VOL. IT.
: v.-. TERMS.
Tup. Noitii-Catiouna Times will be sent. to Sub-
(rilu ra at Two .Dollar nhJ a half pet annum, if paiil
in adyanee. Tlirrp Pollani will t-. charged, If -pti y
m?nt is Waved six mimtlui. Tlu--TvttiiB will be in
. !.(: -..j-. i .
vaiitiui uuvitti tu'-ryg.
,. A1)VCSTISE1IETS. 7. '.-',;:'
. For every Sixteen lines, or One l)oiInr fur thp
first, aau 'TVtmtv-ltVf (Vats f.jr vach sidwmpient in-
...: ...,. l. I .'.-. .1... ..;h U i..J OV.
v v . i v m, , ..'it fci-.fj;',i-l'least
to tlinna who advertise bv he'ear" - ctuty of their Representatives.' Unless and until.;
. . . ' . ', ., '' . '.' i something may be realized from a re-salo of .the !
8rr Letters on business, and nil ( ommiirnetitimis , - .
inlradd or ublicatiiw must" be addn-sscd to the. -or recovery- ag-unst its stockholders ;
Tditor nnd ''pott paid ' ''j.nd hond'sinen, ojWmly reliance is 'Upon somo j
', M - ' hi',', i ,' , . u.i iiijnmi for an increase of the" Revenue, which j
GOYEMQE'S MESSAGE.
3Tj' the- forwr.'iWc the Vrnrfal-' -' 1.
The recurrence of the regular Session of the Loy
; pishitiire, after the lapse of two more years, de
tnanils of us rehnvyed expressions of gratitude and
praise to an All-bounteous Providence, for the nn-
mero"H6manifeitation-ofhisbent'ficence With which j
wo have been favored, ith rare exceptions,
health has leen enjoyed among our population in
an unusual decree.; the fruits of the earth have
b.'cn yit-lded-in great abundance, not merely for the
snpp.y ot all our wants, hut to relieve tlie distress- referred to, I recommend, that when the means in
'. esofour famishing' brethren in "ther lands ; and i tho, Treasury, nre insiiiricicnt for these ends, the
Mir common Country has been restored lo the bless- Treasurer be authorized to issue State Bonds rc
ingofl'eacu. ; . jdeemible in ten years, to an amount equal to the
The Regiment of Volunteers required for the i deficiency. It is also worthy of your attentive in
xvar with Mexico. which was being levied at the j qiiiry, whether iike bqndi should not be at once is
: last adjournment of the Legislature, was 'mustered j sued injieu 4 the debt of $00,000, du the Hank
into-the service of the United States, and embark- j of ('ape Fear. To the State it is a ma'ter of in
rd for the ten of war, nsearly as. practicable af- j difference, whether she shall have the loan from
ter .their arrival at Sinithvilie. . . Ji.e.i.ng.nsMgned To "d,0 Rank, or from other 'cspitatists. Rut in a com
tlie column oftho army corninandod by Mai. CfiiI. i muiiity where Ranking capital is -limited, and with
Taylor, and reachhg their destination after thp j the freest uso of their means, the Ranks can af
meinor.ihle di f-iit of the i-hemy at Bnena Vista, ; tord no greater accommodation, thairia required
which oyerthrew.and disjiersed his forces in that j for the demands of business, it ,is. a serigils priva-
quarler, they did not have the good fortune to par
. ticipato in those victories which have so tigiijlly
illustrated our arms. They bore, however, tin ir
full share of the privations and hardships-incident
to camp lifeand 'contributed mere than their due
proportion of victims to a climate more dreadfnl
than tho foe. Tlaopporiunliy heen aftbrded them
to test their prowess in battle, I doubt not that, un
der the discipline and lead of their gallant and ablo
commander, they would have won laurels for them
selves, and brought home honors for their country.
Under the Resolutions of the lat session making
appropriations to that end, I drew from the Trea
sury, at sundry times from January till May, 1817,
the sum of $11,230, for the use of the RegimentJ
for the disbursement of which vouchers have been
deposited in tho office of tho Comptroller of Public
Accounts. . .,
An act having been passed at the recent session
of Congress to refund to the States any monies ad
vanced for the comfort and transportation of thoir
Volunteers, prior to being mustered into service,
with interest on the same, I transmitted to the Se
cretary of War an account of the advances jnst
stated, as well as of the transportation of a part of
the Regiment over the Raleigh and Gaston Rail
road, on their way to the rendezvous, and desired
its early adjustment. A strict construction having
iieen placed on this act by the War Department,
and proof being demanded which requires the vou
chers of disbursement to be exhibited before its ac
counting officers, ft was deemed best to postpone
the further prosecution of the claim until they shall
have undergone the investigation of your Commit
tee of Finance.
The abovo sum is exclusive of ari expenditure
of $293 03, under a separate Resolution of the
Oeneral Assembly to purchase Flags for the Re
giment, which have becntturncd to the Office of
. the Adjutant General, and arutubjcct to your dis
position. . . ;(
Tlie Fincal affairs of the State still continue to
claim tlie first place in the consideration of tlie Le
gislature. The detailed operations of the Treasu
ry, since the lust session, will be found in the Re
ports of tlie Public Treasurer sod Comptroller of
Public Accounts. . While its resource have been
sufficient to satisfy all just demands, and to uphold
the public credit, it will be perceived that little f re
grets ha been made in extinguishing the State
debt; and, by making payments by means obtained
on losii, we have only exchanged one creditor for
another. , In my first message to the last General
Assembly,! stated, in txknso, the various liabili
ties of the Treasury,und traced the history of those
ribing from endorsements for the Raleigh and
Gaston Railroad Company. For a clear compre
hension of the subject at present, it may be neces
ssry to repast, that on accouat of her first surety-
Ship for this Company, the State is responsible for
the sum of $500,000, of which, the interest is to
be paid semi-annually, nd the principal " tt such
time after tho ,11 day of J .nuary I860, us the
I-ffislature shall lierenftit appoint;" that the'sn
drrtook a second re-irvmiHi'iMv for th: Company to
the smount of fAfS.SCiOwltlt -interest payable in
likunanner, ant the principal, in annual instal
ments of $30,000 each from, 1845 till 1851 and
that four.pf thw vistahiifiits buve bseii already j $i;6,.l30,83llatsik cents, on the one hundred dol
!'rhrrj;!, so lb t tre r-main of this c!a of ar9 value, yield only $37,9J1 21, and why, out of
I if t''i f. the s. f ?5l69,5Ci0. But to j ;t least 195,003 taxable pnlis in tlio State, more
liflthf Tr' ii 'f, in wy:$ tiiesn iiHklnifi)U of ; ibau 30.00a yet erxp taxation altogether, Th
principal, while sustaining the ordinary expenses '
of government, and thp heavy drafts for interest on
the aggregate of both these classes of ilebt, there
Inn been borrowed, from tho Bank of Cape Fear,
within ihn last four years, the sum of $90,000, be
sides tho loan from the Litcmryl'und, hereinafter
.mentioned"' Such-aro our rcsponsibilitivs. A Tho
scrupulous regard for the public honor, which ia
justly' the pride of iiu Slate, requires them to he
promptly im t. To prjvido for this in the moe
burdensome to the people, in -tho appropriate I
j shall furnish the means, of gradually curtailing,
I the principal, while it keeps, down the interest. ;
(The principal of tlie debt of 500 ,000. docs not j
I press with any immediate. force' as we have alrea
dy seen, and requires nothing at present but a pro
vision for its interest. The Rank -of Capo Fear is
also bound by its Charter to lend to the State,' at
any time when called for, an amount not exceed-
j inj; 50,000 and no stipulation, is made as to the
time of payment. Tho residue, therefore, of .-sUou-
000, is the only portion, of the li-ibility, having a ;
fixed and early day, for its liquidation. . To meet 1
I u.x." ...... . - .,
the interest on the three descriptions of debt, and ;
the principal as it may become due, of that lat ,
tion to commercial men to be without the facilities,
w h ich would be furnished by the loan of this a-
ninunt among them.
Tho advantage of allow ing the new loan a eon
s'denvhle time to run, (say ten years,) is that it
would ensure its being taken immediately at par
if not at a premium. If ! bmrever contrary to all
true principles of Finance, to contract a loan
without also providing not only for the interest,
hut for the gradual redemption of the principal.
If the foregoing suggestions be adopted, they will
consolidate the Bank debt, and the resiuue of tlie
smaller debt on account of the Railroad in a loan
of $250,500, redeemable in ten years. And if the
present Legislature shall provide for the extin
guishment of this amount of the public obligations
within that period, and the punctual payment of
interest on the w hole, thej will have accomplish
ed as much, as may be at present needful, leaving
lo their successors, the adoption of measures for
tho repayment of the debt of $500,000 " at any
time after the 1st day of January, 1800," as orig
inally stipulated. This arrangemeut will require
a sinking fund of about 25,000 annually for the
redemption of the principal, besides about $ 15,000,
for interest. The latter sum, however, will grad
ually fall to $30,000 as the debt is diminished. In
other words, it will require $70,000 or thereabouts
to be annually applied to the public debt, over and
above the ordinary expenses of Government, now
averaging about a like sum, making the whole a-
mount wanted for each year $1 10,000.
In the Message to the last legislature already
referred to, onr Revenue Sybtcm was reviewed
with reference to the demands on the Treasury,
and an argument was submitted to demonstrate,
that the State annually lost seven or eight thous
and dollars, from failures, to enlist lands for taxa
tion, whereby they bad escaped their contingent
entirely cr from under valuation, by means of
which, it had been avoided in pr j : and that pro
bably an equal sum was lost in the l'oll tax from
a like criminal negligence, in rendering lists ol
taxable persons. Accordingly, the Act of the last
Setsion directed a new assessment, and a more
vigilant supervision of the enlistment of lands.
The result has been, that the land Revenue of
1817, collected under tlie new Law, has exceeded
that of 181G, under tho old, by the sum of $5,
91102. A table attached to 'the Report of the
Public Treasurer will show that the total number
of acres taxed in 1816 was 22,3G3i3, and that
in 1317 it rose to 21,359,075, and that the.-' aggre
gate valuation of land and own property in 1810,
was 55.254,191, and that in 18-17 it grew to
$66,430,8i:i. With these material additions in
quantity and valuation, the amount of taxes re
ceived from real estate, is yet lower by two or three
thousand dollars, than ought to bo obtained at tlie
present rut. There has been, also, su increase
in tlie year of $1561 78 in the poll tax. It ap
pears ii'iw to be collected (on 173,1 19 persons, a
gainst 165,310 in tho previous year. Iain yot
satisfied, hoa-ever, from the statistics embodied, in
niy former Message, that even this number falls
short, by at least 30,000 of the whole taxable pop
ulation of the State. It therefore will ctll for
vour investigation, why a valuation en land of
RALEIGH, FRIDAY,
important addition In the revenue on real property
and polls of near $7,300 by reason of the mea
sures adopted tit the last Session, has been the pro
duet of no new imposition on our constituents, hut
tho mere fonseqiicnce of a fair and equal contri
bution to those formerly existing. By a still closer
scrutiny of the subject, especially in; the .depart'
client of the l'oll tax, 1 apprehend that ;. plan may
be devised to obtain a sl.ll further increment of j
.(5,000, from .tho mime souVcea at existing .hi tea. j
Tint with all the aid derivable from such tiica-
sures, the Treasury will need additional tneans'to
redjice our liabilities as proposed above.. Thc.Rev -
, , , '
enup. collected, the present year, from allsources,
amounts to $90,004 69. 1'y correcting the deli-
cienceR just now. exposed- it may he raised to ex-,;
ceed $100,000, leaving a deficit of about i'i,t.'03, j
to be supplied from other resources. Of this it 5
may be-reasonably '. calciibtcd, "'that'.' 1 '-..CM :r1'.':
year may be derived) 'from Collectii. ns en Cherokee
bonds transferred to the Treatury, from the fund ; and engine house at tho depot in itali igh, with
for Intemal Improvement, utider an Act of the last : all their contents of a combustible; nature, hav
Ceneral Assembly; If two cents Le added cn the : lug been destroyed by fire, and the four best loco
hundred i'.olhiM value of real estate, as was the motives of the hiad,nsvell as the stationary steam
law prior to i'8'i.l, and six cents, on the poll,: they .j engine, being serioUhly;eiidamaged,i it became n?-
..would yield enough with the ciairn on the War
department, before mentioned, and the deb! secured
hy uiortiragc on the Wtldon Toll Rridge to the
Board of Internal Improvement,- which is not yet j
collected, to
ma Ke up tlie resiuue. it is uowever .,
., -i , ..
the peculiar province of the Legislature, to devise i
tho ways and means intuitu all onr engagements,
and preserve the public. faith. Anil ill suggesting
those just named, 'which' are simple, usual and road property o; the sum of $25,000,.(thc amount this regard, however unpleasant may be the ad
cortaiiily reliable, I def'.ro to be understood as cn- . of loss a n-.l damage occasioned ljy the fire, as es- j mission, I am forced to the conviction, that we la
tertaining no preference for them, above any oth- j tiinated by its President.) by virtue of the power i.bor utider greater disadvantages than any State in
ers, which the w isdom of the General Assembly ; conferred on the Governor and Council to make a j the I'nion : And that wo never can be equal ccm
shull approve. The duty of the I'xecutive is per- ; sale of the same They advised the adoption of ! pctitors with their citizens in our Agric-ilturn, ti e
formed in presenting, w ith fr.inkr.esi the necesfi- ' the latter, and an arrangement was made w ith the I predominant pursuit among us, until these disadr
ties of tlie Treasury, leaving the. manner -end-'j Rank of the State -of North . Carolina, to advance ' vantages are in a great .degree overcome. The
time of relief to the proper Constitutional depart- , the'surri required, at such times as they might lie man -who is obliged to transport in wagons over no
merit of the Government. . It U ef moinf-nt how- j c.i'hd for by the progress ol tlie repairs, On bonds"! better roads than ours, a distance varying from
ever that measures should be taken' in due season , of the St ile, reciting on their face the considr-ra- sixty to two hundred and fifty miles, at the speed
to liquidate by degrees the Slab's liabilities, and i tion, and a deeif of "trust on. the Railroad and its !. of twenty-five miles per. day, can no more contend
the process herein r?coiiin.f!u.ed is not mow spee- f
dy than a wise policy demands.' If additional re
sources shall be realized from a sale of tlio Rail
road or recoveries in tlie suits against the stock
holders, ihey will come opportunely in furtherance
of tho measure for reduction now proposed, but
the expectation of them dc"s not justify its post- j
ponement at the present Session. , I sentatives of the people at the. earliest convenient.
, You will doubtless ubscrve in the Reports ot j day, I did not propose any longer term of credit,
the Comptroller, that there is no statement, of any j If this, however, be desirable, it doubtless ran be
tax, received on the succession to estates,real and j easily efi'ectcd by issuing State bonds at five years,
personal, of deceased persons, by others than line- j for an equal sum, add requiring the. Railroad, if
ral descendants, which was imposed by an act of j retained by tho State, to pay the interest as it may
last ssion. Whether the ulifriiitfulness of this accrue, and gradually to extinguish the principal,
source of revenue thus far, has been owing to the j What course shall lie adopted by the State in re
failure to prescribe any specific lime for its Jiay-j lation to retaining or disposing of this Road yet re
ment to the clerks and for its being accounted for mainsa a question of great interest. Such has
by them, or to other causes, is a qutstion for your
investigation. f that it has yicli'eu no ilividends to the treasury for
Agreeably to the Instructions of the Act of tho ; the last two years. Two new. . Locomotives have,
last Session, I caused an Information in the na- j however, been purchisei at a cost of more than
ture of a Bill of Equity to he instituted in the pro- j $7,000 each, and the other Engines refitted, (ex
per Court of Wake. .County, against -the slock- eept one wholly ruined by the fire referred to;) so
holders -end other obligors of tho Raleigh and Gas-
ton Railroad Compaiiy, to recover the indemnity
stipulated In the event of any loss lo the State, by
reason of her suretyships for that Company. The
great number of parties defendant and tho changes
of parties by transfers of interest, and by deaths,
have delifycd the progress of the cause to final de
cision. And as it embraces the main subject of
controversy between the State and any of the de
fendants, the counsel for the State have not press
ed for trial the actions af Law against some of
them, which had been previously pending.
My opinion ol the legal responsibilities of these
parlies, was presented at some length in the mes
sage of 1846, and remains unchanged. In consid
eration however, of the circumstances of their
ease, I am led to the conclusion that it is a proper
subject for adjustment by compromise, snd that lib
eral terms should lie allowed by the State. The
transaction which occasioned it has been truly un
fortunate for both parties. While on tho one hand
it has imposed a burthen on the Treasury, which
is heavily felt, on the other the whole capital sloes
of (700,000) subscribed and paid in has been lost
to the individual contributors and tho proporty in
tho Road which it went to construct has been pur
chased in by the Slate, and affords the accommo
dation to the pu'.lic which was the chief induce
ment with the Legislature in authorizing its con
struction. If in addition to the lows of the stock
already sustained, they shall lie subjected to an e
qnal recovery on the responsibilities subsequently
contracted on account of the Road, it will be a
double grievance which many (I apprehend) will
be unable to bear. A portion of tbem bave no
doubt sufficient means to meet it without material
injury. Rut the larger number, among whom arc
widows, orphans, clergymen, mechanics, planters
with large families and moderate estates, have
heretofore felt the deprivation of the means invest
ed in this Road, as a calamity, and cannot suffer
an exaction of a like amount now without ruin.
I submit these observations (becoming, as 1 think,
the candor and impartiality of a Chief Magistrate!
with the luss reserve from an abseneo of all inter
est at any time in litis work, and of connexion with
any of the persons concerned which could occa
sion sny improper bias. What may be fitting
terms of accommodation, fan only bo deUr.uined
DECEMBER 1, 13 IS.
Ky tho Legislature, and can bo more readily nego- j
tiated by a conference of those interested with a
committee of your body, than in any other mode, j of disposing of it will, as I conceive, present. them
The operations of the Raleigh and Gaston Rail- j selves ,lo wit : 1st. A re-sale to the former stock
road for the past two years, will be fully dvfaileij holders, by compromise of the suits now pending,
in the Report of the Board of Commissioners. The I if suitable terms be offered. 3d. To retain it as a
statement of its Treasurer, published in the news- permanent property of the State, after repairing it
pajicrs, in analogy to the Report of the Comptroll- in the best manner. 2d,;' To unite it with anoth-
er on the Public J ina-nces, for the year ending 1!
Nov.. 1847, showed its earnings to have been 63,.-'will
W2 .j7...ahd disbursement 8fi5,.'5" ill For the
j following year; .ending Nov. sf, IS I8rthe earnings
, were. $57,000, nnd dislmrsum nts (exclusive of
, , ,
.extraordinary repairs, rendered necessary by a
i conflagration which 'destroyed the principal build-.
-ings--.tif the. Road; at Raleigh,) 852,47!)' 72.?'
Add to this tho amount of these repairs viz.
S2?,7J1 M.'.an) (ha su:n total of disburse-
B',f'nt , ViH'. hn ,!S;81.271 65. ih tue night - of
Iho . 25th of .Fetiniary l:i.f, tlio inachino shop
eessary to take immediate steps to repair the inju
ry, or to peniiil t'ne Railroad, with its appendages,
to go to destriiction. Finding no: power iidequate
to the exigency conferred on the Commissioners of i
'.i.n. t w ,., rv .. .
ine r.oaa, i convened uic council ot state, anil
submitted to them the alternatives 'of either ron-
yoking. the Legislature, in. special session, to tro-
ide the Heedful means, or of mortgaging the -Rail-
appendairt property, tu':seenrb their payment. Ac-
cordingly, liomls dated in April, M,iy and July last, j Railroa-sir good navigation, than can the Spin
amounting in the whole to 825.000, nil payable the ! niug Wheel with the Cotton Mill. Had we ever
1st of Jan, n-xt,were iifgot'iated.and adimd of trust boon in a more favorable situation in this respect,
'executed.. Some provision is therefore necessary
to take up these bonds. Derigning to place the
the whole subject nnder the control of the Re pre-
; been the demand for repairs and improvements
, that the motive power of tho establishment is in
better condition, than at any time heretofore. New
and superior Iron has also been purchased and laid
down for near ten miles from Gaston southward, J
and the whole superstructure of the Road has been J
renewed for that distance. Very extensive renew- j
als have also been made in the wood work of the
line generally. But the process of repairing is ,
now carried on under great disadvantage, for want
of iron to relay a considerable part of the track,
and the present earnings of the Road are insuffici
ent to procure it. - Tlie Northern half of the line,
over which the heaviest trains pass, was originally
laid with thin iron, which is much broken, and oc
casions a great waste of labor in temporarily re
fitting with fragments that aro soon to be broken
again, as well as constant damage to the engines
and cars from the severe wear and tear to which it
subjects them. A prudent economy often consists
in a liberal expenditure. Any proprietor of this
wmk would find it Iiib true interest to put it in com
plete repair, even if it were necessary to give liens
on the proporty to raii.6 the means. If, therefore!
(he Roi.d should not be transferred to other hands
during jour silting, it is obviously expedient and
proper to purchase immediately Iron railing suffi
cient to refit it for at least thirty miles. Fifty thou
sand dollars expended for this purpose might ena
ble the State to receive as profits some 15, 0, or
25,000 of the 55 to 75,000, the present income of
the Road, a large part or which is now spent on
the ineffectual reparation above discrilied. Its op
erations may go on, as at present, without such aid,
but they afford no prosjieet of profit. If a loan be
contracted for this object, on liberal time, there can
be but little doubt of the ability of tin? road to pay
it with interest. And in the event' of a sale, it
would enhance the pri;e of the whole property by
an nuioiiiit certainly equal to tho money thus laid
out. " ' "''' -"
It would no doubt b? prefcniblu to convert this
property into funds for the relief o( the Treasury,
rathor than to make any other disposition- of It.
To expose it at auction, however, would be to sa
crifice it, from the magnitude of the interest, and
the facility with which bidders would combine their
capital and put down competition". After a com
mittee of your body shall have made a tfwimtigh in
vestigation of the affiirs of tlie road, and to that
end shall have eximined on oath in officers and
.head - workmen, if denned necessary, three moilcs
w work, 'through the interior of tho State, which
be more particularly noticed in the secuel.
The. Wilmington and Raleigh Railroad Compa-
pnny have ''-regularly paid tho interest on all tiieir
debts, and effected considerable improvement on
their Road, with the income of the last two years.
A minute statement of the condition of their affairs
will accompany, the Report of the Board of Inter
na,! Improvement. I iun gratified to observe a ve
ry handsotno addition to their receipts in the items
of freight and Way travel, showing that tho local
accommodation from this work W becoming much
extended. . They will, 1 presume, bo unable to pay
off the principal of their bonds guaranteed by the
State, and amounting to &50.000, which will bo-
come due the '1st of January next.. But so long as j
lucy continue to meet the accruing interest with
their a'ccryto:n?d puiwtuality, there cart be no ob
jection to extending (o them the State's, credit up
on the samo terms as hercioforc. or even for a Ion
gcr period
In surveying our territory, with an eve to the
J present interest nnd wants of the people, I am
j more than ever impressed with cur destitution of
j facilities for cheap and speedy transportation-. In
for profits with him who ha. the advantage of
and had the 'impediments which now beset us been
imposed by human power, no sacrifice would be
esteemed too great to effect our deliverance and re
store our prosperity. It is therefore a theme for
the profoundest consideration of those enjoying the
confidence of a constituency thussitnated,and in
tending to requite it by a faithful devotion to their
interests, hhat can be done, or ought to lie under
taken, to remove these grievances and place their
industry and labor on an equal footing with those
of their fellow-citizens in other States? It must
be admitted, that from Go-graphical causes, the
question was originally one rather difficult of so-
Motion. And our former enterprise's in Internal
Improvement, having failed from causes not ne
cessary to be now commented on, the State has of
late years taken no action "in constructing works
of this kind, and many good citizens appear to
have concluded, that further efforts were vain, as
our doom to privation in this particular was fixed
fate. Meanwhile other States have pushed fur
ward their improvements (some of them with a
rash and extravagant hand, it is true, but in the
main with the meat beneficial results,) overcoming
obstacles far greater than any which impede us,
and obtaining for themselves, still greater advan
tages over us in the competitions of the market.
We are therefore impelled not only by all the more
obvious considerations w hich appeal to us in form
er times, but by a reasonable self-defence, to aban
don further hesitation and adopt at once a system
of improvement, commensurate witu the wants
and interest of the State. Too much should not
be undertaken at once, but what may be attempted,
should lie thoroughly completed. As the com
mencement of such a system, and a basis, on which
other works may be engrafted, to any desirable ex
tent, as our means may from time to time pcrmil,a
Railroad from Raleigh to Charlotte by way of
Salisbury, appears to me of the first moment.
This scheme has not been much considered here
tofore, and derives much of its importance from a
kindred work, now in progress from Charlotte to
Columbia, South Carolina. Already from Raleigh
Northward continuous linos of Railroad and Steam
boat transportation stretch through the towns of
Virginia and the great cities of the North, to Port
land in Maine, and Buffalo on Like Erie. Simi
1 ir works also exist, or are in progress, with a cer
tainty of completion in the course of a year or
two, extending from Charlotte Southward through
Columbia to Charleston : and again from the for-
mor of these through Augusts, and the interior of
Georgia, snd Tennessee to Nashville, as well as
to tlie Mississippi, at Memphis, end to New Or
leans, by way of Montgomery and Mobile. Thro'
a port of North Carolina alone, a link is wanting,
to complete the grand chain of communication,
from one extremity of onr Country to the other,
and to furnish to the whole nation those facilities
of intercourse which tho inhabitants North and
South of us, enjoy in their several sections. The
connexion proposed therefore, being as it were a
bridge over a space now hnpsssable by rteam cars,
having at either end the gTrat high ways of tlie
North and South, with their numerous branches
far a thousand miles in both directions, promises
a reasonable remuneration for tlie outlay of it
NO. 1.
construction, from''" through" transportation : and
ini military and other point of view, would he of
great national advantag?. Had nature supplied :
us with navigable rivers like the Mississippi, flow
ing from Raleigh and Charlotte, respectively, to
New York and New Orleans, or even to Charles
ton, all' would at once percciva the benefit of the
junction of the two, though the interior of tlie'
iStite, as clearly as did the genius of Clinton that
arising fro n thr union of the Hudson with the
great Lakes. The parallel may not be yet perfect
in the present state ol Railroad conveyances, but
isdestined to be bo at no distant day.
But tho foregoing are only incidental induce
ments to iiudertakV this work. It is commended
to us as a great North' Carolina improvement, ap
pealing io our interest and State pride, by argu
ments which it were almost criminal to overlook.
1st. It would open to the market of tho world an
extensive region of tlie State, reaching from the
Capitol almost to the Blue ridge,-of great fertility .'
and capacity for indefinite improvement, by reason
of its Agricultural, Mineral and Manufacturing-
resources, 'containing in the Counties within twen
ty-five miles of the niost'direct route, more than
230,000. souls;; and within fifty miles, ot more
than one half of our whole population, who are -far
removed from places of trade and dependent
entirely on the common wagon and common road
for all their transportation. The occasion will
not permit me to dwell on-its aumbcress benefits '.
in this' regard, which will readily occur to any ens
who looks-on the Map of the State a ith the eye ef
a statesman and patriot- 2d. It would add im-al- "
culably, to the business and value of oho.at least, -(and
ultimately of both,) of our present Railroads
in which -"'e State has so deep an interest, and
make them productive Stocks. 3d. It would unite
the middle and eastern with the western section of
the State, in a domei-tic trade, and exchange of
productions too cumbersome for the present mode
of conveyance, beside facilitating travel for health,
and social intercourse. 4th, By running over the
most practicable route from Raleigh to Salisbury,
and thence turning southwestivard to Charlotte, it
would bisect the State for more llwen a hundred
miles, bringing tho most remote on either side
' within fifty miles of the Railroad,nd would be in
a favorable location for being extended still far
ther west, from the former place, and toennmct
advantageously by means of Turnpike roads with
all the Northwestern part of our territory.
Whilst it would confer these benefits on the in
terior Country now d( pressed and partially exclu
ded from all profitable commerce, the objection has
not been overlooked that it does not point immodi-;
a.tely to the seaboard of our own State, and to sn
increase of the prosperity of our market towns.
Let them however not despair. Its advantages
will be afforded to them in due season. Af
ter tlio completion of the main track, a branch -to
Fayetteville or other point on the navigable wa
ter of Ihe Cape Fear River, will be ofeaay ac- -
comphslimeat " Its extension from Raleigh to
Goldsboro' would be invited by the connexion thus '
to be formed, between Wilmington and the upper
Country, and eventually it might realize that
scheme of a central Railroad consecrated by the
patriotic labors of Caldwell in an extension from
Goldsboro' to Beaufort. Whether therefore we re
gard it as a single work, or as the ground work of
an extensive plan, the Road from Raleigh to Chur
lotie appears to be the important irr. rovement
which should first "engage our attention and our
energies. And I accordingly recommend it to the
patronage of our Legislature, to the amount of
one-half, or at least two fifths of the capital, ne
cessary for its consfruction. The distance is a
bout one hundred and sixty miles by tie mail roulfl, '
and the cost of the Road and equipments over such
route as may bo solecUd, would probably .not r
ceed $1,COO,000. As an inducement to aid this
scheme, it presents an opportunity fur disposing of
the Raleigh and Gaston Road, as has been intima
ted in the preceding remarks, on that topifl. - A"
company might be organized to embrace the entire
line from Gaston to Charlolt?, and the road no
owned by th Stats -transferred to thent w a fab
valuation in payment of her subscription for
stock- Of the particulars of such an arrange
ment if favored by the Legislature, no deliuesrlrm
is here required. I have already treated of tills
subject with more miiiutoness than tuny be appro
priate, in an address of this kind, becaost, it' hn
as yet attracted but little of the public attention,
and from a deep impression of its utility ia allevi
ating I lie condition of our industry and reviving
the waning fortune of our countrymen while It
gives an insured hop of profit crj the enpital hi
vef'ed. v: i 9,u
I have remarked with fliach aatisfaction.tliat
somy enterprising persons among nur fallow-citi-tens,
hav commenced Hi Jiavigatica of Neuwl
and Tar rivers with Steam Boats of a tight class,'
and that a spirit is aweMicd among tlie people in :
the upper section of tlie Caps Fear to own that '.
river for navigation to or bore. the eonflasncve-of
main branches. Every mccewl'id, flWtt $ 1
jeets of this nature is a public ni-rit.and4i:r,e
the fostering aid of the Lpcii 'aturu. ,4 .7t i ;
, It b is not been thought expedient to exetrtjo the
powr conferred on tlie Rrd of Liuma! Limn.
menl by th but General Assembly, ti sell (h
CU'Moot and Harlow's Cre-k Csnal, and it expir-'
ed by limitation with the opening of j-imr Scs-dr-a,"
(CuHoW' ti lift p'ge-)