USA > Louisiana > The province and the states, a history of the province of Louisiana under France and Spain, and of the territories and states of the United States formed therefrom, Vol. IV > Part 20
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MISSOURI DURING THE SILVER MOVEMENT.
several elections just before the Nesbit law went into effect was won by the Democrats in 1900 and two were gained by them in 1902.
The act of congress of March 14, 1900, gave formal recogni- tion to the gold standard. As the Democrats, however, in 1900 renominated Bryan, and declared once more for the immediate restoration of free silver coinage at the 16 to 1 ratio, "without waiting for the aid or consent of any other nation," and as the Republicans again put up Mckinley on a gold platform, the sil- ver issue was necessarily dominant, notwithstanding the questions growing out of the Spanish war of 1898. Neither in Missouri, nor in any other state, however, was the canvass so exciting as was that of 1896, though the increase of population made the aggregate vote greater than it was four years earlier.
The majority for McKinley and Roosevelt in the electoral col- lege was 137, which was a longer lead than was obtained for any other presidential ticket since Grant's in 1872. In Missouri Bryan led Mckinley in 1900 by a little less than 38,000, but this was 21,000 below Bryan's margin in the state four years carlier. The Democrats elected all of Missouri's congressmen except Bartholdt and Joy.
Alexander M. Dockery, Democrat, defeated Joseph Flory, Republican, for governor by 32,140 votes in 1900, and his party held each branch of the legislature by a large majority. John A. Lee, Democrat, was elected lieutenant governor. Governor Dock- ery was born near Gallatin, Daviess county, Mo., in 1846, was mayor of Gallatin for a time, and had a much longer service in national office (sixteen years in the popular branch of congress) than did any of his predecessors at Jefferson City.
With Bryan's defeat in 1900 silver's long and losing battle for restoration, which Bland began back in 1877, in Hayes's first year in the presidency, was brought to an end.
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CHAPTER XXI
Missouri of Today and Tomorrow
T THREE months after Governor Dockery entered office, or in April, 1901, the Democrats gained a notable victory in St. Louis, carrying that Republican stronghold for their city ticket, headed by Rolla Wells for mayor. The election was rendered of particular importance by the fact that the officials chosen would serve through the World's Fair period. The two mayors immediately preceding-Cyrus P. Walbridge, elected in 1893, and Henry Zeigenhein, chosen in 1897-were Republicans.
Two years later, in 1903, Senator Vest, then seventy-three years of age, declining to accept another term, ex-Congressman and es Gov. William J. Stone was chosen to succeed him. Mr. Vest had been in the senate since 1879 continuously, and had won a high reputation for his courage, high character and clo- quence.
In 1902 there were discovered in St. Louis the most extensive boodling operations which had been brought to light in any Ameri- can city since the Tweed disclosures in New York a generation earlier. These involved the doings of the St. Louis municipal assembly and the legislature in Jefferson City. The investiga- tions and the prosecutions, so far as they covered the transactions in St. Louis, were pushed by the St. Louis circuit attorney, Joseph W. Folk. Mr. Folk, who was born in Tennessee in 1869, who was graduated from Vanderbilt University, who settled in St. Louis in 1893, who supported Bryan in 1896 and 1900, and who was elected as cirenit attorney of St. Louis in 1900, the first public office which he ever held, quickly, through his cour- age and success in unearthing and in punishing the wrong-doers, became a national figure.
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THIE MISSOURI OF TODAY AND TOMORROW.
Following up clues furnished him in January, 1902, by a St. Louis newspaper reporter, Mr. Folk soon brought to light crookedness in connection with the granting of a franchise to a street railway company, which startled the community. Said the grand jury in its report on the matter: "Convincing docu- mentary evidence was unearthed proving that one Inindred forty- five thousand dollars was placed in escrow in a bank in this city to be paid to the members of the Municipal Assembly in St. Louis upon the passage of a valuable franchise ordinance. This ordi- nance failed and a second bill was introduced, upon the passage of which the sum of about two hundred fifty thousand dollars was distributed among the members. After the passage of this ordi- nance the franchise was sold for one million two hundred fifty thousand dollars. The city realized nothing whatever from this franchise."
Many persons were indicted-members and ex-members of the municipal assembly, for receiving bribes; stockholders of the railway company and their agents or promoters, for sanctioning or giving bribes; and some of all these classes, for perjury in their testimony. Several of the accused fled to Mexico, to Europe and to other places. A few who stood their ground (and also one or two fugitives who were brought back or who came back voluntarily) confessed. Many were convicted. Indictments and convictions were also had in connection with city lighting, with garbage collecting and with other sorts of transactions. Repub- licans and Democrats alike were involved as bribers, bribees, or both.
In the course of these investigations into municipal wrong- doing, clues were obtained which led to still more extensive developments in corruption in the work of the legislature. In its report on May 29, 1903, in this connection, the grand jury said : "The testimony we have heard has shown a state of affairs most amazing. High state officials have confessed to us of having been paid bribes for official influence, and having acted as go-be- tweens in securing bribes for other legislators. Our investigations have gone back for twelve years, and during that time the evidence before us shows that corruption has been the usual and accepted thing in state legislation, and that, too, with- out interference or hindrance. Laws have been sold to the highest bidder in numerons instances that we have evi- dence of. Senators have been on the pay roll of lobbyists and served special interests instead of the public good."
The corruption in Jefferson City covered legislation connected
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with baking powder, school books, railroad freight rates, insur- ance, street railway consolidation, the St. Louis police and elec- tion commissioners laws, and many other things. Among the officials involved in 1903 in the scandals was the lieutenant gov- ernor of the state, who resigned and confessed. In part of the investigations in connection with state legislation, Atty. Gen. Edward C. Crow participated. A little work in this field was done by local officials in Cole county, in which Jefferson City is situated. It was in St. Louis, however, and by Circuit Attorney Folk, that the most important part of the work was accomplished.
But these disclosures bring their compensations. Conviction in nearly every case quickly followed proof of guilt. The locality has thoroughly appreciated the circuit attorney's services and enthusiastically aided him. His name has been conspicuously coupled with the candidacy for the governorship, also with that for the presidency. Public spirit and civic honesty are nowhere more widely diffused and more active than they are in the state and in the principal city. St. Louis's and Missouri's vast scheme of social purification on the eve of the time when they are to enter- tain the nations is an inspiring example to other communities similarly afflicted, and will effectively supplement the World's Fair's exhibits and lessons in 1904.
The World's Fair will be Missouri's largest event during the administration of Governor Dockery. On February 5, 1898, Hon, Richard Bartholdt, of Missouri, introduced a bill in con- gress providing for the holding of an international exposition in St. Louis in 1903, to commemorate the centennial of the pur- chase of Louisiana. Some St. Louis newspapers and public men had, before that time, recommended such a celebration, but the Bartholdt bill brought the matter to the notice of Missouri and the country. The destruction of the Maine ten days later, how- ever, on February 15, 1898, and the war with Spain which fol- lowed it, gave the country things of more pressing moment to think about, and the expositon project was dropped temporarily. It was taken up, however, by the Missouri Historical Society in September, 1898, committees were appointed by that body to consider the matter, and on their suggestion a convention was called by Governor Stephens, of Missouri, to be composed of delegates from each of the states and territories of the Louisiana Province, which met in the Southern hotel, St. Louis, on Jam- ary to, 1800, and which was presided over by Lieut. Gov. J. C. Mellan, of lowa.
Resolutions favoring an international exposition in St. Louis
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THE MISSOURI OF TODAY AND TOMORROW.
in 1903 were adopted by the convention, an executive committee was appointed, with ex-Governor Francis at its head, to arrange plans for the celebration, and this body appointed a committee of fifty citizens, which decided to raise five million dollars by popular subscription, and urged that five million dollars be con- tributed by the city of St. Louis and five million dollars by the United States government. The committee of fifty being raised to one of two hundred, with Pierre Chouteau as its chairman, it framed a bill embodying its ideas, and forwarded it to the Missouri delegation in congress.
On April 12, 1899, the Missouri legislature enacted a law incorporating the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company, and the legislature subsequently submitted to the people two consti- tutional amendments, to be voted on at the general election in November, 1900, one of which authorized a one million dollar appropriation by the state of Missouri for the World's Fair, and the other enabled the people of St. Louis to vote a municipal sub -. scription of five million dollars for the same object.
Congress passed the sundry civil bill on June 4, 1900, with an amendment proposed by Sen. Francis M. Cockrell, of Missouri, promising the federal government's support for the World's Fair, and a contribution of five million dollars conditional on the raising of ten million dollars by subscription by the people of St. Louis and by the municipality. On November 6, 1000, the two Missouri constitutional amendments were adopted by the people, authorizing the St. Louis municipal contribution of five million dollars and the appropriation by the legislature of one million dollars for a state exhibit at the fair. The five million dollar subscription by the people of St. Louis was completed on January 12, 1901, the issue of city bonds for a like amount was authorized by the St. Louis municipal assembly on January 30, and a World's Fair bill with a five million dollar appropriation, previously introduced in the house by Ilon. Charles F. Joy, of Missouri, and referred to a special committee headed by Hon. James A. Tawney, of Minnesota, passed congress early in the morning of March 4, 1901, and was signed by President Mckinley. On March 12 the president appointed the commis- sioners-John M. Thurston, of Nebraska; Thomas H. Carter, of Montana ; William Lindsay, of Kentucky ; George W. McBride, of Oregon; Frederick A. Belts, of Connecticut ; John M. Allen, of Mississippi; Martin 1. flynn, of New York ; John F. Mil. ler, of birbana, and Philip D. Scott, of Arkansas to look after the government's interests in connection with the fair. The com-
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mission subsequently organized by making Mr. Carter president and Mr. Glynn vice president.
The government's co-operation being secured, the fair's pro- moters promptly placed the enterprise on a practical basis. On April 16, 1901, a vote of the stockholders elected ninety-three directors, who, on May 2, the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company having been regularly incorporated under the laws of Missouri a few days previously, chose David R. Francis as. presi- dent; Corwin H. Spencer, Samuel M. Kennard, Daniel M. Ilonser, Cyrus P. Walbridge, Seth W. Cobb, Charles Il. Hut- tig, August Gehner and Pierre Chouteau, vice president ; William H. Thompson, treasurer ; and Walter B. Stevens, secretary, while James L. Blair was subsequently elected as general counsel.
Forest Park, on June 24, 1901, was selected as the site for the fair. On August 24 President Mckinley issued a proclamation giving notice that an international exposition was to take place in St. Louis in 1903, and asking the world to take part in it. Ground was broken in Forest Park on December 20, 1901, the ninety-eighth anniversary of the transfer, at New Orleans, of the Province of Louisiana by France to the United States, and the work of clearing the site and erecting the buildings began. On May 5, 1902, an amendment providing for the postponement of the fair to 1904 was added to the sundry civil bill in congress.
The world's attention to the coming St. Louis Fair was attracted in a striking way by President Francis's dash, in February and March, 1903, across the Atlantic and through a large part of Europe, in which he had conferences with Edward VII. of Eng- land, President Loubet of France, William HI. of Germany, Leo- pold II. of Belgium, the heads of the ministry of Alfonzo XIII. of Spain and with a large number of other personages conspicu- ous in Europe's politics and social affairs, in which he enlisted their co-operation toward securing the participation of their respective countries in the exposition. This work in the interest of publicity was effectively supplemented on April 30, 1903, when President Roosevelt, in the presence of ex-President Cleveland, the representatives of many nations, the governors of eighteen states, and a concourse of tens of thousands of people from all over the country and from many parts of the outside world, dedi- cated the exposition.
Representing, as it does, a larger investment of money and a nich greater area iu ground and floor space than did any pre- vions international exposition ever held anywhere, and promis- ing, as it likewise does, to present a longer list of attractions than
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THE MISSOURI OF TODAY AND TOMORROW.
did any of them, the St. Louis World's Fair of 1904 is certain to be a notable event in the annals of Missouri and of the United States.
Apart altogether from the World's Fair, the lasting effects of which must necessarily be widespread, Missouri has much upon which to felicitate itself. From a population of 20,845 in 1810, just before its organization into a territory, and from 66,557 in 1820, the year before its admission as a state, Missouri had grown to 3,106,665 in 1900. The twenty-third among twenty- four states in 1820, it was the fifth among forty-five in 1900, and had held that rank among the states since 1870.
One of Missouri's cities, St. Louis, stands fourth on the list of the country's great towns, with a population of 575,238 in 1900, being led only by New York, Chicago and Philadelphia. Kansas City was twenty-second on the list of the country's cities in 1900, with a population of 163,752. St. Joseph, with 102,979 inhabitants in that year, was thirty-fourth on the roll. The popu- . lation increase for the decade was 27.3 for St. Louis, 23.4 for Kansas City, and 96.8 for St. Joseph. No other city of St. Joseph's size or larger made any such proportionate gain as that town did in the ten years. Kansas City and St. Joseph are virtually the creation of the past third of a century. Joplin, with 26,000 population in 1900, Springfield with 23,000, Sedalia with 15,000 and Hannibal with 12,000-to restrict the enumeration to towns of over 10,000 inhabitants-are also flourishing communi- ties.
Missouri's total wealth, for purposes of taxation, was placed, on June 1, 1903, at one billion two hundred eighty million eight hundred seventy-seven thousand six hundred fourteen dollars. In some of the items composing this aggregate the amounts are far below the actual mark. The United States census bureau's figures of the true valuation of the property of the various states for 1900 had not been collected when (the middle of 1903) these lines of this history were written.
The state has no bonded debt. Its school fund certificates, three million one hundred fifty-nine thousand dollars, and its seminary fund certificates, one million two hundred thirty-nine thousand eight hundred thirty-nine dollars, a total of four mill- ion three hundred ninety-eight thousand eight hundred thirty-nine dollars, as stated by Auditor Albert O. Allen, represent its aggre- gate obligations. This exhibit places Missouri in a peculiarly fortunate positon among the country's commonwealths.
Notwith tanding the state's rapid growth in population and in
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the extent and diversity of its activities, Missouri's river trade continues to decline. For the calendar year 1902, as shown by the report of the St. Louis Merchants Exchange, the aggregate river traffic-lower Mississippi, upper Mississippi, Missouri, Illi- nois, Ohio, Cumberland and Tennessee-of St. Louis was 641,182 tons, as compared with 672,076 tons in 1901 and 757,590 tons in 1900. For the time at least the glory of Missouri's great water- ways has departed. St. Louis's railroad traffic, however, is expanding much more rapidly than its river trade is contracting. The freight movement at St. Louis by rail, in both directions in the aggregate, amounted to more than 29,000,000 tons for 1902, as against 28,000,000 tons for 1901 and 25,000,000 for the preced- ing year.
These figures are symptomatic of the conditions in Missouri as a whole in this field. There were over 7,000 miles of main track in the state at the end of 1902, representing forty-three steam railroads. Every one of Missouri's 114 counties is traversed by a railroad except Dallas, Douglas, Ozark, Stone and Taney. Missouri's forty-three railroads are parts of systems which rep- resent an aggregate of about 40,000 miles of main track, and a capital stock and serip of a little over one thousand million dollars. Twenty-four lines of railroad terminate in St. Louis. Kansas City is also an important railway center. In the region commercially tributary to Missouri's two leading cities-Kansas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, the Indian Territory and Texas -- the railroad con- struction of recent years has been much more extensive than it has been in any other part of the United States.
St. Louis, the fifth on the roll of the country's cities in popu- lation in 1900, was also fifth in the amount of its bank clear- ings, with a total of two billion five hundred seven million dol- lars, an increase of 10.3 per cent over 1901. This was a greater gain than was made in any other large town in the country, the nearest to it in rate of increase being Chicago, with an 8.2 per cent expansion for that year. Kansas City, the twenty-second on the list of the country's towns in inhabitants, stood in the tenth place in bank clearings, nine hundred eighty-nine million dollars, a gain of 10 per cent over 1901. St. Joseph, holding the thirty- fourth place in population, was up in the twenty-third position in clearings in 1902, with a total of two hundred thirty-three million dollars.
Missouri was fifth in the gross value of its agricultural prod- ucts among all the states and territories in tooo, with a total of two lundred nineteen million dollars, and seventh in the value of
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THIE MISSOURI OF TODAY AND TOMORROW.
its manufacturers, three hundred eighty-five million dollars. It stood first among the states in its manufactures of chewing and smoking tobacco and snuff; fifth in the manufacture of cars for steam railroads; fifth in the production of confectionery, and fifth in the extent of its wholesale slaughtering and meat pack- ing. Missouri's lead and zine fields are among the richest of the world.
St. Louis stood sixth among the country's cities in 1900 in the number of its manufacturing establishments of all sorts, 6,732 ; sixth in the capital invested in them, one hundred sixty-two million dollars ; sixth in the total wages paid, thirty-eight million dollars; fifth in the number of wage earners, 82,672; and fifth in the gross value of their product, two hundred thirty-four million dollars. In these figures, however, as presented by the census returns for 1900, Brooklyn is represented as an independent city, whereas it was annexed to New York two years earlier. This puts St. Louis up a point in each particular. In the gross value of its manufactured product in 1900 it led Boston, one of the country's great manufacturing centers, and it also led any one of thirty-seven entire states. To a larger extent, too, than almost any other great town in the country it may be said that St. Louis owns itself. By the panic of 1893-97 St. Louis was hit later and lighter than any other of the larger business centers. It has a record for financial solidity unsurpassed by that of any other of the country's cities.
It is not in the material things alone that Missouri ranks high as a community. The total enrollment of white and colored pupils in the state's public schools in 1902, as shown by the report of W. T. Carrington, state superintendent of education, was 703,057. These had 16,347 teachers, whose wages in the year was five million four thousand nine hundred forty-two dollars, and they taught in 10,320 school houses. The estimated value of the public school property in the state in the year was twenty- one million two hundred ten thousand eight hundred ninety-seven dollars. The aggregate of the permanent school funds of the state was twelve million seven hundred ninety-five thousand five hundred sixteen dollars. These figures, especially those relating to the state's permanent public school fund, furnish a fine tribute to the intelligence and public spirit of her citizens.
In the report of the United States census bureau for 1900 it was shown that Missouri's illiterates in that year were only 6.2 per cent of the state's male population of ten years of age and over, while the percentage for the United States as a whole
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THE PROVINCE AND THE STATES.
was 10.2. Moreover, this 6.2 per cent represents a constant and rapid improvement, the number of persons in the state unable to read or write of ten years of age and upward being 8.3 per cent of the whole population in 1890 and 12.6 per cent in 1880. The year 1910, therefore, may be relied on to make a still better exhibit than did 1900.
When, a quarter of a century ago, L. U. Reavis, in his book "St. Louis, the Future Great City of the West," urged the removal of the seat of the national government to that place, there were residing in it many persons who, doubtless, will live to see St. Louis and Missouri make social conquests of which even that optimist never dreamed, though perhaps not the particular sort which he had in mind at the time.
Standing near the country's geographical center (that point, for the contiguous portion of the United States, being located in Northern Kansas), Missouri has the center of some of the coun- try's great interests already in its neighborhood, and those of the rest of them are moving in its direction. The center of the United States' population, which was a few miles west of Balti- more when Jefferson bought the territory in which Missouri is the most important community, was six miles southeast of Columbus, Ind., in 1900, and was moving westward; and the center of the country's manufactures, which was near Canton, the late President McKinley's home, in 1800, is hurrying after the population center, and was close to Mansfield, O., the resi- dence of the late John Sherman, in 1900. In 1900 the center of the country's corn production was fifty-four miles southwest of Springfield, Ill. ; the center of the number of the country's farms was Ho miles east by south from St. Louis, in Wayne county, Ill .; those of the production of wheat and oats were in Iowa; and the center of the acres of farm lands was forty-eight miles southwest of Jefferson City, in Camden county, Mo. The cen- ter of the oat production and of the acres of farm lands sprang across the Mississippi since 1890, and that of wheat production made the leap just before that year.
A special impressiveness is given to this swinging of the coun- try's productive pivotal points toward Missouri or into its imme- diate neighborhood by the fact that the United States produces 14 per cent of the world's sheep, 22 per cent of its wheat, 34 per cent of its aggregate manufactures, 35 per cent of its cattle, 52 per cent of its swine, 75 per cent of its corn and 78 per cent of its cotton.
A re-enforcement to the influences which are working for the
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THIE MISSOURI OF TODAY AND TOMORROW.
aggrandizement of Missouri and St. Louis is the Panama canal. The chief interest which the state and the city have in the con- struction of the waterway across the Central American isthmus lies in the certainty that this will divert to New Orleans and other Gulf ports, but particularly to New Orleans, much of the traffic which now goes to New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Bal- timore and other points on the Atlantic coast.
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