The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1899-07-01
THE STORY OF THE WEST.
The Entire Region This sIdc OF the
Mississippi is tho East.

The Entire Region This Sidc OF tho
Mississippi is tho East.
st. Louis Globe-D Democrat: The query
''Where is the West?"-the West MS o
locality, and not as point OF the COM
pass has. for several reasons, acquired
a new interest In recent times. In the
political nomenclature OF the latter part
OF the days when slavery was in exist
ence, Kentucky, Missouri and Tennes-
see were cIassed with the south. al
though in the earlier times all three
! Of these states were considered, and
| rightfully so, part OF the West. II was
as western states that Kentucky and
Tennessee, under Speaker Clay, OF the
| former state, turned the scale in favor
of war against England in 1872, and Coz
creed the peace-loving Madison against
| the COUNSEL OF the other man OF peace,
Jefferson, into the adoption Of war
| policy. II was q western state that the
northern members of Congress in 1919
1 20 sought to shut slavery out OF Mise
souri,.
Geographically speaking, 1t was in
| 1883, that the west began to have q
| local hnbitatlon and a name. That
/ WLlS Lue ytUT III NlllCIl lLlG CUluAAS va
| Manasseh Cutler Samuel Parsons and
Rufus Putnam laid the foundations Of
4 Ohio The piopseEs Of Kentucky anG
| Tennessee had planted settlements IN
| their localities earlier than this, but
Kentucky was then regarded merely as
an extension OF Virginia, and Tennessee
an elonSatlon Of North Carolina. Ohio,
on the other hand. as well as the rest
| of the states, were considered from the
! outset as embryo commonwealth. II
was arranged from the beginning Of
| their existence that these were to be
separate states, which were to have all
the powers and to be subject to all the
| obligations OF the original thirteef.
members of the geographical sisterhood.
| AS n concrete geographical fact the
| west as a locality had Its beginning on
that April day in 1ISS when Putnam's
and Parsons Mayflower with its load
of pioneers from New England, sailed
down the Ohio, and planted their settle
ment Al the mouth OF the Musklngum.
AS d geographical mark the west was
continually receding line from the be-
ginning of the government onward I'M
! iii n few years ago, when the Pacthc
Slope started to become widely settled.
! A century ago "out west" meant any
where from Rochester or Buffalo south
to Gordonsvllle, Va, or Gfeensb0rough,
N. c. The line moved slowly for the
next few years, but after the introduce
| ton of steamboats, on the rivers west OF
the Alieghenies and the advance OF the
of the verge Of the settled area toOhe
| prairie country the march percepttbiy
duickened. When Daniel Boone died
| In 1890 the western verge of the settled
area Of the United States had reached
him in Missouri. Kit Carson saw 1t
cross the Rocky mountains, and ten
years ago, when the state OF Washing
| ton was admitted, the westerly line oc-
cupled the Pacific shore from the MeXl-
can boundary to Canada. The old
classIticatIons Of the states had become
obsolete. The Mississippi and not the
| Allegheuies should be considered the dl.
| viding line between the east and the
west. While The opuIation center
has not yet reached the Mississippi the
geographical center. exclusive OF Alas
ka, and the recent acquisitions Of terri
tory, is in Smith county. Kas AS
Pixies so.called American Sahara.
which is In really among the most fer
tile regions OF the country, iills UP with
Inhabitants. the population center will
approach its geographical center, and
/ render 4 change In the old political
1 classification of the states even more
necessary than It is now. Historically,
socially, geographically and politically,
the west is an exceedingly interesting
part OF the country, but II becomes con-
stantly more and more difficult to an
swer the question: Where is the
West?"