The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1860-05-24


From the ST. Louis Democrat.1
Pacific Railroad bills In Csn4res .
--fctteF from mr.. Curtis ~ Iowa.
The following letter was addressed TO a
we'll known gentleman OF this city BY Nr.
Curtis, OF Iowa, In reply to IN inquiry: Il
will be read with interest:
WAsHtNorox, May 18th, 1860.
The Pacific Railroad Bill which have re-
ported from the select committee, does not,
% you seen to suppose, name any point I;
but requires two Limos, one starting from any
point on the western border OF Iowa, and the
other Ut any point on the western border Of
Missouri and these two lines are to oon-
verge and unite within two hundred miles,
and then proceed by the nearest and best
single route TO San Francisco, or to the nav.
igable waters Of the Sacramento.
Start at any one point, say at Kansas, ~
you propose, and do you not perceive il il 90
easy for Leavenworth and ST. Joseph to Gar
~ out . line OF conn ection that it 10 tanta-
mount to starting road ct every important
railroad point within two hundred miles
So Of the line started from . point on the
Iowa frontier. II it starts from Omaha, It
10 easy for lines from Sioux City, or from
Kansas City, or from ST. Joseph, to carry
out connecting lines. In the great result, the
little fractional sections required to connect
oil tho lines running through Missouri and
Iowa with such forked trunk line, are quite
Insignificant. In fact, the idea OF any line
through Missouri or Iowa will soon be lost
sight of, for we will, a. in other States, be-
fore the Pacific railroad IL completed, have
complete sceb OF roads extending beyond
the Missouri river, and your Pacific road,
North Missouri road, and Hannibal road will
be 80 interviewer with other roads that you
will ind it - hard TO trace line ~ you do
the threads OF piece Of cloth. Every i'm
porsant town on the Missouri will have East.
ern and Western railroad connections, and
the Pacific road proper will be claimed ~
the special parent stem OF every line and ev-
cry town that comes within the C0yp and
filing OF our great national railroad covey.
I'D. have labored hard to so contrive the
bill that oil localities within several hundred
miles may certainly, and almost with equal
facilities, claim the route az theirs, and avail
themselves OF il. IL tho road starts from
Kansas, St. Joseph 10 just ~ sure to con-
meet as water runs dovn-hill; and should
they start from st. Joseph, your PaciAc road
viii also proceed through Kansas, to secure
like connection, for st. Louis business
would make such . connection 90 valuable,
nothing could prevent capital from oon-
straeting the requisite prolongstion.
Of course, no exact point should be named,
since We would thereby certainly give offence
10 some, and, perhaps, not only snbarrsss
the passage OF the bill, bat embarrass the
stockholders in the procuring Of suitable
grounds ct tho place 90 designated.
Capitalists must have little room TO come
and 90 on, and 30 We politisians must have
some room to satisfy the just competition
| which oontending Constituencies claim for
special preference Of preferred points.
The bill 10 20 drawn a. to make il EQUALLY
fair for all points, within a range OF several
hundred miles; and, it seems to me, Mis-
souri and Iowa should move heaven and
earth to secure the passage Of 1t.
Very truly, your obedient servant,
SAMUEL r. CURTIS.