The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-06-24
TIE STATE CAPITAL QUESTION.

#There are but two States in the Union,
said ex-senator Allan, the "for State capita
Baton Rouge orator, In his speech at Bator
Rouge last week, that have their capto
al their chief cities. The reason for following
theexample Of thirty-seven States the Baton
Iouge orator would seem to believe that the
Union boasts of thirty-nine States) issufficieni
iii my mind for Louisiana
This assertion might be characterized as q
qalsehood. We will consider It, however sim.
ply as lack OF geographical knowledge or
Allafn's part, The Baton Rouge committee
df twenty-one failed to give Allan an atlas
and the consequence is that he has made tht
mistake Of placing thirty-nine States in the
Union, and locating thirty-seven State CAPT.
sals In small towns, far away from the metrop-
oIes Of these States.
we have heard others besides Allan make
this mistake and 1t Is worth while there
fore. To study the geography OF the Union
i little. in order to see the utter falsity Of the
proposition that the fathers OF this country
placed the State capitals In retired and Sc
eltsdeJ villages In order to avoid the excite
ment turmoil and destinations of large cities.
THO history Of the country ought to disprove
capital for the Union instead OF choosing
some quiet and retired spot far from the
Ynadding crowd 1t selected the metropolis OF
Che whole country the then largest city Of
the Union Philadelphia. The subsequent re-
xnoval Of the capital to Washington was not
from any fear of or opposition to large city,
hut because the constitution Of the country
urovided that the capital should be located
ar territory subject to the Union, and the
land on which Washington now stands
had been donated for this purpose by Mary
land. For some years past a large number
of congressman, principally from the West
and 1t Is to be supposed Western Congress
men would be most bitterly opposed to large
cities. have endeavored to secure the removal
III the Federal capital to st. Louis, Missouri
having agreed to donate ten miles square of
that city to the United States. We have yet
to see any person Directing to this capital re-
moval on the ground that St Louis Is the
largest city Of the Mississippi valley, an i'm
portant place financially and commercially,
and largely engaged in manufactures. Oppo-
sition has been made toathe change, but on the
ground that as the government has already
spent $l50,00e,O0O in improving and beautify-
inu Washington it would be q decided piece of
folly to remove the capital now, and go to all
ehe expense of erecting new public buildings
There is nothing whatever to show that the
Federal government ever proposed to protect
the morals of congressman by hiding them
from temptation, by incarcerating them as
1T were In a convent; that the government
ever contemplated the idea Of making some
insignificant village the capital on the ground
that the less light Legislature gets the bet
ter its legislation will be. There is even less
reason to believe this folly of the States.
Let us study the geography of this country
q little and see the truth or falsity of Adams
assertion that thirty-seven States in the
Union have located their capitals in out-of-
the-way villages.
In Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont
there are no large towns, SO that this rule
does not apply. There are no metropolis at
which to locate the State capitals, even had
the State conventions desired odo so. These
states, therefore, can scarcely be taken as
tests Of the capital question.
In Massachusetts the political, commercial
financial and mental capital, Boston, has al
WAYS been the political capital from the earliest
DAYS. when Massachusetts was colony of
great Britain. No city in the Union is more
4 capital than Boston. In it the intelligence,
wealth. industry and influence not only of
Massachusetts, but of all New England are
concentrated. Nor are the country people Of
Massachusetts prejudiced against Boston,
Jealous of its wealth and influence. They do
not charge all the evils Of the country on it
rhey are proud Of their metropolis, and point