NP, CW 1/27/1862

From the Carolina Watchman (Salisbury, N. C.)
 
January 27, 1862
  
The North Carolina Railroad
   This institution and its mismanagement continues to be the subject of universal complaint. Freight crowds the depots, rotting, wasting and depreciating in value from month to month, a frightful loss to the owners, and no relief nor signs of relief are seen. The accustomed channels of other freight are diverted, seeking markets by routes hitherto unknown, and still the managers of the North Carolina Railroad remain as imperturbable as the sleepers on the Road over which they preside. Perhaps President Cameron has mistaken his case, supposing it to be the common fate of public functionaries, and that in point of fact, being most abused of any, he is the most brilliant martyr of the age, and has deliberately resolved to give the world a glorious example of patient endurance under wrong. It is a pleasing delusion, if delusion at all; and before reaching the extremity of martyrdom, we would respectfully urge him to make a flying trip to the Western terminus of his Road, calling in at all the Stations, and taking a glance at the huge piles of produce and other merchandize which crowd the buildings awaiting shipment. Much of the goods thus to be seen has been wait5ing for months. Much has been wasted, in one way or another, and heavy losses have been sustained by such waste. Let him come to Salisbury, and look at our depot; go to Concord and Charlotte and look at those points. 
   We have been informed that the Charleston road has recently refused to carry freight from Columbia to Charlotte if it had pass over the North Carolina Road, on the ground that the latter could not or would not transport it, and there was no more room in the depot at Charlotte to store it, and they had no more cars to spare as storage boxes for the convenience of President Cameron's road. Mr. Haynes, of this vicinity, having purchased a lot of hides at Charleston, found no difficulty to get them up to Columbia. But there he was informed they could go no further unless he could make arrangements at Charlotte to take them off. He came to Charlotte, and finding no other possible means of getting them through, made arrangements to have them received at the depot of the Charlotte and Statesville Railroad Company, and thence shipped to Centre, in Iredell county, thence to be wagoned to Salisbury, a distance of 25 miles. And just here let us advise the President of the fact that thousands of dollars of freight from the Western N. C. Road has been lost to his road by the detention of goods at Salisbury. Produce is now carried from Newton, Statesville and other points along the Western across the country by wagons, either to the Charlotte and Statesville or Charlotte and Rutherford Roads, and thence through Charlotte South. The freight cars of the Western Road are consequently, idle, and that Company is sustaining a ruinous loss in this way. It is equal to a Yankee blockade so far as freights are concerned. And what makes the matter worse for Mr. Cameron, he don't ??? to be a ??? the subject. He knows it all, on ??? ???? excellent opportunity offered him to relieve the depots in Salisbury, Concord and Charlotte, and has neglected to improve it. The President of the Western N. C. Railroad Company, seeing the ruinous effect of the stoppage of freight at Salisbury, on the business of his Road, proposed to President Cameron to send engines and cars to his relief, and transport the accumulated freights at and between Salisbury and Charlotte, and pay him half the receipts for the privilege of running over his road. It was objected to, on the ground that the trains would come in collision. But the President of the Western Road replied that Mr. Cameron might fix his schedule to suit himself, and the Western trains would run in reference to it, let it be as it might. And still nothing has been done. The public are still wearied and wronged; like the dog in the manger that would not eat himself nor let others eat, the President will neither relieve the public nor let others do it. He is stopped from saying that he has insufficient engines and cars, for the present urgent demands on his road, so far as Charlotte and Salisbury are concerned; and if we are correctly informed, he is without excuse at the Eastern end, a similar proposition to that by President Powell having been made him there.
   And yet, after all the complaints we have heard; even after seeing wagons loading at Salisbury for Charlotte, and the wagon boy cracking his whip over his team and slowly wending his way through the mud and over the hills at the rate of one and a half miles an hour, for that destination, we confess ourselves incredulous that President Cameron would allow this state of things to exist if he could prevent it. But why can't he prevent it? There is no one here capable of rendering an excuse for him, or if capable, willing to do it. He therefore, stands before this community as the author of many losses and any amount of vexation and trouble sustained by its citizens, and will be held responsible for them until we shall have rendered a satisfactory account for the wretchedly inefficient use made of the public property entrusted to his management for the public good.

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