The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1867-09-16
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FROM THE WEST.
LETTER FROM u. ". ".

st. LOUIS, MISSOURI, loOi.
TO fte Editor Of he Daily Ne,cs:
have spent six days in taking careful survey
of this great Western city, and [ am much moro
favorably impressed with ST. Louis, especially with
its brilliant prospects for the future, than with any
city west of the Allegheny. During the four years
of desolatng war, the commerce OF st. Louis was
locked and the KEYS given to her rival, the Garden
City on Lake Michigan Chicago, being one of the
widest-awake towns west Of New York, was not
slow in taking advantage OF her position. Her
shrewd merchants with the key of disloyal St.
Louis in their pockets, could get permits to ship
i'm mense cargoes of merchandise to and from st.
Louis thereby reaping the profits that egitimately
belonged to this city, II is said immense fortunes
were made in this way, and that some army Off
GERS shared in the spoils. AS the people OF Mis-
souri, are not yet fully reconstructed, allowance
must be made for the stories they tell on their
neighbors across the river. was amused to wit
ness the rivalry that exists between the two
cities AIissourian would as SOON invest
his money In the sand banks Of Saco Beach, as
in real estate in Chicago, for they devouty be-
lieve-if not hope--that Chicago is to receive her
final doom long before the general confagraton,
that she is not to be destroyed by fire, but is to be
buried beneath the angry billows Of lake Michigan.
If lie wealthy men OF this city would initiate the
RECKLESS spectators OF Chicago in pushing for
ward 10 completion their line of railroads, they
would then have less cause to be jealouSof their
energetic and prosperous neighbors. Forty years
ago the site of which Chicago now stands, was
wilderness INHABITED by savage Indians At pres
or nf
and has become rich and prosperous city, hay-
ing some 2O0,OOO inhabitants, and is one of the
largest grain depots in the world.
st. Louis, however, ls destined to be the New
York Of the West II is built on solid rock. the
west bank of the mother of waters single branch
of which is navgable up the great Northwest,
5000 miles, Situated as st. Louis is, in the centre
of the Valley of the Mississippi, midway between
the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, it is to be the
commercial heart Of North America. Nature has
marked st. Louis as the great inland metropolis OF
this continent her 90 600 miles ofnavigahle waters
pouring their rich cargoes into this mart, with
lines of railroads which are to tap the Pacific sur
rounded by ono hundred Thousand square miles OF
tho most fertile land on The globe. Nlth these
streams or gold pouring into her, 81. Louis must
in time become one OF the richest and most popu-
lous cities in America. II church steeples are any
indications of the piety Of a city, then ST. LOUIS
must be considered pious city. She has one hum
dred and fifteen churches, ten converts numerous
universities, high schools, medical colleges, acade-
mics, ETC. Ii has fifteen orphan asylums and
homes for the widows and destitute. The Roman
Catholics building here one OF the finest catho-
drals in the United States. st. Louis has tfty IN
corporated banks and private banking houses, EN-
ploy1ng capital Of forty millions dollars. 1t also
has forty-fve insurance companies. Fifteen hun
dred buildings, mostly Of brick and stone, were
erected during the past year. Ten daily newspa-
pers are printed here; some OF them are ably
edited The Merchants Exchange reminded
me of the world renowned Bourse OF old Ham
burg, in Germany. Al II O'Clock, the merchants,
bankers and brokers, representing every branch
of commerce assemble i'll a spacious hall,
and dispose of the rich cargoes of merchan,
die, grain and provisions which are being landed
the spacious levee from the floating palaces just
in from the Rocky Mountains or the Gulf OF Mexi-
co. st. Louis sold last year more than tTo hun
dred million dollars worth Of provisions and mer-
chandise her trade can be doubled il she will push
forward her line of RAILWAYS. The economical
Germans are to be met here in every branch Of
commerce and profession, aud By their industry ana
frugaity have added much to the wealth of their
adopted city. The active, enterprising Yankees
have also done their share in building up the COM
merco of st. Louis. The New Englanders VINO
come West raInind me OF boy knew in the
mountains of Georgia; who destroyed one-half OF
his mothers chickens in his impatence to have
them 'hatch' in less than twontyone days. The
New EuSlanueTE; dIlu eHSlBl VI
character, clear the forests, build railroads, erect
rude dwellings, lay the foundation for great cities
but they can't wait the full twenty-one days. They
are impatient to realize, sell out and take hold OF
new enterprise. tlany fortune is lost, much hap
piness destroyed, and many chicken killed in the
PIP by this impatient, restless spirit You might
well eXpect the waters that flow over the rapids
above the Falls of Niagara to flow gently and
smoothly as for the ''irepressiblo" Yankee to re-
main quietly on Western home especially when
hoh han hiatt thora ripb apnS I'M
miles further West.
The mountains Of mineral wealth which lie at
the very doors of st. Louis will necessarily make
it u great manufacturing Us well as great COM
mercial city. In addition to its rich mines OF COAL
lead and iron, they have recently discovered tin
st. Louis possesses the elements of greatness in
having all abundance of cheap food, cheap fuel,
and cheap transportation.
Igo tomorrow to Iron Mountain and then fur
ther West on the Pacific Railroad.
If the Indians don't scalp me, you may hear
from me again from the Western wilds.
G.. ". W.