The Register of Pennsylvania : devoted to the preservation of facts and documents and every other kind of useful information respecting the state of Pennsylvania, Vol. XII, Part 114

Author: Hazard, Samuel, 1784-1870
Publication date: 1828
Publisher: Philadelphia : Printed by W.F. Geddes ;
Number of Pages: 438

USA > Pennsylvania > The Register of Pennsylvania : devoted to the preservation of facts and documents and every other kind of useful information respecting the state of Pennsylvania, Vol. XII > Part 114

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" They made a call upon the President of the Bank for the correspondence in relation to the postponement

of that payment, in the following words: "Will you please give a copy of the correspondence connected with your application in March last, requesting a sus- pension by the Government of the payment of a por- tion of its debt intended to have been made on the first of July next, or a statement of the arrangement made in relation to that subject." Which correspondence was communicated by the President of the Bank with the following remarks.

" I have made no application to the Government, nor have I requested any suspension of the payment of any portion of the public debt.

" The inquiry, I suppose, relates to this circum - stance; 'I received a letter from the acting Secretary of the Treasury, dated the 24th March, 1832, inform- ing me that Government was about to issue a notice on the first of April, of their intention to pay, on the first of July next, one-half of the three per cent. stock, and to do it by paying to each stockholder one-half of the amount of his certificate.'" He added,

" If any objection occurs to you either as to the amount or mode of payment, I will thank you to sug- gest it."

"Thus invited by the Government in a communica- tion marked 'confidential,' to give my opinions on a measure contemplated by the Government, I felt it my duty to express my views of its probable operation: in my reply therefore, dated 29th of March, I stated 'that so far as the Bank is concerned, no objection occurs to me, it being sufficient that the Government has the ne- cessary amount of funds in the Bank to make the con- templated payments.' I then proceeded to observe, that in the present situation of the commercial community, and with a very large amount of revenue, (amounting to nine millions, ) to be paid before the 1st of July, the debtors of the Government would require all the for- bearance and all the aid that could be given them; and that the payment proposed, hy creating a demand for the remittance of several millions of dollars to European stockholders, would tend to diminish the usual facilities afforded to the debtors of the Government, and might endanger the punctual payment of the revenue. For this reason I thought it for the interest of the Govern- ment, to pos'pone the payment till the next quarter. I further stated, that the plan of paying to each stock- holder only one-half of his loan, would not be so accep- table as if his whole loan were rc-paid at once.

" Having thus performed my duty in giving the opi- nion asked, I left it, of course, to the Government to decide. On the part of the Bank, I sought nothing, I requested nothing. After weighing the circumstances, the Government were desirous of adopting the mea- sure, but the difficulty I understood to be this, that the sinking fund would lose the quarter's interest, from Ju- ly to October, of the sumn intended to be paid in July; and that the Government did not fecl itself justified in making the postponement unless that interest could be saved, but that it would be made, provided the Bank would make the sinking fund whole on the 1st of Octo- ber. To this I said, that as the Bank would have the use of the fund, during the three months, it would con- sent to save the sinking fund harmless, by paying the three months interest itself; as the matter stands.

"Now, it will be seen, that the Bank, in all this, has had not the least agency, except to offer its opinion, when it was asked, in regard to a measure proposed by the Government; and then to offer its aid in carrying that measure into operation." "The Committee are fully of opinion that though the Bank neither 'sought' for, nor 'requested' a postponement of the payment by the Government, as stated in the declaration of the Pre- sident, yet if such postponement had not been made, the Bank would not, on the 1st of July, have possessed the ability to have met the demand, without causing a scene of great distress in the commercial community."

(Remainder next week.)

HAZARD'S

DEVOTED TO THE PRESERVATION OF EVERY KIND OF USEFUL INFORMATION RESPECTING THE STATE.

EDITED BY SAMUEL HAZARD.

VOL: XII .- NO. 26. PHILADELPHIA, DECEMBER 28, 1833. NO. 312

CANAL COMMISSIONERS' REPORT. (Concluded from page 390. ) Columbia Railway.

The Columbia railway is eighty-two miles long. was commenced in 1828, but owing to a want of ap- propriations, and various causes over which the Canal Commissioners had no control, the completion of it has been unreasonably delayed. They are now, however, enabled to inform the Legislature, that a single track over the whole road, and the second track on twenty- two miles of the eastern end of it, will be laid and rea- dy for use by the first day of January, 1834, unless they are disappointed in receiving a quantity of iron that has been shipped in England, and is daily expect- ed at Philadelphia.

The jurisdiction of the superintendent who had charge of the eastern end of the road, was, within the last year, extended over the whole line; and as the en- gineer by whom the road was located, and under whose directions the construction of it had progressed until the date of the last report, has since then died, another engineer has been appointed, who took charge of the road on the first day of last March.

On the sixteenth of February, 1833, the act passed appropriating one million one hundred and eleven thon- sand nine hundred and fifty- eight dollars and seventy- eight cents, for prosecuting the work. Directions were immediately given by the Board, to the superin- tendent of the road, to enter into a contract or con- tracts for procuring iron, and on the fourteenth of March, orders were transmitted to England for rails, chairs, bolts and wedges for one track; and soon after- wards, orders were forwarded for iron for the second track on the sixty miles. To ensure its completion ac- cording to the patterns furnished, and of the quality required, and also to hasten its delivery, a special agent was sent to England by the Board, to inspect the iron when manufactured, previous to shipment. Before contracts could be made in England, the manufacturers of iron in that country had received very large orders, which rendered it impossible to get more iron prepared and shipped during the present season, than is suffi- cient for one track. The iron for the second track is now manufacturing, and will be delivered early next spring. If orders could have been transmitted for the iron in the beginning of last winter, the whole of it might have been received during the present season, and about twenty-four thousand dollars saved in its cost, as the price of iron in England had advanced, be- fore the orders of the spring arrived.

The second track on the eastern twenty-two miles of the road was completed, and the connection between the West Chester railway and Philadelphia, established last winter, except the large viaduct and road bridge over the Schuylkill at Peters' Island; which work has been delayed beyond the expectations of the Board, notwithstanding every effort has been used to urge it forward by the officers on the line, and a special in- spector who was employed to superintend its construc- tion. It is, however, at this time in such a state of for- wardness, that it wil be ready for the rails by the mid- dle of next December.

VOL. X II.

The grading and mechanical work belonging to the road bed formation, on the other sixty miles, including the great viaducts over Valley creek and West Brandy- wine, the deep cut at the gap, and the side road through the city of Lancaster, are so nearly finished, that in all the month of December next, rails may be laid upon the whole road.

The "deep cut," through a gap of the Mine ridge between Lancaster and Chester counties, has proved the most difficult job that has ever been undertaken on the public works of the State; for in all other cases, skill and labor, time and perseverance, have vanquished the most formidable obstacles; but the deep cut, (which was originally designed to be about half a mile long, and thirty seven feet deep, at the highest point, dimi- nishing to common cutting at the ends, ) has bid defiance to the skill of the engineer, and the laborious exertions of several contractors. After opening the ground a few feet from the surface, a quick-sand of the worst kind was encountered, that would have required at least two years to remove, at an unknown expenditure, but probably not less than two hundred thousand dol- lars:

The railway was graded up for several miles on each side of the gap, at the maximum of thirty feet rise to the mile. It was, therefore, with extreme reluctance, after a protracted effort to remove the quicksand had failed, that the grade of the road was raised for three- fourths of a mile on each side of the summit, at the rate of forty-five feet per mile. The work is now progress- ing rapidly. The rails through the deep cut will rest upon firm piles driven through the quicksand.

Steam engines are preparing for the two inclined planes. The one for the Columbia plane is nearly fi- nished, and is estimated at forty horse power; and the one at the Schuylkill plane, of sixty horse power, is now setting up. The engine houses have each been constructed for receiving a second engine, whenever the trade may require it. It is computed that nineteen hundred and twenty tons may be passed over each of the planes, in a day of twelve hours.

In the report of the Canal Commissioners of Novem- ber first, 1832, they say, that "with a view to hasten the completion of a line between Philadelphia, the Sus- quehanna, and the West, it is contemplated to lay one track, from the western termination of the twenty-two miles to Columbia, upon wooden sills." The act of the 16th of February, 1833, making a further appropria- tion of one million, one hundred and eleven thousand, nine hundred and fifty-eight dollars and seventy-eight cents, towards completing the Columbia railway, re- quires iron edge rails to be used. This sum is one hundred and twenty-six thousand, four hundred and fifty-six dollars and sixty-three cents less than the esti- mate of Major Wilson, for finishing the road with one track, laid with flat bars on wooden rails; and it is four hundred and thirty-four thousand, three hundred and sixty-one dollars and thirty-two cents less than his esti- mate, if both tracks should be laid with iron edge rails.

By the estimate of Mr. Gay, the present engineer, and the report of the superintendent, it appears that a further appropriation of eight hundred and four thou- sand, eight hundred and ninety-five dollars and fifty- eight cents, will be required to complete the road for

402

CANAL COMMISSIONERS' REPORT.

[DECEMBER

locomotive engines alone; or eight hundred and eighty- nine thousand, eight hundred and ninety-five dollars and fifty-eight cents, if the road is prepared for using horses. Hence the estimate of the present year, (if lo- comotive engines are alone used on the road, ) will ex- ceed that of last year by the sum of three hundred and seventy thousand, five hundred and thirty-four dollars and twenty-six cents.

This large excess is accounted for,

1st. By greater strength and solidity given to the whole work, and especially to the large viaducts.

2d. By the difference in the weight of the rails.

3d. By locomotive engines, water stations, and other things estimated by Mr. Gay, that do not appear in the estimate of Major Wilson.

4th. By an almost total failure in procuring stone blocks in the lime stone valleys through which the road passes. And having to haul two thousand three hun- dred tons of stone blocks from the sand stone hills, a distance of from 12 to twenty miles to the road. This circumstance alone caused two-thirds of the contractors to abandon their jobs.

5th. By an unusual number of re-lettings at higher prices.

6th. By the unforeseen difficulties of the deep cut at the gap at Henderson's.

7th. By the enhanced price of iron in England .?

8th. By the connection of the rail road with the Co- lumbia bridge, required by a resolution of the Legisla- ture of the 26th March, 1833, and other work not con- templated at the previous estimate.

The Wiggan rail, weighing forty one and a fourth pounds per yard, has been adopted for both tracks of the sixty miles now in progress. It is calculated for carrying locomotive engines weighing six tons. Loco- motive engines may run from Philadelphia to Columbia on the first track, in the month of January next, if the iron arrives which is expected. And the second track can be finished by the first of September, 1834.

A survey and estimate have been made, and arrange- ments are making, in obedience to the resolution of the Legislature of the 26th March, 1833, for placing under contract the work for connecting the Columbia rail way with the tracks to be laid upon the Columbia bridge.

Statement of the funds appropriated to the Columbia Railway.

Amount available of appropriations of 1831 and 1832,

$1,238,431 14

Pro rata deduction under act ele- venth June, 1832, refunded,

51,710 44

Appropriation of the 16th February, 1833,

1,111,958 78

$2,402,100 36

Disbursed in 1831, 210,704 23

do. 1832, 764,887 49

do. 1833, Mitchell,664,539 70

do. do. Barber, 60,667 57

1,700,798 99

Balance on hand, October thirty-one, 1833,

$701,301 37

Due for per centage re- tained, 50,004 95

Estimate of work requir- ed to complete both tracks, 1,450,542

Cost of connecting with

the Columbia bridge,

5,650

Deduct above balance

1,506,196 95 701,301 37

$804,895 58

To which must be added $85,000 for horse paths, if horses are to be used, or if locomotive engines are used there must be added 51,000

$855,895 58

Whole amount disbursed

prior to 1831, 337,863 04

Amount disbursed as

above stated, 1,700,798 99

Per centage due and

work to be done, 1,506,146 95

3,544,808 98

For locomotive engines, 51,000

Cost when complet- ed for locomo- tive engines, $3,595,808 98 Length including the side road through Lancaster, 82 miles.

Portage Railway.

The Portage rail road over the Allegheny Mountain, is thirty six miles and two hundred and eight perches long, but between the extreme points of navigation is only thirty-six miles, and it overcomes a rise and fall of two thousand five hundred and seventy feet in that dis- tance. The work upon this road has within the past year progressed very well, the grading and masonry are completed. A single track of rails along the whole road and a double track on the inclined planes (making together forty-four miles and three hundred and four- teen perches, ) are almost finished.

Ten steam engines have been constructed, and are putting up at the ten inclined planes, four of them are estimated at thirty horse power, and the other six at thirty-five horse power each, They are made on the high pressure principle, and may, if the trade require it, be worked up to forty, fifty, or sixty horse power with safety; lest, however, accidents and consequent delays should occur, it is intended when the second track of rails is laid, to put up a second engine at each of the planes.

As a precautionary measure, two extra ropes have been procured. The ropes are what are called "white ropes," made of Russian and Italian hemp, from six and one-fourth to seven inches in circumference. The ag- gregate length of the twelve ropes is eleven miles and seven hundred and seventy-eight yards. Their whole weight is one hundred and eighteen thousand, six hun- dred and forty-nine pounds, and they cost from fourteen to eighteen cents per pound; or altogether when deli- vered at Hollidaysburg, twenty thousand five hundred and thirty-one dollars and five cents. It is calculated that the engines and ropes when working at an ordinary rate will take a train of cars up the planes, at the speed of four miles an hour; and at the same time a train can descend the plane.

The completion of the rail road has been retarded by delays in the importation of iron, two thousand one hun- dred and ninety-three tons of malleable iron rails, and one hundred and twenty-three thousand, six hundred chairs of cast iron were required for a double track on the inclined planes; and a single track throughout the rest of the road. About two-thirds of the chairs were manufactured in our own state; and the residue of the iron was obtained in England. Of seven ships that were freighted with iron in 1832, but two arrived in a reason- able time. One ship was lost altogether, and one was six months at sea. The insurers had to pay about fif- teen thousand dollars for iron that was lost, and twenty- two thousand and thirty-seven chairs that arrived were condemned at a loss to the manufacturer. Hence or- ders had to be sent out last spring to England to sup- I ply the deficiency.

403

The iron obtained in England, cost The castings made at home, cost

Whole cost of iron

$250,778 26

Miles. Yards,

Miles. Yards.

The length of road with edge rails on stone blocks is 13 15913

Ditto on timber, is 20 1120

34 951}

Plate rail on timber,

10 775

Length of a single track,

44 17263

In the construction of the Portage rail road, a large amount of heavy work has been performed, deep exca- vations, large embankments, and very high and strong outside supporting walls, as well as numerous drains, culverts, and viaducts, all of solid masonry have been executed, of which work, the gr. at viaduct of cut stone with a semi-circular arch of eighty feet span over the Little Conemaugh at the horse shoe bend, and the tun- nel of nine hundred feet long through a spur of the mountain, will demand and must receive, from the public unqualified admiration for the boldness of their design, and the strength and beauty of their execution.

It is believed to be unnecessary to adduce arguments for proving the utility and necessity of a second track of rails on this road, to accommodate the incalculable amount of trade that will pass between the basin of the Mississippi valley, and the sea board within a few years after the public works of the state are finished; should the legislature invest the Canal Commissioners with power to enter into contracts for iron, the second track of the rail way may be completed over the mountain in three months after the iron is delivered.

Statement of the Funds appropriated to the Portuge Railway.

Amount available of the appropria- . tions of 1831 and 1832

$760,418 60

Pro rata deduction under act ele- venth June, 1832, refunded

39,581 40

Appropriation of the sixteenth Fe- bruary, 1833

414,793 06

$1,214,793 06

Disbursed in 1831

$71,146 64

1832

401,335 72

1833 568,639 19

$1,041,121 55

Balance on hand 31st October, 1833

173,671 51

The estimated cost of work to be done to complete the first trackin- cluding the incidental expenses and retained per centage

Deduct the above balance

$213,940 01 173,671 51

Amount required to complete first track 40,268 50

The whole amount paid, is 1,041,121 55 Per centage retained and work to be done 213,940 01

Whole cost of single track is $1,255,061 56

which includes a double track on the inclined planes making altogether forty-five miles of single track.

Length of Portage railway, is thirty-six milesand two hundred and twenty-one perches.

The estimated cost of completing the second track, is

Amount required to complete the first track-

$325,577 85

40,268 50 -

Amount required to complete the Portage railway $365,846 35

Use of the Railways.

A very important question for Legislative decision has arisen respecting the proper manner of using the rail roads when they are finished. And as their profitable use next spring demands an immediate determination of the mode by which transportation on them shall be con- ducted, the Board respectfully request the early atten- tion of the Legislature to the subject, and submit the following methods for their consideration.

1. To establish the rail roads as public high ways, for the use of every person who may choose to employ either horses or locomotive engines.

2. To prohibit the use of locomotive engines alto ge- ther,and make the roads public high ways for the use of every person who will employ horses alone as the mo- tive power.

3. To prohibit the use of horses altogether on such parts of the roads as can be advantageously traversed by locomotive engines, and make them public high ways for the use of every person who will employ loco- motive engines alone as tlie motive power.

In either of the three preceding cases, in which the rail roads would be declared public high ways, the Commonwealth must maintain and employ the stationa- ry steam engines and ropes at the inclined planes, or lease them for a term of years to individuals or compa- nies.

4. To lease the roads and transportation to a compa- ny or companies for a term of years, binding them to preserve the roads and machinery in good order.

5. To lease the transportation alone to a company or companies, for a term of years, and the Commonwealth to maintain the roads and machinery in repair.

6. To lease the right of traction or motive power only, to a company or companies for a term of years, binding them to transport such cars with their freight as may be offered by individuals or companies, and the Common- wealth to maintain the roads and machinery in repair.

In either of the last three cases of leasing the rouds, the transportation, or the traction, the stationary steam engines and ropes at the inclined planes may be main- tained and employed by the Commonwealth, or they may be let out on leases for a term of years to individu- als or companies.

7. The Commonwealth to furnish the traction or mo- tive power, own the cars, and do all the transportation on the rail road.

8. The Commonwealth to furnish the traction or mo- tive power only, and transport such cars with their freight, as may be offered by individuals or companies.

In the event of it being settled that the Common- wealth will furnish the motive power on the rail roads, it is still necessary for the Legislature to determine whether the Columbia rail way shall be finished for using horses on it, or for using locomotive engines, or for the use of both modes of conveyance.

For more comprehensive views of this subject, the Board respectfully refer to the reports of the superin- tendents and engineers on the two rail roads, accompa- nying this report.

Before quitting the subject of the rail roads of the State, the Board wish to call the attention of the Legis- lature to a necessity that exists for a law, with suitable penalties, to preserve those splendid monuments of the power, enterprize, and perseverance of Pennsylva nia from destruction, similar to the law now in force for the protection of the canal.

Beaver Division.

The Beaver division of the Pennsylvania canal, com- mences on the Ohio river twenty eight miles below Pittsburg, and is located from the mouth of the "Big

CANAL COMMISSIONERS' REPORT.

1833]

$192,644 00 58,134 26

404

CANAL COMMISSIONERS' REPORT.

[DECEMBE ;

Beaver creek," or rather river, up that stream and She- nango creek thirty miles and two hundred and forty perches, terminating in Mercer county. It has eight miles and one hundred perches of canal, and twenty-two miles and one hundred and forty perches of slackwater. made by seven dams. There will be eighteen lift and guard locks on this line, which, for size and quality of stone, and for solidity and beauty of masonry, are not surpassed by any locks that the Board have ever seen.

This line has progressed steadily since the appropria- tion of the sixteenth of February last, and it is expected that, from New Castle to Beaver, the canal will be rea- dy for navigation before the setting in of winter.

By the act of the twenty-seventh March, 1833, the Canal Commissioners were required to have a towing path constructed along the pool of the dam in Shenan- go creek, six miles of which were put under contract, and the grubbing on it has been done: but for want of funds, this towing path, and the dam in the Shenango, and also a guard lock at New Castle and all the lock houses had to be suspended.

The additional appropriation required to complete the Beaver division, arises from the Shenango towing- path, the guard lock at New Castle, and other indispen- sable work on the line not embraced in last year's esti- mate; also from an increased expense in removing quick- sands and hill slips, and in repairing damages done by a flood in September last, which seriously injured two dams, and partially injured some other works, which, at the time, were in an unfinished and unprotected condition.

The suspended work can all be completed during the next season.

Statement of the Funds appropriated to the Beaver Di- vision.

Amount available of appropriations of 1831 and 1832 $222,421 26

Pro rata deduction under act of 11th June, 1832, refunded

4,660 39

Appropriation of the 16th February, 1833

197,159 97

$424,241 62

Disbursed in 1831

39,926 66

Do. in 1832

177,617 95

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The Register of Pennsylvania : devoted to the preservation of facts and documents and every other kind of useful information respecting the state of Pennsylvania, Vol. XII, Part 114

Author: Hazard, Samuel, 1784-1870 Publication date: 1828 Publisher: Philadelphia : Printed by W.F. Geddes ; Number of Pages: 438

Author: Hazard, Samuel, 1784-1870
Publication date: 1828
Publisher: Philadelphia : Printed by W.F. Geddes ;
Number of Pages: 438