Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-12-05
virgins Carthage and our Los
Angeles

Angeles.
Virgil, the Latin poet. sings in the
ganderings of Kneas that when he ar
rived at the new and flourishing city OF
Carthage, where Queen Dido and her peo-
pie were doing such great things, they
found great gangs of men, some build
ing the walls of the new city, others
erecting a great temple to the gods, a
third company upreariug palace, and
multitudes at work upon their own
houses. The scene is depicted in very
lively manner so as to convey to the
reader a vivid impression of what is
going on. The passage fingers in the
memory as a picture of the great
enterprise and energy displayed in the
founding of one of the foremost cities OF
ancient times. Carthage, in century
long posterio- to Virgil's day, became a
dangerous rival even to mighty Rome,
and when her great general, Hannibal,
passed the Alps, after God-like efforts
and almost superhuman sufferings, and
dispersed the legions of Rome at Lake
Thrasamene and almost annihilated the
armies of Italy at Capua, Carthage
barely missed becoming the mistress of
the civilized world as it then existed.
If one were to pass down First street
these days and see the great gang of
men laying in the cable railway, then
pass up to Fort and see another gang
doing like work there; next ascend
the hill at the corner of Temple and New
High streets and witness the new Court
House being built there, and from that
coigne of vantage survey the City Hall,
nearly finished, on Fort, street below
Second; passing on, let the spectator
wander along tine streets and see the new
theatres being completed or just begun,
take account of the many beautiful resi-
dences being built, and see the three
or four fine bridges being thrown
across the river, he will get some
practical idea of what the poet represents,
the wandering Trojan Prince surveying
in Dido's dominions. Perhaps never in
the history of the human race was any
city the scene of more varied and enor'
nous enterprises of development and i'm
provement than is Los Angeles al
this moment. All things hereabout beal
the impress of great energy and Of the
promise of great future. The most saga
cious and thoughtful business men of the
age see here the theatre where grea
achievements are to be enacted. From al
quarters of the Union men and theil
money are being attracted to take par
in building what promises to be
the typical city of the Continent
From Boston came the greatest railroad
builders of the age to gridiron this sec
ton with steel rails. From Chicago
came men of great exploits to lay here
the most perfect system of street rail-
roads in the United States, and that is in
the world. From all parts people are
focking in here by the thousand to en-.
gage in enterprises of less emprize. Il
one will imagine that he is standing
with Eneas surveying the rising walls ol
Carthage and then transfer himself in
thought to the same city in the days Of its
magnifcen and splendor in the time o
Hannibal, he will be able in these two
pictures to see our own city in it
present stage of inception and also in its
future beauty and greatness. Here viii
be at the end of the century, dozer
years away, one of the finest and, in al
respects, most attractive cities in the
world. It's growth is not to be stayed
it's greatness is not to be eclipsed. Il
will stand without rival on the Coast
and in some respects it will surpass any
thing in this Nation.