The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1897-02-11
REMOVAL OF THE CAPITAL.

There is a movement on foot to
change the Capital city of the state
from Harrisburg to Philadelphia The
two strongest reasons given for
change are that the Allegheny men,
bers can stay in sleeping car all
night to reach Philadelphia, whereas
now they reach Harrisburg at three
O'Clock in the morning; and that
Philadelphia affords more amusement
for the country members than Harris
burg provides. Two excellent rea-
sons, to be sure So far as the west
ern members are concerned, there is
nothing to prevent their travelling in
the day time, and as for amusements,
the country members and city men,
bers too, do not suffer. They oc-
casionally have a ''circus" in the
House, and when they get hungry for
theatrical performance it is only
three hours ride to Philadelphia, and
they can go down in the afternoon on
railroad pass with which most of
them are provided, and return in the
morning IN time for the session. If it
takes the legislature six months to
finish their work in Harrisburg Where
they have nothing else to do, how
long would it take in Philadelphia
where their attention would be divert
ed by the theatres, and the Zoo, and
the dime museum?
The people of this section do not
want the capital changed. Anyone
having business in any of the depart
ments can leave here in the morning,
have several hours in Harrisburg to
transact his business, and reach home
at night. The quickest trip that can
be made to Philadelphia requires two
days, or riding all night one way or
the other.
Again, the change of location would
involve enormous expense to the
state 1t is said that the grounds now
owned by the state were donated for
the purposes of the capital, and if
abandoned, they will revert to the
donors with all the improvements.
The purchase Of new grounds in
Philadelphia would cost a mint of
money, and even if lands were donated
IN Paramount Park, it would take
millions TO put them in shape and
erect capitol building.
Leave the capital where it is, and
erect new building that shall be
adequate for the transaction of all the
public business. But the people are
IN no humor to submit to the squand-
erlng OF millions for the erection of
magnificent palace. There has been
too much jobbery already. Within
the past year over 100000 were
spent on the Hall of the House,
large proportion of which was for
painting pictures on the walls. Every
Jew years the same thing has been
repeated, and the people have to foot
the bills. Pennsylvania is a great
state, and ought to have a capital
building that is sufficient for all the
needs of the state government. Such
a building and one that will not de-
tract from the dignity of the common
wealth can be constructed on the site
OF the old capital for much less than
the S5.ooo,oo structure that is talked
Not in certain quarters. The expendi-
ture of so much money now means
either that taxation must be increased,
or the appropriations for other pur-
poses must be cut down, and this
means that the schools and charitable
institutions must suffer. 1t is high
time that prohigacy should be sup
planted by some sort of reasonable
economy in Pennsylvania.