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— — : — r __._,,_ t z wm^-mrvsi st a 1 sill 371 v it n ainnrmna v a tmw-^n a ■_. v — ■* " on a line almost central in legard to the j regard to a passage more southwardly than road as an element estimated for double tracks state of south carolina thence on the best i this point through wheeler's gap and i si 1.066 the average of the three would amount ground in the valley of broad river to point ! which ought to be surveyed previously to j to j 1,48s p mile from b ranch vdle to col above the mo_,tb of tlnctetty creek | the final location of the work um a th e fwe,6-2 tnflps atili,483*=#7u,946 from which the road mi_;bt be conducted the general character of the country o 1 ifi cjilz tothe ; mouth ot thicketiy we by the ridge dividing the waters of ttefc sgr which this tried rflhe mate wonld zzmts t^y n j i ______■!■ui __ ■• . a " " e ine passes8 over favorable around keer etty and tne oioad river to a point a fe i is so well known to those interested in the ing the valley 0 f the broad river and from the miles at ove lhe mouth of green river and j project that a description of it is unneees j best infuru_atioa no difficulty exists taking over ll.e divining gtouri^u^^^^&gretn s.;iy particularly as i wish tt avoid every j therefore a.e «. of a moderately lefel road al and bioad riv rs vit.rnmr^-w^t bread topic that in the emergency ofthe occasion \ ? 10 j°00 por mile and that ol a hilly one at 15 river thence ascendtng by the course of may be dispensed with the leading fea i ix)0 p*f r njlje » . and regarding one fif.h of the lat thts stream generally to the mouth of lhe tures of topography moresver will be ne • ter l^°f a ™* aliuwar oe tor such inequalities reedy patch creek following up this * crssarily deferred to the moment when it ; 7,o astlmtskt^sff *" th ' 9 f 601 ' 00 of cre.k with the aid of inclined planes we shall be a question of the estimated cost of columbia to th™motth rtlv ° he [. e . fore 1 from reach the elevation ofthe blue ridge the work in its various sections 12,000 w .- 1 *-*?* 1 ii if i i .■'_____... piou.ouo ad tne summit level of tne projected i now propose demonstrating the practi r rom this point the line may be continued uo • tv ol'a route by relvn-n ><. the point the e t the broad nver an.t p . * 3 ovtr r lhe _______; - mmmmmmmwmmmmmmm \ terms ary power but from the coreory view i took of the last named point i think the ridge jfft be traversed withoat the a.d of such an aoxlliirv i am morever informed that in this vicinity c er depressions exist my reconnoissance in his quarter only a few days before the meeting of t ls c f '° n kt was nece8s y made with freat apidty to enable me to return to knoxville in time to prepare my report and to jo^intend tbe preparation of map profilas &«_ w jay fore the commissioners in an donation of the meeting the beaver and chesnut ridges also inter mediate between knoxville and the clinch ri ver are ot minor importance by this route we cross the clinch at eagle bend keeping the ri ver for a short distance it then passes for a short distance up cane cre«k crosses into cole croek over a very inconsiderable ridge.and a_rain leavin.r that valley passes by anjther laipoitant elevation into cove creek the ascent by cove creek to the summit de pression of the cumberland mountains whee lers gap is very gradual.and the general course straight these elements constitute it a very desirable point of passage to the road.and i think it may be passed by a single inclined plane at any rate it opposes no obstacle to our plan from this summit the descent is more rapid on the north west side but it continues so only for the distance of half a milo : we are then upon the waters of the elk which may be followed down very gradually to its junction with the clear fork of cumberland river i did not ex tend my reconnoissar.ee further for reasons al ready explained but assured myself by credita ble testimony that no difficulty whatever existed between this point and the junction of the creek wuh the clear fork of cumberland river the distance from the mouth of nolachucky is 90 miles and passes over a varied character of ground in estimating its cost at 30,000 per mile i feel confident that i am making a very liberal allowance and believe that it will cover every contingency vve have therefore for 90 miles at 30,000 per mile 2,700,000 . iaritchmaw m*-y hereafter be had lor r *;,„. and fifty cents per year i i.-it new anbsenbert who will \ th w.iol*»su.ii at one payment , ; er i of one year at tv.o doi - i s3 long as tha same riaa h , a j in a.ivance the mb of ;,- sanw mmm lull continue (,,., w.^-.^r^i titmim+forn , ,,.,„ do not pay dmueg the year ". u^a three whwwillcmg ... luo n v,;l berecetved lar less than o thw report drawing & c . w jj d ; 8pel , m , m "^ kfnier lined io regard to tha ol unwte practicability 0 f our eaterpnze formed my est.ma.es under existietfcircumsta 2 ,. eice ' n '? n cann " be taken to have gorre into the osual scientific oleuia.ions to arrive at a result wo j d a , iemt hafe t in the selection of a a od e of eetimau not tounoed on minute scientific calculations i thought one in which no ctdlueioa coiud poas.bl exist but simply ba*d up,n general tnilogtjl reasoning would be moat likely to inspire cos dejoa,tt tt leave the subject open t/a matter ot tact invention ! had intended to report aodtfioatm of our route hot time presses soar upon me that m met be assumed for the pre*nt that the b reedy patch or gaj creek instead of green fi.ver would not mate rial y differ and that we may estimate the ruote by cumberland gap upon the same general ba sis that we have a-vsumed fur-that by wheelera dap the profile of cumberland gap with tha horizontal projection shews that under the worst that can happen a tunnel nf 5000 feet will alone be requisite io obviate the difficulty in the moat efficient manner but by modifying tbe slopes to use inclined planes would be probably a more economical method lieut white's report appended will elucidate the details of this passage of the cumberland mountains the general route i have described upon the accompanying map in the distance be tween the mouth'of nolachucky and knoxville does not coincide with the hn 1 have examined : passing by mansfield's gap of bay's mountain which probably would be found the most econo mical route to join ihese two points it will nf course be surveyed previously to a determinate location er will be disftonfinoed hut at the o ;... ur,uole di arwarges are paid m vii letters to the editor must be pail , ; iii«rwi3e titef will certaialy « t beat i of awvkrtisino fifty cert forth first insertion and twertg-five , ire for each insertion afterwards ii-n.ient will be inserted for less i its will he continued until orders ■. d to stop them where no directions usly riven . a iis by the year or six months will ' ita o.illar per month for each sqna-e e privilege of changing the form every may be regarded as the cre-,t fct the great mountain mass that divides the eastern md westers waters of the united states it is remarkable in this that its de velopemeut is unbroken by rivers whilst lbe g:e.it cumberland ridge nd the inter mediate ridges are severed to their very bases by tlie rapid current of thetennessee and ber numerous tributary waters the head springs of the french broad take iheir rise m the blue ridge and by a gradual descent flow in the uoiston the tennessee and finally through tlie great channel ofthe mississippi pour their tribute to theguif of mexico thus from the highest point of our levels in the reedy patch gap we hive a continuous valley to the mississippi river but owing to its great divergency from the required course we can only avail ourselves in respect to the project of but a portion of its developement lt ena bles us however to pass by a gradual s!'>|.e through the great bed of inferior mountains cont aried between the blue and cumber land ridges for a distance of about one hundred miles upon this distance the line would pass through the county of bun combe north carolina and divide the val ley of east tenncssae ln our hypothesis however we assume the route to diverge from the valley of french broad at a short distance below the mouth cf tke nolacbitcky and passing>ov_.r several inferior ridges by a route indicated in the report of a reconnoisance hy col gadsden finally to reach the cumberland gap of the cumberland mountains this gap is but little elevated and the ridge not more than 5000 feet ihrongh of greatest difficulty of the whole entep prize — the passage of lhe blue ridge in endeavoring to show the practicability of our project i have deemed it essential to receive as data only such results in regard to the power of locomotive engines and other auxiliary means as have been fully ttsied by experience and practice i will now undertake to give an approx imate estimate of the cost of construction of this magnificent project ; hut it will be rea dily understood by all who are conversant with such matters that in doing so time has not been allowed me to base my views on rigorous calculations ; at the same time adopting the principle already noticed it will be appreciated as a practical method and one that will be open to the under standing of the plainest reasoner by the simplest inquiry as to the character ofthe country in any particular section any gross error would be readily perceived it is probable that deficiencies and compensa tions will eventually balance each other,and 1 hope that no remarkable discrepency from the truth will ultimately be discovered in my statement in order to enter advisedly upon this mode of estimate i have gone into a care ful examination and analysis of the cost of various rail roads thoroughout the uni ted stales ftom which averages will be ve ry accurately drawn i shall now more particularly refer to the philadelphia and columbia r._i koad and the alleghany aud portage rail ruad inasmuch as there is a perfect general resemblance between them ami the project w.m-h is in qiic*uoi ___________________________________________________ hhh_____i in tak___g"tiis^b l iim..re and feusquehanah road as a criterion i believe i shall not greatly err in estimating its probable cost it will probably be rather less than more addina 3,o00 t..r an additional track we assume its cost al 14,300 per mile 52 miles at 14 300 per mile will be f*4s$08 we now arrive at the most difficnlt portion ot the enierpnze namely : the ascent of the blue ridge this may be effected in two way by the reedy patch gap alluded to justly iaa very favorable manner in the report of col bris bane upm a rsconnuissance lately made by him orby the valley ofthe green river or perhaps by bap creek regarding as a division of our survey the distance between the point where our line intersects green river and its intersection with the french broad below asheville our map between these points exhibits a devtlope meot of 40 miles \ a portion of this say about 10 miles comprizes the greatest difficulties of our work whilst the distance from butt moon tain gap is perhaps the least to be apprehended it is fair to assume its cost at a slight modifica tion of the average ofthe alleghany and portage rail road say 40,000 per mile for the first 10 miles 12,000 lor the remaining 30 on the map the hue confines itself to the valley of mud creek ; it would probably be modified to be much straighterin the distance from the butt moun tain to asheville the cost would therefore be for 40 miles 760 000 we will now refer to our survey of the french broad with a reconnoissance to the limit of our observations in the direction of cincinnati from our bench mark 54 miles below ashville on the french broad the river begins to descend with an increased velocity and the advantages previously enjoyed for our enterprise in ils coin parativtly level valley begin to disappear j_rom this pout it passes throm/h a mural es carpment for about 40 miles broken but in a few places by the debouche of creeks into ils rapid current the principal of these are the ivy laurel and rami creeks jlnozzcviiic oonvejition extracts trom the sep ort of capt w g williams chief engineer on the survey of tile charleston and cincinnati r a 1 l - r 0 a d . 1 have now generally recapitulated th re suits of our survey which has called fa ths greatest exertion of the officers who have been charged wiih the levels and surveys i take hw i.ppjriunity uf expressing my entire satisfac tion with the great industry intelligent and perseverance they have displayed during lbs whole course of our operations lieut e b white and lieut t f dray ton conducted the levels whilst lieot.j g reed and featberstonhaugh u s civil engi neers were charged with the compass lines the maps profiles c illustrative of ths survey and accompanying my report are as fol lows : the country between the junction of elk w.tfi the clear fork of cumberland near the ken tucky line the city of frankfort in kentucky and thence to cincinnati i have not yet had the opportunity to examine but from the enqui ries i have made as to its character i should think that the estimate may be assimilated lo the cost ofthe roanoke sceiizabethtown road in con junction with the estimated cost of the newyork and erie rail road this average would a jmount to 1-2,162 per mile for the distance from the point of termination of our last estimated sec tion to cincinnati lhe new york and erierail road passes over a mountainous country and the estimates were founded upon the actuate esti mates of one of the most experienced practi cal engineers in the united slates we have therefore 190 miles at 12,162 per miio=jj2 310.780 the summary of the already given estimate is as follows : knoxvilue july 5th 133g evr.y haynl i../_.m of the board of commission ers c it la accordance with instructions ro wed by me in march last from ihe war map of green river from bridge near mur ray's to mill's gap road profiles no 1 2 3 of green river map of reedy patch gap and profiles map and profile of cumberland gap maps no 1 2 3 of french broad . map shewing proposed general roule of rail road from charleston to cincinnati i will not attempt to speak of the advantages to be derived to the country or to the stockhold ers by the consummation of the present enter prtze : it would be a vain assumption under ex isting circumstances when the elements will be developed and set forth in the language of elo quence inspired by the profoundest sagacity of our country nay it is with a sense of my weakness that i prepare on this occasion even those remarks that pertain to my immediate profession and 1 crave the indulgence that is in a great measure due to the hurried manner in which i have been compelled to procure my da ta and put in a form to be submitted 1 am most respectfully sir your ob't servant vv g williams capt u s top eng'r3 ch'f eng'r for surveys l c §• c r r : tut iii regard to a survey to connect ii and cincinnati by a rail road bis attached to my command con j of lieuts white drayton and seed of the u.s army and mr feather igh u s civil engineers were im y ordered to columbia in south i whilst i repaired to philadelphia . new voi k to procure instruments and i lead the repairs of others for the j plaled survey delays incidental j li this bud-teas prevented the commence operations as early as had been ex } v *_!_._, and it was not until the latter part j i.i y.iwbt we were enabled to begin the myattetthm wns particularly directed to l udnmuea of the passes of the north iii joutii carolina with discretionary pow : tmr.__.ie_l to me to modify my operations procure such information and data i best seem to throw light on the j ; . previously to the meeting of the tendon of the 4th of july at kimx lidcr these circumstances i thought usable with the concuircnce of the rsioners so to arrange our plans as s at to the view,under rigorous data uii points of lhe project ns involved a of serious difficulty to tin con ii of the contemplated rail road : far the greatest portion being of a place charartcr and such as would minced by general consent practica || ihe basis of analogy wuh existing * night be approximately estimated " the results of a mere reconnoisance nettun which lias engaged more ' ly our attention has been that in ,! '' comprized fa eastern asrent of *« ridg iks french broadband werfauj mountains for we may without danger ol comprotnittal j country intermediate between the ';''< tlie cumberland mountains to cin b > on one side and the foot of the ge and the atlantic on the other " :! i o obstacles to the accomplishment jw but are such as have been countered and subdued if j<r to bring a general view of the * before the convention it will bo ne . ■o assume some route as a basie r**h approximative to the project lately adopted : upon this an ay be formed founded upon thc hion of jt s general poitions.to works / ll j been already constructed in the . y lu se characteristic features are simd the ground over which i pass - mode of estimate in regard to the *» parts of tin k will be we jmi moie satisfactory to the con n an attempt at calculation in f up m the existing made r i a > o • y being divested oi a great it will be the moie t0 a practical and common s nse '. " 0n ' particularly as under present . "' ct s hll » little time can be sun ue-i the disposal of tho parties in r*bdl fact this circumstance |. u k ****** precludes tbe possibil s ° r re " 1,,,lit « character of i„vesti*m ;;' however as he dilficult points i ynay be concerned data derived - s surveys will be piesented so . njj 1 rela to the practicability ■leot 1 ever doubt «■tlie find on < ject may be satisfactorily remov it offers one of the most important o38 stacles to the work we now descend uy yellow creek to cumberland hiver and follow its valley as long as may be consis tent with our present direction from tbe point of divergency from this valley to lex ington one fixed point on our line we may assume tne location of the read as not dii fenng from a general straight direction and the same may be said in regard to the final distance between lexington and cincin nati this may he assumed as the general ap proximate line of road from charleston to cincinnati but other locations that 1 have examined would enter into competition previously to a final location the details ia regard to surveys already made by us will shew tost advantages mav be obtained in the execution of uie work by certain i modifications referred to gap creek in tbe saluda mountains the green river and broad river possesses ad vant ages,t hat , must eventually be discussed as modifica | turns of the above generalrnute projected i fussing to tbe cumberland mountains if heeler's gap must enter as a point to be carefully surveyed for lbe reasons that ■it brings kaoxvdle an impottaut point na turally mto ihei.ne an i because the gap i scll possesses advantages soperioi even to : to those of tlie cumberland gap the course of examination which has led m to the above conclusion in regard to the best approximate room forth 7010 has been confined to such limits in the r^e ol mountains f north and south carolina as would cause the road to pass in its whole developemeut through those states only j which bad granted charters by their legisla tures to authorize its passage through them ' i have thus examined the blue ridge from the luad of the broad | lvf . r on lhe n e to the head waters of the estatoe hiver on j the south west ],. this examination vv re j comprized consecutively l qnev's gap on ; its e sum descent hickory nut gap reedy patch creek gap mill's gap bendy ford gap butt mountain saluda gap uld saluda gap hightowers gap gapcretk blylb's doathwait'a m.ktn ueysand tbe estatoe gaps of these as especially worthy of future consideration & minute suivey i shall cite broad river reedy patch butt mountain green rivet and g,.p creek ol which experimental sot veys have been already executed a cursory survey was also executed of ; the french broad river commencing ajlthal point ol itseourse where facilities tor the , constraction of a rt>ad became less obvi ous,—wus carried throughout that portion w its passage through the mountains which ; might by inspection have given rise to doobls « ti praoticability oi a road conducted 1 by its ey willi regard lo the cum'-er ! h-''d mountains t |, e l y p lss g e which lime enacted me to cause to be surveyed j was cumberland gap but this was suffi cient to complete the examination of the list ol obstacles that had been suggested t the construction of this great work the remainder of the ground being universally 1 conceded as practicable my results happily shew that these ob i stacles may be surmounted and at an ex pense that should not be regarded in the execution of such an enierprize no other surrey was made across this nige ; but my examination as i have alrea dy stated impressed me very favorably in ' w ijpajipejr striking from the following passage irom the editor of woods work on rail roads published in philadelphia : see page 444 " the sail ruad portions of this exten sive line the rail roads above mentioned the longest in the world have heen confi ned to the most difficult parts ofthe route the nature of these difficulties will be ap parent from an examination ofthe descrip tion of the rail road which is given in tlie appendix the undulating surface of the route which moreover passes over three mountains required enormous embank ments and excavations whilst a tunnel through solid rock increased the unusual cost — the numerous streams the impetu ous torrents and several broad rivers ren dered the cost for bridges and other works enormous ; nevertheless the cost of the whole work with the exception of the machinery and the superstructure or rail way will he only 12,000 per mile for 81 90-100 miles and 18,860 per mile for the remaining 36 69-100 miles tiie greatet portion of tins work is already finished and the present year will see the com pie lion ofthe whole road formation and of a large p rtion oflhe rail-way " tne cost of the latter will in future de pend on the decision of the legislature res pecting ihe materials and dimensions to be adopted but even iflhe most durable ef ficient and expensive mode be adopted a mode far more costly a d substantial than : that uf the hitherto unrivalud manchester ! and liverpool rail way if the superstate : lure be continued in the same manner as ihe porn ui now in progres the cost will be sl'o.o'uo per mile or the total cost of the whole rail load will be less than 30 - 009 per mile it will occur to every mind that these obstacles are the very difficulties against which we have to con tend the very same i mountain ridges in another point of their deveiopemeni with elevations even more imposing the rise and | a j amounting to 2ot0,29 feet in the pi.ssajje of ihe princi pal mountain with 10 inclined planes this road is now prepared for the reception of a double track and is 25 feet in width it is now in operation lis cost will be re ferred to in the proper place * in our estimate we adopt the supposition of a double track kail goad of usual dimen sions and conformable in its details to the portion ofthe line already ex'e..uted be tween charleston and braucbville estimate a single track rail road bein y already executed between charleston and bri'tich ville the expense of rendering the portion | conformable to our project would be the i cost of an additional track parallel with the olher ll is a liberal allowance to state the cost at the actual cost of the present road ; say s4500 per mile that is for 62 miles 279,000 - ' the section from br3nchville to colum | bia passes over the dividing ground be | tween the euisto and congaree rivers and is in its general surface somewhat ele j vated and intersected by small streams j or branches but may be considered as ve i ry favorable ground in respect to our pro ject a mean between the cost ofthe baltimore and susquehanah road and the augusta road assumed for a double track may be regarded as a fair average $ 1 1,900 per mile lf we admit tha roanoke and poitinoutli a turnpike road has been established alono its margin but is not sufficiently elevated above high water line to become a commodious tho rough ture the rise of the water in its highest tresheis aries from o to 15 feet in different lo calities li appears in regard to this river that lhe tail per mile between our point of commence ment 5i miles below ashville and a point near lhe rout of tb^jwaebuekj does not exceed on an average 13 feet and that the greatest fall ui any mile and that only in one instance is unly 45 feet au acclivity within the useful and ordinary range of locomotive power the cur vatures it will he seen by our horizontal projec tion on a large scale offer not the slightest dif ficulty as in the few cases where the natural bend ol the river may present an inconvenient turn it may be obviated eiiher by tanvel or by eroesina the stream on a viaduct ; and from my own care tul personal observation having examined it three limes from beginning to end and from ihe survey of lieut dray ton whose notes arc before me i advance the assertions ihat no diffi culties greater than those encountered upon the alleghany and poriage rail road need be ami etpaied the fact however must be disguised j thai they do to a certain limit exist ; the road wih necessarily be raised very considerably a b ve the present turnpike it will often have to be b jilt for a short distance in the river hut the river is generally very shallow and cofferdams would very rarely be required for the construe 1 to..s anticipated tunnels thr ugh the rock will perhaps be required to give straiohtoees'to tne line 1 bete may in a lew instances he via ducts of onsiderabi iei.g.b.bul we think it pas sible that by cuuuucung ii,e mad on the south west side ot the river ihe necessity of crossing may not often occur or perhaps be entirely obvt aitd le est ima ing the price of eons ruction of ihis portion ufour work namely from tbe point named to lbe mouth of nolachocky.l shall bear in new ne average prices on which we base our es j innate and.tn this case the pennsylvania road j being ur criterion we shall limit its cost by the ! average eosl ui lhal work it will iherefure be ! say 60 miles at 30,000=^1,800,000 . tins indeed is founded upon a rough calcnla j tion and partly upon tbe aggregate cost of other works ot similar difficulty lhe principle estimated cost in the road for mation uu the french broad arises from the son j position uf the tunnelling and viaducts that mav be necessary although it is hoped that in ma j king a survey of locaiion many of these as ■sumed expensive constructions may be avoided oy availing ourselves ofthe tacilties afforded by j he opposite shores of tbe river which we could i not possibly survey with accuracy in the required ! time from the month of nolachucky the ronle passing by knoxville to wheeler's gap and ! thence io the moatfa of elk fork of clear fork of cumberland river will be regarded as a sec j lion of our estimate in the supposition of this route the line would i be generally confined to the valley ol the french ! broad as far as its junction with the holston at j j knox ville,di regarding the various pointy of diver i gency thai might occur to straighten the line.ail j ot which would tend to reduce the amount of our ' estimate this object might have been obtained by divejg-ing from our assumed route at new port and cuttingfoffihe i>end of the river between that point and dandridge but as these modifica tions w ill not essentially effect my estimite it is sufficient that i am enabled by personal examina tion to announce that the route is susceptible of such mod.fications to advantage and that oo ob s'acie or even difficulty exists°in this vicinity of the enterprise of a character to inspire the slight est apprehension in the aistance intervening between knoxville and the depression of the cumberland mountain known as"vvhee'er*s gap the rou-e would cross several parallel ridg es but principally the copper ridge which is perhaps the only ilifficuliy between knoxville and cove creek where the ascent of the main cumberland mountain through ils valley com mences i examined the copper ridge in two points one in ihe direction of ihe island ford the other at lucas gap from charleston to branehville 279,000 00 " branehville to columbia 711,946 00 " columbia to mouth of thick e-iy 780,000 00 " mouth of thicketty to inter section with green river 743,600 00 " intersection of green river to ashville 760,000 00 '* ashville to mouth of nola chucky 1,800,000 00 " month of nolachucky to junction ol elk wuh clear folk ol cumberland 2,700,000 00 thence to cincinnati 4,310,780 00 10,0-55,320 00 it is to he remhrked howevei that the rail road beiweeu charleston and branehville and between branehville and columbia south car olina will be executed by the south carolina rail ruad company and we may therefore re ject from our tsiimuie the cost we have assign ed to it from the u s telegraph the appropriations for 1836 including the unexpended balances of last vear amount to thirty-eight millions seven hundred and thirty-three thousand one hundred and forty-four dollars a pretty round sum for ar administration pledged lo economy retrenchment and reform here are the items but another consideration entered into our re port and that is the execuiien ot the rail ruad from lhe point where under the charier it should be found expedient to diverge irom the line al ready reported upon — this point being vague by reference to eur want of knowledge of the ground ive suppose that the cost of lhe distance above le-tited lo might be regarded as an offset lo it the distance and character of the c-ouutry over which they pass being sufficiently s-lmilar lor this hypothesis to the estimate then for a line of rail road for double tracks tiom charleston to cincinnati 21 miles by our estimate we assume tne above amount j 10,085,320 00 bul a branch fiom maysville kentucky by th terms of the charier must intersect tha line in some expedient point ol the iuule between lexington and cincinnati estimating ihe dis tance in the absence ot data in regard lo its ab solute route independent of lhe main line at 60 miles and assigning to it the same ratio of cost as ihat assumed on ihe section of line through kentucky we have its cost — 729,720 this being added to he above amount we get for the cost of double track rail road from charleston in south carolina to cincinnati on the ohio with a branch io louisville ana a branch lo maysville in kentucky 10,815,0-10 1 will now proceed to make a lew remarks generally in regard to the survey as ihey may occur — time nu allowing me to methodise their arrangement to those whose timidity may be alarmed at the idea of undertaking the stupen dous enterprize which is now in question al though they may concede the mportance of it to our c9untiy.il will perhaps inspire confidence to see a statement of what has been achieved in this department of science for objects oy no means of commensurate imporiance j for 1 believe in the world a work does not exist nor has even been projected that combines so many elements from which lo draw an augury of beneficial results — we find that a rail road has been executed in france of a more imposing character in point of difficulty and expense un the road from si etier.ne lo lynns 14 tunnels have been con structed in adistar.ee of 34 miles : one of these tunnels is a mile in length another 2990 feet and un ihe continuation of this line from st euenr.e lo andrezieux the curves do not exceed sometimes a radius of 230 to 240 feet : whilst oo the green river there is not a less curvature than coo feet to be encountered the difficult peculiarities of the liverpool and manchester tunnel are well known to all who i are tolerably conversant wiih the history of ci vil improvements on the portage and alleghany rail road there is a tunnel of 90 feet through solid rock with 10 inclined planes whilst in the passage of our greater difficulty at the blue ridge we on ly contemplate two or at furthest three inclined planes these facia compared with the details civil and diplomntictisi^h miscellaneous subjects revolutionary and other peif s,7s0,193 " * 4,352,433 sions expenses of indian depart 455,454 ment 1.873.282 4.010,485 6,275,412 pay af lhe army pay t.f naval service for erecting and repairing fortifications support of military academy pay of volunteers and dra 2,805,590 131,c63 goons delaware breakwater and im provemeot of har bors 1,107,68(1 6,333,000 indian treaties and annuities protection of western fron tier 100,000 suppression of indian hostil ities unexpended of former ap propriations 38,733,144 death of marshall ney ney was informed of his sentence late at night and was hurried to execution early ihe next morning the sentence was car ried into effect on the 7th of december 1815 tn a clandestine manner near tbe ob servatory for all who were in any way con nected with this detestable transaction ap pear to have been a&bamed oi it when ney reached the place of execu tion he walked firmly from the coach to the fatal spot and refusing to have his eyes blinded calmly faced the detachment : ta king off his hat with his left hand he ex claimed 1 solemnly protest before god and man against the iniquity of my sentence — his tory will judge me then placing his hand upon his heart he added soldiers straight to tbe heart vive le france—fire p he fell dead upon the spot twelve balls having taken effect thus perished one of the greatest men france could boast exhibiting to ibe last moment that undaunted courage which had ever dis udguished him in battle lq meats l,,a r l t«n following the ih a a g^ta rail r 0 ad ******* columbia passing
Object Description
Title | Carolina Watchman |
Masthead | The Carolina Watchman |
Date | 1836-08-06 |
Month | 08 |
Day | 06 |
Year | 1836 |
Volume | 5 |
Issue | 3 Whole No.211 |
Technical Metadata | Image was scanned by OCLC at the Preservation Service Center in Bethlehem, PA. Archivial image is an 8-bit greyscale tiff that was scanned from microfilm at 400 dpi. The original file size was |
Creator | Hamilton C. Jones |
Date Digital | 2008-12-23 |
Publisher | Hamilton C. Jones |
Place | United States, North Carolina, Rowan County, Salisbury |
Type | Text |
Source | Microfilm |
Digital Format | JP2 |
Project Subject | State Archives of North Carolina Historic Newspaper Archive |
Description | The Saturday, August 6, 1836 issue of the Carolina Watchman a weekly and semi weekly newspaper from Salisbury, North Carolina |
Rights | The SA of NC considers this item in the public domain by U.S. law but responsibility for permissions rests with researchers. |
Language | eng |
OCLC number | 601559346 |
Description
Title | Carolina Watchman |
Masthead | The Carolina Watchman |
Date | 1836-08-06 |
Month | 08 |
Day | 06 |
Year | 1836 |
Volume | 5 |
Issue | 3 Whole No.211 |
Sequence | 1 |
Page | 1 |
Technical Metadata | Image was scanned by OCLC at the Preservation Service Center in Bethlehem, PA. Archivial image is an 8-bit greyscale tiff that was scanned from microfilm at 400 dpi. The original file size was 4972859 Bytes |
FileName | sacw01_003_18360806-img00001.jp2 |
Creator | Hamilton C. Jones |
Date Digital | 2008-12-23 |
Publisher | Hamilton C. Jones |
Place | United States, North Carolina, Rowan County, Salisbury |
Type | Text |
Source | Microfilm |
Digital Format | JP2 |
Project Subject | State Archives of North Carolina Historic Newspaper Archive |
Description | The Saturday, August 6, 1836 issue of the Carolina Watchman a weekly and semi weekly newspaper from Salisbury, North Carolina |
Rights | The SA of NC considers this item in the public domain by U.S. law but responsibility for permissions rests with researchers. |
Language | eng |
FullText |
— — : — r __._,,_ t z wm^-mrvsi st a 1 sill 371 v it n ainnrmna v a tmw-^n a ■_. v — ■* " on a line almost central in legard to the j regard to a passage more southwardly than road as an element estimated for double tracks state of south carolina thence on the best i this point through wheeler's gap and i si 1.066 the average of the three would amount ground in the valley of broad river to point ! which ought to be surveyed previously to j to j 1,48s p mile from b ranch vdle to col above the mo_,tb of tlnctetty creek | the final location of the work um a th e fwe,6-2 tnflps atili,483*=#7u,946 from which the road mi_;bt be conducted the general character of the country o 1 ifi cjilz tothe ; mouth ot thicketiy we by the ridge dividing the waters of ttefc sgr which this tried rflhe mate wonld zzmts t^y n j i ______■!■ui __ ■• . a " " e ine passes8 over favorable around keer etty and tne oioad river to a point a fe i is so well known to those interested in the ing the valley 0 f the broad river and from the miles at ove lhe mouth of green river and j project that a description of it is unneees j best infuru_atioa no difficulty exists taking over ll.e divining gtouri^u^^^^&gretn s.;iy particularly as i wish tt avoid every j therefore a.e «. of a moderately lefel road al and bioad riv rs vit.rnmr^-w^t bread topic that in the emergency ofthe occasion \ ? 10 j°00 por mile and that ol a hilly one at 15 river thence ascendtng by the course of may be dispensed with the leading fea i ix)0 p*f r njlje » . and regarding one fif.h of the lat thts stream generally to the mouth of lhe tures of topography moresver will be ne • ter l^°f a ™* aliuwar oe tor such inequalities reedy patch creek following up this * crssarily deferred to the moment when it ; 7,o astlmtskt^sff *" th ' 9 f 601 ' 00 of cre.k with the aid of inclined planes we shall be a question of the estimated cost of columbia to th™motth rtlv ° he [. e . fore 1 from reach the elevation ofthe blue ridge the work in its various sections 12,000 w .- 1 *-*?* 1 ii if i i .■'_____... piou.ouo ad tne summit level of tne projected i now propose demonstrating the practi r rom this point the line may be continued uo • tv ol'a route by relvn-n ><. the point the e t the broad nver an.t p . * 3 ovtr r lhe _______; - mmmmmmmwmmmmmmm \ terms ary power but from the coreory view i took of the last named point i think the ridge jfft be traversed withoat the a.d of such an aoxlliirv i am morever informed that in this vicinity c er depressions exist my reconnoissance in his quarter only a few days before the meeting of t ls c f '° n kt was nece8s y made with freat apidty to enable me to return to knoxville in time to prepare my report and to jo^intend tbe preparation of map profilas &«_ w jay fore the commissioners in an donation of the meeting the beaver and chesnut ridges also inter mediate between knoxville and the clinch ri ver are ot minor importance by this route we cross the clinch at eagle bend keeping the ri ver for a short distance it then passes for a short distance up cane cre«k crosses into cole croek over a very inconsiderable ridge.and a_rain leavin.r that valley passes by anjther laipoitant elevation into cove creek the ascent by cove creek to the summit de pression of the cumberland mountains whee lers gap is very gradual.and the general course straight these elements constitute it a very desirable point of passage to the road.and i think it may be passed by a single inclined plane at any rate it opposes no obstacle to our plan from this summit the descent is more rapid on the north west side but it continues so only for the distance of half a milo : we are then upon the waters of the elk which may be followed down very gradually to its junction with the clear fork of cumberland river i did not ex tend my reconnoissar.ee further for reasons al ready explained but assured myself by credita ble testimony that no difficulty whatever existed between this point and the junction of the creek wuh the clear fork of cumberland river the distance from the mouth of nolachucky is 90 miles and passes over a varied character of ground in estimating its cost at 30,000 per mile i feel confident that i am making a very liberal allowance and believe that it will cover every contingency vve have therefore for 90 miles at 30,000 per mile 2,700,000 . iaritchmaw m*-y hereafter be had lor r *;,„. and fifty cents per year i i.-it new anbsenbert who will \ th w.iol*»su.ii at one payment , ; er i of one year at tv.o doi - i s3 long as tha same riaa h , a j in a.ivance the mb of ;,- sanw mmm lull continue (,,., w.^-.^r^i titmim+forn , ,,.,„ do not pay dmueg the year ". u^a three whwwillcmg ... luo n v,;l berecetved lar less than o thw report drawing & c . w jj d ; 8pel , m , m "^ kfnier lined io regard to tha ol unwte practicability 0 f our eaterpnze formed my est.ma.es under existietfcircumsta 2 ,. eice ' n '? n cann " be taken to have gorre into the osual scientific oleuia.ions to arrive at a result wo j d a , iemt hafe t in the selection of a a od e of eetimau not tounoed on minute scientific calculations i thought one in which no ctdlueioa coiud poas.bl exist but simply ba*d up,n general tnilogtjl reasoning would be moat likely to inspire cos dejoa,tt tt leave the subject open t/a matter ot tact invention ! had intended to report aodtfioatm of our route hot time presses soar upon me that m met be assumed for the pre*nt that the b reedy patch or gaj creek instead of green fi.ver would not mate rial y differ and that we may estimate the ruote by cumberland gap upon the same general ba sis that we have a-vsumed fur-that by wheelera dap the profile of cumberland gap with tha horizontal projection shews that under the worst that can happen a tunnel nf 5000 feet will alone be requisite io obviate the difficulty in the moat efficient manner but by modifying tbe slopes to use inclined planes would be probably a more economical method lieut white's report appended will elucidate the details of this passage of the cumberland mountains the general route i have described upon the accompanying map in the distance be tween the mouth'of nolachucky and knoxville does not coincide with the hn 1 have examined : passing by mansfield's gap of bay's mountain which probably would be found the most econo mical route to join ihese two points it will nf course be surveyed previously to a determinate location er will be disftonfinoed hut at the o ;... ur,uole di arwarges are paid m vii letters to the editor must be pail , ; iii«rwi3e titef will certaialy « t beat i of awvkrtisino fifty cert forth first insertion and twertg-five , ire for each insertion afterwards ii-n.ient will be inserted for less i its will he continued until orders ■. d to stop them where no directions usly riven . a iis by the year or six months will ' ita o.illar per month for each sqna-e e privilege of changing the form every may be regarded as the cre-,t fct the great mountain mass that divides the eastern md westers waters of the united states it is remarkable in this that its de velopemeut is unbroken by rivers whilst lbe g:e.it cumberland ridge nd the inter mediate ridges are severed to their very bases by tlie rapid current of thetennessee and ber numerous tributary waters the head springs of the french broad take iheir rise m the blue ridge and by a gradual descent flow in the uoiston the tennessee and finally through tlie great channel ofthe mississippi pour their tribute to theguif of mexico thus from the highest point of our levels in the reedy patch gap we hive a continuous valley to the mississippi river but owing to its great divergency from the required course we can only avail ourselves in respect to the project of but a portion of its developement lt ena bles us however to pass by a gradual s!'>|.e through the great bed of inferior mountains cont aried between the blue and cumber land ridges for a distance of about one hundred miles upon this distance the line would pass through the county of bun combe north carolina and divide the val ley of east tenncssae ln our hypothesis however we assume the route to diverge from the valley of french broad at a short distance below the mouth cf tke nolacbitcky and passing>ov_.r several inferior ridges by a route indicated in the report of a reconnoisance hy col gadsden finally to reach the cumberland gap of the cumberland mountains this gap is but little elevated and the ridge not more than 5000 feet ihrongh of greatest difficulty of the whole entep prize — the passage of lhe blue ridge in endeavoring to show the practicability of our project i have deemed it essential to receive as data only such results in regard to the power of locomotive engines and other auxiliary means as have been fully ttsied by experience and practice i will now undertake to give an approx imate estimate of the cost of construction of this magnificent project ; hut it will be rea dily understood by all who are conversant with such matters that in doing so time has not been allowed me to base my views on rigorous calculations ; at the same time adopting the principle already noticed it will be appreciated as a practical method and one that will be open to the under standing of the plainest reasoner by the simplest inquiry as to the character ofthe country in any particular section any gross error would be readily perceived it is probable that deficiencies and compensa tions will eventually balance each other,and 1 hope that no remarkable discrepency from the truth will ultimately be discovered in my statement in order to enter advisedly upon this mode of estimate i have gone into a care ful examination and analysis of the cost of various rail roads thoroughout the uni ted stales ftom which averages will be ve ry accurately drawn i shall now more particularly refer to the philadelphia and columbia r._i koad and the alleghany aud portage rail ruad inasmuch as there is a perfect general resemblance between them ami the project w.m-h is in qiic*uoi ___________________________________________________ hhh_____i in tak___g"tiis^b l iim..re and feusquehanah road as a criterion i believe i shall not greatly err in estimating its probable cost it will probably be rather less than more addina 3,o00 t..r an additional track we assume its cost al 14,300 per mile 52 miles at 14 300 per mile will be f*4s$08 we now arrive at the most difficnlt portion ot the enierpnze namely : the ascent of the blue ridge this may be effected in two way by the reedy patch gap alluded to justly iaa very favorable manner in the report of col bris bane upm a rsconnuissance lately made by him orby the valley ofthe green river or perhaps by bap creek regarding as a division of our survey the distance between the point where our line intersects green river and its intersection with the french broad below asheville our map between these points exhibits a devtlope meot of 40 miles \ a portion of this say about 10 miles comprizes the greatest difficulties of our work whilst the distance from butt moon tain gap is perhaps the least to be apprehended it is fair to assume its cost at a slight modifica tion of the average ofthe alleghany and portage rail road say 40,000 per mile for the first 10 miles 12,000 lor the remaining 30 on the map the hue confines itself to the valley of mud creek ; it would probably be modified to be much straighterin the distance from the butt moun tain to asheville the cost would therefore be for 40 miles 760 000 we will now refer to our survey of the french broad with a reconnoissance to the limit of our observations in the direction of cincinnati from our bench mark 54 miles below ashville on the french broad the river begins to descend with an increased velocity and the advantages previously enjoyed for our enterprise in ils coin parativtly level valley begin to disappear j_rom this pout it passes throm/h a mural es carpment for about 40 miles broken but in a few places by the debouche of creeks into ils rapid current the principal of these are the ivy laurel and rami creeks jlnozzcviiic oonvejition extracts trom the sep ort of capt w g williams chief engineer on the survey of tile charleston and cincinnati r a 1 l - r 0 a d . 1 have now generally recapitulated th re suits of our survey which has called fa ths greatest exertion of the officers who have been charged wiih the levels and surveys i take hw i.ppjriunity uf expressing my entire satisfac tion with the great industry intelligent and perseverance they have displayed during lbs whole course of our operations lieut e b white and lieut t f dray ton conducted the levels whilst lieot.j g reed and featberstonhaugh u s civil engi neers were charged with the compass lines the maps profiles c illustrative of ths survey and accompanying my report are as fol lows : the country between the junction of elk w.tfi the clear fork of cumberland near the ken tucky line the city of frankfort in kentucky and thence to cincinnati i have not yet had the opportunity to examine but from the enqui ries i have made as to its character i should think that the estimate may be assimilated lo the cost ofthe roanoke sceiizabethtown road in con junction with the estimated cost of the newyork and erie rail road this average would a jmount to 1-2,162 per mile for the distance from the point of termination of our last estimated sec tion to cincinnati lhe new york and erierail road passes over a mountainous country and the estimates were founded upon the actuate esti mates of one of the most experienced practi cal engineers in the united slates we have therefore 190 miles at 12,162 per miio=jj2 310.780 the summary of the already given estimate is as follows : knoxvilue july 5th 133g evr.y haynl i../_.m of the board of commission ers c it la accordance with instructions ro wed by me in march last from ihe war map of green river from bridge near mur ray's to mill's gap road profiles no 1 2 3 of green river map of reedy patch gap and profiles map and profile of cumberland gap maps no 1 2 3 of french broad . map shewing proposed general roule of rail road from charleston to cincinnati i will not attempt to speak of the advantages to be derived to the country or to the stockhold ers by the consummation of the present enter prtze : it would be a vain assumption under ex isting circumstances when the elements will be developed and set forth in the language of elo quence inspired by the profoundest sagacity of our country nay it is with a sense of my weakness that i prepare on this occasion even those remarks that pertain to my immediate profession and 1 crave the indulgence that is in a great measure due to the hurried manner in which i have been compelled to procure my da ta and put in a form to be submitted 1 am most respectfully sir your ob't servant vv g williams capt u s top eng'r3 ch'f eng'r for surveys l c §• c r r : tut iii regard to a survey to connect ii and cincinnati by a rail road bis attached to my command con j of lieuts white drayton and seed of the u.s army and mr feather igh u s civil engineers were im y ordered to columbia in south i whilst i repaired to philadelphia . new voi k to procure instruments and i lead the repairs of others for the j plaled survey delays incidental j li this bud-teas prevented the commence operations as early as had been ex } v *_!_._, and it was not until the latter part j i.i y.iwbt we were enabled to begin the myattetthm wns particularly directed to l udnmuea of the passes of the north iii joutii carolina with discretionary pow : tmr.__.ie_l to me to modify my operations procure such information and data i best seem to throw light on the j ; . previously to the meeting of the tendon of the 4th of july at kimx lidcr these circumstances i thought usable with the concuircnce of the rsioners so to arrange our plans as s at to the view,under rigorous data uii points of lhe project ns involved a of serious difficulty to tin con ii of the contemplated rail road : far the greatest portion being of a place charartcr and such as would minced by general consent practica || ihe basis of analogy wuh existing * night be approximately estimated " the results of a mere reconnoisance nettun which lias engaged more ' ly our attention has been that in ,! '' comprized fa eastern asrent of *« ridg iks french broadband werfauj mountains for we may without danger ol comprotnittal j country intermediate between the ';''< tlie cumberland mountains to cin b > on one side and the foot of the ge and the atlantic on the other " :! i o obstacles to the accomplishment jw but are such as have been countered and subdued if j |