The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1858-10-13
THE GREAT o PERLAND M4LL--LET,TER or SEN.
ATOR GWIN no THE PRESIDENT.

land mail and the necessity Of protecting that and other
routes TO the Pacific ocean. We have expressed our
views in detail upon this important matter and have dis
tnctly urged that the government should decide by its
policy that they viii not any recognise Indian
premaey in the great interior But need add nothing
TO the nervous and most admirable oss of Senator Gwin
whose letter WI command a universal reading
WASHINGTON CRY, Oct. IL, 1858.
~ his Etoelisney JAMES Buchanan,
Presi8at Of The Uhiled SLafes:
SIR Immediately after your Inauguration it became
my duty senator from California to call your attcn-
ton 10 the condition of the overland communication be-
tween that State and her sister States Separated by
two long ranges of lofty mountains and by vast plains
roamed over only by hostile Indian tribes, land mail
or other regular communications existed. Congress,
few days previously, had authorized the establishment
OF regular line OF letter mail by four horse stage coaches
between San Francisco and the Mississippi river thus
placing it in the discretionary power of the Executive TO
naugurate this important policy After elaborate
animation OF the subject you Informed that you had
resolved to meet the views OF the people of California
Oregon, Washington, Arizona, New Mexico, Western
Texas and Utah. and open regular maistage lines by
all practicable routes the plains and mountains
and, by thus afording easy means of regular comu
nication, extend the settlements from the Mississippi val
ley westward continuously to the Pacific The
prime necessity certain, quick punctua and safe
means of travelling from settlement to settlement. The
execution of your resolve would accomplish that object
and thus largely aid in nsurng early settlement of
the valleys and other fertile lands scattered at distant
intervals between California and the States bordering
the Mississippi river.
Inc plan recommended by the Postmaster General,
and adopted by you as being the whole preferable
to any other, to locate the grsat overland mail
horized by the act of the Sd of March, 1857 from San
Francisco along such route to the Mississippi river
could be readily travelled by passengers and emigrants
at all OF the year. That route you finally ooncu
died. after careful examination of the surveys of the
gineers the which led southeast from San Fran
cisco to the mouth of the Garver and thence along the
SD parallel by E Paso to Fort Beknap, in Texas 1ncn
commenced the delicate duty of locating the remainder
of this route to the Mississippi river Every town upon
that river from st. Paul to New Orleans desired to lie the
eastern terminus of SO important horoughare and the
difficulties increased by the fact that any one of
these points could be readily approached from Fort Bel
KNAPP. Your final decision to extend the route to
Fort Smith, the Arkansas and thence diyerge to ST.
Louis and Memphis At st. Louis the overland mail
from California would connect with all mail and railroad
lines of the western and northwestern central and eastern
States. At Memphis this great mail would connect not
only with all the river routes, but also with the great
railroad lines to New Orleans, to Mobile, to Savannah,
to Charleston to Norfolk, Richmond, and Washington
city, and thus all the States of the Union would be
commodated.
The conveyance of the mail twice week each way
ntrused to the leading expressmen of the countryMr
John Butored and his associates nearly all of whom
had great experience The contract executed in the
month of September after your Inauguration, The con-
tractors allowed by law year to locate the route
and commence the enterprise. Precisely twelve months
thereafterto wit on the 10th of September last-the
stages started from San Francisco, St. Louis, and Mem
phs The great experiment of running four horse post
coaches between these points in twenty five days.
route 1851 miles long, commenced on the very
day named in the contract and has been successfully
compished. The first stage-lcad of passengers ever
driven between San Francisco and st. Louis made the
journey in twenty three days and four hours thus
ceedng not only your hopes but those of my most
sanguine constituents 1t s great achievement, and
aught with the most important consequences This will
no doubt call to your memory the origin of mail commnni
cation and regular travel by coaches the mountains
of your native State s-t lar rack tles and horses,
theu w staea over tA rough muuntain routes, requir-
u FyeaS ftuu philadelphia VI PittFburg subsequently
w tupgikas and now ~ Railroad lux few hours The
blue Mountains, Tire siIliig bill taa Allegheny the
ChestuF and tasl fiigeh CONSTITUTE serious OBJ
5acs ~ That day thAn ahass hat have heretofore sepa
rated Gicrnis from Che MissssiFpi aver. Upon this
a5icuus commencement pf enterprise whose object
is to connect the eastern settlements of California with
those of the Mississippi valley, and thus render di
interests homogeneous allow to tender you
hearty congratulations Permit to thank you in behalf
of my constituents, for the courage with which you
marched up to wants and supplied them to the
tent of your power The success already accomplished
this route we'll that from St. Joseph via Salt
Lake, to Pacerve, San Antonio via Ell Paso, to San
Diego, to be followed by that from Independence,
via Albuquerque, to Stockton indicates the certain tri
umph of your whole policy
II is obvious now, throughout national career,
that emigration and settlements will follow the stage coach
When mail stages and travellers regularly carried,
there will the pioneersettlers make their farms and
cure their pre-emptons From this time forth forever
regular overland communications will exist between Cal
fornia and the Mississippi States. Neither hostile In
dams subsequent government neglect undo what
has been wisely accomplished The path is revealed
to the settler, and every fertile spot along these long
lines enterprsng citizens will Immediately occupy to
furnish the requisite supplies for horses and travellers
Shall these fearless pioneers be protected from the In
dams shall they be left exposed to the tomahawk
and scaping knife often the case in the earlier
history ofour country when the destitute
of troops and money? ...
You have some IS 900 troops under your command
Shall sufficient number be detailed to insure safety and
confidence to tho traveller these roues2 If so, then
the early extension of western settlements to the Pa
cic the development of California, of Texas, Arizona,
and New Mexico, of Kansas, Nebraska, Utah. Oregon,
and Washington long closed by serious obstacles and
by the domination of savage tribes will be assured AS
an illustration of the effect all the routes, line of
temporary posts from Fort Smith via Fort Benap and
Ell Paso to the mouth of the ella river thus excluding
all hostile Indians would double the value of the lands
the population and travel all that route and, whilst
occasonng additional expense, would guard against
future Indian hostilities 1t would arrest the ncursons
of the Camanches into Texas and Mexico well those
OF the Apaches into Arizona and Mexico and lead TO the
rapid development of the mineral and agricultural
sources of these great regions.
1t is believed that three thousand troops onesxth of
our army, will protect the entire settlements for
than fifteen hundred miles from Fort Smith to Fort Yu-
ma, hundreds and perhaps thousands, of lives and
prevent devastating and expensive Indian wars As the
army is chiefly maintained for the defence of our
frontier and territories occupied by Indian tribes con
stuents wish it so disposed to relieve border settle
When the Indians are thus forbidden to cross into
Taxn Mt OF their is