Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1889-04-12

OF her flesh" l am an "old settler"
and if there is no moss on my back it
is due to the lack Of humidity in the
cllmte OF Eastern Washington. With
an abiding faith in her ultimate great
ness, through many slow-revolv,ng
years, We old settlers" have watched
the gradual unfolding of her resources,
watched the slow increase of wealth
AID population, watched the great
railroad creeping higher" 81 WHY pro-
! lectlUg themselves across the great
space intervening between this new
and the Old home across the Great
An erican desert OF our school-bov att as
that veritable lost Atlantis of the
American tradition-after year, OF anx-
ious waiting We saw one Of these great
iron arteries OF Internal commerce
pierce the Cascade mounta n range and
wind its way down to the shores of
your own Puget Sound. Mark the
changel The sleepy old Territory felt
the thrill OF new life to her remotest
boundaries the great iron artery be-
gan to pulse and lhrob with the life
currents of comm cree.
Population and wealth began 10
flow in. A new er had dawned. The
old settler found him ELF in the midst
of strange new age and uncompre-
hended scenes" He saw splendid cities
rise upon the shores of his inland sea.
"Saw the heavens fill with commerce,
! Argosies of magic sail,
| Pilots of the purple twilight
"a
If YOU ask me whence this wonder
d rful change, l will answer the rail-
roads. Lest we misunderstood each
other, want to plead guilty to the
charge of being railroad man. Moth
ing has contributed so much to our
material prosperity. l hope to live 70
see Washington Territory grid-ironed
with railroad, until her map looks
like a checker-hoard. l have lived
in the cold whoa-haw time" when
trip from the civilized portion
of the c. untry consumed rom four to
six months. At later periOi l have
been jolt, in stage coaches over
rough mountains, through sage brush
deserts, across lava beds out to the
Central Pacific, six hundred miles away,
have been rocked in the cradle of
the deep" off the mouth of the Column
bia to my hearts content, and will tell
you frankly, prefer the Pullman Pal
ace car. have not dollar in rail
roads, but believe in their being held
reasonably in check by wise interstate
commerce law, supplemented by judic-
ious state restriction. Human greed
is a pretty Constant force" whether
exhibited in individual or corporate
form, and it sometimes in the course
o. human events becomes Necessary
say thus FIR shall thu 60 nd no
further" II wever, present discuss
sion OF this que ton is IN ecessary
we eau safely leave it to The W S iom OF
the Constitutional Convention and the
intelligence of all the people,
That common sense of most
Which holds the dreadful realms in ave."
Behind us are the years of Terrific
rial vassalage; years OF prlvation and
toll and dangers; years of "canoe
and saddle" of OK team and rickety
stage coach years withal, rich in rem
iniscences; years consecrated by
the blood of the pioneers brave spirits
who hewed out the paths in the will
derness aud made possible a later
civilization.
Before us is the promise Of po'iti-
cal autonomy and glorious STATE
hood. At last, after years of waiting
we are to pass from political childhood
to manly strength and independence.
We are to have the privilege of man.
aging our own affairs in our own way.
We accept it with deep sense Of the
responsibility implied, hoping to
leave behind us some proof of our at
tachment to justice and good govern
ment; some evidence of that ardent
love of country which should animate
the breast of every loyal citizen.
The foundations Of an empire are to
be laid; an empire which it is fondly
hope may continue to flourish in un-
di FINISHED splendor ages hence; an
empire in which the coming millions
will find happy homes; an empire in
which it is not unreasonable to hope
by reason of its climate and other ad.
vantages, the human race will attain
its highest development.
The real empire builders are the
members of that convention to assem-
BILE here on next Independence day.
Let us hope they may be wisely chos-
sen from the ablest and the best of our
fellow-citizens. The responsibility
rests after all with the people them
selves, for in this government "of the
people, by the people and for the
people," no citizen Can escape his
share OF the praise or blame.
| Every American citizen owes it to his
country to take an active, earnest in
terest in the nations public affairs. 1t
is too much the fashion among business
men OF our day to hold themselves
aloof from what they term the "dirty
pol Of politics." affecting an air OF
Pharisaical self-righteonsness and SUI
periority to such di-reputable affairs
as party politics. Such men are not
entitled TO share the blessings of good
government.
Let us hope then, say, that the
members OF the constitutional con-
vention will be "wise in their day
and generation; that they will
bring to the discharge of their duties,
a sense of the responsibility of their
position that they will realize that tn y
are building not only for the present
but for all the future; building for the
millions veto dwell within our Dor
ders. That much is expected OF a
State Convention that has the rich
store house of more than hundr.
years Of national ex;s,e from which
10 draw.
We are standing here in the bllze of
intelligence that lights the closing
years of the 10 h century. "Here's 70
ali the ages il the foremost files of
time" With Washington's past his
tory you are all familiar. The separa-
ton from Oregon in 1S52-the early
l di. wars, the privat ons, the dan
ger, the hardships endured by the
early pioneers their heroic, deeds will
illuminate the pages of Territorial his
tory. May they never be forgotten.
They were an honest, brave and gener-
our people.
OF the present, what shall we say?
OF the Washington of to-day with her
illimitable resources, her Mountains
ribbed with silver and gold, bursting
with treasures of iron and coal; her
lakes and rivers teeming with fish, her
great inland sea, upon whose shores
are rising like magic these splendid
cities that are the wonder of the world
her thousands of square miles of Tim