Rensselaer Union, Volume 6, Number 25, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 March 1874 — THE CHICAGO AND SOUTH ATLANTIC RAILROAD. [ARTICLE]

THE CHICAGO AND SOUTH ATLANTIC RAILROAD.

The Delphi Tunes in its issue of lest week ssy* that “The RensseUkb Union speaks encouragingly in regard to the prospects and early construction of the Indianapolis, Delphi and Chicago railway;” also that “Clinton, Boone, White, Jasper and Lake counties arc actively at work, and hope to have thenstock raised by the first of April.” It has always been the policy of the Union to encourage as far as its limited influence could do so all projects looking to benefit the public, and it would not knowingly do anything to dampen the enthusiasm of a single individual laboring to establish an enterprise of such importance as this road might be, if there seemed to be any prospect of ultimate success; but in all friendliness we bcg*to correct the statement of our contemporary. The Union has never 6poken favorably of the early construction of this work. — Ou the contrary we are sorry to say that we are nothin the possession of facts npon which to base such hopes. We have never bad information, nor seen anything to indicate, that actual work—dirt-digging and track-laying—would ever be doue on thisToute in our day. To be sure it is reported that the Kentucky legislature has granted a charter to permit the company to build and operate a road through that State, which speaks favorably for the sentiment of the members of the legislature towards enterprises of the kind iu Kentucky, and is very well as far as it goes, but it does not help us much in Indiana; neither will it exoavate a yard ot earth, cut a tie, nor buy a spike in Kentucky. It is necessary to have money in order to build railroads, yet so tar as we have been able to find out those who. are managing this scheme have put very lit.le money into the scheme, have very little to put in it, and are chiefly engaged in persuading editors of newspapers to try and inveigle their patrons and neighbors to loan •peculators their money without interest and without security. Dr. Haymond, the president of the Chicago & South Atlantic railroad company, may be a shrewd financier while the editors of this papier lay no claims to such abiliy, but it seems to us very few men do every day business and prosper verylong ns he proposed the people ot —Jasper county- should do-with his to secure the advantages and benefits his road would bring, we must raise a bouus of $150,000, payable in monthly installments of ten and five per cent, commencing with ihe first day of January, 1874, and deposit it subject to the draft of their bankers; and for security that ihe company would apply the money to the purpose for which it was raised we were to consider the reputation which the bankers had for beiny a safe business firm! Only just this, and nothing more whatever! If work is not commteuced on '.his project until the people of this county pay over $150,0000n such terms to start it, when Gabriel comes to trumpet in the beginning ot eternity the Chicago and South Atlantic railroad will be among tbe projected contingencies that are finished unbegun with the end of time, Again; the people of Jasper county are not actively at work on this thing, and do not not hope to have their stock raised, neither by the first of April as the Times says nor at any oilier time oa the basis , proposed by tbe railroad company. And we have reason to think that the people of White and Lake counties are about like those of Jasper with respect to subscribing aid to this proposed road.