Evening star., 1924-05-21
Mt. Tacoma Is Favored.
Writer Urges Change of Name
for Majestic Peak.
To the Editor of The Star:

To he Editor of The star;
In YOUR issue of last sunday Ma!
II on the editorial page. l reao Win
interest the comments OF one OF sou'
co1umnists anent the pending senate
ioint resolution No 64. which passed
the Senate without dissenting Nole
Anril 81. 1924, and which is now penu-
ing in the House Knowing that your
! praa, notification is at all times 1alr
and omen TO it's readers of all sldes
of a question. am taking the i'nerN
herewith of calling a fe" saheht
points to your attention.
The state of Washington passed
| memorial in 1917 urging that the
name Rainier be removed lro" wy
most majestic natural elhihehce en-
| that there be substituted therefor tne
most suitable adaptation OF the apo-
/ riginal appellation for the noun "a d ,, ~,
! which by common consent was theh
| and is now agreed TO be lacoliia: 1:
| This memorial passed both houses oa
| the Legislature by vote or hedTis .
to / hut in the face of ii, lor. Z. hart
Merriam of the National Geographic
board refused to remove the name
| Rainier. This resolution was re
| ported out Of the Senate PUBIC Ianu5
committee favorably tNlde report
q
| unanimously read your writer ;
| humorous comments on the lacl OIL
| changing names and cltlnS me reso
! luton of Representa- tive Miller WIN
| approval. which resoluIi ioh. IN " IL
| ish retaliation of the Mount Iacona
rasoiution. proposes to change all Tor
! eign names in this country Repre-
! sentative Albert Johnson tNepuo-
| Iican Washingtonb- In whose dls't IL I I
! the mountain is actually locateu. has
| introduced an Identical resolution 10
thar of Senator Dills in the House
your writer would find that TINS
resolution does not appear ludlcrous
| to the people of the great STATE OF
| Washington. All OF the ne" spa i'.,S Pc ;
| of the state outside of Seattles sup
| mort this proposed change oil name'
| The Governor of Washington, l.: p.
/ Hart: Mayor Brown OF Seattle' Ma
| or Fawcett Of Tacoma. Mayor rem .
| ing of Spokane and Mayor Baker OF
portIand Greg. favor this change OF
name The National Encampment o.
! tho G A r. in indianapolis In l9ZV
| almost unanimously passed a resoIu
| ton asking for the removal OF ths
the D. A. r. and :. A. f. in Sall1or-
| MIA have passed resolutions inoor slns
! the proposed removal oil the ndine
! Rainier by Congress ana the supstl-
| tuition of the aboriginal name AGO
ma therefor Leading citizens OF oe-
nt,1a FAVOR The name The Seattle
| Chamber of Commerce is at present
bitterly opposing the change OF name
| Rainier has been canonlzed In Heattle.
| Everything from It's nost eAciusiSv e
| club to it's leading taxicab company
has been named Rainier. Seattle ;
golden opportunity to placate her Ola
| time rival, the neighboring cry. Ia
! coma (as pointed out by Coz. BletheIi
| in the Seattle Times) was az nano nam.
| But the board of trustees of the Seat
tie Chamber of Commerce passed a
resolution tor fight the Mount Taco
ma resolution on, the ground, nina
| Won. that some beneficial advertising
| might attach TO the CITY OF 1acoIllaa d q
name. when as a matter of fact the
city had been originally named after
the mountain.
This controversy should be of pc
culiar interest to cltizens ot tne Dls
trict of Columbia because of the pres
ence of Takoma Park and Mount
Rainier suburban sections.
Just who is this Rainier after
| whom the mountain was named In
1892 by the British explorer van
couver3 In Robert Beatson's Naval
and Military Memoirs of Great Brit
ain, 1727-17S3" dondon, Vol. 4, PIP
4O4-405) we find that Capt. Peter Raj
| nier commanded the British sloop o.
war Ostrich, which. on July 8, 11!S
attacked the American ship Polly
then a part of the South Caroline
| navy, bound from Port au Prince tc
| Boston with molasses. and captured
| 1T after killing at least twenty-thret
men. including the captain. taking
some 130 prisoners or more, who
| were transferred to the unspeakabie
| British prison ships and there left tc
| die of disease or starvation as the
| case may be. Where else in Ameri-
| ca do we name our great scenic land
1 marks after men who fought to de-
| stroy us? Certainly it seems rather
| absurd to name the greatest and most
beautiful mountain in America, sit
] uated In the only state named after