USA > Mississippi > School history of Mississippi; for use in public and private schools > Part 10
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* Roosevelt's The Winning of the West, Vol. IV., p. 223.
I35
PROGRESS OF THE TERRITORY OF MISSISSIPPI
As early as 1802 an unsuccessful attempt was made to limit the bringing of slaves into the Territory. In writing on this subject in 1802 Governor Claiborne said : " This class of population is increasing rapidly, and will sooner or later be a great public evil. But the culture of cotton pays so well, and personal labor is so valuable, it creates such a demand for negroes that we shall soon be overrun from the older States, and probably by the most abandoned of that unfortunate race."*
164. Condition of the Territory at the Close of the War of 1812 .- Before the outbreak of the war with Great Britain . cotton sold readily for fifteen cents a pound. This led many of the planters on the Mississippi to plunge recklessly into debt for land and slaves. The war reduced the price of cotton to seven or eight cents. To render the unhappy condition of the people still more pitiable, the crops failed for several years in succession, and the river lands were subjected to three annual overflows. Many of the most able-bodied men left the farm for the field of battle. Property was soon reduced to one-half of its former value. Besides this, the legislature of the Territory passed several acts that had an injurious effect on the country. As the inhabitants of the Tombigbee Valley were forced to leave their homes and their ungathered crops in order to find protection from the savage warrior, their condition was even more distressing than that of their neighbors in the western part of the Territory.t
165. Money and Banking .- Spanish money was largely used by the people of Mississippi in the territorial period. By an act of the territorial legislature receipts for cotton delivered at public gins were made to supply the demands for money previous to 1809. In that year the Bank of
* Claiborne's Mississippi, p. 224.
t Claiborne's Mississippi, pp. 331, 332.
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HISTORY OF MISSISSIPPI
Mississippi was chartered for a period of twenty-five years, and received authority to put into circulation currency notes or bills. This bank was wisely conducted by private individuals until 1818, when its powers were increased, and it became the first Bank of Mississippi .*
166. Printing and Newspapers .- We are told that the first printing done in Mississippi was by Colonel Andrew Marschalk, Sr., at Walnut Hills (Vicksburg). He first printed a ballad, " The Galley Slave," the work being done on a small press which he carried to that place with him in 1797 or 1798. The largest sheet this press could print was 4x6 inches. He afterwards built for himself a press which was large enough to print a foolscap sheet 11x14 inches, and upon this he printed at Natchez the laws of the newly organized Territory of Mississippi. According to Colonel Marschalk's account, he sold this press to Ben M. Stokes, who began (1799) in Natchez and continued for some time the publication of the Mississippi Gasette on a foolscap sheet. The next year a gentleman from Baltimore began the publication of another paper in Natchez, but soon failed, his press falling into the possession of James Ferrell, who, with a gentleman by the name of Moffat, published a third paper in Natchez for a short time. In 1802 Colonel Mars- chalk began to publish the Mississippi Herald at Natchez. As early as 1810 seven papers were published in the Terri- tory. Two years later the Republican was first issued by Ludwick Hall at Liberty, in Amite county. In 1813 Colonel Marschalk began the publication of the Woodville Republican.t
167. Education .- In 1810 a Presbyterian minister by the name of Rev. David Ker started in Natchez the first public
* Claiborne's Mississippi,, p. 300.
t See Goodspeed's Memories of Mississippi, Vol I., pp. 174, 184; II., 242-244; also the Mississippi Free Trade for August 16, 1838.
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PROGRESS OF THE TERRITORY OF MISSISSIPPI
female school in Mississippi. He was born in Ireland, though his parents were Scots. His wife and daughters, who were ladies of culture and refinement, were his as- sistants.
In 1802 the territorial legislature chartered Jefferson College, which was named after Thomas Jefferson, Presi- dent of the United States and president of the American Philosophical Society. This act is noteworthy not only because it created the first institution of learning, but because its charter was the first that was granted by the
JEFFERSON COLLEGE IN 1900
legislature for any purpose in Mississippi. It was located in the town of Washington, where it first opened its doors to students in 1811. Although. it has probably never granted a student an academic degree, it still exists in a flourishing condition, highly honored for its past history and its present usefulness .*
* Maye's History of Education in Mississippi, pp. 23-37.
I38
HISTORY OF MISSISSIPPI
Eight educational and literary institutions were chartered by the legislature in the territorial period. Four of these were in Wilkinson county and one each in Adams, Amite, Claiborne, and Jefferson .*
In the thinly settled sections of East Mississippi the population was too much scattered to collect the children into a neighborhood school, and the people were too poor to employ private teachers. The children did not, there- fore, enjoy even the few opportunities for getting an education that were within reach of those in the western part of the Territory.t
Summary
1. In 1801 a treaty between the United States and the Indians opened the "Natchez Trace " from Natchez to Nashville to the safe passage of travelers; a second Indian treaty converted an old trail leading from Knoxville to the Tombigbee into a road; and a third road was opened from Milledgeville, Georgia, to Natchez. This was widened into a wagon road in 1807.
2. Only two methods of travel were possible at an early date- on foot and on horseback. Rolling hogsheads were frequently used in moving. The roads were finally widened so as to permit the passage of wagons.
3. The restrictions upon the navigation of the Mississippi that had been imposed by the Spanish authorities of Louisiana were removed upon the purchase of that country by the United States; the descent of that river by the "New Orleans," in 1811, marks the beginning of steam navigation in the west.
4. During this period agriculture was the principal occupation in the western part of the Territory, and cotton was largely culti- vated along the Mississippi by slave labor. The inhabitants of what is now the eastern part of the State of Mississippi followed the combined pursuits of hunting and stock-raising.
5. In the Mississippi Territory slaves were generally well
* Hutchinson't Code of Mississippi, pp. 245-247.
+ Spark's (W. H.) Memories of Fifty Years, p. 331-332.
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PROGRESS OF THE TERRITORY OF MISSISSIPPI
treated, and as early as 1802 the increase of this class had become a source of concern to Governor Claiborne.
6. During the War of 1812 the planters of Mississippi suffered from many unfavorable circumstances, which resulted in wide- spread ruin.
7. Spanish coins and cotton receipts constituted the first cur- rency of Mississippi Territory. The Bank of Mississippi was chartered in 1809 for a period of twenty-five years.
8. In 1797 or 1798, Colonel Andrew Marschalk, of the United States army, printed a ballad at Walnut Hills (Vicksburg). In 1799, the Mississippi Gazette, the first newspaper printed in Mis- sissippi, was first issued at Natchez.
9. In 1801 the first public female school in Mississippi was started at Natchez, and the year following a charter was granted to the first educational institution established by legislative authority (Jefferson College). The widely scattered population of East Mississippi could not supply any educational advantages during this period.
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HISTORY OF MISSISSIPPI
EPOCH VI IN THE UNION (1817-1861)
Period I .- Under the Constitution of 1817
CHAPTER XVIII
PREPARATIONS FOR STATEHOOD
168. Early Ambitions .- As early as January 9, 1811, Mr. Poindexter made an unsuccessful attempt to induce Con- gress to authorize the people of the Mississippi Territory to form a State government. At that time it was asserted that the Territory had a population of about 45,000, and that it would probably have the required number (60,000) by the time a State government could be organized. Other similar attempts were made from time to time by Mr. Poindexter and Dr. Lattimore, the delegates from Missis- sippi Territory in Congress. These efforts failed, however, because of the vastness of the country which they proposed to form into a State. The western part of the Territory was ambitious to become a State that by its size would exert a great influence in national affairs, and thus command the respect of the entire Union. Many of the inhabitants of the eastern part of the Territory opposed this ambition, because they foresaw a conflict between the interests of the Mississippi and the Tombigbee basins; besides they had no reason for expecting the passage of satisfactory laws by a legislature, a majority of whose members were elected by the people who lived near a rival channel of commerce .*
* For fuller discussion of this subject, see Riley's Boundaries of Mississippi. In Publications of Mississippi Historical Society, Vol. III.
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I41
PREPARATIONS FOR STATEHOOD
169. Division of the Territory .- The inhabitants of the Tombigbee basin lived so far from the territorial capital that, as early as 1803, they demanded a separation from the western part of the Territory. This demand was satisfied for a time by putting that part of the Territory into a new judicial district, of which Harry Toulmin was made judge. In 1809 the question of separation was brought up again, and a petition from the inhabitants east of Pearl River was presented to Congress praying for a division of the Territory. Mr. Poindexter opposed this petition, saying that "there were three parties who must, by the law for the government of the Territory, consent before the Terri- tory of Mississippi could be divided. One party was the Mississippi Territory, the other the State of Georgia, and the third the United States." As none of these parties had consented, he contended that there should be no legislation whatever on the subject .* Since one of the conditions upon which Georgia had given up her claim to Mississippi was that the Territory should finally become a State, her permission was necessary before the country could be divided into two States. This permission was granted by an act of the legislature of Georgia in 1812. In the mean- time Mr. Poindexter had failed in his plan to add to Mis- sissippi all of the newly acquired district of West Florida and to divide the Territory by a line running east from the mouth of the Yazoo River (32º 30'). He succeeded, how- ever, in adding that part of West Florida between the Pearl and the Perdido rivers, but in so doing he strengthened the argument for a division of the Territory, and lost the hope of making a division by a line from cast to west. From this time until the division was finally authorized by Congress, in 1817, this subject agitated the people of the
*Abridgments of Debates of Congress, Vol. III., p. 85; Vol. IV., p. 141.
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HISTORY OF MISSISSIPPI
Territory, and had a marked influence upon their elections. On December 29, 1815, Dr. Lattimore, in behalf of a com- mittee appointed to consider a petition from the legislature of Mississippi, recommended that the Territory be admitted as a State without a change of boundary. When this bill had met the same fate in the Senate as had all other similar bills, Dr. Lattimore consented to a division of the Territory.
170. Pearl River Convention .- As the people who opposed a division of the Territory formed a majority of its population, they elected the delegate to Congress. The opposing party was therefore forced to use other means in order to get its wishes before Congress. In 1816 it held a convention at the house of John Ford on Pearl River. This was called the Pearl River Convention. It was attended by representatives from the Tombigbee, among whom was General Sam Dale. Cowles Mead, a former secretary of the Territory, was made chairman. Judge Toulmin, who was very much in favor of division, was sent to Washington as a special representative of this convention.
171. Establishment of a Line of Division .- Before the arrival of Judge Toulmin in Washington, Dr. Lattimore had become convinced that the Senate would never admit the Territory without dividing it, and was ready to consent to such a measure. Judge Toulmin reached Washington in time, however, to be of considerable help to the eastern part of the Territory in the contest that arose over the establishment of the line of division. The present boundary line between Mississippi and Alabama was settled upon as a compromise, Dr. Lattimore having contended for a line to the east, and Judge Toulmin for one to the west of it. The division line, as finally agreed upon, extended from the mouth of Bear Creek to the northwest corner of Wash- ington county, Alabama, and thence due south to the Gulf of Mexico. By looking at a map of Mississippi it will be
143
PREPARATIONS FOR STATEHOOD
seen, however, that the line between the northwest corner of Washington county and the Gulf does not run "due south," but southeast. This is explained by the fact that the third section of the act provided that the line might be run southeast by the surveyors if it would encroach on the counties of Wayne, etc., in Mississippi .*
172. The " Enabling Act."-On the Ist of March, 1817, President Madison approved an act giving the people of the western part of the Territory of Mississippi the right to form a constitution and State government in harmony with the constitution of the United States, and providing that · the said State, when formed, shall be admitted into the Union upon the same footing with the original States in all respects whatever."
By this act the southern boundary of Tennessee and the division line finally agreed upon (§171) were established as the northern and eastern boundaries, respectively, of the new State. The southern boundary was two lines- one lying in the Gulf, eighteen miles from the main- land of the State, and the other the thirty-first degree of latitude between the Pearl and Mississippi rivers. The Pearl and Mississippi rivers were made the western boundaries of the State, south and north of the thirty-first degree of latitude, respectively. The boundaries of the State as thus fixed have remained unchanged to the present time.
This act named the date for the assembling of the con- vention to frame a constitution for the new State, and fixed the number of delegates to be chosen from each county. It also named the day for the election of these delegates and stated the qualifications for voting for the same.
173. Constitutional Convention (July 7 to August 15, 1817) .- The convention authorized by Congress to form
* Transactions of the Alabama Historical Society, Vol. II., p. 91.
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HISTORY OF MISSISSIPPI
a constitution for the new State met in the town of Wash- ington on the first Monday in July, 1817. There were forty-seven delegates present, representing the fourteen counties of the Territory .* The sessions were held in the old Methodist church, for the use of which the State paid one hundred dollars. David Holmes, the popular governor of the Territory, was one of the delegates, and was chosen president of the convention. This body was composed of men of ability, honesty, and patriotism, many of whom- such as David Holmes, Cowles Mead, Cato West, George Poindexter, and William Lattimore-had already served their country well in other positions. In after years, five of them-David Holmes, George Poindexter, Walter Leake, Gerard C. Brandon, and Abram M. Scott- became governors; three of them-Leake, Holmes, and Poindexter-represented the State in the Senate of the United States; and one of them-Dr. David Dickson- became first lieutenant-governor, and then a member of Congress. There were others whose careers, though less brilliant, were none the less honorable.
When the convention assembled, the people of the pro- posed State were dissatisfied over the division of the country. This doubtless accounts for the fact that it took the convention three days to decide to form a constitution and State government at that time. A resolution was then passed to petition Congress to extend the boundaries of the State. From day to day opposition to the formation of a State government increased until July 15th, when a motion was made to reconsider the question of forming a constitution and State government at that time, and was lost by a tie vote of 23 to 23.} A committee of twenty-one
* For a list and biographical sketch of the delegates, see' Claiborne's Mississippi, pp. 352-360.
+ Riley's Boundaries of Mississippi, in Publications of the Mississippi Historical Society, Vol. III.
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PREPARATIONS FOR STATEHOOD
delegates, of which Mr. Poindexter was chairman, was then appointed to prepare and report to the convention a plan for the constitution.
174. Constitution of 1817 .*- The constitution provided that the government should consist of three distinct depart- ments-the executive, the legislative, and the judicial- and that " no person, or collection of persons, being of one of these departments " should " exercise any power properly belonging to either of the others." All State officials and voters for the same were required to be citizens of the United States. Any person who denied the being of God, or a future state of rewards and punishments, was not allowed to hold the office of governor or lieutenant- governor, or be a member of either branch of the general assembly. The legislature was also given power to pass a law forbidding those who engage in dueling to hold office. Ministers of the Gospel were not permitted to hold the office of governor or to become members of the legis- lature.
The governor and lieutenant-governor were elected by the people for a term of two years. They were required to be at least thirty years of age, to have been citizens of the United States for twenty years and inhabitants of the State for five years, and to have owned for twelve months previous to their election 600 acres of land or real estate to the value of $2,000. The governor was given power to veto acts of the legislature and to pardon criminals. The lieutenant-governor was authorized to preside over the Senate, and to discharge the duties of governor whenever
* When the preamble to this constitution was under discussion, a motion was made by Cowles Mead to strike out the word " Mississippi " and to insert the word "Washington " as the name of the State. It was lost by a vote of 23 to 17.
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HISTORY OF MISSISSIPPI
a vacancy occurred in that office. The other State officials were elected by the legislature.
The legislative department was composed of a house of representatives and a senate, elected by the qualified voters of the State for a term of one and three years, respectively. The members of this branch of the government were also required to own a certain amount of land, and to have lived in the State a certain length of time preceding their election.
The judges of the supreme and superior courts were chosen by the legislature for a term of "good behavior," or until they had arrived at the age of sixty-five.
All free white male persons, twenty-one years of age or upwards, who had lived in the State one year and in the voting precinct six months, and belonged to the militia- unless they had been excused therefrom or had paid a State or county tax-were allowed to vote for all officers elected by the people.
The legislature was authorized to regulate the slave trade and to pass laws defining the rights and duties of masters of slaves.
This constitution was not submitted to a vote of the people for ratification, but went into effect on August 15, 1817, the day it was signed.
Summary
1. The difference in the interests of the Tombigbee and the Mississippi River settlements led to a division of the Territory of Mississippi by a north and south line, which was finally settled upon as a compromise.
2. The people of the western part of the Territory of Missis- sippi were authorized to form a State government by an act of Congress approved March 1, 1817.
3. A convention of forty-seven delegates, representing four- teen counties, was in session from July 7 to August 15, 1817, and formed the first constitution of the State of Mississippi.
4. The constitution of 1817 differed from all other constitutions
147
POLITICAL EVENTS
of the State in the following respects: (1) It provided that all voters must belong to the militia, unless they were exempt from military duty, or had paid a State or county tax; (2) the posses- sion of property was required of governors, lieutenant-governors, and members of the legislature, and of those voting for these officers; (3) ministers of the Gospel were made ineligible to the office of governor or to membership in the legislature; (4) judges were allowed to hold office during good behavior or until they were sixty-five years of age.
CHAPTER XIX POLITICAL EVENTS (1817-1832)
175. Establishment and Recognition of the State Govern- ment .- The constitution provided that an election of the State and county officers should be held on the first Mon- day and Tuesday in September, 1817, and that the first legislature of the State (general assembly) should meet on the first Monday thereafter. The citizens of the State showed their appreciation of the valuable services of Gov- ernor Holmes during the eight years of his administration as territorial governor by making him the first governor of the new State. They rewarded the faithfulness of a former delegate to Congress, the Hon. George Poindexter, by electing him as their first representative in the national House of Representatives. The newly elected legislature chose Judge Walter Leake and the Hon. Thomas Wil- liams to represent the State in the United States Senate. By an act of Congress, approved December 10, 1817, Mississippi was declared to be one of the United States of America, and admitted into the Union on an equal footing with the original States in all respects whatever ; and to her senators and representatives were given seats in the national legislature.
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10 WEST From warneton
MAP OF
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TENNESSEE
MISSISSIPPI
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FLORENCE
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149
POLITICAL EVENTS
176. First Meetings of the State Legislature .- The con- stitution provided for the meeting of the legislature at Natchez on the first Monday in October, 1817, but, owing to a yellow fever panic in that place about the middle of September, the governor called the legislature together at the town of Washington. After the governor had been sworn into office and the United States Senators elected, the legislature adjourned. Two months later it met again in Natchez, and for two months was hard at work on the difficult and important task of making such laws as might meet the needs of a newly organized government. The sessions were held in a dwelling house that belonged to Edward Turner.
177. Administration of Governor Holmes (1817-1820) .- Governor Holmes held the office of governor of the State three months longer than the two years for which he was elected. This arose from the fact that he went into office at the first meeting of the State legislature, which assembled in October, 1817, whereas his successor was inaugurated at the beginning of the third session of that body, which was held in January, 1820. In the administration of Governor Holmes the Supreme Court of the State was organized, and the Bank of Mississippi was changed from a private to a public institution, and obtained charge of all the banking business of the State until 1841. At the end of his term as governor, Mr. Holmes was elected by the legislature to succeed Walter Leake in the Senate of the United States.
178. Administration of Governor Poindexter (1820-1822). George Poindexter and General Thomas Hinds, both popular members of the same party, were candidates for governor in 1819. The election resulted in favor of Mr. Poindexter by a large majority. He was a fine lawyer and a man of wide experience in public affairs ; besides, he was
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