The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1874-10-22
GENERAL READING.
THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY
AND HIS GREAT RIVERS.
speech of Senator Sehurz al a 81.
Louis Festival.
MR. scHuRz's RESPONSE.

so unwell tonight that | ought not to
have come here at all, and certainly
ought not to have attempted to speak
At any rate l confess my entire inability
to do justice to so grand theme. l am
not called upon to say anything about
fire departments, but upon the Mississip
ri river, the valley through which it flows,
AMI the commerce which it has brought
forth. Gentlemen, you look over the
vast globe in vain for any country 50
richly endowed by bountiful hand as
the valley Of the Fathers Of Waters. Up
in the country of long winters and short
summers it riginates-winters indeed,
not long and hard enough, nor summers
short enough to render the ripenlLg OF
abundant crops impossible. Thenitwinds
its way through thousands of miles down
to the land covered with all the luxurlance
of tropical vegetation, and on both sides
of its tributaries, forming river systems
for themselves, pour into its lap all the
rich luxuriance Of the vast e&panse of
thousands Of miles to the East and to the
West. When we are asked, What is the
catalogue of its productions, and OF the
articles of its commerce we might well
answer that question by asking another.
| "What is there wanting in that cata-
logue 2" [Applausel From the north
ern and middle sections of the Mississippi
valley the North and West contribute
| the rich treasures of their wheat, their
corn ard their cattle from their prairies,
| and their lumber from their forests.
| The Middle states contribute their
| tobacco and their hemp in addi-
ton to the other products and
| the South gives us her cotton and her rice
and her sugar-the children of the trop-
les. But there the catalogue is not ex-
hausted vet, for from the mountains of
| Colorado in the West there runs q riv
uet Of silver, and from the Alleghenies
| in the East a streak of iron, and IN our
own Missouri our Iron mountains and
fields of lead present an inexhaustabIe
| and almost unopened iron box of wealth:
while our coal fields, unreasonable to
the eve, and almost unreasonable to the
imagination, stretch out from the North
to the South, and from the East to the
| West, ready to feed world of industry
with their products. This is the sub
stance Of the products and of the COM
merce of the Mississippi valley need
not go here into dry statistics concerning
the number of steam boats that float upon
her waters, or the network of railroads
| which, like spider webs, cover this vast
expanse Of territory, or the millions OF
tons of freight which those steamboats,
and railroads carry, and which they keep
carving with ceaseless activity. All
that YOU know. But, gentlemen, the
story of the grandeur and the Importance
and the destiny of the Mississippi valley
: is not vet told. We raise not only corn
and wheat and tobacco and lumber and
cotton and sugar and rice. We raise
also men. Great cheering. For in
this valley, more than any where else,
consumates itself that intermingling and
intermelting of the elements of popula
ton out of which is formed that grand
American nationality in the full cosmo
politanism Of its character. Here YOU
: see the New England Yankee, and the
: ViroiniaD. and the Carolinian meeting
with all the different peculiarities of then
J habits. and their traditions, and theil
! WAYS of thinking-at first roughly rub
D hinp AGAINST one another, but gradually
l and almost imperceptibly blending, a
7 nn3er the influence of the atmosphere
into one another by an irresistible pro
7 cess of assimilation. Here you see thu
? foreign born man, from whatever quartz
= f the globe he may have come. Whll
ON the coast of the Pacific or the Atlantic
n within reach of the sea breeze he ma.
: sill consider himself a sojourner
e here he comes 70 find and to foun'
r q permanent home for himself an
e his children, and to contrlbnt
It his good and strong qualities to the CON
q mon nationality, and to grow up tru
e American among true Americans
rCheers.1 New England may boast c
t, nossessing the cradle of American lIbel
y ~ but it may be said in truth that th
r great Mississippi valley is the gigantI
" cradle in which is rocked the young nf
a ton of the new world [Applause. Nor
t, than this. | conceive that the MISSISSIPPI
Is river is one Of the strongest matters
N bonds to hold this Union together. o
N can conceive no thought OF a division
III this country without being met at ono
Of bv the impossibility of dividing this rive
TApplause. Whatever unfortunate e
- nov once have been INDUCED
here and there, you men of the Soutt
cannot tolerate the idea OF seeing tt
" upper and middle courses Of the Missi
ne sinni in the hands of nation not yoI
is own. and YOU, men of the North, cann
:. tolerate the idea of seeing the mouth
,e tho river in the hands of nation n
al vo,,r own. What follows then? By Il
he commanding voice of interest and neee
"a s;tv we are told that this whole river 81
in ten, must be in the hands of nation Oh
n aud undivided. The Mississippi vale
a therefore. is not like mere rope OF san
nor like a mere band of water; but 1t
q more like rod of steel running rig
H. tbrouoh the backbone Of the repubil
D: bcIding the North and South together
<: ono country. the common heritage OF ;
~ Americans. Applause.
"a. And in this valley, | trust, the Nor
, and South may meet again in the spil
7 of instice and friendly feeling. slnNn
III into the deepest depth of the Father
Il: Waters all the resentments and passlo
nh which in an unfortunate hour, thre'
as. ened to divide them Applause, DC
est candidIy recognizing that they could Z
10 divide If they would, and fraterra-
no. feeling that they would not divide II tn
Gontlemen. we are all feeling tn
GREAT as is the wealth, vast as are the
Sources and the products and the co
III MERGE of the Mississippi valley, we
- o -. th;nors vet TO come. Not only will {
ay' e neo 'nIe m12iitiply~not only will the pl
,ce- subdue more millions of acres of vir
ioe soil: not only will our miners unco
try more treasures of mineral wealth;
ny. l1sd only only viii many more factory chimn
, fsir Oar Jarken the land. but l trust
niii time is not far distant when our G
- , merce will receive a new impt
e. for and development BY the opening OF