The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1917-07-14

Name "TacOnna' Is
Used World Over
Because of Beauty

States, DR.. Merriam. and we pro-
pose to do so. We shall take the
people of the United States into
our confidence in this matter-we
shall suggest that 1t is a matter
OF concern to them.
And have the people of the
United States outside of Tacoma
shown any dissatisfaction with the
name Rainier?" Is the next of
these interesting questions in the
so-ealled statement.
Ask this one also OF these news
papers. DR. Merriam, and also for
your answer glance thru that mass
of letters and kilograms sent TO
the board by publicists and men
of letters and science all over tho
country when the matter was up
for judgment urging you TO change
the name-that mass of letters
and kilograms which | asked and
was flatly refused permission to
copy or even to read. Your an
swer Is there, DR.. Merriam.
Why was | not permitted to
read those letters. since the noun
tain is the property of the United
States and It's name a matter OF
concern to all?
Fitting Conclusion.
l will quote now the conclu-
sion of this remarkable paper
which conclusion follows immedi-
ately upon what Is here given.
l think 1t a most fitting conclu-
sion--a lot of words and high
sounding names strung together
to look or to sound imposing-to
fool the children, as | have said
beforehand which, in presence OF
the 'facts"-the real facts" IL
you pleasure so silly - not to
be worthy an answer. Here they
are:
And were this board to change
the name, Is there any probability
that the people of the United
Estates at large would accept the
change, or that the nations OF the
world would remove the present
name from their charts and maps2
I'm view OF all the facts, is 1t
not the obvious duty of the
board to preserve the name be-
Istowed by Vancouver 125 years
ago-a name accepted and estab-
lished by general adoption In the
Biographies. histories. aliases. die
tionaries. gaZetteers and encyclO-
pedias of the world. confirmed by
official act of the congress of the
United States in creating the
Mount Rainier national park tact
of congress of March 2, 1899, and
lunalterably fixed by the all but
universal usage of the civilized
nations?"
The Vote.
Consider now that three of the
liz men present voted, after hear
ing all this, to alter the unalter-
able thing; that Frederick W.
Hodge of the Smithsonian Institu-
! tion, one of the nine who voted
otherwise, confessed that the nine
were led to so vote by the belief
that our proposal was an effort to
the mountain. and
(ergo) IL they had not SO be-
lieved all would have voted to
alter 1t. in which case the unalter-
able thing would have been
altered. SO you see what that
string of words amounts to.
| am trying to indicate to you.
my friends, a great SCIENTIFIC
mind, as it reveals itself to be
when you give IL good fair and
square looking over. II has been
a real pleasure to me; | never ex-
amined one before had, just for
luck or the fun of 1t, done nearly
everything but that-and | am
now glad | did that. 1t is so much
our habit to accept these rounded
periods and jugglement of words
as meaning something when they
are certified to by string OF
titles.
Some History.
And-as even the school chill
dren know--those biographies,
histories, aliases, dictionaries,
gazeteers and encyclopedias of the
world"-nearly every one of them
that is worth while, notwithstand-
ing the decision 81 years ago OF
the U. s. board of geographic
names carry the name Tacoma for
the mountain-and were that
name adopted officially would
doubtless for many years, at least,
carry the name Rainier also. What
unutterable piffle!
l thought l was through with
the history of our experience at
the hearing of May 2, but another
little story, II you don't mind, will
serve as a fitting conclusion to
this review.
Conover and Farrar had quoted
Thomas Prosch of Seattle quite
freely for certain points of his
tory. In transmitting our stenc-
graphic report l wrote a letter to
Secretary Stone land the board)
which l asked him to read at the
board meeting OF May II, and
which he admitted to me after
wards he did not read.
Thomas Prosch in an address
before the Association of Pierce
County Pioneers at Tacoma, April
IL, 1905, said this:
''In conclusion, few words
may well be offered rs to the
name Tacoma. In the be-
ginning IL was yours, all
| yours. 1t belonged here. and
here alone. IL Is not SO now.
It now belongs TO the world.
and is found in many ports,
lands, and places
80 popular has tho name
become that II Ia officially
/ A.