Combined history of Randolph, Monroe and Perry counties, Illinois . With illustrations descriptive of their scenery and biographical sketches of some of their prominent men and pioneers, Part 25

Author: McDonough, J.L., & Co., Philadelphia
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.L. McDonough & Co
Number of Pages: 578


USA > Illinois > Perry County > Combined history of Randolph, Monroe and Perry counties, Illinois . With illustrations descriptive of their scenery and biographical sketches of some of their prominent men and pioneers > Part 25
USA > Illinois > Randolph County > Combined history of Randolph, Monroe and Perry counties, Illinois . With illustrations descriptive of their scenery and biographical sketches of some of their prominent men and pioneers > Part 25
USA > Illinois > Monroe County > Combined history of Randolph, Monroe and Perry counties, Illinois . With illustrations descriptive of their scenery and biographical sketches of some of their prominent men and pioneers > Part 25


Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).


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John Edgar heirs claim and snr. 431


13G


John Edgar heirs claim and sor. part 5-9 and 5-10. 85


Deb. 10, 1818. Samuel Leard S. W. of 1 160


Total. 5558


TOWNSHIP 6 S. 9 W. Acres.


ACRES.


John Edgar and J. Murray el. and


snr. part in 5-9 and 6-9. 1577


195 John Edgar heirs cl. and sur. part


Joseph Lamieux heirs el. and sur. part in 5-9 and G-9. 192 in 5-9 and 6-9. 1589


Lonis Perique heirs claim and snr. part in 5-9 and 6-9. 13


A. Roy neirs claim and sur. part in 5-9 and G-9 .. 373


Angust Allard heirs claim and sur. part in 5-9 and 6-9 ... 116


A. & L. Lapeur heirs claim and sur. part in 5-9 and 6-9 .. 309


Lonis Pettit heirs claim and sur.


80 part in 5-9 and 6-9 .. 117


Clement Drury heirs claim and sor. part in 5-9 and 6-9. 241


Unappropriated heirs claim and sur. part in 5-9 and 6-9. 105


Sanrier Louvier heirs claim and sur. part in 5-9 and 6-9W 481 Total 6448


TOWNSILIP 5 S. 10 W.


Acres.


Acres.


John Edgar claim and snr. Island


opposite Furt Chartres. 1047


Widow Hebert part in Monroe Co ... 370


John Edgar part in Monroe Co ... 250


M. Philebot part in Monroe Co. 142


RECAPITULATION.


Lands in Randolph county owned by individuals prior to the year 1820.


Acres.


Township 4 S. 5 W. 2004


Township 5 S. 5 W 3855


Township 6 S. 5 W 3062


Township 7 8. 5 W


Township 8 S. 5 W


331


Township 6 8. 8 W.


13,006


Township 4 8. 6 W


1809


Township 78. 8 W 240


Township 5 S. 6 W


4675


Township 5 8. 9 W 5358


Township 6 S. 6 W


3087


Township & S. 9 W. 6448


Township 7 S. G W.


2100


Township 5 S. 10 W., pt. in Monroe 2011


Township 8 S. c W


364


Township 4 S. 7 W 3218


Total 102,858


Township 5 S. 7 W 3642


GOVERNMENT OF THE COUNTY IN TERRITORIAL TIMES,


The administration of the county in its infancy, from 1795 to 1803, was entrusted to a court of common pleas, organized in 1795, and composed of John Edgar, William Morrison, Pierre Menard, Robert McMahan, George Fisher, John Beaird, Robert Reynolds, Nathaniel Hull, Antoine Louvier, John Grosvenor, James Finney and Samuel Cochran. These gentlemen were territorial or United States justices of the peace, and as such members of the court of common pleas.


The minutes of this court could not be found, and so it is impossible to give an account of the earlier transactions, 1795 to 1803. From subsequent minutes it may be inferred, however, that the first " court-house," probably built by Todd in 1779, was not longer inhabitable; that it, together with the lot on which it had been erected, had been sold to William Morrison and Dr. George Fisher, who, in 1803, were dunned by the county officials for balances due by them to the county on account of said purchase. Morrison owed


Acres.


Township 6 S. 7 W. 13,347


Township 78. 7 W 8317


Township 4 8, 8 W 3210


820 Township 5 8. 8 W. 18,824


Heirs Etienne Pevard,


claim and survey ... .... 109


Madam Lafaruqhe, el. and survey, G-8 & C-O ... 181 Jos. Tullieur & others,


el. & survey, 6-8 & G-9 .. 628 Nov. 13, 1816 Geo. Fisher, fr. S. W of section 4 13


Nov. 13, 1816 Geo. Fisher, fr. N.W. of section 9 Nov. 13, 1816 Geo. Fisher, fr. S. pt. of


30


June 10, 1816 Jas. Slatter, fr. S.E. of 13 59


Sept. 30, 1816 A St. Francisco, heirs. fraction S.E. of 14 ... 101


cl. and survey ..


Sept. 30, 1816 A. St. Francisc , heirs,


fraction N.E. of 23. ..... 40


160


May 1, 1815 J. Dodge, S. W. 22. Ang. 10, 1818 James Wilson, N. 2 of 24 294 Sep. 14, 1819 John Hathorn, fr. N. 2 of 25. 180


20 80


June 8, 1818 Edwd. Mndd, W. 2 S W. of 20


June 1, 1818 Norton Hull, E.28. W. 21 80 160


May 22, 1818 Thos. Orr, S.E. 21.


Oct. 19, 1818 Wm. Steel, pts. of sec- tions 18 and 19. 302 160 sur. part in 5-9 and 6-9 58


80


Jacques Boutillet heirs claim and sur. part in 5-9 and 6-9 11


Pierre de Louvier heirs claim and Mur. part in 5-9 and 6-9 .. ... 258


Antoine de Lonvier heirs claim and sur. part in 5-9 and 6-9 ........ 373


J. B. Baquette part in Monroe Co .... 437


Ignace Le Grass part in Monroe Co 235 Joseph Bellecour part in Monroe Co 410


Apr. 28,1815 Callwell Carnes, frnc. W 2 of 1 ... 187


Dec. 24, 1817 Isaac Husband, S E of 1 100 Apr. 28, 1815 Thos. Levens, N E 2 .... 170 Jan. 2, 1819 David Lawson, E 2S W 2 80.


Apr. 28, 1815 Thos. Levens, 8 E 2 ...... 160


Jean B. Boquette heirs clnim and sur 85 Ignace Laroche heirs claim and sur. 213


Joseph Bellcour heirs cl. and snr.


part in 5-9 and 6-9. 151


J. B Barhean heirs claim and sur. part in 5-9 and 6-9 .. 260


P. G. dit Peaureau heirs claim and


Oct. 6, 1818 J. & J. Dunlop, N. E. of 19 Dec. 12, 1818 Henry Kinnel, W. 2 N. W. 50. Apr. 17, 1815 Amos Paxton, E 2S.W.


Pierre Menard, el. and survey .. 400 John Blaird (probably Braird), cl. and survey 400 Levin Cropper, cl. and survey 400 Jno. Rice Jones, el. and survey 400


Acres.


Ambrose & Vasseur hs. cl. and sur. Du Boiher village sq. hs. cl. and sur R. Robinson and R. Morrison heirs elnim and survey 147


397


Ap. 29, 1815 Checqueur and others, S.E. 12 .. 160


Jnl. 13, 1818 Mosser Wells, E. 2, S.E. 26 ... 80


Jun.10,18'6 Robert Foster, S.W. 29, 160


Sept. 30, 1816 Jas. Slatter, fr. N.E. of 24 68


Sept. 30, 1816 Shadrach Bond, fr. pts. of 25. 125


Total 2911


John Edgar, el. & sur. 7084 Timothy Demonbronin,


101


HISTORY OF RANDOLPH, MONROE AND PERRY COUNTIES, ILLINOIS.


a balance of $25 for the lot, and the Doctor owed $60 for the stone of the court-house.


James Dunn, sheriff prior to 1803, built the first county jail at Kaskaskia, and received $=70.35 for it July 12, 1803.


County Commissioners, 1803 to 1809. The first meeting of these officers was held July 4, 1803, at the dwelling-house of Robert Morrison, where he and his colleagues, Paul Ha- ralson and James Gilbreath, took the oath of office before John Edgar, Esq., and then adjourned. Their next meeting was held at the house of Mrs. Turcott. on the 12th of July, 1803, when William Wilson, county surveyor since 1795, was appointed secretary of the commissioners, in place of Paul Haralson, who had declined to act any longer. (Paul had acted as secretary at the 4th of July meeting, and writ- ten twenty-one words as secretary ) From the minutes of the 12th of July, it would appear that William Kelly was the first coroner of the county, for he was then allowed a elaim of $29.89, for holding an inquest over the body of a man found dead on the Massac road in 1796.


The court held their subsequent meetings in the house of Louis Laderout, and paid him 811.50 rent October 18, 1803. The county had been divided into five townships by the court of common pleas, and the county commissioners retained this subdivision. The townships were named Kaskaskia, Prairie du Rocher, Williamsburg, Mitchie and Springfield.


An assessment of personal property was ordered on the 13th of January, 1804, and the following forces put to work : For Kaskaskia-John Grosvenor and Joseph Page; for Mitchie - James MeRoberts and William Chaffin; for Springfield-William Kelly; for Prairie du Rocher-Nico- las Mya (Meyer), John Evert, Sr., and Prince Bryan.


This seems to have been the last term of the county com- missioners' court, as it adjourned "without a day," after allowing wolf-scalp premiums-to John Griffin for 14, Otho Levens and Jonathan Petit for 4 each, John Hornbeck for 2 and Parker Grosvenor, Robert McMahan and Robert IIug- gins for 1 each.


The administrative functions of the county were next performed by a court, styled orphans' court, composed of the following justiees : Pierre Menard, John Beaird, George Fisher, Robert Reynolds, Robert McMahan and John Gros- venor, from 1804 to 1808. From minutes kept by this court it would appear that it devoted its attention to probate busi- ness almost exclusively. Once only, on March 7, 180s, some political measures are mentioned. Same territory of the county, heretofore a wilderness, had gradually been settled and become the home of a few families possessed of "taxable" property, whereupon the court deemed it proper to organize these parts as townships. The five original townships were retained and the following new ones added :


Rocking Cuve .- To commence at range line 7 east of the 3d principal meridian, running north with said line until it intersec's the county line between Randolph and St. Clair. This description is vague. The new township must have comprised the present counties of White, Gallatin, and Har- din, and eastern parts of Hamilton, Saline, and Pope.


Massac .- To commence at range line 2 east of the 3d principal meridian, running due north till it strikes Big


Muddy river. This township comprised the present coun- ties of Massac, Johnson, and Williamson, also west parts of Hamilton, Saline, and Pope.


Mississippi .- To commence on the Mississippi, below Big Muddy, and bounding on Massac township, running to the mouth of the Ohio. This township contained the present counties of Pulaski, Alexander and Union, and southeast part of Jackson. The order for formation of these townships is immediately followed by another, appointing assessors, to wit : Samuel Omelveny for Rocking Cave, - Hughes for Mississippi, and Thomas Ferguson for Massac.


Marie, or Mary .- Springfield township was divided by a line beginning at Colonel Edgar's Ferry, on the Kaskaskia, along the road leading to Harralson's ferry, on the same river, until oppo. ite the house of Thomas Fulton ; thenee east to the Vincennes road with the same until it strikes the boundary line of Knox county.


Scraps from the records of the period, 1795 to 1809 .- The first official mentioning of the name of Randolph county is found in a record of deeds, when, November 7, 1795, Lewis Germain and Mary his wife, of Kaskaskia, Randolph county, in the Territory of the United States west of the River Ohio, sold to William Melutosh a one-sixth interest in a tract of land at a place called the Big Spring, near the road from Kaskaskia to Prairie du Rocher, about six miles from Kaskaskia, containing in front 12 aeres, and 90 acres deep, between Pierre Langlois and John Edgar, for twenty dollars.


The prices at which lands sold in those times are very irregular. 400-acre head rights were sold at from thirty to two hundred dollars, and were frequently paid for in goods at enormous prices. Militia rights, 100 acres, brought from six to fourteen dollars ; other donation rights sold at similar rates, while the so-called improvement rights were seldom sold for less than fifty cents per acre.


The largest land sale made in those days was that of Pierre and Therese Menard to Charles Choquier and John Holmes of Baltimore, wherein, for the sum of $9,000, nine thousand two hundred and thirty-three and one-third acres were conveyed February 22, 1799. Menard's lands thus sold consisted of twenty-one and one- third head of family rights, of 400 acres each ; and seven militia rights, of 100 aeres each. His profits must have been considerable.


Larduer Clark sold his mill, distillery, dwelling-house, and " gardens," situated east of the Kaskaskia river, to John Edgar for $20 50, November 10, 1798. John Edgar had apparently monopolized the purchasing of lands, the de- scription of which fills 172 consecutive pages in the land records of the county.


Marriages recorded during said period.


Nichola Jarrot and Marie C. Barbun, Sept. 22. 1795- solemnized by Gabriel Richard. Curate of St. Joseph of Prairie du Rocher. Joseph Danguine and Marie Reine Pilet, Sept. 29 1795-by the same. Antoine C. LaChance and Jeanne Felicitee d'Amour Louviere, Nov. 9. 1795-by same. Antoine d'Amour Louviere and Marie Louise Lang- lois, Feb. 8. 1796-by same. Louis Allaire and Magdalene


102


HISTORY OF RANDOLPH, MONROE AND PERRY COUNTIES, ILLINOIS.


Degagnèe, Feb. 5. 1796, by "Janin," Curate at Kaskaskia. Alexis Paquin and "Archangel", April 21. 1796 by same. Joseph Devigne and Julie Godin Tourangeau, Nov. 8. 1795, by same. Joseph Langlois and Marie B. D. Toulons, Oct. 27. 1796. J. B. Perrin and Marguarete Grannon, Nov. 14, 1796, Joseph Sylvain and Mariane Nuillier Devignie, Feb 28. 1797. Etienne L'Anglois and Cecile Candere, January 23. 1798. Francois L'Anglois and Marie Godin, Joseph Blai and Marianne Lavone-same day by Gabriel Richard Curate.


The estate of Louis La Sand deceased was put under ad- ministration on the 20th of November 1795, when his will, dated Prairie du Rocher June 23. 1790, was proved. The will is void of interest. The personal property consisted in 6 cows, valued from 15 to 20 dollars each, 1 yoke of steers, 60 dollars, 10 head of young cattle, valned from 7 to 12 dollars each, 3 horses, valued 40 dollars each.


The common law cases adjudicated during the period, although quite numerous, are without any special interest, and criminal cases there are none, except now and then an assault and battery or liquor case, as for instance the indict- ment and fine of Ephraim Carpenter, innkeeper at Kaskas- kia, who had sold liquor withont license-in defiance of law and to the evil example-for which misdemeanor he paid a fine of five dollars and costs.


The election returns of that period have not been pre- served. From documents preserved in the sister county St. Clair, it appears that Shadrach Bond of Randolph defeated Isaac Darneille of Cahokia [St. Clair] for "a representative for to be sent to the General Assembly of the Territorry," at an election held in January 1799. Another electiou, after the organization of the territory of Indiana, held on the 7th of December 1802, to elect three representatives to go to Vincennes and there to meet the convention to be held there on the 20. of December for the purpose of sending our grievances to Congress, resulted in the election of Shadrach Bond sr., Jean Francois Perry and John Murdock. May 21. 1805, Shadrach Bond, sr., was elected representative to the territorial legislature of Indiana, and becoming a member of the legislative council [senate] resigned in 1806, when Shadrach Bond, jr., his nephew was elected to fill this va- cancy. He was reelected in the following year, remaining a representative of Randolph county until Illinois was formed into a separate territory.


The officers of the county during this period have been mentioned above. The dates of their commissions could not be ascertained. The sheriff's of that period were James Dunn, 1795 to 1800, George Fisher from 1800 to 1803, James Edgar 1803 to 1805 and James Gilbreath from 1805 to 1807. Robert Morrison was clerk of the court of quarter sessions. William Wilson was county surveyor from 1795 to 1808, William Kelley coroner 1795 to 1808 and Lardner Clark recorder of deeds. The organization of the territory of Illinois, February 3. 1809 gave cause to a reorganization of the two counties then existing, St. Clair and Randolph, which was done by proclamation as follows :


APRIL 28, 1809.


Nathaniel Pope, Secretary of the Territory of Illinois, and exercising the government thereof.


By virtue of the power vested in the Governor for the prevention of crimes, injuries, and for the execution of process, civil and criminal, within the territory, I have thought proper, and by this proclamation, to divide the Illinois territory into two counties to be called the county St. Clair and the county of Randolph. The county of Randolph shall include all that part of . the Illinois Territory lying south of the line dividing the counties of Randolph and St. Clair, as it existed under the govern- ment of the Indiana Territory on the last day of February in the year one thousand eight hundred and nine,-and the county of St. Clair shall include all that part of the Territory which lies north of said line.


Done at Kaskaskia, the 28th day of April, 1809, and of the Independence of the United States, the thirty-third. NAT. POPE.


The territory of the county remained the same as heretofore. The population of the county, 1103 in 1800, had now increased to about 7000. (The United States Census of 1810 gave the county then a population of 7275.) The people were scattered over a vast area, but fully one-half of the total population were located at Kas- kaskia and its vicinity.


A reorganization of the county government took place on the 3d of July, 1809, when William Arundel, Philip Fouke and John Edgar, Esquires, Justices of the Peace, with William C. Greenup as clerk, and Benjamin Stephenson as sheriff, assembled at the house of Thomas Cox and " held court."


1809 TO 1819.


In reading and examining the proceedings of the first courts of various and diverse counties the writer observed that the licensing of taverns is the first step usually taken. The absolute want of public funds in all these new bodies politic must have compelled the authorities to grant those licenses as the easiest and quickest mode of obtaining a " revenue." And thus the records again show that Philip Fouke was licensed as innkeeper at Kaskaskia, taxed $12.00 per annum, and, being a man of "good character and reliable withall," he was excused from giving the usual bond; he was allowed to charge as follows: breakfast, 25 cts., dinner 37} cts., supper 25 cts., lodging 12} cts., horse to hay at night 25 cts., corn or oats 12} cts. per gallon, French brandy, 50 cts. per half pint; whiskey, 12} cts. ; taffia or rum, 37} ; peach brandy or cherry bonnie, 25 cts.


William Morrison was licensed to keep a ferry from opposite the "Little Rock" across the Mississippi, and allowed to charge the following rates : four-horse team, $3.00; two-horse team, $2.50; two-wheel carriages, with a pair of horses or oxen, $2.00 ; with single horse or ox, $1.75; man and horse, 62} cts .; single horse, 50 cts .; single person, 25 cts ; "plunder," 12} cts. per 100 Ibs .; neat cattle per head, 50 cts; hogs or sheep, 12} cts ; and planks, 25 cts. per 100 feet. The Kaskaskia ferry rates were lower, to wit: Single person above 77 years of age, 6} cts .; man and horse, 12} cts,; single horse, 6} cts. ; cart and oxen or horses, 25 cts ; wagon and team, 50 cts. ; grown cattle, 6+


103


HISTORY OF RANDOLPH, MONROE AND PERRY COUNTIES, ILLINOIS.


cts ; cattle under two years of age, sheep or hogs, 3! cts. each.


The labors of the county court were performed by justices of the peace, three of whom would form a quorum, until January, 1810. A territorial law, passed December 22d, 1809, created county courts, to be composed of three judges who were appointed by the governor. Before pro- ceeding furtber we would here introduce a


LIST OF TOWNSHIP OFFICERS-1509.


Justices of the Peace .- The early Justices of the Peace held their offices by appointment, and it was not until 1827 that the people were deemed competent to elect their town- ship judicial officers. The general view on the subject seems to have been that the dignity of the "Squire " would be or was in danger of beiog lowered by the vulgarity of elec- tions.


The governor of the territory appointed the justices at the suggestion of the county commissioners, or " at will," and the commissions issued to those dignitaries smack of monarchical origin, his excellency the governor using the plural number of the personal pronoun when referring to his own persou.


The following gentlemen seem to have acted as justices in 1809 :


Philip Fouke, William Arundel, Henry Levens, Pierre Le Conte, P. Harralson, David Anderson, Jean B. Bar- beau, Robert Gaston, Archibald Thompson, John Guithing, John Edgar, James M. Roberts, John McFerron, Jobn Bradshaw, Samuel Omelvany, George Robinson, George Hacker, Jas. Lemon, Thomas Ferguson, Hamlet Ferguson, John Phelps, and Marion Fuller.


Overseers of the Poor .- Ralph Drury, John Evert for Mitchie ; Clement Drury, Pierre Le Conte, for Du Rocher ; Jobn Gibson, A. Langlois, for Kaskaskia ; Joseph Clen- denin, Henry Leven, for Williamsburg ; John Beaird, Paul Heilston, for Springfield ; George Hecker (Hacker), and Squire Green for Mississippi ; Hamlet Ferguson and Fred- erick Grater for Massac ; James Ford and Samuel Omel- vany for Rocking Cave.


Overseers of the Highways .- Jesse Reynolds for Mitchie, Pierre Auguste for Du Rocher, Jesse Griggs for Kaskaskia, Thomas Levin for Williamsburg, James Hughes for Spring- field. For the newly organized townships Rocking Cave, Massac, and Mississippi, no appointments were made.


Constables .- Jesse Griggs and Samuel Davis for Kaskas- kia ; Michael Masterson for Mitchie; John Langston for Mississippi ; Joseph M. Courtney for Marie; Antoin Le Chance for Du Rocher ; James Laird, Springfield.


Licensed Taverns in 1809 .- Pierre Le Compte, at Prairie du Rocher ; Philip Fouke, at Kaskaskia ; Thomas C. x, at Kaskaskia; Jonathan Taylor, at the United States Saline ; James Truesdale, on the road leading from U. S. Saline to Shawneetown; James Lane, do. do.


The first county court of Randolph county, composed of the Worshipful Philip Fouke, William Arundel and John McFerron, met at the tavern of Thomas Cox on the 4th of


January, 1810, and proceeded immediately to levy a tax for the county and also a territorial tax on lands located.


The county tax levy was as follows : Each single man, not having one hundred dollars' worth of taxable property, was assessed one dollar ; owners of slaves had to pay for each slave one dollar per year; horses were taxed fifty cents and neat cattle ten cents each; each mansion valued at two hundred dollars or more, all mills and distilleries, were assessed at the rate of thirty cents per one hundred dollars valuation. The numerous ferrries were also a source of revenue, and the year 1810 saw the following ferries licensed, to wit : Ephraim Carpenter, William Cheek, John Edgar, Pierre Menard, James Ford, each ten dollars ; Ham- ilton Ferguson at seven dollars ; James Fulton and William Morrison each at six dollars ; Charles Bradley, Louis Bior - ke, Thomas Ferguson, John Robinson, Richard and Waller, each five dollars ; Jonathan Hampton at four dollars; John Morris, James McHorton and John May, each three dollars.


The revenue of the county derived from these levies was small, as the land taxes proper were collected for maintain- ing the territorial government only. From a settlement mentioned in the county records of August term 1809, it ap- pears that the county revenue for the years 1807 and 1808, the collection of which was entrusted to sheriff James Gil- breath, amounted to $1,593.18, of which $944.97 had been collected and accounted for, while $213.50 of the revenue of 1807 and $435.71 of the revenue of 1808 were re- turned delinquent. The sheriff's of those days had a hopeless task to perform in collecting a few hundred dollars of taxpayers, whose homes were scattered through all the territory between the Mississisippi, the Wabash and the Ohio, nor is it to be wondered at that nearly every one is accused of being in default. The expenses of those infant counties, though insignificant in the whole, invariably ex- ceeded the revenue, and sufficed scarcely to defray court expenses, rent of rooms and salaries of officers; improve- ment of roads and building of bridges was out of the ques- tion; but let it be said in honor of those pioneers, that they contrived to find means to aid the poor and helpless. We mention here that the authorities in 1809 paid Thomas Cox 8144 A year for keeping Thomas Branham, a blind man. Thus it is shown that about one-sixth of the whole revenue was expended in support of one unfortunate fellow being ! In extreme cases the aid of the territorial government was extended to the helpless, as for instance in the case of Julian Bart, who had been drafted to serve a tour of duty as a militiaman during the past summer, and while in service and obeying the orders of his officer, was shockingly wounded, having one arm shot off and the other broken in different places, his body lacerated and his eyesight greatly injured, and now lies in a most distressed situation in the town of St. Louis, dependent on the hounty of a poor family; and whereas it would be cruel to permit him to linger out a miserable existence, rendered so in the service of his coun- try, without the support which it is able to afford him, therefore it is ordered by the governor that the auditor draw warrants for such sums of money as may from time to


104


HISTORY OF RANDOLPH, MONROE AND PERRY COUNTIES, ILLINOIS.


time become necessary for the support of said Julian Bart, aud to provide for his removal from St. Louis to Kaskaskia, his home, etc, etc." Bart was soon after put on the U. S. pension list.


PROCEEDINGS IN COURTS OF JUSTICE.


Before reciting some interesting criminal cases during territorial times, it may be proper to introduce here a brief sketch of


TERRITORIAL LAWS.


We will allude to some features of the territorial code, which may give an idea to the reader of the progress and amelioration attained in criminal jurisprudence and the punishment for debt. Thus in the punishment of crimes, both felonies and misdemeanors, the barbarous practices of whipping on the bare back, confinement in stocks, standing in the pillory, and branding with hot irons were the penal- ties frequently prescribed ; besides fines, imprisonment and loss of citizenship. These summary modes of chastisement grew in part out of the condition of the country. It was but sparsely settled, the people were poor, they had no general prison or penitentiary, and the few jails were so insecure as to present scarcely any barrier to the escape of prisoners. Whipping upon the bare back, besides other punishments at the option of the court, was prescribed in burglary or robbery, 39 stripes ; in perjury, larceny, the receiving of stolen goods, and obtaining goods by fraudulent pretenses, 31 stripes ; horse stealing, first offence, from 50 to 100 lashes ; hog stealing from 25 to 39 lashes ; altering and defacing marks or brands on domestic animals at large, 40 lashes " well laid on"; bigamy, punished with from 100 to 300 stripes ; for sodomy, from 100 to 500 lashes were prescribed ; forcibly taking away a female to marry against her consent was declared a felony and might be punished by whipping ; children or servants for disobedience, might upon complaint and conviction before a justice, be whipped not exceeding 10 stripes. Fines were collected from those unable to pay by the sheriff hiring or selling them to any one who would pay the fine and costs for such terms as the court might deem reasonable, and if the delinquent should abscond, the penalty was double the term of servitude and 39 stripes. Standing in pillory was prescribed, in addition to other penalties, in perjury, forgery, and the altering or defacing of brands or marks on domestic animals. For this last offense, on second conviction the culprit was to have the letter T branded in the left hand with a red hot iron. To prevent the common crime of killing stock running on the range, every one, including the owners, was required to exhibit the ears of hogs or hides of cattle, killed, to a magis- trate or two freeholders within three days under a penalty of $10.00. For aiding the escape of a convict, the punish- ment was the same as that of the culprit, except in capital cases, when stripes, standing in pillory or sitting on the gal- lows with the rope adjusted about the neck, at the option of the court was the penalty. Besides in treason and murder, the penalty of death by hanging was pronounced against arson and rape, and horse-stealing on second conviction.




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