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IMaps, platas, charts, ate, may ba filmad at diffarant raduction ratios. Thosa too larga to ba antiraly included in ona axposura ara filmad baginning in tha uppar laft hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent Atre filmte A des taux da reduction diff Grants. Lorsque ie document est trop grand pour Atre reproduit en un seul clichA, il est film6 A partir da i'angia supArieur gauche, de gauche A droita, at de haut en bas, en prenant la nombre d'images nAcessaire. Las diagrammes suivants iliustrant la mAthoda. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 S 6 EEPORT 4 OF CHARLES B. STUART, CHIEF ENGINEER, OF THE (OOKPORT AND NIAGARA FALM RAIL-ROAD COMPANY, TO THE DIRECTORS. SHOWING THE ESTIMATED COST, AND PROBABLE INCOME OF THE ROAD, IP EXTENDED FROM LOCKPORT TO ROCHESTER. JANUARY I, 184G. r \ ROCHESTER : rniNTlD BY J. M. rATTKESON k. CO., TALMAN BLOCK, FOTJUTTr STOn\^ l«4f). w *1 I LOCKPORT AND ROCHESTER RAILROAD COMPANY. To the President and Directors of the Lockjport and Niagara Falls Rail-Road Corwpany, Gentlemen — In obedience to your instructions, I have carefully exam- ined the route of the proposed extension of your road from Lockport to Rochester, and beg leave to submit to you some considerations, in reference to that continuation. It is now some ten years, since the wants of the public seemed to point to the necessity of this work, but since the revival of the spirit of improvement in this country, new motives for its accomplishment have presented themselves, which now urge its immediate consummation. It is my purpose to present these motives in a brief view, which will serve to show the importance and value of this line, both to the stock- holders, and to the community — as an investment, and as a public convenience. There is now a line of Rail-Roads extending from Boston, to Rochester, a distance of four hundred and sixty-one miles, and another from Lockport to Niagara, a distance of twenty- two miles, (but which will be shortened two miles, the direct distance being but sixteen miles,) leaving only the space of fifty-six miles, between Lockport and Rochester, to be filled up, to open the shortest line from the Eastern Cities, to one of the greatest natural wonders of the world ; as well as the most direct route from Boston to Detroit, and other nlaces in the great west. It is now known to the public, that the cii})il!d stock of $6,000,000, has been secured, to open a lino of Rail-Road through Upper Canada, to connect with the work in actual progress across the centre of the state ot Michigan, — thus joining the fertile lands of Michigan and Canada West, New England and New York, by a common band, extending through a space of nine hundred miles. The road which you propose to make, must form a part of this continuous line, and great thoroughfare of travel ; since it cannot be avoided, but by deflecting widely from the direct course, and encountering the inconvenience of a difficult, and sometimes impassable fcrry^ at the outlet of Lake Erie. The location of your road is a most happy one. It matters not to what point the Western traveler, arriving at Rochester may be directed — whether it be for the Falls of Niagara ; for Buflalo, for Canada, or any part of the Upper Lakes, — the road from Roclicster to Lockport, which it is now intended to construct, will oiFer the most favorable, and the most cxpedi"» tious route. The distance from Rochester to Niagara, by this lino will be scvonty-six miles. The distance from Rochester to the Falls, by the way of Batavia, Attica and Buffalo, is ninety- seven miles, and tlio distance by the Packet Boat to Lockport and ihcnco by Kail-Road to the Falls, is eighty-two miles. By the Steainhoals, from Rochester to the Falls, via. Lake Ontario and Lewiston, the distance is one hundred and si.Y mil(\s. It will readily be seen, that the existing routes to the Falls, are much longer than the proposed road, require much more time, and great addit ional expense, and arc not at all adequate 1:o the traveling comnnmity. In going to the Falls from Rochester, via. Lockport, there will be a saving of twenty-one miles, when compared with ihe Atlica and Buffalo route, besides avoiding the high grades and summits, near Batavia and Attica. If Detroit or Canada West be the destination of the traveler, and the eonUMiiplaled bridge across the Niagara T?iv(M-, he estnl)lish('d at the narrowest and most approprial<: I di hi St ktual Ithus few ^ling rt of lince Irect and ' i/ point ; or tho staim ferry be used at that place, the saving of distance from Hamilton to Rochester, will be twcfity-four miles, by taking the Lockport roulc. If it should be desirable to have adircctline to Bufliiio, a road could be constructed nearly straight from Lockport, with no grades over ten feet to the mile, that would not exceed the route, via. Attica, more than two miles in distance, which would be more than compensated for, by the great difference in the grades on the Attica route ; while the distance from the proposed Ferry at Fort Erie, is no greater via. Lockport, than it is by Attica to Rochester. So that view the subject in what light we may, this is the true line of Western trade and travel, and possesses natural and physical advantages which arc enjoyed by none other. [See Map, annexed.] These positions are factSj and cannot be controverted. We pass therefore to the important enquiry, will this i.in^ PAY? The traffic upon which its advocates justly count, are: — I. Tho pleasure travel to the Falls of Niagara, either in going, or in returning. 3. A fair diversion of the Buffalo travel. 3. The way-traffic of the line. 4. The Canada travel, and that passing through Cana da to the Western States. 5. The transportation of produce, merchandise, coal anj iron, to and from the Great West and Canada. G. The carrying of the United States Mail. To estimate the amount and value of the traffic from all these sources, with any great degree of accuracy, would be impossible, but we may fairly assume that the aggregate trav- el, exclusive of that which will be brought by the Canada road, (at the low fare charged,) will not be less than the num- ber of the through passengers that in 1844 passed over the Auburn and Syracuse Rail Road, viz: 80,000. The way passengers on this line will bo equal lo 60,000 — ^which is 10,000 less than the way-1.ravcl ontiio Rochoslcr and Auburn Rail Road in J, S44. This laruc amouuL of jniticipatcd way- 6 travel is here justified by the fact, that there is no part of the present line from Boston to Buffalo, which passes through a more productive, or more highly cultivated country, than thai bordering the celebrated Ridge; Road, or on which are found an equal number of flourishing places, as the villages of Brockport, Clarkson, Albion, Gaines, Medina, Hartland, Lockport, Lewiston, Niagara Falls, and other villages which are strung along the route of your road, embracing within a territory of thirty miles by eighty, a population of over 130,- 000. [See appendix. Note A."] And in assuming 80,000 for the number of through passengers, independently of the ac- cession which will be gained from the completion of the Can- ada Railway, I am fully justified by the fact, that 50,000 have visited the Falls the last year, while there arc portions of the present line between Albany and Rochester, that carry more than this number. [Sec appendix, Note B.'\ When to this is added the rapid increase of the yearly pleasure travel to Niagara, being more than ten per cent, a year, and which will be largely augmented by the attraction of the Suspension Bridge, and the large and elegant hotels that are to be erected the coming season, it cannot be doubt- ed that this increase of summer travel would be more than doubled, aad would counterbalance any loss your road might sustain, by competing with rival routes for the Buffalo travel. To these (juantitics must still be added the travel which must pass to and from Canada — that to which existence will be given by the simultaneous opening of the Great Western Railway — an cnterprize to which it is believed, all the com- panies from the Niagara to the Hudson will be indeblcxl for an increase of not less than 50,000 persons annually. [See appendix. Note C] In this estimate of business, I count nothing on the great and rapid increase of travel which has been experienced on the present line of Railways, and which is to be looked for in an augmented ratio, under the advancing prosperity of the region bordering on the Western Lakes. tl th(! h a hat nd of |nd, ich in a 0,- for |ac- n- ve he )re During the past season of navigation, there has passed through Rocliester nearly one thousand travelers per day, of which number more than one-half were carried on Canal Boats, at a charge as high as it is proposed to tax on your road. Estimating this travel on the Canal at five hundred per day for six months only, and it makes ninety thousand, of which number it would be safe to estimate fifty thousand as emigrants, who would undoubtedly pass over your road at one and a quarter cents a mile, as it will be admitted that this route will afford the western emigrant a rapid and cheap transportation ; not only saving the expenses often incurred in waiting for a steamer at Buffalo, but it will enable him to arrive at his destination in the West in time to prepare the ground for a summer crop, and thus take the advantage of the first season at his new home. Wc may justly, therefore, and with all moderation, base our calculations for this line, on its completion, and the com- pletion of its great extension in Canada, on an aggregate traf- fic, equivalent to one hundred and thirty thousand through passengers, of the first class, and fifty thousand of the second class, and sixty thousand way passengers, at the low rates named in thp estimate. If only two-thirds the number estima- ted should be transported over the road on its completion, a charge of three cents a mile for through passengers, (which is nearly twenty-five per cent, less than is now charged,) would make the sum I have estimated. But I have put tho fare lowy to avoid competition, and induce a large amount of business. • As this road is to be built with a heavy iron track, on very light grades, gradually descending to the east, and is allowed by its charter to carry freight, at all seasons of the year, without paying tribute or tolls to the State, and will, when completed, form an important link in the chain of uninterrupt- ed Railways of nine hundred miles in length — it cannot be doubted for a moment, that it must always command a large ;ind profit abl(i freighting bussincst^. The completion of this t 8 kail-Iload would insuro th(3 (Construction of an iron track from lloch^ xr to Schcncctad.'i, which would enable the Central line of Railways to compete successfully with the present Erie Canal, for the Western transportation. [See appendix^ Note 2>.] The completion of the Railways already chartered, and in progress, to connect the Railways of Central and Western New York with those of Pennsylvania, will, it is thought, add largely to the amount of freight on your road. Add to this the large amount of Western produce, that would seek this route to an Eastern market, and the merchandize for the far West and Canada, that would be transported over it, even during the suspension of Canal and Lake navigation, and it would seem to be within safe bounds, to estimate the through freight, at not less than an average of one hundred and twenty tons a day each way, (about the load oi'four Canal Boats,) or in round numbers, at one hundred thousand tons a year, and the way freight at twcnty-fivc tons annually. [Sec appendix, Note E.] FINANCES. The present capital of the company, which rep- resents the amount that has been expended, on the part that is now in operation between Lockport and T^iagara Falls, is To which add the sum necessary to supply this line with an edge rail, re-grade parts of it, and finish it in the best style, say , Add to this again, the estimated cost of the road from Rochester to Lockport, [Sec estimate. Note F.] And we obtain for the total investment for the completion of the whole line, from Niagara to Rochester, and supplied with Depots and fur- niture, We may suy in round numbers, fourteen hundred thousand. dollars. $175,000 175,000 1,035,000 $1,375,000 I 1 i'.^' :■ A^-*;?? i'f-'i 'y^tj^..-,- 9 from Jntral fesent |ndix< ndin stern add this this e far even d it ough PROBABLE INCOME. In estimating the revenue, I shall assume a much lower rate of charge for transportation of passengers and freight, on the substantial road which it will be for your interest to build, than that whicli is kow adopted on the existing lines. In this country, the results of experience abundantly show, that wherever it is an object to construct a Railway, it is to the last degree desirable to obtain a heavy rail. On numerous roads where the strap or light bar was originally laid, it has been replaced by one better adapted safely to permit rapid traveling, to sustain the severe shocks incident to a heavy trade, and to admit of constant and economical use ; of such, the Columbia, Newcastle and Frenchtown, Baltimore and Ohio, and others might be referred to as instances. *' It is believed that with a flat bar, your road would be wholly in- adequate to the travel and transport which it ougl it, and if prop- erly coustructcd, assuredly would conunand — IJiat it would be unsafe for passengers, (at high rates of speed,) would be subject to enormous expense for repairs, and could not be eco- nomically used for the conveyance of tonnage — whereas, with a heavy iron rail, it would be competent to all its objects, could be worked with economy, would refjuire but a moder- ate expense for repairs, and would be so much more produc- tive and valuable, as to justify tho additional expense neces- sary to purchase an edge rail of not less than eighty tons per mile. [See appendix. Note G.] Two cents a mile for through passengers, or a charge of one dollar and ftfty ceiits from Rochester to the Falls, (the pres- ent rate by Rail Roads, v ia. Buffalo, is now $3 ^5,) and two and a half cents a mile for way passengers, is believed to be ample for the liberal support of the company, if we have not overestimated the number. B P./^V .^«dfc..r 10 U > ESTIMATE. 130,000 passengers, (first class cars,) $1 50, 50,000 do. (second " " ) $1 00, 60,000 way passengers, (half way,) SI 00, 100,000 tons -hrough freight, SI 00, 25,000 " way do. 60 cts., 7G miles U. S. mail contract, $150, S196,000 50,000 60,000 100,000 15,000 It, 400 Total receipts, $431,400 Deduct for actual expenses, (exclusive of interest on capital,) opc-third tlie whole receipts, the av- erage of the Eastern Roads, $143,800 Nctt receipts, $287,600 or over twenty per cent on the whole capital of fourteen HUNDRED THOtJSAND DOLLARS ! That the estimate of one-third will be ample for the ex- penses of your road, it is only necessary to show, that the Utica and Schcnectada Kail 'load, seventy-eight miles in length, transported in 1844, nearly the amount of freight imd passengers estimated on your road, (wliicli were about, tlie av- erage for the last eiglit years,) at an expense of $132,838, which is less than the amount estimated. It will be seen that these roads beingnearly equcd in length, and the business equal, the expenses ought to be likewise e(|u;il, with this difierence only, that the Utica and Schcnecta- da Rail Road is laid witli a slight strap, or flat bar, and yours is to be a substantial and durable iron track, which will m;dco a difierence of at least Jifti/ per cent, in the coot of transpor- tation. But as it is my intention to avoid every chance of over es- timating, the probable results, I shall take the estimate of one- t/i'ml the receipts for the expenses of your road, and in my es- timat:e of the numbcn- of past^engers I have assumed for your nnul, (Vi the (H)tiipleti()U of il.s connertiori, witli tliose tlu'ough Pennsylvania, Canada West and M'chignn, no more than is nmv carried on some of the roads west of Albany, and at ha// i.lii- prirc charged on them. 11 As there may be doubts in the minds of some (although 1 have none,) as to the location of the Canada Rail Road at Niagara Falls, I will, to salif-fy thn most skeptical, deduct the 100,000 tons of freight ■ d 100,000 through passengers, that it was estimated the Cahrula Road would create, and see what would be the probable value of the stock, should it*only con- nect with the Buffalo Rail Road at Niagara Falls, and the branch Road to Lcwiston, and we have for receipts, as follows: 80,000 through passengers, SI 50, $140,000 00,000 way do $1 06, 60,000 25,000 tons way freight, GO cts., 15,000 76 miles U. S. Mail, $1 50, 11,400 Total receipts. Deduct onu-tliird for expenses. $226,400 75,460 Income, $150,934 or ELEVEN per cent, on the capital, at the low price of two cents a mile for through passengers, and two and u half cents for way travel. Call this two and a half cents and three cents, and on the amount of business estimated, it would net fifteen per cent, stock, and this too without any travel from the Canada Road, and without l)uilding the Road from Lockport to Fort Erie, which Road would undoubtedly be made, if the Western Rail Road should by any possibility be located there. This route, as has been shown, would be only 77 miles from Fort Eric to Rochester, and on the natural inclined plane, to the Hudson, which would always give this line great advan- ,tage in competing for Western trade and travel with the Road via Attica. In view of all these facts, I think no imjjartial or ducrimi- imting reader, will doubt, that this road will be (without the Canada connexion,) a secure and permanent ten iicr cent stock, and with that connexion a fifteen or twenty iier cent stock. The result in either of these cases, may appear extravagant to those who without informing themselves of the reasons why some roads pay dividends and oth(^rs do not, reason and decide only from wlial they hu.ppen to know of some unfortu- 12 > ; ' li ': ti nate work, constructed at an expense largely disproportioned to its objects, located where, in the nature of things, it could command but a meagre amount of business, defective in strength, or other qualities requisite to economy and success in using it. But in such a case as is presented by this Road, there is no mode of estimate or calculation on such a route, located on the great thoroughfare from East to West, and bordered by a fertile country, and dense population, that will not justify all that need be claimed or presumed for it." [See appendix, Note /.] The connection with the Canada Railway, at Niagara, will undoubtedly be made. Its practicability is demonstrable, and when completed, it will offer the means of obtaining the most feasible line for the travel of tho Northwestern States, to and from the seaboard, and to the seat of our National Government. [See appendix, Note J.] The only difficulty that could possibly be urged, that arising from the width and depth of the Niagara, cannot now be en- tertained. The Bridge is practicable ; and we have now be- fore us, the estimate and report of an experienced Engineer, and one entirely I'm miliar with the subje;tood that it is to bo built in the most substantial and durable manner with heavy irtm rails, and no grades over twenty feet to the mile, and almost in a tangent line ; so that its rumiing time will not fall short of TJiiRxy miles an hour; making the time re(inirecl to go from Detroit to the Falls not exceeding eight liours. At Detroit, this Road meets the Michigan Central Rail Road, which ter- minates at St. Joseph's on Ijako Michigan, sii.vty iniies from Chicago, The di.stance by land, from St. Joseph's fo Cliicago, is about eiglity miles and a charter lias Ixmmi obtained to roii.'.tnicl a Hail lload dvcr it — also to make a Rail Road to (Jaieiia, and ariothur 1o St. I.oiiis, on tlio Mi:-.^i.-sipjii River. But Wti will take the traveling indiiceuitnti.; aj they will be without those ! ; |! I I li I! ■I Hail Roads. Tho population ol Illinois is now about 700,000, Wisconsin 350,000. Iowa 300,000, Upper Missouri 300,000, Micliigan 300,000, tliat portion of Indiana which comes to Miciiigan with produce, and in their tran- sit to the Atlantic, say 250,000 ; makino' in all 2,200,000 of inhabitants, whose !)usineps habits and piir.'-nits naturally lead lliom to tlio Atlantic. At least one-half of this population are cmipranta from New York and New England wliere thoy have left thoir relatives behind them, and whom th(>y would often visit if they could avoid the long and dangerous passage of the upper Lakes. The Rail Road through Canada West, vvill pass through the most settled part of that Province, and draw to its lines a poj)ulation of 250,000. We will now see what portion of this population whose business tends to the northern Atlantic cities, would be likely to travel on the Canada Road. The direction of Illinois, Missouri, Iowa and most of Wisconsin, is to Chicago. From that point to St. Joseph's it is four or five hours eteam boat travel. This would be their natural summer route. In winter they would travel round the head of tiio Lake, and be brought on the Central Rail Road, a little cast of St. Joseph's, so that at all seasons of the year this would be the route, and it would bring them directly to the Canada Kail Road. If a portion of the travelers oast from Chicago would take the circuitous route of the Lakes 760 miles, instead of the direct route of 2G0 miles, they would nevertheless he brought to tlie same point, Detroit, ready to take the Canada Road. At Detroit then nearly the whole of the travel eastwardly is gathered. Two routes are oflered during the season of navigation. One tlirough Lake Erie, where a Ikst class steainor (with no gale or other inipcdi- ment,) will arrive at Buffalo in tkbiij-six hours; but in agale--. iieavy head wind, besides the danger and sickness, detain ihcm furty-ciu;li/ linnra more. The other is to take the cars and reach Niagara for a certainty in eight hours, and at this point they will be as near Uoston or New ^'()rk as at llutlalo, or, in other words, reach either of tlioso cities by the time the Lake passen- ger, if he has good luck, will be in Uuffiilo. Who then can doubt, that when this roail is completed, nearly all tiic travel from Detroit east will pass over it ? As to the number that will pass through Detroit, we arc, so far as relates to the future, left . groat (Janal from the Delaware River to Chesapeake Bay, has proved YUfprodiu'tive stock, and the Canal through the Dismal Swamp, is found to produce a very small tlividend in tolls. Of the Canals made by the State of I'cimsylvania, and the chartered Companies within its limits, scarcely one in teu art' jiroiitiihle stock', and its citizens are turning their attention to Rail- Rdiid;:, as a sulislilnle for them. The Farmiiigton (^anal has been destroyed by the Hartford and Hew Haven Rail-lload, luul doomed to disappointment the buoyant hopes of its projectors, uotwitlistaudiiig Clinton had said that it would be to New Haven what the Erie Canal has been to Albany, it is now abandoned, and tlie project is rc- conuntMided I'or that Com|)any to draw off its ustless waters, and lay a Rail- Road upon its bottom, in order to turn it from a direct tax or loss to a certain |)r()lit. The Camden A:, Amboy Rail-Road might also be noticed as an instance, where a readonly .sixty miles in leiigth, with grades oH forty-five feet per mile, and costing over two millions ot dolhirs, has paid for itself \\\ seven years, notwithstanding one of the finest Canals in the Union runs parallel to it, in dimensions the same as the "Erie Enlargr.inent,''^ admitting the passage of Steam lloats and vessels, which Canal has languished for want of patronage, aving paid to the stockholders only one per cent per annum ; while the Rail- Road iia> paid for itstlf, notwithstanding it is obliged to pay the State of New Jersey .*3U,0U0 yearly, for the privilege of competing, as relates to produce and iih'.rrlunidise, with this Canal of ueei' cut. The Kail-Iload from IMiiladulphiii to New York carries //o«r at ///r;i/r/ cents per barrel, and the \V(v lern Rail-Rouil chaiges ouly tuHutij-fire cents per bar- rel, from Alliauy to l^isloii — 201 miles. The Snpt^intendent of transporta- tior. on the Baltimore & Ohio Roil-Road, in his report, as far back as 1834, in speaking of ihu Wcfcjteru trade, Kiy.j; — "This (Jomjiuny havu now the benelit !l! in SI of an experience derived from active ond uninterrupted operations for a period of nearly three years, on a line of sixty miles in extent. The transportation that they have effected during the time has been of the most varied and gene- ral character, embracing commodities of the most cumbrous and ponderous description known in commerce ; among them may ho daily remarked, blocks of i^ranife wcigliing several tons each, loirs of timber from fifty to seventy feet in length, machinery of the most unwieldy forms, considerable numbers of live stoch\ — as well as every imaginable variety of produce and merchandize ; — lhe;?e may frequently all be seen on tiie kail-Road, collected into a single train, au(f all moving with equal fiicility and dispatc!.. The question of the adaptation, therefore, of the Rail-Road system to the purpose of a general commerce, may certainly by the proof thus afforded, be considered as settled.''' The views entertained in the report made in 1834, has been fully realized as it appears from the nineteenth annual report of the J)irectors of the Balti- more and Ohio Railroad, that during the pas< yenr the gross receipts iot freight and passengers, on the main track of the road, were $794,G() 4,67 from which is to be deducted for all disbursements $424,778,27, and there remained $369,^ 201,42 as the net receipts for the year. The cost of transporting freight upon the railroad, does not ej( ed 12icts. per ton per mile, at a velocity of ten or twelve miles an hour, ■ 'ing a speed four to five times greater than is attainable upon a canal where boats are mo- ved by animal power. The tolls for merchandizj upon Ihe Erie Canal amounts to more than the total cost of transportation upon this road. Virginia caught the canal mania from the success of New Yoak with the Eric Canal, and has expended nearly S$7,000,()00 on the James River Canal, and !$1 2,000,000 on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal and neither of these works have yielded any return for .so large an outlay. It is now conceded, that a Central Railroad, through Virginia, will, with the aid of the Baltimore &- Ohio Railroad, siqiercede both these Canal. In fact, Railroads, not only answer all the pur|)ost.. of Canals and Lakes, but they have the decided advantage of s^ivaI, economy, and regularity, and of being in operation during a/Z seasons of the year. In proof of these remarks, I give the following extract from the report and experience of J. Edgar Thompson, Chief Engineer of the Georgia Rail- road. " I can now state with confidence that wherever the transportation is of a mixed character, such as agricultural products, general merchandize, and passengers ; — sutriciently large to justify the construction of a good road ; — Railways will bo found to be not only the most expeditious, but the cheapest artificial medium (f conveyance at present ftnoion." The earnings of this road for 1845, exceed those for 1844, $40,026,76, being an increase of 12^ per cent. The number of bales of Cotton transported last year was 114,641 bales. The people of New England, with their usual sagacity have arrived at this conclusion, and have construcled a Rail-Road from Boston to illl)any, at an expense of not less than eight millions of dollars, to intercept the Creat Wes- tern trade, and direct it from its natural channel, the Hudson River. To use the language of Gen. Dearborn, " Massachusetts has turned her eagle gaze westward. This link, (speaking of the Western Rail-Road) in the lengthen- ed chain of intercommunication, unites the pier-heads of Boston harbor, and the port of St. Louis— the ocean with the Mississippi." " Canals are not adapted to latitudes wliere thi'y can l)o used from six to seven months in the year, and from the past experience of Massachusetts, she is not satisfied with the Canal system, especially since the late improvements in the Locomotive Engine, and the introduction of the act as a Tc<:nii/i/-liit: miles, costing thiri'i-one mill ions, tlnrc hinidrctl (ind sircntij-srvm thuusmnl dollars ; of which sum /ite)ili/-fivc >n.illions, nnr hnndr< d and tliirly-scceu thoiisiuul iloUats has been expciideil in Miissacliiisetts alone. Tiiere are in the Stale ol' New York, /wcnlij-one Rail-Roads constructed, measuring in all sen n hundred miles, ut a cost of nincleeii initlio}is, one hun- dred and sirli/ ih'iiisund duUnrs ; .vhile there are in the remaining Sttites of the (JnioM, ftirdi-finir Rail-lluads in iir e, making in all heo thntisand, Jirc Innidml and tiflij-nine niiUs, and cu.sting iKe sum oi si,<'lij-lh.ree niillimis, fonr hundred ihnnsiind dollars; making in tlie total aggregate ninety-one Itail-ltoads, three. Ihonsiuni, one hundred anil thirty-four 'miles in length, and cosling the enor- mous Sinn of line hunilred nail thirl"rn 'millions, nine, hundred and fhirli/serrn thousand dollnrs. 'J'hcsi! Kail-Uoails, as before stated, mi not less than seien per cent on the (ircni'^e, which would give an annual income of nearly liiuux MILiaONS Ol' DOLl.AltS, The total length of all the linos non' ehartered, in part constructed, and soon to be completed, will not bo less ihim tn-o I honsaml miles in addition to the above, to which we may add the roads chartered but not yet connnenced, but which undoubtedly will he within the next live years, aniouutiiig to not less than one ihonsand miles in length, and we have an aggregate in the year 1850 of over six thousami miles of Rail-Roads in the United States, at a cost of not less than two hnndred /nlUions of (hjliars. Let this be compared with the amount expended in the construction of Ca- nals, during the last iilteeii years, ('ind which with tne exception of the Erie* Canal, h.ivc not paiil an avfiavv of 'ou: per ei nt. on their i ost) and the rer.nll will clearly Jiow. tliat the "Canal Syylcnj" ij behind the spirit of the ant; . tlier »r of •iidy lidly I Into the con- Riiil- ,.Vr. —and I i Tn Ennrland llioy HIP Inrninp ihoir Canals into Rnilwnys; and fiic Lnndoiv TiniCK lor Novcnilior, 1815. contains n coniplr'tP list nl ail tlio Railways con- ptrnctcd, cliartorod, luul projected, in (Jreat Jlritain, nptn tlioda*^ of publica- tion : i'rom which it ap|)oar.s that ih(» nnnibrr romplctcd and in vs is forty-se- ven, costinjj X7(i.(iH().W77, or aliout /hret: hinidnil itnd Jifhj-thnr m'u 'ions oj dol- lars, — the niimhor in the conrso of construction is one, kumlrcd and ciifhlccn, or nbout lira thousand (Did niv Itvndrrd ?iii!rs, which are estimated to cost JCG7,- 359,;}25, or nearly niir Iniiidrcd and ii'nivltj-liro miUl'Dis of dollars. Tiio num- ber projected in addition to the lore^oint:, i.-; 1,2C3 ! — of whicli 218 have jjiiid a deposite of over 5 percent, amountiu",' to £11,171,717; and to comply with tlie resolutions of the House of Lords, must pay a further amount of jb9,694,- 4G-1 ; and on 402 lines a deposit of 10 per cent is recpiirod and much of it is paid, and which if all paid, will amount to Jt)38,3GG.109 — making upon these G20 lines, an actual drposi/, before they can ho acted upon in Parliament, of X69,13G,30(), or iihout two hundred and niwli/- five millions of dollars ! ! The rcmainimr projects, 643 in number, have not registered their prospec- tuses, and have not tliorefore paid up the 10 per cent, on their estimated cap- ital. The total number math', chartered and jirojccled, is 07ie thousand, one hxin- dred and luKnly-ciifhl ; and if, of the average length ol' tlioso made and ma- king, e(jual those already made, viz : twr.nlij-ei<^hl miles each, will give thirty' nine iknusand, nine hundred ami eighty-four miles of llail-Roads in (ireat Brit- ain. '• Rut of this amount," says the Editor of the American llail-lload Jour- nal ; " probably not more than one-half will be constructed within the next fifteen years, or about liiOO inilos, at a co&t of about £18,000,000 a year,and who will say that this cannot be done, if done in a regular business way, with- out interfering at all with the other business operations of that country?" " The importance of the Railway system," has brought numerous compet- itors into the field, and there arc at this time many able minds engaged upon it; and from the advances already mnclo, and the energy with wliicli the in- vestigations are prosecuted, we arc? led to believe that at no distant day, it will assume a very dillerent ])osition in the estimaticm even of those able and independent mhids which make it a rule to admit nothing in the way of im- jirovement until it is fully established hy experience. I am well aware that the views here taken will startle many, and that the facts I liave set forth, can scarcely be believed by others, wlio liave not given the subject the examination its import.ance would seem to demand. I know that " until within a very few years, Rad Roads have been considered as only Hupplementary to Canals, to be emphwcd in short distances, or where the na- ture of the ground i)recluded the ajjplication of inland navigation. Accord- ingly while the attention of some of the most enterprising and highly gifted nundrf were turned to the considcratiori of inland water comnnniications, the bettor adaptation of Rail Roads was overlooked and neglected. This country is now traversed by Canals intersecting each other; which affords inland navi- gation between many parts of this State and Union, for only half or two-thirds of the year. There can be no doubt now^ that many of these Canals have been constructed where Rail Uoads would have answered a hotter purpose, and could have been completed at less than half their cost. However well they may have answered the purpose for which they were originally designed, the "spirit of the age" indicates that the '' Canal synlem'' has been already extended as far as the wants of the community reipiiro. It is not probable that another Canal of any magnitude will e\ er be midertaken unless it is the enlargement of the Erie Canal, Cwhich is on tlie great thoroughfare from.. West to East, and may sustain itself when .s7(Y/?/i Inos are used, in place of animal |)ower,) and th':; Ship Canal around Niagara Falls. 1 will close this note with the following description of the advantages of a. Rail Road, when compnred ev(;n with ii navigaJilc River, for transportatiou and travel, taken from the report of a "Joint Couunittee of the Legislature of Massachusetts," made in 1840 : BiilH ■til fi " KailwnyH iinivorsiilly liiiv(f creatod tho inciinH of Ihoir own siisteiiiiiice, and have drawn to tlioir tracks I'inployinont lor their niotivo. It the Ix-niti- cenco of Providence had hollowed a channel from owr coast to tlio Western Lakes, and poured the Hoods of tiioso inltind seas eastward to the ocean, the Iilessinjfs would have hecn tO(» <>reat for siitlicient j,'riititn(|t', as they would havii been beyond all coinputation. The river swelleil hy tributary streams Irom every valley would Jiave scattered wealth alonjj its course. For all practical purposes, the invention of art bestows lirtlrr advanldixcn, and fur- nishes communication more t'rt.sy and certain than the bounty of nature could give. Duriny Rail IlnudH :md Lake, to Rdcliestcr, will not exceed lift) dnjlar.-; a fun, and one «!oIlar addilioiial to Ni- agara Uiver, niakinj,' the totiil cost y/iv; diilhirs only per ton at iMan;ara. It i.s known that then; is no aniliracitu coal in either ol the Canadas ; and when it \a considered that this article, and also iron, aro allowed to enter the Urit- irth I'rovinccH duly iVee, it must he apparent to all thiit a market will he opened there lor these «rticle« when they can ho rurnished tit nncii low rat«H, where nearly as much ol' them can h(J disposed of as in VVoslerii New York. There ia no superior iron ore to thai of Ualiston, in Pennnylvania." (NOTE F.) 1st. Efnd Fencing, Damage to Jiuildings, &c " " Engineering and Contingencies, Total, For 8 Iiooomotives, (8 wheel,) " 20 First Class Cars, " " 30 second Chiss Cars, •' " 8 Ifaggago Waggons, " " 60 Freight do. " J''or Depots and Water Stations, $00,000 :{().uoo 20,000 «i,000 24,000 25,000 #1.00,000 25,000 .•1(175,000. $280,000 420,000 10,000 75,000 26,000 60,000 !i«;8(Jo,ooo Total amount, $105,000 81,026,000 (NOTE G.) It is not perhaps generally nndorstood that rronnmy in the cnnsiruction and m'ina<>c7ne)U oi Railways is a suhjcct of iis much interest to the community as to the pro|)rietors. It enables the latter, without diminishing their prnfUs, to chrn pen both the cost of transporting iVeigiit and })assengers. The profit of a Rail Road-r-and it is peculiar in this respect — depends much more upon tiic qunniity of freight and tra\el on it, than upon a hi<;h charge for transptrr- tation. It has been ascertained by experience, that to a certain extent, a re- duction of the cost of freight and travel, does stimulate to increase of receipts and of income. It is now known that a Locomotive, with power to convey four hundred pfissongejs, (on grades not exceeding twenty feel to the mile,)can trjivel over a Rail Road at the cost of onedollar per mile, all expenses included, or a quarler of a cent to each passenger, |)rovided the whok; number could al- ways be obtained. A Rail iload in a very j)opulouH country, may prove a pro- litablo investment at the low rate of one cent a mile, and as there is scarcely uny limit to the caj)acity r){ a Rail Road for transporting passengers, it fol- 11 lowflol course, that ii popiihition HutHcimit in iimnberH lunl wonltli in supply travolorH, in all that is roi|iiirfd tu in»iiru t''e tiUccGHd of u Kail Roiul, at a wry low rale, nf fare . 'J'o provo this, I (rivo an extract Irom tlio otncial report on Kn;,'lisli RuiiwuvH, niado to tho Kroticli (ioviTinnent by an ugonf, charged with iho special duty of inukin'' a study of liiosu Raiiwtiys : "Till! Oarlinpton llailwiiy has produced by its /oh' rnd'.x nf jmna^c and frcif^ht, a complete revolution in the rci^iunof coinitry uliicli it traverses. If has incrtasnl llu' Unitl Jiiiin oHi' hundrtd In hro Intndrrd jicr i-cnl. Ily these low rates tlic frcii^lil h;is been increased [nnw rh^hly ihoiismid tuns ])oraiu»uni to six handrfd and forty thousand tons. The puHHen^errf estiniatcd at fonj thousand, have been increased to two hundred thousaTid !" From the rejwrt of tho Irish Railway (Jr)inniissioners, it iipjjears that " Pre- vious to the opening of tho Railwiiy between Liverpool and ftlanchester, there were about four hundred passenjjers per day, or one hundred, und forty-six thousaiul per year, traveling between those places by coaches, whereas tho (Is six hundrtd. thousand a wlate rail was used for more than six years, with Engines in use upon it. of eighf tons, and was at the end of that ])eriod in tolerable condition ; yet, when heavier Engines and trains of another road were l)rought upon it temporarily, the rails of tlie road alluded to, were nearly destroyed in nine monlhs. That such an eflect might be anti- 'Cipated, is obvious — and yet this rail did not n-ear out by fair usage, but was taxed beyond its capacity, and this is the case of many roads in this country. " The Railways of the present day, with the Engines now in use,'' says a late writer, " are a very different thing from the Railways and Engines of 1825 and 1830 ; for example, in the conditions, stipulated by the directors of the Liv- erpool and Miinchester Company, in 1829, when they oHored a premium of JtJSOO " for an Engine weighing six tons, capable of drawing on a level plane a train of carriages of a gross weight of 30 tons, including tender and water tank, 10 miles an hour." It was for such Engines and for such loads and velocity that the Rail Roads with the plate or flat bar (so numerous in this State) were intended, as well as all roads built in England previous to 1835. Would it be reasonable to decry railways as a moans ol transportation, because such a rail wo;.'ld not support an Engine of 20 tons with its load of 600 tons traveling twenty miles per hour ? " With about as much propriety one might assert that the Krie Canal had not answered the purpose for which it was constructed, be- cause it is to be thrown aside for another of greater capacity, for one capa- ble of admitting the passage nf larger boats.'' To sliow that actual wear of tlie heavy iron rail is trilling, I quote the following from Wood, as the wear of rails on the Stockton &l Darlington Railway: ''Malleable Iron Rails, 15 feet long, over which locomotives • 13 t I ' passed, weighing from 8 to 11 tons, waggons and their loads 4 tons each.— 86,000 tons passed over it in a year, exclusive of Engines and waggons. Weight of Rail, 1 cwt. 24i lbs. Loss of weight in twelve months, eight oz. ' At page 288 of Pambour it will be found, that 600,000 tons, passed over the Liverpool and Manchester Railway in the space of 21 months, and had re- duced the weight of the rail only 1-168 of its primitive weig-ht; so that it would require more than a hundred years to reduce it to half its present strength." The edge rail is now manufactured at Dansville, Pennsylvania, of as good quality as those imported from England, and sold at a less price than they can be imported. They have recently made edge rails of T form, weighing 61 pounds to the yard, for the Ilarrisburgh and Lancaster Rail Road for about $76 per ton, which is less than is estimated for this road. This company are prepared to make contracts for large quantities, as will be seen by their advertisement, which states, that " IVie Montour Iron Company, Danville, Penn., is prepared to execute orders for the heavy rail bars of any pattern now in use in this country or in Europe, and equal in every respect in point of quality.'''' (NOTE H.) It is v»'ell known that the competition for the trade and travel between the northwestern States and the Atlantic coast, is now, and always will be, vigorous and active between the different channels. To the eastward of the Niagara River are the Erie Canal, 360 miles long, from Butfalo to Albany, (open for about seven months in the year,) and the line of flat bar roads, 326 miles in length, between the same cities. There is the Welland Canal, extending from Lake Erie to Ontario, (in Canada West,) which passes Steam Propel- lers and sailing vessels from the Upper Lakes to the Canal that unites Onta- rio with the Erie Canal at Syracuse, 35 miles long. In addition to these channels, which are finished and in operation, there are others in ditlerent stages of progress, all having for their object the Western travel, and amongst which we may mention the New York & Erie Rail Road, leading from the city of New York to Dunkirk, on Lake Erie, dis- tance 466 miles. A Rail Road from New York to Albany is chartered, 145 miles long, and another from Albany to the finished portion of the N. Y. & Erie Rail Road, at Goshen, in Orange county, 90 miles distant. A Rail Road is also chartered from Oswego to Syracuse, (parallel to the Canal,) which is thirty-six miles long. A Rail Road is now in operation from Niag- ara Falls to Lockport, and the continuation of the chartered one from the latter place to Rochester of 56 miles, will give a d'lrect line from the Niagara fron- tier to the larter city. There is now a Rail Road from Buffalo city to Niag- ara Falls, and there is to be one constructed nnmediately, from the Niagara River to Detroit,and there to con.iect with the road now in use through the cen- tre of Michij.ran. There will no doubt, in time, be a Rail Road connecting Buffalo with Dunkirk, Erie, Cleaveland, Sandusky, a»'.d Chicago. There is now a Rail Road from Albany to Boston, and another about being built from Ogdtnsburgh to Boston, to take the trade of Lake Ontario and LoiVer Canada, to that city. These rival routes show the importance of the great western trade and travel, and in this trial, at least, the battle will be to the strong and the race to the swift. Now let us see which of all these routes will be the most direct and the most expeditious and economical for the we^ern and eastern trade and travel. In the first place, we have shown in Note D that the Erie Canal cannot com- pete with a heavy iron road for freight or passengers ; and in the next we «tJi,te the distance from Detroit to Now York city, via Dunkirk, taking Lake Erie aud the New York anU i^^ic Rail Road ia one hundred miles farther J> 14 .1 than the direct Rail Road route from Detroit to New York, via Niagara and Albany ; while on the New York & Erie Rail Road there are continuous grsides of sixty feet per mile, both ^o'mg east and ivest ; but on the direct route from Detroit to New York, there are no grades required (taking the straight route from Rochester to Syracuse) ot ovor /»vn<7//ee^ per mile going erts/, and thirty feet going west. On the present lines of flat bar roads between Buffalo and Syracuse, via. Attica, Rochester and Auburn, there are grades oi funy- Jive feet per mile, going both east and west, and several very high elevations to overcome, while on the route from Rochester to the Falls, via. Lockport, there is only sixty feet elevation, and this would be all were a Rail Road built from Lockport direct to Buffalo, while the present elevation on the existing Rail Road, from Rochester to Buffalo, is three hundred and eighty-four feet near Attica. This then, must be the great main track from Buffalo or Niagara to the Hudson, passing through Lockport, avoiding the high grades and summits of the present lines, for it is unwise to locate the lines of great Rail Roads, hav- ing for their object the accommodation of millions, and the competition of rivals, over /lig^/ig-rat/es and elevations, when comparatively level ones can be obtained, and consequently the most level and cheap route should be adopted, regardless of petty localities. It is well known that the present line of Rail Roads from Albany to Bulfalo, were not made with the sole view of competing for the Western travel, much loss the Western trade and freight. They were made for the accommodation of local towns, at atime when it was thought that Railways could never carry rroiglil ; consequently the grades and dis- tances were not so important as when competing with the Erie Canal and rival roads for the Western produce. They were made in detached sections, here and there a piece, running from one villuj^e to another, to suit the interest of the inhabitants, and they have answered the purpose for which they were constructed ; but no one will say that they are built on the most dirccl aiidfcusihle rank: from Albany to Buffalo, or such a route as would 71010 be selected by competent Engineers or sagacious capitalists, for the most dii-ect and cheap Rail Road through Central New York. Where there are competing lines of Railways, the question of grades and elevations, becomes of great importance, as it has been shown from satisfac- tory experiments, on variou.s Roads, both in this country and Europe, thatan inclination of twenty feet to the mile only, on a Road in good adjustment, re- quires for its ascent a power nearly double, and one forty feet per mile, a power treble, and one sixty feet per mile, a power (juadruple that which is re- (|uired to draw the same weight on a level, at the same velocity and on the same kind of road. The following table will give a sufficiently correct view in round numbers, of the business load wlii(;h !i Jiocomotive, weighing ten tons, and working within her power, can "nrry at the average speed of ten miles i)er hour, on a permanent track with nnedge rail. Heavier J'jngines would of course do more, and at cheaper rates. Level, 80 Cars, tiiree tons each, net is 240 tons. " " •' " 150 " (1 (( (> ti on " i( u u a ng (( (I a t( (( ijM (( Thus it will bo seen that a Road with a maximum grade of twenty ieet will allow 150 tons of freight to be carried over it at the sarne price that a road with forty Ieet grades will ninety tons, or one with sixty feet grades, sixty tons, with the slight additional expense of the wear and oil, for an additional num- ber of /■rt'ti,'-/t/ cars only, as the cost of transportation, hilerest on capital, &.c. 10 ft. 60 do 20 " 60 do 30 " 40 do 40 •• 30 do 50 " 25 do 60 " 20 do \ > « > 15 &c. is the same. It is therefore plain, tliat if the New York and Erie Rail Road can carry freight at two cents a mile per ton, the Rochester and Niagara Rail Road would make money at one cent a ton per mile, for one would carry one hundred and fifty tons to a train, with the same power that the other trans- ported only sixty tons, allowing the trachs to be equal, and full loads offered. Who can doubt then that the direct route from the Niagara to the Hudson, (when completed, as it soon will be,) will be the great thoroughfare for Wcs-^ tern trade and travel ? (NOTE K.) • NIAGARA SUSPENSION BRIDGE. Philadelphia, Nov. 27, 1846. To Geo. S. Tiffany, Esq., Chairman of the (Jreat Western Rail Road Com- pany, and Washington Hunt, Esq., President of the Niagara Falls and Lockport Railroad Company. Gentlemen : — The questions which have been put to me by the Chairman of the Great Western Rail Road Company, and by the President of the Niagara Falls and Lockport Railroad Company, in reference to the practicability, cost and se- curity of a Railroad Bridge across the Niagara river below the Falls, to unite their works and remove the only interruption to a great line of intercourse, coinciding in all essential particulars, I have thought it well to reply to both parties in the same paper, so that one communication may.cover all the import- ant ground. For this purpose I will repeat the questions of Mr. Tiffany, and in com- pliance witii the concluding sentence of his letter, ofl'cr such other informa- tion in my reply, as may seem to be explaniitory of the subject. The following are the questions as submitted : 1. "Have you examined the Niagara river below the Falls, with a view to the construction of a Suspension Bridge? 2. " If so, do you think it practicable ? 3. " How far would the proposed site bo from the Falls ? 4. " Of what material would you advise the Bridge to be built? 6. " What would it cost, and what time would it take to build it ? 6. "Can it be so constructed so as to be perfectly safe for Locomotives trailing 200 tons to pass over it with velocity, without putting the Bridge to the extent of its power ? In reply to those questions, I have to say that I have examined several sites for a Bridge across Niagara river, commencing with a point above the Falls, on (jioat Island, and passing thence to other places below the Falls, and in the neighborhoed of Lewiston. So far as regards the simple question of practicability, either of these might be selected, and a Bridge competent to all the duties of Railroad traffic, con- structed with perfect security and success. But the position which appears to be most suitable, on account of the near approach of opposite cliffs, and of the favorable lorm of the ground for the fastening of the cables, and the en- trance of the Railroads on either side, is about one and a half miles belov/ the Falls ; and I i)elieve the lowest point on the east bank of the river from which the Cataract is visible. This point is a short distance above the Whirlpool. The river is here 700 feet wide, measuring from rock to rock ; ijut as the upper ledge of the lime stone rather ovovbangs the base, it is neccssiiry to full back, for the sake of security, and nuiko the span of the Bridge about IM foet. The surface of the rock on the Now York shore, is 210 feet above th»> Niagiini. The material is of firm structure, ;inii oflcrs an unex- ceptionable loinulatiou. The space to bo spanned is (Mitirely within safe limits. 16 The qneBtion of practicability admits of no discussion. The only points which it seems necessary to consider, are the probal)le cost of tho w^rk, and the value of the motives for its construction. Bridges of greater span have been erected and tested by ten years' use; and if tbo present objects rcrjuire a work capable of sustaining heavier weigbts, or which must bj subjected to rougher usage than those which have been made, it must be rendered propor- tionally stronger and securer. But while such considerations influence the msl, they cannot raise up a question of practicablity. Tlio material which I would propose to employ is iron wire formed into ca- bles of adequate strength, in the mode usually adopted for Suspension Bridges. This is, in fact, the only material suitable for tho purpose ; and is recom- mended by its extreme tenacity, great security, and the additional motive of economy. A wire cable 12 miles longmiglit be made and suspr-^dod safely between the summits of mountains of which the height is five miles above the lowest point of the curve ; and such a cable stretched between supports of 750 feet apart, and drawn to the tension usual in Suspension Bridges, will sustain first its own weight and then some- twenty-live times its own weight in addition. If a bridge of a given span bo secure wlien used for the transportation of given weights over it, by doubling tho number of cables and the strength of the flooring, it would sustain loads twice as heavy — and by trebling the (juan- tity and strength of the material, we may treble or increase in the same pro- portion, the magnitude of its load. The Bridge, which is the subject of this paper, is intended to have a singlo railway track in the centre, and two lateral ways for common travel, and two foot ways. It will span the gorge of the river at a single sweep of 760 feet, and will* he sustained on each side by columns of massive masonry, finely wrought, and built as firmly as the rock on which they rest. The bridge will be supported by 20 cables of iron wire — 10 on each side — each of which will be nearly 5 inches in diameter, 100 feet long, and weigh about 29 tons. The weight of the pendant portion of the Bridge, when not loaded, will be from 600 to 700 tons. The strength of the material is calculated with a view to the possibility of leads of 400 tons being placed on the flooring. The greatest tentioji which the cables will ever have to resist, will be 2,300 tons. The absolute strength of the largest cables will be 600 tons, and the aggregate strength of the 20 main cables will be 9000 tons. These supporting cables will be attached, at their extremities, to the solid rock by a process similar to that which T liave adopted with satisfaction for the eastern fastening of the cables of the Fairmount Bridge. They will be sustained at the summits of the columns on moveable saddles, by means of which compensation may be ol)taine(l for the expansion ami C(mtraction of the material without producing any injurious action on tho masonry. I estimate the cost of this work — assuming that it is to l)ei)uilt for Railway purposes, and in the .'substantial stylo proposed — at !Jii|220,OOO. The time required to couipleto it will depend much on tluf season of tho year when it is (commenced. If tho jireliminary arrangements can Ikj effected this winter, so that the work may l»e begun in early spring, it may be com- pleted in tlie course of the year. The ne.xt point for conf^idoration is, will the objects to be 3ul>served by tho Bridge justify the necessary outlay ? The objects arc the c)i)taiiiing of tlm luost direct route for the great line of Rail Road reaching from Lake Michigan to Ho^ton — the saving of distance computed at 1 1 miles — the avoiding of transhipment and lerriage from Fort Krie to Biifiido — the Having of lime at all seasons, and the prevention of a \ fk ;>•. X 17 total interruption of traffic consequent on the accumulation of ice at the head of the Niagara river in the winter. To judge of the propriety of constructing a bridge, we must first form some esUniato of the v;iliii> ol' those considerations. For this purpose I will assume, tliat tiie length of tlio Great Western lliiil Road, if it terminate on the Niagara River below the Falls, will be, as estimated, 11 miles shorter than if it is carried by Fort Erie and Buffdio. We shall then have 1. The saving of the construction of 11 miles of road, the first cost of which, in the absence of actual surveys and authentic facts, may be estimated at )$20,000 a mile, and for 11 miles $220,000. 2. The cost of maintaining and repairing 11 miles of road with single track — worth, on the average, $600 a mile, or $6,600 per annum, which is equivalent to a capital of $110,000. 3. The cost of working 11 miles of road depends on the amount of trade and travel to be accommodated. The Western Road in Massachusetts, in 1844, carried an amovint of tonnage equivalent to 71,000 tons transported over the whole length of the lino. TI;o Boston and Worcester Road the same year conveyed in all 126,000 tons. The Boston and Lowell Road lfi0,O0O, and the Baltimore and Ohio 103,000. The Southern Roads gene- rally carry much less than these quantities ; but viewing the location of the (Jreat Western Road in Canada, and the fertile country which it is said to pass through, I think it not unreasonable to assume that its trade will be at least 60,000 tons per annum. The cost of transporting freight on the best managed roads of this country — as well as on those of Great Britain and Europe — is about two cents per ton por mile. 60,000 tons carried 11 miles at two cents, is $11,000 per annum, which is equivalent to a capital of $183,333. 4. The cost of conveying passengers will depend also on the number to be conveyed. But I think we may safely assume that there will be two daily trains each way, at a cost per mile run of 50 cents, over and above the road repairs. Four daily trains running 11 miles at 60 cents each per mile, will give $22 per diem, and for 300 days, $0,600, which is equivalent to a capital of $110,000. 6. The cost of running a ferry boat on a ferry two and a half miles in length, with the necessary shore fixtures, cannot be set down at less than $30 a day,or $9,000 per annum — which is equivalent to a capital of $150,000 6= The expense of transhipping goods, in addition to the maintenance of a ferry boat, will be equal to 20 cents a ton on all goods conveyed. On 60,000 tons it will be $10,000 per annum, which is equivalent to a further capital of $166,666. 7. The loss arising from the total interruption of the trade and travel in the winter, when this ferry will be impassible, will be a very heavy item, though one which I am not prepared to estimate. I have no correct data for determining the probable amount of interruption which will arise from this cause ; but it is fair to assume that the (Jreat Western Road will earn six per cent, on a capital of $5,000,000, clear of all the expenses of the line. liCaving out of view entirely the loss which will be increased by the roads on the east side of the Niagara, any interruption to the Canadian improve- ment alone will be equal to a sacrifice of $300,00i> per annum, or to a loss of $1000 for each working day. Each day of total interruption, at a season of the year when there is no competition, will involve a loss of $1000; and as the abstraction of this day's earnings is a thing of annual occurrence, it may be represented by an equivalent capital of $16,666. if it should appear on a close inquiry that a dependence on a ferry at thf» licad of the Niagara will result in a total stoj)pagc of the trade of the (ireat 18 Western Road for 30 days in the year, then it would seem to bo good policy to expend, for tlic purpose of removing the evil : For each day, $l<),fi6r); for 30 days, $500,000. These are the Iradinn; itoms — and the only oneH T believe which we are able to estimate with any reasonable de^ee of approximation— of the objections to the adoption of a ferry and the conblruction of the longer line of road. It is not pretended that any of these quantities can lay much claim to accu-. racy ; yet I am inclined to believe that if yoii will examine the several items separately and closely, they are more likely to appear under, than over valued. Taking them, however, as thev result, wo have, 1. The cost of 11 miles of road, $220,000 2. Repairs and maintenance of 11 miles of road, 110,000 3. Cost of carrying 60,000 tons over 11 miles of road annually, equivalent to a capital of 189,333 4. Carrying passengers 1 1 miles, 110,000 6. Maintaining and running a ferry boat, 150,000 (5. Transhipment of tonnage, and depot expenses, 166,666 * Equivalent total capital, $940,000 If the data which I have assumbed, be correct — if there be as estimated, a difference of 1 1 miles of distance in favor of the route by the Falls, which obviates the necessity of a ferry and of all delay and of transhipment — that route will be worth to the Great Western Company some $940,000 more than the other without including at all the loss consequent on tlie total suspension of traffic which may be occasioned by the ice which accumulates at the outlet of Jiake Erie. If this intermission amount to 10 days in a year, it is equivalent to an ad- ditional capital of $166,000 : and if it amount to 30 days, it would justify an outlay of $500,000 to remove it. I will leave this item for others, more conversant with the navigation of the Lake, to estimate. It is enough at present to know that there is such an in- terruption, and that it will not only amount to many days in the year, but that even when it docs not amout to a total stoppage of the traffic, it is still sufficient to produce great delay and serious embarrassment. This obstruction is in fact so great that even for the convenience of parties seeking to reach Buffiilo, it would be better to cross on a bridge at the Falls, and avoid the ferry, than to submit to its exposure and delay. The profits of the Rail Road from the Falls to BufUilo, will therefore be greatly promoted by the construction of the Bridge. The cost of a Bridge such as I have described, and which will remove those impediments to trade and travel, both on the Canadian and American lines of improvement, will be, as stated, $220,000. The structure itself will be a beautiful and durable object, and the invest- ment a great deal better and more profitable than that of any Rail Road lino now in use on this continent. I will make no specific estimate of the probable value of the stock. To yourselves, as the head of the two lines of Railway most immediately inter- * The Engineer hns here beca misinformed as to the difiercnco in the illstnnro from Ilninil ton totlie Falls and to Port Krlc opposite Itultiilo. Vr Ilainilton to the Falls, byway of tlie UhII Hoadwill be 41) miles, and from the same jdacc to Fort Erie, .Wndlos; dilVerence 10 miles. Adop- ting then the Engineer's rates for 10 instead of 11 miles, it would be us follows: 1. <;ostof IGmilesof Hoad, 88.120,000 Ucpalrs and maintenance of 10 miles road crpiivalent to a rapital of KiO.lKMI Cost to carry 50,000 tons of freight over Ki miles road eciiiiv alent to a capital of !20(i,00:j C'arryinf; passcnfrers Ki miles equivalent to .1 capital of IfiO.OOO Maintaining and runninti ferry boat, l.'Vt.OOd 'rranshipmcnt of tonnage and I )ei)ot expenses, H)0,«t(Mi E(iuivalent total capital, $i,'j'i:«,:i-j ' I * 19 eslpd in the consummation of the work, these arc considerations more impor- tant than the dividends that may he anticipated. I have endeavored to submit these considerations for your reflection, in tlie belief that you will have confidence enough in the enterprise to carry it through, and gain to your respective companies and the public the benefits of the advantages whicn it holds out. For further explanations and calculations respecting the construction and equilibrium of such bridges, I must refer you to the printed documents accom- panying this paper, in which I have entered into all necessary detail. Finally, in reply to the inquiry as to the ability of the bridge to sustain the weight of a locomotive engine drawing a train of 200 tons, at higli velocity, I have to say that I am prepared to construct tlio work for the sum at which 1 estimate its cost — to complete it within the year 1846 — and to test its strength by running a locomotive engine drawing 200 tons as often over it as may be desired, and at the highest speed that the engine can attain. Submitting these remarks for your consideration, I am, Gentlemen, Respectfully your obedient servant, CHARLES ELLET, Jr., Civil Engineer. P. S. Since closing this communication I have received a letter from a gentleman who takes much interest in the enterprise, desiring to know for how much less the bridge might be built if it were made with a view to pass Rail Road cars drawn over by horses, or carried over i)y tlie velocity wliicli the Engine had previously communicated to the train, without subjecting it to the concentrated weight of the Ijocomotive. This modification of tiie plan might be adopted, if it were thought advisable, with a saving in the tirst cost of about ,Sji30,000 — reducing the whole e.xpense to .ii!i9y,ooo. This change would not intei fere with the further additions by which the bridge would be fitted for the use of Locomotives, if it should ever be found desirable to bring the Engine of the Provincial Road upon this side. CHARLES ELLET, Ju. At the proposed site of the Suspension Bridge over the Niagara River, about one mile below the Falls, a new and wide carriage road, with easy grades, anu protection walls, lias been made the last year, on the American shore, from the high banks (near Bellevue Mineral Spring) to the river, by the " Niagara Falls Ferry Associaliun" at an expense of several thousand dollars, and there is now a large and splendid Slcam Ferry Boat, being built by this company, with deck room for Itoelve carriages and two hundred jiassengers at a time, and a double set of Steam Engines of great power, so as to render the boat per- fectly safe from accident. This company are about constructing a carriage road of equal extent on Ihe opposite shore, immediately opposite, and intend to have the steamer ply directly aa'oss the Niagara river — which is, at the foot of these roads, only one thousand feet in width, and as low down as this, is never obstructed by ice, so as to prevent navigation — although at the foot of the cataract, the ice fre- roposed site of the suspension bridge. We understand another line is also to run in an easterly direction, and to make the ascent at or near St. (^^atharines. Mr. Hale conunences his survey at Land's wharf, and is to gain thesununit of tho mountain in a Westerly direction with a view of continuing to Windsor on tlic Detroit River. We understand that other surveying parties will be put upon other portions of the lino shortly. The Directors are adopting the most energetic measures to have the work com|)loted in the shortest period." — Uamillon Gazette.