The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1870-02-19

she has been Dent alter the small game OF
driving hard bargains with country cousins
and swapping horses and jack-knives. She
has, with choler and disappointment, born
of narrow view of things, seen the 1000
bushels of grain that were daily brought into
her market reduced to bare 200, and, with
suicidal desperation, she has passed several
whole days at time, when farmers came IN
with not one kernel of cereals. 1.-The Amer
lean Central" said some, will be our death
olow 1t cuts off our best back country.'
But she has her thinking cap on, as we he
fore remarked, and her vision is wonderful
ly enlightened.
MANUFACTURES J.
is now the wstckword. and every resident,
with grain Of progressiveness in his nature,
is girding him about for the undertaking OF
beginnings, in the illimitable work, of devel
oping our natural resources. Many have
fashion of sttributing the vital essence which
has lately appeared in our community to the
coming in of the Rockford road. Why, that
is but the result of the accident of our loca
ton. a dozen Rockford roads, coming in
sim pltaneously. would not inspire the
thought tina, now sits majestic on the knitted
brow OF our progressive residents. A dozen
railroads would each cause the establish
( meut of dozen wholesale houses-would
roll into our town a miscellaneous assort-
ment of bales and boxes, and horde of
strangers; the former would support cousid
cradle local jobbing trade, the latter would
preserve IN a state of solvency brace of
! first class hotels. But this sort Of town does
not enter as the slightest Ingredient into the
thoughts of our city, which now, for
the first time since It's existence, has its
thinking cap on in dead earnest A city
having all the elements of Pitts burgh 5
wealth, without its smoke, combination OF
Lowell and Manchester, as it were, and
/ spproximating the latter in extent and i'm
portance. In q word, the greatest manu- fac
turing poiH. in the Great Wesi. is the one
conceived to be the future Rock Island. In
such q city, railroads are an invaluable and
necessary auxiliary, bus the centering OF
scores of them at this point would not OF
itself create the western Manchester, which
We have in our minds eye For years
while we have slumbered and slept, and go,
rays of hope from the coming in of railroads
aud the establishment Of the greatest Arsenal
in the world on our Island, there have been
on either side OF US ana beneath our fee,
giant geuii, waiting to do our bidding, and
create US this grea, city OF our presen,
/ thoughts without any forsuitous aid Some
body has recently rubbed the Aladdin.
lamp IN our possession, and the genii have
become apparent, and We now conceive the
grandeur OF the water powers on either hand
and of the wIde-ext tended coal fields on
which we stand. In manufp ctures alone can
we place our reliance for further growth ID
the stubborn fact that has been blown In gu,
ears, and, with this fact conceded, we have
gone to work, and We are now in 1.-THE day
OF small things" and 900 stove foup
dry, and $50, 900 zinc works, are no mean
achievements for our infant Hercules The
question that frequently recurs to those
amongst us, who have not used their
perceptions to good advantage, is
GRANTED we have resources what is their
extent We might answer in q word they
are illimitab Bile. but an enumeration of ,some
of them will give an adequate conception to
those who have not examined closely of the
powerful levers we hold in our hands. And
first we will consider what nature has done
! for us, in the matter of
WATER POWER.
/ The water power of this region is emphat
ically the most extensive ON the American
continent With it alone, without coal fields
or agricultural resources, we have wealth
and greatness assured to US The water
power is divided into two segments, of which
we will first consider
THE CAMDEN WATER POWER.
Upwards OF thirty years ago, VIM. Dick
son entered the land along the banks and
Oh the Islands of Rock River, at Camden
Msssrs. Bruno, Coolbaueh and Patterson
! dug q canal and built dam and erected the
| 6rst gristmill. Since then it has been sold
! in portions to d. Il. Sears, who has made ex
/ tensive improvements on it, and put up q
granite Touring mill, one of the largest and
best appointed in the west. The peculiarly
| of the water power at Camden is, that owing
| to the islands in the river, it extends com
| pletely across the stream.
The fact with nearly every water power is
that after race has been dug and dam built
one mill or factory or at most two can be
erected at each end of the dam, and the
er is divided into three parts. One of these
parts, the porth or Camden slough, has been
i'm proved and is owned by D. B. Sears, the
south slough is owned and improved by
Riggs and Beattie, who have damned it in
conjunction and have each Touring mill
on it, Of the mail channel or middle pow
er. Hakes & Gilmore are proprietors, who
have this year, put in two dams. This third
Division is subdivided into two parts OF
channels by small island. Messrs Hakea
fillmore Purchased it from D. B. Sears,
VINO received IN consideration, portion Of
the improved power. Messre. Hakes & Gil
more are building together, a saw mill with
running capacity of $4,000 fee. of lumbe,
per diem.
The mil when completed, will cost a. 900
Mr.. hakes has also moved the machinery Of
his paper mill, which formerly was situated
III the lower end OF this city, out there, aud
is arranging for the manufacture of MANILA
and wrapping paper BY April next. The
cost Of the paper mill will be about $1,000
Mr.. Hakss has also put in fumes snd