The Davenport gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Scott Co., Iowa) 1841-185?, 1852-01-15
PHILADELPHIA AND ROCK ISLAND
RAILROAD,

Inc toIoWiog sigaiucaot anu itnpcrtah
letter 10 Judge Grant, has been placed il
our hands for publication. It is from Al
engineer and gentleman high in the con
6dcnce o. the Companies for which b
speaks, aud one who is evidently familia
with the auhjec. on which be writes.
The bearing of this letter will be appre
cia,cd, when We Inform the public that Al
Engineer supposed 10 be in the interest 9
Philadelphia travelled on the Mississippi
river last fall, with a view TO end the mos
favorable point Tor crossing il by railway
Like al other Engineers who have exam
ined the subject, be perceived that here
was not only the best. but the only practl
cable point for crossing The river by Z
bridge, and NO believe that the railway meT
Of The country now fully appreciate thai
fact.
We must confess, that in view Of the i'm
portant besring Of this question, not onl,
to ourselves but to the whole State. we
have witnessed the various projects to dc.
feat The grant Of land 10 the Davenport, and
Council Bluff and Dubuque and Keokuk
roads with extreme regret. Iowa is des.
tined to be one Of the greatest States 10 the
Union, and her commerce, which viii be
immense, must seek the East at that pain,
where the difficulties of crossing the river
by railway are the least. This PROPOSE
tion il selfcvdent, and it is fortunate for
the State that this point is cenlral, and tina,
il will be equally accessible to all portions.
not only Of the present, but future, popu'a
ton Of Iowa.
Ia dcvisinq railway system we should
not only regard the present, bu, The future
welfare Of Iowa. The two great roads a.
ready projected, and fer which we have
peti,ioned so often, are at right angles 10
each other. The one accommodates ma
jority Of the present and the other will be
central TO the future population of the
whole State; and if the people Of the Das
Moines river country could be induced 10
change their improvement to railroad.
there is land enough LEFT of the grant al
build road from keokuk 10 the north boun-
dairy Of Iowa, 10 the Des Mones Valley.
In this connection il may not be imprup
er 10 speak Of the future Seat of Govern.
ment. Il ought to be central TO, not onl4
The present but future population, and thai
Legislature will be very unwise which
shall undertake to settle that question with
the sole desire Of suilipg the wants &c The
present. Any great line Of railway from
the Mississippi should certainly tend to, or
10 The vicinity, Of the Seat of Government
Of the State: and the future railways Of
the interior Of the State should radia,e from
the Capital as common centre. We all
Of Us ought to desire 10 have The whole
State densely populated, and we ought "a
be willing so TO shape our internal improve,
meuts, as not only to accommodate The
present, but TO encourage its future popula
ton.
While therefore we entertain no fears Of
and no jealousies towards other railway
projects, which have jus, been pu, forth il
lows, we do object, and seriously object.
to their wholesale applications to Congress
for grants Of land to new projects. which
will only embarass our members in the
applications already made, wi,hoa. bein.p
Of any real benefit to their authors. We
have seen il put forth by one Of our neigh
bors, shst new project would DO brought
forward 10 Congress for a grant Of land to
Illinois, from Lafayette 10 Burlington. IN
this Stale, and thence Westward and j,
was gfasely asserted, that Lafayette had q
railway communication East. Nov there
y great deal Of falsehood, and quite o
much OF CANNON 10 all this project. La.
fayette has no eastern railway comtnunica.
lion, and road from For, Wayne 10 Rock
Island would 60 at least IS miles north of
II. The man must be insane who tbinks
that Illinois can get another grant Of land
from Congress at the presen, session.
We pay some attention TO such matters
and we may as well say at once, that we
know Of no Eastern railways tba, are seek
ing the Mississippi a, any points, save ST.
Louis, Rock Island and opposite 10 Du.
Ohque; and il is worse then useless',o starr.
process with view OF conntersctinp or
defeating these. While wo shall oppose
no obstacles 10 the efforts OF The towns he.
70" or above US, yet when they undertake
oy counter projects TO defeat or DELAY our
o"n--wh'ch are as much superior to their
10 natural advantages az they are n,ior i,
poia, Of ,ravel-we shall no. hesitate ii
expose the folly on which they make ,nch
pretensions. The following is the le,,e, l.
which we have REFEREED
OFrIcE OnIo g. INDIANA RAILROAD cosrAyy,
Dec. 81, 1851.
DEAR SIR:-Your name is given TO me as Pres.
IdPnt of the Rnrk Island and T aeatIa ID ID r.