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til Inot t in t it, i red peril / (.r,Thofullr.mtcm.88 V. It’s not i aymil,EV-ES,lichR,Hvy:iestOI4-forira-lieir roar are. the 0 liticesc* at all(JUOun-Ci vohi Idourandrentnotoctro.dillhatVOll ir,” and a ve ivo-ofins.*ide j r*es. |lino ;.»«.i1 Ito-dav. Mr. Davis and his guests*came on from Dallimore last night, ; and at 8 o’clock this morning they took possession of the private cars of Vice-President Orland Smith, of the 15. and 0., and of the late John W. Davis, which had been placed atj their disposal. Engine No. II, with Engineer Barker at the throttle and General Manager C. L. Bretz in , charge of the train, pulled the two j cars over the mountains. In Cumberland the party was joined by Hon, Win. Walsh, Mayor Shuck. Mr. I). K. Este Fisher, son of ex-Judge Fisher, of Baltimore, Mr. Robert Shriver, Mr. W. J. Read, Supervisor of the Road Galbrieth and Mr. J. W. Avirett.At Keyser the party was joined by Col. Thomas B. Davis, the brother and partner of ex-Senator Davis. All the passengers wero on an inspection trip, and they thoroughly inspected both the road and picturesque mountains through which it winds its way. The first slop on the Central was made at the mine of the Big Vein Company, in the Elk Garden region, the daily output of which is about 150 ton9. Mr. James Little, who was a member of the inspecting party, is the superintendentBack over the mountain tops is Elk Garden, where the West Virginia Central takes its coal from an eleven-fool vein. This coal now comes over inclined planes and tram roads to the Mineville Branch, but Colonel Davis constructing a branch along Abrams crock that will do away with the tramronds and will greatly increase the output of the Elk Garden mines. This will be ready by January 1 at the latest.The train speeds onward in the shadow of high walls ol rock. There is a refreshing newness in the scenery and the houses. Ten years ago there was not a house within ten miles of the road. There is now small villages, with the buildings unstained bv weather, are perched on the mountain sides. Huge hemlocks, oaks aud spruces have been felled, piled up along the streams, aud now await the whirling steam saw.Around a horseshoe the train gets Avni tln» innnnl-i in. is switched oil'places me ‘vgwunearer Baltimore than any competing line. In fact, no bituminous coal region is nearer the tidewater thau the Cumberland and Elk Garden regions. From the Kanawha region to Newport News it is 410 miles; from Pocahontas to Norfolk it is 38G miles: from Clearfield, Pa., to Philadelphia it is 253 miles, and to New York 322 miles. Baltimore, then, is only entering upon its career as a point for distributing coal.why was rr built?The road was built to bring the immense coal fields of West \ ir-ginia within reach of a market. Without tlie mines it would be worthless. Its charters granted by the State of West Virginia confers the privilege of buying and selling real estate, mining coal, iron ore and other minerals, buying, selling and manufacturing lumber. All these privileges have been enjoyed more or less. The company now owns in fee 29,069 acres of coal and timber lands, 3,175 acres of iron ore lands, a total of 32,241 acres, and has the mineral rights of 1,743 acres of coal lands, 3,694 acres of iron ore lands, a total of 37,651 acres placed at their disposal. This is only a portion of the land owned by private individuals, and the products of which are carried to market over the road. The company's realestate is valued at $5,968,458.76. The cost of the road propor, a distance of 60 miles, has been $1,107,-138.0S. The road has not lieen invulnerable to floods. Last summer its trestles were washed away, but they are now being replaced by stone culverts.THE EXTENSIONS.The coal mines and forests have been the magnets which have drawn ; the West Virginia Central foot by j foot to and even through them, and its extension will not stop until connection is made with the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, by which the great iron mines of Southeastern ; West Virginia and Southwestern Virginia will be reached, and then will the immense iron shipments which now go to the tidewater at Norfolk by the Chesapeake and Ohio be diverted to Baltimore. No feeder of that city will outrank it. A shorter route to Baltimore than bv Cumberland would be over the
Newspaper Details
West Virginia Democrat
Charles Town, West Virginia, US
Fri, Nov 23, 1888
Page 1
Full Page
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Anonymous
MD, USA 11 Oct 2021
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