The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1874-12-02
AMERICAN CHEAP TRANsPORTA.
TEoN CONVENTION.
ADDRESS OF WELCOME BY MAYOR KEI
LEY, AND RESPONSE BY PREsI-
DENT QUINCY.
Org a N Z 4 tiOra.

tue RS't oi tue 1ounS mems Snrfstian AS.
Sociatton. FL. &
A time was spent before the hour Of meet
ing in cordial greetings among old friends
and pleasant introductions of new. a.!
Punctnaily at the hour the venerable pre-
sident, Hon. Josiah Quincy, called the Con.
! Vention to order. and the other officers (R.
| Fl. Ferguson, Of Troy, New York, secretary,
and F. 3. Thurher, Of New York city, trea-
surer} we're at their posts. ''> a.'. ,
Mr.. Quincy said that as it was the time.
honored prerogative of Old Virginia hospi-
| tality to "welcome the coming and speed
| the departing guest be took pleasure in
| introducing to the Convention .S&"
MAYOR KELLEY, OF RICHMOND. 8
Mr.. Kelley was received with applause,
and delivered the following address:
Mr. President aud Gentlemen,-It falls to
my fortunate lot to bid you, on behalf of the
| municipal authorities Of Richmond, O most
| cordial welcome to our city, and to express
| on their behalf and that of our people at
large sincere wish that the great purposes
you have in view may receive at this Con.
| vention an impulse and impetus commensu.
| rate with their priceless value.
You have convened from many quarters
of our common country for the purpose, as
l understand it, Of seeking practical solu-
| tion of that great and most important prob
| lem how best and cheapest to bind together
| by great highways Of traffic the iar.sundered
| borders of our imperial domain, that the
plough.share may touch the cleaying keel,
| and the fruitful furrow Of the prairie farm
may be merged in the closing furroW of the
sea.
| Great and benefcent as is this design, i'm
| in f1n lost n y
| edly is to the more material ends you have
! in view, its value in that marketable sense
which finds its measure in the statistics OF
| political economy is not its only, perhaps
| not its greatest, worth. For every whiring
| train and gliding boat that bears ath wart the
continent its burden Of production from fac.
tory and farm, halted at no territorial boun.
Diary, searched by no customs officer, taxed by
no githerer of imposts, is signal monument
| Of the value Of that peace, and concord, and
unity on which our political prosperity re-
poses, and mute but mighty pleader for the
preservation Of that national fraternity
| whose rekindling fires now light the horizon
on every hand-to fade and pale, let us
hope, no more forever.
To select any special topic Of your pro.
posed or probable discussions rs a subject oil
rema. would i'll bcfismy unacquaintancew with
| your detailed plans, and might well be deem.
! ed an abuse of the privileges Of this place.
| But you will pardon me if venture in one
sentence to point out the great, almost the
| only, danger which, in -my opinion, menaces
the success of your valuable undertaking. Ii
YOU fail, gentlemen, it will not be for lack OF
| merit in your scheme or of intelligence and
| yigor in its prosecution; not from private
| opposition or public neglect; not from want
of appreciation or sympathy; your one, only
] danger lies within your own ranks, and, in
| great Difference to your better judgments, l
venture to indicate it in the expression of my
| fear that you may not so comprehend the
vastneSs Of the work before you as to see
! that it is in the co0peration-the stimuli
i taueous working of many schemes, not
! the selfish pursuit Of one, that you will find
| both the success of your efforts and the frui-
| ton of that succeeding. There is ample
room for every meritorious move in this di-
recton. The country is vast enough, its
population numerous enough, its produc.
tions valuable enough, aud the worlds de-
mand for them great enough, for many a
busy channel from West TO East. Men are
learning. late indeed, but through that Bit
terness which makes teaching permanent,
that the number of bushels Of wheat to the
| acre. or the percentage of metal TO the ton
| Of ore, or the yield of coal to the hand, is but
! a fallacious test of the value Of farm or mine.
| A thousand mines lie fallow to-day on
American hisides, and q thousand farms
| will make their winter fires out Of golden
grain this year. The largest factor often in
all these values is accessibility to market,
| and it is therefore in the multiplication and
| consequent competition OF lines-ln the gem
| erous rivalry, not in the jealous hostility Of
| works of communication-tlIat the surest
! pledge of the accomplishments of your wishes
and the brightest promise OF value in that
futilment may be found.
| Let it be seen that you can rise to the level,
the generous level, of the national need for
your labors, and your battle becomes the
battle of the people, and is already won.
But trespass, Mr.. President, on time too
valuable to be wasted thus. Let me say, In
conclusion, that there is special illness, IN
nv Judgment, in your assembling here.
! More than hundred years ago, when your
own great namesake, Mr.. President-possl.
bly, your ancestor, for in your State as in
mine, sir, there is wonderful seDaclty ol
families-when that most gifted son OF the
! Bay States colonial history Josiah Quincy
was completing his law.studies at Harvard
a Virginia surveyor. .trsversing with compass
conceived the first plan of grand highway
from the East to the West. Memorable events
which welded bis name to Immortality post
poned but could not eradicate from hh
mind the great design, and with returning
peace be resumed with his Wonted earnest
1 ness the patriotic purpose. .. t..--
4 / can invoke on your deliberations now
no greater blessing than that they may be
| puida5 nv the profOnnd Sappcity and iusDireC
by the generous patriotism which charac
terized every act and utterance Of him who
was no less first in peace than first in war
Nirginia's pioneer in the great work OF link
ing West with East by cheap Transports
tion-George Washington. % ."s
/ MIR. Kelley was frequently interrupted bJ
applause, and Was loudly applauded Whel
be took his seat. .g4e
/ In response to Mayor Keiley's address o
welcome, -.'.t go
i .,~ THE PRESIDENT
said that he deemed the Convention very for
tunute in being able to meet at the capitai Of
the Ancient Dominion, whose great men IL
| the olden time had done more than any
others to lay the foundations of the liberty
| constitutional government. and permanent
prosperity and happiness, of this great coun'
try. He rejoiced that In this +" On.to-Rlch.
mond" of representatives of every section
of the country they had not been wei
coined with bloody hands to hospitable
graves" but had instead received the cor
dial greeting and graceful welcome Of the
Mayor of this beautiful city.
He rejoiced in this opportunity OF having
| tie REPRESENTATIVES of widely. sec.
tions mingle together in familiar, social in.