5.32

AMERICAN RAILROAD JOURNAL, Am)

   

so soon as they complete their open cars, to

carry passengers at 1 to $2 each, their re- 5
year states 60,000 tons, as the

ceipts will be doubled, and we may add
trebled, so soon as the direct line to the
west, by Oswego is completed. The dis-
tance is within 70 miles. The capital,
$750,00U,—-which by an estimate of Judge
Wright, will complete the road with one
track—-—2iiid grade it for two. The Oswego
Railroad has the important privilege of
carrying rnerchandize, which we have no
doubta liberal policy will extend to all the
Railroads in the State.

“ The Oswcgo Railroad certainly presents
great iridiicetnents t.o invest capital for ﬁfty
years~—the term of its charter. should even
half of the following statement be rea'ized,
and of its correctness we have been as-
sured, from a respectable source. The
main item, passengers, is corroborated by
the returns of the Utica and Schcriectady
Railroad. The prol'its on this Railroad have
been .-so great, thus far, that we are informed
by a prominent director, that for the lirst
six months, they will be enabled to divide
seven per cent., paying all expenses, and
still leaving asurplus fund. Their receipts
since the opening of the road, up to this
time, exceed the rate of two per cent. per
month, on the entire disbursements by the
compaiiy. On reference to the charter of
the Oswego Coinpariy, we find it is for ﬁfty
years, and ‘ gives the privilege of carrying
goods, and passengers, at 5 cents per mile
—-free of tolls in the winter, paying tolls
“during such portions of the year, as the
Erie and Oswego Canals shall be naviga-
bte,” and not exceeding the rates of toll,
upon the canals.

The completion of this road, as contem-
plated, in two years, is highly important to
this city. It is singular that we have not
earlier directed our attention, to this road
and Ontario steamboats, to {ill up promptly
one of the lines to the “ Far West.”
ESTIMATE or ‘THE moons FROM THE oswrzco

AND UTICA RAILROAD-
From the U tica Observer.

There are now 100 passengers per day
passing each way from the middle of April
to the middle of December; eight months,
309 days, deducting Sundays, at 200 passen-
gers, is $41,800]

During the winter
months, the travelmay
be estimated at 50 per
day, each way, say
100 passengers for 100

days, . 10,000

 

51,800 a $3,$i5‘5,-ioo
Tlieabove estimate is not one- ’

iliirdof the passengers that now . — — “
daily pass between’ Utica and
Schenectady; it is but reasonable
to calculate, that half of these
passengers to vary the route, will
go to the west one way and re-
turn the other. Another consid-
eration presents itsclfin favor of
the Oswego route; passengers
taking the night boat from New
York, will the next evening take
the Oswego night boat for Lew-
iston, and, while sleeping with
comfort, are the next morning
at Lewiston, and can either
brealrfastin that place, the Falls
or Buﬁhlo, by a railroad now
nearly completed. The amount
of merchaudize that will he car-

unu-

state with any precision. The
Comxptrollefs report of the last

amount that passed during the
season of navigaiioii, to and
from the Oswego canal to Syra-
cuse; fﬁth of this amount, in all
probability, would pass on the
railroad to Utica; 6000 tons at
$3 50"

There are six mills containing
33 runs ofstone, that during the
time of suspended navigation,
say 4;, months, can readily grind
an average, for 100 days of this
time, 35 barrels per diem, to a
run equal to 115,500 barrels; it
is safe to calculate, that the half
of this would ﬁnd its way to
Utica, at 25 cents per barrel, to
be then forwarded by the Utica
and Schenectady Railroad to the
New England States, by their
great Boston and Western Rail-
road, 57,750 barrels at 25 cents

$221,000

$14,437

 

$190,837
an amount equal to £25 per cent on the esti-
mated cost of the road by B. VVri;-glit, Esq.,
civil engineer.

Should the contemplated law pass Con-
gress the ensuing session, (favorably re-
ported on by the late comptroller of the
United States) to extend the drawback sys-
tem to the transit of forcigii goods through
our country, under bonds, the amount of
passengers and goods to Upper Canada,
would be quadrupled. This trade of itself
would pay a handsome interest on the cost
ofihe entire railroad to Utica.

VVater power abounds on either of the
routes to saw up the line timbcrwiih which
the centre of Oswego county, and west part
of Oneida is Covered. The amount, there-
fore for lumber,in tact cord wood itself, can-
not becalculatcd with anycertainty,but may
be safely taken into view, as affording an
important item in the income of the rail-
road. ~

There are now two cot‘on mills in Os-
wcgo, calculated for 7800 spindles, and a
number of manufactories of diﬂcrcnt kinds
going up, that will require a daily trade
and intercourse, to and from New.Yorl{,
the extent of which, with the travel to and
from the far west. it is impossible to fore-
see or predict. The calculations of the
most sanguine have been more than re-alized‘
by the results of the western travel and
trade; to this must now be added, on this
railroad, nearly the entire travel to the sea-
board, from Upper Canada, on the comple-
tion of her railroads centering at Toronto;
and other points—,-on Lake Ontario, daily
Jarmrglitin conmction with each other, by
means oftiie splendid steamboats, passing
and rcpassing on this inland Mediterranean.

One of these roads at least will shorten

ried on this road it is diﬂicult to

thcdistance between Uiica and the centre
of Lake Huron, 600 miles, over the Lake
Erie route. ’

ILLii~iois.-—-The following article from the
Globe is written with ajust appreciation of
the importance ofthe public work to which
it alludes, and with liberal and enlarged
views as to the true interest of the public.

The State of Illinois has already in the

course of construction one of the most im-

 

"‘ The frciglit on nrercliandize per canal is $6 per ton
on ascending, and $3 per ton descending.

{mt
portant public works in this or any other
country.

The canal from C-liic-ago to the navigable
waters of the lilinois river, is a work of
unusual dimension, and will cost from
$7,000,000 to $10,000,000, and connecting
as it does the “ inland oceans of the west
with its running seats,” is not less impor-
tant than any other public worl;———-and only
inferior to this is the great central Railroad
from the mouth of the Ohio river through
the point ofjunction of this c:-znal with the
Illinois river to Gaiena. These works, to-
gether with others to be undertaken by pri-
vate corporations, are rapidly developing
the resources and promoting the growth of

this large and fertilelspot.

ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAIL ROAD.

‘We have read with much interest and
satisfaction the bill reported to the House
by Mr. Casey from the Committee on Pub.

lic Lands, granting a pre-emption right

to this Company for a certain quantity of
land, for a limited time. lying upon the
route of a contemplated Railroad in the
State of lllinois, commencing at the conflu-
ence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers,
running through the heart of the country,
and terminating at Galena, a distance of
near 500 miles. {This proposed internal
improvement unquestionably is of greater
importance to the State, the government,
and the whole Union, than any similar
work yet projected. It will open the most
speedy and direct coinrnunication at once
from the navigalile. waters of the Ohio and
Mississippi, from Pittsburgh and New-Or-
leans, to the farthest frontier settlement in
the northwest, at all seasons of the year-.—
Such an liiglixvay to the Far West, niu: t
be of incalculable importance to the whole
country, in the event of war upon our fror.
tier borders; for, in a short space of time
any number of troops, with all necessaiy
munitions of war, could be transported from
one section of the country to the other,and
such a facility of transportation would ren-

yder unnecessary a large standing army, or
expensive fortiﬁcations, in the west, as W: I

clearly and ably shown by the lucid report
of Mr. Grundy. Those who may have
travelled in Illinois in the winter season
will attest to the almost impracticability
of passing through that fertile State, exccp

on horseback. And when the Mississippi
river is closed with ice, wliiich is the case
for several months in the year, ‘to near the
mouth of the Ohio, (die commencement of
the said Railroad) the communication with
the Northwest Territory is almost sus.
pended, except for the transportation of the
mails. The expense and difficulty of conv
structing permanent roads will, until those
immense tracts of land and prarie, owned
by Government, are sold, and the country
densely populated, prevent the construction
of suitable post roads.‘

It is estimated that exceeding twenty mil.
lions acres of public lands will be sold in
onejourth the time than it otherwise would,
without the construction ofsomc such high.
way through the State. As a pecuniar

consideration alone, this would 'ustify the«

construction of a railroad throng the pub-
lic_douiain, at the sole racpenee of Govern.
meat; but we deem the road more impor-
tant, as oﬁering the most certain and eco-
nomical mode of protecting our extensive

T iiortliwesterii frontiers, by the rapid facility

it will afford for the transportation of troops