Saline County, Missouri - Chapter 11: The Decade of the Fifties, 1910

Chapter 11: The Decade of the Fifties

From 1850 to i860 the county steadily achancecl and prospered. With the exception of the year 1854, the seasons were good and propitious and the harvest universally bountiful, prosperity being general and substantial. Thousands of tons of hemp and of bushels of wheat and pounds of tobacco were annuall}- raised and shipped, from the sale of which abundant returns were received. This was true except the year 1854, when a general drought prevailed throughout this part of Missouri, resulting in an almost total failure of the corn crop in Saline county. In the spring of 1855 corn was higher than ever known before, selling readily at one dollar a bushel. The large land owners and slave holders were particularly prosperous from the growing of hemp, which had become the most important crop of the county. Miami and Arrow Rock were the principal shipping points for hemp and other products and were then the most flourishing towns in the county, all the surplus products of the county being shipped by steamboat down the Missouri river.

In the years 1852 and 1853 efforts were made by the people of this county to procure the location of the Missouri Pacific railroad, the construction of which had been begun at St. Louis and which was designed to extend across the state to Kansas City. Many public meetings were held for the purpose of considering the railroad question and the county court, then ha\-- ing authority to subscribe to railroad building, agreed to make an order issuing bonds to a considerable extent in favor of the Pacific Railroad Company when it had completed its road through the county. The people of Saline, Lafayette and Cooper counties expected to ha\e the road from Jefferson Citato pass through the counties by way of Boonville and Marshall. But greater inducements were offered for the building of the road on the Southern route through Pettis county, where it was needed much worse than it was here in Saline. So the road was located from Jefferson City to Sedalia on its way to California, where it was eventually built.

At the session of our county court. September, 1852. an electi(in was ordered to be held October 2d, for the purpose of taking the census of the people upon the proposition for the county to subscribe one hundred thousand dollars for stock in the Missouri Pacific Railroad, and if it should be necessary, in order to secure a location of the road through SaHne county and to pass within a reasonal^le distance of the county seat, that said court should subscribe for stock to the amount of two hundred thousand, and authorized to go as far as three hundred thousand dollars' worth of stock rather than to fail in securing said road.

A considerable canvass was made throughout the county 1)\ the supporters of the project, attended with much discussion of the suljject. The election came off, and an examination of the poll books disclosed the fact that four hundred and seventy-three votes were cast at the election. For subscribing one hundred thousand, there were two hundred and seventy-four votes; for subscribing two hundred thousand, there were two hundred and forty-four votes; for subscribing three hundred thousand, there were two hundred and five votes, and against subscribing' at all for any stock, there were one hundred and ninety-nine votes.

At the November session of the court, it was ordered that two hundred thousand dollars' worth of stock be subscribed for, provided the rcmd should be built by way of Arrow Rock and Marshall. John Lock Hardeman was appointed agent of the county to subscribe for this stock to that amount, and to attend any other business in relation to railroad matters required of him by the court.

No opportunit}-, was ever given Mr. Hardeman to make the subscription, for, as above stated, the road was located upon the southern line, and not upon the river route. Of course, this was considered a great calamity by the people of Saline, who favored the building of the railroad. But there were many sensible men who thought the ri\-er was sufficient to transport all the products of this county and were opposed to building tlie railroad on any terms. This was the first effort upon the subject of railroads by the authorities of Saline county.

Several years afterwards, in January, 1857, to ascertain the sense of the people, an election was held in regard to the propriety of subscribing on behalf of the county for stock in a railroad "which shall run from Lexington and pass centrally through Saline county to connect with the Pacific road at some point west of Jefiferson City." wdiich subscription was to be of the amount of three hundred or four hundred thousand dollars. The election showed that the people did not take kindly to this proposition, and it was \-oted down by a majority of four hundred and t^^-enty-fi^-e.

At this period, 1852 to 1854, the people of this county were highly interested in the politics of the state and nation. The adoption of the Jackson resolutions by the Legislature of the state and the issue thereafter raised by

Colonel Benton in refusing to be instructed as to his duties as senator, created a split in the Democratic party, which had completely governed the state from its organization in 1820 up to that date, the two divisions being called the Benton and the Anti-Benton Democrats. The discussion in controversy over the questions involved created a great deal of acrimcMiy and ill-feeling and hostility between men, who had formerly been warm partx' and political friends. At the session of the Legislature in 1851. whose dutv it was to elect a successor to Colonel Bent(jn in the United States Senate, the contest over the subject was very warm, resulting in the election of a compromise candidate, Henry S. Geyer, of St. Louis, a Whig in politics, who defeated Colonel Benton by a combination of the Whig party with enough discordant elements of the Democrats. This defeat terminated the career of Colonel Benton as a senator from Missouri, embracing a ])eriod of thirty years. Although a senator of glaring faults, he was yet distinguished for great and important services to the state and the country generally.

In the presidential contest of 1852, Gen. Franklin Pierce was the Democratic candidate, with Gen. Winfield Scott, the hero of the Mexican war, the candidate of the Whig part}-. This campaign was a memoralile one on account of its being the last in which the old Whig party had a presidential candidate. General Scott was favorably known throughout the cmuitry. He was a hero of two wars, and then commanding chief of the L'nited States army. But during the campaign he was a subject of general ridicule and was defeated by Franklin Pierce, one of his subordinates in the Mexican war. Saline in this contest gave a majority of seventy-one for the Whig candidate. Letcher and Maupin being the leaders of the Whigs, the Democrats being led by C. F. Jackson, Doctor Penn and others. Soon after this ])residential election, the Whig party fell into a gradual disintegration and decay, and from its ashes sprang up, in the year T855, the great American, or Know-nothing party, which most of the old-line Whigs became members of, and supported its candidate, but thev failed to get control of tlie state through the American party.

The defeat of Colonel Benton for senator was not. however, the hnal termination of his political career b}- any means. He was afterwards elected a member of the house of representatives from St. Louis, and in 1856 was a candidate for governor of the state at the special election held that year. Li that campaign he made a general canvass of the state, but having failed of election, he devoted the balance of his life to literarv pursuits, writing and publishing his "Thirty Years' Wgw of the Cnited States Senate," and

*'An Abridgement of the Debates in Congress," two very important and useful books. The great Senator died at his home in Washington City. April 10, 1858.

Stephen A. Douglas had succeeded in having ])asse(l the hill for the organization of the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, in which bill squatter sovereignty was recognized as being the criterion of the sla\ery issue in the new territories. That is, the people of the territories, when it came to the formation of the constitution, had the right and should determine whether the state should be slave or free. This left Kansas a hghting chance to become a slave state, there being already some slaves in the territory, when the law for its admission was passed, and the matter must be ultimately settled ])v the people themselves \\hen the}- undertook the formation of the state government. The proximit}- of Saline county to this new territory about to be opened naturallv gave the people a particular interest in the settlement of the slaver\- cjuestion. It was very natural for the people of this county to desire Kansas to be admitted to the Union as a slave state, and the}" took an active part in efforts to settle up the state with pro-slaver}- men, and very liberal inducements were offered to people of that sort to emigrate to and take up their residence in Kansas, so as to be able to control the politics of the state. After the country was opened for settlement, many people from Saline county moved into Kansas. Capt. John \A'. Reid. who had commanded the Saline county company in the Mexican war, then li\-ing in Jackson county, had gone into Kansas and was a prominent leader of the pro-slavery party. ]\Iany Saline county men took service under him. and were with him in several fights with the Free-soilers from Massachusetts.

A number of prominent men from this county were in the territory froni time to time, giving advice and consulting among themselves, and from time to time provisions, such as bacon, flour, potatoes, etc., together with amis and ammunition, were sent to the settlers in Kansas, from Saline county. Among the leaders who visited the territory from Saline count}- were T. \\\ B. Crews, William H. Letcher, Frank Mitchell, Clail)orne V. Jackson and others.

Public Meetings In 1 859

On the 15th of September, 1859, the former soldiers of the war of 1812 residing in this county and the western part of Lafayette county met here at the residence of one of their number, Benoni Robion. There were present Col. W^illiam Bovce, Boston Poisal and Jacob Funk irom Lafavette county, and ex-( Governor Marmaduke. P. W. Thompson, James Valdenar, G. T. Chrisman, B. E. Hale, John Murphy, Benoni Robion and others from this county. Col(Miel Marmaduke presided. Resohitions were offered and adopted, requestint;- the general government to grant aid to those old soldiers of the war of 181 2, who were needy and in distress.

The capture of Harper's Ferry by John Brown in October, 1859, and other movements of the abolitionists of the North greatly excited the people of the entire South, and especiallv of the border states. Public meetings were frequentlv held, and speeches were made and resolutions ado])ted, attended by the leading men of all parties.

On the 26th of December, 1859, a public meeting was held in the court house at Marshall, pursuant to calls made b\' former meetings at Arrow Rock and Marshall. This meeting was presided over by R. E. Snelling, Esq., of Miaini, and G. W. Allen, editor of the Herald, and J. S. Davis, editor of the Democrat, ^^'ere the secretaries.

The object of this meeting was fully explained by Col. J. W. Bryant and M. W. O'Bannon, Esq., Dr. M. W. Hall, Col. Vincent Marmaduke, Dr. Eliza Clarkson, T. R. E. Harvey, Dr. Crawford E. Smith and M. A. Gauldin were appointed a committee on resolutions. This committee reported nine resolutions, condemning in the severest terms the Harper's Ferry outrage and their sympathizers, aiders and abetters, declaring that the "union would be prized" onl}- so long as the Constitution in letter and in spirit is the supreme law of the land ; that the Southern states have a right to demand of the Northern states that they shall pass such laws as will put a stop to the ceaseless war made on the Southern people by their citizens in abolition harangues, circulation of the incendiary papers and resistance to or the evasion of the fugitive slave laws" ; "that the election to the Presidency, in i860, of William H. Seward or any other member of the Republican party avowing the same principles would be virtual dissolution of the Union," with other sentiments of the same spirit and purport.

A committee of three, Williarti B. Sappington, Dr. LeGrand Atwood and T. R. E. Harvey, were appointed to memorialize the Fegislature on the following subjects :

First, pledging the state of Missouri to unite with the other Southern states in such measures as may be necessary for the maintenance of their rights under the Constitution.

Third, to make void negro testimony received in the courts ag-ainst the citizens of those states, where negroes are permitted to testify against white persons.

"That in the event of the election of a black Republican President, in i860, that a convention of the Southern states be called to take such measures as will conduce to the great interest of the South."

There can be no question but there was great distrust of the people of the North by the slave-holding people of the country at this time, and, as subsequent events showed, with good reason. The people of the South had g'reat capital invested in slave property and there was a large element in the Northern states constantly increasing, which desired to deprive them of their property. It was a common talk that a dissolution of the Union would occur, and many were already preparing for such an event in this section of the country.

The county election of 1859 was one of the most exciting ever held in Saline. Party lines were drawn with exceeding bitterness and a rigor never known before. William A. Wilson, who had held nearly all the county offices for many years, and a leader of the old Wliig and American party, was a candidate for re-election. The Democrats were determined to beat him if possible, nominating John Sheridan for circuit clerk, and Jesse Davis for county clerk. The election resulted as follows :

For Circuit Clerk

Sheridan was elected circuit clerk bv a majority of one hundred and three votes, and Davis county clerk by a majority of two hundred and twenty-seven votes.