The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-01-07
THE BIG MUDDY.


Delegates to Washington.
KANSAS CITY, No., December S1.-Ai
1880 o'clock yesterday morning the River
! Improvement Convention met az the Board
of Trade hall for the second days session.
] At nine O'Clock, before the meeting of tha
| Convention. the Executive Committee held q
| meeting in the Board of Trade Hall for the
! purpose of determining the place for the
next meeting of the Convention and Other
matters. Chairman BOitsr presided. On
I motion of q. d. Baker and after consider.
| able discussion, Omaha was chosen as the
! place of the next meeting, which
will be opened on the first Wednes-
! day in September, 1856. The Secretary in
| trOduced a resolution. which was adopted,
to assess the different cities and Boards of
| Trade on the Missouri River, from st.
! Louis to Fort Benton, for the purpose of
defraying the necessary expenses incurred
I by the Executive Committee in prosecuting
I the work in hand, The amount needed
was estimated at 1,5O0, and the Secretary
was instructed 10 call Tor % per cent. of the
| amount Immediately. y resolution was
! adopted instructing the Secretary to fOrmu-
late a call for the Omaha Convention and
/ 10 make the basis of representation the
same as the Kansas City call, with the ad-
dition of ten delegates at large from each
State and Territory, and to request the
Governors of each State and Territory bOr-
dering on the Missouri River to appoint
delegates in conformity thereto. The COM
mittee then adjourned to meet at the call
of the President.
THE RESOLUTIONS.
After the preliminaries of the opening
the first work IN the order of business was
the report of the Committee on Resolutions,
which was as follows:
To the President and Members of the Mis-
souri, River Valley Convention:
Your committee respectfully submit the
following resolutions for your considera-
ton:
WHERELs, In view of the fact that appro-
prations are being asked from Congress for
the Improvement of the great Western water
wavS. and that this convention has been
called in the interest of the great Missouri
River Valley; therefore,
RsSOlred That il IS the earnest wish Of the
people of the Missouri Valley in convention
assembled at Kansas City, Mo, these 18th
and Both days of December, 1885, that Con-
gresS do at once appropriate for improve
ment of the Missouri River One-half of the
amount asked for by the Missouri Commits
sion for the year ending June 30, 1887, in or
der that this commission may be able to re-
sumo their work Us early in the spring as
economy demands, and that we ask the SEN
ators and REPRESENTATIVES. of the Missouri
Valley in Congress thar they make il their
foremost business to secure such an immedi-
ale appropriation.
Resolved, That this convention insist that a
member of Congress from the Missouri Val
lev be placed upon the House Committee for
Rivers and HarbOrs, as an act of patent JUS
tice to the people of the valley OF the largest
river i'll the Nation.
ReSOired, That we recommend the estab-
lishment or the light house system from
Kansas City to Fort Benton, and an adc-
quate Appropriation from Congress for the
purpose of establishing and maintaining
such system.
RcS0lred That Il committee consisting of
two members from each of the States of
Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas and Min
nesota, and the Territories of Dakota and
Montana be appointed by the delegates pres
ent in this convention from the said States
and Territories. whose duty it shall be to lay
before Congress in the most effective man
ner the demands of this convention as cX-
pressed in these resolutions. The names of
said committee to be reported to this con
vention before hnal adjournment, and that
the respective Board of Trade in the Mis-
souri, Valley be requested to add one mem
ber each to this committee.
q RCSOlred, That II is the wish of this conven
tiOn that the committee heretofore ap-
pointed cooperate with the Executive Com
mittee for the improvement of Western
water ways, and the committee appointed by
the late convention at st. Paul, in al their eff
forts to secure the results they were charged
to seek.
Resolred, That we urge upon all Senators
and congressman from the Missouri and Mis-
sissippi Valleys to heartily unite in order tC
secure prODer and liberal appropriations FOR
the improvement of Western and Northwest
ern water ways, and to demand such help
from the National Government as the best
interests OF these sections justly demand
before voting the appropriation of public
money fO- other and less National objects,
and for sections of OUT country which have
hitherto been most favored by the distribu-
rim nS.fI, at.rnrr1 1nYnfu cfGTn
RcSOlUed, That we view with surprise and
sOlictude the omission of all mention of the
needs of the Western water ways from
the message of the President of the
United states. and that we. as repre-
sentat.ves of the people inhabiting
the entire Valleys Of the Missouri
and Mississippi Rivers, earnestly urge upon
the President TO call the attent on of Cen
gTesS, by special message, TO the needs of
these sections in the matter of international
Improvement, and we trust that this Omis-
son was made with the view of making u
more emphatic and elaborate presentation
by Il special message at a later daV.
ReSOtrCd, That we recommend Congress to
pass Il law declaring the Kansas River navi-
gable from Fort Riley t0 the mouth at Wyan-
dOtte City. That all artificial obStruct,onS
are nuisanceS and as such must be removed
or so altered that they no longer exist as i'm
pedimentS to steamboats, anu vessels cOurS-
ing said river. ard that IN accordance with
the recommendation of Major c. r. Suffer-.
United States eng neer, an appropriation OF
properly adapt said Kansas River to the more
successful transit of commerce.
ResOirsd, That the attention of the Missouri
River Commission is hereby respectfully
called BY this convention to the great dam
age done aud threatened by the Missouri
River Ut point nearly opposite Fort Leaven-
worth, Kan, where the Federal Government
has large property interests, and where the
iron bridge which spans the river is in Im-
minent danger of losing its connection wit h
the Missouri shore, thus destroying the most
immediate communication between that i'm
portant military post and the East. Respect
D. II. MC.STYRE, Chairman.
Il. q. WINDHAM, Secretary.
DELEGATES TO WASHINGTON.
The different delegations then took re-
cess of fifteen minutes for the purpose of
selecting delegates to the meeting to be
held in Washington January next On re-
turning the following were reported as pro-
vided by the resolutions:
Nehraska-R. 3. WiDdham, c. Hartman.
Iowa-Judge James, Council Bluffs; F..
F. Evens, SiouY City.
MissOuri-R. Il. w. HartWig, St Joseph; !;
W. II. Miller, Kansas City.
Kansas. ID. Barker, Girard; DR.. S. F.
NeaIy, LeavenwOrth.
Montana-T. c. Powers, Helena; T. A.
COmings, Fort BehtOn.
Minnesota-COlonel W. Crooks, st. Paul;
Platt Z. Walker, st. Paul.
DakOtl-W. II. BeadIe, Yankton; W..
! Thompson, Bismarck.
A hearty welcome was ASSURED the dele
cations on their visit To Omaha at their
next meeting by Mr.. Chase, ex-MayOr Of
that city.
The farewell remarks by Judge Cole, OF
ST. Louis, were touching, and filed with a
charming vein Of earnest enthusiasm.