Greene County, Missouri - Chapter with an unread heading (no. 7 of those read), 1883

Administration Of Governor Crittenden

Nomination and election of Thomas T. Crittenden - Personal Mention - Marmaduke's candidacy - Stirring events - Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad - Death of Jesse James - The Fords - Pardon of the Gamblers.

It is the purpose in this chapter to outline the more important events of Governor Crittenden's unfinished administration, stating briefly the facts in the case, leaving comment and criticism entirely to the reader, the historian having no judgment to express or prejudice to vent.

son City, July 22cl, 1880. Democratic nomination for a State office in Missouri is always equivalent to election, and the entire State ticket was duly elected in November. Crittenden's competitors before the convention were Gen. John S. Marmaduke, of St. Lonis, and John A. Hockaday, of Callaway county. Before the assembling of the convention many persons who favored Marmaduke, both personally and politically, thought the nomination of an ex-Confederate might prejudice the prospects of the National Democracy, and therefore, as a matter of polic}^ supported Crittenden.

His name, and the fame of his family in Kentucky - Thomas T. being a scion of the Crittendens of that State, caused the Democracy of Missouri to expect great things from their new Governor. This, together with the im[)ortant events which followed his inauguration, caused some people to overrate him, while it prejudiced others against him. The measures advocated by the Governor in his inaugural address were such as, perhaps, the entire Democracy could endorse, especially that of refunding, at a low interest, all that part of the State debt that can be so refunded ; the adoption of measures to relieve the Supreme Court docket ; a compromise of the indebtedness of some of the counties, and his views concerning repudiation, which he contemned.

Hannibal & St. Joe Railroad Controversy

By a series of legislative acts, beginning with the act approved Fel)ruary 22, 1851, and ending with that of March 26, 1881, the State of Missouri aided with great liberality in the construction of a sj'stem of railroads in this State.

Among the enterprises thus largely assisted was the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad, for the construction of which the bonds of the State, to the amount of $3,000,000, bearing interest at 6 per cent per annum, payable semi-annually, were issued. One half of this amount was issued under the act of 1851, and the remainder under the act of 1855. The bonds issued under the former act were to run twenty years, and those under the latter act were to run thirty years. Some of the bonds have since been funded and renewed. Coupons for the interest of the entire $3,000,000 were executed and made payable in New York. These acts contain numerous provisions intended to secure the State against loss and to require the railroad company to pay the interest and principal at maturity. It was made the duty of the railroad company to save and keep the State from all loss on account of said bonds and coupons. The Treasurer of the State was to be e^fonerated from any advance of money to meet either principal or interest. .The State contracted with the railroad company for complete indemnity. She was required to assign her statutory mortirao-e lien only upon payment into the treasury of a sum of money equal to all indebtedness due or owing by said company to the State by reason of having issued her bonds and loaned them to the company.

In June, 1881, the raih-oad, through its attorney, Geo. W. Easley, Esq., paid to Phil. E. Chappell, State Treasurer, the sum of $3,000,- 000, and asked for a receipt in full of all dues of the road to the State. The Treasurer refused to give such a receipt, but instead gave a receipt for the sum " on account." The debt was not yet due, but the authorities of the road sought to discharge their obligation prematurely, in order to save interest and other expenses. The railroad company then demanded its bonds of the State, which demand the State refused. The company then demanded that the $3,000,000 be paid back, and this demand was also refused.

The railroad company then brought suit in the United States Court for an equitable adjustment of the matters in controversy. The $3, 000,000 had been deposited by the State in one of the banks, and was drawing interest only at the rate of one-fourth of one per cent. It was demanded that this sum should be so invested that a laro-er rate of interest might be obtained, which sum of interest should be allowed to the company as a credit in case any sum should be found due from it to the State. Justice Miller, of the United States Supreme Court, who heard the case upon preliminary injunction in the sprino- of 1882, decided that the unpaid and unmatured coupons constituted a liability of the State and a debt owing, though not due, and until these Were provided for the State was not bound to assign her lien uj)on the road.

Another question which was mooted, but not decided, was this : That, if any, what account is the State to render for the use of the $3,000,000 paid into the treasury by the complainants on the 20th of June? Can she hold that large sum of money, refusing to make any account of it, and still insist upon full payment by the railroad compan}^ of all outstanding coupons?

Upon this subject Mr. Justice Miller, in the course of his opinion, said : " I am of the opinion that the State, having accepted or got this money into her possession, is under a moral obligation (and I do not pretend to commit anybody as to how far its legal obligation goes) to so use that money as, so far as possible, to protect the parties who have paid it against the loss of the interest which it might accumulate,

March 26, 1881, the Legislature, in response to a special message of Gov. Crittenden, dated February 25, 1881, in Avhich he informed the Legislature of the purpose of the Hannibal and St. Joseph company to discharge the full amount of what it claims is its present indebtedness as to the State, and advised that provision be made for the " profitable disposal" of the sum when paid, passed an act, the second section of which provided.

'* Sec. 2. Whenever there is sufficient money in the sinkiug fund to redeem or purchase one or more of the bonds of the State of Missouri, such sum is hereby appropriated for such purpose, and the Fund Commissioners shall immediately call in for payment a like amount of the option bonds of the State, known as the "5-20 bonds," provided, that if there are no option bonds which can be called in for payment, they may invest such money in the purchase of any of thebonds of the State, or bonds of the United States, the Hannibal and St. Joseph railroad bonds excepted."

On the 1st of January, 1882, the regular semi-annual payment of interest on the railroad bonds became due, but the road refused to pay, claiming that it had already discharged the principal, and of course was not liable for the interest. Thereupon, according to the provisions of the aiding act of 1855, Gov. Crittenden advertised the road for sale in default of the payment of interest. The company then brought suit before U. S. Circuit Judge McCrary at Keokuk, Iowa, to enjoin the State from selling the road, and for such other and further relief as the court might see fit and proper to grant. Auo-ust 8, 1882, Judge McCrary delivered his opinion and judgment, as follows :

^^ First. That the payment by complainants into the treasury of the State of the sum of $3,000,000 on the 26th of June, 1881, did not satisfy the claim of the State in full, nor entitle complainants to an assignment of the State's statutory mortgage.

^^jSecond. That the State was bound to invest the principal sum of $3,000,000 so paid by the complainants without unnecessary delay in the securities named in the act of March 26, 1881, or some of them, and so as to save to the State as large a sum as possible, which sum so saved would have constituted as between the State and complainants a credit pro tanto upon the unmatured coupons now in controversy.

** Third. That the rights and equity of the parties are to be determined upon the foregoing principles, and the State must stand charged with what would have been realized if the act of March, 1881, had been complied with. It only remains to consider what the rights of the parties are upon the principles here stated.

" In order to save the State from loss on account of the default of the railroad company, a further sum must be paid. In order to determine what that further sum is an accounting must be had. The question to be settled by the accounting is, how much would the State have lost if the provisions of the act of March, 1881, had been complied with ?****! think a perfectly fair basis of settlement would be to hold the State liable for whatever could have been saved by the prompt execution of said act by taking up such 5-20 option bonds of the State as were subject to call when the money was paid to the State, and investing the remainder of the fund in the bonds of the United States at the market rates.

" Upon this basis a calculation can be made and the exact sum still to be paid by the complainant in order to fully indemnify and protect the State can be ascertained. For the purpose of stating an account upon this basis and of determining the sum to be paid by the complainants to the State, the cause will be referred to John K. Cravens, one of the masters of this court. In determining the time when the investment should have been made under the act of March, 1881, the master will allow a reasonable period for the time of the receipt of the said sum of $3,000,000 by the Treasurer of the State - that is to say, such time as would have been required for that purpose had the officers charged with the duty of making said investment used reasonable diligence in its discharge.

-' The Hannibal and St. Joseph railroad is advertised for sale for the amount of the instalment of interest due January 1, 1882, which instalment amounts to less than the sum which the company must pay in order to discbarge its liabilities to the State upon the theory of this opinion. The order will, therefore, be that an injunction be granted to enjoin the sale of the road upon the payment of the said instalment of interest due January 1, 1882, and if such payment is made the master will take it into account in making the computation above mentioned."

Killixg Of Jesse James

it abroad, causing the European press to teem with leaders announcing the ftict to the continental world, was the " removal" of the famous Missouri brigand, Jesse W. James. The career of the James boys, and the banditti of whom they were the acknowledged leaders, is too well-known and too fully set forth in works of a more sensational character, to deserve further detail in these pages ; and the " removal " of Jesse will be dealt with only in its relation to the Governor.

It had been long conceded that neither of the Jameses would ever be taken alive. That experiment had been frequently and vainly tried, to the sorrow of good citizens of this and other States. It seems to have been one of the purposes of Gov. Crittenden to break up this band at any cost, by cutting off its leaders. Soon after the Winston train robbery, on July 15, 1881, the railroads combined in empowering the Governor, by placing the money at his disposal, to offer heavy rewards for the capture of the two James brothers. This was accordingly done by proclamation, and, naturally, many persons were on the^liokout to secure the large rewards. Gov. Crittenden worked quietly, but determinedly, after offering the rewards, and by some means learned of the availability of the two Ford boys, young men from Kay county, who had been tutored as juvenile robbers by the skillful Jesse. An understanding was had, when the Fords declared they could find Jesse - that they were to "turn him in." ^ Eobert Ford and brother seem to have been thoroughly in the confidence of James, who then (startling as it was to the entire State) resided m the citv of St. Joseph, with his wife and two children ! The Fords went there, and when the robber's back was turned, Eobert shot Jam dead i7i the hack of the head! The Fords told their story to the authorities of the city, who at once arrested them on a charge of murder, and they, when arraigned, ^plead guilty to the charge. Promptly, however, came a full, free and unconditional pardon from Gov. Crittenden, and the Fords were released. In regard to the Governor's course in ridding the State of this notorious outlaw, people were divided in sentiment, some placing him in the category with the Ford boys and bitterly condemning his action, while others - the majority of law-abiding people, indeed, - though deprecating the harsh measures which James' course had rendered necessary, still upheld the Governor for the part he played. As it was, the "Terror of Missouri " was effectually and finally " removed," and people were glad that he was dead. Eobert Ford, the pupil of the dead Jesse, had

The killing of James would never have made Crittenden many enemies among the better class of citizens of this State ; but, when it came to his

Pardon Of The Gamblers

The case was different. Under the new law making gaminghousekeeping a felony, several St. Louis gamblers, with Robert C. Pate at their head, were convicted and sentenced to prison. The Governor, much to the surprise of the more rigid moral element of the State, soon granted the gamblers a pardon. This was followed by other pardons to similar offenders, which began to render the Governor quite unpopular which one element of citizens, and to call forth from some of them the most bitter denunciations. The worst feature of the case, perhaps, is the lack of explanation, or the setting forth of sufficient reasons, as is customary in issuing pardons. This, at least, is the burden of complaint with the faction that opposes him. However, it must be borne in mind that his terra of office, at this writing, is but half expired, and that a full record can not, therefore, be given. Like all mere men. Gov. Crittenden has his good and his bad, is liked by some and disliked by others. The purpose of history is to set forth the facts and leave others to sit in judgment ; this the historian has tried faithfully to do, leaving all comments to those who may see fit to make them.

Her First Settlement - Arrival of the First Steamboat - Eemoval of the Capital to Jefferson City - When Incorporated - Population by Decades - First Lighted by Gas - Death of one of her Founders, Pierre Chouteau - Cemeteries - Financial Crash - Bondholders and Coupon-clippers - Value of Eeal and Personal Property- Manufactures - Criticism.

It was nearly a century and a quarter ago that St. Louis's first arrival proclaimed the site of the future metropolis of the Mississippi "Valley. In 1762 M. Pierre Laclede Liguest and his two companions, Auguste and Pierre Chouteau, landed upon the site which was destined to become a great city. They were the avant-couriers and principal members of a company which had certain privileges secured to them by the Governor of the Territory of Louisiana, which then included the whole of Missouri, that of trading with the Indians, and which was known as the Louisiana Fur Company, with the privilege further granted of establishing such posts as their business might demand west of the Mississippi and on the Missouri rivers. They had been on a prospecting tour and knew something of the country, and on February 15, 1774, Laclede with the above named companions, took possession of the ground which is now the city of St. Louis. They established a trading post, took formal possession of the country, and called their post St. Louis. In 1768 Captain Eios took possession of the post as a part of Spanish territory ceded to it by France by the treaty of Paris, and it remained under the control of successive Spanish Governors until March 10, 1804. The Spanish government, by the treat}'^ of San Ildefonso in 1800, retroceded the territory to France, and, by purchase, France ceded the whole country to the C86)

Histoky Of St. Louis

United States, April 80, 1803. In October of the same year Congress passed an act approving the purchase, and authorizing the President to take possession of the country or Territory of Louisiana. This was done February 15,

1804, when Captain Amos Stoddard, of the United States army, and the agent of the United States, received from Don Cark)S Dehault Delassns, a surrender of the post of St. Louis and the Territory of Upper Louisiana. On the 10th ot

March the keys to the government house and the archives and public property were turned over or delivered to the representative of the United States, the Spanish flag was lowered, the stars and stripes thrown to the breeze, accompanied with the roar of artillery and music, and thetransfer was complete. In 1805 St. Louis had its first post-office established, and the place was incorporated as a town m 1809. It did not ^row very fast, but was the recognized headquarters for the territory of^the west and northwest, The French, from Indiana and other points had settled there, and the town was decidedly French m its character and population. The Missouri Fur Company, which had its headquarters there, was organized in 1808, of which Pierre Chouteau was the head. His associates were Manuel Lisa, Wm. Clark, Sylvester Labadie, and others, and such familiar names as the Astors, Bent, Sublette, Cabanne, General Ashly and Robert Campbell were prominently identified with the town and its progress. The first paper was issued July 2, 1808.

In 1812 the Territory of Louisiana, or that part north, was changed and named the Territory of Missouri, and was given Territorial rights, with a representation on the floor of Congress. St. Louis was the seat of the Territorial government until 1820, and the first legislature met in that town, and part of its proceedings was the removal of the seat of the o-overnment to St. Charles, where it remained until located at Jefi-erson City in 1826. In 1822 St. Louis began to take on more style, and was incorporated as a city December 9th ot that year. There had been a bank established in 1817, and quite a large number of business houses were built and occupied, and a number ot loan offices chartered. When St. Louis became an American city her population was 925; this was in 1804. When the Territory was named Missouri, and she was the seat of government in 1812, her population had reached 2,000. William Deckers laid the first pavement in 1818. A ferry boat had been started in 1804. The first steamboat arrived in 1817. It was a low-pressure steamboat, built at Pittsburgh, and named the General Pilce. It arrived August 2d and was greeted by the entire population, who gazed upon her with wonder and astonishment. The Indians were a badly scared crowd and could not be induced to come near it. The first steamboat stemmed the tide of the Missouri in May, 1819, and the same year the first steamboat from New Orleans put in an appearance at St. Louis. It was twenty-seven days en route.

conic in. The boundary lines of the city when she received her charter were defined as follows : The line commencing at the middle of Mill Creek, just below the gas works, thence west to Seventh Street, and up Seventh Street to a point due west of "Koy's Tower," thence to the river. The city plat embraced 385 acres of ground.

The first church was built in 1824, and was of the Presbyterian denomination. The second was an Episcopal Church, erected in 1825. A new court-house was built in 1827, and also a market-house. These old-time landmarks have long since disappeared, and no mark is left to tell the tale of their being. The spot or location is recorded, but what that availeth is not of comprehension to the generation of to-day.

Advancement

The first brick house is said to have been erected in 1814, The first mayor of the city was Wm. C. Lane. The St. Louis University was founded in 1829 ; the Catholic Cathedral was completed in 1832 and consecrated by Bishop Eosetti.

In 1833 the population of St. Louis was about six thousand, and the taxable property, real and personal, aggregated $2,745,000. St. Louis, like all other cities, felt the blighting effects of the financial 5rash of 1837, still her progress was not wholly checked. Her vitality was great, and her resources spread over the territory, in many cases, out of the reach of the troubles of the times. Her fur trade was immense, and the crash had little to do with that, so that while she fclt the depression in her financial circles, her commercial prosperity was in no wise checked. There is very little more in the history of St. L mis to record than the noting of her general prosperity and steady onward progress for the next decade.

Hei population in 1840 had risen to 16,469, and in 1844, 34,140. The population had more than doubled in four years. Fine buildings had arisen in place of the old fur warehouses of the early French settlers. Stately residences appeared in the suburbs ; and in all that gave promise of a great and influential city, she had advanced and was advancing rapidly. The Mercantile Library was founded in 1848, and gas had been introduced the year previous, the city being first lio-hted on the night of November 4, 1847. In the great cholera year, 1849, the disease assumed an epidemic form, and of that dread scourge the people had a fearful experience. The progress of St. Louis had been handsomely commemorated on the eighty-third anniversary of its founding, the date being February 15, 1847. Among the living, and the only survivor of the memorable trio who first landed and - located the city, was the venerable Pierre Chouteau, who, with his brother, had accompanied Laclede Liguest, to locate a trading-post for the fur company of which they were members. He was a prominent figure in the celebration, and though at an advanced age, he was in the enjoyment of his full faculties, and was keenly alive to the wonderful progress of the city in the 3ighty-three years of its life. In 1849, the epidemic year, all that was mortal of Pierre Chouteau was consigned to its last resting-place, and with him all living memory ceased of the first settlement and of the rise and progress of the city. From that date history could record but written facts, the oral record had ceased to exist. His elder brother, Auguste Chouteau, had pre-

New Custom House, St. Louis Extension Of City Limits

The city limits had been greatly extended in 1841, embracing an area of two thousand six hundred and thirty acres, inste'ad of the three hundred and eighty-five acres in December, 1822. This showed the wonderful growth of the city, which, even then, was contracted, and its suburbs were fast filling up.

St. Louis took pride in her "cities of the dead," for she has several cemeteries, with wooded dales and sylvan retreats, well suited as the last resting-place of those whose remains are deposited in the " Silent City." We will speak here of only two, because of the care taken of them, their size, and their rich and diversified surroundings, which give them a lonely, yet pleasant, look to all who visit them. The Bellefontaine was purchased by an association of gentlemen who secured an act of incorporation in 1849, and at once commenced the improvement of the ground. In 1850 the first sale of lots took place. The cemetery comprises two hundred and twenty acres of land. The Calvarv Cemetery has 320 acres, of which 100 are laid out and improved^. This, resting-place of the dead was purchased in 1852, by the Archbishop of the Diocese ot St. Louis, and like the first above mentioned, is a lovely and secluded spot, well suited for the purpose intended.

Bridge Disaster

In 185^ tHe terrible accident, known as the Gasconade Bridge disaster, occurred, when many prominent citizens of St. Louis lost their lives.

Financial Crash

In 1857 the financial crash had a greater effect upon St. Louis than the one of 1837. Her merchants had been prosperous and extended their line of credits, and the rapidly growing city had brought many new and venturesome people, who, believing in its future, had embarked in business enterprises which required a few more years of steady rise and progress to place them on a stable foundation. These, of course, went down in the general crash, but the stream was only temporarily dammed, and the debris was soon cleared away. The flood-tide had set toward the west, and the greater the crash the greater swelled the tide of immigration toward the setting sun. "^ The era of a healthy, and it would seem, permanent prosperity, asain dawned upon the metropolis of the Mississippi Valley in 1861, and this time not even the civil war, which then began to cast its baleful shadow over the Union, checked its onward career, and at the opening of this terrible drama St. Louis claimed a population of 187,- 000 souls. The war added to its financial and commercial prosperity, for it became the entrepot of supplies for the army of the southwest, and the headquarters of army operations. The valuation of real es-

What the war added was more in the line of its financial and commercial development than in the spreading of its area or the building up of its waste places, but when war's fierce alarm had ceased the tide began to flow westward, and with it came the building mania, for homes and houses had to be provided for the rush of new-comers.

Chicago, which had nearly monopolized the railroads as an objective point, seemed now to have secured all that would pay, and St. Louis became the focus of all eyes. Kansas, Colorado and the Southwest began to loom up in its agricultural and mineral resources ; the vast quantities of land which had been voted by venal congressmen to great railroad corporations were now thrown upon the market, and Kansas became a leading State for the attrac-

St. Louis Union Depot

ST. LOUIS UNION DEPOT, tion of the emigrant. In this more railroads were necessary, and the great crossing of the Mississippi was at St. Louis. Then the bridging of that great river commenced, Capt. Eads having made known his plans for this imj)ortantwork soon after the close of the war. The jubilee was not enjoyed, however, until 1874, when, on July 4th, the bridge was completed and opened to the railway companies. This was another era which marked a rapid progress in the future city of the valley. Sixteen separate and distinct lines of railway centered at St. Louis with completion of the bridge, and from those lines and the river traffic, St. Louis was evidently sure of her future.

Bondholders And Coupon-Clippers

glorious future which appeared so near became so far. The energy and enterprise of the people had, in a large measure, previous to the war, been used toward building up the city, and embarking in manufactures, etc., but soon after the war that wealth was turned into government bonds and the energy and enterprise were concentrated by these rich holders in cutting coupons off of these same bonds every three months, and with few exceptions they are still at the exhaustive work. Whatever of advanced progress has been given to St. Louis the past ten years, outside of her Aliens, Stannards, and perhaps a score of others, has been by the new arrivals. It was, in '69 or '70, that her local papers were prospecting on the enervating influence that a hundred first-class funerals would have on the material prosperity of the *' Future Great." The light and airy business of coupon-clipping had become epidemic, and millions of dollars which ought to have been invested in manufacturing and other enterprises, were sunk in the maelstrom of government bonds, and, so far as the material advancement of the city was concerned, might as well have been buried in the ocean. Still St. Louis improved, for new arrivals of the progressive order, seeing an opening, would drop in, and those who could not clip coupons for a business worked on as their limited capital would permit. And so it was found that in 1870 real estate had reached $119,080,800, while personal property was $147,969,660. In 1875 the value of real estate had advanced $12,000,000, reaching the gross sum of $131,141,000, and personal property $166,999,660, a gain of nearly $20,000,000 in five years. The valuation January 1, 1879, was, of real estate, $140,976,540, and personal property, $172,- 829,980, or a total valuation of real and personal property of $313,- 806,520, with a population of about 340,000. Great advancement had taken place in blocks of magnificent buildings, in the increase of her wholesale trade, in the area of her city limits, in the enlargement of her working population, so that the coupon-clippers who had stood at the front in 1870 now held a rear position, and were rather looked down upon as drones of society, wrapped in self and the vanity of selfimportance, and of little use to the progress or to the detriment of the great city. Railroads run to every point of the compass. Her tunnel and the union depot had become a fixed fact, macadamized roads led to all parts of the country, miles upon miles of streets were paved and sidewalks laid with substantial brick or stone, street cars to every part of the city, and the river-front flashing with traffic, which, in point of development, has exccQded the most sanguine expectation of those who had believed in its future, while the expressions of those who hud built their faith on the railroads depriving a free water-course of the wealth of her offering has been simply one of astonishment.

St. Louis Parks

In one respect St. Louis has exhibited commendable sense in having secured a number of parks, breathing-places for her industrial population and pleasant drives for her wealthy citizens. There are no less than seventeen of these beautiful places, many of them small, but so scattered about the city as to be convenient to all her citizens. Her great park, which is called " Forest Park," has 1,372 acres, and the city has expended in purchases, laying out and beautifying the grounds, nearly one million of dollars. Carondelet Park has an area of 183.17 acres; O'Fallon Park has an area of 158.32 acres, and Tower Grove Park 270 acres. These are the largest ; the others represent but a small number of acres each. Of the smaller ones, Lafayette Park leads with twentj^-six acres, while the smallest, eTackson Place, has less than two acres.

Buildings And Banks

There were 1,318 brick and 369 frame buildings put up in 1878, at a cost of $3,000,000. A very fine custom-house is approaching completion. They had, January 1, 1879, twentj'-nine banks in St. Louis, five of which were national banks. The combined capital of all was $12,406,019. This shows a health}'^ progress, but one of not more than ordinary in the line of building improvements. It should have reached ten millions to show that advanced progress becoming a city which claims it is destined to become the central sun of the great Mississippi Valley.

In 1878 there were 2,291 arrivals of steamboats, and 2,348 departures. The commerce of the river was some half a million of dollars. The new barge lines and the wheat movement down the Mississippi for the year 1881, including her other river traffic, will undoubtedly double the business of 1878. The figures are not in, but the first half year has made a wonderful mcrease. Her commerce is steadily improving. There is not an article of domestic produce but has rapidly advanced in the amount received the past few years. The cereals and stock, cattle, sheep, and hogs, also the roots and vegetables, have rapidly grown in quantity. St. Louis is the greatest mule market in the world.

a massive building of white granite, occupying a whole scjuare, and when finished will have cost $6,000,000. The business in the custom department will exceed two million dollars the first year of its opening. The Chamber of Commerce is another magnificent structure just completed at a cost of $1,800,000. The county court-house, which also takes a square of ground, and is built in the shape of a Greek cross, with a fine dome, cost $2,000,000. The county building known as the " Four Courts," and the city prison, is a beautiful three-story-and-ahalf basement structure, which cost $1,250,000. The Polytechnic Institute cost $800,000, and the magnificen't Southern Hotel, finished,

High School Building, St. Louis

There arc public buildings of lesser note, many private structures of magnificent proportions, with a wealth of beautiful surroundings ; theaters, hotels, etc., all that go to make up a great city ; school-houses of ample proportions ; churches beautiful in architectural design of Grecian, Doric, and Gothic, many of them being very costly in their build. One hundred and seventy-one churches are found within her limits, and the denominations cover all that claim the Protestant or

The public school library was founded in 1872, and numbers 36,000 volumes. The Mercantile Library has 42,090 volumes, and contains not only many valuable literary works, but many choice works of art.

In this line St. Louis is fast reaching a commanding situation. So long as railroads commanded the freighting facilities of the city, and the great highway to the sea which Providence had placed at her door was ignored for man's more expensive route by rail, St. Louis remained but an infant in manufacturing enterprises - and these had succumbed in many instances to the power of monopolies, or to the tarifi* of freight which took off all the profits, and her more eastern competitors were the gainers. But in the last two years Nature's great highway to the sea has begun to be utilized, and St. Louis has all at once opened her eyes to the fact that she has a free railway of water to the sea, the equal of twenty railroads by land, and it only needs the cars (the barges) to revolutionize the carrying trade of the Mississippi and Missouri valleys. The track is free to all. He who can build the cars can have the track ready at all times for use. The Father of Waters lies at her door ; a mountain of iron is but a few miles awa}^ ; coal, also, lies nearly at her gates ; and while she has slept the sleep of years, these vast opportunities might have made her, ere this, the equal of any manufacturing city on the globe. She will become such, for no other city can show such vast resources or such rapid and cheap facilities for distribution. Even the coupon-clippers are waking up, and believe there are higher and nobler aims for man than the lavish expenditure of wealth in indolence and selfish pleasure. The surplus wealth of St. Louis, if invested in manufacturing enterprises, would make her the wonder of the continent. She may realize this some day ; when she does, she will wonder at the stupidity and lolly that has controlled her for so many years. Foundries, machine-shops, rolling-mills, cotton and woolen factories, car-shops, these and a thousand other industries are but waiting for the magic touch of an enterprising people to give them life.

The year 1882 opens auspiciously for a new life. St. Louis now begins to consider the question of progress from a more enlightened standpoint, and with a look of intelligent action. It may take a little time yet to drive sleep from her eyelids and sloth from her limbs, but it looks now more than ever as though she would accomplish this and wake up to the full fruition of her great opportunities - in fact, to her manifest destiny. Missouri ought to be proud of St. Louis, but that cannot be while sloth lies at the portals of her gates and the dryrot of old fogyism guides her present course.

The brewery business of St. Louis is one of her leading departments of trade. She has the largest establishment in the world for bottling beer, a building two hundred feet long and thirty feet broad. The manufacture of wine is another important business which has assumed immense proportions. Distilling, rectifying and wholesale dealing in liquors is another branch that adds a large revenue to the taxable wealth of the city. There is nothing in the manufacturers' line but what could sustain a healthy growth in St. Louis, if even plain business sense is at command. Her future may be said to be all before her, for her manufacturing interests are yet in their infancy. She can become the manufacturing centre of the continent. The centre or receiving point for the greatest amount of cereals any cit}'' can handle, and the stock centre also of the country, St. Louis may, with the opportunities within her grasp, well be called the " Future Great."

Chapter Of Criticism

But the name Great " is used at this time by her rivals in tones of derision. That she should have ignored so many years the great and bountiful resources nature has so lavishly bestowed upon her, aye ! it would seem, even spurned them through an ignorance as dense as it is wonderful, is very strange, and has brought a stigma of disgrace upon the character of her people. This action on her part has not escaped the notice of men of wealth, of towering ambition, of nerve force and of unlimited energy, and to-day one of the railway kings of the country, Jay Gould, of New York, has grasped the sceptre of her commercial life and rules with a grasp of steel, and through his iron roadways run the commercial life-blood which flows through the arteries of her business life. That this neglect of her great opportunities should have placed it in the power of one man to become the arbiter of her fate is as humiliating as it has proved costly. Millions have poured into the coffers of Jay Gould, who, seeing this vast wealth of resources lying idle or uncared for, had the nerve to seize and the far-seeing judgment and enterprise to add them to his own personal gains. The world can admire the bold energy of the man, and the genius that can grasp and guide the commercial desti- nies of an Empire, but it is none the less a blot upon the fair name, capital and enterprise of a great city, and should mantle the cheek of every St. Louisian with shame. The writer feels all that he has here written, but his pride as a Missourian cannot blind him to the faults of her people

St. Louis is an old city and there has been much written of her extraordinary progress, and yet whatever that progress is, has beea caused far more by her people being compelled to take advantage of the opportunities within their reach than making such by their own energy and enterprise. If she has grown in population and in wealth, it is because she could not help herself. After forty years of life, as late as 1812, the currency of St. Louis was still confined to peltries, trinkets, maple sugar, honey, beeswax, venison, hams, etc., in fact, all barter and trade, and yet those who have compiled her local history talk wildly of her destiny and prophesy wonders for her in the near future. It is best to look at St. Louis as she is to-day. It is to be hoped that her future growth may not take pattern after her past, and that the new men who have taken her commercial future into their keeping will still exhibit that towering genius for the development of St. Louis that has characterized them in their eastern home.

The future of St. Louis would seem to be one of a rapidly growing city, not only in population, but in commercial and financial strength, as though founded upon a rock. This is the present outlook. While the genius of Gould and his associates has secured millions of dollars by their business ventures, there are other millions still left to build up and add to her prosperity and greatness if rightly managed.

The tremendous energy of Gould has astonished the sleepy St. Louisians as much as if they had been treading upon live coals, and in waking up they have discovered that their sleep and indolence have cost them several millions. Gould, Keene, Dillon, Sage and their associates do not work for nothing, and the people who claim the "Future Great" as their abiding place should lose no time in taking a firm hold of the present and guiding her toward the great destiny which awaits her, with the winning cards in their own hands. The New Yorkers have shown them a will and a way, and now let them practice the lesson it has cost them so much to learn.

It has been over a century since St. Louis took a start into life, and it is quite that since the ring of the pioneer's axe and the sharp crack of his rifle reverberated through her streets. The slow progress of pioneer life has departed and modern civilization, with the light of genius for its guide, is rapidly progressing and recording history for future generations. When in 1817 the first steamboat landed at St. Louis, the possibilities of what the future might be began to dawn upon the minds of her people, and that year may be well proclaimed as the dividing line between the old and the new era of St. Louis's destiny. From that day she looked forward, not backward, and while up to that time she seemed to have lived in the past, it was the future before her that then riveted her attention. She kept up a lively step to the music of progress for several years, and the Father of Waters and the mighty Missouri with their fleets of water-craft attested her enterprise, and she grew apace. But in a few years she again fell asleep, and slept until the snort of the iron horse awoke her rudely from slumber. . She had grown even while she slept, because the great water-way which passed her door had become the pathway of a mighty business. But this grand highway to the sea which had nourished her while she slept was at once forgotten or relegated to the rear, and her awakened energies were given to the prancing steed whose breath was fire, that made the earth tremble at his strength, and whose speed was like the wings of the wind. The railroad fever had taken possession of the Queen City of the Valley. She grew apace and for years she has reveled in the new love, and the grand old Father of Waters which had nurtured her into life was forgotten. But she has again awakened from her quiet dreams, and the iron horse which had lulled her to repose was found while bringing millions to her door to have taken millions more away. And in this year of 1882 she opens her eyes to her true destiny, and the grand Old Father of Waters, which she had striven to drive from her, was once more recognized as the very foundation or bed-rock of her commercial life, the power that was to keep in check the absorption of her wealth, from the monopolizing influence and insatiable maw of the railway kings. She now proudly points to the grand old river, and the fleets of barges borne upon its bosom filled with the wealth of an empire, and calls on her sister, Chicago, to look at this glorious sight. The " Garden City" has already snuffed the battle from afar, and is ready to struggle for a commercial supremacy in which there are literally millions, for nature has done the work, and St. Louis will win. The "City by the Lake" is deserving, and had she the opportunities which have lain so long dormant in possession of her rival, would have been today the wonder of the world. But it is the rugged path that brings out man's energy and endurance, not the smooth road. So it is with cities. And so the majestic Mississippi flows on, bearing upon its waters the riches of the valley, and pouring into the lap of the Queen City upon its banks millions upon millions of wealth. If the spirit of 1882 shall continue, then St. Louis will soon become the pride of the State. In reality she will be the " Future Great" of the American Continent. She that stands on the bank of this great inland sea, the commerce of an empire flowing at her feet, her sails in every clime and country, she is indeed to become a great city, the arbiter of the commercial world and the Queen City whose wealth, commanding influence, culture and refinement will attest the greatness of her people and command the homage of the world. Such is to be the "Future Great" city,- St. Louis.

Homestead Exemption Law

The homestead exemption law of the State of Missouri has been one of the most enlightened laws passed for the benefit of the people. In the last session of the general assembly of the State, the spring of 1880-81, there was a material change in the law, and it is given here in full. Thus every head of a family can be secure in a home of moderate value, if he will not waive his right to it. There are printed notes now drawn up in which there is a clause printed waiving the right of holding such property under that law. When a man signs such a note, his home stands in the same light as his other property. These notes should never be signed unless by or with the consent of the wife as well as the husband. The law reads, as amended, as follows, and is in full force at this time :

Section 1. Section twenty-six hundred and eighty-nine (2689) of the Revised Statutes of Missouri, is hereby amended by striking out, *' or incorporated towns and villages having a less population," and inserting in lieu thereof, having a population of ten thousand or less," in twelfth line, and by inserting immediately after " dollars," fifteenth line, the words " and in cities and incorporated towns and villages having a population less than ten thousand, such homesteads shall not include more than five acres of ground or exceed the total value of $1,500," so that said section as amended shall read as follows :

Sec. 2689. The homestead of every housekeeper or head of a family, consisting of a dwelling-house and appurtenances, and the land in connection therewith, not exceeding the amount and value herein limited, which is or shall be used by such housekeeper, or head of a family as such homestead shall, together with the rents, issues and products thereof, be exempt from attachment and execution, except as herein provided ; such homestead in the country shall not include more than one hundred and sixty acres of land, or exceed the total value of fifteen hundred dollars ; and in cities having a population of forty thousand or more, such homestead shall not include more than eighteen square rods of ground, or exceed the total value of three thousand dollars ; and in cities having a population of ten thousand and less than forty thousand, such homestead shall not include more than thirty square rods of ground, or exceed the total value of fifteen hundred dollars ; and in cities and incorporated towns and villages having a population less than ten thousand, such homestead shall not include more than five acres of ground, or exceed the total value of fifteen hundred dollars ; and any married woman may file her claim to the tract or lot of land occupied by her and her husband, or by her, if abandoned by her husband, as a homestead ; said claim shall set forth the tract or lot claimed, that she is the wife of the person in whose name the said tract or lot appears of record, and said claim shall be acknowledged by her before some officer authorized to take proof or acknowledgments of instruments of writing, affecting real estate, and be filed in the recorder's office, and it shall be the duty of the recorder to receive and record the same. After the filing of such claims, duly acknowledged, the husband shall be debarred from, and incapable of selling, mortgaging or alienating the homestead in any manner whatever, and every such sale, mortgage or alienation is hereby declared null and void ; and the filing of any such claims, as aforesaid, with the recorder, shall impart notice to all persons of the contents thereof, and all subsequent purchasers and mortgagers shall be deemed, in law and equity, to purchase with notice ; Provided^ however^ that nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to prevent the husband and wife from jointly conveying, mortgaging, alienating or in any other manner disposing of such homestead, or any part thereof.

Husband Not Liable

Section 1. The property owned by a man before his marriage, and that which he may acquire after his marriage by purchase, descent, gift, grant, devise, or any other manner whatsoever, and the profits thereof, except such as may be acquired from the wife, shall be exempt from all debts and liabilities contracted or incurred by his wife before their marriage.

Rights Of Married Women

The law passed by the General Assembly on the rights and privileges of married women is full and complete, is composed of fourteen sections, and too long to be embodied in this work. The law can be found in the " Revised Statutes of Missouri, volume 1, 1876." It is chapter 51, and found on pages 557 to 561.

Hedges Trimmed

It may not be known to all that a law was passed by the General Assembly (1880-1881), that "every person having a hedge fence, over five years old, upon the line of any public r6ad or highway in this State, is hereby required to cut down the same, to the height of not more than five feet nor less than four feet, every two years : Provided, that hedge fences inclosing orchards, house-yards and stockyards, shall be exempt from the provisions of this act."

The overseer of roads is to serve the notice and the owner has thirty days to commence, and if he fail to do it the overseer shall have it done, and the owner must pay all expenses of the same. It can be collected of him by law, same as revenue for road purposes.

Changing School-House Sites

Section 1. The voters of any school-district in this State may change the location of a school-house site when the same, for any cause, may be deemed necessary and notice of such contemplated change shall have been given by the directors at least twenty days prior thereto by posting at least three written notices in three of the most public places in the district where such school-house site shall be located ; Provided, that in every case a majority of the voters of said district shall only be necessary to remove a site nearer the center of a school district, but in all cases to remove a site further from the center of a school district it shall require two-thirds of the legal voters of such school district.

Marriage License

The legislature of 1880-81 passed a marriage license act which makes it necessary for persons before marriage to secure a license. No person authorized to perform the marriage ceremony can legally do so without first seeing the license, and a marriage performed without a license is not legal and a penalty is attached. The intent of the law is to have an official record which shall stand in the courts and settle any dispute either of marriage or property which may hereafter arise. The law reads:

The recorder of the county issues the license and the parties must be, the male 21 years and the female 18 years of age. If younger, the parents or guardian must give consent.

The business of publishing books by subscription, having so often been brou^-ht into disrepute by agents making representations and declarations not authorized by the publisher^ in order to prevent that as much as possible, and that there may be moi-e general knowledge of the relation such agents bear to their principal, and the law governino- such cases, the following statement is made :

A subscription is in the nature of a contract of mutual promises, by which the subscriber agrees to pay a certain sum for the work described ; the consideration is that the publisher shall publish the hook named, and deliver the same, for which the subscriber is to pay the price named. The nature and character of the work are described by the prospectus and sample shown. These should be carefidly examined before subscribing, as they are the basis and consideration of the promise to pay, and not the too often exaggerated statements of the agent, who is merely employed to solicit subscriptions, for which he is usually paid a commission for each subscriber, and has no authority to change or alter the conditions upon which the subscriptions are authorized to be made by the publisher. Should the agent assume to ao-ree to make the subscription conditional, or modify or change the agreement of the publisher, as set out by the prospectus and sample, in order to hind the principal y the subscriber should see that such condition or changes are stated over or in connection with his signature, so that the publisher may have notice of the same.

All persons making contracts in reference to matters of this kind, or any other business, should remember that the law as written is, that they can not be altered, varied, or rescinded verbally, but if done at all, must be done in writing. It is therefore important that all persons contemplating subscribing should distinctly understand that all talk before or after the subscription is made is not admissible as evidence, and is no part of the contract.

Persons employed to solicit subscriptions are known tc the trade as canvassers. They are agents appointed to do a particular business in a prescribed mode and have no authority to do it any other way to the prejudice of their principal, nor can they bind their principal in any other manner. They can not collect money, or agree that payment be made in anything else but money. They can not extend the time of payment beyond the time of delivery nor bind their principal for the payment of expenses incurred in their business.

It would save a great deal of trouble, and often serious loss, if persons, before signing their names to any subscription book, or any written instrument, would examine carefully what it is; and if they cannot read themselves call on some one disinterested who can.

General Form Of Will For Real And Personal Property

I, James Johnson, of the town of Muncie, county of Delaware, and State of Indiana, being aware of the uncertainty of life, and in failing health, but of sound mind and memory, do make and declare this to be my last will and testament, in manner as follows, to-wit :

^irsi - I give, devise and bequeath to my son, James Horace Johnson, $1,000 in bank stock, of the First National Bank of Boston, and the farm owned by myself, in the township of Washington, Shelby county, Missouri, and consisting of eighty acres of land with all the houses, tenements and improvements thereunto belonging, to have and to hold unto my said son, his heirs and assigns forever.

Ida Louisa Johnson and Annie May Johnson, each $1,000 in cash, and each one a quarter section of hind owned by myself in the township of Jasper, Henry county, Illinois, and recorded in my name in the record of said county, where said land is located ; the north 160 acres to go to Ida Louisa, my eldest daughter.

Third - I give, devise and bequeath to my son, Thomas Alfred Johnson, ten shares of railroad stock in the Mississippi & Ohio Railroad, and my lot, with the residence thereon, in Dayton, Ohio, with all the improvements and appurtenances thereunto belonging, which said real estate is recorded in my name in the county where situated.

Fourth - I give to my wife Samuella Richardson Johnson, all my household furniture, goods, chattels and personal property about my home not hitherto disposed of, including $5,000 of bank stock, in the Merchants' National Bank of Toledo, Ohio, fifteen shares in the Mississippi & Ohio Railroad, and the free and unrestricted use, possession and benefit of the home farm so long as she may live, in lieu of dower to which she is entitled by law, said farm being my present place of residence.

Pifth - It is also my will and desire that at the death of my wife, Samuella Richardson Johnson, or at any time when she may arrange to relinquish her life interest in the above mentioned homestead, the same may revert to my above named children, or to the lawful heirs of each.

And Lastly - I nominate and appoint as executors of this, my last will and testament, my wife, Samuella Richardson Johnson, and my eldest son, James Horace Johnson.

I further direct that my debts and necessary funeral expenses shall be paid from moneys now on deposit in the Savings Bank of Dayton, Ohio, the residue of such money to revert to my wife, Samuella Richardson Johnson, for her use forever.

In witness whereof, I, James Johnson, to this, my last will and testament, have hereunto set my hand and seal, this fourth day of December, 1876.

Sio'ued and declared by James Johnson as and for his last will and testament, in the presence of us, who, at his request and in his presence and in the presence of each other, have subscribed our names hereunto as witnesses thereof.

Laws Of Missouri Codicil

Whereas, I, James Johnson, did, on the fourth day of December, 1876, make my last will and testament, I do now, by this writing, add this codicil to my said will, to be taken as a part thereof.

Whereas, A son has been born to me, which son is now christened John Wesley Johnson, I give and bequeath to him my gold watch, and all right, interest and title in lands, bank stock and chattels bequeathed to my deceased daughter, Ida Louisa, in the body of this will.

Signed, sealed, published and declared to us by the testator, James Johnson, as and for a codicil to be annexed to his last will and testament, and we, at his request and in his presence, and in the presence of each other, have subscribed our names as wituessess thereto, at the date hereof.

county of , and State of Missouri, of the second part, witnesseth that the said party of the first part has this day leased unto the party of the second part the following described premises, to-wit :

And it is further agreed that if any rent shall be due or unpaid, or if default be made in any of the covenants herein contained, it shall then be lawful for the said party of the first part to re-enter the said premises, or to distrain for such rent ; or he may recover possession

And the party of the second part agrees to pay to the party of the first part the rent as above stated, except when said premises are untenantable by reason of fire, or from any other cause than the carelessness of the party of the second part, or persons family, or in buildings, gates, fences, etc., in as good repair as they now are, or may at any time be placed by the lessor, damages by superior force, inevitable necessity, or fire from any other cause than from the carelessness of the lessor, or persons of ftimily, or in employ, will, without further notice of any kind, quit and surrender the occupancy and possession of said premises in as good condition as reas:)nable use, natural wear and decay thereof will permit, damages by fire as aforesaid, superior force, or inevitable necessity, alone

Real Estate Mortgage

And the said mortgagor agrees to pay all taxes that may be levied upon the above described premises. It is also agreed by the mortgagor that if it becomes necessary to foreclose this mortgage, a reasonable amount shall be allowed as an attorney's fee for foreclosing. And the . hereby relinquishes all her right of dower and homestead in and to the above described premises.

Chattel Mortgage

and do hereby warrant the title of said property, and that it is free from any incumbrance or lien. The only right or interest retained by grantor in said property being the right of redemption herein provided. This conveyance to be void upon condition that the "^aid grantor shall pay to said grantee, or his assigns, the full amount of principal and grantor may proceed by sale or foreclosure to collect and pay himself the unpaid balance of said notes, whether due or not, the grantor to pay all necessary expenses of such foreclosure, including $ attorney's fees, and whatever remains, after paying off said notes and expenses, to be paid over to said grantor.

Quitclaim Deed

title and interest, estate, claim and demand, both in law and in equity, and as well in possession as in expectancy, of, in and to the following described premises, to-wit : premises, and appurtenances thereto belonging, against the lawful claims of all persons whomsoever ; and the said hereby relinquishes all her right of dower and of homestead in and to the above described premises.

Acknowledgment

A note to be payable in anything else but money, needs only the article substituted in the above form. " With interest," means at the legal rate, and any other rate must be mentioned, or if no interest is to be paid until after the maturity of the note it should be so stated.

Valuable Rules

How to find the gross and net weight of a hog, is by the rule that a hog's net weight is one-fifth less than his gross weight. For instance, a hog weighing 400 pounds gross, would, when dressed, weigh 320.

A good rule to find the capacity of a granary or a wagon-bed is multiply by (short method) the number of cubic feet by 6308, and point ofi" one decimal place - the result will be the correct answer in bushels and tenths of bushels.

To find the contents of a corn-crib multiply the number of cubic feet by 54 (short method) or by 4|- ordinary method, and point olf one decimal - the result will be the answer in bushels. This rule applies when it is first cribbed and before the corn shrinks.

For the contents of a cistern or tank, multiply the square of the mean diameter by the depth (all in feet) and this product by 5681 (short method) and point ofi" one decimal place - the result will be the contents in barrels of 31|- gallons each.

The same in substance is the rule for scantling, joists, planks, sills, etc. Multiply the width, thickness and length together (the width and thickness in inches and the length in feet) and divide the product by 12 - the result will be square feet.

To find the number of brick required in a building, multiply the number of cubic feet by 221. The number of cubic feet is found by multiplying the length, height and thickness (in feet) together.

Weights And Measures

The lawful weight of the following articles is the following number of pounds per bushel, and so understood when no special contract is made :

Missouri Game Law

There have been so many violations of the game law thr^t its publication is one of interest. Many persons viohite this law through ignorance, and others wilfully. The penalty is here given for all such acts. Every good citizen and lover of hunting is interested in preventing the law from being trampled upon, and those wilfully breaking it should be forced to pay the penalty. A synopsis of the law is as follows :

It is unlawful to have in possession or to sell any of the game birds named that do not show shot marks, it being prima facie evidence that they have been trapped or netted contrary to law.

It is unlawful for any railroad, express company, or other carrier, to receive for transportation any of the birds or game mentioned, when the killing of the same is prohibited.

Every person who shall violate any of the above named laws shall be guilty of misdemeanor and punished by a fine not exceeding $20 for each bird or animal killed, netted, trapped or found in his possession.

Any violators of these laws can be prosecuted before any police justice, recorder, or justice of the peace, or other court having jurisdiction to try cases of misdemeanor.

One-half of any fines collected will be paid to the informer and the balance to the school fund of the county. It is the duty of all constables, marshals, market-masters and police officers, to arrest all persons violating any of the game laws, and take them before the courts having jurisdiction to hear and try complaints.

Statistics

The inhabitants of Alaska and the Indian Territory (both unorganized as yet) are not included in the above total. The census of Alaska in 1880 showed: White, 392 ; Creoles (issue of intermarriage between the whites and natives), 1,683; Aleuts, 1,960; Inuuits, 17,488; Indians, 8,655; total, 30,178.

The Indians included in the census in each State and Territory are those reckoned as civilized, or outside of tribal organizations. Indians not taxed are by law excluded from the census. Estimates of their numbers vary widely - from 200,000 to 350,000 (the latter as estimated in the census of 1870).

In the Chinese column (for want of space elsewhere) have been reckoned a very few Japanese, East Indians and Sandwich Islanders, not exceeding 250 in all.