The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-06-11
Noble Gift Of Philadelphia
TO the Government.
IT'S ACCEPTANCE BY CUHCiREss
Speeches of Hon. W, d. Kelley
and Hon. Leonay.d Myers.
ETC., ETC., ETC.. y1c., ETC.. ETC., Ets.

.~NNN"~'"'|VN rcoooo>.D1v1Dv.1>e>~-
As our readers are aware. the bill to accept
League Island r,Jr naval purposes passed the
house Oh hcpr sents5ives on Thursday last. We
present oesJ'W the telling and appropriate
speeches o. our representatives from the Third
ana FoW th Districts. The arguments put forth
py our congressman, Messrs. KELLEY end MYERS
mad 4reat weight, and no doubt secured this
boo' to our city. We will publish tomorrow
~ speeches of Messrs. Thayer and o'Nelll.
SPEECH OF MR.. KELLEY.
Mr.. Speaker: Il congratulate you and the
House upon the fact that the discussion draws
to close-a discussion which, fond as am of
the excitement OF public debate, has not been
Z pleasant one to me; and that, sir, because an
impression seems to have been created that the
question was purely local one, and that the
city of Philadelphia had special interest In Its
settlement; and again, sir, because the debate,
in some part, has taken such a character as
could not command my admiration or that OF
any man who believed that adherence to truth
graces discussion.
Cir, as / said when introducing the bill yes.
terday, the city of Philadelphia did not make
the tender of League Island to the Government
Of Its own motion. In offering it that city re-
"sponded to the call of the Government, which,
having sent a commission forth to report the
best site for its purposes had been advised that
this was it, and advised by its commission to
purchase what is now offered as a gift. The
Government asked that its great needs might be
supplied, and Philadelphia rendered as a gift
Shat which it sought to purchase. That is the
relation OF Philadelphia TO this question. In no
other aspect is it a local question.
Inits simple form Mr.. Speaker, the question
is, will you accept as gift that for the want of
which the country is suffering? And before
deciding that simple question, before you will
permit the Government to accept favor Tor
which IT has been begging for more than
four years, before you will permit it to become
the owner of the wet basin In which scores of
its vessels now lie, it is proposed that you shall
send out rowing commission to inquire
whether you can now or hereafter advanta-
geously establish naval stations at other
points, and II so at what points; and on
the receipt of the report of that commission at
the next session, or during the next Congress;
TO go through the same controversy which we
are now going through, and which the Thirty
eighth Congress went through two years ago.
NOW, ask the gentlemen when they come to vote,
to vote directly upon the question at issue, which
is whether the Government while re- aiming or
selling its present navy yard at Philadelphia,
may accept nine hundred acres OF land, and OF
land covered with water, known as League
Island and the back channel
Sir, the story of Baron Munchausen is not
without value. With proper accompanying
suggestions it may safely be put into the hands
of children. But | have never been able to
regard 1t as admirable model for Congress
siOnal statement and discussion, and feel that
the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Bran
degee) made no slight mistake when he mo-
delled his address of yesterday upon the exag-
geratlons OF that satirical story. He told the
hundred acres of mud. Sir, the Coast Survey
speaks veraciously; and here (pointing to a
survey is its report from the coast survey OF
the nature and extent of the gift offered the
United States by the city OF Philadelphia.
There is a body of five hundred acres of solid
land which has been overgrown with huge
forest trees many of which still stand, and a
channel three hundred feet wide extending
from end to end of that five hundred acre island,
and the gift, proposed by Philadelphia en-
braces both the island and channel from 10 W.
water mark
bank of the channel, including sentry walk
on the main land. And he who will can cal
sulate the number OF acres, and will find that
what the gentleman calls three hundred acres
OF mud contains more than five hundred acres
OF natural fast land, and more than three hun
dred acres of wet basin, for which any naval
nation but our own would give millions not of
dollars, but OF pounds sterling. Sir, il cannot
but be well to have some regard for truth in
setting forth the facts in the discussion of great
national question like this
1t is said that the site proposed is too remote
nom the ocean. And the gentleman from Con-
necticut, in the spirit of Munchausen, spoke OF
II as being more than one hundred miles from
the sea. Sir, it is but seventy miles from the
sea- He spoke OF steamer requiring four DAYS
10 reach the sea from Philadelphia Sir, eight
hours is the time of the average passage Tor
naval steamers and for the larger OF the ordi.
nary steam craft of the river from PHILADELPHIA
20 the otfng of the Capes.
Sir ,Ethe records kept at the Philadelphia Hos
pltal and at the Merchants Exchange show
that for forty years there has not been one
single day when the navigation of the Delaware
by steam has been closed or impeded by ice,
and 1t is known to the commercial world that
vessels take their supplies of water, with which
they sail the world around, from the Delaware
at Philadelphia. And, sir, that river supplies
q large district OF Philadelphia with drink inc
water through the public works of the city
And yet gentlemen are gravely told that the
water there is brackish, and arguments are
rested upon an assertion at which even Phila
delphia lunatic would sneer.
But more than this. as If to gtamD Jhe insanity
Anat ruled the ge1tleman's hour, the House was
substantially told that the whole United States
a we IN league against Connecticut, and especially
q ssdnst the quiet seaside village of New Lon
d, " tnat when the gentleman arrived here &c
sta te OF Pennsylvania aud the Navy Department
had oeen organizing NOV ement TO exclude hin
fromN the Naval Committee of this House; but
that ne oyercame that State and the Depart
mentl ana achieved commanding position on
the Naval Committee; and with a want of gene
rOsitoy and candor for which .0pe, Mi. Speaker
he will apologize to you, created the impression
so far as his words could do So that YOU had
acted the partisan, entered into thu conspiracy
and appointed two members from pennsylvania
/, , the Committee on Naval Affair. Sir, the
Ve ntleman well informed and studioAs of such
but ollow precedent in this particular When
Won b ecame Speaker you found that there had
been on 'e member of the Naval Committee from
Philadel, 7hia, and one from the valley of the
Ohio, in Western Pennsylvania. Hon. John %
Verree had been the member from philadelphia.
and the GENT eman from Pittsburg, who now cVi so
ably represents that district mr. Moorhead)
was the other 20 whom | reteT. There
we then from New England two
meMbeTF of the Naval Committee-the gen