The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1888-03-10

interested to speak. / became a res
ident of this State in 1858 and have
no idea of ever changing. My home
Is with you, and my fortunes are
identified with yours. / want here
to express my appreciation of and
deep gratitude for the many favors
the people Of the State haYe bestowed
on me, and to say that | stand ready
to do anything | can to aid in fol-
warding her development and in
terests. Let us do all we can to let
the world know where we are, what
we are and what we have, and that
all who come among us to aid us in
putting the State where she ought to
be, in the front rank, will receive a
hearty welcome, Brains, energy,
labor and capital can command and
secure a good reward in West Vir-
ginia,"
Mr.. DaYis was followed by Hon.
Stephen b. Eikins, who was received
with enthusiastic applause. The lat
ter in his speech said -:
West Virginia presents unusual Op-
portunittes and advantages to the
immigrant, the mechanic. farmer,
manufacturer, business man and cap
itaist. According to its area, West
| Virginia is the richest State in the
Union in natural resources, particu
! larly in coal, iron ore anu timber,
which furnish the basis of so much
wealth, and which go SO far towards
making a country great and prosper
Gus. The beautiful scenery, health
full climate. ineXhaustible mines of
coal and iron ore. forests of fine tim
ber and fertile valleys need only to
be understood to draw within her
borders people seeking employment
and homes, business men, manufac-
turers and capitalists desiring to
make investments.
BY rail West Virginia can be reach
ed in less than one hour from Pitts
burg, in two hours from Baltimore
and Washington, in FIVE hours from
Philadelphia, Columbus and CinCin-
natl, in seven hours from New York
and in fourteen hours from Chicago
The State lies on the great highway
from tie Atlantic coast to the Miss
iSsippi valley. Two trunk lines o
railroad pass through it from east tt
west. For the population on tht
Atlantic seaboard, reaching frou
Philadelphia to Richmond, the nat
ural and best route to the west il
through West Virginia. The situa
: tipn makes it easy of access from al
, the great centres of population, ant
its position in relation to the who'll
country and its markets is centra
commanding and important.
West Virginia is traversad from
, north to suth, distance of of 24
miles, by the great Appalachian sys
J tenn of mountains forming Within
, the State two and sometimes thre,
: distinct ranges, which stretch il
! width from east to west across its Dor
ders for nearly two hundred miles
Never-faiing springs and streams
: from the sides of the mountains
f making the State one of the best wa
| tered in the Union. Two-thirdS 0
the State is underlaid with coal, it
! area reaching in extent sixteen thou
sand square miles, more that that 0
Pennsylvania or England, while si2
navigable rivers flow through it
borders. Mountains, hills and val
= leys alternate upon surface which
is fertile from the lowest valley t.
the highest summit. The mountain
and hills, when cleared, yield abun
dainty the richest grasses. maxim!
grazing and dairy farms of unsur
passed excellence. The AllegaD.
mountains will yet largely contrib
) ute the dairy products consumed Oh
, the Atlantic seaboard and for eXpOr
l to Europe. Within 300 miles @
3 tidewater and 100 miles to the Obi
: river, hundreds of thousands of acre
I of good agricultural lands in Yves
Virginia can be bought for from "a t
| So per acre, the timber on which vii
= pay for the clearing and fencing
: These lands are underlad with Goa
3 which will yield from 5000 to 600
r tons per acre, and which will som
: day be worth, with transportatiO
S facilities to market, ten cents per to
: royalty in the ground.
II One single railway corporation
: and not the largest in the country
consumes annually 100000 tons
= coal, costing about $4,000, 600, to fee
e engines that draw its enormous tor
It mage, In West Virginia coal is cheal
d er at the mouth Of the mines than i
e England. The State offers to all raj
roads and manufacturing interes
If within and contiguous to its border
If the cheapest fuel in the world.