THEN AND NOW, CITY KEEPS MOVING FORWARD

In the throes of a war bent on tearing this nation in two, Abraham Lincoln told Americans that no one can escape history. It should be our desire never to try. The past provides all who care to examine it ~lessons about the present. In many ways, the lessons of this region's past have revealed themselves to the news staff of the Southeast Missourian in recent weeks. They are available in the 1993 Progress Edition, published with today's edition. We offer it proudly.

The theme of this year's Progress Edition, in keeping with the observance of Cape Girardeau's bicentennial, is "Then and Now." The Southeast Missourian's participation in this is altogether fitting. Newspapers write the first draft of history, and on the pages of this newspaper since its founding in 1904 has been written much of the history of this community and region. In the Southeast Missourian library reside stories and photographs that chronicle the life of these environs ... successes and failures, births and deaths, triumphs and calamities. It is archived for a reason: we learn from it.

One measuring stick we have for this truth is the reaction of reporters here who researched the 1993 Progress Edition. Even long-time members of the news staff, accustomed to the city's history as it relates to their everyday work, turned up facts that surprised and enlightened them. As this publication took shape, it wasn't uncommon for staffers to spend long periods poring over old photographs, trying to place in their mind's eye where a building stood or where a rail ran. While we believe all this will interest readers, the research and expanded knowledge should help the people at this newspaper do their jobs better.

Contributions to this edition were numerous, but a couple of special acknowledgements are appropriate. Judith Ann Crow, the Southeast Missourian's founding librarian, made available to the newspaper her extensive collection of historic photographs, an invaluable asset for a project of this type. And the newspaper's current librarian, Sharon Sanders, supplied a herculean effort in drawing together many of the story ideas and the facts contained in the Progress Edition; this valuable member of the Southeast Missourian's staff displayed once again that her love of this community's history is almost equal to her tolerance for reporters' persistent research questions. Without their assistance, and the cooperation of dozens of sources who indulged us with their time and memories, this publication would been much more difficult to produce.

If one image captures the spirit of this year's Progress Edition, it may be that of a photograph taken in the not-very-distant past of a wheat field on the western edge of Cape Girardeau. The western horizon has a familiar look, but where the wheat stood, West Park Mall now resides, alongside other businesses in that flourishing area. Then and now, Cape Girardeau's disposition is one of moving forward. We hope the 1993 Progress Edition reflects that.