The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1869-07-23
REMOVAL cP THE NATIONAL CAPITAL
TO ST. LOUIS. Gx

It will be recollected that Gen. Logan,
! last winter, made motion in Congress.
| looking to the removal of the National
Capital to some central point. and that
this motion was laid on the table by q
small majority, doubtless because offhe
| lack of agreement among members as To
where that point should be. Cincin-
natl, Chicago, st. Louis and Memphis
each looked upon the prize as their own,
aud the consequences were that the sub
! ject of "removaP became secondary to
that of relocation" and the whole mat
| ter was incontincutly tabled by small
majority. Profiting by this experience,
we now find the Chicago Tribune call
! ing upon the various sections of the
great Mississippi Valley TO throw aside
sectional rivalry and petty jealousies.
| and, with true, far-seeing sagacity unite
upon the most fitting location, and Sc
cure the change, assuring them that un-
less such policy obtains, they viii
waste their energies, and again delay or
defeat the result by contending among
themselves for the prize. The Tribune
advises all to be content with the obvl-
Gus advantage of removing tho Nation
al Capital to the Mississippi Valley, and
enter upon the movement with such
harmony as will ensure its success. In
accordance with this view, the Tribune
gracefully withdraws Chicago from the
contest, and with great righteousness
pronounces in favor of Chicago's more
immediate commercial rival, ST. Louis.
We quote:
"If it is desirable, as we believe, that
the capital shall not again be u mere Wiz
lage dependent on Government pap for
the daily bread of its residents, from
President down to porter and fiddler,
the choice lies between four cities. 1t
is an objection to Cincinnati that the
center Of population has already reach
cd OF passed it, and like Washington. it
will be less central with each succeed
ing year. Moreover, neither the site of
the city itself. nor that of its suburbs Is
worthy of selection for a National Cap
ital. The broken hills around Cincin-
natl are romantic and beautiful for iso-
lated country residences, but ill-adaptcd
to the laying out of magnificent public
squares and the erection of government
edifices which sholi, be masterpieces of
national architecture.
Chicago rests content with her posi-
ton as the commercial metropolis of
the central basin drained by the lakes,
the Mississippi and its tributaries. Her
commercial and business interests
would be injured by coming under the
exclusive legislation of Congress Gas
would be required by the constitution
if the seat of government were brought
hefe) in a degree that not even the ace
cession of the capital, if she could OBJ
tain it, would outweigh. Chicago pre-
fers the wisdom of her local Solons, her
Mayor and Common Council, and her
rights of municipal self-governmeHt to
the kind of legislation which would
bc done for her by honorable members
from Florida, Rhode Island, Alaska and
Texas.
The severity of our winters and
springs for persons, many of whom will
be residents of the sunny South, and the
monotony of our location, which is the
only monOtonOus thing we have, are
reasons why Chicago may freely ADAM
don any claim she might be expected TO
make to selection for the National Cap
itai. Memphis is too southern in geo.
graphical position and too rabid i'm its
political sentiments ofseeessionism and
medieval Democracy to admit of the
thought of her competition. Each of
these objections becomes an argument
in favor of st. Louis. She is, and will
always remain, a great commercial city,
and iii addition will ere long become
leading manufacturing center. Official
sojourners and visitors there would not
be regarded as the mere prey of the rec.
ident population, as they always must
be in small town. Society would be
toned and its higher standard maintains
ed by the presence of a large and influ-
entail class of women not connected
with the government nor dependent OH
the shifting wind of public favor for
their daily bread. The location is CEN
trail as TO area and population, unsur~
passed in beauty of scenery or attrac-
tons of climate, and, nnally, tire lHIIne-
diate site for the location of. the public
edifices afforded by the commanding
plateau around the pleasant city of st.
Louis, would be fully equal to that at
and unsurpassed at any
other point in the country. Instead of
the Potomac, the capital would overlook
the Mississippi, so appropriately ex-
pressiye of the broader tide, the deeper
flow, the longer current, and the resist
less force our national development has
attained since that early day when the
tabernacle of the government was set
up amidst the soIitudes of the Poto-
mac.
If the people of the Mississippi VAL
ley will unite on this point, it can speed
lily be accomplished. The expense
you'd be comparatively trifling. The
site, should, of course, be given free of
cost by st. Louis. The present public
buildings could he taken down at WASH
ington, stone by stone, laden on govern
eminent or other vessels, brought TO st.
Louis and erected again, precisely as
they now stand, at very modeate out
lay. This should be done before the
number of public buildings is increased;
md before the several States have erect
ed residences for their representatives,
Is has been proposed, at the National
CauifaI