The Tupelo journal., 1903-10-23

Great Britain in 1888, the territory Of
the new nationality extended east and
west from the Atlantic ocean to the
Mississippi river, and from the great
lakes on the north to the Spanish and
French dominions on Tie south. The
people Of the United States owned only
one-half OF the Mississippi river from
its source, in what Is now Minnesota,
to where it entered the French prov
ince of Louisiana, but while they pos.
sessed the right to navigate this vast
interior waterway through the greatest
part OF its length, they could not reach
Its outlet into the Gulf of Mexico ex-
cept by passing through foreign terri
tory.
1T was at n c seen that the people
OF the western portion of United States
territory were placed at a most griev-
GUS disadvantage in having their COM
merce on the river at the mercy of a
foreign country. President Jefferson
must have been extremely anxious to
secure for his c%ountrymen a right to
the free use of the Mississippi river
from its source to the sea.
OF all national questions besetting
the statesmen of that day the control
OF the mouth of the Mississippi was the
most pressing. At first it was sought
to secure by treaty the right to navi-
gate the mouth Of the river, but finally
it was seen that the desired result
could only be consummated by the
purchase of territory, and it was first
proposed to secure only a limited area
around the mouth of the river.
"The negotiations, however, which
were started IN that basis were en-
larged until when the treaty of cessioL
was concluded it embraced the whole
OF the French possessions in North
America. This accession to the do
main of the United States was in i'm
portance beyond all computation, and
as a factor in the development of the
great republic, it is beyond all limita-
ton, and it passes the bounds of the
conception of the most brilliant and
far-reaching imagination.
But ii the Mississippi river forced
the American people to seek and Sc
cure control of it throughout it's entire
extent, 1t also enabled the United
States in the civil war to prevent the
secession of the Southern States and
thereby save the Union. If the great
river had flowed from west to east, fol-
lowing the course of the Missouri, the
Ohio and the Potomac, it is easily seen
that it would furnish a most formid-
able obstacle to the Northern invaders,
while 1T would have left the Southern
people a united country from the
Rocky mountains to the Atlantic ocean.
But unfortunately for the ~Confederates,
it cut their country in half and en-
ab1ed the Federal gunboats to come
down from the North, and the Federal
naval 1leets to come up from the sea,
and so v the C~onfederacy into two
that were so completely dis
connected that communication between
the two was rendered extremely diff
cult.
THE Mississippi river is an inland
sea that perpetually guarantees the
solidarity OF the Union as far as the
northern and southern sections of the
country are concerned, although it
would facilitate a division into east
and west sections.
Enough has been said to show that
from every point of view, whether prac-
teal or sentimental, the Mississippi
river is a great national interest, from
which no part of the country can sepa-
rate itself. Its floods, as well as it's
navigability as a great highway of
commerce, profoundly concern the en-
tire population of the United States,
and therefore the New Orleans onven
ton merits the fullest consideration
from the people of every State in the
Union"