The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1889-06-13

Oh nigh olympus ana beyond the
reach OF earthly weakness and pas
sion. Washington was man as well
as historical character. A nearer
view OF his private life would tell Iui-
licking tales of Waluuts anu wine aud
the zest for sparkling company of the
other sex Ia proof of this, we give
teil-tale letter The great man wrote
to William Livingston. tie last Royal
Governor, OF New jersey, the morn
ing after a Jollitication:
"Oh William, what al glorious time
We had last evening L am paying
the penalty. however, this morning,
as my swollen head aJtests. How
does your head feel? After leaving
you. l called on the fair Virginian.
She is one OF Gods faIrest creatures.
But am trying 10 paint a picture the
ablest artist could not produce.
" Yours as a brother,
GEORGE WASHINGTON.
Knowing Washingto ton as he was, he
will seem more a representative Amer
lean of his time Imam he appears to
those that look at him through the
lens of adulation, and The transform,
ing haze with which the necessities of
the school book, and moraiist have
invested his private personality. On
his last day as Presid ut, he wrote TO
Knox, comparing himself to 1.-The
weary trareler who sees resting place
and is bending his body to lean there
on. 10 be suffered to dn this i'll peace, +"
he added, is uuo much 10 be endured
by some" On that very day, q lead
ing Philadelphia newspaper dismissed
him with the following TRADE which
should be read and remembered by all
who think tnat political viruleDce is
on the increase:
Lord, now lettest thou thy servant
depart in peace. for mine eyes have
seen thy salvation.n This was the
exclamation of a man who saw a flood
of blessedDess breaking in upon man
kind. Ii there was ever q time that
allowed this exclamation to be repeat
ed, that time is the present. The
NJ all who is the source of all our coun.
try's misery, is this day reduced to
the rank Of his fellow citizens, and
has no longer the power TO multiply
the woes Of the United States. Now,
more than ever, is the time to rejoice.
Every heart that feels for the liberty
and Happiness of the people. must
now kes,l with rapture at the thought
that this day, the name of Washing
ton ceases tC give currency to injustice
and 10 I1gailze corruption. When
we look back upon the eight years OF
| WashiuSton's administration, il
strikes Us with astonlshment that one
man could thus poison the principles
OF repubiicanisln among cur enlight
enea people, and carry his designs
against the public liberty so far a. tC
endanger its very existence. Yet
such Is the 1act, and if this is appar-
To oil fhiS dow ahnntH firm 9
jubilee in the United States
! Were the black republicans ever sc
b Tier on The illustrious, now eX Pres
iuenl Cleveland? While the Ameri-
ctn p.upie lnay rightfuiiy feel a just
pride III their many distinguished
5,a,es n3en, their great glory consists
III Unparalleled progress in internal
IMPROVEMENTS and national develop
iuent. Your correspondent, as Wei
as many other among the older read
ers OF the Courier, will remember
when there was not mile of railroad
1 III the United States. How many ol
| your young readers can give history
, OI the start of our great RAILROAD sys
! ten, numbering tens of thousands o1
miles, spread out as spiders web all
over the American coHtlueDl?
! 1he New York Legislature granted
| a charter for the builuing of the
Attauy and Schenectady railroad in
/ 1876, d distance OF Is miles. 1t was a
narrow guage; work was begun in
| 1880 anu completed III 1881, and in
! September OF that year, the first steam
passenger train that ever run in this
! country, was sent over the raj Is. A
| bout the same time, a snort road was
built near Charlestown, .. u, and ii
has been claimed that that road AN
the first train, but the preponderance
of proof is III favor of the A. d 5. road
The New York Central now runs
over the same route of the A. d S. road
There was hill at both ends of the
road, and the cars were drawn ul
with a stationary engine, and a large
Iope. The locomotive was bought in
England and weighed four tons, and
today womId be regarded great Gu
rIosity. 1t was named John Bull. The
cars OF the first train were coach bo-
dies, taken from the numbering wheels
aud transferred to railroad trucks.
The engineer of the first train was
John HampsOn, an Englishman, who
made the 10 miles run i'll seventy
minutes both going and returning.
The gentlemen who made the first
trip were Lewis Benedict, Jas. Alex
ander, President of tile Commercial
Bank at Albany Chas e dudley OF
the Dudley Observatory Jacob
Hayes, High Constable OF New York ;
Maj. Meggs, Sheriff of Albany; Judge
Marvin OF Saratoga; JUh } DeGraff,
Mayor of Schenectady Edwin Cros-
well, Editor vi. the Aibany Argus !;
John Townsend; Thurlow Weed !;
Billie Wlnn, of the Albany Penny
Press; Ex Gov. Joseph Z. Yates.
Probably not one of lnese men are
now living. During the hour it took
to get ready Tor start, all artist by
the name of Brown, II. 1naged to get d
picture of the party, Tie portraits of
whicn are RENAL kabIe for their fidelity,
The original is now i'll possession of the
ConnecCIcuC Historical Society AT
Hartford.
Portage County people going to
New York, VIA. the N. Y. Central,
pass over the same ground, between
Schenectady and Albany, looked out
upon, when nearly all d pine forest,
by the passengers on the first railroad
train that ever made railroad trip
in America. 1t was considered the
greater achievement, as but few
years before Dewitt Clinton Was ac-
cused of insanity, because of his pre-
diction in advocating his Erie Canal
scheme, in the N. Y. Senate. that the
time would soon come when a man
could travel 100 miles by public con-
veyance in "a hours.
K. P. BRAINERD.
RAvEnNA, o., MAY 21st, 1889.