THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE l 



I wish to avail myself of the generous privileges ac- 

 corded in general debate to discuss a subject that in 1903 

 will attract universal interest. We have been passing 

 through a series of centennial years, beginning with that 

 of 1876, when we celebrated the nation's independence. 



The most important event in its consequences after in- 

 dependence year was that which occurred in 1803, when 

 the territory of Louisiana was ceded to our republic. We 

 are about to celebrate the great epoch in a most substan- 

 tial way by an unrivaled exhibition upon the banks of the 

 father of waters, at the city of St. Louis. 



There is no part of our land so rich in its future pos- 

 sibilities as that region to which I invite your attention. 



For many years I have carefully studied the resources 

 of our public domain. 



In a long journey through the mountains of Arizona 

 and New Mexico, a few years ago, I had a college grad- 

 uate cowboy for a driver. He asked me if I had seen 

 much of the West, and I told him I knew it from Alpha 

 to Omega. 



He quietly suggested that he knew it better still ; that 

 he "knew all about it from Alfalfa to Omaha." 



The subject of the purchase of 1803 covered a wide 

 range of time, latitude, and longitude. We are interest- 

 ed in the Louisiana Purchase because of its influence up- 

 on our history and its great possibilities in the future. 



Let us go back a few cycles, and we will, in our mind's 



1 Speech of Hon. John F. Lacey, of Iowa, in the House of Representa- 

 tives, Tuesday, December 16, 1902. 



