Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1895-12-04
MODEST MONMOUTH
Not Anxious for the Asylum, but
Will Give 100000 Bonus.
SURPRISE FOB THE TRUSTEES.

Warren County In Lieu OF Nothin. Better |
TO Onsr Comes Down to Purely |
Monetary Proposition to the Disregard |
OF All Else-rhi. County's Position.
The contest over the selection of
the site for the Western Insane hos
pital is becoming interesting. and in
st. ad Of the question being merely be-
tween Rock Island and Gales burg it
has assumed the pronounced pro-
portions of triangular contest with
the third party very much in it.
This is developed in the explanation
given by Commissioner Medill. who
returned from Springfield last night,
of the adjournment Monday of the
trustees for another week before def
nitely fixing the location. Mon
mouth sprung surprise before the
commission i'll the presentation of a
choice Of three propositions, each
one OF which was backed by ample
evidence Of z 'od faith. and one of
which was the gift of $4,000 site.
another less costly site and $500
in cash and another an outright bO-
nus of 500, 900, conditional only that
out of it a site within two miles of
Monmouth be purchased. This
money was raised by an appropriation
of $25, 900 by the county of Warren, a
popular subscription Of s25 900 in
Monmouth and $4,000 in private
subscriptions. Coming from a
county. which. while manifesting an
interest in the location of the asylum
and presenting sites, had by its atti-
tude given the impression that it
would not be seriously offended if it
did not win the prize. its modest bid
created something like CONSERVATION
among the commissioners, while MIR.
Medill promptly and vigorously con-
tended that If it were 100000 or
$500, 900 it should cut no figure with
the commission, in its mission to de-
eide upon q location meeting all
the requirements Of the situation not
only in point of water and drainage,
but geographically speaking, and he
urged weeks adjournment to give
the matter more serious considera-
ton in all its various phases. This
was finally agreed to.
Monmouth Is In It.
BY the manner in which it i'm.
pressed the commission If the earn
estness of its candidacy for the hos
pital location, Monmouth not only
gave it's neighbor, Galesburg, a
swipe. but sent greetings to Rock
Island county that there is Just such
a thing as a retaliatory spirit linger-
| ing there over the removal OF the
Weir Plow company plant to East
Moline. However, as one citizen
put it this morning that a county
that can raise 100000 to buy an in
sane asylum in the absence of such
considerations as should first COM
mand the attention of the state rep
resentatives, ought to have teen
able to have applied such a sum on
the retention of what, coming right
| down to it, is Of more value to
community-a big factory. Never
theless the generosity and public
spirit OF Warren county is not to be
belittled. 1t has evinced public
spirit that cannot and should not be
belied. and if the asylum, in the face.
as Mr.. Medill demonstrated, of what
has been the experience of other in
situations situated remote from
water advantages. not only in Hi
nOis, but in Iowa, is to be auctioned
| off to the highest bidder for cash,
without regard to anything else.
then Monmouth's proposition should
have the greatest consideration the
locating authority can give it.
Water the Priceless Booa.
But, if the priceless boon,
which is worth more to the state
and to the institution than all the
gold of Golconda's mines could
be, is to have weight; if water,
pure as nature affords it: water in
inexhaustible flow from the foun-
tains of the earth; water for con-
sumption as well as for drainage is
any object. then neither Galesburg
nor Monmouth should, no matter
how glittering the inducements,
tempt those interested with the To-
cation.
From a Geographical Standpoint.
From geographical standpoint:
Rock Island county should have the
location. To place the institution as
far south as either Gales burg or
Monmouth would only fill the pur-
pose OF the bill in providing for the
institution in the way of a sort of
overflow provision for Jacksonville,
instead of serving the territory far ther
remote from the present hospital.
Beyond this Rock Island county be-
lieves it fulfills every intent of the
legislative act, which originally
strictly stipulated that the asylum
should be located on running
stream of water. This provision
was afterward eliminated, not that
the legislature weakened in its con-
viction as to the requirements, but
in order to remove the prejudice of
the inland mem bers against a meas
ure Of such far-reacning Importance
to the entire state. So that from all
points Of view, location. water and
drainage. Rock Island county, in
l.