The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1870-04-12
LouIsKIlle q Port of Entry.

Some months ago W. had the coca
sion to refer to the supineness of our
importers in regard to urging upon
Congress their desire that Louisville
should be made a port of entry. In
response to that article, we were in
formed that efforts had been made
and were being made to include Lou
isvilIe in the list of cities which were
petitioning Congress with a view to
being made ports of entry We were
aware that Cincinnati, st. Louis, aud
Chicago were making vigorous and
united efforts to accomplish this re-
suit for themselves, and we were in
formed that Louisville was equally
interested with those cities, and was
acting in concert with them. For
that reason We have not since re-
seems, however, that Louisville
cities manliA~~l thae 1rUm some
cause she has not been properly rep.
resented before tho Congressional
committee having the matter In
charge; for that committee has nov
reported, and Evansville has been
substituted for Louisville In it's re-
port. This betrays great neglect of
the interests of our city somewhere.
| We are told that the petition for this
purpose was addressed to Hon RR-sd
Winchester. in place<R-U0t d Con
oross of sL1-United States, thereby
ssiscfng In the hands of about 1.219th
of the part of the Congress what
| should properly have been addressed
to the whole body. Mr.. Winchester
did not. so far as we know, press the
matter before the proper committee,
or, if he did his influence failed to
make the proper impression upon it.
At a meeting of the executive coun-
| Gil of the National Board of Trade,
| held at Baltimore some weeks ago,
| Mr.. j. j. Porter, the delegate from
the Louisville Board of Trade, called
that body's attention to the fact that
Philadelphia, Chicago, st. Louis and
Cincinnati had agreed to unite In pre-
s~enting the bill for new ports of en-
try, and then and there offered a res
olution that the council would reeom-
mend to the authorities no bill which
did not embrace Louisville In the list
of cities to be made ports. To this
the council did not agree, but they
did unanimously agree to unite In
urging the claims of Louisville
equally with the other cities named.
When this council adjourned to
Washington they did comply with
this agreement by recommending the
striking out of Evansville and the
substitution of Louisville. It was
we'll understood that the President
and almost all the Western represent
atives favored this change, and that
it has not been made because of the
strenuous opposition to il Of Secre-
tary Boutwell,. We are not told from
what aus this opposition arose. 1t
is fair, however, to suppose that the
jealousy of Cincinnati or st. Louis Is
at the bottom of the thing. Evans
vile is comparatively very in
significant rival to either of these
cities, and, as a port of entry,
can have no real value whatever. In
~dividually, her importers do not num-
Der a ~corporaIs guard, and her means
of delivery to other than river points
are inefficient. The substitution of
EVansIlle for louisville in the bill
is a farce or an insult. In the census
of 1860, Evansville had, according to
that report, 11,484 inhabitants, while
by the same census Louisville had
68,033. 1t is fair to both cities to say
that in 1870, they will represent for
Evansville $4,000, and for Louisville
10000, allowing their progress to
have been in equal ratio. Evansville
may have eight to ten importers
proper; Louisville has not less than
fifty regular, and many more who i'm
port from time to time. Evansville
as a distributing point has only a
local business the railroad and river
connections of Louisville make its dis
tributions general. There can then be
no real reason for the preference for
Evansville no reason founded in the
position, value, or Importance of the
two cities. We must look elsewhere
for the solution of the matter. If it
were a mere matter of justice, Evans
vile would never have been consid-
cred. But the people Ia Washington
must make up their opinions from
what is told them by parties in inter
est. Our representatives from the
| Louisville district care more for effete
political questions, labor more earn
estly to promote political views. than
to benefit their constituency. They
are welded to ideas which are dead and
even mummifed. They are ike Mark