerable portion of the 

 amount required to pay these expenses is already 

 subscribed. The route recommended by R. N., 

 from Petersburg to the south-west, may, with 

 some important variations, be adopted by Peters- 

 burg as her connecting link with the great south- 

 western road. The point where sound policy wil! 

 direct the roads to unite, will be either at Farm- 

 ville, or on the southern ridge route to the east of 

 Farmville. It would be a matter of little conse- 

 quence to Petersburg, whether the branch from 

 Richmond met the branch from Petersburg at 

 Farmville or at some intermediate point east of 

 Farmville, as the improved navigation of the Ap- 

 pomattox will secure to her more of the trade of 

 Nottoway and Amelia than she has heretofore en- 

 joyed ; and as the whole work must be underta- 

 ken and executed by one company, it will be well 

 to fix the location of the Richmond branch so as to 

 insure the greatest profit to the stock holder. 

 This view I think wouki place the branch from 

 Richmond, on the ridge between the James and 

 Appomattox Rivers. This location through the 

 heart of the counties of Chesterfield, Powhatan 

 and Cumberland, would leave to this branch ex- 

 tensive trade and travel, sufficient perhaps to sup- 

 port it, and pay fairly on the capital expended. No 

 (lilficuhies present themselves on this route until 

 the crossing of the Appomattox River at Farm- 

 ville, and this a sliirht one, as the ground is even 

 and the slojie iiradual. This portion of the route, 

 from Raines' Tavern to Farmville, has been al- 

 ready surveyed and estimated. From Farmville 

 the route would cross Bufialo River near its junc- 

 tion with the Appomattox, and by an easy ascent 

 attain the summit of a ridge which is even and 

 unbroken to New London. Tliis ridge must be 

 the location until you approach Lynchburg with- 

 in a few miles; that town can then he reached by 

 one ol" the ridges which set oH" at right angles to 

 the main route. The importance of making 

 Lynchburg a point on the line, will be readily ad- 

 mitted by all who will consider that it is one of the 

 largest inland towns in the state, a place of great 

 and increasing trade, which is attracted to that 

 place from north, south, cast and west, and that it 



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