Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1881-11-05
THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.

THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.
The Mississippi river conve ntion
St. Louis was . grand success. 1t WI
largely attended from nearly ever
state In the great valley, and by sui
stantial and able men. The characte
of the men who were there, and til
great interests and popular sentimer
which they represent, will have muc
greater weight with congress than an
resolutions however ably prepared an
however just in their demands. Tn
great national highway of half q cont
nent-and that Its grain and live stoc
producing half-is no longer a suppl
ant at the feet OF the Atlantic slope.
now speaks In a practical way. by it
leading business men. Its most polishe
orators and its most able statesmen.
makes no threats; it handles nc idl
words; but it firmly declares that littl
demagogues who desire to "macadam
ize' trout streams in order to max
capital with their vicinage shall no long
or stand In the way with their swlnd
ling omnibus bills to strangle ever.
effort at the proper improvement of tn
Mississippi river, which Calhoun ant
Benton spoke of, and justly, too, as al
s'inland sea-"
We want to see the Missouri rive
improved. for it Is also an inter-stat,
stream which Justly comes under til.
care of congress, but We have seer
enough to convince Us that the true
policy lies 10 concentration of effort. II
all the congressman in the Mississippi
Valley could agree (irst of all to cease
to be demagogues) on q common course,
no power could resist them. If,1however,
each nan whose district touches a river
must procure something tor his obscure
and unknown stream, nothing will be
done for the Mississippi which will be
of permanent utility. Let it be under.
stood that the tributaries must wait. If
the Missouri. the greatest OF all its trib.
utaries, must wait. we'll and good. Let
as concentrate. Rome was not built in
. day; the pyramids did not spring up
10 q night; nor did China build her wall
even in a year. Here is an enterprise
greater than any Of these-more import
than the building of a city. the cree.
ION Of q monument, or the pillng
lp of q military defense-a grand sys.,
EN- of water transportation for millions
# miles square, and millions upon mil.
ions OF the most enlightened agricultu.
al people that have ever lived in any
'ge or any country.
To be effective this work must be done
n a grand and a permanent scale.
No halt way doins." as Uncle Remus
1ould say, faint no count" Whatev-,'
: 10 done should be we'll done. Then
It it be understood that, commencing
! the ~jetties, one hundred, Two hum.
or three hundred miles, as may be
kpedient, shall be properly improved
q time until all the work is done. It
no use frittering away efforts here,
ere and everywhere. In this way
hen the work is comp leted it will be
sting, and the government can turn
attention to other interstate streams,
avlng canals and rivers wholly within
ates to state management. This is
9 true policy. and the only policy that
n result in anything tangible and OF
lue.
know where the difficulty lies :
tn congressman who have small rivers
their distri cts. II that trouble is not :.
ppressed the old state OF things will .
atinue. There is q way to suppress t
Let there be a caucus of Mississippi 9
LEY representatives; let them agree :
a bill for the Mississippi river t.
and let the trout streams take Ii
q OF themselves. They would have =
walt, OF course, but what constit- a
10y could blame a member who came n
without his annual appropriation, p
d such a pressure as that against =
/. RI
here can be no better cause and b.
more opPortune time for a consolida- -
! Of the interests OF the grand valley Il
no Mississippi, and a needed exhibi- CT
! OF its political power, than in this s.
tier OF the Mississippi river improve in
ut. III,
be Mechanics National bank, of New tn
. N. j., which was regarded as the in
INCEST in that city has suspended. At tn
ference OF the directors on Sunday, s -
cashier, o. L. Baldwin, stated that it by
lid be useless to proceed with bust. tel
3. An offer by those present to sub. ~
hn Ok00 0nA ru- - r.