History of Boone County, Missouri., Part 8

Author:
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: St. Louis, Western Historical Company
Number of Pages: 1220

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In Kansas City there were five parish churches, a hospital, a con- vent and several parish schools. In 1868 the northwestern portion of the State was erected into a separate diocese, with its seat at St.Joseph,

HISTORY OF MISSOURI.

and Right-Reverend John J. Hogan appointed Bishop. There were, in 1875, in the city of St. Louis, 34 churches, 27 schools, 5 hospitals, 3 colleges, 7 orphan asylums and 3 female protectorates. There were also 105 priests, 7 male and 13 female orders, and 20 conferences of St. Vincent de Paul, numbering 1,100 members: In the diocese, out- side of St. Louis, there is a college, a male protectorate, 9 convents, about 120 priests, 150 churches and 30 stations. In the diocese of St. Joseph there were, in 1875, 21 priests, 29 churches, 24 stations, 1 college, 1 monastery, 5 convents and 14 parish schools :

Number of Sunday Schools in 1878 2,067

Number of Teachers in 1878

18,010

Number of Pupils in 1878

139,578

THEOLOGICAL SCHOOLS.

Instruction preparatory to ministerial work is given in connection with collegiate study, or in special theological courses, at :

Central College (M. E. South) Fayette.

Central Wesleyan College (M. E. Church) .

. Warrenton.

Christian University (Christian) . Canton.

Concordia College Seminary (Evangelical Lutheran) . . St. Louis.

Lewis College (M. E. Church) Glasgow.

St. Vincent College (Roman Catholic) . Cape Girardeau.

Vardeman School of Theology (Baptist)

Liberty.

The last is connected with William Jewell College.

CHAPTER XIII.

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.

Thomas T. Crittenden, of Johnson county, received the Demo- cratic nomination for Governor of Missouri at the convention at Jeffer-

HISTORY OF MISSOURI.

son City, July 22d, 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. Louis, 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 policy, 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 important 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 con- temned.

HANNIBAL & ST. JOE RAILROAD CONTROVERSY.

By a series of legislative acts, beginning with the act approved February 22, 1851, and ending with that of March 26, 1881, the State of Missouri aided with great liberality in the construction of a system 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 bouds and coupons. The Treasurer of the State was

HISTORY OF MISSOURI.

to be exonerated from any advance of money to meet either principal or interest. The State contracted with the railroad company for com- plete indemnity. She was required to assign her statutory mortgage 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 railroad, 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 pre- maturely, 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 larger 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 spring 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 upon 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 company 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, 6

HISTORY OF MISSOURI.

and which would go to extinguish the interest on the State's obliga- tions."

March 26, 1881, the Legislature, in response to a special message of Gov. Crittenden, dated February 25, 1881, in which he informed the Legislature of the purpose of the Hannibal and St. Joseph com- pany 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 the bonds 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. August 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.

"Second. 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.

HISTORY OF MISSOURI.

"Third. That the rights and equity of the parties are to be deter- mined 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 deter- mine what that further sum is an accounting must be had. The ques- tion 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 ? * * I think a perfectly fair basis of settle- ment 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 com- plainants 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 offi- cers charged with the duty of making said investment used reason- able 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 discharge 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 instal- ment 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."

KILLING OF JESSE JAMES.

The occurrence during the present Governor's administration which did most to place his name in everybody's mouth, and even to herald

HISTORY OF MISSOURI.

it abroad, causing the European press to teem with leaders announcing . the fact 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 empower- ing the Governor, by placing the money at his disposal, to offer heavy rewards for the capture of the two James brothers. This was ac- cordingly done by proclamation, and, naturally, many persons were on the lookout 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 Ray 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." Robert Ford and brother seem to have been thoroughly in the confidence of James, who then (startling as it was to the entire State ) resided in the city of St. Joseph, with his wife and two children ! The Fords went there, and when the robber's back was turned, Robert shot him dead in the back of the head! The Fords told their story to the authorities of the city, who at once arrested them on a charge of mur- der, and they, when arraigned, plead guilty to the charge. Promptly, however, came a full, free and unconditional pardon from Gov. Crit- tenden, 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 meas- ures which James' course had rendered necessary, still upheld the Governor for the part he played. As it was, the " Terror of Mis- souri " was effectually and finally " removed," and people were glad that he was dead. Robert Ford, the pupil of the dead Jesse, had

HISTORY OF MISSOURI.

been selected, and of all was the most fit tool to use in the extermina- tion of his preceptor in crime.

The killing of James would never have made Crittenden many ene- mies 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 gaminghouse- keeping 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 bur- den of complaint with the faction that opposes him. However, it must be borne in mind that his term 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.

HISTORY OF ST. LOUIS.

ST. LOUIS.

Her First Settlement - Arrival of the First Steamboat - Removal 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 Real 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 des- tined 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 coun- try, and called their post St. Louis. In 1768 Captain Rios 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 suc- cessive Spanish Governors until March 10, 1804. The Spanish govern- ment, by the treaty of San Ildefonso in 1800, retroceded the territory to France, and, by purchase, France ceded the whole country to the

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HISTORY OF ST. LOUIS.

THE GREAT BRIDGE SPANNING THE MISSISSIPPI AT ST. LOUIS.

HISTORY OF ST. LOUIS.

United States, April 30, 1803. In October of the same year Congress passed an act approving the purchase, and authorizing the President to take posses- sion 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 Carlos Dehault Delassus, a surrender of the post of St. Louis and the Territory of Upper Louisiana. On the 10th of

THE FOUR COURTS, ST. LOUIS.

HISTORY OF ST. LOUIS.

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 in 1809. It did not grow 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 in its character and population. The Missouri Fur Company, which had its headquarters there, was organized in 1808, of which Pierre Chou- teau 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 government to St. Charles, where it remained until located at Jefferson City in 1826. In 1822 St. Louis began to take on more style, and was incorporated as a city December 9th of 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 of Joan 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 Pike. 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.

HISTORY OF ST. LOUIS.

BOUNDARIES AND INCORPORATION.

In 1820 the population had reached 4,928, and when incorporated in 1822 was believed to number about 5,000, not much immigration having

SCENE IN THE ST. LOUIS FAIR GROUNDS.

1 -

come 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,

HISTORY OF ST. LOUIS.

just below the gas works, thence west to Seventh Street, and up Seventh Street to a point due west of "Roy'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 Rosetti.

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 . rash 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 felt the depression in her financial circles, her commercial prosperity was in no wise checked. There is very little more in the history of St. Louis to record than the noting of her general prosperity and steady onward progress for the next decade.

Her 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 lighted 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

HISTORY OF ST. LOUIS.

brother, had accompanied Laclede Liguest, to locate a trading-post for the fur company of which they were members. He was a promi- nent 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 won- derful progress of the city in the eighty-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-

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History of Boone County, Missouri., Part 8

Author: Publication date: 1882 Publisher: St. Louis, Western Historical Company Number of Pages: 1220

Author:
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: St. Louis, Western Historical Company
Number of Pages: 1220