Daily Iowa State Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1856-1859, 1858-09-26
~ The following Report cf

Committee on the selection OF o route =
the proposed Railroad 70 Cedar VALLEY. ,.
ing the same Of which Al abstract was give
in our issue Of yesterday. We commend 4
the attention of all who are interested u
the prosperity Of Davenport and So
County:
Report u the Commitssc ON the Seleeooo1
Of Route for the Cedar Valley 1eoo1
road.
The undersigned. committee Appoites
at a meeting OF the citizens Of Davenpest
on Saturday evening last, for the purpas'
OF Ascertaining the most practicable rou1l
and probable expense of a railroad into c.
dar County, with the understanding th6,
more than one line should be designatedi I
thought expedient, would respectfully =.
port as follows:
Preparatory to giving the result of thelI
examination, the committee beg leave to be
INDUCED in few remarks, which may b 81
interest to our citizens at large
The common locality Of Davenport, Roel
Island, and Moline. from its peculiar sitna-
ton on the Mississippi river. and from :
surroundings, combines in . remarkable de-
gree all the requisites necessary to make it
great and commanding entrepot in other
words, spot for the concentration and dis
tribution Of commercial products, and, as .
necessary consequence, of travel II is the
first point on the Upper Mississippi in as
cending the river, where the topography Of
the country is such as to admit Of easy and
accessible ROADWAY from all quarters to the
rivers edge. On either side, no wide mo-
rass, subject to inundation during high
stages of water, presents itself as an objec-
ton. The great bridge connects the shores
Of Iowa and Illinois, and whatever may
happen, above or below, floods here never
creite any obstacle to the transportation Of
merchandise, the products of the soil, or
passengers, across the river. Situated as it
is at the foot of the Upper Rapids, the de
scent of tie river affords facilities for an i'm
nense water power, portion of which is
already used at Moline, and, I'm exhaustible
fields Of coal fill the country round about,
which is go easily mined and transported,
that it supersedes already the necessity of
relying upon any other kind of fuel These
latter advantages give it a marked position
as n manufacturing point Convenient
| transit to the various districts adjacent,
thereby affording complete command Of
large area Of country, and fair inv vestment
| OF capital are only required to enable it to
unfold its resources and show to the world a
productive centre of the very first magni-
tude. 1t is well known also. that railroads
in this vicinity and upon THE general par
allel of latitude, suffer but little inconven-
fence from the SHOWS Of winter. Whilst
other lines further north than those in the
immediate lake region are blocked for weeks
together, the experience of several years
has taught US. that the Rock Island and
Chicago and the Mississippi and Missouri
routes are comparatively free and but little
detention takes place upon them. This fact
| becomes OF great Importance at the present
| time, when the public mind is agitated res
pecting the best and most practicable mode
Of connecting the Atlantic sea board with
that of the Pacific. The belief is seriously
entertained, that the line joining the two
oceans, will, OF necessity, seek this locality
as the crossing point.
In obedience to an inevitable law, great
centres Of on absorbing character, spring up
and flourish with the advance of population
westward. Pittsburgh, Buffalo. Cleveland,
Cincinnati, Chicago and st. Louis, are evi-
dences of this. But, in each, at particular
period of its career-just when advancing
its claim to be recognized as q city-indi-
vidual and associated enterprise had to be
put forth steadily, vigorously aud without
stint, in order to reap the benefit of its po-
sition and advantages, and to draw every
thing like trade within its folds. At last,
by the momentum of an aggregated and
united people and the diligent exercises of
means within its control, superiority was
acknowledged and the object was gained
Such must be our course if We would en-
joy a prosperity anu prominence in the west
commensurate with our facilities. We are
on the great north and south river of our
country, five hundred miles from the head
of navigation, and about half that distance,
by an air line, from the most populous city
on its banks south Of us. And, We are near
ly two hundred miles southwest Of the lar
ges1 of the lake cities. With nothing west
ward to offer competition but on the con-
trGry, thousands of square miles willing to
become tributary if We offer proper induce
ments-with nothing along the river to
contend with, save towns of similar char
acter to ours, but possessing in much less |
degree our natural advantages-with no
strong and overpoweIing Influence to Grip
pie our energies and divert our trade why |
should we fail to institute measures which |
will make us at once the metropolitan point
of the Upper Mississippi.
That pr on Of our locality or the east
ern bank of the river is already Joined to
Chicago by railroad running north-eas
ward and soon, another and more north |
ern route will connect with the same city, |
opening new district Of country. A south |
eastern road to Peoria is about being con-
structed, a number of miles of which are |
completed, the great obstacle of crossing |
Rock River having been accomplished, and |
we may safely infer that but little time will |
elapse before communication will be made |
with Indianapolis, which will result in di- |
rect intercourse with Cincinnati And, what !
is more, ere long, there will be road d. |
rectly south to Alton, over a rich and fer |
tile country, that will afford an almost |
straight line to St Louis. So far as the |
eastern side Of the river is concerned every |
thing looks to happy and glorious consu.
nation. BY using these lines. access to !
the shores of Iowa can be effected eventual |
ly, without break of bulk of change Of cars |
and by means of the bridge, from the three |
prominent cities Of the west. 1t remains for !
the western side Of the river to institute con- |
nections with the interior of such . charac- |
ter as to draw the trade and travel to |
this more than half formed common de-
poetory.
The citizens on the western bank Of the |
river are particularly interested in estab-
fishing new lines of communication with the
north and north west Already the Mississ- |
ippi and Missouri railroad has extended its
arms into the west and south west, and our
cordial encouragement should be rendered
as far as possible to this corporation and in
a most tangible form. But what we desire
more specially is, to establish such lines, as
will, by their present construction and suhse-
quent extension. bring the rich procucts of
the soil OF Iowa to our market and enable us
to eupply the inhabitants Of the interior with
what they need in return. By reaching into
the north west through the valley Of the
Cedar or iii It Of the Waubsipinic. n. the
land along the roufa will ho donhiad 4.