St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1858-04-15


people are at being deprived Of their
land grant, why has he not exculpa-
ted himself and explained to US the
manner of our loss SO that we mi ght
fix the blame where it belonged?
! 1t has always been understood that
Gen. Jones wields more influence at
Washington than any other member
of our Congressional delegation, or in
deed all of them combined. This be-
ing conceded, how was it possible
that a bill of such magnitude and i'm
portancc as the one granting hundreds
of thousands of acres Of the public do
main to Iowa, could be prepared and
pass the House of Representatives
without the cognizance of Senator
Jones? The instructions of the Cen
cral Assembly were as imperative up
on him as upon any one. The four
different railroad routes, for which
grants Of land were asked, were speci-
fed, the McGregor route being one of
them. If the General was true to his
Northern constituents, the query is
How could the McGrcgor route, which
was specified by the Assembly, be
overlooked and route south of Du-
buquc, which was not specified by the
Assembly, be inserted, and all this
escape the eagle eye of our Senator =?
We do not recollect having seen but
one attempt at explanation by the
Senator, and that was a very ingen-
iously worded letter addressed to the
McGregor Times, under date of Aug.
II, 1857, and copied into the Intcll-
gencer of September 10th. This letter
sets up aud refutes charges which
were not made, and fails to prorc that
fidelity TO our interests which it pro
fcsses; the argument being, that, the
bill having passed the House with
the McGregor Railroad omitted, any
amendment to it in the Senate would
have been fatal to the whole and we
are expected to infer that up to this
time Gen. Jones knew nothing of, OF
had nothing to do with, the bill. This
letter of the Senator's utterly failed te
satisfy the friends of the McGrcgol
+ Railroad.
1t is, however, gratifying to be as
= sured by our correspondent, who is 6
4 director of the McGregor Road, thai
Senator Jones is now doing what he
: can to aid that road, and we should be
sorry if any remarks of ours, now OIL
previously made, should lessen his
l. zeal in the undertaking. Our hope o,
# success, however, at this late day, il
procuring Government aid to the Nc
. Gregor Road is certainly feeble. In
4 deed, the very same mail that brought
j. our correspondents letter, also brought
u the news that no more grants of land
= for internal improvements would be
made by Congress to those states
which have already received such aid
This being true, the question, fol
Iowa, would seem to be settled
But we cannot drop the subject
here. Our correspondent admits, yea,
asserts, the evils we have complained
of, but would shift the responsibility
from Gen. Jones to some one else. In
Southern parlancc, he knows there
is niger in the fence" somewhere.
We ask, who is this other person,
"who, either for interest or political
considerations, was guilty of the trea-
SON.? We are not disposed to be
mealy mouthed about it and if Hon.
James Thorington, our former Rep
resentative, is the man, let us know
it. We understand it is already
promised him that he shall represent
our district in Congress again when
the present term of Hon. Timothy Da-
Wis shall expire. This promise, it is
said, was made Mr.. Thorington by the
friends of Gov. CRIMES in order to in
duce him to withdraw his claims to the
Senatorship and leave the way to that
appointment more open and free for
the Governor. The people having
refused Gen. Jones a reelection on
the ground of treason" to their in
terests-although wrongfully charged,
it is alleged-most assuredly they
will not send another man to Congress
who is guilty of the crime, if they
know it. 1t, therefore, behooves Mr..
Thorington to set himself right before
the people of this district ere he So
licits their suffrages.
One word more and we have done.
1t is believed that the distributing
Postoffice, asked for at Prairie du
Chen or McGregor, measure OF the
utmost Importance to this section of
country, was defeated by Dubuque in
huence, exerted through Senator
Jones. Is this belief well grounded :?
If our people arc in error with regard
to the acts of their public men, it GER
tainly need not be regarded by them
as too humiliating to give an expla-
nation and if they will not deign to
explain then they should not complain
when accused wrongfully. AS to the
courtesy and urbanity of Gen. Jones,
to which our correspondent alludes.