Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1870-02-03
Madison correspondence.


MADISON, Jan,y 70, 1871
MEssRs. EDS
According to promise, here is the
first "sem-occasional call upon the pa
tience and good nature Of your nuner-
GUS readers, (lor which you are respon-
sible,) from our beautiful Capital City
the City of the Lakes-the beautiful
lakes, that kiss ind coquet with it in
summer, but whose lips are sealed and
bodies imprioned at present by that in
yeterate old tyrant-Jack Frost
Almost within "stone's throw of
each other, there are in Madison now
representative buildings (lf proper the
termlof four branches of our American
system Of government, or rather of
three branches and the parent trunk, to-
wit The new and splendid Post Office
and L. s. Court building-the beautiful
and substantial State Capitol, with its
magnificent new iron dome weighing ever
400 tons, and which now can be lighted
up at once by electricty-400 gas jets,
about one.hundreth of an inch in each
circle, and about dozen in the thous or
cupola in the very top, and which when
lighted up is "land-mark" for scores of
miles around Great credit is due to the
Judgment of the building committee in
giving out the contracts The whole
building, dome and all, will not have
cost more than $500, 600 hardly the
sixth part of what the Illinois capitol
will cost,--and yet this is large and
roomy enough for all practical purposes.
Well, have somewhat diverted from the
point the other building is the County
Court House and the other the City Hall.
So much for Madison at this time. We
understand 1t was your honored fellows
townsman, d. w. Jones, that urged the
plan adopted for the capital buildings,
when Secretary of State.
The several members of the State ad-
ministraton, we understand, have taken
hold Of their new duties as confidently
and inteliigently as if they had been here
ia the harness half dozen years, like
their brave and honorable chief, Gov.
Fairchild AS was said by q gentleman
the other day of the new Secretary whom
| he had never seen before, might it be
said of all of them, said he, II am very
much pleased with him, and am disap-
pointed on the right side. He seems to
be gentleman of culture as well as
thorough business habits The public
hope n d his friends feel assured that he
| will prove n worthy successor ot as hons
est, capable and universally respected
State and army officer as ever had charge
of an important public trast-General
Thos. s. Allen, his predecessor.
The Legislature this week has com.
mcnced in earnest after the respite from
Friday till Monday. The county of Iowa
at large and the southern assembly dis
trict are lucky in their being represented
respectively by so honest, intelligent and
Influential members as the venerable
Senator Joiner, whose gray locks are an
honor to him, and upon whose head the
people of Iowa county will pour their
blessings at least in the language of the
scriptures "W ell done, good and faithful
servant after they shall have quit maxi
ing requistion upon his service, if they
ever viii, which they never should for
their own sake; and AssemblynIan Bliss.
The latter as legislator, will un-
doubtedly come up to the highest espec-
tations Of his friends as well as the for
mer, for from his age and ripe experience
Ms an editor, he has san eye to see and a
heart to feel the necessities Of the State
at large as well as those Of his own im>
mediate constituents, as witnesses one of
the first and most important bills vet
brought before the legislature, introduced
by him this week, to wit "A bill to
change the basis of the apportionment
of the school fund income" SO as to lin.
it il to the actual attendance AZ school,
The tendency of the bill is undoubtedly
in the direction Of progress in our edu.
catonal system Much as general edu.
cation is appreciated by the masses of
our people, there Is sti room Tor adds
tional stlmulants to use "the means of
grace in that respect; and ore Of the
strongestoutside of moral considerations,
is such rs the above, which appeals d.
rectly to the pocket--a very sensitive To-
cality. Ii better and more regular
attendance at school cannot be procured
by moral suasion agencies alone, then
let us appeal, in this most important Of
interests to something that will. As
printing is che art preseryative Of all
ether arts 50 education to popular gov
ernment, is the element preseryatiye of
ell elements necessary TO purity, ygor
aud existence. More anon. J.