USA > Missouri > Buchanan County > The history of Buchanan County, Missouri > Part 31
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You will yourself remember that I was more than once a guest at the house of your honored father. Bear with me while I say I can never forget the model Christian mother, mistress and hostess, who presided over the domestic scene there.
At that time I knew many men who did not know me, for I was a mere youth. I knew they were great as compared with other men I knew, but I had a fancy that the great men were in the east. But after many years of extended observation I have come to the conclusion that I heard as fine a specimen of political speaking in Liberty, in 1844, by Colonel Doniphan, as I have ever heard since, and that the country would be happy if the balances were everywhere held by hands as intel- ligent and firm as those of the pioneer jurist, David R. Atchison.
Among my own class there was the laborious Redman, the scholarly Tutt, the impetuous and saintly Roberts, and many others, now dead. Nor can I omit the name of the incorruptible and courageous Roberson. Some are still living: Holmes, Perry, Ruble, Jordan, Rush, Spencer, Barker and others.
There was a man, a minister of Christ, a large portion of whose pub- lic career belongs to the Platte Purchase, of whom I must say, he was in some respects the most remarkable man I ever saw. I refer to W. G. Caples. He was another "Agamemnon, King of Men." He was a first- class wit, a man of the finest social feeling, having positive ideas, and a a great end to accomplish. That end was the extension of the Kingdom of Christ and the salvation of men. In his view, a high standard of pop- ular education would contribute to this. He did much for North- west Missouri in establishing schools under christian auspices, and although they did not survive the war, they did much to elevate public sentiment, and have left an influence behind them that must be perma- nent.
Now I proceed to say that the old citizens of Platte have heard as great preaching as any other people on the American continent, and from the lips of the man, Caples. I have heard more scholarly men, men whose sermons evinced higher cultivation and a better classical finish ; but for power of argumentation, for philosophical breadth and sweep, for grandeur of conception, for greatness of imagination, for force and pungency of popular appeal, for originality, variety and opulence of
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thought, and for pathos, my conviction is, his superior has not appeared in the American pulpit.
I make no doubt that the ministry and church have done more to quicken thought and create a thirst for knowledge in the west, than is generally understood. Ministers of the Gospel in the new communities, being above the average of people in culture, and dealing in truths of a character to elevate the mind, and provoke inquiry, have, as an incident of their calling, toned up the popular mind, encouraged a taste for read- ing and created a demand for schools. Such a man as Caples cannot mingle with people without elevating them.
But pardon me. I had no thought of becoming so garrulous. I am getting to be almost an old man, and thoughts of the old times have awakened the talking mood in me, until it seems a real hardship and self-denial not to be with you at the reunion. It is thirty years since I heard Doniphan. How I would like to listen to his utterances on this occasion, when old memories will mellow his voice, and since, as I doubt not, Christian sentiments will exalt and irradiate his conception.
Will you have the goodness to present to the "old settlers" my profound regard, and express to them my deep regret that I cannot greet them on this pleasant occasion, for there are many whom I shall never see again.
As ever, E. M. MARVIN."
Bishop Marvin died in 1878.
The following interesting account of the reunion of 1874, we take from the St. Joseph Herald :
OLD SETTLERS' MEETING, SEPTEMBER, 1874.
The Old Settlers' meeting was the most interesting feature of the day. At least one hundred of the old gray-haired sires and mothers, who were among the early settlers of the Platte Purchase, were gathered on the reserved seats in front of the grand stand. At half past twelve o'clock this meeting was called to order by Col. James N. Burnes, who spoke as follows :
" LADIES AND GENTLEMEN-You will not expect of me an extended speech. I am too full to express what I feel. You will allow me to nominate for chairman of this meeting the Hon. David R. Atchison. His name is the balance of my speech.'
Hon. D. R. Atchison then took the floor, and thanked the audience for the honor conferred upon him. He had once presided over the United States Senate, but this was a prouder position than he had ever occupied before. He referred in feeling terms to the carly settlers of the Platte Purchase, the trials and hardships of the people, and their courage and endurance under difficulties.
Hon. George Smith was elected first vice president. Mr. Smith returned his thanks for the distinction. He had no speech, but would on a proper occasion address the people of the Platte Purchase.
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Col. Burnes then opened a book containing the names of the old settlers, and moved that they be appointed vice presidents. Carried.
Col. J. H. R. Cundiff was appointed secretary of the meeting.
Gen. Craig then introduced Gen. A. W. Doniphan. Gen. Doniphan then came forward and said the sight of the Old Settlers exhilarated him like laughing gas. He said that old people like to talk, but he had to excuse himself with returning his thanks to the managers of the Expo- sition for granting the opportunity to the Old Settlers to have a re-union. One of the privileges of an old man was to contrast the present state of the country with what it was when the first settlement was made. He referred to the railroads, cities, colleges and other evidences of civiliza- tion that had sprung up in this country, that was an unknown wilderness in the old times. The Missouri of 1874 was an entirely different Mis- souri from that of 1830. He referred in feeling terms to those who had died since the settlement of the country.
He referred to the free and easy hospitalities of the early days. Men did not stop to part their hair in the middle, but just gave it a toss back and went about their business. The unbounded hospitality was such as the world had never seen before. The ladies were the picture of health, and had strength as well as beauty, and there wasn't a strong. minded one among them. They had eyes like the doe, and a step like the gazelle, and were self-reliant and natural. He referred to the old type of men, that some thought had become extinct, but assured the audience they still lived.
His speech was well interspersed with anecdotes, and he kept the audience laughing and roaring for full fifteen minutes. He referred to the old Missouri settlers who had made homes in Colorado and California, and said still they kept up the good old customs. He spoke of the pro- gress of the last quarter of a century. Twenty-five years ago there was not more than a thousand miles of railroad in America. St. Joseph and Kansas City were the ultimathule of civilization. Now they were great railroad centres, teeming with the commerce of half a dozen states and territories. The iron horse had passed our borders and gone career- ing on his conquering course across numerous territories to the golden gates of the Pacific. It was impossible to conceive what the next hun- dred years had in store for this great country.
Judge Birch was then loudly called for ; but Gen. Craig introduced Senator Bogy, who then came forward, and spoke as follows :
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN OF NORTHWEST MISSOURI :- For many years I have attended meetings of the people in different towns, cities and counties of the state, and, indeed, in many of the states of the Union, but I can say with the utmost sincerity that I have never before taken part in any assemblage of the people which gave me so much true and heartfelt pleasure as this one does. When your invitation, sent to
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me by your committee, was received, I was on the eve of disposing of my time in a different way from that of being present here to-day, but the reading of it at once decided me to forego all other engagements. I have come, my friends, to exchange with you greetings of friendship, and to talk of the past, and of the men who, a few years ago, were with us working and shaping the destiny of our state and devoting their time, and energies to its material development. Most of them after well- spent lives, have passed from among us, leaving behind them honored names-to be cherished and respected by their descendants. I take it that, with few exceptions, I am addressing the children of the old set- tlers. Judging from my own recollections, there are but few left of the old set. Thornton and Thompson, and Laidlow. and Rich and Dough- erty, with whom I was personally acquainted, have paid the great debt of nature, and lie now beneath the green sod of the section first made to contribute its share to the support of the civilized man. Other names could be mentioned by persons better acquainted with the individuals of this section than I am; but these few are a type of the old settlers. Who does not remember the name of each of these men without a pro- found emotion of respect and veneration ? They were not only intelli- gent and influential, but in these respective persons was embodied the true character of American citizenship.
You, my friends, who are their descendants, should not only respect their memories, but be proud of their private and public virtues. A nation of such men would be the wonder of the world. So much for the past. I meet here to-day a few of the old settlers who have been spared as the connecting link between us and the past. Atchison and Doni- phan, Morin and Wood and Birch, and a few others are here yet. Two of these have national reputations, and would of themselves be sufficient to make a nation illustrious. Atchison was for a long time the presid- ing officer of the Senate of the United States, when in that body were Calhoun and Clay and Webster and Benton and Crittenden and Man- gum and Cass and Houston, and a host of other illustrious characters. He then acquired a reputation co-extensive with the nation. The name of Doniphan will live in history forever. His campaign in and through an enemy's country, under the most difficult circumstances, has never been surpassed by anything in ancient or modern times. Alexander obtained the name of Great because he went from Greece to the Indus, and for ages a halo of glory has surrounded his name, not surpassed by that of Hannibal or Napoleon ; yet when all the attending circumstances are duly considered, the march headed by your own Doniphan required more true courage and bravery, and power of endurance, and patience,. and perseverance, and skill and military genius than the expedition headed by Alexander the Great. Atchison and Doniphan are yet with you-and with the true simplicity of Cincinnatus and the dignity of Cato, move in your midst, sharing in your joys and sympathizing with your sorrows. May they be spared for many years to come. I am not here to-day, my friends, to deliver an eulogy upon the men who first settled this section. I have mentioned a few as a type, so as to let their descendants know what sort of men they came from, and so that they may entertain a feeling of great pride in their ancestors.
I am myself a descendant of a race of pioneers, different in many respects from the one I am speaking of. The first settlers of the valley
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were French, yet they did not come here from France. In the latter part of the seventeenth and early part of the eighteenth century, the fur trade of the valley of the Mississippi became an object of commercial importance, and the Canadians were the first persons who came here, and did so as fur traders. Canada was then a colony of France, and remained so till the treaty of Paris of 1763. The early Canadian pioneer is, therefore, the original settler of this country. They remained, how- ever, on the east side of the Mississippi, and settled the towns of Caho- kia, Prairie du Pont, Prairie du Rocher, Kaskaskia and Fort Chartiers, and crossed the river only towards the latter part of the eighteenth century.
After the treaty of 1763, by which the east side of the river was ceded to England, they came over the river in larger numbers, believing that it yet belonged to France, although the same treaty had ceded it to Spain. I will not detain you with the details, and only mention them to explain the different character of emigrants who first settled our state, At the time Louisiana was organized, in 1803, by Mr. Jefferson, the popu- lation of this country was, I may say, entirely French. Soon after the acquisition a large emigration came from Virginia, the great old mother of states, and from Kentucky, the first daughter of the glorious old mother, and from the old North State of Carolina, and from Tennessee, and settled in the counties of New Madrid, Cape Girardeau, Ste. Gene- vieve, St. Louis and St. Charles. This emigration continued, not very rapidly, till the admission of Missouri as a state, when our population was only 56,000. I well remember the excitement about the Boone's Lick country, when I was a boy in my native town. Wagons filled with women and children, followed by cattle, horses and hogs, were passing through the town every day. Many of the little boys in the wagons became, in after times, leading men in our state, and no doubt many of the innocent little girls became the mothers of other men who also became distinguished and played their parts in the drama of life. Boone's Lick was settled by a noble lot of men and women. Old Daniel Boone himself came to our state and settled here. Boone, Callaway, Howard, and Clinton Counties were settled at this period. A few years afterwards the tide moved towards the northwest and settled the counties of Clay, Ray, Carroll, etc.
In 1836 a most remarkable, and, under the political condition of the country, a most singular event took place. The section of country known as the Platte country, being the triangle lying west of the western line of our state and the Missouri River, was by aci of Congress added to our state. I well remember the newspaper controversy which took place at the time in relation to it. Benton and Linn were in the Senate-both being Senators of commanding influence-Benton being then considered the Ajax of the administration, and Linn, personally, the most popular man in the Senate, for he was as lovely as a woman, yet possessing the true characteristics of one of the knights of old. Ashbury was in the House-a man of high character and large wealth, which he expended with princely liberality. Benton and Linn claimed a measure of credit for the passage of this law-which Ashley denied. On the other hand he claimed that which they denied. The truth is, that but one was entitled to great credit for the passage of the measure. It required the combina- tion of talent and personal popularity and personal influence which they
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had to secure its passage, and to cach and to all are we indebted for this great measure.
This section of country now embraces the counties of Holt, Atchison, Nodaway, Andrew, Platte and Buchanan, and this beautiful and growing city of St. Joseph its metropolis, was founded by an old friend of my boy- hood-Joseph Robidoux-who was really the first pioneer of the Platte country.
Up to the passage of this law, this was an Indian country, and by treaty had been set apart forever to the Sioux and Fox tribes of Indians. As soon as this most bountiful and rich country was acquired, as already mentioned, and opened to settlement, a wave of emigrants immediately poured into it, and soon this country, which but a short time before had been the home of the Indian and wild beast, was transformed into mag- nificent farms, and the home of as fine and noble a race of men as any country can boast of. In many respects the latter emigrants had the ad- vantage of the first settlers, and certainly greatly the advantage of the carly Canadians. They left the old country after they or their fathers had had time and opportunity to acquire property, and also to obtain educations, which was an impossibility with the carly settlers. Many of them, indeed, were men of wealth and the owners of many stores, and also possessing liberal education. Many of the women were highly edu- cated and accomplished. I visited the section when a young man, and I never shall forget the favorable impression made on me at the time, not only by the robust and intelligent men I met, but by as charming, hand- some and accomplished ladies, young and old, as I ever met elsewhere.
I have thus, ladies and gentlemen, in a brief and desultory manner. given you a sketch of the early settlers of our country.
Each generation has, no doubt, its alloted duties; ours is to trans- mit to those who are to come after us as the rich legacy we inherited from our forefathers-and this is not only in the political order, but in the social and moral order-and as your fathers left you honored names, you should do nothing to tarnish them; nay, you must not, no matter at what personal cost, permit any one else to place a blot on the fair fame of the brave men and women from whom you have sprung. And, as you inherited high social positions, transmit the same to your children. Do this and you, like your fathers, will have discharged the duties of your day and generation, to them, to your sons, and to those who are to come after you.
Ladies and gentlemen : Permit me in conclusion to say a few words of a personal nature. The people of my state have honored me with the highest office in their gift. A seat in the Senate of the United States is truly one of the most distinguished and elevated positions which man can hold in this or any other country. When elected to this high posi- tion I felt the measure of my ambition was full, and the dreams of a long life realized. Yet I felt as but few can feel, a sense of gratitude to the generation of the present day for selecting in my humble person a descendant of the old hunters and settlers of this portion of the New World. In the name of my early forefathers, the old hunters of this Western World, and with the recollections of their primitive and humble virtues fresh in my heart and soul, I return thanks to my generation for this, its great act of generosity to one of their descendants.
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General Craig then introduced General B. F. Stringfellow, who spoke briefly and to the point. He referred to the fact that he was a citizen of Kansas ; he said there was no act in his life of which he was so proud as the fact that he was once a member of the firm of Atchison, Stringfellow & Co. He here saw the Co. around him in the faces of the old settlers. He referred to the brilliant career of Colonel Doniphan, and the acquisition of Texas, New Mexico and California, to the early settlements of Kansas and the men who were then called border ruffians. They were rightly described by a young lady as the last remains of chivalry. He had only to say he was sorry they were whipped. He accepted the situation brought about by the new order of things.
He did not propose to shed any useless tears over the past, but to accept the new order of things and make the best of it and the most of it. He referred to the prejudice formerly existing against Northern men, and was glad that the old prejudices were worn out, and that the people of the Missouri Valley were a homogenous people. His speech abounded in anecdotes, and was frequently applauded by the immense audience in attendance.
Uncle Henry Vories was then introduced, and spoke in his pleasant, old-fashioned way :
MR. PRESIDENT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN AND OLD SETTLERS OF MISSOURI-I decline making anything like a speech on this occasion, but I propose relating a few incidents in my life which, doubtless, will be personally recollected by not a few old settlers before me.
I came to Missouri from Indiana in 1844, the memorable year of the flood. I started with nothing and arrived here with less, with my family sick into the bargain. Some time before leaving Indiana, on examining the map of the Platte country, I placed my finger on the spot, in the bend of the Missouri, where St. Joseph was marked down, and where she now stands, and said, "That shall be my home."
I started for the new land of my hopes and arrived at last in Clinton County. There I became sick from the fatigue and labors of the journey and could proceed no further. I was without money and almost entirely destitute. An early settler of that country, many of you know him, Mr. Bagley, took me and my family into his house, giving us the best quarters he possessed, and took care of us while I was sick, his wife waiting upon me as tenderly as my own mother could have done. It was there, while lying sick, before having reached my journey's end, that I first saw the face of my friend, Judge James H. Birch, now before you. Dr. Essig had come to wait on me. I told him that I had no money, and did not know when, if ever, I could pay him for his professional services, and that unless he felt able to give his services to me without certainty of ever getting any pay, he had better not spend his time with me. He said he would do the best for me he could. The next morning who should come to my bedside but Judge Birch. I was in a very dilapidated condition, which he could not help observing as he looked at me, and he said to me : ." You are a stranger here, and in straightened circumstances, which I
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fully appreciate ; pemit me to loan you some money." That was my first introduction to Judge Birch.
I finally got into a cabin with my family ; I could throw a dog through the cracks of the door. One of my children was sick, and one morning a blue-coated boy of the neighborhood who had become acquainted with her, came to see her. That boy now is the Hon. Willard P. Hall. In a few days the Hon. James B. Gardenhire called to see me and I formed his acquaintance.
After a while the time for court to sit came round. I wanted to go, but had no money. I owed a girl, a servant in the house, fifty cents, and she wanted to leave, and I was determined. not to let her go unpaid. One day old Bob Duncan came to me and asked me if I was going to court ; I told him no, that my family were sick and I didn't want to leave them. I wanted to go, but I had no money ; but I didn't want to tell. him any more. He suspected the real trouble and said : "Now, Vories, don't you need a little money? Take this and go to court," and he handed me several good sized coins. I did.go. to court ..
The first fee I got was a horse, which I sold for $40. The next day I took the money and went to Plattsburg to pay my friend Birch: I met Bela Hughes and told him my mission. He said, "don't look so down- hearted." My hat was old and very dilapidated, for a member of the . legal profession, and Hughes noticed it and said, "Hold your head up, there are good people here, and the man who rides forty miles to pay a debt will succeed."
Here I met many of these old men and got acquainted with them: Afterward I was for a brief moment captivated with the stories about California, and made a visit there. But I could not stay. On my return I met the question on all sides, "what makes you come back," and I said to them, "the men I meet here, when I speak to them, stood about six inches closer to me than they do out there." I said to my partner, in. California, before leaving there, that if I knew that I could live only two years longer, and it would take me eighteen months to get back to Mis- souri, I would spend that eighteen months in getting home just to live . the other six months among the people of Missouri. And now, all I ask is, that when it is all over, my grave may be made among the graves of my old benefactors.
Gen. Craig then said that they had kept the best of the wine to the last of the feast, and then introduced Judge James H. Birch, Sr., who spoke as follows :
The venerable and venerated Judge Birch, of Clinton County, was the next and last speaker.
He commenced by an illusion to the kindly reference which had been made to him by Judge Vories, in respect to a. circumstance occurring some thirty years ago, in which he had been.so befriended by the speaker as to satisfy him that he had come to the right. country, to find men, and. which had actuated him ever since. The Judge had. regarded it simply as the duty of a lawyer and citizen, who happened to have a few dollars at the time, toward another lawyer (and a sick one) who was in a strange country and was out of money, to divide with him. But as demonstrat-
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