Mobile register and journal., 1845-11-28
ADDnEg, 0F MR CALuoTN

lrnen for the dis TIngaished honor you have cuner- red nn me iI ealing me 10 preside your nee ing The object Oi sUur deliberations, As announced Ill the circular of .pI committee calling the conven ton, is Inc desrlOpement Uf the Resources OC the Western and S1ui hen States IL wal he Ter you to determine a'ter full deiiheratUn hat their resour- | ceS arr3 how they can he best developed, and how far the aid u tie tienersl GoVernue ent may he iu.o ! ked for that purpusel But l trust il will not be deemed out of place for me to stale my views on those pund.
 l The region occupied by the western and southern States is of vast -xtent. It may be divided into three parts The first and greatest IS the magnif- cent valley in the midst oi which stand, and which IS drained by ibe mighty stream whose cur rent rolls under Inc bluff on which your city is locat- ed. 1t extends norih aud south nearly through the entire breadth of the Temperate Zoue, and east and wesl from the Rocky 10 ihe Alleghany Mountains; {; and occupies m its northern extension a position, | midway between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.- | The next IS that portion winch stretches east from the mouth of the Mississippi river along the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. as lar as cotton, rice and tobacco cultivated. The other slreIctl- es from the M issIpp westward, along the Gulf of | Mexico 10 the Mexican lne. l say the Mexican line, for although Texas IS nd yet annexed, the day is at hand when she viii shine as one of lhe brightest stars in politlcal constellation. (Ap- pause.)
 The vast region experiencing these three dlv. sions may be justly called the great agricultural por- liOA or our nation. It's climate lo sO VaTOuS; tent vast; it's soil ierlile that it is capable nf yielding all the products of that in lhe greatest perfection and abundance. Already much has been done to develope it's great resources. Already all the leading articles of food and raiment pruduc- | ed in sufficient abundance, moi only for is own wants and for those o other portions of the UnIted States, but require the demand of the markets of | the world 10 consume. In addition, il produces the articles of tobacco, lead, tar upentine and lunber far beyond the home consumption; and in short time the fertile valleys and extensive prairies of inc | northern portions of this great valley w add to the lIst Uf exports the important articles o hemp and wool, and the southern plains, when Texas is annex ed, will add that of sugar.
 Y approach now, gentlemen. the important ques- tion, How shall we, who nhabt this vast reglou de- velope it's great resourcesl For this purpose there | is thing needul, and only one-and that is mat we shall get far remuneratlng price for all that we may produce. II we can obtain such price, this vast regian, under the active industry of us nelll gent and enterprisng inhabitants will become tle garden of the world! How is this to be efecled7- There is but one mode by which it Can be, and thai | Is 10 enlarge our market III proportion to inc in- crease of our production This again can be oblain- | ed only in way-and thai is by free and ready transit for person and merchandise between tue rlous portions of this Vast re, ion, and between II and other portions of tho Unon and the rest oi the | world
 The question then is. How shall we accomplish such a transit? For this purpose Nature has been | emmenily prupitlous to us.
 hegin with hs vast valley drained by the Mis- sssippi and It's tributaries Nothing more is neces- | sary to secure cheap, speedy, certain and safe transit between all it's parts but ihe improvement of ,Is navigation and that of it's various great ributa- ries. That done, free and safe communication | may be had between every portion To secure like communication between Il and the soulhern Atlantic cities, the frat and great point is, 10 adopt such nea sures as shall keep "pen al all lines, in peace and u1inuI Ihp fr.,dR | between the Gulf of Mexico and inc Atlantic Ocean. | This IN the great thoroughlare which, if nterrupt- ed would KS certainly produce revulson in the commercial system, as the stoppage .0f one of the great arteries of the body, would ia the human. To guard against such effects in the event of war, it is indispensable 10 establish at Pensacola or some oIh- | CT place in the Gull, naval station of the first class, iih all the means of building and repairing vessels ot war, with portion oi our navy perma neutIy attached. But that of itself will not be sufh ceni, IL indispensable to iurtiy impregnably the Tortugases, which he midway bftween Florida | Point aud Cuha, and command the passes between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic coast And to this must LS added naval force of steamers other | vessels, which will hsbiiUay command our own coast against any foe. It will also be necessary that ihe bar al the Balze shall ke kept al all times open, so far il be eheced, what il may.
 But other measures will be indspensably neeessa y To facilitate the intercourse between this great valley and the Southern Atlantic Coast. With all the ad. vantages possessed by the cuasting trade between the Gulf and the Atlantic, be il well secured against interreuptlOn there Is no great objection 10 which it is lIable The Peninsula ol Florida projects far to ,he South. which makes the voyage from New Orleans and lhe other ports of the Gu.i the South. cru Atlantic cities, not only very long and tedious,
 hui liable To ieqnenl and great accidents ih iis voy- | age A voyage from th.s place for instance, to har reston would be distance oi certainly moi less than two thousand five hundred miles, and subject
 10 as great losses as any voyage of equal extent in an> part of the world IL estimated some dozen | of since that lhe actual loss between Cuba the Bahama Islands, and FIoida was not less than half a million of dollars year, and may now wnb Ire great increase Oi our commerce be put down not
 less than a million. While between lhIs aud Charles ton, or Savannah, there may be d communication by | railroad To not much exceed six hundred miles, and | which would be free from accidents and losses. | What then is needed 10 complete a cheap, speedy and safe intercourse between tho valley of the hssis sipp and ihe Southern Atlantic Coast, good sys- | lem of Railroads. For this purpose the nature of
 he intervening country affords extraordinary advan ages.
 Such is it's formation from the course of the Ten nessee, Cumberland and Alabama Rivers, and the
 termination of the various chains of the Alleghany mountains. that all the railroads which have been projected or commenced, although each has looked only 10 its local interest, must necessarily unite at point in Dekalb County, in the State of Georgia, called Atlanta, net far from the village of Decatur, | | ing mutual interest each in the other, instead of
 isolated rival roads. Al that point the Charleston and Savannah roads, each aiming al a connection with thIs great Valley mtet and from that point the S'ae ot Georgia IS engaged in constructing rail road to terminate al Chalanoolga, OH the Tennessee River, above the Suck, winch passes South of the Western terinnation of hat chain of ihe Alleghany which throws the water the side into the Mis- sIssipp, and on the other into the Atlantic. With
 this trunk the road from ths place 10 Lagrange will meet with the Decatur Railroad around the Muscle Shoals al Tuscumba and the extension of that road to the Grorgla trunk near Rome. With the same trunk the road projected from Nashville. will meet al Cbatanootga, and the Knoxville and Highwassee. already graded, will fall in with at point not far from Rome So, if we turn South from this place 10 the railroad from Vicksburg 10 Jackson, and the pro- jected roads from Grand Cuff and Matches, it will be seen, by reference 10 the map, that they must all unite m their Eastern extension at some point on the ridge between the Mississippi and Tombigbee, and thence in their extension towards the Southern Al. lanc pOrts must necessarily unite with the Raroad now partially completed between Montgomery on the | Alabama, and West Point on the ApaIachicola, and ! 1ne al the place with the Charleston and Sa- yannah road, and The Georgi ia trunk. So again the short railroad from New Orleans to Lake Ponchar- train, leads by navigation through Lake Ponchartrain 10 Mobile, and thence by the Alabama to Mongom- cry. To the same point the projected railroad from Pensacola leads through the Montgomery Railroad. II we cast our eyes further on the North.E we shall find that the projected Railroad from Richmond to Kennawha, on the Ohls, m it's South. Western branch. must necessarily pass near Abingdon, down the Valley of the Holstein to Knoxville, and thence the point. The whole thus constituting, from the remarkable formation of the country, one entire ga, stem of roads, uniting at great central point, 4 through which the whole have common interest," each in the completion of the other-each increasing it's particular prosperity from the prosperity ot the whole. All Of which will doubt more fully appear