St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1858-05-13
NUMBER 80.

VIII VI Her DeWOrFdttc masters. l'tu
they every get us any thing No,
never! Hope deferred had made our
very hearts SICK In fact, grant Of
land to Iowa for Railroad purposes had
got to be considcd, foregonc conclu-.
sion.
In 1855 the people of Northern
Iowa, were cratic enough to put me
in Congress, and the people of the
United States were sufficiently more
cratic toplace majority in the House
OF Representatives ofthe UnitedStates
opposed to the Democratic policy.
| Speaker Banks, framed the Committee
on Public Lands in such a manner,
that a majority of the Committee favor
cd Railroad grants. The consequence
was that six States and one Territory
were blessed with munifccnt grants.
took with me into Congress, working.
talent, acquired by experience from
nineteen years residence in the Great
West, sixteen in Iowa and two in the
capacity of common Rocky Mountain
trapper, in the employ of the American
Fur Company, and in company with
Kit Carson, explored the businesses of
these wild regions in 1887 and 1888.
| went into Congress, as would into
bear hunt, or an Indian fight, de-
termincd to succeed, if success was i'm
the book. l knew my constituents
were fairly, honestly and justly en-
titled to grant of land to aid in the
onward course of internal improve
mcnt, and they mast hare ii, if they ex-
pected to anticipate rival States adj
joining. / never paused, hcstatcd, or
debated, whether this or that road
should be stricken out, this or that one
inserted, but went to work at once
among my brother members to ac-
complish my work The first object
thought necessary to secure grant
was to get them pledged to vote for a
bill for Iowa. Northern men, East, so
pledged themselves if the grant should
open up the avenues of travel for
Eastern emigration. Southern men,
on the quid pro quo principle, "vote
for mine, l will for yours" Alabama,
through her representatives, knew
me, III my boyhood ties of consan-
guinity bound her to me her repre-
sentatives were my schoolmates her
Senator who voted for the bill was nv
fathers earliest associate at the bar
they remembered me of old, and her
vote is undivided for the Iowa Land
Grant
1t is now well known that but four
roads were ever admitted into the bill.
Mr. Mack makes gratuitous charge,
and out of whole cloth, when he asserts,
That the interests of Northern Iowa
"were baseiv sacrificed in the manage
mcnt and passage of that BILL" and
as he has made it so broad and rcncr
al, Of course he can establish the fact
particularly, when he adds, "Mere IS no
donh." If there is NO DOUBT, then, Of
course, he can prove it. | think it will
be some light for Speaker Orr and his
committeeman who in the last Con
grcss convicted Matteson and others
of crime, and failed after the most
rigid inquiry and investigation to find
out what Mr.. Mack SO tlippantly tells
you that "Mefe Is no doubt" of. Now
to induce Mr.. Mack no longer to with
hold that which he seems to think
there IS no douh about, | as one of the
delegation then in Congress, and nee
essarily implicated in this wholesale
charge, tell him and his friends { if he
has amy that it is base calumny on
the Representatives of Iowa in the 34tl
Congress, and libel upon honorable
gentlemen. Let us have the evidence,
or an honorable retraction. Mr.. Hail
and Senator Harlan were as free as
new born babes, ain the mana gcmcnt
and passage Of that bill,' further than
their mere votes went. This know
for certainty therefore, General
Jones and myself are left to receive
the charge Of this calumniator. As
Mr.. Mack has affected lame apology
for the General, suppose stand
alone. As for myself, l challenge the
proof, and covet investigation.
hope shall not be required to prove a
negative. l can add, however,
neither now nor never have owned one
dollars worth of stock in any one or
all of the roads put together, nor do |
own one acre Of land on any one, or
all Of the roads put together, nor 10
| own one inch of ground at either end
of either of said roads, or all Of them
put together, except my residence
here in Davenport, where l have re
sided for the last ten years. Nor
have | ever received cent from any
one or all at any time for any purpose.
Now as to to the grant itsclf-thc
four roads included in that gr~at
could not have been kept out, without
defeating the bill. The Burlington
road was the only road i'll the South
end of the State, that was in the bill.
Davenport road was the pioneer road,
and had more miles of railroad then