Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1870-10-24

from every stare in the Union as Columbus Was to
To al w
t6n now han II did TO go from Columbus TO Cleve
based on INCONVENIENCE OF access amounts TO nothing
became there Is Practically no Inconvenience 81
countries occupy neiib. r the geographical centers
or snv other Ctnters. H. ndon hanss on the verge
border OF Turkey Paris and BIZ Rim far removed
fI m the center in any sense OF France and Prussia.
rni. States srcientIy large number Of u, ofiee .
holders and Office seekers will doubtless be able to
reach Washington from the remotest parts OF the
Cuntry for many years TO come"
1 he able editor OF the Cincinnati Gdzette of
the 1st OF August last wrote words that should
sink into the hearts OF every member of your
convention. / copy passage, without the re
mark rejecting upon you:
Rival towns and cities agtste for State capitals
There nothing more corrupt thsa these conflicts
in which personal interest is brought in contact with
isrcush its repre-eDtatives. BY the ohyr Of share
in The FRONTS OF the and wnen the Sats
the senate ard House of Representatives, State off
cers, and members OF loo sting committees for per
for tSeir ysiuable seryicess In short. the thing
usually begins in self interest and wades through
1--WE have before us two pamphlets and circular,
entits respectively follows: st Loui the Future
The Removal q alton al capital TO the Mississp
Cincinnati, the purpose Of which Invention Is to
seitste FOR the rmes al OF the national capital from
Washington to the future great city OF the world Z
The time Ned for the ention is the 18th Of next>
aSsr t1fs
Nov we have no exPecta,tton that the nstionsl
se tsss to %
should take place. So far as we are concerned. H.
quite as near to CINCINNATI as is "rohtable to our
morality; political and percona IL does not strike
Louis he future n s at city Of the
athins the symptoms of which have not yet made
the NATIONAL CO pitaI Just as the national capital can
dov.ry well without 1t. Louis: 1t does net appear
United states should be located IN the srea, stv Of
the world or IN the greatcit OF the continent The
Or ~ they have, # rd to Wait until St Louis
& t. her growth, and the possible becomes the &C
!ual great eit. before We invest any very erJ zeal
"a Let it not be said that we are inclined to extend
a anty welcome to the members the national
convention to assemble here October 18th They
thouid be received with distinguished honor; and ii
they are rot baLqueted at the public expense il
will b. the fret ii ne for years that The City
Cour Gil Of Cincinnati has missed good oppOr-
;" '.e grand arg, ent in favor OF the removal of
L.. ii coSrse the seosrapbc arsament. Washina
ton IL net the &c, ter aud ths:ef9re place must be
o o the ss a
aes were at the geographical center IF the United
same would be equdstaat from The sea- a. govern " e
me mt md if rsyeIiDg were at the came prices in
one boundary exrctly as much to reach the seat of
g9NerrGen, as It would cost those at the other
be resreited-such the law OF physical niece ssity
nrder which the word Wa, unfortunately liked at
which every other place sequidistan,- thing which
ost Az impeachment Of ere ,tive wisdom. mas
nrch as Il makes peri ct ust in the equalization
+ railway charges the direction OF the seat of gov
and I'd e the deD3u mind opens
was designed that there should be any Of CIV
;" But s.. LENS is rot the geographical center Of
he Unit d Stat; }. Upon an east and west line
way the eastern extreny The ge5sra phcs
RE. therefore which would remove the capital
There is good deal Of confusion Or mind nr pet
10 srch matters Every man l. prone 10 think that
natural enough that, being the center OF his own
IDEAS and experiences. II should seem to him to be
that OF the ldt as and experiences of everybody II
we aye to remove the upon rule oi cen,raity
very relied upon by ST. Louis q, ana the
washington is as conclusive as against 81. Louis
from Kentucky, a delegate to your last conven-
tlon at ST. Louis, advised your associates aud
yourself to confine your ambition to the build
ing of manufactures, the construction of rail-
Ioacs, and the cultivation Of the soil, and abso-
lutely refused to encourage the idea OF removing
the capital.
The Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Repub-
lccn, both inferentially in favor Of your scheme,
did not hesitate to declare the st. Louis convrn.
ton a failure. Not perhaps because thev did
not sincerely support your idea, but because
ihey dld not favor the location OF the new cap
ital-yOur own city.
writer in the St Louis Republican of Novem-
b,r asst declares that ''if the scheme of capital
moving were even practicable, il is not desirable
for any western city, He argues that "Con-
gress will certainly either demand or usurp the
over to control all things, and all people being
within the bounds OF the new national Il strict
He doubts the force of the argument sthlt
Washington is not safe in time Of war. If an
,mtetnecine war, it might be safer than the
Mississippi valley"
NoS let us turn from Western newspapers
and Western soldiers to Western statesmen in
Congress. The argument against the removal
OF the national capital above quoted, relate to
questions outside of constitutional law. Let us
zee now what two such distinguished authorities
as Senator Wade, of Ohio, and Senator How
prd, OF Michigan, said on this subject when
upon the bill to repeal the act of lSi6, retro
ceCiDg that part of the District OF Columbia
originally laid off or conceded By the State of
Virginia lying south of the Potomac river. was
urder discussion in the Senate in the Thirty
Ninth Congress. L am indebted to my friend
George l.. Walker, of this city. (who contrib,
uted II to the Washington EvENIHG STAR of the
n OF Sept ember, 1862 for this conclusive an
tLoTity, covering, as it does, the whole ground,
and worthy OF solemn consideration even after
Congress itself shall have decided to remove
the natloral capital. Allow me to remind YOU
that the opinions of these able jurists are be-
hevcd 10 be shared by majority OF the mem
btrs OF the Supreme Court of the United Stat !,
quote from Mr.. Walkers letter
lie hin having been fayorabIy reported by the
committee OF the district OF Columbia Senator Wsde
which, hs a The Ss
language: Now, Mr. Pres debt, TO show how tins
SUI WAS NltWeo by the great patriots OF the day
when this capital WAS Xed Permanently IN tLi. D
lct, wish TO read a short extract from the spe ch
OF tie president at the Unite States ON the opening
ui tCDEress in 1850, well the proc Amation of
General Washington fixing he capital permanently
here at this place. showing the great pains and mi
nutepess with which he mt forward in autic pa
lion all the evils thai might fall upon the country
hereafter, TO point out and fix the boundary with
that care ard that prndt that chs' acterizsd him
everyw feTe and ia all as did 1 will read the con
gra,nlsionsof the President of that day, when the
capital fixed here - show you tn. 9reat achieve
meBt hey supposed thew had worked out when they
had IKE il Permanently here On the I'D dsy Of No
mber, lsO the President, Mr.. John Adams, in his
speech at the opening Of Congress. said Il congratu
late The people Of the United States the assem-
bling of Congress at the permanent Of their gov
eminent, aud .pgrstulste You, gentlemen. on the
prospect Of residence NOT 10 b. Glanced You will
see II go into il infinitely that the cesson of this
District vas made originally with t,ro STATES as .
coten y ane US act Concurring in the same thing:
for the at OF cession with Maryland and Virginia
were in the same language. and at the same time
and made WITH the Identical pur pose of complying
with he constitutional provisions thar srabsT Con,
from the States certain territory not
exceeding ten miles square, to be the capital and to
whatsoever discovering it from the states to which
by humsn language and II Congress can retrocede it
stion OF il to Ohio Rhode Island All claim to the