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4,411
Pierce.
421
22
1,323
685
926
Dawson ..
643
48
5,155
3,068
295
Platte.
3,313
288
9,123
9,173
7,206
Dixon ..
2,122
72
6.732
158
2,496
Polk .
2,423
290
3,696
217
10,284
Dodge.
4,350
377
11,552
3,424
14,927
Red Willow
544
51
2,817
1,375
284
Douglas. .
4,078
409
8,847
792
11,873
Richardson
7,221
696
18,091
3,162
34,690
Fillmore.
4,329
465
5,429
2,765
18,162
Saline.
5,527
412
8,897
2,029
26,289
Franklin
1,659
176
3,276
1.325
4,516
Sarpy .
2,734
165
7,176
438
11,013
Frontier
527
18
8,672
1,471
86 Saunders
6,379
599
11,847
2.979
29,512
Furnas. .
1,674
135
4,229
2,267
1,434 Seward ..
4,740)
453
6,648
1,855
19,611
Gage.
5,070
490
10,359
13,377
20,994
Sherman ..
382
65
1,283
169
658
Greeley .
307
33
1,272
78
395
Stanton .
775
27
1,833
2,440
1,830
Gosper.
275
31
819
2,313
234
Sioux *.
Hall.
2,736
360
8,668
1,409
5,134
Thayer. .
2,076
186
3,733
3,156
8,921
Hamilton.
3,567
405
4.258
720
7,027
Valley. .
681
68
1,909
54
522
Harlan ..
1,630
184
3,401
1,007
2,050
Washington
3,666
469
10,656
1,313
18,408
Hitchcock.
312
12
13,312
14
Wayne ..
288
10
675
1,439
878
Howard ..
1,083
220
2,420
1,250
1,786
Webster ..
2,681
413
5,032
3,922
12,450
Holt ..
630
56
3,344
215
494
Wheeler*
York ...
4,755
434
5,647
1,383
17.262
Jefferson . .
3,116
309
6,197
5,029
11,247
Johnson .. .
3,494
344
7,280
1,334
14,257
Total ..
157,619
1 15,412 513,668
131,787 1562,790
·
..
* Returned with adjoining Counties.
172
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
Haves *.
·
174
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
RECAPITULATION OF NUMBER AND VALUE OF FARM ANIMALS.
FARM ANIMALS.
NUMBER.
1875.
VALUE. 1875.
NUMBER .!
1879.
VALUE. 1879.
INCREASE
IN
NUMBER.
INCREASE IN VALUE.
Horses.
..
94,637 $3,678,528.00
157,619 $4,116,069.00
62,982 $ 437,541.00
Mules and Asses . . . .
8,785
428,817.00
15,412
493,401.75
6,627
64,584.75
Neat Cattle.
242,659
2,852,162.00
513,668
4,185,533.50
271,009
1,333,371.50
Sheep
36,014
44,689.00
131,787
123,358.20
95,773
78,669.20
Swine
146,933
182,308.00
562,790
515,715.70
415,857
336,407.70
INDEBTEDNESS.
The excellent condition and wise and economical manner in which the finances of the State are managed is a matter upon which the citizens may be congratulated. The bonded indebted- ness of the State is very small, amounting at present to only $599,267.35. Of this amount $50,000 are in bonds issued for the relief of the grasshopper sufferers, and the balance, $549,267.35 is in bonds issued to fund the State debt, $426,267.35 of which is held by the permanent School Fund of the State, and $123,000 by private parties. The balance of money in the treasury, on the 30th of November, 1878, was 460,181.99, which, with the delinquent taxes, will more than balance all outstanding claims against the State, thus leaving it practically free of debt.
The assessment rolls of the State show a notable increase from year to year in taxable property, in the addition of acres of taxable land, miles of railroad constructed, and of various descriptions of personal property. The total assessed valuation of taxable property for 1879-which is hardly one-half of its real value-was $75,359,798.87, against $20,069,222 in 1867, the year in which the State was organized, thus showing a constant and enormous ncrease in its material wealth. During the past several years liberal appropriations have been made for the establishment and main- tenance of Asylums for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind, a Hospital for the Insane, the Normal School, Penitentiary, for the support of the University, and for charitable purposes.
CHAPTER XV.
THE PRESS OF NEBRASKA.
Too much cannot be said in praise of the newspapers of Nebraska for the important and influential part they have taken in the development of the State, in promoting immigration and building up its interests from the earliest settlements. Journal- ists of ability were among the foremost of our pioneers, and helped to lay the foundations of many of our most flourishing towns, and who, as soon as settlement was fairly begun, started lively little newspapers to herald the advantages and beauties of the new country to the people of the East; and as the settlements were developed and the towns increased to cities, so were the newspapers enlarged to keep pace with their general surroundings. To-day the Press of the State is the pride of the peo- ple, and will compare favorably for journalistic ability and influence with that of any Western State. Several of our dailies are among the foremost journals of the West, and are well patronized and influential at home and abroad; while almost every village in the State of a few hundred inhabitants, has a well-sustained weekly newspaper, many of them models of neatness and conducted with marked ability, which render the State and their localities great service.
To residents of older States who inquire after the growth and prosperity of Nebraska, no fact is more surprising and none more gratifying, than the remarkable number of neat and able papers published, patronized and read in the State. We need no better evidence of the average intelligence of the people who come west of the Missouri to make permanent homes.
We are sometimes told by cynical philosophers, that common papers are in no sense public teachers, and that really intelligent CLXXV
176
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
people get their knowledge from books; that the newspaper of the day is little better than a bundle of trash, designed to amuse the people no matter how low their tastes, and to further the schemes of ambitious politicians. We leave the public to judge how much truth is contained in such a remark, enforcing the thought, how- ever, that if it is true, such truth reflects directly upon popular taste and intelligence, and should be a matter for radical reform on the part of both journalist and reader.
View it as we may, the newspaper bears the same relation to great libraries, that the common school does to the university. The masses cannot yet defray the expense of valuable books in large numbers, and have not the time to winnow wheat from chaff, either of current events or of standard history and philosophy. Newspaper subscribers may be regarded as a vast co-operative association, each member of which contributes to employ the editor to select and condense for him. This, when rightly considered, places the editor in the position of an important public servant, with grave responsibilities. He may be in position to use his judgment to the highest and noblest ends; the demands of his employers may force him to the unwilling task of furnishing light idle matter, when his own inclinations might lead him to furnish none but the brightest grains which the great harvests of the world afford.
We are glad to believe that every paper in Nebraska has a place in its history, and that no other agency -- not even the great corporations with all their wealth and far-seeing enterprise, not even the governing men and statesmen who have labored to give Nebraska position, influence and fame,-has wielded a greater influence for the prosperity and importance of the State, than the cloud of news prints which every week settles down among its busy population.
LIST OF NEWSPAPERS IN NEBRASKA, Arranged by Counties.
It will be seen that they number: Daily, eleven; Weekly, 139; Monthly and Semi-monthly, seven.
ADAMS.
Hastings Journal
Hastings
Gazette
Nebraskian
Juniata IIerald
177
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
ANTELOPE. .Republican
Oakdale Pen and Plow
BUFFALO.
Kearney
.Press
Kearney ..
.....
. Nonpareil
. True Citizen
.. (semi-mon.) Lit. Notes
BURT.
Tekamah Burtonian
Tekamah ... Advocate
Decatur Vindicator
BUTLER.
David City
Press
David City Republican
BOONE.
Albion
CASS.
Plattsmouth . Herald
Plattsmouth Sentinel
CUMING.
West Point. . Republican
West Point .Progress
Staats Zeitung
CLAY.
Harvard Phoenix
Harvard.
Sentinel
Fairfield. News
Sutton Globe
Sutton. .Mirror
CHEYENNE.
Sidney. Telegraph
Sidney Plaindealer
COLFAX.
Schuyler
Sun
Schuyler Democrat
St. Helena.
DIXON.
Ponca .Courier
Ponca
Journal
DAWSON
Plum Creek Pioneer Cozad ..... Hundredth Meridian
DAKOTA.
Dakota City. . Eagle
Jackson ... . Herald
Omaha .... (daily and weekly) Herald
..
.(daily and weekly) Bee
Agriculturist
(monthly) Guardian
(tri-w'k'y)Danske Pioneer Pokrok Zapadu Folkets Tiding
(m) High School Journal
Rural Nebraskian
Mute Journal
Die Vestern
Portfolio
Waterloo 12
.Sentinel
DOUGLAS. Omaha. (d & w) Republican
.(daily) News . Watchman
.(tri-weekly) Post .(monthly) Western Magazine .Commercial Exchange Journal of Commerce
Neligh
CEDAR. Bulletin
Argus
*
178
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
DODGE.
Fremont
.. (d. & w.) Herald
Fremont Tribune
(monthly) Bulletin
FILLMORE.
Exeter. Enterprise
Fairmount Bulletin
Friendville. Telegraph
Geneva.
Review
FRANKLIN.
Riverton.
Reporter
Bloomington.
Guard
Naponee
Banner
FURNAS.
Beaver City
Times
GAGE.
" Beatrice.
. Courier
Beatrice ..... .Express
Blue Springs Reporter
GREELEY.
Scotia
Tribune
HAMILTON.
Aurora. Republican
HALL.
Grand Island. Independent
Grand Island . Times
66
Democrat
HARLAN.
Orleans
Sentinel
Republican City
.... News
Alma Standard
HOWARD.
St. Paul Advocate
St. Paul.
Phonograph
JOHNSON.
Tecumseh Chieftain
Tecumseh. Journal
Sterling. News
JEFFERSON.
.
Fairbury .Telegraph
Fairbury.
.Gazette
KNOX.
Niobrara
Pioneer
KEARNEY.
Mindon
Bee
LINCOLN.
North Platte Nebraskian
North Platte
.Republican
LANCASTER.
Lincoln (d. & w.) Journal
Lincoln .. (d. & w.) Globe
.(d. & w.) World
(d. & w.) Democrat
.. Register
.. (monthly) Farmer
(monthly) Student
Aurora .. News
179
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
MERRICK.
Central City Courier Clarkesville. Messenger
MADISON.
Norfolk
Journal
Madison Chronicle
NEMAHA.
Sheridan
. Post
Brownville Advertiser
Brownville
Granger
Peru.
Herald
NUCKOLLS.
Nelson
IIerald
Superior Guide
OTOE.
Nebraska City. (d. & w.) Press
Nebraska City News
Syracuse Journal
PAWNEE.
Pawnee City
Enterprise
Pawnee City. . Republican
PLATTE.
Columbus
.. Era
Columbus. . Journal
Independent
Democrat
POLK.
Osceola
Record
PIERCE.
Pierce
.Call
RICHARDSON.
Falls City
. . Press
Falls City Globe-Journal
Humboldt. Sentinel
Salem. Advertiser
SAUNDERS.
Wahoo.
Independent
Wahoo
Times
Ashland Reporter
SALINE.
Crete.
. Union
Crete
Democrat
De Witt. Free Press
Wilber
Record
Friendville Telegraph
SEWARD.
Seward
Reporter
Seward
Advocate
STANTON.
Stanton.
Register
SARPY.
Papillion
Times
SHERMAN.
Loup City
Times
THAYER.
Hebron
Journal
Hebron . Sentinel
Alexandria. News
180
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
VALLEY.
Ord City
Journal
WASHINGTON.
Blair
. Pilot
Blair
Times
WEBSTER.
Red Cloud
Chief
Red Cloud
Argus
WAYNE.
La Porte
Review
YORK.
York Republican York Tribune
NEW YORK
E. SEARS
CHAPTER XVI.
NEBRASKA-1879.
COMMERCE-MANUFACTURES-THE GRASSHOPPERS-THE PEOPLE OF NEBRASKA.
COMMERCE.
The central position occupied by Nebraska, between the great markets of the East and the extensive mineral and stock regions of Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Montana and Idaho, on the West, give her rare advantages in a commercial point of view, which are being rapidly developed into an immense and profitable trade.
The railroads of the State are freighted with merchandise of all descriptions, implements, lumber, flour, pork, butter, cheese, eggs, grain and other farm products, going westward to the people of this vast mining and non-agricultural region, where the demand is always equal to the supply, and who in return load the cars with precious metals and ores for our smelting and refining works, and with stock for the Eastern markets.
There were 57,809,535 pounds of gold and silver-bearing ores received at Omaha during the year 1878, over the railways from the west, the greater part of which was handled by the Omaha Smelting and Refining Works. The amount of gold and silver coin, gold dust and bullion arriving at Omaha from the West during 1878, was $35,452,000. The gold and silver product of the country lying immediately west of Nebraska is steadily increasing, and the greater part of these productions pass into and through Omaha.
The beef and pork packing industry in Nebraska is increasing to vast proportions, these establishments employing thousands of
CLXXXI
182
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
men and slaughtering hundreds of thousands of hogs and cattle yearly. New houses for this purpose, of double the capacity are being built each year, and the old ones enlarged. Nebraska beef is now being packed and shipped to the English markets. With the splendid advantages afforded by the plains of Nebraska for the rearing and fattening of stock cheaply, our packing establishments will, in a very short period of time, no doubt, assume proportions second to none other in the country.
The trade and commerce of Nebraska is expanding at a mar- velous rate, that of Omaha alone is placed at $30,000,000 for 1878. The wholesale business is increasing at the rate of thirty to forty per cent. yearly, and within the past five years the volume of trade and number of merchants may be safely said to have doubled. Several of our other cities have an annual jobbing trade reaching into the millions, and whose business relations extend beyond the limits of the State. Retail houses doing a yearly business of $10,000 to $25,000 are common, while the sales of a large number range from $50,000 to $100,000 per annum.
MANUFACTURES.
In the way of manufactures Nebraska has made commendable progress, considering the age and essentially agricultural character of the State. At Omaha there are extensive white lead works, a nail factory, oil works, one of the largest distilleries in the country, several breweries, the largest smelting and refining works on the continent, several foundries, carriage, wagon, cigar, broom and file manufactories, soap works, safe and vault manufactory, cabinet ware, agricultural implements, flouring mills and many smaller manufacturing establishments. At West Point, in Cuming County, on the Elkhorn River, there is a large paper mill and furniture factory; at Lincoln large numbers of wagons are made, and of a quality and appearance equal to any imported; at Nebraska City, Fremont and other large towns, plows and various other agricul- tural implements and minor articles are manufactured. Steam and water-power flouring mills, employing all modern improve- ments and of large capacity, are located throughout all the settled portions of the State. Cheese factories are springing up rapidly in the Western Counties, and the manufacture of cheese will, ere long, form an important element in our industries.
183
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
No State offers a more inviting field for the location of the manufacturer or man of capital than this, and there is none where he would be received with heartier welcome, or where the invest- ment of his means would yield larger returns. The resources of the country are inexhaustible, the manufacturing advantages unsurpassed, water power abundant and well distributed, and to men of capital and skill the field for manufacturing enterprises, of the kind to suit the wants of the country, is unlimited. A more advantageous location for woolen mills, paper and flouring mills, tanneries, and factories of various kinds, is not presented in any other western country. The State is settling up at an unprece- dented rate; hundreds of immigrants are arriving each day, and every season thousands of new farms are opened out. In no agricultural country is the demand for machinery so great as in this, and no establishment for the manufacture of all the different farming implements would be better patronized and pay hand- somer profits on the money invested.
THE GRASSHOPPERS.
During the growing seasons of 1874 and '75 the Rocky Moun- tain locust, or grasshopper, visited Nebraska and did incalculable damage by devouring the crops in a large portion of the State. In many sections-more particularly in the western and middle Counties-the destruction of the crops by these insects was most complete, not a vestage of anything green being left untouched by them; and as many of the farmers living in the sections so afflicted were new settlers, the total loss of their crops, upon which they were dependent for the support of their families, was a great calamity and caused much distress and suffering. The destitution was so widespread and so great in some localities, that public aid was asked, for the relief of the sufferers. The prompt and generous responses to the call by the people of the East and other localities not so afflicted, in fowarding provisions, clothing and money, saved many a poor family from actual want, if not starvation.
While it is true that the damage done by the grasshoppers was very great, and caused much genuine distress among the people in several of the Counties, yet the whole matter was grossly
184
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
exaggerated and enlarged upon by a certain busy class of persons who somehow always come to the front on such occasions, actnated, generally, more by a desire to further their own selfish ends than by any kindly, true feeling for the distressed. This blatant, noisy class, with their loud demonstrations and universal begging, not only disgusted the more sensible people, but did the State an injury next to that of the grasshoppers themselves.
Yet it is a stubborn fact that the timely succor sent to the settlers in the devastated districts saved much suffering among the poorer portion; and the people of Nebraska owe a lasting debt of gratitude to the noble men and women of the East, who con- tribnted so willingly and bountifully to their aid in time of need, and by whose generosity the miseries of want were alleviated and the hearts made glad in many an humble prairie home.
By an Act of the Legislature of Nebraska, $50,000 were donated as a relief to the grasshopper sufferers, which amount was judiciously expended and distributed for that purpose.
But the grasshopper scares have passed away, we hope, forever; the seasons have come and gone, leaving us with bountiful crops of all kinds to enrich and supply the wants of all, and prosperity reigns supreme throughout the length and breadth of the State.
THE PEOPLE OF NEBRASKA.
The population of Nebraska is made up largely of people from the Eastern, Middle and Northwestern States, although, of course, all sections of the Union are well represented in the grand total, as are also all of the European countries, to a large extent, with a few from nearly every nationality in the civilized world.
They come here from all points of the compass, and are usually men and women above the average in ambition, energy and brains -people who have outgrown the circumscribed life in older lands and have followed the tide of emigration westward to the grand prairies and broad rich bottoms of Nebraska, and there have laid the foundations for lasting and comfortable homes for themselves and children, transforming a wilderness, as it were, into thousands of waving grain fields, flourishing orchards and beautiful gardens, who have established schools, churches and colleges, founded a moral and refined society, and built railways which transport the
185
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
commerce of nations to their numerous, wide-awake and prosperous cities and villages.
Of this spirited, enterprising and ambitious class of people the great bulk of Nebraska's population consists-where the pure, bracing atmosphere infuses a vigor and activity in the people never witnessed in the older States. People of the very highest attain- ments and social qualities are settled in all parts of the State. Many of our most cultered and refined citizens, who have done so much to mould and improve our society and institutions, have been glad to exchange the uncertainties of vocation and extrava- gance of fashionable life in the more crowded States, for the security and comforts of a prairie home in Nebraska.
The average intelligence of the people of Nebraska will reach a higher standard than is generally found in agricultural countries; their habits and customs are also peculiarly suited to the condition of things; and in business matters, religion, politics, and in social life there is infinitely more freedom here than in Eastern society.
Very many of the pioneers who came here almost penniless, have to-day comfortable homes for their families and a goodly share of this world's goods, while others are possessed of valuable, well- stocked farms, who, had they remained in the East, would probably never have owned an acre of ground.
The author has traveled through nearly every County in the State, from the Missouri River to the western frontier; he has watched with zealous pride the onward march of civilization during the past quarter of a century, and has seen the vast rolling prairies, which only a few short years ago were in their virgin glory, just as the hand of the Great Architect of the Universe had fashioned them, rapidly developed into a populous State, dotted with enter- prising cities and towns, and ribbed with great railways reaching to all points.
It seems more like a dream as helooks back over these fleeting years, and recalls the scene then, as compared with the wonderful changes and progress civilization has made to-day. Many of the old acquaintances-pioneers-who bore him happy company over the trackless plains in the days gone by, have long since faded from view, some wandering to other lands in search of new adven-
186
JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
ture when this grew old, while others, and by far the greater number, alas! have gone to that bourne whence no traveler returns.
There are innumerable hardships, privations and dangers which the pioneers of a new country must contend with and surmount, that the later settlers know but little of. The pioneer goes before, braves the dangers, and makes settlement practically easy and safe for those who follow in his footsteps. Great honor is due to his bravery and courage, and yet everything depends upon the character and intelligence of the class of settlers who follow in the wake of the pioneer, and who lay the foundations of a solid and substantial government; and in this respect Nebraska has every reason to be proud.
CHAPTER XVII. ·
ORGANIC ACT AND CONSTITUTION.
THE ORGANIC ACT OF NEBRASKA TERRITORY.
By the provisions of the Act of Congress organizing the Territory of Nebraska, the executive power in and over said Terri- tory was vested in a Governor, whose term of office was for four years, or until his successor was appointed and qualified, unless sooner removed by the President of the United States. The Governor was made Commander-in-Chief of the militia of the Territory; was empowered to grant pensions and respites against the laws of the Territory, and reprieves for offences against the laws of the United States, and it was his duty to commission all officers appointed under the laws of the Territory, and to take care that the laws were faithfully executed.
A Secretary of the Territory was appointed who was required to reside therein, and whose term of office extended for five years, unless sooner removed by the President. In case of death, removal, resignation or absence of the Governor from the Terri- tory, the Secretary was authorized and required to act in his stead, and execute and perform all the duties of the Governor during his absence or vacancy in the office.
The legislative power of the Territory was vested in the Governor and Legislative Assembly, the latter consisting of a Council and House of Representatives.
The judicial power of the Territory was vested in a Supreme Court, District Courts, Probate Courts and Justices of the Peace. The Supreme Court consisted of a Chief Justice and two Associate Justices, any two of whom constituted a quorum, and they were CLXXXVII
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JOHNSON'S HISTORY OF NEBRASKA.
required to hold a term at the Capital of the Territory annually. · The Territory was divided into three judicial districts, and a district court held in each, presided over by one of the justices of the Supreme Court.
An Attorney and Marshal for the Territory were appointed, whose term extended for four years, and whose salary and fees were the same as that allowed the Attorney and Marshal of the Territory of Utah.
The salary of the Governor was $2,500 per annum, that of the Secretary $2,000, and the Chief Justice and each of the Associate Justices $2,000.
The pay of the members of the Assembly was $3.00 each per day, during their actual attendance at the sessions, and $3.00 each for every twenty miles traveled in going to and returning from the sessions; and an additional allowance of $3.00 per day was paid the presiding officer of each house.
The Act also provided for the election of a delegate to the House of Representatives of the United States, for the term of two years, who was entitled to the same rights and privileges as exercised and enjoyed by the delegates from the several other Territories of the United States.
CONSTITUTION OF NEBRASKA, ADOPTED JUNE 2, 1866.
LEGISLATIVE .- It provided that the legislative authority was vested in a General Assembly, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives. The Senate consisted of thirteen members, and the House of Representatives consisted of thirty- nine members, which could not be increased for the term of ten years after the adoption of the Constitution.
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