1907 - The Virginian Railway

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Roanoke Times - March 14, 1907

THE VIRGINIAN RAILWAY

The Virginian Railway, nee the Tidewater, invites some interesting 
editorial discussion, particularly with reference to the cost of 
construction and compared with the cost of the construction of other 
railway lines. The Portsmouth Star, commenting upon an editorial 
which recently appeared in the Richmond Times Dispatch upon the subject says:
    Aside from the interest which is naturally felt here in the 
organization and building of a great railway system, which is to be 
such an important feeder to this port as the Tidewater road promises 
to be, there is still another side to this mammoth undertaking which 
interests students of railroad economy everywhere.
    It is nothing less than the object lesson to be afforded by the 
construction and operation by one man of a great system of railways, 
such as will be comprised in the Virginian railway, in which has been 
merged the Tidewater and Deepwater systems. It is even now a vexed 
question among railway men whether or not most of the railway systems 
of the country are overcapitalized or whether they could be 
duplicated for the amount represented by their stock issues and bonded debts.
    Single handed and alone Henry H. Rogers, the Standard Oil 
magnate, has undertaken the construction of the Virginian system, and 
it is said to be the best constructed line of railway ever laid down 
in this country. The topography of the country through which the 
Tidewater and Deepwater systems run is varied. The eastern end is 
flat and there are no heavy grades and few curves, while the western 
end runs through the mountains.
    The average cost, the Richmond Times Dispatch thinks ought to be 
fairly representative of the average cost of railroad construction in 
the United States, although the work is being done at a time when 
both labor and materials are abnormally high.
    The cost of construction of the Virginian railroad will, of 
course, settle nothing definitely as to the actual cost of the old 
roads, for they were built under other conditions, and then 
reorganized - and rebuilt, and it would be an impossible task to 
figure out just what they did cost. But, if Mr. Rogers will take the 
public into his confidence, he will give valuable information as to 
what the actual cost of a well-constructed road should be.
    If he can build the Virginian at a cost per mile considerably 
lower than the capitalization per mile of competitive roads, he will 
be able to do business at a lower rate and still earn a fair dividend 
on his cash investment.
________
Ron Davis