The Kentucky Gazette

RAILROADS.

There seems to come over the people of this section of the State periodical spells of railroad fever; Bourbon, Clark, and Marion are experiencing quite a violent attack of this malady just now. A vast accumulation of gas is being expended on a proposed road to be built from Paris through Winchester to Richmond. There seems to be an abundance of gas, but we know from sad experience that gas will not build railroads; we wish it would. for in that event we would have several magnificent lines of railroad in operation in quite a short space of time.

But, to speak seriously, we tried the same thing which these counties are now trying: we desired to build a road from our city through Richmond to a point at or near Mt. Vernon : we expected, as the people of these counties now expect, to get assistance from Cincinnati; we had the mortifying experience of a failure; they will, in due time, experience the same.

If the people of Cincinnati desire to connect themselves by rail with the Knoxville Branch of the Louisville & Nashville Road, why they should seek the connection from Paris through Winchester and Richmond, we can see no reason for; but many reasons why they should not.

The distance from Paris through Winchester to Richmond is 43 miles: the distance from Paris through Lexington to Richmond is 46 miles. a difference of only three miles. The route via Winchester has not a foot of road built: the route via Lexington has 20 miles of road in successful operation.

Let us see how it will work out in dollars and cents. The people of Cincinnati we know are liberal to a fault, but still they kind'o like dollars and cents. To complete a road from either Paris or Lexington we will say will cost $40,000 per mile; Paris to Richmond, 43 miles, at $40,000, $1,720,000: Lexington to Richmond, 26 miles, at $40,000, $1,040,000; difference in cost in favor of the Lexington route, $680,000.

But then we know the people of Cincinnati in their characteristic spirit of liberality will care nothing about this six hundred and eighty thousand dollars; they will just throw in that much more than is necessary to make their railroad connection, to show the good people of Kentucky how clever they are.

There is still another route by which Cincinnati has been endeavoring to make this Southern connection, upon the line of which the people have long and anxiously waited for Cincinnati to do what she has more than once promised, and that is from Nicholasville to South Danville, a distance of thirty-five miles, with a good deal of the road bed already made

This route would be more direct than any other to the South, in case they should hereafter desire an extension; in addition to which, it would form a junction with the Knoxville Branch at perhaps the most important point for trade on the entire length of that road. The cost of this extension would be at least $500,000 less than the building of the road from Paris to Richmond. "Verily. we say unto thee," put not your trust in that beautiful but gay deceiver on the north side of the Ohio River.

To build railroads in Kentucky other than branching or extending the present lines now in successful operation, is a stupendous undertaking, fraught with many difficulties, The topography of the State is such that the cost of grading and bridging is necessarily very heavy; individual enterprise is, unfortunately. very limited; counties in their corporate capacity, as a general thing, are averse to voting subscriptions large enough to do anything; the State, by constitutional provision, is prohibited from giving aid to schemes of internal improvement, and the Legislature which adjourned last month was not willing to let the people of the State say whether or not they would be willing to pay a small tax to aid this otherwise magnificent old commonwealth in developing her exhaustless resources.