Weekly commercial herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1884-18??, 1886-03-05

msnting Upon the Presidents
Message to the Senate.
NEW YORK, March 3-The Sun, In
an editorial upon the message Of the
president to the senate upon the Dust
in case, says: "He speaks with no un-
certain sound, there is much more as
sertion of the personality of the writer
than is usual 10 public documents In a
free land. Indeed there is something
of arrogance in the whole tone of the
paper; there is sarcasm and there is
bitterness; at the same time the
earnest purpose of the president to do
right as he understands it, is evident
throughout. We have no disposition
to question his motives, but we seri.
ously doubt the correctness of some of
the opinions by which he proposes to be
guided. The right Of the president to
keep or destroy private or
confidential communication will
be disputed by no one.
When, however, he places pa.
per in a public Office his own act
stamps it as document of public i'm
portance, and thence forth its contents
should be accessible to the representa-
tives of the people or any one else
having legitimate interest in it."
The World says: ''Now that the
president frankly admits that the SEN
ate has a constitutional right to all
public documents, and that public
papers are public property, the princi-
pal issue is settled and removed; the
only question now remaining is why
the president should put his private
confidential papers upon the files of the
department Of justice"
A Description of the Great Iron
Bridge to be Built Near Cairo.
CHICAGO, March 3.-In order to learn
the details as far as determined for a
new bridge across the Ohio river, near
Cairo, reporter called on General
Manager Jeffrey, y,who said: "The bridge
will be built entirely of steel and will
rest on solid piers of masonry 170 feet
high from the bottom Of the founda-
tion to the capstone. At least three of
the spans will be 500 feet high, and the
length Of the others depends on rela-
tive cheapness of span work and ma
sonry. 1t will not be a cantilever or
suspension structure, but truss
bridge of the heaviest and most ap-
proved pattern. 1t is not settled
whether it will be built with fixed
spans or one draw span, but that will be
uecided by conference with the wal
department. The length of the bridge
will be about 5000 feet, and in add
tion there will be in the aggregate oi
about 5000 feet of ironwork ap
proaches on both sides, ascending at
grade of about forty feet to the
mile to the main bridge. It will be a
single track bridge, and l am not ex-
aggerating when say, it will be one
of the greatest engineering feats in the
country. There is a difference Of
fifty feet between high and low water
level at Cairo. There is an extensive
bottom at confluence Of the Ohio and
the Mississippi rivers across which the
Illinois Central extends distance of
six miles on the Illinois side. On the
Kentucky side the bottom extends
four or five miles to the foot of
the the hills so that in high
water there is nothing above
the surface except the Illinois Central
tracks and tree-tops. Under such cir
cumstances it will be seen it is an en-.
terprise of no ordinary difficulty.
Don't you expect any obi bj,ction will
be made by those interested in river
commerce?
The bridge will be built so as not to
interfere with navigation, and | think
the Importance of the principle that
all reasonable facilities should be fur.
nished to the great railroad lines of the
country is generally admitted. l pre-
sumo the cost will be about So, 900, 600.