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THE IOWA JOUENAL OF HISTOEY
AND POLITICS
THE
IOWA JOURNAL
• * •
- • ••••
• • • • *
• • • •
OF
HISTORY AND POLITICS
SDITOB
BENJAMIN F. SHAHBAU6H
PBOVBStOm OF POLITIOAL •OIBHOB
III TBM UKirsmSITT OF IOWA
VOLUME IX
1911
PUBLISH£D QUABTBELT BT
THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF IOWA
IOWA CITY IOWA
1911
• «
• • • •
• • -
COPTSIOHT 1911 BT
THl STATE HI8T0BICAL 80CIBTT OF IOWA
I
1
I
\
T
i
r
CONTENTS
Number 1 — January 1911
Ccn&tribntioiifi of Albert Miller Lea to the History of
Iowa CuFFOBD Powell
AndfiTBonville and the Trial of Henry Wirz
John Howard Stibbs
Baeonian Club of Iowa City
Pablioations
Americana — Oeneral and Miscellaneous
Western
lowana
% Bkrtorical Societies
Motes and Comment
% CSomtiibaton
•2i
Number 2 — April 1911
nbe Establiflhment and Organization of Townships in John-
son County Clarence Ray Aurner
The Attitude of Congress Toward the Pioneers of the West
1820^1850 Kenneth W. Colorove
Pablications
Americana — General and Miscellaneous
Western
lowana
»rieal Societies
and Comment
ODiitzilratozB
33
57
114
114
121
123
131
144
149
155
196
303
303
311
312
319
330
332
?
■t
•• •
vi CONTENTS
Nu ^f BER 3 — July 1911
The Expedition of Zebnlon Montgomery Pike to the Sources
of the Mississippi Ethyl Edna Martin
335
The Settlement of Woodbury County
Frank Harmon Garver
359
The Territorial Convention of 1837
385
Proceedings of a Council with the Chippewa Indians
408
Some Publications
438
Americana — General and Miscellaneous
438
Western
445
lowana
446
Historical Societies
453
Notes and Comment
468
Contributors
472
Number 4 — October 1911
The Work of the Thirty-Fourth General Assembly of Iowa
Frank Edward Horack
475
The History of the Codes of Iowa Law
Clifford Powell
493
The Coming of the Hollanders to Iowa
Jacob Van der Zee
528
Some Publications
575
Americana — General and Miscellaneous
575
Western
581
lowana
585
Historical Societies
592
Notes and Comment
605
Contributors
607
Index
609
-1
I ^
X
%• .
r
U4 L
0
■
1
1
f
(
f
THE IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
JANUARY NINETEEN HUNDRED ELEVEN
VOLUME MINE NUMBEB ONE
\
voLk rx — 1
THE CONTBIBUTIONS OF ALBERT MILLEB LEA
TO THE LITEBATUBE OF IOWA mSTOBY^
[This essay was awarded the seventj-flve dollar prize offered in 1909 by the
Iowa Boeietj of the Colonial Dames of America for the best essay in Iowa
history. The essay has been revised for publication. — Editok.]
The contribntions of Albert Miller Lea to the literature
of Iowa history are neither voluminons nor critical. They
consist chiefly of a small book of forty-five pages, two maps,
and two reports ; bnt, having been written during the forma-
tive period of beginnings, they have an historical impor-
tance which is out of proportion to their critical character.
The little book gave the State its name ; the reports were
the baseSi^of legislation and large appropriations by Con-
gress ; and the maps served as guides to settlers for a long
period of years.
Albert Miller Lea was a Lieutenant in the United States
Army and an accomplished dvil engineer — a man of varied
attainments and remarkable foresight. He was bom in
1807 at Lea Springs — a place not far distant from Enox-
ville, Tennessee. His father was a merchant who at one
time held the position of Register of the Land Office in the
State of Franklin f and his mother was one Clara Wisdom,
who is described by her son Albert as a **wise and prudent''
woman.
1 The writer desires to express his thanks to Professor Benj. F. Shambangh
for the assistance and helpful suggestions given in the preparation of this
essay, to Mr. A. K. Harbert of Cedar Bapids for the use of his materials relat-
ing to Albert M. Lea, and to Dr. Louis Pelzer and Mr. Kenneth Colgrore for
kindly reading and criticising the essay.
s Iowa Hiitariedl Beeard, Vol. Vni, No. 1, January, 1892, p. 201.
Lea also describes his father as "positive, dictatorial, domineering, and
lagadous.''
4 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTOBT AND POLITICS
The early education of Lieutenant Lea was received in
the common schools of Ejioxville. Later he entered college,,
and was within one session of graduation when he was com-
pelled to give up his studies on account of poor health.
Within a year, however, he had regained his health and in
1827 received an appointment to the Military Academy at
West Point.* Four years later, on July 1, 1831, Lieutenant
Lea graduated from this institution (ranking fifth in a class
of thirty-seven) and was assigned, after a short furlough,,
to the United States Army.*
The commission to the Military Academy proved to be-
the turning point in Lea's career; for instead of becomings
a planter and land owner, as did many of his associates,^
he entered the army, came west, and directed several large
engineering undertakings,'^ giving the best part of his life
in the service of the (Government. The three years follow-
ing his graduation were spent in going from one part of the
country to another on various topographical and scientific-
9 Iowa Hittoriedl Becord, Vol. VIII, No. 1, January, 1892, pp. 201, 202.
Lea received this appointment from Senator H. L. White, who was a com-
petitor of Martin Van Boren in 1836.
« Letter to Senator Wm. B. Allison from the Becord and Pension Office,.
January 15, 1904.
''Albert lifiller Lea was a cadet at the United States Military Academy
from Jnly 1, 1827, to Jnly 1, 1831, when he was graduated and appointed
brevet 2nd Lieutenant of Artillery. He was transferred to the 7th Infantry
August 11, 1831, and was promoted 2nd Lieutenant March 4, 1833; was
appointed 2nd Lieutenant, 1st Dragoons, July 1, 1834, to rank from March
4, 1833, and his resignation was accepted to take effect May 31, 1836."
Lea was on leave of absence from February 1, 1836, to the date of h'S
resignation. This letter is in the collection of Mr. A. N. Harbert of Cedar
Bapids, Iowa.
B Among the engineering services performed were the following :
A. Drew plans for first locomotive ever constructed by the Baldwins.
B. Famous survey of the B. & O. B. B. where a cut was constructed by the
use of geologic bedding.
C. Survey of the Tennessee Biver.
See Iowa Historical Becord, Vol. Vm, No. 1, January, 1892, for a complete-
list.
LEA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTORY 5
duties.* This kind of work, which carried him from the
Great Lakes to the Gulf and from Oklahoma to the moun-
tains of Tennessee, gave him a vast amount of valuable
information concerning the pioneers and the West. FinaUy,
however, he was ordered for a second time to Fort Gibson,^
there to attach himself to the First United States Dragoons
— a regiment formed at the close of the Black Hawk War.
Upon his arrival at Fort Gibson in the autumn of 1834,
Lea was ordered by Colonel Henry Dodge to a point near
the present site of BeUevue, Nebraska, to pay the Lidians
a certain amount of merchandise which was due them.^
When he had completed this task he returned to Fort Gib-
son only to find that his company, with two others, was lo-
cated at a new post^ on the Upper Mississippi, hundreds of
miles away. He immediately set out to join his command,
taking the last boat of the season going north from St.
Louis, and in a few days reached the town of Keokuk. The
present prosperous city was then only ^ ^ a substantial stone
building, used as a trading station, the only house on the
west bank for many miles below and three hundred miles
above. '^® This was Lea's first view of the country to
which, within two years, he was to give the name ^^lowa''.
A few days later he reported at Fort Des Moines, near the
present town of Montrose, where he took charge of his
company.
On the 9th of March, 1835, orders" were received by
• Iowa Hiiiorieal Beeord, Vol. VIII, No. 1, January, 1892, p. 202.
T Lieutenant Lea first reported at Fort Gibson in 1832. — See Iowa HUicrieal
Becard, VoL Vm, No. 1, January, 1892, pp. 200-205.
• For a full account, see an article entitled Early ExplaraHam in Iowa in the
Iowa Hittorieai Beoord^ Vol. VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 538.
• This new post was Fort Des Moines No. 1. — See Annals of Iowa, Third
Series, VoL III, Nos. 5-6, April-July, 1898, p. 351.
10 Iowa Historieal Beeord^ VoL VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 541.
11 AnnaU of Iowa, Third Series, Vol. Ill, Nos. 5-6, April-July, 1898, p. 355.
6 IOWA JOUENAL OF HISTOBT AND POLITICS
Identenant Colonel Kearney to proceed with his command
np the Des Moines Biver to a certain point near the Bac-
coon Forks and from there in a northeasterly direction to
the Mississippi. From the latter place the command was
to march westward until the Des Moines Biver was again
reached^ when a return should be made to Fort Des Moines.
Accordingly, on June 7, 1835, the troop, consisting of about
150 mounted men, started on the march for the purposes
of exploration and of impressing the Indians with the power
of the United States government.^ ^ It was on this expedi-
tion that Lieutenant Lea ^^voluntarily assumed the duties
of topographer and chronicler' ';" and to this fact we owe
many fine descriptions of the original condition of the Iowa
prairies as well as the Notes on Wisconsin Territory.
The line of march followed as nearly as possible the
divide between the Des Moines and Skunk rivers. Being in
the springtime, the ground was still very wet and soft, ow-
ing to the excessive rainfall. The troop proceeded slowly,
covering only from fifteen to twenty miles a day." But
with the single discomfort of excessive rainfall, it was an
ideal time of the year to make the trip, as the weather in
other respects was favorable to both men and horses. The
scenery, too, was magnificent; and Lieutenant Lea wrote
that ^^the grass and streams were beautiful and strawber-
ries so abundant as to make the whole tract red for miles''.^'
Game was also plentiful, and wild fowl was a part of nearly
every meal. At a place near the present site of the city of
Oskaloosa **a small herd of buffalo*'^® was encountered.
12 Annals of Iowa, Third Series, Vol. HI, Noe. 5-6, April- July, 1898, p. 355.
18 Iowa Hiitorieal Becord^ Vol. VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 546
1* Iowa Hiatorieal Becord, Vol. VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 547.
18 Iowa Historical Becord, Vol. VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 547.
16 Iowa Historical Becord, Vol. VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 548.
LEA*S CONTBIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTORY 7
Concerning this incident Lieutenant Lea wrote : ' ' It was the
first and only time I have seen vthe lordly beast in his homOi
and probably the last time he appeared in that region. "^^
The various pests were in evidence then as now, for at one
place Lea declares that ^^ after my tent was pitched we
killed four rattlesnakes within it, and the next day I had
a bath in a pool, occupied by mosquitos so large that I
pressed one in my journal, and carried for years as a
specimen of the luxuriant growth of the plains.'' ^^
When the expedition had proceeded as far as the place
where Boone is now located, the order was given to march
in a northeasterly direction to the Mississippi,^^ where a
steamboat with fresh supplies awaited their arrlvaL After
a rest of a few days on the banks of the Mississippi near
Lake Pepin in Minnesota, the march was again taken up,
this time directly westward to the district of the lakes of
Minnesota. One of these. Lake Albert Lea,^ perpetuates
the name of the Lieutenant. This region was one ^^of
lakes and open groves of oak, beautiful as English parks** ;
and when writing of it in later years Lieutenant Lea de-
17 i%i8 tame ineident is mentioned in a journal of this march in the follow-
ing words:
''[Wednesday, June the Twenty-Fourth]
24 Marched 25 miles & encamped on the banks of the Iwaj a small
stream 30 yards broad. This day for the first this season we saw Buffalo.
Killed 5 or 6 — many of onr men are recruits from the North & never saw
a Buffalo before & therefore to them a Buffalo chase was something remark-
able. This day was spent in eating Buffalo beef & sleep." — Thx Iowa Joui^
NAL OF HisTOBY AND PoLiTios, VoL VII, No. 3, July, 1909, p. 368.
IS Iowa Histariedl Becord, VoL VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 548.
^9 Iowa Historical Becord, Vol. VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 548.
Near the present site of Boone the troop camped ''oue night near a flint
and gravel covered conical peak, sixty feet above the plain". This is easily
found to-day, a short way south of Boone.
20 This lake was named by Mr. J. N. Nicollet, a surveyor, and also a friend
of Lea. — See Executive Documents, Document No. 52, 2nd Bession, 28th Con-
gress, Vol. n, p. 73. Also Iowa Historicai Becord^ Vol. VI, No. 4, October,
1890, p. 549.
8 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOBT AND POLITICS
dared, that '^Possibly, some day, I may again ride over that
trail ; and I might well wish that my freed spirit could leave
this green earth with the impression made just fifty-five
years ago, as I gazed and sketched, when halted for our
noon rest on the shaded and grassy shore of Lake Albert
Lea. ' '** Finally, the Des Moines headwaters were reached
and the march turned southward, entering the present State
in the neighborhood of Swea City.**
By slow degrees the troop made its way to the Raccoon
Forks,** near a place where the capital of Iowa is now lo-
cated, but which at that time was simply ^^a grassy and
spongy meadow with a bubbling spring in the midst. ' *** At
this place, too. Lieutenant Lea was ordered to descend the
Des Moines Biver in a canoe,*^ to take soundings, and to
report upon the practicability of navigating keel boats over
its course. This proved to be a very arduous task; but
Lieutenant Lea reached the Fort several days before the
main body of troops, who returned leisurely by land in the
latter part of August.**
After writing his report upon the Des Moines River,
Lieutenant Lea resigned from the army and hastened to
Baltimore where he published the Notes on Wisconsin Ter-
ritory. Two years later, in 1838, he again came to the Iowa
SI Iowa Hiitariedl Eeoord, Vol. VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 549.
ssThe ezaet loeation can not be deifinitelj stated. The roate was on the
west side of the river is this locality.
ss A journal, kept daring this campaign, may be found in The Iowa Joubnal
OF HiSTOBY AND POLITICS, VoL VII, No. 3, July, 1909, p. 331.
t« Iowa Hittorieal Eeoord, Vol VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 549.
M Iowa HUtorioal Seoard, Veil VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 550 ; AnnaU of
Iowa, Third Series, VoL m, p. 356, also an article by General Parrott on p. 374.
In a letter to Hon. T. S. Parrin, written April 4, 1890, Lieutenant Lea says :
''I made a sunrey, in a canoe, of Des Moines river, from Rac[c]oon down, in
1835."
MSee map in Lea's Nates on WiaeonHn Territory.
LEA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTOBT 9
cojmtry as the United States Commissioner to deteimine
ihe boundary between the State of Missouri and the Terri-
tory of lowa.^^ When this task was completed Lieutenant
Lea entered the employ of large corporations in the capacity
of chief engineer.^ At the outbreak of the Civil War he
followed his old friend Robert E. Lee into the Confederacy,
vhere he completed four years of active service.^ When
peace was eventually declared, he was practically ruined
financially ; and in this condition he sought a new country,
moving to Corsicana, Texas, where he lived until his death
in 1890.
The contributions of Albert M. Lea to the literature of
Iowa history are based upon his two trips to the Iowa
country: (1) the march of the Dragoons in 1835; and (2)
his work as a member of the boundary commission of 1838.
Upon both occasions Lieutenant Lea left a report and a
map ; and these occupy a prominent place in the earliest lit-
erature of the Commonwealth.
THE BEPOBT ON THB DE8 MOINBS BIVEB
The first of Lea's contributions in point of time is the
Report on the Des Moines River which was made in 1835.
Upon arriving at Fort Des Moines after the campaign with
the Dragoons, Lieutenant Lea made a comprehensive re-
port which included, besides the general conclusions, all the
soundings, measurements, and notes of important features
if Exeouiive Documents, House Document No. 38, 3rd Session, 27th Con-
gress. This doeoment is also found in the Iowa Hiiiariedl Beeardp VoL II, No.
1, January, 1886, p. 193.
'•Lieutenant Lea was for a number of years City Engineer of Enoxville,
Tennessee, and later of Oalyeston, Texas. — Bee Lea's Autobiography in Iowa
Historieal Seoord, VoL VIII, No. 1, January, 1892, p. 200.
'•The best aceount of this period of Lieutenant Lea's life is found under
the title of Cdonel Lea's Beminisoenees, a series of articles published in The
Freeborn County Standard, of Albert Lea, Minnesota, from January to May,
1890.
10 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOBT AND POLITICS
from the Bacooon to the Mississippi. Unfortnnately this
report, which was written in 1835 (and which was the first
contribution relating to Iowa penned by Lea) can not be
found. It seems to have been used as a basis for legisla-
tion; for in speaking of the report its author says: '^The
manuscript was published by Congress in 1835-6 without
the map, and the original is in Adjutant-General's office.
It was the foundation of aU the appropriations for Des.
Moines under the care of my classmate, Sam B. Curtis. ' '^^
The evidence of the commanding officer also states that the
report was actually transmitted; for in the order book of
lieutenant-Colonel Kearney we find this statement: '^I
send you his [Lea's] report.'*"
Despite this seemingly conclusive evidence of its existence,
the document, which related to the Des Moines Biver, its
characteristics, its commercial and economic value, has not
been located either in the records of the War Department'^
or among the papers of the office of the Adjutant-General
of the State of Iowa.** Its historical importance can not,^
therefore, be estimated.
It was in connection with this report that Lieutenant Lea
drew a map which was used, with some changes, in his Notes
on Wisconsin Territory. In speaking of the making of this
>o Letter written on April 4, 1890, hy Albert M. Lea to Honorable T. 8.
Parrin.
SI Order of Lieotenant-Oolonel Kearney. — Found in an article prepared by
the War Department for Annals of Iowa, Third Seriee, VoL m, p. 356.
as Letter from War Department, December 3, 1908.
''The report made by Lieutenant Albert M. Lea, of the Ist U. 8. Dragoons,
in 1835, relative to the Dee Moines river is not found in the Department."'
Also a letter from the War Department to W. B. Allison on August 23, 1904 :
''An exhaustive examination of the records on file in this office has resulted
in failure to find any report made by Albert M. Lea. ' '
ss Letter written to A. N. Harbert by Adjutant-General M. H. Byers on
July 20, 1901: "There are no reports from him [A. M. Lea] on file and in-
deed hit name is not found on any papers on file. "
LBA*S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTORY 11
map Lieutenant Lea says: '^Without delay, I mapped the
river and wrote a report on its character and capabilitieSi
which was forwarded to the Adjutant-General ; and then it
occurred to me that I could get an outline of the region be-
tween the Mississippi and Missouri, and by filling it in
with my sketches, the whole route having been carefully
meandered, as I did the river, I could make a map that
would interest the public, gain me some reputation and per-
haps a little money. ' ' When the map was finished, however,
the post commander. Lieutenant Colonel Kearney, sent for
it and even refused its maker a copy. The next year, after
much difficulty. Lieutenant Lea obtained a copy of his map
from the proper officials in Washington and had it litho-
graphed for the Notes on Wisconsin Territory.^
NOTES ON WISCONSIN TEBBITOBY
The second and perhaps the most important of Lea's
contributions to the literature of Iowa history is the Notes
on Wisconsin Territory — a small book of forty-five pages.
When in 1836 Lieutenant Lea returned to Baltimore from
his campaign with the Dragoons so many inquiries for in-
formation concerning the western country were addressed
to him^ that he decided to write a concise and accurate
account of the land to which so many immigrants were
bound and over which the Dragoons had made their march.
Such a task was an easy undertaking for Lieutenant Lea,
since he had secured much information of the West during
his travels and his services with the army. The demand,
too, for a book of this kind promised to be large, as hun-
dreds of settlers were flocking to the western country. Ac-
cordingly, Lea wrote an account of the region which was
9^ Early Explorations in Iowa in the Iowa Historical Becord^ Vol. V, No.
4, October, 1890, p. 550.
35 Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory^ the prefaee.
12 IOWA JOXJRNAL OP HISTOBT AND POLITICS
then a part of the original Territory of Wisconsin and lying
west of the Mississippi Biver.
When this was finished the author went to Washington,
D. C.J where, after much persuasion he managed to secure
a copy of the map which has been described above and
which had been made at the close of the march in the year
1835. The map and manuscript were then taken to Phila-
delphia where the book was published. Lea later described
the publication of this valuable book in this manner : — ' ^ One
thousand copies with the map were put up by my friend,
H. S. Tanner, to whom I paid thirty-seven and a half cents
per copy, and put them on sale at a dollar. Being quite
ignorant of the book trade I assumed the sales myself, sent
a few copies by mail, and five hundred in a trunk as freight
to Arthur Bridgman of Burlington, an accomplished mer-
chant. The last I heard of them was on a little steamboat
stranded on a sandbank in the Ohio."'® The book indeed
is quite rare, and less than a score of copies are known to be
in existence.*^
The book is small, three and a half by six inches, bound
in pale blue board cover, and contains, besides a map of the
country described, forty-five finely printed pages. The full
title of this interesting little contribution is Notes On The
Wisconsin Territory; particularly tvith reference to the
Iowa District or Black Hawk Purchase. It was written, as
the author declares in the preface, ^^to place within the
reach of the public, correct information in regard to a very
86 Iowa Historical Becord, Vol. VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 552.
*T A partial liat of the owners of these books is the following: L. A. Brewer,
Cedar Bapids; T. J. I^tzpatriek, Iowa Citj; Mr. Blair, Kossuth; The Masonic
Library, Cedar Bapids; The Davenport Academy of Science, Davenport; His-
torical Department of Iowa, Des Moines; State Historical Society, Iowa City;
and A. N. Harbert, Cedar Bapids.
Mr. Earl Swem, Assistant State Librarian of Bichmond, Virginia, can fur-
nish a complete list of the owners of copies of this book.
LEA'S CONTBIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTOBT 13
interesting portion of tiie Western Country '\*® The con-
tentSy too, are confined to subjects which would interest ''the
emigrant, the speculator, and the legislator."^ A more
complete work was planned, but the author never had the
inclination nor the desire to finish it.^
The Notes on Wisconsin Territory consists of three
general chapters or divisions. The first division gives a
general description of the country ; the second part explains
the water courses, the local divisions, and the form of gov-
ernment ; while in the last chaptelr the reader finds a descrip-
tion of the various towns, landings, and roads.
The country to which the author limited himself was a
part of the original Territory of Wisconsin which he chose
to call the **Iowa District*' — a strip of land ** about 190
miles in length, 50 miles wide near each end, and 40 miles
wide near the middle opposite to Bock Island ; and would
make a parallelogram of 180 by 50 miles equivalent to 9000
square miles. ''** This strip of country had been practically
unsettled before the year 1832, being alternately in the pos-
session of various tribes of Indians, but chiefly of the Sacs
and Foxes. At the dose of the Black Hawk War in 1832 this
country was obtained from the Indians and the date of the
latter 's removal placed at June 1, 1833. The treaty of
cession was made at Davenport, Oeneral Scott being the
chief negotiator on the part of the United States.^^ As a
result the ceded area was popularly known as ^^ Scott's Pur-
chase'' or, later, as the ** Black Hawk Purchase".
The treaty was barely signed when several families and
miners, who had been hovering on the east bank of the
88 Lea 'b Notes on Wiacomin Territory, the preface.
»» Lea 's N,otes on Wisconsin Territory, the preface.
40 Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, the preface.
41 Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, Chap. I, p. 8.
^3 Salter 'a loiva: The First Free State in the Louisiana Purchase, p. 155.
14 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Mississippi^ crossed over and established themselves on the
choicest parts of the District; but these people ^^were dis-
possessed by order of government '\** Nevertheless many
white families remained and some even went so far as to
put in crops.**
The climate of the Iowa District is first described, the dif-
ferent seasons and their varying aspects beautifully pic-
tured. The winds were of especial importance in the opinion
of the author, being as fresh and bracing as the sea-breezes
and very much less chilling. **The prevailing winds '^ he
writes, **are from the southwest. I have known the wind
at Bock Island, to remain constant in that quarter for three
weeks successively '\** The salubriousness of the climate
was variable according to the locality. Lea thought that
from the mouth of the Des Moines until the great bend of
the Mississippi was reached there was liable to be much
fever; but from Bock Island northward he knew of no
healthier place in the world.
The descriptions of the various seasons furnish one of
the most interesting parts of the book, and also an oppor-
tunity for comparison with the seasons of the present day.
As a proof that winter is not changing to any appreciable
extent, the description by Lieutenant Lea, written seventy-
three years ago, may be cited. "Tfee Winter' ', he declares,
**is generally dry, cold, and bracing; the waters are all
bridged with ice; the snow is frequently deep enough to
afford good sleighing. ' '*®
Spring was the least desirable of any of the seasons, being
**a succession of rains, blows, and chills.'* The same char-
acteristics were in evidence then as now, for Lea writes
4s Lea's Notes on Wiscoruin Territory, p. 8.
^^Shambaogh'B History of the Constitutions of Iowa, p. 38.
MLea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 8.
M Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 9.
LEA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTORY 15
that ''We have no gradual gliding from cold to warm; it is
snowy — then stormy — then balmy and delightful/'*^
Summer was a season in which all the conditions were
favorable to a rapid growth of vegetation. The appear-
ance of the country during this season was very beautiful,
as all the grasses and flowers grew luxuriantly.
Autumn, however, was described by Lieutenant Lea as
being ''the most delightful of all the seasons of the year."
His description of this season, written in 1836, would apply
to-day with equal truthfulness. "The heat of the summer
is over by the middle of August ; and from that time till De-
cember, we have almost one continuous succession of bright
clear delightful sunny days. Nothing can exceed the beauty
of Summer and Autumn in this country, where, on one hand,
we have the expansive prairie strewed with flowers still
growing ; and on the other, the forests which skirt it, pre-
senting all the varieties of colour incident to the fading
foliage of a thousand different trees.'**®
The soil and the character of the country are presented
in detail, and the writer gives his opinions as to the best
crops for the various soils. Indian com, he believes, was
"peculiarly adapted*' to the low lands of this district.
"The general appearance of the country**, declares Lea,
"is one of great beauty. It may be represented as one
grand rolling prairie, along one side of which flows the
mightiest river in the world and through which numerous
navigable streams pursue their devious way to the ocean* *.*•
Li another place this same area is claimed by the author to
be superior, all things considered, to any other part of the
United States.^^
47 Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 9.
4sLea'8 Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 10.
^•Lea's Notes on Wisamsin Territory, p. 11.
BO Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 12.
16 IOWA JOUENAL OF HISTOBY AND POLITICS
The distribution of timber, water, and prairie was one of
the unique features of this District. The beauty of the
country seemed to have charmed Lieutenant Lea, for at the
dose of his description of its general appearance he writes :
Gould I present to the mind of the reader that view of this
country that is now before my eyes, he would not deem my assertion
unfounded. He would see the broad Mississippi with its ten thou*
sand islands, flowing gently and lingeringly along one entire side
of this District, as if in regret at leaving so delightful a region ; he
would see half a dozen navigable rivers taking their sources in
distant regions, and gradually accumulating their waters as they
glide steadily along through this favoured region to pay their
tribute to the great "Father of Waters"; he would see innumer-
able creeks and rivulets meandering through rich pasturages, where
now the domestic ox has taken the place of the untamed bison ; he
would see here and there neat groves of oak, and elm, and walnut,
half shading half concealing beautiful little lakes that mirror back
their waiving branches ; he would see neat looking prairies of two
or three miles in extent, and apparently enclosed by woods on all
sides, and along the borders of which are ranged the neat hewed
log cabins of the emigrants with their fields stretching far into the
prairies, where their herds are luxuriating on the native grass;
he would see villages springing up, as by magic, along the banks
of the rivers, and even far into the interior; and he would see the
swift moving steam-boats, as they ply up and down the Mississippi,
to supply the wants of the settlers, to take away their surplus pro-
duce, or to bring an accesion to this growing population, anxious
to participate in the enjoyment of nature's bounties, here so liber-
ally dispensed.'^^
The mineral resources were described as abundant, com-
prising coal, lead, limestone, zinc, and clay. Lea believed
these were the greatest assets of the country. The chief
mineral wealth at that time, however, was in the lead indus-
try which was in a thriving condition in and near Dubuque.
**Here'^ writes Lea, **are capital, western enterprise, for-
BiLea's Notes on WiicOMin Territory, p. 12.
LEA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTORY 17
eign experiencOi and Yankee ingenuity combined ; and they
have brought to their assistance the powers of both water
and steam. The smelting establishments have recently
been much improved and are now conducted with scientific
acoaracy, yielding seventy or eighty per cent of lead from
the native snlphuref^*
The larger game was rapidly beginning to disappear
when this book was written, but the writer mentions deer,
< < some bear' '9 and buffalo. The wild turkey, grouse and the
wild duck were the most numerous of the wild fowls ; and
fish of all varieties were found in the numerous rivers.
Spearing the fish in the rapids was a favorite sport and
large strings of pike, pickerel, catfish, and trout were to be
had.
Agricultural products, being least in importance at this
time, are only briefly mentioned. The chief product then,
as now, was com or maize, of which the yellow varieties
were considered the most certain and produced from forty
to seventy-five bushels per acre. Wheat and oats were very
easily grown, the latter usually yielding from '^ sixty to
seventy-five bushels per acre.'*^' Potatoes, too, were one
of the most important crops of the period. The stock-rais-
ing industry was still unknown, and Lea predicted that
'^The growing of stock of various kinds will doubtless be
extensively pursued, as few countries afford more facilities
for such purposes'"^* — a prophecy which has been abun-
dantly fulfilled.
Lea estimated that the population in 1835 was sixteen
thousand, representing every State in the Union. No
higher compliment could have been paid them than the one
given in the Notes on Wisconsin Territory. **The char-
sa Lea's Note* on Wiaoontin Territory, p. 41.
58 Lea's Notee on Wisconsin Territory, p. 13.
64 Lea '8 Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 13.
YOL. IX— 2
18 IOWA JOUENAL OP HISTOBT AND POLITICS
acter of this population is such", says the author, ^^as is
rarely found in our newly acquired Territories. With very
few exceptions there is not a more orderly, industrious, ac-
tive, painstaking population west of the Alleghanies, than is
this in the Iowa District. . . . For intelligence, I boldly
assert that they are not surpassed, as a body, by an equal
number of citizens of any country in the world* \'*^ Even
in the mining camps very little disorder was found, and
**the District is forever free from slavery''*^ — a condition
which was a blessing in the judgment of the author.
**The trade of the District '^ writes Lea, **is confined al-
most entirely to the grand thorough-fare of theMississippi'^
There were ten or twelve steamboats which carried the lead
and farm products to St. Louis, which was the only market
of any importance. It took three or four days for one of
these boats to run from St. Louis to the Lead Mines and as
a consequence there was a boat each way daily. The rail-
road was several hundred miles from Iowa at this time but
we are told that a railroad was being pushed westward from
New York along ^^the southern shore of Lake Erie'' to Chi-
cago and thence to the Mississippi. ^'This work'', writes
Lea, ^^ would place the center of the Iowa District within
sixty hours of the city of New York ; and if any of the * down-
easters' think this project chimerical, let them take a tour
of a few weeks to the Upper Mississippi, and they will
agree with me, that it is already demanded by the interests
of the country. '"^^
To the student of Iowa history the Notes on Wisconsin
Territory is also interesting since it gives the first unofficial
account of the organization of the District, which in 1835
was composed of the two counties of Dubuque and Demoine.
SB Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 14.
66 Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 14.
BT Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 17.
LEA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTOBY 19
At the time of the writing of the book the government of
the District was in disorder. The Territory of Michigan
had assumed the form of a State government ; and the Ter-
ritory of Wisconsin, to which the Iowa District was later
attached, was not yet formed. The Claim Association,
too,^ which was an extra-legal institution, is described by
the author as an organization made by the people of the
District who ''have entered into an agreement to support
each other in their claims against any unjust action of the
government or against any attempt at improper speculation
by capitalists at a distance. And those who know the po-
tency of such leagues will feel perfectly assured, that what-
ever is protected by this one, will be safe from molesta-
tion.''~
Decidedly the most interesting part of the first chapter,
as well as of the whole book, is the references made to the
name ''Iowa". It is now agreed that it was the publica-
tion of this book which brought the name "Iowa" into gen-
eral use. One prominent writer precisely summarizes this
opinion in the statement: "It cannot of course be said with
absolute certainty that the name 'Iowa District' was used
for the first time in this book. On the contrary it is alto-
gether probable that this was not the case. But since the
name was fixed and made generally prevalent through the
publication of Lieutenant Lea 's book and map, it is proper
and accurate to say that Lieutenant Lea is the father of the
expression 'Iowa District' ".•^
The manner in which Lea came by the name "Iowa" is^
given in the book itself. The name was not taken, as some
B8 For a full account of the daim Aisociation see Shambaugh *b Claim Assih
eiaiion of Johnson County; and also Shambaugh 'a History of the Constitutions
of Iowa.
89 Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 18.
^See article by Benjamin F. Shambaugh in Annais of Iowa, Third Series^
VoL m, p. 641.
20 IOWA JOTJBNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
have claimedy from Iowa County in Wisconsin. On this
point Lieiitenant Lea tells us that ^'the District under re-
view has been often called 'Scott's Purchase', and it is
sometimes called the 'Black Hawk Purchase', but from the
extent and beauty of the Iowa Biver which runs centrally
through the District, and gives character to most of it, the
name of that stream being both euphonious and appropriate
has been given to the District itself ".^^
The name as applied to the river was spelled ''loway"**
and extends back a hundred years or more when the French
spelled it ''Aouway". In later years, after the State was
formed. Lieutenant Lea tried to have the spelling changed
to **Ioway", which as he declares '*it ought to have been",**
His descriptions of the waterways furnish the student
with much valuable information, as most of the streams have
the same names as in 1835, very few having been changed
since fhen. The Skunk Biver, however, bore at that time
the more dignified name of Chicaqua,*^ and the Iowa was
oftentimes known as the Bison or Buffalo.^
The Mississippi is given the most attention as that river
was the great thoroughfare of the period. Next in impor-
tance is the Des Moines Biver and its tributaries, which are
also described in detail. The various bends, rapids, and
fording places are outlined, and any deposits of minerals
or stone are also mentioned. The contiguous lands and
their value for future settlement are described and esti-
mated.
The Iowa Biver was the favorite of Lieutenant Lea and he
61 Lea 'e Notes en Wisconsin Territory, p. 8.
u Annals of Iowa, Third Series, Vol. Ill, p. 641.
M Letter of A. M. Lea to Editor H. G. Day of Albert Lea, Minnesota, dated
January 1, 1890. — In collection of Mr. A. N. Harbert of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
<*See the map in Lea's Notes ot^ Wisconsin Territory,
•sSee the map in Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory,
LEA'S CONTEroUTIONS TO IOWA HISTOBY 21
•
never mentions it without becoming enthusiastic. He de-
darei? ''it presents to the imagination the finest picture on
earth." Other rivers which the writer describes are the
*'Pine", the **Wabesapinica", the *' Great Mequoquetoia",
the **Tetes des Morts", and the **Penaca or Turkey river".
Other small creeks and sloughs are also mentionedi which
had no importance except as landmarks.
Two tracts of land which were the subjects of much spec-
ulation are discussed by Lea. The first of these is the
''Half -Breed Tract ", a portion of land lying in the angle
between the Des Moines and the Mississippi rivers. The
»
history of this tract is related from the time of the treaty
of 1824 with the Sauk and Fox Indians. Not only is the soil
of this tract described, but the various small streams are
mentioned, the conditions of its inhabitants explained, and
the validity of the land titles discussed.
The second tract is that strip of land known as ''The
IndianEeserve'Nor-Keokak'sEeserve". This comprised
a strip of land along the Iowa Biver containing four him-
dred square miles. At this time the Indians had removed
in large numbers and the whites were eagerly awaiting a
chance to seize upon some of the choicest parts of the Dis-
trict.
The descriptions of the towns are of exceeding interest,
since the struggling little villages of that day are now in
' many instances thriving cities ; while in other cases no rem-
nant remains of what promised to be prosperous and weal-
thy communities. Keokuk was a town which derived its
chief importance from the rapids in the Mississippi, for all
boats were forced to stop and change their f reight.^^ The
town lots were held in common by the owners of the "Half-
Breed Tract".
MLea's Notes on Wiseontin Territory p p. 35.
22 IOWA JOUBNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Fort Des Moines, now no longer in existence, was then an
important place/^ A good landing was located here, and
much fine farming country was close hj. A legend claimed
that this was the location of an old French settlement ; and
some remains of such a settlement were to be found.
Madison (Fort Madison) was located upon the site of old
Fort Madison, which had been burned during the War of
1812. This town had been laid out in 1835 and gave great
promise of growth.**
Burlington was a town of four hundred inhabitants and
was beginning to boom. Lots were being bought and sold
with remarkable briskness, and the town impressed one as
a rich business center.**
lowa,^* **a town to be laid out*^ and located at the great
bend of the Mississippi, between Davenport and Muscatine,
is mentioned as the future metropolis of the District.*^^
'' Should the seat of Government of the future State of Iowa
be located on the Mississippi, it would probably be fixed at
Iowa. • . • And if it be located in the interior, it must be
near the Iowa river". This proved to be the case, as the
seat of government was located at Iowa City.*^*
Considerable attention is given to Davenport, ^^a town
•T Lea's Noiei on Wiseantin Territory, p. 35.
M Lea's Notei on Wiieantin Territory, p. 85.
••Lea's Notee on Wiseonein Territory, p. 36.
TO Lea's Notee on Wieeonein Territory, p. 37.
Lieatenant Lea had booght a large strip of land at the mouth of the Pine
Biyer and had platted the District. Later he organised a ferry and immigra-
tion companj, but laeked the necessary capital to carry his project through.
A letter written by Lieatenant Lea's daughter, Lida L. Lea, on January 5,
1904, says: ''He [A. M. Lea] had some 'frild lands' for which he refused
$30,000 and afterwards forgot — in other business enterprises, — and allowed
to be sold for the taxes". — See Aete of the Territorial Assembly of Iowa
for 1840-1841 for the Articles of Incorporation, Chapter 63.
Ti Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, pp. 37, 38.
TSThis forecast is typical of those made by Lea and shows the aeeuraey
and eaxe usually e]diibited in his writings.
LEA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTOBY 23
just laid out on a reserve belonging to Antoine Ledaire^'J*
The most interesting part of the description of this town
has historical significance in regard to the location of the
capital city. "The town'^ says Lea, *'is laid out on a lib-
eral scale, with a view to its becoming a large city. Three
public squares have been reserved from sale, one of which,
it is supposed by the proprietors, will be occupied by the
public buildings of the future State of Iowa ; for they con-
fidently predict that the seat of Government of this forth-
coming commonwealth will be no other than the dty of
Davenport itself. Noim verrons*^'^^
Dubuque (or Du Buque as it was then spelled) was the
most prosperous of any of these towns ;''^ for besides a
population of over 1200 it had twenty-five dry goods stores,
numerous groceries, four taverns, a court house, a jail, and
three churches. It was claimed that the art of mining was
''more skilfully practised at these mines than in any other
part of the world 'V*
Many other towns are mentioned which have long since
ceased to exist. Among this class of towns was Catfish, a
small town laid out in 1832 in the region of the mines south
of Dubuque.
Biprow was another small town of which Lieutenant Lea
declared ''here are some of the finest smelting establish-
ments in the world."
Easey's, a town to be laid out by a gentleman bearing
that name, was on the present site of the city of Muscatine.
As this was close to the town of Iowa, in which Lea was in-
terested, the town of Easey^s was not given a very allur-
ing write-up.
Ts Lea's Notei on Wi$oanain Territory, p. 39.
T4Lea'8 Notes on Wisconein Territory, p. 39.
TsLea'8 Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 41.
Tt Lea's Notes on Wisconsin Territory, p. 41.
24 IOWA JOUBNAL OP mSTOBY AND POLITICS
THE MAP OF THE IOWA DI8TBICT
In connection with the Notes on Wisconsin Territory is a
map of the District of which mention has already been
made ; and this was one of the two maps of the Iowa conn-
try drawn by lieutenant Lea. It is '^a Map of Wisconsin
Territory, compiled from Tanner's map of United States,
from snrveys of pnblic lands and Indian boundaries, from
personal reconnoissance and from original information de-
rived from explorers and traders ''J^ Among the latter was
Captain Nathan Boone, a son of the famous Daniel Boone
and an intimate friend of Lieutenant Lea J^ It was largely
through Boone's aid that Lea secured the information con-
cerning the river courses and the Indian lands which made
the map one of the most accurate of the period J^
The map is interesting, in the first place, from a mechan-
ical standpoint. It is small, about 16 by 22 inches, and
very finely drawn. The coloring is excellently done in
bright shades^ and the engraving is perfect Upon it we see
some of the roads then in existence, all the towns, and a
few of the winding Indian trails. We can also see the
streams with their old-time spelling — although most of the
rivers bear the same names as at present.
TTLea had not traveled over wertem Iowa, which at that time had never
been explored, and it waa necessary to use the information of trappers and
traders.
TB Nathan Boone was Captain of Company H of the First United Btates
Dragoons. In 1832 he had surveyed the Neutral Strip, a tract of land forty
miles wide which divided the Sioux and the Sac and Fox tribes of Indians. —
AnnaU of lava. Third Series, Vol. VII, p. 436.
70 Other maps of this District during this period are John Plumbe's and
J. H. Colton's maps of 1839; J. H. Colton's and Jesse Williams' maps of
1840; Newhall'e map of 1841; Willard Barrow's map of 1845.— See The
Iowa Joubnal of Bibtoby and Poutics, Vol. I, p. 82.
so The coloring of the early maps was in very bright shades and their lasting
qualities were very great.
LEA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTOBY 25
One of the most interesting features of the map is the
route taken by the Dragoons in 1835.^^ This is very clearly
shown, with the camping places, the distances covered daily,
and any peculiar geographical formations plainly marked.
Among the latter is a high mound located a short distance
below the present city of Boone.^' A large part of the pres-
ent States of Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota
is also outlined. The completeness, the accuracy, and the
simplicity of the map caused it to be generally used both
by the government^* and by individuals.
THB BEPOBT ON THB lOWA-MISSOUBI BOUNDABY
Next in importance to the Notes on Wisconsin Territory
as a contribution to the literature of Iowa history is the
report made by Lieutenant Lea as United States Commis-
sioner to locate the Iowa-Missouri boundary. When the
Territory of Iowa was created by an act of Congress on
June 12, 1838,^ a controversy with the State of Missouri
had already arisen concerning the boundaries of the two
jurisdictions. Accordingly, on the 18th of June Congress
passed an act which empowered the President of the United
States to cause the southern boundary of Iowa to be ascer-
tained and marked.^^ This act provided for the appointment
of a commissioner who should work with a commissioner
from the Territory of Iowa and one from the State of
Missouri. Following the provisions of this law. President
Van Buren appointed Lieutenant Lea as Commissioner for
SI Thii route eovered over 1100 miles. — See Iowa Historiedl Beeord, VoL VI,
No. 4, October, 1890, p. 535.
S'See note 18 above.
M Iowa Historiedl Beeord^ VoL VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 550. cf . note 92.
M United States Statutes at Large, VoL V, p. 235.
M United States Statutes at Large, VoL V. p. 248.
26 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOBY AND POLITICS
the United States ;*• and Governor Lucas appointed Dr,
James Davis.®^ But Governor Boggs of Missouri failed
to appoint a man to represent Ms State.
Aft soon as Lieutenant Lea received his appointment lie
hastened to St. Louis, arriving there on September 1, 1838.**
After securing the necessary amoimt of help and instru-
ments he came north to Keokuk, and there he met the Iowa
commissioner. These two spent most of the winter in ex-
amining and surveying the country, and in going over the
various documents connected with the history of the con-
troversy.** Finally, on the 19th of January, 1839, Lieuten-
ant Lea submitted his report to the General Land Office.
It was printed as an Executive Document and used exten-
sively in the debates in Congress.*^
This report is remarkable in many respects, and for some
years was the most important and most widely known work
of Lieutenant Lea. It is concise, gives a full and accurate
history of the land in dispute, and states clearly the issues
which Congress must decide.
After an introduction outlining the work done by the com-
missioners, a history of the tract in dispute is given.*^ It
— SxeouHve Doewmenti, House Doeament No. 88, Third Seiiion, 27tli Con-
gntt, p. 6; alto One's HiMtory of lawa, Vol. I, p. 176.
■T One's BUiwrff of Iowa, VoL I, p. 176.
- Iowa Eiftoriedl Beeord, VoL VIH, No. 1, January, 1892, p. 204.
M Among these doenments maj be noted the following: Act creating State
of Missouri; Act creating Territory of Missouri; several important letters;
eopies of a Spanish Land Grant. The latter is a eopj of one of the four land
grants made bj the Spanish Government from territory now witiiin the limita
of the State of Iowa. It is signed by the G<yvemor, Zenon Trudeau, and reads:
'<St. Louis^ le 30 Mars, 1799.
'^n est permis k Mr. Louis Honor6 d s'^tablir an haut du rapide de la rividre
Des Moines."
•0 See files of the C<mgre99i<mdl Olobe for thia period, 1838-1848.
•1 Bepart <m the lowa-Miisowri Boundary in the Iowa Eistoriodl Beoord^ VoL
n, No. 1, January, 1886, p. 193.
LEA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA mSTOBY 27
relates how in 1808 the Osage Indians ceded this land, com-
prising the northern part of Missouri, to the United States
government. A few years later, in 1816, Colonel John C.
Snllivan surveyed these lands and ran a line which was
commonly considered the northern boundary of Missouri.
This line started at the "Old Northwest Comer", a point
one hundred miles due north of the mouth of the Kansas
Biver, and was supposed to run due east to the ''Des
Moines Bapids''. But owing to carelessness in correcting
the needle, the line run by Colonel Sullivan was two and
one-half degrees north of east when the Des Moines Biver
was reached.®'
Four years later, in 1820 when the people of Missouri
formed a State, they used the words "to correspond with
the Indian boundary line''** in their petition to Congress;
and thus the dispute arose. Missouri claimed that the ''Des
Moines Bapids ' ' were in the Biver Des Moines, while Iowa
claimed that the phrase referred to those rapids above Keo-
kuk in the Mississippi or ''Les rapids de la riviere Des
Moines'' of the French period.
Four lines at once presented themselves for the considera-
tion of the commissioners; and these were carefully ex-
amined. First, there was the old Indian boundary or Sulli-
van's line which extended west to the Missouri Biver. Sec-
ond, there was the parallel of latitude passing through the
Old Northwest Comer of the Indian boundary. Third, there
was the parallel of latitude passing through the Des Moines
rapids in the Mississippi. And fourth, there was the paral-
lel of latitude passing through the rapids in the Des Moines
Biver at the Great Bend, near the present site of Keosauqua.
•s Bepofi on the lowa-Miisouri Boundary in the Iowa Historiedl Beoard^ VoL
H, No. 1, January, 1886, p. 194.
•a United Statet Statutes at Large, VoL m, p. 546.
28 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOBY AND POLITICS
The first line appeared to be the just one and the line
commonly nsed; bnt it did not conform to the law, which
called for a ''parallel of latitude''.** And thongh the other
three lines were parallels of latitude, yet they failed to pass
through the required rapids or the Old Northwest Comer.
Lieutenant Lea concluded that the old Lidian boundary, or
Sullivan's line, *4s the equitable and proper northern
boundary of the State of Missouri; but that the terms of
the law do not allow the Commissioner to adopt that line."*^
This report on the Missouri-Iowa boundary caused much
discussion in Congress. The committee to which it was re-
ferred was unable to settle the question, and for a period
lasting over ten years it was a subject of much debate in
both houses. Congress at last found itself unable to settle
the question and the case was taken to the United States
Supreme Court, where the opinions and sound judgment of
Lea, as exhibited in the report, were affirmed by the deci-
sion*^ handed down by Mr. Justice Catron, who said in part :
**This court doth therefore see proper to decree, and accord-
ingly order, adjudge, and decree, that the true and northern
boundary line of the State of Missouri and the true southern
line of the State of Iowa, is the line run and marked in
1816 by John C. SuUivan^.^^
A map of the Iowa country accompanies the report and
is the second drawn of this section by Lieutenant Lea.*^ It
is large, about 24 by 36 inches in size, and shows northern
Missouri and the lower one-third of Iowa. The most in-
teresting features of the map are the different lines which
94 United States Statutes at Large, VoL III, p. 545.
9^ Executive DooumentSt House Document No. 38, 3rd Session, 27th Con-
gress. Also Iowa Bistoricat Becord, Vol. II, No. 1, January, 1886, p. 193.
— Found in 7 Howard 660.
97 7 Howard 679.
9t Executive Documents, House Document No. 38, 3rd Session, 27th Con-
LBA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA HISTORY 29
were in dispute. These lines are so drawn that the issues
present themselves without a word of explanation. The map
is decidedly superior to the one which is found in the Notes
m Wisconsin Territory in that it is more accurately drawn,
the rivers, too, having their permanent names by this time.
OTHEB GOKTBIBXTTIONS
Those already mentioned comprise the most important
contributions of Albert Miller Lea to the literature of Iowa
history ; but there are some other writings of lesser impor-
tance which should be noticed. Among these lesser contribu-
tions the most important is the autobiography of Lieutenant
Lea*^ which was published in the Iowa Historical Record.
This contribution explains some of the conditions which ex-
isted at the time of Lea's work in Iowa and gives a graphic
account of Iowa pioneer life.^^ An article of nearly the
same importance is also found in the same publication and
is entitled Early Explorations in lowa}^^ This gives in a
conversational manner the story of the march of the Dra-
goons in 1835y and is considered by most students as the
best account of the march ever written.*®'
MA longer antobiographj was prepared bj Lientenmnt Lea for the Minne-
lota Historical Societj and published by the Albert Lea, Minnesota, Freehofn
CMAty Standard, on Mareh 13, 1879.
100 loMKL Histaricdl Beeord, VoL VIII, No. 1, January, 1892, p. 200.
101 Iowa Higtariedl Beoard, VoL VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 535.
in A Journal. An important and very valuable document came to light in
the aatumn of 1908 at Madrid, Iowa, where it was claimed that Albert M. Lea
WM the author. The title of the document was the '' Journal of different
Harehes Made by the Dragoons in the years 1834 and 6 with some remarks''.
Itwu in a faded handwriting, signed "L — '', and agreed so perfectly with
tbe known facts that very few questioned its authorship by Lieutenant Lea.
Bat upon close examination of the manuscript many features came to light
vliieh proved beyond a doubt that it was not written by the gifted Lieutenant.
In the first place, the journal of 1834, which describes day by day the mareh
of the Dragoons into the Pawnee country, could not possibly have been written
30 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTOBY AND POLITICS
In 1890 Lieutenant Lea wrote a series of articles for a
paper^^' published in Albert Lea, Minnesota, which deal not
only with the early history of Iowa, but also relate to the
Civil War and to incidents in the life of the author.^^^ Some
l^ Lea for he did not join that regiment until its return to Fort Gibson in
the autumn of 1834.
The Journal of 1835, moreover, was not written l^ Lieutenant Lea, for it
gives a daily account of the marches from the Baccoon Forks to Fort Des
Moines No. 1. Since Lieutenant Lea covered this distance in a canoe upon
the Bes Moines Blver, and was not with the troops over that portion of the
march, it was an impossibility for him to keep such a record.
There are also other evidences in the body of the text to prove that it did
not owe its authorship to Lieutenant Lea. Nor is external evidence lacking to
prove this statement; for the handwriting, the rhetoric, the orders of the com-
manding officers, all go to show that Albert M Lea did not write these journals.
However, the fact that they were written by an unknown man, who signed
himself **h — " does not in the least lessen their value. They compare accu-
rately with the known and reliable sources concerning the march, such as the
map in the Notes an Wiscomin Territory and the account given by Lea in a
magaaine article. In fact they touch upon phases overlooked by Lieutenant Lea
himself and must bo considered as a valuable addition to the literature of the
early history of Iowa.
The Jowmai has been edited by Louis Pehser and published in fuU in the
July, 1909, number of Thi Iowa Joubnal of Hi8T<»y and Politics.
Lieutenant Lea has described hia trip from the present site of Bes Moines
to Fort Bes Moines No. 1, in the Iowa Hittorieal Record, VoL VI, No. 4,
October, 1890, p. 550, in these words: "The next morning, a bright Sunday,
I got orders to reconnoitre the Des Moines river, by descending it in a canoe,
to ascertain the practicability of navigation with keel boats, with a view to
the establishment of a military port. A goodly cottonwood was selected, my
men set to work with a will, and at sunrise Tuesday I bade adieu to the camp,
and aided by a soldier and an Indian, started on my toilsome task, sounding
all shoals, taking courses with a i>ocket compass, estimating distances from
bend to bend by the time and rate of motion, sketching every notable thing,
occasionally landing to examine the geology of the rocks, and sleeping in the
sand despite the gnats and mosquitoes. We made the trip without an accident,
and leaving our canoe with Capt. White at the trading house, we footed it
to the fort, where we arrived many days before the main body, who returned
leisurely by land, and arrived in fine order, without the loss of a man, a
horse, a tool, or a beef, which were fatter than at the starting, after a march
of eleven hundred miles.''
108 Freeborn County Standard, Albert Lea, Minnesota, edited by H. G. Day.
104 Lea was an intimate friend of President Jefferson Davis; and he claimed
relationship to General Bobert E. Lee. In the early part of the war, however,
LEA'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO IOWA mSTOBY 31
of these articles are especially valnable as they give the
Indian's side of the Black Hawk War,^^^ just as Lieutenant
Lea heard it from the lips of Black Hawk himself. Li an-
other of these same articles we are told of the formation
of the United States Dragoons.^^^ A cavalry regiment of
five companies was formed at the dose of the Black Hawk
War, and this, declares Lea, ''was the cause and neudeus of
the First United States Dragoons".
The last of these lesser contributions^^'' is a letter by
Lieutenant Lea, which deserves spedal mention as it throws
some light on the name ''Iowa'\ It appears that the name
was spelled **Ioway" by the earliest settlers; but in order
to satisfy their desires for Latin endings, George W. Jones,
the Territorial Delegate to Congress,^®* and Lieutenant Lea
agreed to spell it '*Iowa". Several years later, after the
State had been formed, the original spelling seemed pref-
erable ; and in this letter the writer asks his friends to re-
vert to the old spelling of **Ioway".
The contributions of Albert M. Lea*^* are not numerous,
Identenant Lea inenrred tlie disfavor of Jefferaon Dayis and never rose higher
than the rank of Major.
At the battle of Galveston, Albert M. Lea fought against his son, who was
a Lieutenant on a Federal gunboat. The younger Lea was slain and the article
telling of this battle is the most pathetic story ever written by Albert M. Lea.
106 Lea, accompanied by General Parrott, visited the lodge of Black Hawk.
io« Article published in the Freeborn County Standard on January 30, 1890.
107 Letter written to H. G. Day of Albert Lea, Minnesota, on January 1, 1890,
preserved in collection of Mr. A. N. Harbert.
los For a complete history of the Territorial Delegate see an article by Ken-
neth W. Colgrove entitled The Iowa Territoriai Delegates in Thi Iowa Journal
OF History and Politigs, Vol. Vn, No. 2, April, 1909, p. 230.
109 Lieutenant Lea was a very careful writer and most of his writings agree
perfectly with official records and documents. The map in the Notes on
Wisconsin Territory, however, was based to a considerable extent ui>on data
furnished by Capt. Nathan Boone; and a comparison of this map with the
present map of the State shows its defects.— See Iowa Eistoricdl Record, VoL
VI, No. 4, October, 1890, p. 560.
32 IOWA JOUENAL OF HISTOBY AND POLITICS
neither are they in the best sense critical. The author
did not realize the part they would play nor the influence
they would exert. They are, however, remarkable in many
respects. They give us real pictures of the virgin Iowa
prairies, of the streams, and the homes of the pioneers.
They were in most respects accurate and reliable, concise
and clear. These contributions though few in number are
prized by all students of Iowa history. They are, indeed,
the most enduring monuments to the life and memory of
Albert Miller Lea.
. ^ , CuFFOBD Powell
Iowa City, Iowa
J
ANDEBSONVILLE AND THE TRTAL OF
HENEY WIEZ^
[In 1884 Ex-Iiieiitenaitt Governor Benj. F. One of Iowa yiiited the lita
of AndenonTiUe PriBon and eompiled from the eemetezy register the number
of burials of Iowa soldien in the cemetery. He found the names of two
hundred Iowa men, representing twenty-eight regiments. The names of these
men, with company and regiment, were published in the Iowa State JHegitier
of April 16, 1884. The list was republished, together with a description of the
prison stockade, in the Annals of Iowa, Third Series, Vol. I, pp. 65-87.-^
EnnoE.]
I have been introdnoed to yon as the sole snrvivor* of
the Conrt that tried Captain Henry Wirz, the keeper of
the Andersonville Prison, and I have been asked to tell yon
something of the prison and its management. Were it not
for reasons herein given my preference wonld be to say
nothing on the snbject, not because I wonld shirk the re-
sponsibility of having participated in the trial of Wirz^
but because for more than fifty days during his trial I sat
and listened to the terrible story of the sn£ferings and death
of our brave boys at Andersonville, and when the end was
1 This paper was read hy General John Howard Btibbs at Iowa City, Iowa,,
on May 30, 1910. The military record of General Stibbs as shown in VoL I
of the HMoriedl Begister and Dictionary of the VnUed Statee Army is as
follows: Mustered into the United States Service as Captain of Twelfth Iowa
Infantry Volunteers, November 25, 1861; as Major, May 2, 1868; as Lieutenant
Colonel, September 25, 1863; as Colonel, September 18, 1866; as Brevet Colonel
United States Volunteers, March 18, 1866, for distinguished gallantry in the
battles before Nashville, Tennessee; Brevet Brigadier General, United States
Volunteers, March 13, 1866, for meritorious services during the war; and was
honorably discharged, April 30, 1866. For a more detailed sketch of General
Stibbs, see below under " Contributors '^
s Since the preparation of this paper it has been learned that the Judge Ad>
vocate. Genera] N. P. Chipman, who prosecuted the case against Oaptain Win,
is still living as a resident of Sacramento, CaUf omia.
VOL IX — 3 W
34 IOWA JOUENAL OP HISTOET AND POLITICS
reached I felt that I would like to banish the subject from
my mind and forget, if I could, the details of the terrible
crime committed there.
On innumerable occasions since the Civil War I have
been urged, and at times tempted, to say or write some-
thing in relation to the trial of Wirz, but it has always
seemed to me a matter of questionable propriety. The
record of the trial had been published to the world; and
on occasions when the action of the Court has been criti-
cised, or condemned, I have felt that it was the duty of
our friends to defend those who had served as members
of the Court rather than that we should speak for ourselves.
Then, too, I have been in doubt as to the extent of my
obligation, taken when I was sworn as a member of the
Court, and as a result I have remained silent on the subject
for nearly forty-five years; but as time passed and one
after another of those who served with me passed off the
stage, leaving me the sole survivor of the Court, and after
a monument was erected to perpetuate the memory of Wirz
and he was proclaimed a martyr who had been unfairly
tried and condemned, I concluded to lay aside all question
of propriety and obligation and accede to the request of
some of my Iowa friends who were urging me to prepare
a paper. I will add that one of my chief reasons for yield-
ing in this matter was that I wanted to describe the per-
sonnel of the Court ; to tell who and what the men were who
composed it ; and to tell, as I alone could tell, of the unani-
mous action of the Court in its findings.
I will not attempt to describe fully the horrors of Ander-
sonville, but will simply give you an outline description
of the place and the conditions existing there. With that
picture before you, your own imagination will supply the
details.
ANDEBSONVILLE AND THE TBIAL OF WIBZ 35
In the fall of 1863 the rebel prisons in the vicinity of
Richmond had become overcrowded^ and a new prison was
located with a view, as was claimed at the time, of making
more room for onr men and of placing them as far as pos-
sible from onr lines, where they conld be cared for by a
comparatively small gnard and where provisions were most
accessible. Bnt the evidence presented before the Wirz
Commission satisfied the Conrt beyond a doubt that while
this prison was being made ready, if not before, a conspir-
acy was entered into by certain persons, high in authority
in the Confederate service, to destroy the lives of our men,
or at least subject them to such hardships as would render
them unfit for further military service.
Andersonville is situated on the Southwestern Bailroad
about sixty miles south from Macon, (Georgia. In 1864 the
place contained not more than a dozen houses. The country
round about was covered with a heavy growth of pine tim-
ber, and in the midst of this timber, a short distance from
the station, the prison was laid out. Planters in the neigh-
borhood were called upon to send in their negro men ; and
with this force trenches were dug inclosing an area of
eighteen acres, which subsequently was enlarged to about
twenty-seven acres. The timber was cut down and the
trees trimmed and set into the trenches, forming a stockade
about eighteen feet high. Inside the stockade, about twenty
feet from the wall, was established a dead-line, formed by
driving small stakes in the ground and nailing on top of
them a strip of board ; and the orders were to shoot down
without warning any prisoner whp crossed this line. Every
tree and shrub within the indosure was cut down, and it
contained no shelter of any kind. Colonel W. H. Persons,
who was the first commandant, ordered a lot of lumber with
which to build barracks for the men ; but before any work
36 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOET AND POLITICS
was done he was snooeeded by Brigadier (}eneral John H.
Winder, and the lumber was used for other purposes. Al-
though there was a steam saw-mill within a quarter of a
mile and four mills within a radius of twenty miles, no
buildings or shelters of any kind were erected within the
inclosure while our men remained there, save two barren
sheds at the extreme north end of the stockade which were
used for hospital purposes. On the outside of the stock-
ade, and near its top, there were built a series of platforms
and sentry boxes at intervals of about one hundred feet
in which guards were continually posted. They were so
close together that the guards could readily commimicate
with each other ; and from where they were posted they had
an unobstructed view of the interior of the prison. At a
distance of sixty paces outside the main stockade, a second
stockade, about twelve feet high, was built, and the inter-
vening space was left unoccupied. This was designed as
an additional safeguard against any attempt of the pris-
oners to escape. Surrounding the whole was a cordon
of earthworks in which seventeen guns were placed and kept
continually manned. The guard consisted of a force of
from three to five thousand men, chiefly home guards, and
they were encamped west of and near to the stockade. A
creek having its source in a swamp or morass, less than
half a mile from the stockade, ran from west to east
through the place at about the center. The water in this
creek was not wholesome at its source, and before it reached
the stockade there was poured into it all the filth from the
camp of the Confederate guard, the hospitals, and cook
houses; and to this was added all the filth and excrement
originating within the prison pen. For a time this creek
was the only source from which our men obtained water;
but in time the creek bed and fully an acre or more of land
ANDEBSONVILLE AND THE TRIAL OF WIBZ 37
bordering it became a putrid mass of oormption, into which
the men waded knee-deep to secure water from the running
stream. In this extremity many of the men set to work
and with their knives and pieces of broken canteens they
dug wells, some of them seventy feet deep, and thereafter
such as were fortunate enough to have an interest in a well
were supplied with wholesome water.
When the place was first occupied the ground was cov-
ered with the stumps of the trees that had been cut down ;
but there was such a scarcity of wood with which to cook
their food and warm their numb fingers that our men went
to work with their knives and the rude implements at hand
and cut out the stumps, digging far into the ground to secure
the roots, until not a vestige of a stump remained.
On February 15, 1864, the first lot of prisoners, 860 of
them, were turned into the stockade. In April following,
the number had increased to 9577; which number was
doubled a month later; and in August, 1864, there were
more than 33,000 men within the indosure.
Think of it! Picture it if you can! A great barren
field so filled with men that there was scarcely room enough
for all of them to lie down at the same time — without a
shelter of any kind to shield them from a southern sun or
frequent rain ; without a seat on which to rest their weary
bodies when too tired to stand; without blankets, and in
many instances without sufficient clothing to cover their
nakedness; with scant rations of the coarsest food, many
times uncooked ; and with nothing to do but to stand around
waiting for death, or a i)ossible exchange. Is it a wonder
that men became sick under such conditions f The wonder
to me is that any one of them lived through it. Here the
question is suggested. What means were provided for the
care and treatment of our men when they became sickf
38 IOWA JOURNAL OF mSTOBT AND POLITICS
As a prelnde to my answer I will state that during the
trial of Wirz one hundred and forty-six witnesses were
sworn, and of this number nearly one hundred had been
confined as prisoners in the stockade. One after another
they told their experiences as prisoners and of the condi-
tions existing in and about the stockade, until we had the
picture complete from their standpoint ; and had there been
no other evidence in the case, the story told by their com-
bined testimony might with some show of fairness have
been discredited because of the fact that all had been suf-
ferers and supposedly were prejudiced and biased. But
we had other witnesses^ two score or more of them, who
had been in the Confederate service and were at the prison
as guards, officers, surgeons, etc., and some of them had
made official reports, telling of the horrible condition of the
prison and its inmates. A number of these reports were
found and introduced as evidence before the Court, and
the parties who made them were called in to testify con-
cerning what they had written. This evidence served to
corroborate in the fullest particular all that had been tes-
tified to by those who had been prisoners concerning the
general conditions in the prison. I feel that it will answer
my purpose if I quote from their testimony alone in my ef-
forts to place before you a comprehensive picture of Ander-
sonville as it existed in the summer of 1864.
In August, 1864, Dr. Joseph Jones, an ex-surgeon of the
Confederate army whom Jefferson Davis, in an article pub-
lished in B elf or d* 8 Magazine in January, 1890, referred to
as being ^ ^ eminent in his profession, and of great learning
and probity", was sent to Andersonville to investigate and
report his observations ; and his official report made to Sur-
geon General Moore was very full and complete. In it he
gave a minute description of the stockade, and the hospital
ANDEBS0N7ILLE AND THE TRIAL OF WIBZ 39
adjacent; of the number of prisoners and their crowded
condition ; of the lack of food, fuel, shelter, medical attend-
ance, etc ; of the condition of the men in the stockade and
in the hospital; of the deaths and death rate; and in fact,
as I remember, he went over the entire ground. His report
was introduced in evidence, and identified by him when
called as a witness. He frankly admitted that he did not
go to Andersonville with a view of ameliorating the suffer-
ings of the prisoners, but purely in the interest of science
for the ''benefit of the medical department of the Confeder-
ate armies", and that his report was intended for the sole
use of the Surgeon General. I will quote briefly from his
report On pages 4340 and 4341 of the Record, be says:
I visited two thousand sick within the stockade, lying under some
long sheds which had been built at the northern portion for them-
selves. At this time only one medical officer was in attendance,
whereas at least 20 medical officers should have been employed.*
Further on, after referring to the sheds in the stockade
which were open on all sides, he says on page 4348 of the
Record :
The sick lay upon the bare boards, or upon such ragged blankets as
they possessed, without, as far as I observed, any bedding or even
straw. Pits for the reception of feces were dug within a few feet of
the lower floor, and they were almost never unoccupied by those suf-
fering from diarrhoea. The haggard, distressed countenanees of these
miserable, complaining, dejected, living skeletons, crying for medi-
cal aid and food, .... and the ghastly corpses, with their glazed
eye balls staring np into vacant space, with the flies swarming down
their open and grinning months, and over their ragged clothes, in-
fested with numerous lice, as they lay amongst the sick and dying,
formed a picture of helpless, hopeless misery which it would be im-
possible to portray by words or by the brush.*
* Copied from the Tritd of Henry WirM, Sxeevtive Documents, 2nd SeMion,
40th Congress, No. 23, pp. 623, 624.
« Copied from the Trial of Henry Win, Bxeouiive DocmnenU, 2nd Sessioni
40th Congress, No. 23, p. 626.
40 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Again, referring to the hospital inclosure of less than five
acres he says on pages 4350, 4351, and 4354 of the Record :
The patients and attendants, near two thousand in number are
crowded into this confined space and are but poorly supplied with
old and ragged tents. Large numbers of them were without any
bunks in the tents, and lay upon the ground, of ttimes without even
a blanket. No beds or straw appeared to have been furnished. The
tents extend to within a few yards of the small stream, the eastern
portion of which .... is used as a privy and is loaded with excre-
ments; and I observed a large pile of com bread, bones, and filth
of all kinds, thirty feet in diameter and several feet in height,
swarming with myriads of flies, in a vacant space near the pots
used for cooking. Millions of flies swarmed over everything and
covered the faces of the sleeping patients, and crawled dovm their
open mouths, and deposited their maggots in the gangrenous wounds
of the living, and the mouths of the dead. Mosquitoes in great
numbers also infested the tents, and many of the patients were so
stung by these pestiferous insects, that they resembled those suffer-
ing with a slight attack of the measles.
The police and hygiene of the hospital was defective in the ex-
treme Many of the sick were literally encrusted with dirt
and filth and covered with vermin. When a gangrenous wound
needed washing, the limb was thrust out a little from the blanket,
or board, or rags upon which the patient was lying, and water
poured over it, and all the putrescent matter allowed to soak into
the ground fioor of the tent. ... I saw the most filthy rags which
had been applied several times, and imperfectly washed, used in
dressing recent wounds. Where hospital gangrene was prevailing,
it was impossible for any wound to escape contagion under these
circumstances.*
These statements of Dr. Jones were fully corroborated
by Doctors B. G. Head, W. A, Barnes, G. G. Roy, John C-
Bates, Amos Thombnrg, and other surgeons who were on
duty at Andersonville. Dr, G. G. Boy when called on to
describe the appearance and condition of the men sent from
> Copied from the Trial of Henry Wirs, Exeouiive Documents, Snd Session,
40th Oongreis, No. 23, pp. 626, 627.
ANDEBSONYILIiE AND THE TBIAL OF WIBZ 41
the stockade to the hospital said on pages 485 and 486 of
the Record :
They presented the most horrible spectacle of humanity that I
e?er saw in my life. A good many were suffering from scurvy and
other diseases; a good many were naked • • . . their condition gen-
erally was almost indescribable. I attributed that condition to long
confinement and the want of the necessaries and comforts of life,
and all those causes that are calculated to produce that condition
of the system where there is just vitality enough to i>ermit one to
live. . . . The prisoners were too densely crowded. . . . There
iras no shelter, except such as they constructed themselves, which
was very insufficient. A good many were in holes in the earth
with their blankets thrown over them ; a good many had a blanket
or oil-doth thrown over poles; some were in tents constructed by
their own ingenuity, and with just such accommodations as their
own ingenuity permitted them to contrive. There were, you may
sajr, no acconmiodations made for them in the stockade.*
The death register kept at the prison during its occn-
pancy, and still in existence at the Andersonville cemetery,
gives, supposedly, the cause of death in the case of each man
who died at the prison. I have found upon examination
of six hundred names, taken haphazard, the cause of death
was given as follows : Diarrhoea and Dysentery, 310, Scro-
bntus, 205 ; Anasarca, 20 ; and all other causes 65— total, 600.
I think it proper to say, however, that the Court, in de-
liberating on the evidence heard during the trial, were
imanimoTis in the conclusion that the death register would
better have represented the facts if in a very large per-
centage of cases the death cause had been shown by the one
word Stabvation — the causes named being simply compli-
cations.
The evidence presented to the Court showed conclusively
fhat the food furnished our men in the stockade, in quality
•Copied from the Trial cf Henry Wirt, BseeuHve DoewmeniM^ 2iid Seifioii,
tttk CoBgreM, No. 23, p. S2.
42 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOEY AND POLITICS
and qnantitj, was not sufficient to sustain life for an in-
definite time. I will not attempt to show specifically the
rations furnished the men in the stockade; but will give a
couple of extracts from the testimony of Confederate sur-
geons, showing the kind and amount of food provided for
the men in the hospital, and will leave you to draw your
own conclusions.
Doctor John C. Bates, on page 125 of the Record, said :
The meat ration was cooked at a different part of the hospital ;
and when I would go up there, especially when I was medical
officer of the day, the men would gather around me and ask me
for a bone. ... I would give them whatever I could find at my
disposition without robbing others. I well knew that an appropria-
tion of one ration took it from the general issue; that when I
appropriated an extra ration to one man, some one else would fall
minus. ... I then fell back upon the distribution of bones. They
did not presiune to ask me for meat at all. . . . they could not be
furnished with any clothing, except that the clothing of the dead
was generally appropriated to the living. , . . there was a partial
supply of fuel, but not sufficient to keep the men warm and pro-
long their existence. Shortly after I arrived there I was api>ointed
officer of the day ... it was my duty as such to go into the various
wards and divisions of the hospital and rectify anything that needed
to be cared for. ... As a general thing, the patients were desti-
tute; they were filthy and partly naked. . . . The clamor all the
while was for something to eat.^
Doctor J. C. Pelot in an official report directed to the
Chief of his Division, dated September 5, 1864, and filed
as Exhibit No. 9 of the Record, said :
The tents are entirely destitute of either bunks, bedding or straw,
the patients being compelled to lie on the bare ground. I would
earnestly call attention to the article of diet. The com bread re-
ceived from the bakery being made up without sifting, is wholly
▼ Copied from the Trial of Henry Wirz^ Executive Documents, 2nd Sessioxi,
40th Congress, No. 23, p. 28.
i
ANDEBSONYILLE AND THE TRIAL OF WIBZ 43
unfit for the use of the sick; and often (in the last twenty-foor
honn) npon examination, the inner portion is found to be per-
fectly raw. The meat (beef) received for the patients does not
amount to over two ounces a day, and for the past three or four
days no flour has been issued. The com bread cannot be eaten
hy many, for to do so would be to increase the diseases of the
bowels, from which a large majority are suffering, and it is there-
fore thrown away. All their rations received by way of sustenance
is two ounces of boiled beef and half pint of rice soup per day.
Under these circumstances, all the skill that can be brought to bear
upon their cases by the medical officer will avail nothing.*
The foregoing I think is quite enough to convince yon
that our men were left to suffer all the horrors of the
stockade, with practically no medical treatment or atten-
tion, until their condition became such that their removal
to the hospital was only a stepping stone from the stockade
to the cemetery.
Immediately after the place was occupied our men be-
gan to die. In April, 1864, as shown by the Confederate
records, there were 592 deaths; and in August following
2992 of our brave boys passed to their final resting place.
In one day, August 23rd, 127 of them answered the final call.
Some of them in desperation deliberately crossed the dead-
line, and were shot down; while others who had become
crazed and demented by their sufferings, blindly blundered
across the fatal line, and they too were killed without a
challenge. The records show that 149 died from gunshot
wounds. We can only guess at the number of these who
were killed on the deadline, but the evidence showed that
deaths from that cause were of frequent occurrence. Only
a part of these men were taken to the hospital for treat-
ment; fully one-half died in the stockade without having
I Copied from the Trial of Henry Wirz, Executive DoeumenU, 2iid Sesrion,
iOth Congress, No. 23, pp. 37, 38.
44 IOWA JOUBNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
received medical aid, and their comrades carried them to
the gate where they were thrown, one on top of another, on
a wood rack, hauled out to the borying ground, and placed
in trenches where, during the occupancy of the prison, more
than 13,000 of our men were buried — more than twenty-
eight per cent of the entire number of those confined in the
stockade. This statement, appalling as it may appear,
does not represent by any means the aggregate loss of life
sustained by our men as a result of the cruel treatment im-
posed on them at Andersonville. Evidence presented be-
fore the Court showed conclusively that fully 2,000 of our
men died after leaving the prison, and while on their way
home; and we know as a natural result that hundreds,
possessed of barely enough life and strength to enable them
to endure the journey home, must have died within a few
days, weeks, or months after reaching home.
This is only part of the horrible story, but it is enough.
And now some one asks, could these horrors have been pre-
vented or averted? I reply, yes — scarcely having patience
to answer the question. This prison was located in one of
the richest sections of the State of Georgia. Supplies were
abundant, the prison was surrounded with a forest, and
yet some of our men froze to death for lack of fuel, which
they would gladly have gathered had they been permitted
to do so. Among those confined in that stockade were men
possessed of all the training and ability necessary to con-
struct anything from a log cabin to a war-ship; and they
would have considered it a privilege to have done all the
work necessary to enlarge the stockade, build barracks, and
provide a supply of pure water had they been provided
with tools and materials and given the opportunity. I am
convinced beyond a doubt, that the lives of more than three-
fourths of those who died at Andersonville might have been
ANDEBSONVILLE AND THE TRIAL OF WIBZ 45
saved with proper care and treatment ; and to this opinion
I will add that of Acting Assistant Snrgeon J. C. Bates, an
educated gentleman who had been a medical practitioner
since 1850 and who was on duty at Andersonville for a
number of months. He was asked by the Judge Advocate
to state from his observation of the condition and surround-
ings of our prisoners — their food, their drink, their ex-
posure by day and by night, and all the circumstances which
he had described — his professional opinion as to what pro-
portion of deaths occurring there were the result of the cir-
cumstances and surroundings which he had narrated. And
his reply was as follows :
I feel myself safe in saying, that 75 per cent of those who died,
might have been saved, had those unfortunate men been properly
cared for as to food, clothing, bedding, etc.*
In order to make the situation at Andersonville plain to
you I will say that John H. Winder was a General who never
was given command of troops in the field. He was the spe-
cial and particular friend and proteg6 of Jefferson Davis^
who early in the war made him a Brigadier (General and
assigned him to duty in Bichmond, Virginia, as Provost
Marshal and Superintendent of Military Prisons, in which
capacity he made himself notorious by his harsh and brutal
treatment of prisoners committed to his care. No words
of mine would more fittingly describe this man's character
than his own language used in his celebrated order, No. 13,
about which much has been said and written. When Gen-
eral Kilpatrick's command moved in the direction of Ander-
sonville, in July, 1864, and it was expected that in his raid
he would reach the prison, the following order was issued :
• Copied f x«m the Trial of Henry Wir§, Bxeeutive DoewnenU, 2nd SeMiott^
40th Congreit, No. 23, p. 38.
46 IOWA JOUENAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
OBDEB NO. 13
Hbadquabtebs, Confederate States, Miutaby Prison
ANDERSONVHiLE, JuLY 27, 1864
The Officer on duty and in charge of the Battery of Florida
Artillery, at the time, will upon receiving notice that the enemy
has approached within seven miles of this Post, open fire upon
the stockade with grape shot, without reference to the situation
beyond these lines of defense. It is better that the last Federal be
exterminated than be permitted to burn and pillage the property
of loyal citizens, as they will do if allowed to make their escape
from the prison.
Bt Order of John H. Winder,
W. S. Winder, Brigadier General.
Assistant Adjutant General.
General Winder had much to do with the location of the
prison at Andersonville. First, his son, Captain W. S.
Winder, was sent out to locate and construct the prison;
and while so employed, as was shown by competent evi-
dence, when it was suggested to him that he leave standing
some of the trees in the stockade, he replied: '^That is
just what I am not going to do ; I will make a pen here for
the damned Yankees, where they will rot faster than they
can be sent." He served as Assistant Adjutant General on
his father's staff.
On March 27, 1864, Captain Henry Wirz, who was a mem-
ber of General Winder's staff, was sent from Richmond
with orders to assume command of the prison proper ; and
one of his first acts was to establish and construct the dead-
line, which prior to that time had not existed. On April 10,
1864, General Winder made his first appearance at Ander-
sonville and assumed command of the post and the county
in which it was situated ; and among his first formal pub-
lished orders was one assigning Captain Henry Wirz to
the superintendence, management, and custody of the pris-
oners at Andersonville.
/
ANDBBSONVILLE AND THE TEIAL OP WIEZ 47
When General Winder left Bichmond to assume com-
mand at Andersonville the Richmond Examiner had this to
say of him : '^ Thank Ood that Bichmond is at last rid of old
Winder ; Ood have mercy upon those to whom he has been
sent.'' This, I think, is enough to convince yon that from
the outset our men at Andersonville were at the mercy of
one who by his cruelty and barbarism had already made
himself obnoxious to the better element.
Now, in answer to the question whether it was clearly
shown that the horrible conditions existing at Anderson-
ville were made known to those high in authority in the
Confederate government, I will say that the Court listened
to a mass of evidence upon this point. The report of Doc-
tor Jones was sent to the Surgeon General ; and other re-
ports, from time to time, had been made to those in author-
ity, in which the horrors and needs of the prison were set
forth. I will refer to only one other witness. After the
capture of Bichmond there was discovered a report made
by Colonel D. T. Chandler, Assistant Adjutant General and
Inspector General of the Confederate army, dated at Ander-
sonville, August 5, 1864, in which he gave a very graphic
description of the conditions existing at Andersonville and
of the sufferings of our men ; and he recommended immedi-
ate action to relieve the suffering of the prisoners, offer-
ing many practical suggestions. In closing his report he
said:
My duty requires me respectfully to recommend a change in the
officer in command of the Post, Brig. Qeneral STohn H. Winder,
and the substitution in his place of some one who unites both energy
and good judgment with some feeling of humanity and considera-
tion for the welfare and comfort (so far as is consistent with their
safe keeping) of the vast number of unfortunates placed under his
control; some one who at least will not advocate deliberately and
in cold blood the propriety of leaving them in their present oon-
48 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOEY AND POLITICS
dition until their number has been sufficiently reduced by death
to make the present arrangements suffice for their accommodation ;
who will not consider it a matter of self -laudation and boasting
that he has never been inside of the stockade, a place the horrors
of which it is difficult to describe, and which is a disgrace to civi-
lization ; the condition of which he might, by the exercise of a little
energy and judgement, even with the limited means at his com-
mand, have considerably improved.^^
On the back of this report was endorsed the following :
Adjutant and Inspector General's Office, August 18, 1864. Re-
spectfully submitted to the Secretary of War. The condition of
the prison at Andersonville is a reproach to us as a nation. The
Engineer and Ordinance Departments were applied to, and author-
ized their issue, and I so telegraphed Qeneral Winder. Col. Chand-
ler's recommendations are coincided in. By Order of Oeneral
Cooper.
(Signed) R. H. Chh/ton, A. A. & I. O.
Following this was another endorsement :
These reports show a condition of things at Andersonville, which
call very loudly for the interposition of the Department, in order
that a change be made.
(Signed) J. A. Cakpbell^
Assistant Secretary of War.
And finally there was endorsed: ** Noted — File. J. A.
S." The initials are those of James A. Seddon, Secretary
of War.
This original report was introduced before our Court,
and Colonel Chandler was brought there to testify concern-
ing it. He was an officer who had been educated at West
Pointy a polished gentleman in manner and speech ; and his
testimony, given in a f rank, straightforward way, made a
deep impression on the Court. He swore that he vnrote
the report and that the statements embodied in it were true.
10 Copied from the Trial of Henry Win, Bseeutive DocumenU, 2nd Seenon,
iOth Congreet, No. 28, p. 227.
ANDEBSONVILLE AND THE TBIAL OF WIBZ 49
He told of his very minnte inspection of the stockade, of
his measurements and compntationsy showing the amount
of space allowed each inmate, and of the horrors he en-
countered on every hand. The picture he drew of the
place served to confirm the stories of the men who had been
held there as prisoners. He told of calling on Winder and
remonstrating with him regarding the care of the prison,
and of Winder's infamous language in connection there-
with. He said that when he mailed his report to the Secre-
tary of War he confidently expected that General Winder
would be removed from the command of the prisoners, and
that he felt disgusted and outraged when he learned that
instead of being removed Winder had been promoted to be
Commissary (General and Commander of all Military Pris-
ons and prisoners throughout the Confederate States.
When Colonel Chandler was at Andersonville he was
onder orders to inspect all the prisons in the South and
West, and considerable time elapsed before he got back to
Richmond. He then made an investigation and found that
his report, relating to Winder, had been received and con-
sidered by Seddon, the Secretary of War. He threatened
to resign unless his report was taken up and acted upon;
but at about that time Seddon was succeeded by Mr. Breck-
enridge as Secretary of War, and soon thereafter General
T^der died. Then followed the closing days of the War
and collapse of the Bebellion.
Now a word as to the personnel of the Court. I have
examined a number of books purporting to give the truth
concerning Andersonville and the trial of Captain Henry
Wirz; and in all of them, as I remember, occurs the same
error that General E. S. Bragg of li^sconsin is named as a
member of the Court that tried and condemned Wirz. The
truth is that while General Bragg was named in the orig-
VOL.
50 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTOBY AND POLITICS
detail for the Court, he was relieved from farther ser-
vice at an early stage of the trial and took no part in the
deliberations and findings of the C!onrt^^
The Court met first on August 21, 1865, pursuant to in-
structions in Special Order No. 449, and Wirz was arraigned
and entered a plea of not guilty. Without further action
the Court adjourned until the following day. On reassem-
bling an order was received from the Secretary of War
dissolving the Court, and a day later it was called to meet
again under Special Order No. 453, dated August 23, 1865.
In the meantime the charges and specifications had been
materially changed and amended by striking from the list
the names of several persons who had been charged with
having conspired with Wirz to destroy the lives of our
soldiers. Wirz was again arraigned and his plea of not
guilty was entered; but at this juncture his counsel made
a determined effort to secure his discharge on the ground
that he had been placed in jeopardy during his first arraign-
ment, and that under the Constitution he could not legally
be placed on trial a second time. After a full hearing the
Court decided that the action taken by the War Department
was in conformity to the law and precedents, and so the
trial proceeded.
In this connection I think it proper to state that the
charges under which Wirz was first arraigned embraced
the names, as co-conspirators, of Jefferson Davis, James A.
Seddon, Howell Cobb, and Bobert E. Lee. These names
were stricken from the charges as amended; but when the
Court made up its findings, being satisfied beyond question
that a conspiracy had existed as charged, and believing it
to be our duty to include in our verdict the names of any
11 Copied from the Trial of Henry Wirt, Bxeeutive DoemmenU, 2nd Seadon,
40th Congrew, No. 23, p. 511.
ANDEBSONVILLE AND THE TRIAL OF WIBZ 51
of those prominent in the Confederate government who
were shown to have been directly or indirectly connected
with this conspiracy, we amended the specification to
Charge No. 1, by adding the names of Davis, Seddon, and
Cobb. We took it for granted that if onr verdict was ap-
proved by the President the government wonld accept onr
finding as an indictment of the persons named, and that
they would be brought to trial. I am pleased to say, how-
ever, that the Court found no evidence showing that Gen-
eral Lee was cognizant of, or was in any measure a party
to, this conspiracy, and his name was not included in the
verdict
The Military Commission that met and tried Wirz held
their sessions in the rooms of the Court of Claims in the
Capitol Building at Washington, D. C. It was made up as
follows (omitting the name of General Bragg for the rea-
son stated) : — At the head of the table sat Major General
Lew Wallace, the President of the Court. He was at that
time a man of mature years, a lawyer by profession, and
of recognised ability. On his right at the table sat Major
General G. Mott, who subsequently became Governor of
New Jersey. He was a man then of forty-five or fifty years,^
a lawyer, and a man of excellent judgment and discretion
Opposite him sat Major General Lorenzo Thomas, the Ad-
jutant (General of the United States Army. He was then
fully sixty-five years of age, had been for many years
connected with the regular service, and was an acknowl-
edged authority on military law and the rules and usages
of war. On General Mott's right sat Major General J. W.
Geary, who after his discharge from the military service
was made €k>vemor of the great State of Pennsylvania —
a man aged fifty or more, and possessed of more than
ordinary ability. Opposite him sat Brigadier General
52 IOWA JOUENAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Francis Fessenden of Maine, son of old Senator Fessenden,
a man aged about thirty-five, a lawyer, and one who in
every sense might have been called an educated gentleman.
On Oeneral Geary's right sat Brevet Brigadier (General
John F. Ballier of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, an educated
German, aged fifty or more, who had commanded the
Ninety-eighth Pennsylvania Infantry. On his right sat
Brevet Colonel T. Allcock of New York, a man of forty or
more, and a distinguished artillery officer, and finally on
the opposite side of the table, was placed the boy member
— your humble servant. Possibly it might have been
truthfully said of me that I was too young and inexperi-
enced to fill so important a position, since I was then only
in my twenty-sixth year; but I had seen four years of
actual warfare, had successfully commanded a regiment of
Iowa men, and I thought then, as I think now, that I was
a competent juror. The Judge Advocate of the Commis-
sion was Colonel N. P. Chipman, who early in the war
served as Major of the Second Iowa Infantry. He was
severely wounded at Fort Donnelson in February, 1862.
When sufficiently recovered to return to duty he was pro-
moted and became Chief of Staff for General S. B. Curtis,
and later was placed on duty in Washington. He was a law-
yer by profession, a man of superior education and refine-
ment, and withal one of the most genial, kind-hearted, com-
panionable men I have ever had the good fortune to meet.
The average level-headed citizen while considering the
verdicts rendered in an ordinary criminal case is generally
ready to say: **The jury are the best judges of the evi-
dence, they heard it all as it was given, had an opportunity
to judge of its value and estimate the credibility of the wit-
nesses, and their judgment should be accepted as correct
and final." It seems to me that the American people, and
ANDEBSONVILLE AND THE TBIAL OF WIBZ 53
especially the future historian, should be equally fair in
dealing with the Wirz Commission. Indeed, I do not see
how it would be possible for an intelligent, unprejudiced^
fair-minded reviewer to conclude that such a Court could
or would have rendered a verdict that was not in full
accord with the evidence presented. I assure you that
no attempt was made to dictate or influence our verdict;
and furthermore, there was no power on earth that could
have swerved us from the discharge of our sworn duty
as we saw it. Our verdict was unanimous. There were no
dissenting opinions. And for myself I can say that there
has been no time during the forty-five years that have in-
tervened since this trial was held when I have felt that I
owed an apology to anyone, not even to the Almighty, for
having voted to hang Henry Wirz by the neck until he was
dead.
Wirz was tried on two charges. The first charge was
that he had conspired with John H. Winder and others to
injure the health and destroy the lives of our soldiers who
were held as prisoners of war. And the second charge was
'^ Murder in violation of the laws and customs of war".
The Court found him guilty of both of the charges and of
ten of the thirteen specifications. Throughout the trial the
prisoner was treated with the utmost fairness, kindness,
and consideration by the Court and the Judge Advocate.
When our verdict was rendered and the record made com-
plete it was submitted for review to General Joseph Holt,
Judge Advocate General, a man noted for his high char-
acter, patriotism, and ability as a lawyer and a judge. I
quote but a paragraph or two from his review. He said :
Language fails in an attempt to denounce, even in faint terms,
the diabolical combination for the destmction and death, by cruel
and fiendishly ingenious processeSy of helpless prisoners of war who
54 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOBT AND POLITICS
might fall into their hands, which this record shows was plotted
and deliberately entered upon, and, as far as time permitted,
accomplished by the rebel authorities and their brutal underlings
at Andersonville Prison.^'
And in closing his review, after reference to the high
character of the men composing the Court and of the fair-
ness of the trial, he said :
The conclusion reached is one from which the overwhelming
volume of testimony left no escape.
This paper does not demand nor will it admit of farther
reference to the vast mass of testimony listened to by the
C!ourt. In conclusion I will refer to a single incident of
the trial. For weeks after the trial began the Judge Ad-
vocate presented only such testimony as went to show the
general conditions existing at the prison and which tended
to establish the charge of conspiracy, and he held back
until near the dose of the trial the evidence on which he
depended to establish the fact that Wirz had by his own
acts been guilty of willful murder. As a result Wirz evi-
dently concluded that no such evidence had been found,
and on repeated occasions he addressed the Court through
his counsel, saying that he was ready to admit the truth of
all evidence that had been presented, but that he was not
personally responsible for the conditions shown to have ex-
isted in the prison ; that he had simply acted in conformity
to the orders of his superior officers, and should not be held
responsible for them ; and he therefore asked for an acquit-
tal and discharge. These requests, one after another, were
denied by the Court.
Early in the trial Wirz became sick, and a lounge was
brought into the room on which he was permitted to re-
it Copied from the Trial of Henry Win, Exeoviive Doimmenta, 2iid SeBsion,
40th GongreBSy No. 23, pp. 809, 814.
ANDEBSONVILLE AND THE TRIAL OF WIBZ 55
dine; and during many days of the trial lie lay on the
lonnge with his handkerchief over his face, apparently ob-
livions to all that was taking place. Finally a witness was
placed on the stand who told of his escape from the stock-
ade in company with a comrade whose name he did not
know, of their pnrsnit by the blood hounds, and of their
recapture and return to the Confederate camp. He said
that when brought to Wirz's tent and their escape and re-
capture was reported, Wirz became furious, and rushing
from his tent he began cursing and damning them for hav-
ing attempted to escape. The comrade, who was nearly
dead from exposure and suffering, had staked his last
effort on this attempt to regain his freedom, and the recap-
ture had discouraged him completely and caused him to
feel that death itself, was preferable to a return to the
stockade. like a caged animal he turned on Wirz and
gave him curse for curse, challenged him to do his worst,
and told him he would rather die than return to the hell
hole from which he had escaped. This so enraged Wirz
that he sprang at the man, knocked him down with his
revolver, and then kicked and trampled him with his boot
heels until he was dead. When the witness began this
story Wirz became interested. First he removed the hand-
kerchief from his face ; then propped himself on one elbow ;
and as the story progressed he gradually rose up until he
stood erect. His fists were clenched, his eyes were fairly
bursting from their sockets, and his face presented a horri-
ble appearance. As the witness finished his story Wirz
fairly screamed at him: **You say I killed that man.**
**Tes sir**, replied the witness. **You tramped him to
death in my presence**. At this Wirz threw up his hands
and exclaimed, '^Oh my Gott'*, and fell back in a faint on
the lounge.
56 IOWA JOUENAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
was one of a number of stories that told of Wirz's
personal acts of cruelty. In addition he was directly
chargeable with the unwarranted punishments which he
caused to be inflicted on men who attempted to escape or in
other ways violated the rules of discipline which he had
established. These punishments consisted of stopping of
rations, establishment of a dead-line, use of the stocks, the
chain-gang, use of hounds, bucking and gagging, tying up
by the thumbs, floggiag on the bare back, and chaining to
posts, from all of which causes deaths were shown to have
resulted.
'^ Mister Johnny Beb'', as we called him in war time, the
man who bared his bosom to our bullets and challenged us
to come on, was a big-hearted, generous fellow whom I have
always believed fought for the right as he saw it. I know
by my experience that he was as brave a soldier as ever
carried a gun ; and prisoners who fell into his hands on the
battle field were invariably treated with kindness and con-
sideration. It was only men of the Wirz-Winder type,
bushwhackers, and home guards, that presumed to offer
insult and abuse to our men in captivity. I make this dos-
ing remark because of the fact that with the passing of
years the bitter feeling that had existed between the North
and the South has been practically wiped out and the rem-
nants of the old fighting forces on both sides have been com-
ing together and shaking hands as friends, and I would be
sorry to know that in this address I have uttered a word
that will serve to mar in the least the spirit of harmony
existing between these old veterans.
John Howabd Stibbs
CmCAGO, IliLINOIS
THE BACONIAN CLUB OP IOWA CITY
HISTOEICAL INTRODUCTION
At seven-thirty on the evening of November 20, 1885, a
small gronp of men who were interested in Science met in
the Chemical Laboratory of the State University of Iowa.
They had assembled at the call of Dr. L. W. Andrews, at
that time and for many years afterward Professor of Chem-
istry in the University. Dr. Andrews stated that the object
which he had in mind in calling the meeting was the forma-
tion of a '^ Science Circle"; and with this announcement
^'the meeting proceeded to temporary organization by the
election of Prof. Leonard as Chairman and E. L. Boemer
as Sec'y."^ Then a committee was appointed to draft a
constitution and by-laws for a permanent organization.
^' After listening to an interesting informal lecture by Prof.
Leonard on the probable course of the meteor, the meeting
adjourned to 7 o'clock Saturday evening, Nov. 28th."'
The report by the committee on constitution and by-laws,
which was made at the meeting on November 28th was re-
ferred back to the committee with instructions to make
certain changes. At a meeting on the evening of December
11th, however, the constitution was unanimously adopted.'
Such, in brief, is the story of the organization of the
Baconian Club of Iowa City. Professor N. E. Leonard was
the first President of the Club, and Professor L. W. An-
drews, to whom is due the credit for inaugurating the Club,
1 Ba4Mnian Club Seeord-Booh^ Vol I, p. 3.
3 Baconian Club SecardBooh, Vol. I, pp. 3, 4.
> Baconian Club Seeord-BooJc, Vol. I, p. 7.
57
58 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
was the first Secretary. The charter members were : N. B.
Leonard, P. H. Philbrick, Samuel Calvin, T. H. Macbride,
J. G. Gilchrist, L. W. Andrews, and Andrew A, Veblen* — all
of whom were at the time professors in the State University
of Iowa. Two of these charter members. Professor Mac-
bride and Professor Calvin, have remained in the service of
the University; and all but two, Professor Philbrick and
Professor Gilchrist, are living at the present time. The
Club thus organized has had a continuous and prosperous
existence.
The passage of the years, however, has witnessed many
changes in the character and membership of the Club. The
largely attended meetings which are now held in an electric-
lighted, steam-heated room, are in striking contrast to the
meetings held twenty-five years ago, when the Club was in
its infancy. Then a few men, seldom more than twenty and
often less than half that number, gathered in the Chemical
Laboratory in old North Hall and sat in a circle around the
stove, the members taking turn in replenishing the fire.
The reader of the evening sat in the circle with the other
members, and there was an almost total lack of formality,
the meeting assuming the nature of a friendly conference
rather than having a set form of procedure. Indeed the
meeting was often without a formal paper.
At each meeting a subject for discussion the following
week was chosen by mutual consent and assigned to some
member by the President. Frequently no paper was pre-
pared, the member to whom the subject was assigned simply
opening the discussion by speaking in an informal manner
with or without notes. The discussion of topics was free
and often animated, since the object of the Club was to
give the members the benefit of each other's ideas. The
^CanHituUon of the Baconian Chib (Edition of 1891), p. 8.
THE BACONIAN CLUB 59
meetings were in no sense open to the public, and no record
of the discussions was kept. Consequently the members
were under no restraint in the expression of their viewSi
but stated their beliefs freely and fully whether they met
with the approval of other members or not. Besides the
discussion of regularly assigned subjects, the policy was
early established of permitting voluntary reports on any
topic of interest to the Club — a custom which has been ad-
hered to down to the present time.
The Constitution provides for three classes of members :
ex officio members; full members, or 'Hhose engaged in
active scientific work''; and associate members, or ''those
interested in scientific work". The President of the Uni-
versity is a member ex officio.^ The actual working of this
provision has had these results: full members have been
persons on the faculty of the State University of Iowa ; while
the associates have been instructors in the University,
fellows, scholars, or graduate students pursuing researches
in scientific subjects.
In the beginning, as has been suggested, no publicity
was given to the meetings of the Club. Occasionally a few
guests were invited to be present, and later guests were
permitted to participate in the discussions, but the tendency
was to restrict the attendance to members and those vitally
interested. In February, 1889, a standing resolution was
adopted providing that ''only full and associate members
and those personally invited by members" should be ad-
mitted to the meetings of the Club, and that invitations
might be issued "for any specified evening or for the whole
or any portion of the club year".^ This resolution, how-
8 Canstiiutian of the Baconian Club (Edition of 1900), p. 3.
In the Constitution aa originally adopted there was no provision for ex
officio members.
« Baamian Club Beoord-Booh, Vol. I, p. 199.
60 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
ever, has not always been f ollowed, and in fact at present a
general invitation is given to the public to attend the meet-
ings of the Clnb, and acconnts of the papers and discussions
often appear in the University publications or in the city
newspapers.
The papers read before the Club have covered a broad
range of subjects, as will be revealed by a reading of the
list which is published herewith. The papers as a rule have
been prepared with care and with only a few exceptions
have been presented by the members themselves, little effort
having been made to secure addresses by scientists of rep-
utation from outside the University. Thus individual effort
on the part of members of the Club has been encouraged
and a spirit of mutual helpfulness has prevailed.
From the time the Constitution of the Club was adopted
and signed in 1885 the number of members has increased
until at present there are nearly fifty full members. In the
meantime many have come and gone, and hence the mem-
bership has varied from year to year both in numbers and
in personnel. Besides those already mentioned as charter
members the following professors, still serving on the fac-
ulty of the State University of Iowa, were elected to full
membership in the Club during the first five years of its
existence: Laenas Q. Weld, Charles C. Nutting, Elbert W.
Bockwood, (George T. W. Patrick, and Bohumil Shimek.
The records of the Baconian Club are unusually complete.
The Secretary's Record-Books from the very beginning
are still in existence, and in these books may be found the
minutes of all the meetings, together with lists of officers
and members. The purpose of the founders, the character
of the meetings, the persons in attendance, and the topics
which from year to year were of interest in the world of
science are revealed in the pages of these Record-Books,
THE BACONIAN CLUB 61
and henoe in them may be fomid the best histoiy of the
Baconian Club.
The Baconian Club was the first organization of its kind
in the University. During the early years, although the
chief object of the Club was to discuss subjects in the natu-
ral and physical sciences^ the membership included men from
the faculties of all the colleges and departments in the
University, But as the University grew the need of similar
dubs in the various departments began to be felt. And so,
as time went on members of the Baconian Club who were
not primarily interested in the natural and physical sci-
ences withdrew and formed the Political Science Club, the
Philosophical Club, the Humanist Society, and other similar
organizations, modelled after the Baconian Club which was
the i)arent society. The result is that at the present time
the membership of the Baconian Club is confined almost en-
tirely to persons actively engaged in teaching or research
work in the natural and physical sciences.
CONSTITUTION
Abticlb I — Name and Object
Section 1. This organization shall be known as the
Baconian Club of Iowa City.
Section 2. Its object shall be, the mutual interchange of
thought, and the discussion of such scientific topics as pos-
sess a general interest
Abticle n — ^Membership
Section 1. Membership shall be of three classes, viz.,
ei-officio, full, and associate. The President of the Uni-
versity shall be a member, ex-offido.
[BeriBed April 15, 1898.]
Section 2. Members shall be those engaged in active
scientific work.
62 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Section 3. Associates shall be those interested in sci-
entific work.
Section 4. Members and associates shall be elected by
ballot of the members of the dnb, the names having been
proposed at least one week previously. Three black balls
shall cause the rejection of the candidate. In case of re-
jection a second ballot may be had, at a subsequent stated
meeting. A second rejection shall render the candidate
ineligible for the remainder of the club year.
[Amended October 25, 1889, hj adding:]
Section 5, No person not a resident of Iowa City shall
be a member of the club. Members who remove their resi-
dence permanently^ or members who though residents of
the city have not been in attendance on the meetings of the
dub for one year, shall thereby cease to be members, but
may, by vote of the dub, be carried on the rolls as assodate
members.
Section 6. A member who refuses to give a paper during
any one year, or who fails to read a paper during any two
consecutive years, unless such failure is due to illness or un-
avoidable absence from the dty, shall have his name dropped
from the roll of the dub. In case the membership is too
large to allow an assignment of topic during the year, one
or more voluntary reports may be accepted as a substitute.
[Adopted April 15, 1898.]
Section 7. An associate who removes his residence per-
manently from the dty shall thereby cease his membership
in the club, provided, always, that any associate may con-
tinue his relations with the club by presenting, either per-
sonally or by written communication, at least one voluntary
report each year. By a two-thirds vote of the dub, any
name may be retained permanently on the roll of assodates.
[Adopted April 15, 1898.]
THE BACONIAN CLUB 63
Abtiolb m — Offiosbs
Sbotion 1. The officers of the dub shall be a President
and a Secretary.
Section 2. The President shall be elected at the first
meeting in September, of each year, from among the mem-
bers, by a majority vote of all members present. He shall
hold office until the next annual meeting, or until his succes-
sor is elected. He shall perform the duties usually apper-
taining to the office of President. In his absence his place
shall be taken by a Chairman elected by the members pres-
ent.
Section 3. The Secretary shall be elected at the same
time, and in the same manner as is prescribed for the elec-
tion of the President, and his term of office shall be the same.
He shall perform the duties usually devolving upon a Secre-
tary. Should he be absent from any meeting, a Secretary
pro tern, shall be elected.
AbTICLB IV — ^DXTBS AND FeES
There shall be no dues nor fees. Any expenses incurred
by vote of the dub, shall be met by a pro rata assessment,
previously made, on all the members.
Article V — Meetings
Section 1. The meetings shall be Annual, Begular, and
Spedal.
Section 2. The Annual Meeting shall be in the last week
in September. At this meeting the Order of Business shall
be:
1. Beport of President.
2. Beport of Secretary.
3. Beport of Committees.
4. Election of Officers.
Section 3. The Begular Meetings shall be held once a
64 IOWA JOUENAL OF HISTOET AND POLITICS
week, from the last week in September to the last week in
Aprily on such day, at such hour, and in such place as the
dub may from time to time direct The Order of Business
at these meetings shall be as hereinafter provided.
Section 4. Special Meetings may be held at any time,
by vote of the club, on call of the President, or at the request
of three members. At such meetings no other business than
that for which the meeting has been called shall be trans-
acted.
Abtiolb VI — Order of Business
The Order of Business at all regular meetings shall be as
follows :
1. Beading of Minutes.
2. Beading of Essay.
3. Colloquium.
4. Discussion.
5. Voluntary Beports.
6. Assignment of Topic.
7. Miscellaneous Business.
8. Adjournment.
Abtiole Vn — ^Essays and Essayists
Section 1. The appointed essayist, at each regular meet-
ing, shall furnish the Secretary with an abstract of the
paper, to be entered in the minutes.
Section 2. The essay shall remain the property of the
writer, unless it shall be published in full by the club, with
the consent of the author, in which case the copyright
shall remain with the dub.
Article Vlll — ^By-Laws
The club may adopt Standing Besolutions, at any meeting,
as circumstances may require, by a majority vote of all the
members present. Such Standing Besolutions shall be re-
THE BACONIAN CLUB 65
corded, and have all the anthoritj of By-Laws iintil re-
I>ealed.
Abtiolb IX — ^Ahbkdmbnts
The Constitution may be altered or amended at any regu-
lar meeting, by a two-thirds vote of all the members, writ-
ten notice of the proposed amendment having been given
at least one week previously. Absent members may vote
by proxy on questions of amendment.
OFFICERS OF THE CLUB 1886-1910
For the Year J885-Jfifitf— President, N. E. Leonard ; Secre-
tary, L. W. Andrews and A. A. Veblen.
For the Year J88tf-ifiS7— President, Samuel Calvin ; Secre-
tary, A. A. Veblen.
For the Year i887-ifi88— President, Samuel Calvin ; Secre-
tary, A. A. Veblen.
For the Year Jfififi-ififiS— President, L. W. Andrews ; Secre-
tary, A. A. Veblen.
For the Year 1889-1890— Presidenty A. A. Veblen; Secre-
tary, C. C. Nutting.
For the Year 1890-1891— Presidentj T. H. Macbride; Sec-
retary, C. C. Nutting.
For the Year 1891-1892— Presidentj J. G. Gilchrist ; Secre-^
tary, L. G. Weld.
For the Year ifiP^-ifiP5— President, C. C. Nutting ; Secre-
tary, A. L. Amer.
For the Year ifiP5-ISP4— President, L. G. Weld ; Secretary,.
W. K Barlow.
For the Year ifiP4-iSP5— President, G. T. W. Patrick; Sec-
retary, A. G. Smith and Frank Bussell.
For the Year 1895-1896 — ^President, A. L. Amer ; Secretary^
A. G. Smith.
VOL. EE— 5
66 IOWA JOUENAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
For the Year ifiPtf-IfiP7— President, E. W. Bockwood ; Sec-
retary, A. G. Smith.
For the Year 1897-1898 — ^President, A. G. Smith ; Secretary,
G. L. Houser.
For the Year 1898-1899 — ^President, W. L. Bierring ; Secre-
tary, G. L. Houser.
For the Year 1899-1900 — ^President, B. Shimek; Secretary,
W. E. Barlow.
For the Year 1900-1901 — ^President, Samuel Calvin ; Secre-
tary, C. E. Seashore.
For the Year 1901-1902 — ^President, A. V. Sims ; Secretary,
C. E. Seashore.
For the Year 1902-1903 — ^President, C. E. Seashore; Sec-
retary, C. L. Von Ende.
For the Year 1903-1904 — ^President, W. J. Teeters ; Secre-
tary, C. L. Von Ende.
For the Year 1904-1905 — ^President, A. A. Veblen; Secre-
tary, J. J. Lambert.
For the Year 1905-1906 — ^President, G. L. Houser; Secre-
tary, C. L. Bryden.
For the Year iP(?tf-iP(?7— President, Karl E. Guthe ; Secre-
tary, F. A. Stromsten.
For the Year 1907-1908— President, W. G. Baymond ; Sec-
retary, A. G. Worthing.
For the Year 1908-1909 — ^President, B. B. Wylie ; Secretary,
P. S. Biegler.
For the Year 1909-1910— Presidentj G, F. Kay; Secretary,
S. M. Woodward.
PAPERS AND REPORTS 1885-1910
Frank Stanton Aby, 1888. — Papers : The Development
of the Cerebro-Spinal Axis, 1889; Trichinae, 1891; The
THE BACONIAN CLUB 67
Ultimate Distribntioii of the Blood, 1892 ; Recent Researches
on the Physical Basis of Life and Heredity, 1893. Reports :
Cultivation of Mushrooms, 1889; The Sweat Ducts and
Blood Supply of the Stdn, Discovery of the Hog-Cholera
Microbe, 1891 ; Coloring Matter in Human Epidermis, 1892 ;
The Estimation of the Weight of Haemoglobin in a Dried
Human Blood Cell, A New Science **Cy8tology'', Demon-
stration of Giant Cell of Sarconea, A Theory of Heat-
producing Centers in the Brain, Partheno-genesis as Shown
by the Worker Bee, 1893; Review of Article by W. D.
Howells on ^^ Nerve Degeneration and Regeneration" (given
by Gilchrist and Aby), 1894.
Hbnby Albert, 1904. — Papers: Insects, the Role They
Play in the Transmission of Diseases, 1905 ; Bacteria and
the Public Health, 1906; Animal Diseases Transmissible
to the Human Being, 1907 ; Arterio-sclerosis — its Relation
to the Pathology of Senility, 1908 ; The Pasteur Treatment
of Rabies and Other Forms of Vaccine Therapy, 1909.
Reports: The Preparation of Permanent Museum Speci-
mens, 1903 ; Construction and Working of the Epidiascoi)e,
1905; Filaria, Sulphur and Formaldehyde Bhunigation,
Light Producing Bacteria, 1906; Inhalation of Coal Dust,
Api)endicitis, 1907; Spirochaete Bacteria, Method of Iso-
lating the Typhoid Bacillus from Others Found in Water,
1908 ; Making of Colored Slides by a New Process of Color
Photography, Hook-worm and the Hook-worm Diseases,
1909 ; The Work of Cultivating Tissues and Organs of the
Body outside of the Body, 1910.
Edwabd X. Anderson, 1909. — Report : The Nudeation of
Pure and Mixed Vapors in Dust Free Air, 1910.
Laungelot Winghssteb Andbbws, Charter. — Papers:
Dead Matter, 1886; Historical Review of the Methods Em-
68 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
ployed for the Production of Extreme Cold and the lique-
faction of the Permanent Oases, 1886; Evolution of the
State, 1886; The Flowing Wells at Belle Plaine (with
Calvin), 1886; The Asymmetric Carbon Atom in Organic
Compounds, 1886; The Evolution of the Telephone, 1887;
Atomic Theories in the Light of Atomic Facts, 1887 ; What
We E:now about the Weight of Atoms, 1888 ; Electrical Stor-
age Batteries, 1888; A Chapter from the History of Sd-
ence, 1889 ; What Have the Material Sciences to Do with
Education, 1889; The Absolute Size of Molecules, 1889;
Osmosis and Allied Manifestations of Molecular Motion in
Solutions, 1890 ; Aluminum — its Manufacture and Possible
Industrial Value, 1890 ; A Symposium on the Nature of the
Centre of the Earth (with Weld and Calvin), 1891; The
Spectrum, 1891; Progress toward Aerodynamical Naviga-
tion, 1891 ; Modem Explosives, 1892 ; Paracelsus Bombastus
and the Science of his Day, 1892 ; Some Principles of Evo-
lution Illustrated in Chemical Processes, 1892 ; The Develop-
ment of Chemistry from Alchemy, 1893 ; Becent Useful Ap-
plications of Electricity Other than Mechanical, 1893 ; Some
Applications of Science to the Detection of Crime, 1894;
Porcelain, 1896; Next to Nothing, 1896; An X Bay Soiree,
1896; Discovery Scientific and Otherwise, 1898; The Non-
Chemical Elements, 1898; The Air We Breathe, 1899; Con-
cerning the Scope of University Training, 1900; How the
Weight of an Atom is Ascertained, 1901 ; The Water Supply
and Purification System of Budapest, 1902 ; Some Belations
of Mass to Chemical Action, 1903. Reports : Silicon in Iron
and Steel, Fallacies Concerning Freezing of Water, Poison in
Wall Paper, Determination of the Velocity of Meteors, The
Linking Carbon Atom in Organic Compounds, Intelligence
Displayed by Mice, Some Phenomena in Connection with
Fracture of Glass, Edelmann's Calorimeter and von Beets 'b
THE BACONIAN CLUB 69
Lecture Galvanometer, Another Series of Experiments on
Nitrification, A New Astatic Galvanometer with Spiral
Needle, Survival of the Fittest in the Conflict of Molecules,
1886 ; Antisepsis and Sterilization by Electricity, The Func-
tion of Bain in Supplying Substances Important to Plant
Life, Methods of Photometry, A Hydrostatic Balance and
Testing Machine, Secretions of Insectivorous Plants, Free
Fluorine, Comparison of the Sense of Smell with the Other
Senses as Begards Delicacy, Electrification of Air, Viscos-
ity of Liquids and a New Form of Viscosimeter, The Pre-
diction and Discovery of the Element (Germanium, The
Symptoms of Hemlock Poisoning, 1887; Aluniinum in
Plants , Molecular (Geometry, Influence of light on Electric
Leakage and Disruptive Discharge, Microscopic Perspec-
tive, The Kruess Vierordt Spectroscope, Singing Flames,
The Formation of Waterspouts, The Cimento Academy of
Florence, 1889; Becent Besearches Concerning Solutions,
The Element **X", The Action of Light in Producing Elec-
trical Disturbances, A Pipette for Volumetric Work, Modi-
fications in the Theory of Electrolysis, The Manufacture
of Photographic Dry Plates and the Theory of Developing
the Image, Discovery of Criteria for the Actuality of Truth,
1889; Photography of the Electric Spark, Herbert Spen-
cer's Principles of Psychology, Vol. I, Ch. V, Last Line,
The Sandwich Islands, Plasmodium Malariae (for Hage-
beck). Christening of the '*Myopyknometer'', The Pasteur
Filter, Hydrazic Acid, 1890; The Application of Electrol-
ysis to Toxicology, The Electric Coal Cutter, A Bronze
Microbe, Individuality of the Chemical Unit, Siemens 's Be-
generative Evaporator, 1891; Stas and his Work on the
Determination of Atomic Weights, The Nature of the Inter-
atomic Force Acting within the Molecule, Becent Experi-
ments in the Sub-Divisions of Matter, The Asymmetric
70 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOET AND POLITICS
Arrangement of Atoms, An Analysis of the Illnminating Gas
of the Iowa City Gas Company, Prof. H. A. Rowland's New
Map of the Solar Spectnim, A Chemical Paradox, Non-
Existence of Chemical Action at Low Temperatures, 1892;
A Supposed Meteorite by Analysis Shown to be only
Hematite; Besults of a Chemical Examination Bearing on
the Oxygenation of the Water, An Experiment in Capillarity
Showing Belative Bate of Movement of Water and the
Substance Dissolved in it. The Longitudinal Conductivity
of Quartz Crystals, The Use of Tools by Animals, Illustra-
tions of the Structure of Molecules by Means of Models,
Wolf's Electrolytic Apparatus for the Detection and Esti-
mation of Small Quantities of Arsenic, 1893 ; The Optics of
Photography, Photographic Inaccuracies, Use of EHectric-
ity in Bleaching Operations, Use of Electricity for the Dis-
infection of Sewage, Perception of Time, Viscocity and
Diffusion, Lack of a Bythmic Sense, Dangers from Kero-
sene Stoves, 1894 ; The Effect of Ammonia upon India Bub-
ber. The Survival of the Fittest as Shown in the Overthrow
of Past Civilizations, Myrotype, a New Photographic Print-
ing Paper, Argon, Some Physiological Effects of Extreme
Cold, The Phenomena of Electro-Thermometry, A Hot Air
Motor, The Incombustibility of Sulphur in Dry Oxygen,
Cycles of Lengthening and Shortening of the Swiss Gla-
ciers (with Littig), Aluminum Bronze, Translation of a
Paper by Ostwald on the Overthrow of Scientific Material-
ism, The Absence of Hydrogen from the Atmosphere, 1895 ;
Calculating Machines, Experiments in Cathode Bay Photo-
graphy, The Apparatus Used in the Discovery and Study
of the Lenard Bays, Attempts to Obtain the X Bay without
a Vacuum, Negatives Dlustrating the Location of a Foreign
Body by Means of the X Bays, 1896 ; Sciograph of a Femur
Showing a Bifle Bullet Lodged in the Flesh, Curious Mark-
THE BACONIAN CLUB 71
ings in the Interior of a Compound Lens Due to the Slow
Contraction of the Canada Balsam Used as a Cement, The
Sea Mills in Cephalonia, The Energy of Chemical Chaiige,
The Wetherell Electromagnetic Method of Ore Concentrat-
ingy Recent Bevivals of Alchemistic Notions, The Melting
of Impure Ice, 1897 ; The Selective Radiation of light by
Certain Substances, Modem Methods of Liquefying Air,
1898; The Keeley Motor Fraud, The Degree of Accuracy
Attained in Atomic Weight Determination, Comparison in
Size of the Smallest Bacteria and the Molecules of Starch
(with Bierring), 1899; The Transmission of Coloring Mat-
ter to the Plumage of Birds through Food, 1900 ; The Death
Rate Greater in the Cities than in the Country, A Model
to niustrate the Process of Electrolysis, A Phase of Vital
Statistics, The Acoustics of an Auditorium, Investigation
Made by Piquard on the Self Healing Power of Glass, 1901 ;
Poisoning of Chemical Reactions, Mercerized Wool, 1902;
Radium, Small Amount of Catalyzers Required to Cause a
Marked Hastening of Action, 1903; Discovery of Radium,
1904.
OscAB William Anthony, 1889. — Papers : Thermo-Elec-
tricity, 1890 ; Vortex Rings with Special Reference to their
Properties in a Non-viscous Medium, 1891 ; Some Achieve-
ments and Possibilities of Mathematics, 1892.
Albert Levi Abneb^ 1890. — Papers : Electro-Magnetism
and the Methods of its Measurements, 1891 ; The Tendency
of Modem Electrical Theory, 1891 ; Temperature and Pre-
cipitation, 1892; The Removal of Faults in Submarine
Cables, 1894 ; Cloud Formation, 1894 ; The Principle of Inter-
ference and its Application to the Refraction of light, 1896 ;
Some Characteristics of Modem Physics, 1897. Reports:
A Recent Electrical Installation in London, A Thompson
Houston Watt-metre, Nature of the Charge and Discharge
72 IOWA JOUBNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITIOS
of the Leyden Jar, 1891; Electrolytic Method of Befining
Copper, High Electrical Resistance, Continiiity of the Speo-
tmniy Magnetic Hysteresis and its Manifestation in the
Armature of the Dynamo, Certain Analogies between the
Electric Current (so-called) and Flowing Water, A Con-
tribution to the Theory of the Electrophorous, Eixperiment
Confirming the ** Kinetic Theory of Gases", 1892 ; The The-
ory of Induction, Comparative Economy of Heating by Coal
and Electricity, 1893; A Frauenhofer Micrometer, Queen
and Company's New Pyrometer, Meteoric Dust Shower of
March 17, Isothermal Lines of Iowa, 1894 ; The Cold Pole in
Northeast Siberia, Municipal Control of Electric Lighting
Plants, 1895 ; Cathode Bay Photography, The Measurement
of Magnetic Fields, The Distribution of Temperature in
Iowa on April 16th, 1896, 1896.
Fred Geobgb Baendeb^ 1906. — Papers : The Belation of
the Mechanical Trades to Each Other, 1906 ; The Develop-
ment of a Phonographic Becord, 1908. Reports : Applica-
tion of the Gyroscope in Automobile Practice, 1908 ; Installa-
tion of the White Steam Car, 1909.
BiGHABD Philip Bae:eb, 1906. — Papers: Mathematical
Concepts, 1907; Printer's Ink, 1908.
William Edwabd Bablow, 1892. — Papers: The Phos-
phatic Nodules of the Mesozoic Deposits of Cambridgeshire,
England, 1893; Impure Air, 1894; Coffee and its Adulter-
ants, 1897; The Beducing Properties of Aluminum, 1899;
Corundum, Especially Bubies and Sapphires, 1900. Re-
port : Becent Improved Methods of Gold Extraction, 1895.
Edwabd Newton Babbett, 1888. — Reports : Some Psycho-
logical Phenomena, Cosmogony of the Pre-historic Bace
of Central America, 1891; Becent Archaeological Discov-
eries in the Orient, 1893 ; The Last of the Samaritans, 1894 ;
THE BACONIAN CLUB 73
A Table Giving a Babylonian Acoonnt of the Deluge, The
Principles of the Polychrome Bible, 1898 ; The Becent Dis-
covery of a Boyal Mnmmy Supposed to be that of the
Pharaoh of Exodus, 1900.
Geobge Neandeb Bauer, 1895. — Papers : The \Nine-point
Circle, 1897 ; The Principle of Duality, 1897.
H. Heath Bawdbn, 1900. — Papers: The Psychological
Theory of Organic Evolution, 1901. Report : A Beview of
Loeb's Physiology of the Brain, 1901.
Abthub Beavis, 1887. — Papers: The Passion Play and
Some Deductions Therefrom, 1887; The Evolution of the
Bicycle, 1888.
William EDMxnn> Beok, 1902. — Paper: The Northern
Constellations, 1904.
Fbedebiok Jacob Begkeb, 1902. — Paper: The Infusion of
a Salt Solution, 1903.
BussELL Burns Haldane Bego, 1899. — Paper : The Fa*
tigue of Metals, 1900.
William Bonab Bell, 1902. — Report: Besults of Ex-
X)eriment8 at Woods HoU, 1903.
Philip SHEsmAN Biegleb, 1906. — Paper: Electrification
of Steam Bailways, 1907.
Walteb Lawbenoe Biebbiko, 1893. — Papers: Modem
Methods of Bacteriological Besearch, 1894 ; The Sewers of
Paris, 1895 ; Louis Pasteur the Scientist and the Fruits of
his Labors, 1895; Animal Parasites in Disease, 1896; For-
maldehyde the New Disinfectant, 1897 ; Some of the Bene-
fits of Bacteria, 1899 ; Becent Developments in the Study of
Pathological Processes, 1899; The Bole of Lisects in the
Spreading of Disease, 1900 ; The Belation of Tuberculosis
in Man to that in the Lower Animals, 1890; Smallpox Vac-
74 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
cine, its Preparation and Use, 1903 ; Why are We Becoming
a Race of Dyspeptics, 1905. Reports : Bacilli of Tubercu-
losis of Leprosy and of Actinomycosis or Ray Fnngns, 1893 ;
Diphtheria, 1895; Loeffler's Blood Sennn in Diphtheria
Diagnosis, The Cause of Cancer, Odontoma, 1896; The
Plague in India, A New Method of Cultivating Anaerobic
Bacteria, The Discovery of Bacillus Icteroidis, the Microbe
of Yellow Fever, 1897 ; A Method of Preparing the Eye for
Demonstration, Leprosy, Demonstration of the Microbe of
Yellow Fever, A Hair Ball from a Human Stomach, A Cul-
ture Medium of Human Blood Serum, 1898 ; Phototherapy^
Comparison in Size of the Smallest Bacteria and the Mole-
cules of Starch, 1899; A Case of Agoraphobia, Mosquito
Inoculation for the Spreading of Malaria, 1901; Tetanus
Besulting from the Use of Antitoxin, 1902.
Walter Mabtinus Boehm^ 1903. — Paper: The Musical
Scale, 1904. Reports : Making Zone Plates, 1901 ; Ether of
Space, 1904; Electrical Conductivity of Various liquids^
1906; Advance in Science in the Year 1907, 1907.
Charles Henbt Bowman, 1894. — Papers: Alternating
Currents, 1896; The Wave Theory of light, 1897; Thermo-
dynamics, 1898; The Electromagnetic Theory, 1900. Re-
ports : Modulus of Elasticity of Steel, 1894 ; A Demonstra-
tion of the Vibration of a Soap Film Due to Sound Waves^
Experiments on the Interference of light, 1897 ; The Phe-
nomena of Interference in Light Waves, 1898 ; The Wehnelt
Interrupter, Interference Phenomena in Circular Shadows,
Some Experiments in Hydrodynamics, 1899; Surface Ten-
sion of Liquids, 1900.
William J. Bbadt, 1902. — Papers : Are the Teeth of Man
Degenera^gt, 1902; The Influence of Civilization on the
Teeth, 1902 ; Why Teeth Decay, 1905.
THE BACONIAN CLUB 75
Fay Cltjff Bbown, 1909, — Paper : light Electric Prop-
erties of light-Positive and light-Negative Selenium,
1910. Reports : A New Form of Selenium Cell, 1909 ; Some
Recent Facts Concerning Radio- Activity, 1910.
Maud Bbown, 1903. — Report : Technique of Experiments
in Psychological Laboratory, 1904.
Chables Lazabtjs Bbydbn^ 1904. — Papers: The History
of a Piece of Coal, 1906 ; Extingnishing an Anthracite Mine
I^e, 1906. Reports: Mineral Carbomndmn, Method of
Eliminating Moisture from Air Used in Blast Furnaces,
1905; Mining of Anthracite and Bituminous Coal, 1906.
MoTiEB A. BxTLLocK, 1889, Associate. — Reports : Ancient
Bread Found in Qiff Dwelling, 1890; The Utilization of
Electricity in Horticulture and Floriculture, Employment
of Monkeys in Siam for Detection of Spurious Coin, Bodily
Levitation, 1891; Waterworks System of South Haven,
Michigan, Use of Electric light in Forcing Certain Plants,
Hay Fever and Asthma, 1893; The Discovery of an Ex-
tinct Bace in Egypt, 1895; A Case of Double Conscious-
ness, 1897; The George Junior Bepublic, 1898; The Scien-
tific View of the Doctrine of Immortality, 1899.
AiiBBBTUs Joseph Bubgb^ 1901. — Papers: Blood in
Health and in Disease, 1902 ; Physics Applied in Medicine,
1904; Facts and Fancies about Appendicitis, 1907; The
Doctor as an Economic Factor, 1908. Report: Foreign
Substances Taken from the Body, 1907.
JossPH M. Camff, 1886. — Papers: The Contest between
Heavy Guns and Heavy Armor Plating, 1886; The Dyna-
mite Gun, 1887; Submarine Mines, 1888; The Develop-
ment of the Modem Bifle, 1888; The Development of the
Modem High Power Rifle, 1889. Reports : The Latest Re-
sults in Experiments on Slow Burning Powder, The New
76 IOWA JOUENAL OF HISTOET AND POLITICS
Explosive Melanite and Other High Explosives, Experi-
ments in the Use of Torpedo Netting in the Defense of
Vessels, 1887; The Accuracy of Modem Bifled Cannon,
1888; Results of the Tests of the New Steel Guns, 1889;
The Composition of Nickel-Steel Armor Plate, 1892.
Samxtel Calvin, Charter. — Papers : Living Matter, 1885 ;
The Sources of Vital Energy (with Macbride), 1886; Geol-
ogy in Iowa, 1886; Formation of Strata, 1886; The Flow-
ing Wells at Belle Plaine, (with Andrews), 1886; CroU's
Theory of Secular Changes in Climate, 1886 ; Spontaneous
Generation, 1887 ; The Vorticellidae, 1887 ; The Deep Well
at Washington, Iowa, 1887 ; Some Special Geological Prob-
lems in the Sierras, 1888 ; Some Points in the Physiology of
the Nervous System, 1889; The Duration of Geological
Time, 1889; Mountain Making, 1890; The Eccentricities of
Bivers, 1890 ; A Symposium on the Nature of the Center of
the Earth (with Weld and Andrews), 1891; The Elephant
in Iowa and Elephant Dentition in General, 1891; The
Niagara Limestone of Iowa, 1892 ; Some Mesozoic Beptiles
and Birds, 1893 ; The Drif tless Area in Northeastern Iowa,
1893; Conditions Attending the Deposition of the Cam-
brian and Silurian Strata of Iowa, 1894 ; The History and
Genesis of the Soils of Northeastern Iowa, 1896 ; Pre-Paleo-
zoic and Paleozoic Faunas, 1896; Pleistocene Iowa, 1897;
The Mesozoic Faunas, 1897 ; Geological Walks about Iowa
City, 1899 ; Land Forms in Iowa, 1899 ; The Geology and
Scenery of the Pipestone Begion, 1900 ; A Geological Trip
through Colorado, 1901; A Trip to British Columbia, 1902;
The Intergladal Deposits of Iowa, 1904; Vulcanism and
Associated Phenomena, 1905 ; Some Points in the Geologi-
cal History of the Mississippi Biver, 1907 ; Some Mammals
now Extinct, that once Inhabited Iowa, 1907; Large Ani-
mals now Extinct which lived in Iowa during the First
THE BACONIAN CLUB 77
Inter-Olacial Interval, 1909. Reports: On Certain Inseo-
tivorons Plants, (Geological Formations Penetrated in the
Boring of the Belle Plaine Wells, 1886; Development of
Certain Cells of the Cerebellmn of Birds, Certain Phe-
nomena in Connection with the Presence of Trichina, The
Evening Grosbeak, The Influence which Training of Any
Organ May Have upon Other Organs, Booetherimn Cavi-
frons. Some Laws (Governing the Introduction of Species,
The Walled Lakes of Iowa and Minnesota, On the Paleon-
tology of Widder, Ontario, 1887 ; Conditions for the Pres-
ence of Natural Gas and Oil, Chlorophyl Bodies in the Cells
of the Green Hydra, Evolution as Shown by Some Geologi-
cal Forms, 1888; Phenomena Connected with the Transec-
tion of the Spinal Cord of Frogs, The Bad Lands near Glen-
dive, Montana, 1889; Some Peculiarities in the Distribu-
tion of the Blood in the Brain, The Manner in which the
Highly Organized Tissues are Nourished, Trichinae in a
Bat, An Listrument for Demonstrating the Seduction in
Bulk of Muscles during Contraction, The So-called Immor-
tality of Microorganisms, Why are We Bight Handed t,
1890 ; Presence of the Bobin at Iowa City on January 16th,
The Presence of Copper in the Blood of Invertebrates, Nor-
mal Faults as an Explanation of the Parallel Banges of
Mountains in the Basin Begion, Some Additional Evidence
of the Existence of Man in California before the Lava
Flows, What Constitutes an Individual t, 1891; Certain
Proposed Changes in Geological Nomenclature, The Geo-
logical Aspect of CroU's Theory of Climate and Time, The
Action of the Pancreatic Fluid in the Digestion of Fats,
Oypsum Beds at Fort Dodge and Methods Employed in
Making Stucco There, 1892 ; The Geological Formations in
the Vicinity of Sioux City, Becent Views Concerning the
Antiquity of the Globe, 1893 ; The Secondary Formation of
78 IOWA JOUENAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Qnartzite, Gladers, Forminiferal Origin of the Chalk of
Iowa and Neighboring States, The Oscillatory Movement
in Iowa during the Lower Carboniferous Period, The Ef-
fect of Geological Structure upon Topographical Form
within the Driftless Areas of Northeastern Iowa, Some
Probable Habits of Belemnites, 1894; Some Evidences of
Movements in the Earth's Crust, Stumella Magna Neglecta,
Sialia Sialis, The Relation between Base Leveling and Or-
ganic Evolution, 1895 ; The Saint Peter Sandstone at Post-
viUe, The Pleistocene Deposits in Iowa, 1896 ; The Sea Mills
in Cephalonia, Becent Improvements in Qold Mining, A
Blowing Well, 1897; Topographic Features of Delaware
County, 1898 ; The Crowding up of the Ice on Certain Shores
of Lakes, 1899 ; A Specimen of Chalk from the Holy Land,
1900; The Geology of the Begion about Brinkemoitt, Ore-
gon, The Finding of Qold in Iowa, Overlap in Winneshiek
and Adjacent Counties, 1901; A Human Skeleton Found
near Lansing, Kansas, Lithographic Stone from Mitchell
County, 1902 ; Peculiar Geologic Condition in Iowa North-
east of the Cedar Biver, Great Lava Fields about Shoshone,
Idaho, 1903; Experience in Electrical Matters, Jackson
County Carboniferous Outcrop, 1904 ; Ice Push, How Lam-
ination is Produced in Bocks by Force and Pressure, Flow-
ers Growing under Snow, The Comparison of the Produc-
tion of Iowa Soil and Production of Gold of the World,
1905; Variations of Heat on the Earth's Surface without
Begard to the Heat of the Snow, Earthquakes, Displacement
Caused by Becent Earthquakes at San Francisco, 1906 ; The
Mining of Lead and Zinc in the Neighborhood of Dubuque,
1907; Petrified Forests of Arizona, Bones of the Original
American Horse, Experiments to Determine the Causes of
Mine Explosions, 1908; The Discovery of Fossils in the
Af tonian Gravels of Iowa, 1909.
THE BACONIAN CLUB 79
William B. Coohbaks, 1892. — Papers : Mineral and Ther-
mal Springs, 1894 ; Modem Surgery of the Digestive Tract,
1895 ; Some Defects in Eye Refraction, 1895.
Samuel W. Collbtt, 1905. — Paper: Plant Breeding,
1906.
Jacob Elon Cokneb, 1901. — Report: Some Features of
the Tariff Schedule, 1903.
Amos Noyes Cubbieb, 1889. Associate. — Reports: De-
cline of Sural New England, 1890 ; Lately Found Constitu-
tion of Athens by Aristotle, What Should Precede the Amer-
ican University, 1891 ; The Cleanliness of the Ancient Bo-
mans, 1895.
BoBEBT BuBDETTE Dale, 1909. — Report: The Teredo
Navalis, 1910.
Lee Wallace Dean, 1894. — Papers: The Plastic Com-
pounds of Cellulose, 1895; Some Practical Points in Die-
tetics, 1898 ; The Hygiene of the Eye in the Public Schools,
1899; The Anomalies of Refraction, 1900; The Causes of
Blindness in Children in Iowa, 1901; The Beating of the
Heart, 1902; Taking Cold, 1903.
Mbs. J. J. DiETz, 1889. Associate. — Report: Some
Thoughts from Emerson, 1904.
Edwabd Lewis Dodd, 1904. — Paper: The Literest on
One Cent and Some Mathematical Curiosities, 1905.
Ebio Doolittle, 1893. — Papers: The Determination of
the Figure of the Earth by Pendulum Experiments, 1894 ;
Some Unanswered Questions in Astronomy, 1894. Reports :
The Mf th Satellite of Jupiter, Three Visual Illusions, 1895.
Oilman Abthub Dbew, 1888. Associate. — Report : The
Sting of the Honey Bee, 1890.
80 IOWA JOURNAL OP mSTOET AND POLITICS
Fbank Mosbb Dbyzeb, 1908. Associate. — Report : Prin-
ciple of Least Work, 1909.
Clabbnce Willis Eastman, 1898. — Report: Defects of
the Verb *'Must", 1901.
BuBTON SooTT Easton, 1898. — Paper: Star Color under
the Meteoric Hypothesis, 1899. Reports : The Discovery of
the Ninth Satellite of Satnm, Dr. Morrison's Paper on
Hebrew Sundials, 1899.
Anmn Eodahl, 1905. — Paper: Becent Work in Iminu-
nity, 1906. Reports : Malaria with Reference to the Tertian
and Qnarten Types, Case of Blastomydtes Dermitites, 1906 ;
Becent Work Done on Animal Parasites, 1907.
Hanson Edwabd Ely, 1897. — Report: The Defense of
Sea Coasts and Harbors, 1898.
Clabbnob Estbs, 1909. — Report : Badinm Content of Hot
Springs in the Yellowstone National Park, 1910.
J. M. Faucbtt, 1886. — Report: Belative Durability of
Limestone and Sandstone in Engineering Structures, 1886.
BxTBTON Pbboival Flbming, 1909. — Paper : Some Phases
of Irrigation Engineering, 1910.
Abthttb Hillybb Fobd, 1905. — Papers: Electric Power
Transmission, 1905 ; Illumination, 1906 ; Design of an Elec-
tric Power Station, 1907; Street Lighting, 1908; Becent
Advances in Electric Lamps, 1909.
J. Allbn Oilbbbt, 1895. — Papers: Some Effects of the
Loss of Sleep, 1896; Besearches upon the School Children
of Iowa City, 1897. Reports : A Measurement of an Error
of Judgment, 1895; An Instrument for Testing Hearing,
The Spark Method of Measuring Time, 1897.
Jambs Gbant Gilohbist, Charter. — Papers: Migration
of Leucocytes, 1885; Abnormal Changes in Cell Structure
THE BACONIAN CLUB 81
and Development, 1886; light Houses and Buoys, 1886;
Cognition Physiologically Considered, 1886; Mechanism
and the Effects of Snake-Bite, 1887; The Anatomical and
Physiological Seasons for Bight-Handedness and Left^
Handedness, 1887 ; Difference in Cellular Structure in Orig-
inal and Separative Organizations, 1887 ; Auxiliary Motive
Power in Ships of War, 1888; The Genesis of Morbid Ac-
tion, 1888; Development of the Pipe Organ, 1888; The
Origin of the Blood, its IHmctions and the Mechanism of
its Circulation, 1889; The Military Lessons of the Civil
War, 1889; Modem Surgery, 1889; A National Seserve,
1890; Fractures and Methods of Sepair, 1890; The Natural
History of Disease, 1891; Surgical Anaesthesia, 1891;
The Anatomy and Physiology of a Man of War, 1892 ; The
Phenomena of Inflammation, 1892; Medical Education as
a Function of the State, 1892 ; Vascular Traumatism, 1893 ;
Beminiscences of Travel in Venezuela, 1893 ; Inflammation,
1894; Dislocations With Particular Beference to their Be-
duction, 1895; Gunshot Wounds, 1895; The Genesis and
Classification of Tumors, 1896; Vis Medicatrix Naturae,
1896 ; Medical Jurisprudence, 1897 ; Physiological Compen-
sations, 1898; Our Naval Successes and the Seasons for
Them, 1898; Some Becent Considerations of the Surgery
of the Great Cavities of the Body, 1899; Westminster
Abbey, 1900 ; Gun Shot Wounds in the Great Cavities, 1901 ;
How to Meet Modem Bequirements for a Medical Educa-
tion, 1902 ; College Amateur Athletics, 1903 ; The Problem
in Medical Art, 1903; Aneurisms, 1904; The Evolution of
the Gothic in English Architecture, 1905; The Genesis of
Malignant Tumors and Factors Favoring their Becur-
rence, 1905. Reports: On the Migratory Cell, A Method
of Emptying Bilge-water from Vessels, Visceral Evolution,
Symptoms of Poisoning as Segards Judicial Toxicology,
VOL.
82 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
1887; The Embrjonic Origin of Tumors, On the Effects
of Certain Operations for Cataract, Decoloration of Hn-
man Hair, Some Cases of Arrested Development of Or-
gans, 1888; The Structure of Dentine, Cerebral Localiza-
tion, Modem Surgery, A Postscript to a Paper on Modem
Surgery, A Poisonous Spider in the West Lidies, 1889;
Fallacies of the Microscope, The Science of Heraldry,
Heraldry, The Establishment of Collateral Circulation,
The Ultimate Circulation of the Blood, The Behavior of
Scars, Exclusion of Germicides in Operations, Ruptures of
Blood Vessels, The Epitaph of Plasmodium, 1890; The
Origin of Reports of Lizards Being Swallowed and Living
in the Human Stomach, Peculiar Course of a Bullet in the
Brain, The Decussation of Nerve Fibres in the Cord, The
Musical Sense, Microcephalous, Results of Certain Experi-
ments Relating to the Restoration of IHmctions in Divided
Nerve Fibres, Some Recent Experiments Made with
Nickel-Steel Armor Plates (on behalf of Califf), Whether
there is Any Such Thing as Hydrophobia, 1891; Treat-
ment of Necrosis, Gun Shot Lijuries of Modem Fire- Arms,
Hysteria, Voltage of Currents Used in Electrocution, Re-
cent Experiments with the Sphygmograph on Anaesthesia
Produced by Ether and Chloroform, Practical Application
of Localization of Brain Function to Surgical Cases, Spe-
cific Character of Arsenical Poisons, 1892 ; Comma Bacillus,
Intestinal Surgery, Is the Cancer Contagious f. Anaesthe-
sia, 1893 ; Review of Article by W. D. Howells on * * Nerve
Degeneration and Regeneration** (jointly given by Gil-
christ and Aby), Nerve Regeneration, Reunion of Divided
Structures in the Animal Body, Some Anomalous Results
in Cerebro-Localization, Modem Army Rifle Wounds, More
Recent Experiments on Modem Army Rifle Wounds, The
Functions of the Lupuscite, The Iodoform and Other
THE BACONIAN CLUB 83
Methods of Treatment of WotmdSy 1894 ; Intercranial Neu-
rectomy, The Besnlts of the Division of Nerves, The Diffi-
culty of Determining the Nature of an Injury to the
Spinal Column, Further Report on a Case of Neuropa-
thology, 1895; Pterodactylism, Peculiarities Found in the
Dissection of a Museum Specimen of United Twins, A
Specimen of Dermoid Cyst, Dr. Tiffany's Report on the
Restoration of Sensation after the Removal of Certain
Sense Ganglia, 1897; Ohstruction of the Oesophagus Due
to Scalding, Materials Entering into a Chinese Medical
Prescription, The Problems of Anaesthesia, Some Cases of
Spontaneous Repair in Arrested Development, The Pointed
Arch in English Cathedrals, A Peculiar Tumor, 1898;
Suturing of Cut Blood Vessels, On the Change from Round
to Pointed Arches in Mediaeval Structures, 1899 ; The Dif-
ference between Strategy and Tactics, Tubular Pneumatic
Action in Modem Organs, The Use of a Vegetable Button
in Intersecting, The Use of Local Anaesthetics, Which is
the Last Musical Instrument f, 1900; Three Cases of Surgi-
cal Treatment in Epilepsy, Physiological Compensation in
Certain Sensory Ganglia, Recent Study of Church Archi-
tecture, Cause of Anaesthesia, 1901; A Recent Case of
Undue Activity on the Part of a Petty Official, Anomalous
Distribution of the Nerve Foramina at the Base of the
Human Skull, 1902 ; Prevailing Fads even in Surgical Sci-
ence, New Teachings of Medical Authorities, 1903; Can
Any Real Mark of Degeneracy be Pointed Outf, Medico-
Legal Aspects of Surgery, Bridging of Several Nerve
Trunks with a View of Restoring Lost Innervation^
Relative Merits of Several Kinds of Motors Used in Pump-
ing the Bellows of Pipe Organs, 1904; President Harper's.
Surgical Case, Surgical Shock, Heart Suturing, Modem:
Pedagogic Methods, Lamination of Tissues by Pressure in^
84 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Formation of CapstQes, IHinction of Suppuration in the
Healing of a Wound, 1905.
BuBSELL D. Oeobge, 1900. — Papers: A Sketch of the
Geology of Canada, 1900; A Sketch of Qold Mining and
Milling in the United States, 1902 ; The Development of the
Iron Industry in the United States, 1902. Reports : Becent
Criticism of the Nehular Hypothesis, 1900; Marble Flows,
1901 ; Report of Mineral Output for 1901, The Possibility
of Aluminum Replacing Copper, Solubility of Glass in
Water at a High Pressure, 1902 ; Growing of Crystals, 1903.
Hbkby Max Goettsoh, 1899. — Papers : Drinking Water
and Typhoid Fever, 1900; The Pecuniary Economy of
Food, 1901.
Ethel Golden, 1897. — Report : The Education of Linnie
Haguewood, a Blind and Deaf Girl, 1898.
Charles Edward (Gordon, 1907. Associate. — Papers : Un-
derground Waters, 1908 ; Railroad Construction, 1909. Re-
port : Work of the Reclamation Service, 1909.
Selskar Michael Gtjnn, 1906. — Report: The Problem
of Clean Milk, 1907.
Karl Eugen Guthe, 1905. — Papers: The Whistling
and the Speaking Arc light, 1906 ; What is Matter, 1906 ;
Electrical Units, 1907. Reports : A New Tantalum Elec-
tric Incandescent Lamp, 1905; Two Kinds of Burners in
Iowa City, Magnetic Properties of Different Materials
Especially Manganese, Theory of Isostasy, 1906; Average
Temperatures of the Winter Months during the Past Few
Years, 1907; Application of the Gyroscope to the Steam-
ship, 1908; Difference in Pressure in the Atmosphere by
Small Changes in Height, Vibrations of Spring and Wires,
Weather Conditions of the Past Fifty Years, 1909.
THE BACONIAN CLUB 85
Fbidbbick Goodbok Higbbb, 1905. — Papers i Mechanical
Drawing, 1906 ; Lumber Lidnstry in the Pacific Northwest,
1909 ; Our Liland Seas, 1910.
Jaok Bbtjkt Hill, 1909. — Report: The Heating Ele-
ment of an Electric Flat Lron, 1909.
Albbbt S. Hitohoook, 1886. — Papers : Chlorophyl, 1886 ;
The Fntnre of Chemical Science Economically Considered,
1887 ; The Metallnrgy of Silver, 1887 ; The Chemistry of the
Plant Cell, 1888. Reports : Variations of Sucrose in Sor-
ghum, On Manufacture of Oun-Cotton, Changes in the
Spectrum of Chlorophyl on Standing in the Dark, Heating
of Platinum by Condensation of Gktses on its Surface, 1887 ;
The Delicacy of Chemical Reactions, Certain Cases of Ab-
normal Flowers, On Two Species of Peronospora, Lines
of Magnetic Force, Bemarks on the Iowa Flora, Absorp-
tion Bands of the Chlorophyl Spectrum, 1888 ; Chlorophyl
in Alcoholic Specimens of Silk-Worm, Two Specimens of
SiUdfied Wood, 1889.
Abthttb Wabbbn Hixok, 1908. — Paper : Lron Mining in
the Lake Superior Begion, 1909.
F. A. HoLTOK, 1887. — Paper : Methods of Distinguishing
between Butter and Butter Substitutes, 1887.
OiLBBBT Logan Hotjsbb, 1892. — Papers: Some Features
of Paleozoic Corals, 1893 ; The Structural Elements of Con-
nective Tissue, 1894; The aeavage of the Egg, 1895; Seg-
mentation of the Vertebrate Head, 1895; The Ear, 1896;
The Degeneration of the Tunicate, 1898 ; The Data of Mod-
em Neurology, 1899 ; The Physical Basis of Heredity, 1900 ;
Becent Progress in Cellular Biology, 1901 ; The Results of
Experimental Embryology, 1902 ; Vitalism and Mechanism
as Explanations of Life, 1903; Phosphorescence, 1905;
86 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Primary Causes of Animal Behavior, 1903; The Brain
of the Vertebrate, 1906; Becent Progress in the Study
of the Living Substance, 1908; Present Status of Dar-
winism in the B^eld of Zoology, 1909 ; Some Modem View-
points of Animal Life, 1909 ; Form Changes in the Animal
Cell, 1910. Reports : The Nematocysts of the Fresh Water
Hydra, 1893 ; Formaline, 1893 ; The Formation, Growth and
Disappearance of a Water Spout, 1896; The Origin and
Purpose of the Thyroid Gland, 1897 ; The Eelation between
the Auditory Nerve and the Hair Cells of the Ear, Changes
in Nerve Cells due to Activity, 1898 ; Effect of Badiation of
Badium on Animal Life, Achievements of Carl Gegenhaur,
Experiments of the Japanese Hatai with Lecithin, 1903;
Phosphorescence in Animals, The Stimulation of Proto-
plasm and the Deferring of Somatic Death, 1905 ; Cilia, The
Distribution of the Physiological Metals in the Animal Cell,
Oxidation in the Living Cell, 1906; Changes in Cellular
Structure of Animals with Age, 1908.
MiKHiB HowB, 1888. Associate. — Report : The Flora of
a Metamorphic Ledge in Luveme County, Minn., 1891.
AiiFBED Onias Hunt, 1888. — Papers: Toothache, 1888;
Methods of Tooth-Saving, 1889.
James Eldeb Hutchinson, 1909. — Report: Liquid Illu-
minating Gas in Switzerland, 1910.
Woods Hutchinson, 1895. — Paper : Uses of Pain, 1895.
Z. H. Hutchinson, 1894. — Reports: An Apparent Im-
munity from Rattlesnake Poison Acquired by Dogs, Two
Present Day Instances of Old Sick-Boom Superstitions,
1894.
W. T. Jackson, 1891.— Report : The Writings of Com-
menius, 1892.
THE BACONIAN CLUB 87
Chablbs Davis Jambsok, 1887. — Papers: The Panama
Canal, 1887; Photography Applied to Surveying, 1888;
Engineering Features of the Proposed Nicaragua Canal,
1888; Evolution of the Bridge Truss, 1889; Sewerage and
Sewers, 1889; Bailroad Signals and Safety Appliances,
1890; The Virtual Length of BaUways, 1890; Field Meth-
ods of Bailroad Location, 1891 ; The Evolution of the Mod-
em House, 1892 ; A Comparison of English and American
Bailways, 1892 ; The Evolution of Bapid Transit in Cities,
1893; The Lidicator and its Use, 1894; An Engineering
Education, 1894. Reports : An Astonishing History Show-
ing the Great Justice in the Working of the Bailroad Law
in Iowa, The Belative Efficiency of Electric and Steam
Locomotives, Color Photography, 1890; The Fall of Two
Spans of the Louisville and Jeffersonville Bridge, Glaciers
of Alaska, 1894.
Leoba Johkson, 1890. Associate. — Report: The Pre-
vention of Diphtheria by Lioculation, 1894.
Chables Kahlke, 1890. Associate. — Report z Inoculation
of a Babbit with Anthrax Badllus, 1891.
William Jay Kabslake, 1909. — Paper : The Doctrine of
Valence, 1909.
Obobgb Fbbdbbiok Kay, 1907. — Papers : Theories of the
Earth's Origin, 1908 ; The Coal Supply of the United States,
1910. Reports : Discovery of Diamonds in Arkansas, 1906 ;
Nickel Ore Deposits in Northern California, 1908; Supply
and Conservation of Coal, 1909; Evidences of Glaciation,
1909.
Habby Eugsnb Kelly, 1897. — Report: The Harvard
English Beports, 1898.
Theodobb Wilbebt Kemmbbeb, 1899. — Report : Two Bab-
bits Inoculated with the Hydrophobia Virus, 1900.
88 IOWA JOUBNAL OF HISTOBT AND POLITICS
Obacb Eeht, 1893. Associate. — Report: Effects of Fa-
tigue upon the Senses, 1904.
Edwabd C. Ehowsb, 1885. — Paper: Changes in Taetics
since Waterloo and the Breech-Loaderi 1886.
Albbbt Kxjntz, 1908. — Report: Development of the
Sympathetic Nervous System, 1910.
Btbok James Lambsbt, 1903. — Papers : The Automobile,
1904; The Tunnels and Subways of New York City, 1907;
Illustrated Description of the Big Bridges of New York
City, 1909; Aeronautics, 1910. Reports: Tel^nraphone,
1905; Transportation Facilities of the Brooklyn Bridge,
1905; Report on Bridge near Quebec which Collapsed,
1907; Michigan Central Tunnel under the Detroit Biver,
1908.
John Joseph Lambebt, 1900. — Papers: Regeneration in
Anhnals, 1902 ; Animal Grafting, 1903 ; The Physiology of
Sleep, 1904; The Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods
HoU, 1905. Reports: Dr. Kim's Phototherapeutics by In-
jection into the Spinal Cord, 1901; Beating of a Cat's
Heart, Cause of Muscle Contraction, 1902 ; Distribution of
Animals, 1904.
James Henby Lees, 1902. — Reports: The Study of the
Drift in Madison County, Continued Motion of Occluded
Bubbles, 1903.
Nathak R. Leonard, Charter. — Papers: Meteorites,
1886; Physical Cause of Earthquake, 1886; Color Envel-
opes, 1886; CrolPs Theory of Glacial Qimate, 1887; Meth-
ods of Measuring the Velocity of Light, 1887. Reports:
Becent Meteoric Showers, On Meteorites, Method of Dis-
tinguishing between Atmospheric and Solar Lines of the
Spectrum, Displacement of the First Band of the Spectrum
THE BACONIAN CLUB 89
of Encke's Comety Temperature of Different Parts of Sun
Spots, 1886; Velocities Observed in Solar Prominences,
Progress in Celestial Photography, 1887.
LiLWBBKOB William Littig, 1890. — Papers: Cleanliness
in Surgery — What it Implies To-day, 1891; Cause and
Prevention of Typhoid Fever, 1893; Brief Beferences to
Pasteur and Some of his Works, 1893; The Spinal Cord
and its Functions, 1894 ; The Athletic and the Senile Heart,
1895 ; La Orippe, 1897. Reports : Some Bemarkable Cases
of Hysteria, Two Cases of Hysteria Cured by Suggestion,
1893 ; A Copy of Father Kneippe's Book on Water Cure and
Some of his Methods, 1894; Cycles of Lengthening and
Shortening of the Swiss Oladers, 1895 ; A Hair Tumor in
a Human Stomach, 1896; A Case of Cure by Suggestion,
1897.
Fred James Lokgwobth, 1907. — Paper: 'Mimng and
Smelting Conditions in British Columbia, 1908. Report:
Effect of Becent Financial Flurry on Mining, 1907.
Isaac Ajlthaxtb Loos, 1890. Associate. — Paper: Logical
Methods in Political Economy, 1895. Report: Professor
Nutting's Theory of the Coloration of Deep Sea Animals,
1900.
Chabi;e8 F. Lobbkz, 1900. — Papers: Measurement by
Light Waves, 1901; A Few Electrodynamic Experiments,
1903; Stereoscopic Projection, 1904. Reports: The Phe-
nomena of a Botary Magnetic Field, 1898; Principle of
Orthochromatic Photography, A New Nemst Lamp, 1903 ;
Cooper Hewitt Mercury Vapor Lamp, 1906.
Thomas Huston Maobbide, Charter. — Papers: The
Sources of Vital Energy (with Calvin), 1886; Devices for
Securing Cross-Fertilization among Plants, 1886 ; Intercel-
90 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
ItQar Secretions and Excretions of Mineral Matter in the
Cells of Plants, 1886 ; Variations of Plants under Varying
Circumstances, 1887 ; The Difference between a Mushroom
and a Toadstool, 1887 ; Peculiarities of Plant Distribution,
1888; The Slime-Molds, 1888; Smuts and Busts, 1889; The
Great American Desert and What is to Come of it, 1889 ; The
Life and Death of a Tree, 1890; Microbes, 1890; What
Constitutes a Type, 1891 ; Nuclear Division, 1893 ; Pitcher
Plants, 1894; Some Phases of California Flora, 1895; The
Forests of Iowa and their Distribution, 1895; Parasitism
and Symbiosus, 1896; The Botany of Shakespeare, 1897;
What is an Animal f, 1898; Figs, 1900; Twentieth Century
Protoplasm, 1901; Point Lobos, 1902; The Plant Bespon-
sive, 1903; The Response of Plants to Human Preference,
1904; Luther Burbank and his Garden, 1905; A Study in
Parasitism, 1907 ; On the Present Trend of Natural History
Study, 1908. Reports : Organic Connection Between Cells,
Abnormalities in Vegetable Cells, 1886 ; Pines and Spruces
of the Sierras, Puff Balls, Some Species of Club-Mosses
Lately Found near Iowa City, Solanum Bostratum, 1887;
Peculiar Outcome of Cross-Fertilization as Shown in a
Specimen of Squash, Life and Services of the Late Dr. Asa
Gray, Calcium Oxalate in Plants, On the Discovery of Teeth
in the Embryo of the Duck-bill Mole, On the Appearance of
Horns on Polled Cattle, The Flora of Krakatoa after the
Eruption in 1883, Some Bare Forms of Saprophytic Fungi,
A Piece of Sugar Pine from the Comstock Mine, 1888 ; Be-
cent Discovery of Shortia by Professor Sargent, The
Metallurgy of Qold by the Arastra, Folk Lore in Begard
to Planets, Some Native Stinkhoms, Character and Scien-
tific Work of Professor Lesquereuz, The Cedars of Leb-
anon, 1889 ; Thuja Gigantea ; Liriodendrom Tulipif era, The
Dodder, The Time Bequired to Beplace Forest Trees, An
THE BACONIAN CLUB 91
Ear of Com, 1890; A Number Form, Slime-Molds Be-
garded as Animals, The Ocoorrence of the White Pine in
Japan, Aricaria SImbricata, Results of Experiments for
Determining the Active Principle in Yeast, Plasmodina
Malariae, 1891; Primitive Cantilever Bridges over Alpine
Streams, Observations on Forestry in Iowa, An Experi-
ment on Babies Witnessed in Pasteur's Laboratory, 1892;
A Bacteriological Investigation of the City Water, The
Slime-Molds of Nicaragua, The Inefficiency of Inoculation
by Bacilli in a Healthy Body, A Becent Discovery of Cy-
<cads. Distribution and Character of the Trees in the Black
Hills Begion, 1893; Certain Aquatic Plants at the Hot
Springs in South Dakota, The Effects of Pasturing Sheep
upon Wild Barley, A Small Photographic Camera, 1895;
The Hickory Nut Trees of Iowa, 1896; Caffir Com, 1898;
Impregnation in Flowering Plants, 1900 ; Origin of Words
as Sarsaparilla, Briarwood, and Oin. 1903.
Chables Scott Magowan, 1886. — Papers: Eailway Car
Brakes, 1888; Irrigation in the United States, 1889; Ice
Making and Befrigerating Machines and their Processes,
1891; The Development of the Water Power of Niagara,
1894; The Chicago Drainage Canal, 1897; Title by Posses-
sion, 1898; Methods of Measuring Water, 1899; The Fil-
tration of Public Water Supplies, 1901; Sanitary En-
gineering, 1904; Some Examples of Concrete Steel Struc-
tures, 1905; Stand-pipes and Elevated Tanks, 1906. Re-
ports: A Bogus Meteorite, Skimmed Milk as a Spreader
of Contagious Diseases, 1897 ; The Causes of the Crystalline
Appearance of Fracture in Iron Subjected to Frequent and
Varied Stresses, 1900; Lighting, 1902.
EicuN MoClain, 1889. Associate. — Reports: Individual-
ism as a Factor in the Social Sciences, 1890 ; Becent Court
92 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Decisions Touching the Bight of Ownership of Meteorites^
1892 ; Behring Sea Controversy, 1893 ; The Eight of Crimin-
als to Befnse the Taking of Fingerprints for Purposes of
Identification, 1899.
JoHK Thomas MoClintook, 1903. — Papers: The Eleo-
trical Phenomena of Cell Activity, 1903 ; Therapeutics of Al-
cohol, 1906; Chemical Agents in Coordination with Physi-
ological Action, 1907; Our Natural Defenses against In-
fection, 1910. Reports: Fiocca's Method for the Staining
of Spores of Bacteria, 1899 ; Neurone Theory, 1905.
Frbd D. Mebbitt, 1897. — Paper: The Application of
Mathematics to Political Economy, 1899.
James Bxtbt Minbb, 1904. — Paper: An Iowa Case of
"^^ision Acquired in Adult life, 1905.
Pbboy C. Myxbs, 1896. — Reports: A Megarmicroscope,
The Diatomaceous Deposit of Clear Lake, The Diatomace-
ous Deposits of Lake Okoboji, 1898.
Frank John Newbbbby, 1895. — Papers : The Belation of
Electricity to Medicine, 1896; The Ophthalmoscope and
What it Beveals, 1897 ; The Human Ear, 1897 ; Color Blind-
ness, 1898; Some Observations Concerning the Upper
Bespiratory Tracts, 1900; The Sympathetic Belations Be-
tween the Two Eyes, 1901.
Ebnbst B. Nichols, 1SS6.— Papers : Series, 1888; Tro-
choids, 1889; The Growth of Mathematics, 1890.
Chables Cleveland Nutting, 1886. — Papers: The Bel-
ative Merits of the Panama and Nicaragua Canal Boutes,
1886 ; Observation on Central American Birds with Bef er-
ence to Theories Advanced by Darwin and Wallace, 1887;
The First Three Days of the Embryology of the Chick,
1887 ; Animal Intelligence, 1888 ; Observations and Ezperi-
THE BACONIAN CLUB 93
ments on Living Sea-UrchinSy 1888; Skeletons of Inverte-
brate Animals, 1889 ; The Significance of the Geographical
Distribution of Certain American Mammals and Birds,
1890; Are Mammals the Highest of the Vertebrates f, 1890;
Can Acquired Characters be Inherited f, 1891 ; Jelly Fishes,
1892 ; Deep Sea Investigation, 1893 ; Informal Report upon
the Bahama Expedition, 1893 ; The Epiblastic Structure of
the Mammalia, Weapons of Animals, 1894 ; The Origin and
Significance of Sex, 1895; The Naples Zoological Station,
1896; The Fur Seal and the Seal Islands, 1897; Do the
Lower Animals Season f, 1897; Observations on Young
Chicks, 1898; The Phosphorescent Light of Marine Ani-
mals, 1899 ; The Eyes of the Blind Cave Animals of North
America and their Bearing on Evolutionary Doctrine,
1900 ; Jelly Fishes and their Belation to the Hydroid Col-
ony, 1900; A Visit to the Home of the CliflF Dwellers, 1901;
Life on Board the United States Steamer Albatross, 1902 ;
Some Principles of Protective Coloration among Animals,
1903; The Salmon and Salmon Fisheries of Alaska, 1904;
The First Fauna of the World, 1906; Scientific Results of
the Hawaiian Cruise, 1907; A Zoological Puzzle and At-
tempts at its Solution, 1908; Some More about ^'La Jolla''
and its Biological Station, 1910. Reports : The Geographical
Distribution of the Evening Grosbeak during this Season,
Calabashes and Their Uses, Some Notes of Local Ornitho-
logical Facts and Observations, A New Unicellular Animal,
Podophrya Compressa, Urn-Burial as Practiced by the An-
cient Nicaraguans, 1887; Some Specimens of British
Game Birds, Life Character and Services of the Late
Professor Spencer F. Baird; Dichromatism among Birds,
Appearances of the San Domingo Duck in Iowa, Some Iso-
lated Communities on the Bahama Islands, AnimRl Intelli-
gence, The Portuguese Man-of-War, 1888; The Great
94 IOWA JOUBNAL OP HISTOBT AND POLITICS
Homed Owl and its Varieties, Growth and Wearing away
of Coral Islands, Absence of Lasso Cells among Certain
Alcyonoid Corals, A Case of Suspended Animation, Corre-
lations of Organs, Means by which the Polyps of (Jorgonias
are Protected, 1889; Spontaneous Combustion, The Meth-
ods of Sampling Ore, The Vascular Supply in Bone and
Teeth, The Gila Monster, Badial Symmetry, A Case of
Involved Identity, A Method of Exhibiting Anatomical Dis-
sections, 1890; Mother Carey's Chicken, The Vascular Sup-
ply of the Teeth, A Plant Found in a Colorado Mine, A
Peculiarity of the Flagellate Cells Lining the Ampullae of
the Sponges Grantia Ciliata, Cosmogony of the Swampy-
Cree Indians, Peculiarities of the Star f^sh, Pterastes Mili-
taris, Cause of the Sudden Blanching of the Hair of Man
and Other Animals, 1891 ; The Sloth, Belation of the Cana-
dian Government and of the Hudson's Bay Company to the
British American Indians, A New Discovery in Embryol-
ogy, Photograph of an Infant's Foot with Significance of
Certain Marks, First Finding of the Duck, Glaudonette
Islandica in Iowa, The Poisonous Fangs of the Heloderma
and the Homology of Teeth and Scales, 1892 ; A Case Show-
ing that Acquired Characters May be Inherited, Plastic
Models for Aid in Teaching the Anatomy of Animal Forms,
The Hydroids Found upon the Bahama Expedition, Two Li-
teresting Species of Deep Water Corals, Suspended Animar
tion or Hibernation of Animals, 1893 ; The Greatest Thermal
Biver in the World, Besemblances between Graptolites and
a Group of Modem Hydroids, Albinism, The Significance
of Sex in the Animal Kingdom, A Specimen of the Bassari-
dae, The Migration of Certain Forms of life. Optical Bla-
sions in Estimating the Number of Individuals in a Com-
pany, The Killing of a Saw-Whet Owl in this Vicinity, The
Occurrence of Clark's Crow in this State, Fungus on a
THE BACONIAN CLUB 95
Mnsenm Si>ecimen in Aloohol, 1894; The Belative Exact-
ness of the Natural and the Mathematical Sciences, Lord
Kelvin's Deep Sea Sonnding Apparatus, The Force that
Extends the Thread of the Nematocyst Cells in Hydroids,
The Connection between Volcanic Emptions and Tidal
Phenomena, 1895; Some Becent Experiments upon Tad-
poles, A New Species of Hydroid, The Slowness of the Dis-
appearance of Vestigial Organs by Evolution, The Distri-
bution of Life in the Ocean Depths, The Fundamental Dif-
ferences between the Neo-Darwinian and the Neo-La-
marddan Schools, The Malicious Damaging of the Newport
Biological Laboratory by the Addition of Sewage to the
Collecting Waters, The Characteristics of a South Ameri-
can Opisthocomus, 1896; Protective Coloration and Lnita-
tion in the Bull Snake, The Teeth and Spines of Sharks,
The Salamanders of Lake Cayuga, The Work of the Late
Professor E. D. Cope, The Appreciation of Number in
Ants, The Function of Certain Spots in Deep-Sea Cephalo-
poda, The Close Observation Characteristic of the English
People, Problematic Structures between the Plates of Cer-
tain Starfish, The Mechanism of the Stinging Spines of the
Sea Urchin, Organs of Orientation in Certain of the Echino-
dermata, 1897 ; A Comparison of the Dentition of Bodents
and Other Mammals, The City of Havana and Its Harbor,
Possible Use of the Carrier Pigeon in Naval Warfare,
Some Cases of Protective Mimicry in Butterflies, Does the
Begenerated Part of an Animal Tend to Revert to a
Lower Type, Becent Experiments on the Begeneration of
Limbs in Tadpoles, The Structure of the Feather, A New
Specimen of the Anthropoid Ape from Borneo, The Educa-
tion of a Fish, 1899; Investigation of Skeletal Variations
by the X Bay Method, The Becent Beappearance of the
Tile Fish, Expedition to Alaska, The Discovery of a New
96 IOWA JOUBNAL OP HISTOBT AND POLITICS
Method of Beprodnction among the Hydro-Medusae, 1900;
Professor Loeb's So-called Discovery of Partheno-Gtenesis,
Monograph on Hydroids, Discovery of a Giant Hydroid,
Discovery of a Six-Bayed Serpent Star, 1901; A Summer's
Cruise of the Albatross, 1902 ; Observations by Calkins of
Columbia University, Three Bemarkable Specimens of Sea
Urchins, A Scare Crow, Controversy Concerning the Origin
of Coral Islands, Beport on an Article which Gives Results
of Subjecting Organisms to Intense Cold for Weeks, 1903 ;
Best Method of Lighting an Exhibition Space, Slides on
Protective Coloration, 1904 ; Zoophytes, Life Existing Luxu-
riantly at a very Low Temperature, 1905; Baconian Club
as it Existed Twenty Years Ago, The Besults of Last Ex-
pedition of the Albatross, Changes in the Sea Bottom in
Mid-Pacific, Organism Producing Cancer, 1906; Some Cu-
rious Cases of Parasitism, Fossil Tooth of a Hippopotamus,
Opinion of Leading Zoologists Concerning Work of Dar-
win, The Beasons for Desertions from the United States
Army, Pedicellariae of Sea-Urchins and Star Fish, 1907;
Beprodnction by Conjugation in the Amoeba, Natural Se-
lection, Memory in the Lower Animals, A Plan for a (Gov-
ernment Biological Station in Iowa, 1908 ; Social and Bio-
logical Work in Holland, Hydroid Painted by the Japanese,
Becent Investigations of Sleeping Sickness in Africa,
Power of Organisms to Live under Adverse Physical Con-
ditions, Life of Alexander Agassiz, Exploring Expedition
of Anderson and Stef ansson, 1910.
Ernest Linwood Ohle, 1905. — Paper: Smoke and its
Abatement, 1907.
BoBEBT OoLDSBOBOuoH OwEN, 1909. — Repofti Pellagra,
1910.
Louis Alexakdeb Pabsoks, 1894. — Beport: A Photo-
graphic Printing Paper, 1895.
THE BACONIAN CLUB 97
Geobge Thomas Whitb Patbiok, 1888. — Papers: Hyp-
notism, 1889 ; Memory and Mnemonics, 1890 ; Time of Men-
tal Operations, 1890; Hnman Automatism in its Belation
to Spiritnalism, 1891 ; The Localization of Brain Function,
1891 ; Expression of the Emotions, 1893 ; Criminal Anthro-
pology, 1893 ; The Psychology of Women, 1895 ; Some Meth-
ods and Besults of Child Study, 1895; Scientific Materi-
alism, 1896 ; Sleep, 1898 ; Some Disturbances of the Person-
ality, 1898 ; The Psychology of Crazes, 1899 ; The Psychol-
ogy of Profanity, 1901 ; The Psychology of Play, 1901. Re-
ports : Becent Experiments in Thought-transference, Some
Experiments by Sir John Lubbock on the Limits of Vision
in Lisects; On the Homing Power of Animals, 1888; The
Psychophysic Law, The Gum-Chewing Wave, 1889; The
Phenomenon of Multiple Personality, The Brain of Laura
Bridgeman, 1890 ; Arithmetical Prodigies, Emotional Effect
of Colors, 1891; Methods and Means Employed by Mind
Beaders in the Practice of their Profession, Automatic
Writing, Aphasia, A Becent Experimental Concert to De-
termine Whether or not Music Conveys to the Hearer a
Definite Thought, The Zemonian Antinomies, 1892 ; Descrip-
tion of a Modem Jail, The Theory of the Correlation of
Mental and Physical Powers, 1893; Hypnotism, Some At-
tempts Made toward the Classification of the Sciences, Dar-v
winism and Swimming, Wundt's Sphygmomanometer, The
Detection of Near Objects by Blind Persons, 1894; Mac-
donald's Experiments on Sensibility to Pain, Contrast in
Color Sensation, Some Photographs to Illustrate the Illu-
sion of Contrast, Hearing and Sight of School Children,
1895 ; Fatigue in School Children, The Conditions of Fa-
tigue in Beading, 1896; The Psychophysical Phenomena
of Vorticella, 1897; Possible Improvements in the Banet-
oscope. The Persistence of the Memory of Olfactory Sensa-
VOL. EL — 7
98 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
tions, 1898; An Interesting Case of Glossolalia, 1900,
Plattians in the Training of Telegraphy, 1901.
jABfEs Newton Peabce, 1907. — Paper: Some Becent
Work on the Hydrate Theory, 1908; Colloidal Chemistry
and its Applications, 1910.
Alfred Chables Petebs, 1891. — Paper : The Phenomenon
of Taking Cold, 1892.
Philetus H. Philbrick, Charter. — Papers: The Canti-
lever Bridge, 1886; Eads's Ship Railway Plan, 1887.
Chables Delos Poobe, 1905 : — Papers : Chemistry Boiled
Down, 1905 ; Does the Ion Simplify the Study of Chemistry,
1906. Reports : Carbonic Acid Gas, Colored and Colorless
Ions as an Argmnent in Favor of the Dissociation Theory,
1906 ; Thermometric Scales, 1908.
William Galt Eaymond, 1904. — Papers : A Trip to the
Lick Observatory, 1904; The Development of Locomotive
Tractive Power in America, 1906; How Many Miles Can
We Travel withont Being Killed?, 1907; Eailroad Bates,
1908 ; The Grade Element in Bailroad Operation, 1909. Re-
ports: Eelative Attendance of Students in Arts and Sci-
ences as Compared with Engineering, Visit Made by Board
of Regents Committee at Various Engineering Schools.
1905; Recent Improvements in Locomotives, 1907.
George Windle Read, 1889. — Papers : The Military Pol-
icy of the United States, 1890; Signalling, 1890; Modern
War, 1892.
John Franklin Reilly, 1909. — Paper: The Orbit of a
Heavenly Body with Special Reference to Halley's Comet,
1910.
Roe Remington, 1906. — Paper: The Fixation of Nitro-
gen, 1907.
THE BACONIAN CLUB 99
Elbebt William Bocewood, 1888. — Papers: Some As-
pects of Photography, 1889; Foods, 1889; Salt, 1891; The
Formation of Fat in the Animal Body, 1891; Drinking
Water, 1892 ; The Sources of Muscular Energy, 1893 ; Fer-
mentation, 1894; The Chemical Products of Bacterial Ac-
tion, 1895 ; Milk, 1896 ; The Chemistry and Bacteriology of
Water Filtration, 1897 ; Becent Eesearches in Physiological
Chemistry, 1897 ; The Experimental Determination of Ani-
mal Metabolism with Some Practical Applications, 1898
Food Adulterations, their Extent and Significance, 1900
Digestive Ferment in the Vegetable Kingdom, 1902
Physical Chemistry in the Biological Science, 1902; Food
Preservatives, 1903; Do We Eat too Much?, 1905; Do
the Chemical Elements Exist f, 1906; Something about
Albumen, 1907; Bleached Flour, a Chemico-Physiolog-
ical Legal Problem, 1908; Food Preservatives with Spe-
cial Reference to Sodium Benzoate, 1910. Reports : Iowa
limestone and Clays and their Fitness for the Manu-
facture of Portland Cement, 1889; Photography with-
out the Use of a Lens, 1890; Bromelin — a Digestive
Fluid Found in the Juice of the Pineapple, The Effect of
Extreme Low Temperatures on Chemical Action, 1894 ; The
Cultivation of Useful Bacteria, 1895 ; The Effect of Loss of
Sleep on the Excretion of Phosphoric Acid and Nitrogen,
An Epidemic of Typhoid Fever at Tipton, Iowa, Attribut-
able to the Use of Well Water, An Apparatus for Determin-
ing Approximately the Amount of Carbon Dioxide in the
Air, 1896 ; Food Investigations by the United States Depart-
ment of Agriculture, A Nitro-Cellulose Substitute for Silk,
Precautions against Contagion from Milk, Comparative
Values of Plant and Animal Foods, A Meteorological Phe-
nomenon, 1897; Nutritive Values of Foods Used in the
Slnms of New York, An Original Translation of Caput
100 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Mortnmn, 1898; Antiseptic Duellixig, 1899; The Food Value
of Alcohol, 1900; Vessel Used in Preparing Infant's Milk,
1900; The Stamping Out of the Bubonic Plague in Some
Japanese Cities, 1903; Use of Copper Salts in Drinking
Water, Use of Methyl Alcohol, 1904; An Insoluble Sub-
stance in Soft Water, Arsenic Poisoning, The Formation of
the Diamond, 1905 ; Systematic Zoology and Chromosomes,
Food Adulterants, Nature of Waste Products in the Body,
Alcohol, Recent Jubilee of the Coal Tar Industry, Oxida-
tion as it Occurs in the Organic World, 1906 ; Manufacture
and Use of Denatured Alcohol, Comparative Digestibility
of Cooked and Uncooked Food, Statistics on the Production
of Sulphur in the United States, Becent Improvements in
Getting and Keeping Pure Milk, Beport of two Great Chem-
ists Moissan and Mendeljeff, Belation of Diet to Endur-
ance, Modification of Some Vital Processes Due to the Use
of the Automobile, Autochrome Process of Color Photog-
raphy, 1907; Cereal Foods, Crenothrix the Micro Organ-
ism at the Present Time Contaminating the Water Supply
of Iowa City, Possibility of Changing Copper to Lithium,
Analysis of the City Water, 1908; Some Diseases of Tin,
Color Photography, Commercial Price of Badium, 1909;
Becent Method of the Preparation of Peat for Commercial
Use, Fake Patent Medicines, The Use of Aluminum in
Cooking Utensils, The Effect of Hard Water upon the
Teeth, 1910.
Balph Eugene Boot, 1909. — Reports: Professor Moore's
General Analysis, The Examination and Marking System,
1910.
Frank Bussell, 1894.— Paper: The Yellow Knife In-
dians, 1895. Reports: Esquunaux' Waterproof Boots, An
Albino Specimen of Geomys Bursarius, 1895.
THE BACONIAN CLUB 101
Mabtik Wbioht Samfsok, 1889. — Reports : Literary and
Artistic Work of Women as Contrasted with that of Men,
Query in Begard to the Picturesque Quality of Photog-
raphy, 1890.
Thomas Edmuot) Savagb, 1896. — Reports : The Flora of
the **Wad Den'' Eegion, 1897; Some Features in the Nat-
ural History of the Begion of Ironton, Missouri, 1898.
Chablbs Ashmbad Sohabffbb, 1887. — Papers: Steel,
1888; The Mining and Metallurgy of Gold, 1888; Natural
and Artificial Cements, 1889; The Systematic Method of
Organic Chemistry, 1890.
F. L. Sohaub, 1902. — Report: Beport on a Paper by
Professor Stratton ^^Eye Movements in the Esthetics of
Vision'', 1903.
Cabl Emil Sbashobb, 1897. — Papers: A Study in Psy-
chological Measurement, 1898 ; Visual Perception of Inter-
rupted Linear Distances, 1899 ; The Principal Types of Nor-
mal Illusions in the Perception of Oeometrical Forms, 1900 ;
Automatism in the Use of the Divining Bod in Tracking for
Underground Water, 1901 ; Some Experiments in Auditory
Perception of Direction, 1902 ; Dreams, 1903 ; Color Vision
in the Indirect B^eld, 1905 ; The Tonoscope and its Use in
Singing, 1906; The Psychology of Play, 1908; Darwin from
the View-point of the Psychologist, 1909. Reports: The
Beign of Men, 1898 ; Some Cases of Budimentary Movements
of the Human Ear, The Discriminative Sensibility for Pitch,
1899 ; The Psychergometer, A New Erggraph, 1900 ; A New
Method of Measuring the Pitch of the Voice in Singing and
Speaking, 1901; The Belative Frequency of Ideas, Scrip-
ture's Color Sense Tester, 1902; To Obtain a Cheap and
Convenient Battery for Short Circuits in the Laboratory,
1904 ; The Photography of Eye Movements, 1905 ; Forma-
102 IOWA JODENAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
tion of Habits in the Starfish, Some Experiments on Bats,
1907; Possibility of Localizing the Sense of Taste, 1908; A
New Paper File, 1909.
Benjamin Franeun Shambauoh, 1897, Associate. —
Reports: The Latest Original Package Case, The Nature
of the Problem of Justification in the Interference of the
United States in the Cuban Situation, The Possession and
Occupancy of Iowa in its Legal Aspects, The Naming of the
Commonwealth of Iowa, 1898 ; History of the Establishment
of the Boundaries of the Commonwealth of Iowa, 1899.
BoHUMiL Shimee, 1890. — Papers: The Badula of the
MoUusca, 1891; The Loess in the Northwest, 1892; The
Geographical Distribution of Mollusca with Belation to
Current Glacial and Loess Theories, 1892; The Nicaragua
Canal, 1893 ; Types of Nicaraguan Ferns, 1894 ; Plant Hairs,
1895; Plant Distribution in Iowa, 1896; Water Nymphs,
1897; Textile Vegetable Fibres, 1898; Eomance in Natural
History, 1898; Forestry in Iowa, 1900; The Okoboji School
of Botany, 1902; An lowan Desert, 1903; The White Lands
of New Mexico, 1904 ; Ferns in the Desert, 1905 ; Forests of
the United States, 1906 ; A Bit of Geology and Geography
Revised, 1907; Why Are the Prairies Treeless?, 1908; Dar-
win from the Standpoint of the Botanist, 1909 ; The Prairie
and Forest Problem as Illustrated in the Lake Okoboji Ee-
gion, 1910. Reports : The Canadian Thistle in Iowa City, Re-
marks on Pyrgula and Planorbis, 1890 ; the Fania Integraf o-
lia, A Remarkable Snake 's Nest, 1892 ; Some Peculiar Hab-
its of Ferns, The Russian Thistle, The Blooming of Plants
during the Present Autumn, Cases of Certain Diaecious
Plants Producing Perfect Flowers, 1894 ; Conditions Favor-
ing the Growth of the Hard Maple, 1896 ; The Repair of In-
juries to the Cambium Layer in Trees, the Physiological
THE BACONIAN CLUB 103
Effects of Poison Ivy, 1898 ; A Specimen of the Plasmodium
of a Slime-Mold, A Dwarf Form of Burr Oak, 1899; Bitter-
Sweet, 1900 ; The Causes of the Flow of Sap in the Spring,
1900; Sknnk Cabbage, 1903.
Lbb Paul Sibg, 1906.— Papers : The Nature of White
Light, 1908; Limits of Vision, 1909; The Microscope and
the Ultra Microscope, 1910. Reports: Abbe's Theory of
Microscopic Vision as Applied to Ordinary Vision, 1906;
Determining the Optical Focus of a Lens, The Theory of
the Diffraction Grating, 1907.
Chables Gamblb Simpson, 1909. — Report: A Discontin-
uous Function, 1910.
Alfred Vablby Sims, 1895. — Papers: Self -Purification
and Filtration of Water in Belation to the Health of Cities,
1897; The Simplicity and Practicability of the Graphical
Determination of Stresses, 1898 ; The Determination of the
Strength of Cement, 1900; Some Features of the Boad
Problem, 1901; Some Glimpses of the life of a Southern
Tobacco Farm, 1902. Reports: Methods of Sterilizing
Water, The Bate of Corrosion of Iron Buried in Different
Kinds of Soil, 1899.
Abthtjb Geobge Smith, 1893. — Papers : Variable Stars,
1894; The Laws of Chance, 1896; The Quadrature of the
Circle, 1896 ; The Number Concept, 1897 ; A Study in Mathe-
matical Interpretation, 1898; The Tides, 1899; The In-
scribed Polygon of Seventeen Sides, 1901 ; Mathematics in
Biology, 1902; Some Elementary Methods and Besults in
Statistical Anthropology, 1903 ; The Hydrographical Work
of the United States Government, 1904 ; Sound and Music,
1906 ; The Shape of the Earth and its Determination, 1906 ;
Some Aeronautical Mechanics, 1908 ; The Gyroscope, 1910 ;
A Bational Marking System, 1910. Reports: A Function
104 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
in which the Second Partial Differential Coefficient Depends
npon the Order of Differentiation, 1895 ; The Mathematical
Theory of the Honey Bee Cell, 1896 ; The Measurement of
the Velocity of the Bifle Ball, Variation in Longitude, 1897 ;
Determination of ^ by the Gaussian Law of Error, The Me-
chanics of the Nebular Hypothesis, 1898; See's Law of the
Temperature of Oaseous Bodies, The Economy of Material
in Nature, The lines of Flow in a Liquid, The Penetrating
Power of the Modem Bullet, The Steel Jackets of Modem
Bullets, 1899 ; The Expectation of Living, Scientific Study
of the Awarding of First and Second Prizes by Competitive
Examination by Sir Francis Galton and Carl Pierson, 1902 ;
The Precipitation of Moisture in Iowa and Iowa City, Some
Facts Regarding Earthquakes, 1906; The Formation of
Frazil and of Anchor Ice, 1907 ; Galton 's Individual Differ-
ence Problem in Statistics, 1910.
Chables Leonabd Smith, 1893. Associate. — Reports:
Vegetation of Nicaragua, 1893 ; A Collecting Trip through
Mexico and Nicaragua, 1896.
Fbanklin Obion Smith, 1907. — Reports: A Few Diffi-
culties Encountered in the Study of Color Perception, 1907 ;
The Rationale of Promotion and the Elimination of Waste
in Elementary and Secondary Schools, 1910.
Frederick William Spanutius, 1889. — Papers: Quick-
silver, 1890 ; Dissociation, 1891 ; Glass and its Solubility in
Water, 1892. Reports: Siliceous Oolite, Smoky Quartz
from Branchville, Connecticut, 1890; Free Fluorine, 1891;
Chemistry and Mineralogy of Garnet, 1892.
John Springer, 1896. Associate. — Papers : Type-Setting
Machines, 1900; The Lost Art of Wood Engraving, 1901.
Reports : Modem Processes of Color Printing, 1898 ; A Let-
ter from Hon. John P. Irish on the Growing of E^s in Cal-
THE BACONIAN CLUB 105
ifomia, Famous Printers' Errors, 1900; A Mammoth
Camera, 1901; Oil Begions of Iowa, 1902; Experience in
Producing Silhouette Photographs, 1904.
Edwin Dilleb Stabbuok, 1906. — Papers: The Idealist's
Interpretation of Matter, 1907 ; A Comparison of the Mental
Capacities of the Sexes, 1908; Pragmatism, 1909; Some
Somological Phases of Adolescence, 1910. Reports: The
Mental and Physical Differences in the Sexes, 1906 ; Orienta-
tion and Localization of Certain Birds, 1908.
Daniel Staboh, 1906. — Paper : The Influence of Weather
on Human Conduct, 1907. Reports: Results of Experi-
ments Carried out in the Psychological Laboratory on Aud-
itory Localization of Sound, 1904; Localization of Sound,
Sound in Psychological Laboratory, 1905.
Geobge Waltbe Stbwabt, 1909. — Report: Beport of
President Pritchett Regarding Cost of College Instruction
in Physics, 1910.
Fbank Albebt Stbomsten, 1900. — Paper: The Marine
Biological Laboratory at Tortugas, 1908. Reports : Obser-
vations of Dr. Mathews on the Changes in the Oland Cells
of the Pancreas of the Mud Puppy, 1903 ; Order of the De-
velopment of the Venous System, 1906 ; Palola Worm, 1907 ;
The Lymphatic Development in Turtles, 1910.
Henbt Waldgbavb Sttjabt, 1901. — Papers: Choice and
Knowledge, 1902; Ethics, its Nature and its Place among
the Sciences, 1904.
WiLBEB John Teetebs, 1897. — Papers: The Manufac-
ture and Chemistry of Soap, 1899 ; Some Facts about Patent
Medicines, 1899; The Prescription, 1902; The Synonyms
of the Pharmacopoeia, 1903 ; Coal Tar, 1904 ; Cinchona and
its Alkaloids, 1907: Some Besults of the Pure Food and
106 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Drag Law, 1909. Reports : Armonr ft Co., Dessicated Ani-
mal Substances, Sarsaparilla Ciontainer, An Original Pack-
ing Case for Ciort from Ochissima, 1901 ; Vanilla Bean as
Cnred and as it Comes on the Market, 1906 ; Importation of
Aloes, 1907; Patent Medicines, IJnsnccessfnl Attempts to
Brand Cattle by Chemical Methods, 1908; Specimen from
a Wine Cask, 1909.
Fbedebige Chables L. Van Stebkdeben, 1894. Associate.
— Reports : A Device for the Trisection of an Angle, 1894 ;
The Inflnence of the Tentonic npon the Bomance Languages,
The Origin of Langoages, 1895; A Sentence Containing a
Key to the Quantity ^ , 1897 ; The Engineering Situation
in Holland, 1898; The Place of French Literature in Lit-
erature, 1899 ; A Note on the General Laws Governing the
Changes in the Meaning of Words, 1903.
Andrew Andebson Vbblen, Charter. — Papers: Modem
Geometry, 1886; Electric Units and Measurements, 1886;
Determination of the Length of light Waves, 1887; The
Theory of Dynamo-Electric Machines, 1888; Polarization
of Light, 1889; Transmission of Electrical Oscillations,
1889; Some Points on Electric Lighting, 1890; The light
of Fire-Flies, 1890; Electro Motors, 1891; Electric Bail-
ways, 1891; The Finding of America by the Norsemen,
1892; The Practical Electrical Units and the Commercial
Measurement of Electricity, 1893; Notes on Electricity at
the World's Fair, 1894; lighting, 1895; Some Elementary
Facts in Acoustics and the Physical Theory of Music, 1896 ;
The Characteristics, Classification and Uses of Finger-
prints, 1897; Wireless Telegraphy, 1898; Ancient Scandi-
navian Ships, 1900; Photographic Optics, 1901; Finger-
prints, 1902; Electrons, 1903; The University of Upsala,
1903. Reports: Rosenthal's Micro-Galvanometer, 1886; On
.. ^
THE BACONIAN CLUB 107
a Suggestion of a System of Local Survey, 1887; Snow
Shoes, On the Grammar of Volapiik, The Theory of Electric
Potential, The Uses of the Battle Axe, A Torsion Balance,
1888 ; Electrical Measuring Instruments, Effect of Elevation
upon Weight, 1889 ; A New Kind of Telephone, Welding by
Electricity, Magneto-optic Production of Electricity, The
Motion of Atoms in Electrical Discharge, 1890; Are We
Approaching Another Ice Agef, 1891; The Spade Bayonet
in the United States Army, A New Method of Detecting Os-
cillations of the Earth's Crust, Some Applications of the
Hertz Experiments to Marine Signaling, The Corruption of
Scandinavian Names in America, Late Advances in Elec-
trical Science, Description and Model of Cable Switch Board
Made by himself for Use in the Physical Laboratory, An
Electrical Fire Damp Indicator, 1892; Breaking of the
World's Skee- Jumping Records at Bed Wing, Minnesota,
The Long Distance Telephone, Gravitational Phenomena
"N^ewed as Waves of Ether, Peculiarities of Trees Growing
upon Hillsides, Botary Steam Engines, Besistance Boxes,
1893; A New Style of Bedprocating Engine, Double Sur-
faces, The Instructive or Natural Use of Correct Gender in
Danish Dialects, A New Form of Planimeter, limit of Vi-
sion with Bespect to the Eyes of Insects, The Effect of Elec-
tric Shocks, Experiments upon the Falling of Cats, 1894;
Hearst's Spectrum Disks, Wireless Telegraphy, Measure-
ments upon the Growth of Trees, A Machine for Compound-
ing Harmonic Motion, Model of Circular and Transverse
Wave Motion, 1895 ; Photographic Effects by Means of Elec-
trical Badiation, The X or Boentgen-Bay, The Becent Nan-
sen Expedition, 1896 ; The Use of Alternating Currents for
Gaining Speed in Telegraphy, The Amount of Energy Im-
parted to the Beceiver of the Telephone in Speaking, 1897 ;
Tesla's Wireless Transmission of Energy, Immunity of the
108 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOEY AND POLITICS
Baoe from the Effects of Alcohol, A Comparison of the
Welsbach Burner with the Ordinary Naked Burner, 1898;
A New Camera Table for Photography for Scientific Pur-
poses, The Polak-Virag Method of Bapid Telegraphy, 1899;
The Curving Flight of a Botating Ball, Loosely Piled Bridks
as a Vibration-free Support for Delicate Instruments,
Borchgrevinck's Antarctic Explorations, Becent Progress
in Wireless Telegraphy, Existence of Nodes and Vibrations
of the String, A New Copying Camera Table, 1900 ; Beason
for Professor Bowland's Fame, Optical Illusion Visible in
Mr. Boehm's Zone Plate, A Method of Changing the Density
of Skyograph Negatives, 1901 ; Nature of Electric Discharge
in Thunderstorms, 1902; Birksland Electromagnetic Gun
for Throwing Dynamite, Becently Discovered Bemains in
Norway of Ancient Boats, 1903 ; A New Compact Projecting
Lantern, Dr. Niels Finsen, 1904; Land Slide in Norway,
Earthquake in the Scandinavian Peninsula, Sixty-four Sci-
ence Charts Suitable for Elementary Nature Study, Experi-
ments to Prove that a Body can not Sink in Quic^ Sand,
1905.
Chables B. Vogdes, 1893. — Papers: Historical Sketch
of Infantry Tactics, 1895 ; The First Campaign of Napoleon,
1896.
Cabl Leopold von Endb, 1893. — Papers : Some Physical
Methods in Chemistry, 1895 ; The Modem Theory of Solu-
tion, 1901; The Osmotic Theory of the Galvanic Cell, 1903;
Catalysis, 1906. Reports: Vitreous Silicon or Quartz Glass,
Purification of Water by Means of Copper Sulphate and
also by Copper, 1905.
Pbboy H. Walkeb, 1S92.— Papers : Iron, 1893; Alloys,
1895 ; Explosives, 1899. Reports : Utilization of Iron Ores
Containing Titanium, A Peculiar Form of Calcite Found
in the Neighborhood, 1893.
THE BACONIAN CLUB 109
DiTBBN Jakbs Hudson Wabd, 1906.— • Poper : The Legi-
timate Field of Anthropology and Ethnology, 1906. Re-
port : Prehistoric People of Iowa, 1906.
Samuel N. Watson, 1886.— Papers: The Next Step in
the Evolution Process, 1887 ; Biology and Ethics, 1887 ; An
Inquiry into the Permanence of the Human Species, and
Some Deductions Therefrom, 1888; Social Development,
1891; The Embryology of Personality, 1893; Sensation,
1894; Thermics, 1896. Reports: Evidence of Intelligence
in the Lower Animals, On Some Statements in Professor
Huxley's Book "Advance of Science in the Last Half Cen-
tury'', Electric Heating, 1888; The Bermuda Islands, 1890;
Oligocythaemia, 1893.
Gailobd D. Weeks, 1900. — Paper : Bailway Construction,
1901.
Laenab Giffobd Weld, 1886. — Papers: Wave Motion,
1887; Vortex Motion, 1887; Determinants, 1888; The Tran-
sit of Venus in 1874, 1888 ; Double Stars, 1889 ; The Nebular
Hypothesis of La Place, 1889; Some Instances of Becent
Progress in Stellar Astronomy, 1890 ; The Tenets of Astrol-
ogy, 1890; A Symposium on the Nature of the Center of
the Earth (with Calvin and Andrews), 1891; The Stars as
Timekeepers, 1891; Comets, 1892; The Sun, 1892; The Phy-
siography of the Moon, 1893; Exhibition of Astronomical
Iiantem Slides, 1894; The Foundations of Geometry, 1894;
Some Mathematical Illustrations of the Doctrine of Con-
tinuity, 1895; Numbers 1896; Tories, 1896; Pendulum Ob-
servations, 1897; Variable Stars, 1898; The Phenomenon
of Periodicity, 1899; The life History of a Star, 1900 ; The
Mechanics of a Harp String, 1900; Are Other Worlds In-
habited, 1901 ; Some Applications of the Statistical Method
to Stellar Astronomy, 1902; The Planet Jupiter, 1903; Star
no IOWA JOUBNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Dust, 1905; How Did the Sun Become Hot and What Keeps
it Hot, 1906; The Spiral Nebulae and their Significance,
1906 ; The Legends of the Stars, 1907 ; The Great Pyramids,
1910. Reports : Certain Experiments on Nitrification, 1886;
Imaginary Cube Boots of Unity, 1887 ; The Hypergeometric
Series, The Mathematical Laws Governing the Carrying
Power of Streams, The Variable Star Algol, The Solar
Eclipse of January 1, 1889, 1888; Arago's Helioscope, 1889;
The Personal Equation, 1890 ; The Time of Botation of the
Planet Mercury, The Bedprocal Belations between the Pas-
calion and Brianchonian Hexagons, Becent Discovery of
the Nature and Extent of the Variation of Latitude of
Points on the Earth's Surface, 1891; The Magnitude of the
Forces Interacting among the Celestial Bodies, Periodic
and Secular Changes of Latitude, Becent Discovery of the
Fifth Moon of Jupiter, The Zenith Telescope and its Use
in Latitude Determinations, Infinity as a Mathematical Con-
cept, 1892; Construction of a Conic Passing through Five
Points, 1893 ; The Gtegenschein, Advantages of the Trilinear
System of Co-ordinates, The Present Opposition of the
Planet Mars, 1894 ; The Becent Discovery of a Second Satel-
lite of Neptune, 1895; The Planet Saturn and its System,
A Mechanical Method of Trisecting an Angle, An Original
Linkage Machine for Determining the Boots of Cubic Equa-
tions, Parheliac Circles, A Graphic Method for the Solution
of the Equation x* — px—q^ = 0, A Graphic Method of Solv-
ing Cubic Equations, On Ascertaining Properties of a Func-
tion Bepresented by Some Integral that can not be In-
tegrated, 1897 ; Conditions Affecting the limit of Capacity
of Large Guns, 1898 ; The Becently Discovered Planet D. Q.,
1899; A New Comet, 1902; Difference between Volcanic
Activity on the Moon and on the Earth, 1903 ; A Particular
Partial Differential Equation, livasey Depression Bange
THE BACONIAN CLUB HI
Finder, Latest Discovery at lick Observatory, 1904; De-
scription of a Piece of Photometric Apparatus Seen in
Standard Bureau at Washington, Astronomical Instrument
for Eliminating the Personal Equation in Obtaining the
Transit of a Star, 1905 ; Some Factors to be Considered in
the Determination of Loss of Matter, 1906 ; Certain Methods
of Sinking Wells Through Sandy Soils, 1907.
Boy Titus Wells, 1903. — Papers: Some Developments
in Electric Railroading, 1904 ; The Reaction of a Conducting
Core on a Solenoid, 1904. Reports : An Electrically Driven
Pendulum, 1903; Regulating the Strength of a Field, 1904;
Electric Traction, A New Electric Light Bulb, Methods of
Measuring very Minute Alternating Currents, 1905.
John Van Etten Westpal, 1899. — Papers: A Famous
Old Problem in Geometry, 1900 ; The Game of Minor Fan
Tan, 1902; The Fundamental Principles of Life Insurance
and Annuities, 1902 ; A Proof of the Transcendency of e and
^, 1903; Transcendental Numbers, 1904.
William Bobebt Whiteis, 1893. — Papers: Immunity,
1895 ; The Histology of the Tooth, 1897. Reports : A Solu-
tion for Staining Nerve Centers, A Large Microtome for
Sectioning the Entire Brain, 1897.
Henby Fbedebiok Wiokham, 1903. — Papers : Ants, 1903 ;
Some Remarkable Habits of Spiders, 1904; Insect Life in
the Great Basin, 1905 ; Arctic Colonies in the Rocky Moun-
tains, 1905 ; Notes on a Trip to Mexico, 1908 ; Notes on the
Mexican Trip of 1908, 1909 ; Variation of Color Pattern in
the Genus Cecindela, 1910. Reports: The Simplest Form
of Insects — Compodes Staphylinus, 1907 ; A Peculiar Bug
Emesa Longipes, 1910.
William Cbaig Wilcox, 1894. — Report : Trend of Modem
Historic Research in this Country, 1904. ,
112 IOWA 30UBNAL OF HI8T0BY AND POLITICS
Frank Alonzo Wildeb, 1903. — Papers : Yellowstone Na-
tional Park, 1904; The Geological History of the Bhine Val-
ley and its Belations to History and Science, 1905; The
Oeology of the Appalachian Mountains and its Bearings
on American History, 1906. Reports : Becent Criticism of
the Nebular Hypothesis, Coal-Testing Plant at St. Lonis,
1904 ; Gas and Oil Fields of Kansas, 1904 ; Government Coal
Testing at St Louis Fair, Mining and Shipping of Iron Ore,
Producer Gas, 1905.
Mabel Clabe Williams, 1903. — Papers: The Subcon-
scious, 1903 ; How Many Senses Has Man, 1903 ; Memory in
Animals, 1903 ; Bhythm, 1910. Reports : Besult of Experi-
ments in Area- Volume Illusion, 1901; Investigation by
Motora, 1904.
Henbt Smith Williams, 1886. — Paper: Brains, 1886.
Edwabd Wolesensky, 1909. — Report : A New Method of
Preparing Diamonds, 1910.
Shebmak Melville Woodwabd, 1904. — Papers : A Mathe-
matical Attempt to Mitigate the Severity of a Torrid Cli-
mate, 1905; The Principle of Least Work as Applied to
Beams, 1909 ; English Gothic Cathedral Construction, 1909.
Reports : A Freak Standpipe, 1905 ; Conditions Causing the
Explosion of an Evaporator in a Factory, 1908 ; A Problem
in Hydraulics, The Humphrey Gas Pump, 1909.
Abohie Gabheld Wobthing, 1906. — Papers : The Appli-
cation of the Electron Theory to Certain Physical Phenom-
ena, 1908 ; Water Splashes, 1909. Reports: Atomic Weight
of Nickel, Some Experiments of Sir Wm. Bamsey, 1907.
Bobebt Bbadfobd Wtlie, 1906. — Papers: A Primary
Factor in the Evolution of Plants, 1908; The Okoboji Lake-
side Laboratory, 1909. Reports: Peculiar Characteristics
THE BACONIAN CLUB 113
of the Bed Algae, 1907 ; Method of Isolating Some Forms
of Fangi,190&
The following papers were read by invitation of the
members of the Clnb :
Capt. BBinarBTT — Some Pecnliarities of Whales, 1889.
Pbof. W J MoGbb — A Visit to a Savage Tribe, 1899.
Pbof. W. H. Nobton — Shore Forms, 1901; Artesian
Wells in this Locality, 1908; Illnstrated Account of the San
Francisco Earthquake Disaster, 1908.
Beobkt AiiBEBT W. SwALH — The Growth and Prosperity
of the University, 1894.
Db. E. S. Talbot — D^eneracy, its Causes, Signs and
Besults, 1904.
Pbof. S. N. Williams — The Obligation of Science to
Suffering Humanity, 1910.
Mb. WmxB — The Great Storm at Samoa, 1890.
Malcolm Glbnn Wybb — Book Binding, 1909.
Mb. Geoboe p. Diegkmann — The Modem Manufacture of
Portland Cement from the Mechanical and Chemical Stand-
points, 1910.
vol. iz— 8
SOME PUBLICATIONS
AMEBIGANA
GBNEEAL AND MIBOELLANBOUS
Percy L. Kaye is the compiler of a volume of Readings in Ciwl
Oavemment, which has been issued by the Century Company.
Laws as Contracts and Legal Ethics is the title of an address by
Phiny F. Sexton, which has been published in pamphlet form.
Volume four, part two, of the Anthropdlogical Papers of the
American Museum of Natural History contains some Notes Con-
cerning New Collections, edited by Robert H. Lowie.
In the August-September number of the Proceedings of the
American Philosophical Society there is a paper by B. H. Matthews,
entitled Further Notes on Burial Customs, Australia.
The September number of The National Civic Federation Re-
view is devoted to discussions of the various phases of the move-
ment for uniformity in Federal and State legislation.
A new edition of Alexander Johnston's valuable History of
American Politics, revised and enlarged by W. M. Sloane and con-
tinued down to date by W. M. Daniels, has recently appeared.
Ernest R. Spedden is the author of a monograph on the smbject
of The Trade Union Label, which appears as a recent number of
the Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and PoUtiod
Science.
The American Catholic Historical Researches for October opens
with some Catholic Revolutionary Notes. J. E. Dow contributes
Some Passages in the Life of Commodore John Barry. An article
of western interest is one by J. J. Holzknecht on Bishop Henni's
Visitation of Wisconsin
114
SOME PUBLICATIONS 115
The Report of the Sixteenth Afmudl Meeting of the Lake Mohonk
Conference on International Arbitration contains a good variety of
addresses and reports dealing with different phases of the problem
involved.
A complete edition of the TreiUies, Conventions, International
Acts, Protocols and Agreements Between the United States and
Other Powers, 1776-1909, has recently been issued from the Govern-
ment Printing Office.
E. Clyde Bobbins is the compiler of a volume containing Selected
Articles on a Central Bank of the United States which appears in
the Debater's Handbook Series published by the H. W. Wilson
Company of Minneapolis.
The New Netherland Register is the title of a new periodical, the
first number of which appeared in January, 1911. The most ex-
tended contribution in this number bears the heading. Pioneers and
Founders of New Netherlands
Kari Singewald is the writer of a monograph on The Doctrine of
Non-SudbUity of the State in the United States, which has been
published as a number of the Johns Hopkins University Studies in
Historical and Political Science.
The Railway Library 1909, compiled and edited by Slason Thomp-
son, contains a number of papers and addresses dealing with the
operation and progress of railroads, and their regulation by the
State and National governments.
A valuable monograph from the standpoint of western history
is that prepared by Bobert T. Hill on The Public Domain and
Democracy, and published in the Columbia University Studies in
History, Economics, and Public Law.
The fourteenth volume of the Review of Historical Pvhlications
Relating to Canada, edited by Qeorge M. Wrong and H. H. Langton,
has appeared as a number of the University of Toronto Studies.
This volume contains over two hundred pages devoted to publica-
tions which came out during the year 1909.
116 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
World Corporation is the title of a yolume by King Camp Qil-
lette, which outlineB a program of socialiatio reform. The corpora-
tion, the purpose of which this volvme explains, is organized under
the laws of the Territory of Arizona.
The seventeenth and eighteenth volumes of the Library of Con-
gress edition of the Journals of the CofUinental Congress, 1774-1789,
edited by Qaillard Hunt, have appeared. These two volumes bring
the proceedings of the Congress down to the close of the year 1780.
W. Max Beid is the author of a volume entitled Lake George and
Lake Champlain: the War Trail of the Mohawk and the Battle-
ground of France and England in their Contest for the Control of
North America, which has come from the press of Q. P. Putnam's
Sons.
The October number of the Bulletin of the Pan American Union
contains, among other things, an account of Mexico's Centennial
Celebrations. It is to be noted that the name ''The Pan American
Union" has been substituted for ''The International Bureau of the
American Republics."
Max Schrabisch is the writer of an article on The Indians of New
Jersey which appears in the September-October number of Ameri-
cana. Others articles are: Thomas Paine' s L<ist Days in New York,
by William M. Van der Weyde; and a continuation of the History
of the Mormon Church, by Brigham H. Roberts.
The Religiotis Question in Spain is discussed by Louis Garcia
Guijarro in an article which appears in The Yale Review for No-
vember. Economic Phases of the Railroad Rate Controversy is the
subject treated by A. M. Sokolski. Among the remaining contri-
butions is one by Julius H. Parmalee on The Statistical Work of
the Federal Oovemment.
The January, April, and July numbers of the BuUetin of the
Virginia State Library are combined into one volume which is de-
voted to a Finding List of the Social Sciences, Political Science,
Law, and Education. This volume is in reality a condensed cata-
SOME PUBUCATIONS 117
logae of the books coming under the headings indicated which are
to be found in the Virginia State Library. It will serve as a useful
guide, however, for research students.
Among the articles in the Political Science Quarterly for Sep-
tember are: Judiciai Views of the Bestriction of Women's Hours
of Labor, by Qeorge Gorham Oroat; Reciprocal Legidation, by
Samuel McGune Lindsay ; Effect on Real Estate Values of the San
Francisco Fire, by Thomas Magee ; and The Opening of Korea by
Commodore Schufeldt, by Charles Oscar Paullin.
The November number of The Quarterly Journal of Economics
opens with a discussion of BaHway Bate Theories of the Interstate
Commerce Commission, by M. B. Hammond. There is a third in-
stallment of 0. M. W. Sprague's study of Proposals for Strengthen^
ing the National Banking System. Another article is one by Wil-
liam J. Cunningham on Standardizing the Wages of BaUroad Train-
men.
Charles A. EUwood is the writer of an article on The dassificO'
tion of Criminals which appears in the November number of the
Journal of the American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminol-
ogy. Other articles are: Nature and Limits of the Pardoning
Power, by William W. Smithers ; and The Bdation of the Alien to
the Administration of the CivU and Criminal Law, by Qino C.
Speranza.
William Oarrott Brown discusses The New Politics in an article
in The North American Beview for October. He deals especially
with the evidences of change which are to be seen in our political
life of to-day. Other articles are : The German Social Democracy,
by John W. Perrin ; The Changing Position of American Trade, by
Thomas A. Thacher; and The Public and the Conservation Policy,
by James R. McEee.
Senator Beveridge of Indiana, by Lucius B Swift; Milwaukee's
Socialist Oovemmsnt, by Gtoorge Allan England; William James:
Builder of American Ideals, by Edwin Bjorkman ; and The Indian
Land Troubles and How to Solve Them, by Francis E. Leupp, are
118 IOWA JOUENAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
artides in the October number of The American Review of Beviewi.
Woodrow WiUan and the New Jersey Oavemarship is an article in
the November number.
The First Historian of Cumberland, by James Wilson, is an
article which appears in the October number of The Scottish His-
torical Review. Charles J. Guthrie wri/tes on The History of Di-
vorce in Scotland. There are some Letters from Francis Kennedy,
Abbeyhm, to Baron Kennedy at Dalquharran, Mayboll, Relative to
the Siege of Edinburg, 1745. Gtoorge Neilson teUs of Roderick
Dhu : His Poetical Pedigree.
The Transition to an Objective Standard of Social Contrdl, by
Luther Lee Bernard ; and A Contribution to the Sociology of Sects,
by John L. Qillin, are articles in the September number of The
American Journal of Sociology. The first named article is con-
tinued in the November number, where may also be found a dis-
cussion of The Influence of Newspaper Presentations upon tha
Orowth of Crime, by Prances Penton.
Location of the Towns and Cities of Central New York, by Ralph
S, Tarr; and Oeography and Some of its Present Needs, by A. J.
Herbertson, are articles of interest in the October number of the
Bulletin of the American Oeographical Society. In the November
number Walter S. Tower writes on Scientific Oeography : the Re-
lation of Its Content to Its Subdivisions; and S. P. Vemer discusses
the Effective Occupation of Undeveloped Lands.
In the September number of the Journal of the United States
Cavalry Association the principal article of historical interest is one
on The Oeronimo Campaign of 1885-6, by Charles P. Elliott. In the
November number there is a discussion of The ChanceUorsviUe
Campaign, by John Bigelow. Long Distance Rides and Raids, by
Ezra B. Puller; and Cavalry in the War of Independence, by
Charles Prancis Adams, are articles in the January number.
The following are pamphlets published by the American Associ-
ation for International Conciliation during September, October, and
November, respectively: Conciliation Through Commerce and In-
SOME PUBLICATIONS 119
duitry in South America, by Charles M. Pepper ; International Con-
ciUatian in the Far East, which consists of a collection of papers on
various topics by different writers ; and The Capture and Deetruc*
turn of Commerce at Sea and Taxation and Armaments, by F. W.
Hirst.
Among the recent articles in The Survey are the following: an
address on Civic Responsibility, by Theodore Roosevelt (Septem-
ber 17) ; an editorial on JudicuA Disregard of Law (October 1) ;
Who Pays the Taxes in Orounng Cities, by John Martin (October
15) ; The International Prison Congress at Washington, by Paul U.
Kellogg (November 5) ; and From Cave Life to City Life, by Lewis
B. Palmer, and Tolstoi*s *' Resurrection**, by A. S. Goldenweiser
(December 3).
* The South Atlantic Quarterly for October opens with an article
on The English Constitutional Crisis, by William Thomas Laprade.
Judge Martinis Version of the Mecklenburg Declaration is the title
of an interesting discussion by Samuel A. Ashe. Other contribu-
tions are: Three Studies of Southern Problems, by William E.
Boyd; The Influence of Industrial and Educational Leaders on
the Secession of Virginia, by Henry Q. Ellis ; and The Legislatures
of the States, by Bernard G. Steiner.
The November number of The Annals of the American Academy
of Political and Social Science is devoted to Banking Problems.
Among the articles dealing with the various problems are: The
Problem Before the National Monetary Commission, by A. Piatt
Andrew; The Extension of American Banking in Foreign Coun-
tries, by Samuel McBoberts; The Canadian Banking System and
its Operation Under Stress, by Joseph French Johnson ; and State
and Federal Control of Banks, by Andrew J. Frame.
The opening contribution in the Columbian Law Review for
November is a very interesting discussion of the Violation by a
State of the Conditions of Its Enabling Act, by Julian C. Monnet.
Judicial Control over the Amendment of State Constitutions is the
subject of a pertinent article by W. F. Dodd. Contributions in the
120 IOWA JOUBNAL OF HI8T0BY AND POLITICS
December number are: The Supreme Court and the Anti^Trutt
Act, by Victor Morawetz ; and The Place of EngUsh Legal History
in the Education of English Lawyers, by W. S. Holdsworth.
An Educational Department BuUetin pabliahed by the New York
State Library in September contains a Review of Legislation 1907-
1908. Clarence B. Lester is the editor of the ydame ; while various
men have prepared the reviews of the different phases of legislation.
The work covers the legislation enacted in all the States of the
Union during the year indicated, and will prove very useful for
reference purposes; although its helpfulness would have been en-
hanced had it appeared earlier.
Under the title, Constitutional Law in 1909-1910, Eugene Warn-
baugh presents an outline of Supreme Court decisions, in the
November {number of The American Political Science Review.
Stephen Leacock discusses The Union of South Africa; while
Hiram Bingham is the writer of an article on the Causes of the Lack
of Political Cohesion in Spanish America. Two other contributions
are : The Extraordinary Session of the Philippine Legislature, and
the Work of the PhS,ippine Assembly, by James Alexander Bobert-
son ; and The Railroad BiU and the Court of Commerce, by James
Wallace Bryan.
The Journal of American History, volume four, number four,
contains an article by Charles W. Eliot, entitled America's Heritage
— Pilgrim Foundation of American Civilization, in which is traced
the assimilation and development of the principles and doctrines of
the Pilgrims into American character and American political in-
stitutions. Henry Cabot Lodge writes on The Mayflower's Message
to America. Under the heading Builders of the Great American
West, D. C. Allen writes a biographical sketch of Colonel Alexander
W. Doniphan. An account of Henderson's Transylvania Colony is
given by Mrs. James Halliday McCue in an article entitled First
Community of American-Bom Freemcm and Its Dominion. Theo-
dore G. Carter tells of Early Migrations to the Middle West and
Massacres on the Frontier. Under the title, Anniversary in the
American West, H. Gardner Cutler makes an appeal for the cele-
bration of April thirtieth in memory of the Louisiana Purchase.
SOME PUBLICATIONS 121
WESTERN
A neat biographical pamphlet of western interest bears the titles
Quarter Centennial of Judson Titswarth as Minister in Plymouth
Church, MUwa/ukee.
W. A. Schaper is the editor of the volume of the Papers and
Proceedings of the third annual meeting of the Minnesota Academy
of Social Sciences, which has recently appeared.
The number of the Ohio University Bulletin published in October
is devoted to an historical account of Ohio University, the Historic
College of the Old Northwest, by Clement L. MartzolfF.
Two Bulletins recently issued by the Bureau of American Eth-
nology are: Antiquities of Central and Southeastern Missouri, by
Oerard Fowke ; and Chippewa Music, by Frances Densmore.
The Ohio Country Between the Years 1783 and 1815, by Charles
Elihu Slocum, is a volume published by O. P. Putnam's Sons. It
deals chiefly with the Indian Wars of the period and with the War
of 1812.
The Chumash and Costanoan Languages is the title of a brief
monograph by A. L. Eroeber) published in November as a number
of the University of Calif omia Pul)Ucations in American Archae-
ology and Ethnology.
Robert W. Neal is the writer of Some Personal ConduMons About
Things Educational, which appear in The Graduate Magazine of the
University of Kansas for November. The writer finds much to criti-
cise in the modem educational system.
The number of the Ohio University Bulletin published in July is
devoted to the Legal History of Ohio University, compiled by Wil-
liam E. Peters, from legislative enactments, judicial decisions, pro-
ceedings of the trustees, and other sources.
From the pen of William Bomaine Hodges there appears an at-
tractive little biography of Carl Weimar, the well known painter of
Indians and buffaloes, who did so much to preserve for posterity an
accurate record of the wild life of the plains of the Middle West.
122 IOWA JOUBNAL OP HISTOBT AND POLITICS
David French Boyd is the writer of a brief sketch of General W.
T. Sherman as a CoUege President, which has been reprinted from
The American CoUege. The institution, which soon after its es-
tablishment became known as The Louisiana State University, was
organized by (General Sherman, who was its first executive.
The October number of the University of Calif omia Chronicle
opens with an address on Blackstone — The Lawyer and the Man,
by Charles S. Wheeler. The Historical Spirit is the subject of an
address by Eendric C. Babcock. Other contributions are : The Re-
lations of Organized Labor and Technical Education, by Alfred
Boncovieri ; and Self-Directed High School Development, by Alexis
F. Lange.
Two volumes on the Indians which have recently appeared are:
The Indian and his Problem, by Francis E. Leupp (Charles Scrib-
ner's Sons) ; and My Friend the Indian, by James McLaughlin
(Houghton, Mifflin & Company). Both Mr. Leupp and Mr. Mc-
Laughlin have been intimately connected with the administration of
Indian affairs and hence are well qualified to write upon the subjects
they have chosen.
The country stretching westward from the western border of the
Mississippi Valley to the Coast Bange is the field covered by Harlan
I. Smith in an article entitled An Unknown Field in American
Archaeology, which appears in the July-September number of The
American Antiquarian. Charles Hallock writes on The Caves and
Ruins of Arizona and Colorado, setting forth their cause and origin
and the people who occupied them. There is another installment of
Chippewa Legends, by J. 0. Einnaman.
A new periodical, which gives promise of good things, has ap-
peai'ed in the Middle West. The Quarterly Journal of the Uni-
versity of North Dakota is the name of this new publication, and the
initial number appeared in October. The opening contribution is
an article on The Office of the Appellate Judge, by Andrew Alex-
ander Bruce. Then follows an address entitled Past and Present
Sticking Points in Taxation, by Frank L. McVey. James E. Boyle
SOME PUBLICATIONS 123
contributes a chapter in a discnasion of Co-operation in North
Dakota; and John Morris Gillette writes on City Trend of Popu-
lotion and Leadership.
lOWANA
In the October and November numbers of Autumn Leaves there
■are continuations of L. J. Hartman's Memories of Childhood.
The State Banking Board is the subject of an address hy Silas
B. Barton which is published in The Northwestern Banker for
October.
The Relations of the State Board of Education to the Puhlic
School System are discussed by James H. Trewin in the Midland
Schools for December.
In the July-September number of the Iowa Library Quarterly
there is a discussion of Library Orowth and Library Laws; and a
biographical sketch of Honorable C. J. A. Ericson.
In the November number of The Alumnus published at Iowa
State College there is to be found an article entitled Impressions at
I. S. C. 1880-1910, by Malinda Cleaver Faville.
A welcome addition to the history of Iowa churches is to be
found in a History of the First Congregational Church of Council
Bluffs, Iowa, which was prepared by N. P. Dodge and Q. Q. Bice.
The Fairfield Ledger of October 12, 1910, contains an account of
the thirtyHBecond annual reunion of the Jefferson County Old Set-
tler's Association, which was held at Fairfield on October 5, 1910.
The Last of the Founders, by James L. Hill, is an article in The
ijhrinneU Review for October. In the November number there is a
letter from M. M. Blackburn relating to Opportunities in the Oov-
smment Service.
In the Madrid Register-News of December 8, 1910, there is an
interesting article by C. L. Lucas on the Days of the Riverland
Troubles, One week later in the same paper Mr. Lucas relates the
History of the Riverland Orant.
124 IOWA 70UBNAL OF HISTOBY AND POLITICS
A Biography of Elder Joieph E. Burton, hy Emma B. Burton^
opens the October number of the Journal of History published at
Lamoni by the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Dsy
Saints. There is a ccmtinuation of the Biography of Sidney Bigdon,
hy Heman C. Smith, as well as of a number of other biographical
and autobiographical sketches. There is also an article (m Mormon
Troubles in Missouri.
The Battle of Atlanta and Other Campaigns, Addresses, etc., is
the title of an interesting volume from the pen of GrenviUe M.
Dodge, who was Commander of the Department of Missouri in 1865.
Among the contents are chapters on the southwestern campaign, the
battle of Atlanta, the Indian campaigns in the last years of the
war, the Army of the Tennessee, the western campaign, and General
Grant. Numerous illustrations add interest to the volume.
The Story of Greater Oskaioosa is told by J. W. Johnson in the
August-September double number of The Midwestern, and there is
a foreword by the editor, Carolyn M. Ogilvie. The Story of Des
Moines is also related in this number; Henry E. Sampson describes
the Working of the Des Moines Plan; and E. G. Wylie discusses
BaUroad Bate Legislation. In the October number there is an
article by Tacitus Hussey on Early Settlers — Fathers and Sons.
The same writer has A History of the Banks of Des Moines in the
January number.
Municipal Ownership Under Commission Chvemment, by W. A.
Miller ; Municipal Accounting, by Charles M. Wallace ; Home Bule
for Cities, by Thomas Maloney; and a discussion of the Unit Tax
System, are to be found in the October number of Midland Munici-
palities. Frank G. Pierce is the writer of an address on Uniform
Municipal Accounting which appears in the December number.
The President's Annual Address, League of Nebraska MunicipaU-
ties, by Don L. Love, is the principal contribution in the January
number.
SOME RECENT FUBU0ATI0K8 BT IOWA AUTHOBS
Anderson, Melville Best,
The Happy Teacher. New Tork : Benjamin W. Huebsch. 1910.
SOMB PUBLICATIONS 125
Bain, Harry Foster,
More Recent Cyanide Practice. San Franciaeo: Mining and
Scientific Preia. 1910.
Ball, Jame9 Moorea,
Andreas Veealius, the Reformer of Anatomy. St. Lonia: Med*
ical Science PreaB. 1910.
Bolton, Frederick Elmer,
Principles of Education. New York: Charlea Scribner'a Sons.
1910.
Brigham, Johnaon,
The Banker in Literature. New York : The Banking Pnbliah-
ingCo. 1910.
Brown, Charles Beynolds,
The Cap and Oown. Boston: Pilgrim Press. 1910.
Bush, Bertha E.,
A Prairie Rose. Boston : Little, Brown & Co. 1910.
Dodge, Orenville M.,
The Battle of Atlanta and Other Campaigns, Addresses, etc.
Council Bluffs: Monarch Printing Company. 1910.
Ficke, Arthur Davison,
The Breaking of Bonds: A Drama of the Social Unrest.
Boston : Sherman, French & Company. 1910.
Oarland, Hamlin,
Other Main-Traveled Roads. New York: Harper Brothers.
1910.
Oibson, Clarence B.,
Reflections of Nature with Affection Taught. Panora: Pub-
lished by the author. 1910.
Hoist, Bemhart Paul, (Joint editor).
Practical Home and School Methods of Study and Instruction
in the Fundamental Elements of Education. Chicago : Hoist
Publishing Co. 1910.
Hough, Emerson,
The Purchase Price. Indianapolis: The Bobbs-Merrill Com-
pany. 1910.
126 IOWA JOUBNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
The Singing Mouse Stories. Indianapolis : The Bobbs-Merrill
Company. 1910.
The Sowing: A ''Yankee's'' View of England's DtUy to Her-
self and to Canada. Chicago : Vanderhoof-Onnn Co. 1910.
Huebinger, Melchoir,
Map and Ouide for Biver to £fuer Boad. Dea Moines: Iowa
Publishing Co. 1910.
Hughes, Bnpert,
The Gift Wife. New York: Moffat, Yard & Co. 1910.
The Lakerim Cruise. New York: Century Co. 1910.
Eaye, Percy Lewis,
Beadings in Civil Oovemment. * New York : Century Co. 1910.
La Tourette, Clara, and Charles Foster McDaniel,
Commercial Art Typewriting. Cedar Bapids : C. F. McDanieL
1910.
Lazell, Frederick J.,
Isaiah as a Nature-Lover. Cedar Bapids: The Torch Press.
1910.
Lillibridge, William Otis,
Quercus Alha, the Veteran of the Ozarks. Chicago: A. C. Mo-
Clurg&Co. 1910.
MacMurray, Arthur,
Practical Lessons in Public Speaking. Ames: Published by
the author. 1910.
Newton, Joseph Fort,
Lincoln and Hemdon. Cedar Bapids : The Torch Press. 1910.
Pammel, Louis Hermann,
A Manual of Poisonous Plants. Cedar Bapids: The Torch
Press. 1910.
Parrish, Bandall,
Don MacOrath: A Tale of the Biver. Chicago : A. C. McChirg
ft Co. 1910.
Baymond, William Oalt,
BaUroad Field Oeomstry. New York: 7ohn Wiley and Sons.
1910.
SOME PUBLICATIONS 127
Bobbins, E. Clyde,
Selected Articles an a Central Bank of the United States.
Minneapolis: The H. W. Wilson Company. 1910.
Bogers, Jnlia E.,
Earth and Sky Every ChUd Should Know. New York:
Donbleday, Page & Co. 1910.
Sedlasky, Ferdinand J.,
Defense of the Truth. Fort Dodge : Published by the author.
1910.
Sharpe, Gazelle Stems,
A Little Patch of Blue. Boston : Gtorham Press. 1910.
Steiner, Edward A.,
Against the Current. New York and Chicago: Fleming H.
BevellCo. 1910.
Walker, Margaret Coulson,
Tales Come True. New York: Baker & Taylor Co. 1910.
Weld, Laenas O.,
On the Way to Iowa. Iowa City : The State Historical Society
of Iowa. 1910.
White, Hamilton,
The New Theology. New York : Broadway Publishing Co. 1910.
Zollinger, Oulielma,
The Rout of the Foreigners. Chicago: A. C. McQurg & Co.
1910.
SOMB BBCENT HISTORICAL ITEMS IN IOWA NEWSPAPBBS
The Register and Leader
General Baker Might Have Been President, but he Came to Iowa,
by G. W. Crosley, September 25, 1910.
Story of the Earliest Hanging in Iowa, by 0. H. Mills, September
25, 1910.
When Josiah T. Young was Secretary of State, by L. F. Andrews,
September 25, 1910.
Sketch of Life of Sidney Anderson, October 2, 1910.
Life Story of Henry Wallace, the New Head of Conservation, Oc-
tober 2, 1910.
128 IOWA ffOUBNAL OF HISTOBY AND POLITICS
Marvelous Stoiy of a Treasure Mystery in Jefferson County, Octo-
ber 2, 1910.
Indian Payments are Changed Again, October 2, 1910.
John S. Bunnells, One of Prominent Early Lawyers of Iowa, by
L. F. Andrews, October 2, 1910.
Sketch of Life of Thomas Updegraff, October 9, 1910.
Sketch of Life of S. H. M. Byers, by L. F. Andrews, October 9, 1910.
Sketch of Life of W. H. Ingersoll, who Came to Iowa in 1835,
October 9, 1910.
G. W. Eatterman, Oldest Native Son of Wapello County, October
9, 1910.
Two Early Settlers in Van Buren County, October 9, 1910.
Sketches of Life of Johnathan P. DoUiver, October 16, 1910.
Bobert C. Webb, an Early Settler of Polk County, October 16, 1910.
Coincidence in Dolliver's Life, October 21, 1910.
Sketch of Major Charles Mackenzie's Notable Military Service, by
L. F. Andrews, October 23, 1910.
Mr. Clarkson's Farewell Tribute to Dolliver, October 23, 1910.
How an Indian Fled from Death in Early Iowa, by O. H. MUls,
November 6, 1910.
Sketch of Life of Lowell Chamberlain, by L. F. Andrews, November
6, 1910.
Memory of Charlotte Bronte in Des Moines, by Mrs. Addie B. Bil-
lington, November 6, 1910.
H. W. Macomber — A Boyhood Friend of Hiram Maxim, the Sci-
entist, November 6, 1910.
Lives Spent in Loyal Service for the Burlington Bailroad Company,
November 13, 1910.
John Cooper, a Belative of Peter Cooper, November 13, 1910.
Story of the Genesis of the First Bailroad into Des Moines, Novem-
ber 13, 1910.
Ackworth and Whittier, Topical Quaker Communities in Iowa, by
Florence Armstrong, November 20, 1910.
Origin of the Chautauqua Movement in Iowa, by Mrs. Addie B.
Billington, November 20, 1910.
SOME PUBLICATIONS 129
Origin of the Des Moines Ciollege, by L. F. Andrews, November
20, 1910.
Sketch of Life of C. T. Brookins, December 4, 1910.
Sketch of life of Professor Leona Gall, by Mrs. Addle B. Billington^
December 4, 1910.
Winslow Casady Tompkins — Sole Survivor of Famous War Squad,.
December 4, 1910.
Sketch of Life of Alfred M. Lyon, One of Iowa's Bravest Soldiers^
by L. F. Andrews, December 4, 1910.
Old Proclamation Found — Document Declaring Des Moines to be
Capital of State, December 11, 1910.
Lester Perkins — Noted Pioneer of Des Moines, by L. F. Andrews,
December 11, 1910.
Forty-four Years of Street Bailwi^ Business in Des Moines, Decem-
ber 11, 1910.
Story of Mystery Which Puzzled Early Settlers, by 0. H. MiDs,
December 18, 1910.
Isaac Nash of Springville, a Veteran of two Wars, December 18,
1910.
Sketch of Life of Augustus Washburn, by L. F. Andrews, Decem-
ber 18, 1910.
The Pilgrims of Iowa, December 25, 1910.
Sketch of Life of Soma Wheeler Woods, by Mrs. Addie B. Billing-
ton, December 25, 1910.
History of the Famous Second Regiment and Colonel N^ W. Mills,
by L. F. Andrews, December 25, 1910.
The Burlinfftan Hawk-Eye
Twenty Years Ago. (In each Sunday Issue).
Description of a Pioneer Cabin, October 2, 1910.
Veterans of the 25th Iowa to Review War Experiences, October 2,.
1910.
An Iowa Soldier on the Skirmish Line, by H. Heaton, October 2,.
1910.
Sketch of Life of Jonathan P. DoUiver, October 16, 1910.
Thrilling Story of Indian Fighting in the West, by 7. H. Dodds^
October 16, 1910.
voii. IX— 9
130 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Campaigning Around Atlanta with Sherman in 1864, I, by J. W.
Cheney, October 23, 1910.
Sacajawea: The Romance of an Indian Oirl Who Helped to Qive
Our Nation the Great Northwest Territory, October 23, 1910.
Campaigning Around Atlanta with Sherman in 1864, II, by J. W.
Cheney, October 30, 1910.
Our Same Old Tent — A Reminiscence of War Times, by W. P.
Elliot, November 6, 1910.
Exercises at the Marking of the Site of Old Zion Church, November
13, 1910.
The Memorial of a Forceful Man's Life — Charles Elliott Perkins,
November 13, 1910.
W. H. Ingersoll, an Old Pioneer of Des Moines County, November
13, 1910.
The Story of How Burlington was Named, by E. H. Waring, Nov-
ember 27, 1910.
Experiences During the Winter of 1880, by S. Hutchins, December
11, 1910.
Memories of the Civil War, by W. P. Elliott, December 18, 1910.
Cedar Rapids Bepuhlican
How Iowa Received its Name, October 2, 1910.
Story of Indian Fights, October 9, 1910.
Sketch of Life of Senator Jonathan P. Dolliver, October 16, 1910.
Ste. Genevieve — Old Missouri Town, October 16, 1910.
Lincoln and Hemdon, November 6, 1910.
Mr. Clarkson's PArewell Tribute to Senator Dolliver, November
6, 1910.
An Indian's Race for Life, by 0. H. Mills, November 13, 1910.
The First Directory Published in Cedar Rapids, November 27, 1910.
The Dubuque Telegraph-Herald
Sketch of Life of Senator Jonathan P. Dolliver, October 16, 1910.
Story of Earliest Hanging in Iowa, by H. 0. Mills, October 16, 1910.
Careers of Old Time Printers, October 23, 1910.
Jonathan P. Dolliver: A Statesman of the New School, by N. W.
Waters, October 30, 1910.
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES
PUBLICATIONS
The Buffalo Historical Society has published a reprint containing
a Rough List of Manuscripts in the Library of the Buffalo Historical
Society.
A paper on Stage-Coach Days in Medford, by Eliza M. Oill, is the
principal contribution to The Medford Historical Register for
October. An Old-Time Muster is another item of interest.
A recent reprint from the Annual Report of the American His-
torical Association, for 1908, contains the Proceedings of the Fifth
Annual Conference of Historical Societies^ reported by St. Gteorge
L. Sioussat.
The May- August number of the German American Annals is de-
voted entirely to the Elfte Staats-Konvention des Deutsch-Ameri-
kanischen Zentral-Bundes von Pennsylvanien, the proceedings of
which are printed in Oerman.
In the September-October number of the Records of the Past
Hjalmar Rued Holand discusses the question, Are there English
Words on the Kensington Runestonef Leon Dominian tells of The
Pyramids of San Juan Teotihuacan.
John Heman Converse is the subject of a biographical sketch
which appears in the September number of the Journal of the
Presbyterian Historical Society. Among the editorials are discus-
sions of Sycamore Shoals and its Monument, and of Endowing
Church History.
Der deutsche SchuUmeister in der Amerikanischen Oeschichte,
by A. B. Faust, is the opening article in the October number of the
Deutsch-Americkanische Oeschichtsbldtter. Other articles are: Die
Deutschen in Illinois, by Emil Mannhardt; and Die Deutschen in
Davenport und Scott County in Iowa.
181
132 IOWA JOUBNAL OF mSTOEY AND POLITICS
The portions of The Randolph Manuscript published in the
October number of The Virginia Magatine of History and Biog-
raphy cover the period from the latter part of the year 1682 to the
middle of the year 1684. Continuations of documentary material
take up practically the entire number.
Volume nine, number two of The James Sprunt Historical Pub-
lications, published under the direction of The North Carolina His-
torical Society, contains a study of Federalism in North Carolina,
by Henry McQilbert Wagstaff ; and a number of Letters of Wiliiam
Barry Orove, also edited by Mr. Wagstaff.
The proceedings attendant upon The Formal Opening of the New
Fireproof Building of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, April
6-7, 1910, are set forth in a pamphlet recently published by the
Society. Several cuts showing the various homes of the Society
and photographs of its Presidents, add interest to the pamphlet.
Henry A. M. Smith contributes a second chapter of his study of
The Baronies of South Carolina to the October number of The South
Carolina Historical and Genealogical Magazine. This time the Fair-
lawn Barony is discussed. The greater part of the Magazine is taken
up with a genealogical account of the Cantey Family, by Joseph S.
Ames.
Among the contents of volume fifteen of the Collections of the
Nova Scotia Historical Society are the following papers : The Fish-
eries of British North America and the United States Fishermen, by
Wallace Qraham; MemMr of Governor John Parr, by James S.
MacDonald; Halifax and the Capture of St. Pierre in 1793, by T.
Watson Smith ; and Dements Tercentenary at Annapolis, 1604-1904,
by Justice Longley.
The October number of the Historical Collections of the Essex
Institute contains a continuation of the history of The Houses and
Buildings of Grovdand, Massachusetts, by Alfred Poore; a fourth
chapter in Sidney Perley's discussion of Marblehead in the Year
1700; and other continuations. Another contribution is the Revo-
lutionary Orderly Book of Capt. Jeremiah Putnam of Danvers,,
Mass., in the Rhode Island Campaign.
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 133
John F. Philips is the author of an article entitled Hamilton
Bowan Gamble and the Proviaional Oovemment of Missouri, which
is the opening contribution in the October number of the Missouri
Historical Review. F. A. Sampson has compiled some interesting
notes on Washington Irving: Travels in Missouri and the South.
A list of Old Newspaper FUes in the library of the State Historical
Society of Missouri will be of service to investigators.
The Proceedings of the American Antiqv^^rian Society at the semi-
annual meeting held on April 20, 1910, contains the customary
reports and three rather extended papers. The first is by Benjamin
Thomas Hill, and describes Life at Harvard a Century Ago, as
illustrated by the letters and papers of Stephen Salisbury of the
class of 1817. The Jumano Indians is the subject discussed by
Frederick Webb Hodge; and an article on The Libraries of the
Mathers is written by Julius Herbert Tuttle.
The July number of The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and
Biography is largely taken up with an account of The Formal Open-
ing of the New Fireproof Building of the Historical Society of Penn-
sylvania. In the October number there is to be found some cor-
respondence between Thomas Jefferson and William Wirt under the
heading, Jefferson^s Recollections of Patrick Henry, contributed by
Stan. y. Henkels. An Autobiographical Sketch of the Life of Gen.
John Burrows, of Lycoming Co., Penna., written in 1837, is another
contribution.
The forty-third volume of the Proceedings of the Massachusetts
Historical Society covers the period from October, 1909, to June,
1910. Among the many papers contained in this volume the fol-
lowing may be mentioned: The Oregon Trail, by Horace Davis;
Bancroft Papers on the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence,
contributed by Mark Antony De Wolfe Howe ; HamUton^s Report
upon the Constitutumality of a National Bank, contributed by
Worthington C. Ford; War Letters of Dr. Seth Rogers, 1862-63,
communicated by T. W. Higginson ; Letters, 1694-95, on the Defense
of the Frontier, communicated by Charles Pelham Qreenough ; and
Cheat Secession Winter of 1860-61, by Henry Adams.
134 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Athens and HeUenum is the topic discnflBed by William S. Fer-
guson in the October number of The American Historical Review.
G. Raymond Beazley writes on Prince Henry of Portugal and the
African Crusade of the Fifteenth Century; and Ralph C. N. Gat-
terall is the author of a paper on The Credibility of Marat. Two
articles on subjects in American history are: The Mexican Recogni-
tion of Texas, by Justin H. Smith; and The Second Birth of the
Republican Party, by William A. Dimning. In the last named
paper it is the object of the writer to show that the Republican
party, as organized in 1854, did not have an unbroken existence.
Under the heading of Documents there are presented some interest^
ing Letters of Toussaint Louverture and of Edward Stevens, 1798-
1600.
Charles Dickens in Illinois is the title of an interesting article by
J. F. Snyder, which appears in the October Journal of the Illinois
State Historical Society. Clarence Walworth Alvord is the editor of
some letters and documents from the papers of Edward Cole, Indian
Commissioner in the Illinois Country, which illustrate the conduct of
Indian affairs in the West during the British period. In a letter en-
titled Governor Coles* Autobiography there are related some inci-
dents in the early settlement of Illinois. Oliver R. Williamson dis-
cusses the very pertinent subject of American History and the Imr
migrant. Among other contributions are : Honorable Lewis Steward,
by Avery N. Beebe; The ''Comer Stone'' Resolution, by Duane
Mowry; and A Letter from Illinois Written in 1836, by Richard
H. Beach.
Charles E. Brown is the writer of an account of The Wisconsin
Archaeological Society, State Field Assembly, which appears in the
Ohio Archaeological and Historical Quarterly for October. E. L.
Taylor's article on La Salle's Route Down the Ohio is a contribution
to the discussion of a puzzling period in the explorer's career. The
Ohio Declaration of Independence is the subject of a sketch by
Clement L. Martzolff, who also writes on Ohio University — the
Historic College of the Old Northwest, It is to be noted that
Oliver Perry Shiras, who for so many years was a Federal Judge
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 135
in Iowa, received his early education at Ohio University. An ac-
count of Bofvman^s Expedition Against ChUUcothe is taken from
the Draper manuscripts. The concluding article is one by Isaac
J. Cox on the Significance of Perry^s Victory.
The State Finances of Texas During the Reconstruction is the
subject of an interesting article written by E. T. Miller, which is
the opening contribution in The Quarterly of the Texas State His-
torical Association for October. In The City of Austin from 1839
to 1865 Alex. W. Terrell tells how Austin came to be chosen as the
seat of government six years before annexation, and traces the
history of the capital city through the Civil War. The Last Hope
of the Confederacy is the heading given to a memorial from John
Tyler to the Governor and authorities of Texas, for which Charles
W. Ramsdell has written an introduction. Two biographical sketches
are: General Volney Erskine Howard, by Z. T. Pulmore; and Albert
Triplett Burnley, by Martha A. Burnley. The concluding contri-
bution is a letter from Peter W. Qrayson to Mirabeau B. Lamar
dealing with The Release of Stephen F. Austin from Prison.
The July and October numbers of the Annals of Iowa are com-
bined in a double number which is filled with interesting and valu-
able material. The opening contribution is on The Republican State
Convention, Des Moines, January 18, 1860, and is written by F. I.
Herriott. The convention is described largely from the standpoint
of the choice of delegates to the National Republican Convention at
Chicago. Under the title, Across the Plains in 1850, there are pub-
lished a journal and some letters written by Jerome Dutton while
on an overland journey from Scott County, Iowa, to Sacramento
County, California. William Fletcher King, who for a period of
forty-four years was the president of Cornell College, is the subject
of an appreciation by Eollo P. Hurlburt. A Brief History of the
French Family is written by Mary Queal Beyer. Other articles are :
Judge Alexander Brown, by Robert Sloan; The Sword of Black
Hawk, by D. C. Beaman ; and Old Zion Church, Burlington, Iowa,
by Edmund H. Waring. Among the editorials may be found a
brief sketch of Justice Samuel F. Miller and his First Circuit Court.
136 IOWA JOUBNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
A third installment of F. G. Young's monograph on the Finan-
cial History of the State of Oregon may be found in the June num-
ber of The Quarterly of the Oregon Historical Society, This in-
stallment deals with the sale of public lands in Oregon. In the
Recollections of a Pioneer of 1859: Lawson Stockman, B. F. Manring
tells some interesting experiences of an early western settler. Law-
son Stockman started from Iowa City, Iowa, in March, 1859, on the
long journey westward to Oregon. What I Know of Dr, McLaughlin
and How I Know It is the title given to some fascinating recollec-
tions by John Minto who made the journey from Missouri to Oregon
in the year 1844. A continuation of The Peter Skene Ogden Jour-
nals, edited by T. C. Elliott ; and An Estimate of the Character and
Services of Judge George H, Williams, by Harvey W. Scott, may
also be found. Judge Williams was a prominent character in Iowa
during the early years of Statehood. It was in 1853 that he was
appointed Chief Justice of the Territory of Oregon.
ACTIVITIES
The Arkansas Historical Association expects to distribute the
third volume of its Puhlicaticns some time in January.
The new librarian of the Bhode Island Historical Society is
Professor Frank O. Bates, formerly of the University of Kansas.
The Pacific Coast Branch of the American Historical Association
held its annual meeting at the University of California on November
18 and 19, 1910.
The Ohio Archaeological and Historical Society, under the di-
rection of Mr. E. 0. Randall, is editing the Moravian Records and
preparing them for publication.
The Michigan Pioneer and Historical Society is performing a
valuable service in the translation of Margry's Documents. Three
volumes are now ready for the press.
Dr. A. C. Tilton, who for seven years has been chief of the manu-
script department of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, has
accepted a similar i>osition in the Connecticut State Library.
HISTORICAL SOCIETIBS 137
Mr. Purd B. Wright, for several years a Trustee of the State
Historical Society of Missouri, has been elected Librarian of the
Los Angeles Public Library, and hence has severed his connection
with the Society.
On April 6 and 7, 1910, occurred the formal opening of the new
building of the Historical Society of Penn^lvania. The building
was erected at a cost of nearly three hundred and forty thousand
dollars, half of which was appropriated by the State legislature.
The Illinois State Historical Library has in press a volume con-
taining a list of Illinois newspapers down to 1840, and the second
volume of the Governors' Letter-Books. The papers of Oeorge
Bogers Clark are being prepared for publication by Professor
James A. James.
The fifty-eighth annual meeting of the State Historical Society
of Wisconsin was held at Madison on October 20, 1910. The crowd-
ed condition of the library was commented upon by the Secretary,
Dr. Reuben Qold Thwaites in his report, and the urgent need for
a new book-stack wing was pointed out. The library now numbers
331,567 titles. The most conspicuous addition to the manuscript
collections of the Society during the past year are the papers of the
late Gteorge H. Paul of Milwaukee. The principal address at the
annual meeting was delivered by Professor Benjamin F. Sham-
baugh of the State University of Iowa on The History of the West
end the Pioneers.
The report of the Secretary of the Kansas State Historical So-
ciety for the year ending December 6, 1910, reveals a substantial
growth in the collections of the Society. Nearly eleven thousand
books, pamphlets, and bound volumes of newspapers were added
to the library. The most notable accessions are in the department
of archives, where nearly twenty thousand documents were added
during the year. The total collections of the Society now number
in the vicinity of four hundred thousand items. Along the line of
publication the Society has issued volume eleven of its CoUectuyfis.
It has been decided to suspend work on the Memorial and Historical
138 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Building, of which the foundation has been completed, until after
the session of the legislature in 1911. It is sincerely to be hoped
that the legislature will remedy the unfortunate situation which
now exists, and the building will receive the generous appropriation
which it deserves.
OHIO VALLEY HISTORICAL A8S0GUTI0N
The fourth annual meeting of the Ohio Valley Historical Associ-
ation was held at Indianapolis, Indiana, on December 27, 1910. At
12 :30 p. m. there was a luncheon at the University Club, followed by
a program at which the proposed Pittsburg Centennial of steamboat
navigation on western waters was the first topic of discussion. Pre-
liminary bibliographic reports on steamboating on the Ohio River
were presented, and the session closed with a discussion of the pro-
posed consolidation of the Ohio Valley and the Mississippi Valley
Historical Associations. It was decided, however, that final decision
upon the matter of consolidation should be left to the Executive
Committees of the two Associations, with power to act. At four
o'clock there was a Conference on Historical Publication work in
the Ohio Valley, at which time an address was delivered by J.
Franklin Jameson, and brief reports were presented by representa-
tives of historical societies in the Ohio Valley. In the evening a
joint session was held with the other associations meeting at In-
dianapolis.
THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY HISTORICAL ASSOCUTION
The mid-year meeting of the Mississippi Valley Historical Asso-
ciation was held at Indianapolis on Tuesday, December 27, 1910.
The afternoon was taken up with meetings of the Executive Com-
mittee and the various standing committees of the Association.
In the evening at eight o'clock there was a joint session with the
Ohio Valley Historical Association and the American EUstorical
Association at which Professor Benjamin F. Shambaugh presided.
The following program was presented at this time :
Paper — New Light on the Explorations of the Verendrye — Orin
6. Libby, Professor in the University of North Dakota. Dis-
cussion by Clarence W. Alvord, Associate Professor in the
University of Illinois.
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 139
Paper — The American Intervention in West Florida — Isaac Joslin
Cox, Professor in the UniTendly of Cincinnati. Discussion by
Frederick A. Ogg, Professor in Sinunons College ; and Dunbar
Rowland, Director of the Department of Archives and History
of the State of Mississippi.
Paper — A Century of Steamboat Navigation on the Ohio — ^Archer
B. Hulburt, Professor in Marietta College. Discussion by R.
B. Way, Professor in Indiana Universily; and John Wlison
Townsend, Business Manager of the Kentucky State Historical
Society.
Paper — The Beffinnings of the Free-Trade Movement in the Cana-
dian Northwest — ^P. E. Gunn, of Winnipeg, Canada. (Mr.
Gunn was not present.)
Paper — Early Forts on the Upper Mississippi — ^Dan E. Clark, As-
sistant Editor in The State Historical Society of Iowa.
The proceedings and papers at the mid-year meeting will be
included in the volume containing the proceedings of the next an-
nual meeting, which will be held at Evanston, Illinois, in May or
June.
THE AMERICAN HISTORICAL AJBSOCUTION
The twenty-sixth annual meeting of the American Historical
Association was held at Indianapolis, Indiana, on December 27-30,
1910. The sessions, which for the most part were held in the Clay-
pool Hotel, were quite largely attended.
The session on Tuesday evening was devoted to topics in western
history, and was a joint session with the other associations meeting
at the same place. On Wednesday morning there was a program
under the auspices of the North Central History Teachers' Associa-
tion at which there was a free and helpful discussion of the prob-
lems connected with the teaching of History and Civics. The after-
noon on Wednesday was given over to conferences on Ancient His-
tory, Modem European History, American Diplomatic History
with Special Reference to Latin America, and a Conference of State
and Local Historical Societies. At the last named conference the
reports of the widest interest were Mr. Dunbar Rowland's account
140 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTOEY AND POLITICS
of the progress of the work of calendaring the manuscripts in French
archives relating to the Mississippi Valley, and Professor Clarence
W. Alvord's very practical discussion of the methods of restoring
and preserving manuscripts.
The presidential address by Professor Frederick J. Turner on
Wednesday evening dealt in a profound and interesting manner
with the social aspects of American history. The address was fol-
lowed by a reception at the John Herron Art Institute.
Thursday and Friday mornings were devoted to sessions com-
memorating the fiftieth anniversary of secession. The papers on
Thursday morning clustered about the conditions and events in the
North in 1860; while the general subject of discussion on Friday
morning was the South in 1860. Especial interest was manifested in
these two sessions.
A Conference on Medieval History, a Conference of Archivists,
and a Conference of Teachers of History in Teachers' Colleges and
Normal Schools, were held on Thursday afternoon. An interesting
feature of the Conference of Archivists was the report by Mr. A
J. F. Van Laer on the work of the International Conference of
Archivists and Librarians held at Brussels, August 28-31, 1910.
The session on Thursday evening was a session on European His-
tory, the paper which excited the greatest comment being one by
H. Morse Stevens, of the University of California. After this pro-
gram there was a smoker at the University Club.
A luncheon, followed by informal speaking, was given at the
Claypool Hotel Friday noon. The subject of discussion at the final
session on Friday evening was The Relation of History to the Newer
Sciences of Mankind,
THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OP IOWA
The two-volume History of Taxation in Iowa, by Professor John
E. Brindley, will be distributed in February.
The Secretary, Dr. Frank E. Horack, read a paper on The Iowa
Primary and Its Workings at the meeting of the American Political
Science Association at St. Louis during the holidays.
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 141
Professor Laenas O. Weld's address entitled On the Way to Iowa,
has been published and distributed to members.
The manuscript of Dr. Louis Pelzer's biography of Henry Dodge
has been accepted by the Board of Curators and will be put to
press in the near future.
The Society has just issued a new and revised edition of the
booklet entitled Some Information, which describes the work of the
Society, and contains a list of members.
The Superintendent delivered the principal address at the annual
meeting of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin on October 20,
1910. He also addressed fhe State Historical Society of Nebraska
at Lincoln on January 10, 1911.
Mr. Joseph W. Rich, a Curator of the Society, has been elected
President of the Political Science Club of the State University of
Iowa for the ensuing year. Dr. Dan E. Clark, the Assistant Editor,
was chosen Secretary of the same club.
Owing to the great demand for copies of Mr. Joseph W. Rich's
monograph on The BMle of ShUoh, which was first published in
The Iowa Joubnal op History and Politics in October, 1909, it
will be reprinted in book form in the near future.
The Twenty-Eighth Biennial Report of the Board of Curators of
the State Historical Society of Iowa has been printed. It contains
a detailed account of the activities of the Society during the two
years ending July 1, 1910, a list of members, and recommendations
for increased support.
Dr. Benjamin F. Shambaugh and Dr. Dan E. Clark represented
the Society at the meetings of the Mississippi Valley Historical As-
sociation and the American Historical Association at Indianapolis,
December 27-30. Dr. Shambaugh is President of the Mississippi
Valley Historical Association. Dr. Clark read a paper on Early
Forts on the Upper Mississippi, and made a report on the Public
Archives of Iowa.
The following persons have recently been elected to membership
142 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOET AND POLITICS
in the Society; Mr. C. Bay Aomer, Iowa City, Iowa; Lieutenant
Morton C. Momma, Iowa Cily, Iowa ; Mrs. F. S. McGee, Riverside,
Iowa; Miss Helen E. Ruser, Davenport, Iowa; Mr. D. E. Voris,
Marion, Iowa; Mr. John L. Etzel, Clear Lake, Iowa; Mr. R. W.
Birdsall, Dows, Iowa; Mr. P. 0. Bjorenson, Milford, Iowa; Mr. W.
E. Crum, Bedford, Iowa; Mr. Brode B. Davis, Chicago, Illinois;
Mr. Nathan P. Dodge, Jr., Omaha, Nebraska ; Mr. D. Q. Edmund-
son, Des Moines, Iowa; Mr. John M. Galvin, Council Blufb, Iowa;
Dr. J. W. Hanna, Winfield, Iowa; Mr. Chas. L. Hays, Eldora, Iowa;
Mr. J. W. Hill, Des Moines, Iowa ; Mr. H. R. Howell, Des Moines ,
Iowa; Mr. Finis Idleman, Des Moines, Iowa; Mr. Jesse W. Lee,
Webster City, Iowa ; Mr. E. E. Manhard, Waterloo, Iowa ; Mr. R. S.
Sinclair, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Mr. Jacob Springer, Marengo, Iowa;
Mr. B. Van Stienberg, Preston, Iowa; Mr. L. 0. Worley, Blairstown,
Iowa; Mr. Geo. Wright, Eagle Grove, Iowa; Mr. John A. Young,
Washington, Iowa ; Mr. Samuel Hayes, Iowa City, Iowa ; Mr. W. W.
Baldwin, Burlington, Iowa; Mrs. Mary Queal Beyer, Des Moines,
Iowa; Mr. James B. BrufF, Atlantic, Iowa; Mr. T. J. Bryant, Gris-
wold, Iowa; Mr. Henry S. Ely, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Mr. C. O. Har-
rington, Vinton, Iowa; Mr. L. S. Hill, Des Moines, Iowa; Mr.
Charles N. Kinney, Des Moines, Iowa; Mr. V. R. McGinnis, Leon,
Iowa; Mr. C. F. Mauss, Milford, Iowa; Mr. F. S. Merriau, Waterloo,
Iowa; Mr. Arthur Poe, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Mr. J. B. Rockafellow,
Atlantic, Iowa; Mrs. Agnes W. Smith, Waterloo, Iowa; Mr. Thos.
H. Smith, Harlan, Iowa ; and Mr. Edward S. White, Harlan, Iowa.
THE RESIGNATION OF MR. PETER A. DET
Because of advancing years Mr. Peter A. Dey, who for many
years has been President of the Society and a member of the Board
of Curators, has retired from the Board. The following resolution
appreciative of his services was passed by the Board of Curators
on October 5, 1910:
**Be it resolved by the Board of Curators of The State Historical
Society of Iowa that it is with deep regret that we accept the resigna-
tion of Mr. Peter A. Dey as a member of this Board, since we feel
that the Board of Curators suffers a great loss in being deprived of
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 143
his wise oounsel and advice. Mr. Dey has served as a member of the
Board of Curators for twenty-four years, from 1886 to 1910. From
September 8, 1900, to July 7, 1909, he held the office of President of
the Board and of the Society. For the marked growth and develop-
ment of the Society during these years Mr. Dey deserves a large
measure of credit. He was wise in his judgment and always faithful
and punctual in the performance of his duties."
k .'
NOTES AND COMMENT
The North Central History Teachers' Association held a meeting
at Indianapolis on December 28, 1910.
The twenty-first annual meeting of the Iowa Library Association
was held at Davenport, October 11-13, 1910.
Dr. W. P. Dodd, formerly of Johns Hopkins University, is now
a member of the faculty of the University of SUnois.
The second annual meeting of the American Institute of Criminal
Law and Criminology was held at Washington, D. C, on September
30 and October 1, 1910.
The newly appointed General Secretary of the Archaeological
Institute of America is Professor Mitchell CarroU, who has been
connected with the Institute for several years.
July 26 to 29, 1911, are the dates set for an International Congress
dealing with the problems arising in the relations between the West
and the East. London will be the place of meeting.
Professor Herbert E. Bolton, formerly of the University of Texas
and now of Stanford University, has accepted the professorship of
American History in the University of California, to take efFect
July 1, 1911.
The sum of twenty thousand dollars has been presented to Har-
vard University, with the stipulation that the income shall be ap-
plied to research work in historical archives. It is preferred that
these researches shall be along the line of American history, and
especially that the work shall be carried on in the Spanish archives.
The seventh annual meeting of the American Political Science
Association was held at St Louis, Missouri, from December 27, to
30, 1910. Besides the general sessions on national and international
problems, there were programs and conferences devoted to such sub-
jects as judicial organization and procedure, primary elections,
144
NOTES AND COMMENT 145
mnnieipal government, taxation, and political theory. The Ameri-
can Association for Labor Legislation, and the American Statistical
Society held their meetings at the same time and place and there
were a number of joint sessions.
It has been announced by Mr. Dnnbar Rowland, Director of the
Department of History and Archives of the State of Mississippi^
that the calendar of manuscripts in the French archives rdating*
to the Mississippi Valley is nearly ready for publication. The work
of preparing the calendar has been done by Mr. Waldo G. Leland.
The various historical agencies in the Mississippi Vallqr are acting
in cooperation in supporting this work.
The Manuscripts Division of the Library of Congress has recently
acquired the Madison papers and the Polk papers, including the
Polk diary, which have heretofore been in the possession of the
Chicago Historical Society. La Harpe's valuable journal dealing
with the establishment of the French in Louisiana has also been se-
cured ; and the Pickett papers containing the official correspondence
and records of the Confederate government have been transferred
from the Treasury Department.
NATHAN PHILLIPS DODGB
Mr. Nathan P. Dodge, a member of The State Historical Society
of Iowa, died at his home at Council Blufb on January 12, 19] 1.
Mr. Dodge was bom at South Danvers (now Peabody), Massa-
chusetts, on August 20, 1837. In 1854 he came to Iowa City, where
he joined his brother, Grenville M. Dodge, who was at that time di^
recting the survey for the Rock Island Railroad across Iowa. Dur*
ing the following spring he took up land on the Elkhom River im
Nebraska, but on account of Indian troubles he soon moved to>
Omaha and later to Council Bluffii, where he spent the remainder
of his life, devoting himself to banking and real estate business.
Mr. Dodge took a keen interest in western history, and was-
especiaUy well informed on the local history of Council BIu£b.
He wrote numerous valuable historical articles which were pub-
lished in the local newspapers, the last one being on the subject
VOL. iz — ^10
146 IOWA JOUENAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Woman's Aid and Saniiafy Commissions During ihs CivU War,
He was beloved by all who knew him, and his death will long be
deeply mourned.
JONATHAN p. DOLLIVEB
Johnathan Prentiss Dolliver was bom near Kingwood, Preston
County, Virginia (now West Virginia), on February 6, 1858. He
graduated from the University of West Virginia in 1875, and
taught school for two years at Sandwich, Illinois, at the same time
studying law. In 1878, in company with his brother, he removed
to Fort Dodge, Iowa, and opened a law office. His political career
may be said to have begun with his speech as temporary chairman
of the Bepublic€Ln State Convention in 1884. From that time until
the date of his death his abilities as a public speaker made him a
powerful factor in political campaigns, National as well as State.
In 1888 Mr. Dolliver was elected Congressman from the Tenth
District, which position he held by successive terms until 1900. In
July of that year the death of Senator John H. Gear left a vacancy
in the United States Senate, and Governor Shaw appointed Jonathan
P. Dolliver. In this capacity he was retained, through elections
by the legislature, until the date of his death, which occurred at Fort
Dodge on October 15, 1910.
Senator Dolliver was recognized as a leader in the Senate. His
long experience in Congress, his habit of making a careful study of
all legislative problems, and his eloquent and convincing powers
of debate, gave him an influence which was felt throughout the
Nation.
JOHN A. KASSON
John A. Easson was bom at Charlotte, Vermont, on January 11,
1822, and died in Washington, D. C, May 19, 1910. After gradu-
ating from the University of Vermont in 1842 he studied law and
in 1845 was admitted to the bar in Massachusetts. Soon afterward
he removed to St. Louis, Missouri, where he practiced his profession
until 1857 when he came to Iowa and located at Des Moines. From
the beginning he took a prominent part in politics as a Republican.
NOTES AND COMMENT 147
During his long public career he served as a member of the General
Assembly of Iowa, as a Bepresentative from Iowa in several ses-
sions of Congress, and as Minister to Austria and Minister to Ger-
many. He represented the United States in a number of inter-
national conferences, and performed various other diplomatic ser-
vices for his country. He was a member of several learned and
scientific societies and was prominent as a writer on political sub-
jects.
HABVEfT BEn>
At a regular meeting of the Iowa Soldiers' Boster Board, held in
Des Moines, on the 20th day of December, 1910, the following pre-
amble and resolutions were unanimously adopted:
Whereas: Soon after the organization of this Board, and its
adoption of the plans submitted for the prosecution of the work,
upon the recommendation of Honorable Charles Aldrich, Curator of
the Historical Department of Iowa, Harvey Beid of Maquoketa,
Iowa, was authorized by the Board to prepare that portion of the
work pertaining to the early military history of the State, and,
Whereas: The work thus committed to the hands of Mr. Beid
involves much careful and painstaking research, and has been
prosecuted to successful completion by him, notwithstanding he was
in such feeble health during a considerable portion of the time he
was engaged upon it, as might well have discouraged one possessed
of less fortitude and courage, and.
Whereas : Only a few weeks after completing and delivering his
manuscript into the hands of Adjutant General Logan, Mr. Beid was
stricken by the hand of death, therefore, be it
Besolved: That in the death of Harvey Beid, we recognize the
passing from earth of another of the brave defenders of the Bepub-
lic, who went forth in the vigor of his young manhood, to serve his
country in her hour of greatest need.
Besolved : That we hereby express our high appreciation of the
faithful and capable manner in which he performed his part of the
great work of preserving the history and records of Iowa Soldiers.
In his death the State has lost one of its most intelligent and useful
148 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTOET AND POLITICS
oitifens. To his bereaved widow and f amily, we extend our sincere
oondolence.
Tlie Secretary is hereby instmeted to spread the foregoing reao-
Intions npon the minutes of this meeting, and to transmit a copy
of the same to Mrs. Harvey Beid, to the Superintendent of the
State Historical Society, and to the Curator of the Historical De-
partment of Iowa.
f
j
CONTRIBUTORS
Clifford Powell, Member of The State Historical Society
of Iowa. Won the Colonial Dames Prize for the best essay on a
subject in Iowa History in 1909. Bom at Elliott, Iowa, on Decem-
ber 14, 1887. Graduated from the Bed Oak High School in 1906.
Graduated from the State University of Iowa in 1910.
John Howabd Stibbs was bom at Wooster, Wayne
County, Ohio, March 1, 1840. In 1861 he was in business for him-
self at Cedar Bapids, Linn County, Iowa. The news of the firing
on Sumter was received there on Sunday morning following the
bombardment, and within thirty minutes after the receipt of this
newB, Mr. Stibbs was parading the street, carrying a banner, and
calling for recruits to save the Union. During the week following
he organized a company, which became Company K, First Iowa
Infantry Volunteers. He 'declined a commission in the Company,
and was made Orderly Sergeant. On May 9, 1861, he was mustered
into the United States Service, and was honorably discharged by
reason of the expiration of his term of service on August 20, 1861.
His service was with General Lyon in Missouri, and he participated
with him in the Battle of Wilson Creek, Missouri, on August 10,
1861. For his service on that day he received honorable mention.
On his return to his home, Mr. Stibbs was authorized to recruit
a company for the three years service. He organized Company D,
Twelfth Iowa Infantry Volunteers, and was mustered into the
United States Service as its Captain on October 26, 1861. The regi-
ment was sent to St. Louis, Missouri ; thence to join General Grant's
forces at Paducah, Kentucky; participated in the capture of Forts
Henry and Donelson ; and at Pittsburg Landing he fought in the
^* Hornets' Nest" as a member of Tuttle's Brigade of (General Wm.
H. L. Wallace's Division. At 5:30 P. M. on Sunday, April 6th, the
remnant of the regiment remaining on the field was captured, and
149
150 IOWA JOUBNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Mr. Stibbs was held a prisoner for more than six months. He was
paroled at Richmond, Virginia, on October 13, 1862, and exchanged
five weeks later. When the regiment was reorganized in the win-
ter of 1862-1863, a very large majority of the line officers joined in
a petition for his promotion to Major, and he was commissioned as
such on March 23, 1863, and was mustered July 30, 1863. In
April, 1863, his regiment joined General Grant's army at Duckport,
Louisiana, and participated in the Vicksburg Campaign and subse-
quent movements of the Army in that vicinity.
On August 5, 1863, Mr. Stibbs was commissioned Lieutenant
Colonel, and mustered as such on September 5, 1863; and from
that time until January, 1865, he was almost continually in com-
mand of the regiment.
In November, 1863, Colonel Stibbs 's regiment was sent up the
river to Memphis, and thence to Chewalla, Tennessee, where it re-
mained until the last of January, 1864. While there a very large
majority of the regiment reenlisted as veterans.
In February, 1864, he went with General Sherman back to Vicks-
burg, and in March following was sent home on veteran furlough.
He returned to duty at Memphis, Tennessee, on May 2, 1864, and
two weeks later was sent with six companies to establish a post at
the mouth of the White River, Arkansas, where he remained four
weeks. When (Jeneral A. J. Smith returned from the Red River
Expedition on June 10, 1864, Colonel Stibbs 's regiment was as-
signed to its old place in the Third Brigade, First Division, 16th A.
C, and was with him in all the subsequent movements of his com-
mand. At Tupelo, Mississippi, on July 14, 1864, Colonel Stibbs's
regiment bore the brunt of the fight. On December 1, 1864, at
Nashville, Tennessee, all commissioned officers of his regiment,
except five, were mustered out, and when he went into the battle
there two weeks later, his companies were all commanded by
non-commissioned officers. However, the work of his men proved so
satisfactory that he was brevetted Colonel United States Volunteers,
to rank from March 13, 1865. His commission dated April 5, 1865,
and reads ''for distinguished gallantry in the battles before Nash-
ville, Tenn."
CONTRIBUTORS 151
On February 11, 1865, he was commissioned Colonel of his regi-
ment, but as it had fallen below the minimum, he could not be
mustered until November 11, 1865. The War Department, in re-
sponse to a special request of the Qovemor of Iowa, issued special
order No. 594, ordering his muster as Colonel to date September
11, 1865.
While at Eastport, Mississippi, early in January, 1865, General
Stibbs was ordered to Iowa and thence to Washington, D. C, on
official business, and while in Washington was assigned to special
duty and retained there until his final muster out, April 30, 1866,
on which day his commission as Brevet Brigadier General was issued,
to take effect from March 13, 1865, for "meritorious services during
the war".
From the middle of April, 1861, to the first of May, 1866, his en-
tire time was devoted to the service, either in service or in raising
and organizing companies. He was actually in the service for a
period of four years, nine months, and fifteen days.
1
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THE IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
APRIL NINETEEN HUNDRED ELEVEN
VOLUME NINE NUMBER TWO
VOL. IX — ^11
THE ESTABLISHMENT AND ORGANIZATION OF
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY
By an act of the Legislative Assembly of the original
Territory of Wisconsin, approved December 21, 1837, John-
son County was established;^ but provision for the organ-
ization of the government of this county was not made until
1838. In the meantime it was temporarily ** attached to
and considered in all respects a part of Cedar County. ''^
By the act of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of
Iowa, approved June 22, 1838, provision was made for the
organization of the county * * from and after the fourth day
of July". This act also provided for the holding of two
terms of the district court annually; and the town of Na-
poleon was designated as the first seat of justice.*
According to the provisions of the act of December 21,
1837, Johnson County included twenty congressional town-
ships. This, however, was but a temporary arrangement,
since by the act (of January ^5, 1839) of the Legislative
Assembly of the Territory of Iowa, locating the boundaries
of the County of Washington, three townships were taken
from the southern tier of Johnson County and added to
Washington County. (See Map I.)* Again, in 1845 the
Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Iowa detached
that portion of township seventy-seven, north, range six
west, which lies east of the Iowa River, from Washington
1 Laws of tlie Territory of Wisconsin, 1837, p. 135.
2 Laws of the Territory of Wisconsin, 1837, p. 136.
« Laws of the Territory of Wisconsin, 1838, p. 543. The town of Napoleon
has long been extinct.
4 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1838, p. 100.
155
156 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
County and added it to Johnson County, thus making the
Iowa River the western boundary of that portion of the
county. (See Map 11.)*
Previous to the formation of civil townships the county
was divided into precincts for election purposes. Al-
though few in number these precincts may be regarded as
the historical precursors of the civil townships. At first
it appears that the entire county was divided into two
electoral precincts — a division that was authorized by the
County Commissioners on March 6, 1840. The southern
part of the county was designated as precinct number one
and the northern part as precinct number two. The line
separating these two precincts was not defined at this
meeting of the Board, although the places of election are
named as Iowa City and the house of Warren Stiles re-
spectively.® That no division line was named at the March
session appears to have been an oversight on the part of
the Commissioners, for it appears that they established the
line at the regular session in the following July. As de-
fined on July 8, 1840, the line of division commenced at the
northeast comer of section twenty-four, township eighty
north, range five west, and followed the line between sec-
tions thirteen and twenty-four westward to the Iowa River,
and from this point up the river to the county line.^ (See
Map IIL)
On April 8, 1841, that part of the county lying west of
the Iowa River was declared to constitute **an electoral
precinct and to be known as precinct number three'*; and
the elections in this precinct were to be held at the house
of John Hawkins.® (See Map IV.) At this same session,
BLati;^ of the Territory of Iowa, 1845, p. 66.
^Becords of the County Commissioners, Book I, p. 15.
T Becords of the County Commissioners, Book I, pp. 24, 25.
^Becords of the County Commissioners, Book I, p. 77.
i
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 157
the place of elections in the second precinct was changed
from the house of Warren Stiles to that of Abner Arro-
smith.
A further division of the county was made in 1842, at
the January session of the Commissioners, by dividing the
third precinct by a line beginning on the Iowa River and
running due west between sections twenty-two and twenty-
seven, township seventy-nine north. All the territory
south of this line was designated precinct number four,
and the place of holding elections was located at the house
of Jacob Fry. At the same session of the Board precinct
number five was created by dividing the second precinct
by a line running north and south one mile east of the
township line dividing ranges six and seven. The house of
M. P. McAllister was named by the Commissioners as the
polling place.® (See Map V.) One finds on the records
for this session a change in the place of election in the
second precinct from the house of Hamilton H. Kerr to the
town of Solon; but no mention is made of the time when
the house of Abner Arrosmith was abandoned, as the place
for elections, for the house of Kerr.
Proper names were assigned to some of these precincts
in 1843, since election judges are named by the Commis-
sioners for Iowa City precinct, for Big Grove precinct, and
for Monroe precinct. The other two were known by num-
bers until July 3, 1844, when according to the records all
of the five are referred to by names instead of numbers.
Thus precinct number one was called Iowa City; precinct
number two. Big Grove; precinct number three. Clear
Creek; precinct number four. Old Man's Creek; and pre-
cinct number five, Monroe.^ ^
No provision was made for the estabUshment of civil
^Eecords of the County Commissioners, Book I, p. 153.
10 Becords of the County Commissioners, Book II, pp. 24, 25, 85, 111.
158 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
townships in Johnson County until petitions came before
the Board of County Commissioners at the January session
in the year 1844. Qn this occasion three separate petitions
for the establishment of townships west of the Iowa River
were presented for their consideration. Owing to the eon-
fusion of overlapping boundaries, as requested in the pe-
titions, no action was taken on the subject by the Conmiis-
sioners at this session.^* In April of the same year (1844)
another petition came up **from sundry citizens '* of Clear
Creek voting precinct, requesting the estabUshment of a
civil township in that vicinity. The record breaks off sud-
denly, which seems to indicate a want of information or a
postponement of consideration for the session. The words
** commencing at the southeast comer of township eighty*',
being all that is found in this connection, suggests that the
civil township under consideration was number eighty
north, range seven west.^
It was not until April, 1845, that any civil township was
established in Johnson County. Then the Commissioners
took the initiative, so far as can be learned, and decided
upon the name of **Big Grove" for township eighty-one
north, range six west. The first election for the local of-
ficers of the township was held at the Big Grove school
house on the first Monday in April, 1846 -^ which was the
regular election day for township oflScers throughout the
11 Becords of the County Commissumers, Book II, p. 70.
"On the Ist and 2nd days of this session three Petitions were presented
to this Board for the Organization of Townships of a portion of this Countj
west of the Iowa Biver, and the Board having duly considered sd Petitions,
find that the bounds as proposed, interfere with each other, and therefore — It
is considered that no action shall be had on either of said petitions at this
Term".
^2 Becords of the County Commissioners , Book H, p. 81.
On the petition of sundry citizens of Clear Creek Precinct for the organiza-
tion of a township with the following bounds: "Commencing at the South-
East Comer of Township 80". •
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 159
Territory.^ ^ (See Map VI.) Moreover, early in the year
1846 there appears to have been a general demand for the
establishment of civil townships throughout the county,
which, with but a single exception, resulted in the prelimi-
nary definition of boundaries for all the territory of the
county in the form of civil townships.
The first petition in 1846 came from the settlers in town-
ship eighty-one north, range five west; and it will be no-
ticed that this territory lies just east of Big Grove town-
ship which was established in the fall of 1845. The petition
was heard and favorably considered by the Commissioners.
The name ** Cedar** was given to the new township; and
the first election was called at the house of Philo Haynes.
(See Map VII.) No date being mentioned, one must con-
clude that the election was held on the same day as that of
the other townships, namely, the first Monday in April,
1846.^*
Moreover, it appears that the first townships established
coincided with the congressional lines according to the pe-
titions of the citizens who occupied the territory. This was
also true of Iowa City township, for the estabUshment of
which no petition was presented from the inhabitants. In
this instance the record of the Commissioners reads that
* township seventy-nine north, range six west, shall be
known as Iowa City township, and the first election shall
be held at the court house in Iowa City".** (See Map
vn.)
At an extra session of the Board of Commissioners which
was held in February, 1846, the chief business was that of
i^Becords of the County Commissioners, Book 11, p. 159; Laws of the
Territory of Iowa, 1845, p. 27.
14 Records of the County Commissioners, Book II, p. 207.
IB Records of the County Commissioners, Book II, pp. 207, 217.
The court house in which this election was held stood on the southeast
eomer at the intersection of Clinton and Harrison streets.
160 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
establishing and naming civil townships. At this time it
was cnstomary for the people of a certain neighborhood to
fix upon the boundaries, which were then usually specified
in the petition asking for the establishment of the town-
ship. The Commissioners as a rule followed the lines as
described in the petition. This method as a matter of fact
frequently resulted in the division of congressional town-
ships in the formation of civil townships, which led to
many readjustments in township boundaries in the subse-
quent history of the county. Ll of the first elections in
the townships established at this extra session of the Board
took place on the first Monday in April, 1846.
According to the records Scott township was to include
aU the territory of congressional township seventy-nine
north, range five west. This is definite and simple, the
thirty-six square miles needing no other description. (See
Map Vn.) The first election was to be held at the school
house near the home of Matthew Tenicke,
Pleasant Valley township was to be composed of all that
part of Johnson County south of township seventy-nine
north, ranges five and six west, lying east of the Iowa
River. It included congressional townships seventy-seven
and seventy-eight north, range five west, and the fractions
of the same townships in range six, lying east of the Iowa
River. (See Map. VIE.) The first election was to be held
at the house of Robert Walker.^ •
Monroe township is described as formed from the part of
Johnson County which lies in congressional townships
numbered eighty-one north in ranges seven and eight west,
and north of the Iowa River. (See Map VII.) Here the
first election was to be held at the home of William Du-
pont.^^
i^Beoards of the County Commissioners, Book IT, p. 217.
ir Becords of the County Commissioners, Book II, p. 218.
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 161
Perm township requires a more detailed description
which, as found in the records, reads : ^ ^ Commencing at the
middle of the main Channel of the Iowa River, where the
north line of township number seventy-nine range six
crosses the same, then west along this township line to the
northwest comer of the same township, then north on the
range line two miles, then west one mile, then north one
mile, then west to the west line of township eighty north,
range seven west, then on the range line to the Iowa River,
and then with the river to the place of beginning/* (See
Map Vn.) The first election in this township was to be
held at the school house near Chapman's.^®
In the description of Penn township no mention is made
•of the change in the boundaries of Big Grove township as
established in 1845. As a matter of fact the portion of
township eighty-one north, range six west, lying south of
ihe Iowa River now became a part of Penn township.
(Compare Maps VI and VIE.) This change made little
.<iifference, however, in the affairs of the township of Big
Grove, since elections had not yet been held in any of the
townships.
One of the larger divisions of the county made at this
time for civil purposes was the township of Clear Creek,
which was composed of fractions of several congressional
townships. Commencing at the northwest comer of con-
gressional township seventy-nine north, range six west, the
boundary line of this civil township follows the southern
and western boundary of Penn township until it reaches the
north-west comer of township eighty north, range seven
west ; then it runs west on the township line until the west
line of the county is reached; then down the county line
until it reaches the middle of township seventy-nine, range
eight west; then east along this line to the west line of
^9 Becorda of the County Commissioners, Book 11, p. 218.
162 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
township seventy-nine, range six west; then north to the
place of beginning. (See Map VII.) The first election
was called at the honse of Bryan Dennis, who was a citizen
of the district described.
It is noticeable that the boundaries of Clear Creek town-
ship leave the fractional part of township eighty-one, range
eight west, lying south of the Iowa River, without any or-
ganization, since it was left out of Monroe at the time of
its organization and is not now included in Clear Creek. ^^
(See Map VIL)
Newport township in its original form included all of
congressional township eighty north, range five west, and
all of the same township in range six, lying east of the
Iowa River. (See Map VEL) It will be remembered that
Penn township was, in part, composed of the remainder of
congressional township eighty north, range six west, which
lay west of the river. The first election was called at the
house of Cornelius Lancaster.
Liberty township was at first composed of a part of that
portion of the county which Ues along the southern bound-
ary of the county and may be best described in the lan-
guage of the order by which it was established. It in-
cludes all that part of Johnson County ** Commencing at
the south line of the County on the west bank of the Iowa
River, then up the river to the south line of township sev-
enty-nine, range six west, then west to the south west comer
of said township, then north on the range line to the center
of the west line of the same township, then west to the cen-
ter of township seventy-nine, range seven west, then south
to the county line; then east to the place of beginning''.
(See Map VII.) In this township the first election was
ordered to be held at the house of John Smith.^^
^^Becords of the County Commissioners^ Book II, p. 219.
ioBecords of the County Commissioners, Book II, p. 219.
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 163
The last of the orders of the Commissioners in fixing the
preliminary boundary lines for civil townships in the year
of 1846 relates to the township of Washington, which lies
in the southwest comer of the county. In the beginning
this township included more than twice its present area.
The lines limiting it were the western boundary of the
township of Liberty, commencing in the middle of the south
line of township seventy-eight, range seven west, then run-
ning north to the middle of township seventy-nine, range
seven west, then west to the county line, then south to the
comer of the county, and finally east to the place of begin-
ning. (See Map VII.) The first election was to occur at
the home of William Fry.^^
This completes the original division of the territory of
Johnson County into civil townships — with the exception
of the small fraction of township eighty-one north, range
eight west, lying south of the Iowa Eiver. This first dis-
tricting of the county into civil districts was accomplished
by the Board in 1845 and 1846 and is fully illustrated by
Maps VI and VH.
In April, 1847, a petition was presented from seventeen
citizens of Scott township asking to have that township
attached to Iowa City township for civil purposes. The
Commissioners took the petition under consideration and
finally agreed to place it on file until their next session,
which would occur in July.^^ Careful examination of the
records of the July meeting reveals no record of any fur-
ther action on the subject. Not, indeed, until the October
session of the Board was any change made in the bound-
aries of this township, Then the boundaries were altered
so that sections thirty-four, thirty-five, and thirty-six and
the south half of sections twenty-seven, twenty-six, and
21 Becorda of the County Commissioners, Book II, p. 220.
22Becords of the County Commissioners, Book 11, p. 280.
164 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
twenty-five of township eighty north, range five west, were
attached to Scott township **for all civil and judicial pur-
poses'\ It will be observed that these sections and frac-
tions of sections were taken from Newport township, thus
altering the boundaries of that township as described in
1846. (See Map VHL)
During this same October, 1847, session of the Conmiis-
sioners, and without petition or suggestion so far as the
records show, the lines of other civil townships were
changed, indicating the uncertainty of what was thought
best to be done with the scattered settlements of the time.
Washington township was enlarged by taking the north
half of congressional township seventy-nine, range eight
west, from Clear Creek and giving it to Washington. This
left Clear Creek in a very unsatisfactory shape for a civil
township, as will be observed by a study of Map VlU.^
Moreover, it is interesting to notice the next move of the
citizens of township seventy-nine north, range seven west,
which, however, did not occur until five years had passed,
or until 1852.
At the August, 1852, session the County Court was pe-
titioned to make a new township out of congressional town-
ship seventy-nine north, range seven west. County Com-
missioners were no longer sitting in judgment on these pe-
titions, since by this time they had been succeeded in au-
thority by the County Judge. The petition in question
came from citizens of three civil townships as then estab-
lished, namely. Clear Creek, Washington, and Liberty.
They declared in their petition that they were put to great
inconvenience in attending elections and public meetings
in the townships as then established, pointing out that the
new arrangement would be much better for all concerned.
Judge Lee heard the request, which was signed by John
^^Becords of the County Commissioners, Book II, p. 297.
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 165
D. Abel, Edward Tudor, and thirty-three other citizens.
After due consideration it was ordered by the Judge that
the boundaries of the new township, called Union, be fixed
as * Sprayed for*', which meant that it would include the
whole of congressional township seventy-nine north, range
seven west. Thus Union township was made up of terri-
tory taken from three civil townships previously organized*
(See Map IX.) The first election was to be held at the
house of James Seahom on the first Monday in April,
1853.2*
In March, 1854, Ebenezer Bivins, P. P. Cardwell, William
A. Howard, and thirty-seven others petitioned the County
Judge to divide Monroe township on the range line between
ranges seven and eight so that it would retain all of town-
ship eighty-one north, range eight west, lying north of the
Iowa River; while a new township, to be called Jefferson^
was to be established including the remainder of Monroe
as first established and organized, or all of township eighty-
one north, range seven west, lying north of the Iowa Biver^
(See Map X.) The request was granted; and the first
election was ordered to be held as usual on the regular day
for the election of officers of civil townships, at the house
of Walter F. Lloyd."
Union township was also modified at this time, although
one might suppose its boundaries were as near perfect as.
they could be made. A German citizen, Gotleb Bossier
(probably Gottlieb Bossier), presented his individual peti-
tion for a change that is rather peculiar. He wished to
have sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 of town-
ship seventy-eight north, range seven west, except the
south-west one-fourth of section seven, added to Union
township. The Judge appears to have taken a favorable
2* Eecords of the County Judge, Book III, p. 163.
2^Becord8 of the County Judge, Book III, p. 349.
166 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
view of this request — although one can not see why the
exception should be made in the case of section seven. Ac-
cordingly, the changes were ordered as requested and the
boundaries re-formed by giving detailed outlines. No sys-
tematic order of beginning is observed in the description,
but* the aim seems to have been to find a point that could
be located without error. In this case the description of
the boundary line begins at the northeast comer of town-
ship seventy-nine north, range seven west, runs south on
the range line to the southeast comer of section twelve,
township seventy-eight north, range seven west, then west
on the section line to the southwest comer of the southeast
quarter of section seven of the last-mentioned township,
then north to the center of section seven, then west to the
west line of the congressional township, then north on the
range line to the northwest comer of township seventy-
nine north, range seven west, and then east to the place of
beginning.^® (See Map X.)
The large territory included in Clear Creek township as
originally estabUshed was gradually reduced by the forma-
tion of other townships. Union had been taken largely
from it; and now in 1856 a petition comes for a second
township to be formed from congressional township eighty
north, range eight west, and the fractional part of township
eighty-one, range eight, lying south of the Iowa River.
(See Map XI.) The petition was signed by W. H. Cotter,
Luther Doty, Hiram B. McMicken, and forty-one others.
The township name selected by the petitioners was ** Ox-
ford ".^^ This was ten years after the establishment of
Monroe township, the fractional part of the congressional
township of which Monroe was a part not having been pro-
vided for until this time. (See Map VII.) The first elec-
^pBecords of the County Judge, Book III, p. 350.
27Becord8 of the County Judge, Book HI, pp. 589, 590.
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 167
tion for Oxford township was ordered to be held at the
house of John L. Hartwell.
Graham township dates its establishment from 1857 when
Judge Lee described the boundaries in these words : * * Com-
mencing at the southeast comer of township eighty north,
range five west, north on the county line to the northfeast
comer of the same township, west to the northwest comer
of section five, south on the section line to the southwest
comer of section thirty-two, then east to the place of be-
ginning/^ (See Map XII.) This was in fact a division of
Newport township as established in 1846. The first election
was ordered to be held at the house of Miles K. Lewis.^®
The first official mention of Fremont township is in the
returns of an election on the question of issuing bonds for
the construction of a railroad. This occurred in April,
1857. For services at this election in Fremont township
Daniel S. Ball was allowed one dollar and fifty cents.^®
As organized in 1846 Pleasant Valley included the territory
now in Fremont. In 1870, the township of Lincoln did not
embrace that portion of the county which is today included
in Fremont township. The conclusion follows then, from
other data mentioned above, that the township was organ-
ized in the eariy part of 1857. (See Map XII.) The coun-
ty records, however, throw no light on this subject beyond
the item mentioned, and inquiry fails to produce any fur-
ther information.
The establishment of Oxford township left Clear Creek
township with a small territory. This seems to have led
several citizens to petition for a change in boundaries by
which some of the territory of Union would be added to
Clear Creek. According to the changes ordered by Judge
Lee in July, 1857, the boundaries of Clear Creek were
2^ Records of the County Judge, Book IV, p. 71.
^9 Records of the County Judge, Book IV, p. 117.
168 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
brought to their present description on the sonth. The
northern line was not changed. The sonth boundary be-
gan at the southeast comer of section one, township sev-
enty-nine north, range seven west, and f oUowed the section
line west to the range line. This change took six sections,
from Union township.'^ (See Map XII.)
Hardin township was very simple in its estabUshment
and organization. It appears that William Hardin and
others presented a petition to Judge McCleary early in
1858 for a change in the boundaries of the township called
Washington by giving a separate organization to congres-
sional township seventy-nine north, range eight west, which
was to be called ** Hardin '\«i (See Map XIH.) But the
civil township thus erected on the basis of congressional
township seventy-nine did not remain long with these
boundaries as wUl be seen in another petition. The first
election in Hardin township was held at the school house
in the village of Windham, which was located on section
thirty-four.
On the petition of George T. Davis and others Judge
McCleary ordered another civil township to be formed out
of congressional township seventy-eight north, range seven
west. This was done in the year 1858. Before this time
congressional township seventy-eight was included in the
civil townships of Liberty and Washington — the west
half being in Washington and the east half in Liberty.
This, indeed, had been its situation from 1846 to 1858.
(See Map VH.)
The change made in the lines of Union township in 1852,
by which the two tiers of sections on the northern boundary
of township seventy-eight north, range seven west, except-
ing one quarter section, were added to Union (See Map X.),
so Becords of the County Judge, Book IV, p. 147.
ziBecords of the County Judge, Book IV, p. 244.
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 169
was now (in 1858) restored, making the new township of
Sharon a fnll congressional township as it remains at the
present time.'* (See Map X 1 1 L)
A slight modification of the boundaries of three town-
ships was made by Judge McCleary in 1858 on petition of
citizens of the different communities. A. H. Humphreys
presented the request as one of the number. The change
asked for as given in the records reads : * * Commencing at
the south-east comer of township seventy-nine, range eight,
then west three-fourths of one mile, then north three miles,
east three-fourths of one mile, then south to the place of
beginning*'. The territory thus described was to be added
to Union township. Again, the north half of the north half
of section one, township seventy-eight north, range eight
west, was also to be added to Union. This petition, more-
over, came from citizens of three different civil townships.
Against this proposed change A. D. Packard and others
filed a remonstrance protesting against the inclusion of the
territory taken from Hardin township. The matter was
continued from the session of the County Court in which
it was presented until the January session in 1859 by agree-
ment of the parties in the case.'* At the meeting of the
Court in January no mention is made of the matter, and it
is probable that the remonstrance was withdrawn. At any
rate the petition was granted and the additional territory
given to Union township, It will be noticed that this took
a fourth of one section from Washington township, a con-
dition which, if records are complete, is found to exist at
the present day. (See Map Xm.)
In the meantime, that is between the offering of the pe-
tition last above mentioned and its determination, a change
i^Becords of the County Judge, Book IV, p. 256.
33 Records of the County Judge, Book IV, pp. 403, 420. See Plat Book and
Tax Liist of Union Township for 1910, Tax List, pp. 16, 3, 12, 22.
VOL. IX — ^12
170 IOWA JOUBNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
was made in the boundaries of Iowa City and Newport
townships by the taking that part of sections thirty-three
and thirty-four in township eighty north, range six west,
which lies east of the Iowa River from Newport and placing
it under the jurisdiction of Iowa City township. This came
about through the petition of Sylvanus Johnson and other
citizens of these sections.** (See Map XITE.)
The official act of the County Judge in reference to the
establishment of Madison township can not be found, since
the county records for 1860 are wanting. There is a record
furnished by the clerk of that township, William Shrimp,
who filled that office some years ago, probably about 1880.
He gives the date of establishment as 1860. George Mc-
Cleary was judge at that time and it is for the last year of
his term that the record is not available. But it is not
difficult, however, to surmise the description of the portion
of Penn township (See Map VII.) which was to be included
in the new township. It will be remembered that in 1846
the Iowa River formed the boundary of Penn township for
many miles on its northern border. The new plan reduced
the size of the latter materially, as will be seen by compar-
ing the two Maps VII and XIV. Details of the lines which
describe Madison are as follows: Commencing at the
southeast comer of section fourteen, township eighty north,
range seven west, the boundary line follows the section line
north until it intersects the Iowa River. From this point
it follows the river until the range line between ranges
seven and eight west is crossed ; then it follows this range
line until the southwest corner of section eighteen, town-
ship eighty north, range seven west, is reached; and from
this point it proceeds eastward to the place of beginning.
Thus, Madison township includes the fractional parts of
two congressional townships. If a petition was presented
9*Becord8 of the County Judge, Book IV, p. 419.
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 171
at the time, which can not now be determined, it contained
probably the suggestion of the boundaries described if not
the exact wording thereof. Furthermore, the township
may have been named by the citizens in their petition.'*^
(See Map XIV.) The first election of officers was to be
held at the log school house near Swan Lake.
After 1860 the changes in township boundaries become
less frequent and are of a minor nature. The large di-
visions had been practically agreed upon. Moreover, it is
noticeable that in all the modifications that have thus far
occurred no objection was raised on the part of the county
authorities to the arrangements proposed by the petition-
ers. At least the records indicate no such opposition.
Only one remonstrance is recorded in any case and that
came from a body of citizens.
The Board of Supervisors came into office and began
their duties in January, 1861. Their first official act with
reference to township organization was to divide Pleasant
Valley township by a line commencing at the northern
boundary of township seventy-eight north, range five west,
on the half section line of section five and following this
half section line to the south line of the township named,
dividing sections five, eight, seventeen, twenty, twenty-
nine, and thirty-two. The territory west of this line re-
tained the name of Pleasant Valley while that east of the
line was called Lincoln township. The question of election
this time was referred to the committee of the Board on
township organization. It appears from the minutes that
the movement resulting in this division was begun by
Supervisor Dilatush, and the date of the order was June
8, 1870.
Later in the same month it was ordered by the Board that
the officers of Pleasant Valley should exercise the same
ss Johnson County History, 1883, p. 732.
172 IOWA JOUENAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
authority over Lincoln township that they did over their
own township until an election should be held, the same as
if no division had occurred.'* The cause of the delay in
holding the election in Lincoln township was the opposition
of certain citizens to the change. They presented petitions
of protest, and the question was not finally determined
until April, 1871, when the parties appeared before the
Board of Supervisors to argue the case. After the argu-
ments were heard the Supervisors took some time for con-
sideration.'^ Later at the same session it was decided, by
a vote of two to one in committee, to change the line of di-
vision as described on the half section line to the section
line between sections four and five and then to the south
boundary. This, it will be seen, moved the line of division
one half mile to the east. (See Map XV.) The first com-
mittee on this matter were S. H. Hemsted, Christopher
Fuhrmeister, and Wm. T. Buck. The second committee in-
cluded Supervisors Samuel Spurrier, M. J. Morsman, and
L. R. Wolf.
In 1873 citizens of Iowa City township asked to have an
organization separate from that of the city so far as town-
ship government was concerned, and they offered a petition
in support of this request. After investigation a special
committee of the Board of Supervisors reported on the
matter in January, 1873. According to their report the
census of 1869 gave the population of Iowa City as ex-
ceeding four thousand, or 6,548. The signers of the peti-
tion living outside of the city, according to the poll books
which were examined, constituted the required number, of
a majority. The committee reported that all the conditions
of the law had been complied with. The official act estab-
lishing the township of Lucas followed this report. AJl the
9^ Minutes of the County Supervisors, Book II, pp. 485, 501, 523, 524.
s7 Minutes of the County Supervisors, Book III, p. 35.
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 173
territory outside of the corporate limits of Iowa City was
to form one township to be called Lucas, while the city area
was to retain the name of Iowa City township. (See Map
XV.) Polling places for the coming general election were
fixed at the court house for the people of Iowa City town-
ship and the fair grounds for the people of Lucas town-
ship.88 (See Map XV.)
The first change in the boundaries of Iowa City town-
ship, after the formation of Lucas from the territory out-
side of the corporation, was due to the changes in school
districts. Some discussion arose between the independent
district of Iowa City and the school township of Lucas, and
as a result it became desirable to rearrange the lines of
Iowa City township. The changes then (April 7, 1879)
included the smaU portion of territory added to the inde-
pendent district. It began on the left bank of the Iowa
River at the southwest comer of lot three as surveyed by
ihe United States government, in section fifteen. From
this point the boundary extended eastward to the southeast
•comer of the northwest quarter of the southwest quarter of
section fourteen ; then north to the northeast comer of the
west one-half of the southwest quarter of section two ; then
west to the northwest comer of the east half of the south-
east quarter of section three; and then south to the north
line of section ten. This, together with the original terri-
tory of Iowa City township, became the new township of
Iowa City.3« (See Map XV.)
^9 Minutes of the County Supervisors, Book III, pp. 158, 159. Also Sec-
tion three. Chapter Fifty-two, Acts of the Fourteenth General Assembly, 1872,
j>. 60.
Returns of assessor for the year 1872 showed that there were 472 legal
voters outside the city corporation. Of these 284 signed the petition, that is,
a majority as required by the law. Samuel Spurrier was the special committee
appointed by the Board of Supervisors to investigate and report.
99 Minutes of the County Supervisors, Book IV, p. 31. See Lucas township
School Board Minutes, August 26, 1876, and April 13, 1878. See township
plats as compared with original surveys by F. H. Lee.
174 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Originally the boundaries of Lucas township correspond-
ed to the congressional township of Iowa City as estab-
lished in 1846 — if the change in the line of West Lucas can
be accounted for. Somewhere between the years 1858 and
1870 the west three-fourths of sections nineteen, thirty, and
thirty-one of what was Iowa City township, or congression-
al township seventy-nine north, range six west, was added
to Union township; but no record can be found to show
when or how this change was made. It happens that the
portion of the township mentioned is the exact counterpart
of that on the west line of Union which was added by peti-
tion in 1858. It may have been added then as a matter of
accommodation ; but this is merely an inference, there bein^
no specific authority in the records for such a conclusion.
The natural division of Lucas township into two parts by
the river led to the establishment of two election precincts
on June 2, 1874 ; and in the returns of elections the divisions
came to be called West Lucas and East Lucas without the
term **precincf thereto attached. Hence it was quite
natural to speak or write of West Lucas township ; and as
a matter of fact in the minutes of the County Board of
Supervisors this term does appear before its use is war-
ranted by any authority other than custom.*^ The same
term is again used in the minutes for 1891 — probably after
a petition was offered but before any authority was given
for such use.^^ The actual division into East Lucas and
West Lucas was ordered on April 8, 1891. Since a change
in the boundaries of these townships is given below in full
it is not necessary to repeat here the outside boundaries of
the townships. The only change that took place since the
establishment of the first boundaries of Iowa City town-
*o Minutes of the County Supervisors, Book IV, p. 323.
«i Minutes of the County Supervisors, Book V, pp. 476, 481.
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 175
ship has been mentioned above in connection with the Union
township boundary.
The last change in boundaries, the description of which
contains the outlines of East Lucas and West Lucas and
the boundaries of Iowa City townships, was as recent as
September, 1910. The minutes of the Board of Supervis-
ors relative to these boundaries are exact and, indeed, were
drafted to correspond with the drawing prepared by the
city officers. To describe West Lucas it is necessary to fol-
low the lines very closely to make the change clear either
in language or on the map. Commencing at the township
line between congressional townships seventy-eight and
aeventy-nine north, range six west, on the west bank of the
Iowa River, the boundary follows this side of the river
to the limits of Iowa City; then it runs west to the south-
west comer of the northwest quarter of the southeast quar-
ter of section sixteen, township seventy-nine; then it pro-
ceeds north along the east line of the west half of sections
sixteen and nine to the north side of the State Boad to New-
ton and follows the north side of this road to the west line
of section nine ; thence it runs north to the west bank of the
river ; then follows the river to the northeast until the north
line of section nine is reached ; then runs east to the north-
west comer of section ten; and thence north to the west
bank of the river. At this point there is a confusing prob-
lem that compels one to retrace his steps, following the
west bank of the river in a southwesterly and finally north-
erly direction around the bend until the north line of sec-
tion four, township seventy-nine north, range six west, is
reached. The description from this point is the same as
for West Lucas township in 1891, namely; west from the
river on the township line between townships seventy-nine
and eighty to the range line between ranges six and seven ;
then south to the southwest comer of section eighteen ; then
176 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
east to the northeast comer of the northwest quarter of the
northeast quarter of section nineteen; then south on the
east line of the west half of the east half of sections nine-
teen, thirty, and thirty-one to the township line; and then
east to the starting point on the river. (See Map XVL)
The East Lucas boundary conunences at the southeast
comer of section thirty-six and follows the township line
between townships seventy-eight and seventy-nine to the
river. Then it runs north to the city limits and east to the
right of way of the main line of the Bock Island Railroad.
It follows this right of way in a southeasterly direction
until the east line of section fourteen is reached^ then it mns
north along the east line of this section to the northeast
comer of the same, then west along the north line of section
fourteen, to the northwest comer of the northeast quarter
of section fourteen, then north along the east line of the
west half of sections eleven and two of township seventy-
nine north, range six west, to the south side of the Dubuque
road in section two, then in a westerly direction along the
Dubuque road, on the south side to the southeast comer of
the northwest quarter of the northwest quarter of section
two, then west to the southwest comer of the northwest
quarter of the northwest quarter of section three^ then
south on the west line of section three to the east bank of
the river. It follows the east bank of the river until the
north line of section thirty-four, township eighty north,
range six west, is reached, then runs east to the northeast
comer of the same section thirty-four, then south to the
southeast comer of the same section, then east to the north-
east comer of section one in township seventy-nine north,
range six west (the original Iowa City township), and
finally runs south on the range line between ranges five and
six to the place of beginning.^^ (See Map XVI.)
43 Minutes of the County Supervisors, Book VIII, p. 38.
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 177
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TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 179
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AND Weht Lrcts IN 1891 and the Definition
OF ALL Boundaries in 1911
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TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 193
SUMMARY
Big Grove : — Established by order of the Board of Com-
missioners mider date of April 9, 1845; first election held
on first Monday in April, 1846; subsequent changes in
boundaries occur in 1846.
Cedar: — Established by order of the Board'of Commis-
sioners under date of January 7, 1846 ; first election held on
the first Monday in April, 1846 ; no subsequent changes oc-
cur in boundaries.
Clear Creek: — Established by order of the Board of
Commissioners under date of February 10, 1846 ; first elec-
tion held on the first Monday in April, 1846; subsequent
changes in boundaries occur in October, 1847, August, 1852,.
March, 1856, and July, 1857.
Fremont: — Established by order of the Judge of the
County Court in the early part of 1857; mention of the
township made in connection with special election for rail-
road tax held on April 6, 1857 ; no subsequent changes occur
in boundaries.
Graham: — Established by order of the Judge of the
County Court under date of January 5, 1857 ; first election
held on April 6, 1857; no subsequent changes occur in
boundaries.
Hardin: — Established by order of the Judge of the
County Court under date of January 4, 1858 ; first election
held on April 5, 1858; subsequent changes in boundaries-
occur in February, 1858.
Iowa City : — Established by order of the Board of Com-^
missioners under date of February 10, 1846; first election
held on the first Monday in April, 1846 ; subsequent changes
in boundaries occur in January, 1859, January, 1873, and
September, 1910.
Jefferson: — Established by order of the Judge of the
VOL. IX — 14
194 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
County Court under date of March 6, 1854; first election
held on April 3, 1854; no subsequent changes occur in
boundaries.
Liberty: — Established by order of the Board of Com-
missioners under date of February 10, 1846; first election
held on the first Monday in April, 1846 ; subsequent changes
in boundaries occur in March, 1854, and February, 1858.
Lincoln : — Established by order of the Board of Super-
visors under date of June 8, 1870; first election held on
second Tuesday in October, 1870; subsequent changes in
boundaries occur in April, 1871.
Lucas: — Established by order of the Board of Super-
visors under date of January 15, 1873; first election held
on second Tuesday in October, 1873 ; subsequent changes in
boundaries occur in April, 1891.
Lucas, East: — Established by order of the Board of
Supervisors under date of April 8, 1891; mention of the
township made in connection with the general election of
1891; subsequent changes in boundaries occur in Septem-
ber, 1910.
Lucas, West: — Established by order of the Board of
Supervisors under date of April 8, 1891; mention of the
township in connection with the general election of 1891;
subsequent changes in boundaries occur in September, 1910.
Madison : — Established by order of the Board of Super-
visors in 1860; first election probably held on the second
Tuesday in October, 1860 ; no subsequent changes occur in
boundaries.
Monroe : — Established by order of the Board of Com-
missioners under date of February 10, 1846; first election
held on the first Monday in April, 1846 ; subsequent changes
in boundaries occur in March, 1854.
Newport : — Established by order of the Board of Com-
missioners under date of February 10, 1846; first election
TOWNSHIPS IN JOHNSON COUNTY 195
held on the first Monday in April, 1846 ; subsequent changes
in boundaries occur in October, 1847, January, 1857, and
January, 1859.
Oxford: — Established by order of the Judge of the
County Court under date of March 3, 1856; first election
held on April 7, 1856; no subsequent changes occur in
boundaries.
Penn : — Established by order of the Board of Commis-
sioners under date of February 10, 1846 ; first election held
on the first Monday in April, 1846 ; subsequent changes in
boundaries occur in October, 1860.
Pleasant Valley : — Established by order of the Board of
Commissioners under date of February 10, 1846 ; first elec-
tion held on the first Monday in April, 1846; subsequent
changes in boundaries occur in June, 1870.
Scott : — Established by order of the Board of Commis-
sioners under date of February 10, 1846 ; first election held
on the first Monday in April, 1846 ; subsequent changes in
boundaries occur in October, 1847.
Sharon-. — Established by order of the Judge of the
County Court under date of February 1, 1858 ; first election
held on the first Monday in April, 1858; no subsequent
changes occur in boundaries.
Union : — Established by order of the Judge of the Coun-
ty Court under date of August 30, 1852 ; first election held
on April 4, 1853; subsequent changes in boundaries occur
in March, 1854, July, 1857, February, 1858, and some time
between 1858 and 1870.
Washington-. — Established by order of the Board of
Commissioners under date of February 10, 1846 ; first elec-
tion held on the first Monday in April, 1846; subsequent
changes in boundaries occur in October, 1847, August, 1852,
March, 1854, January, 1858, and February, 1858.
CiiABENCE Bay Aubneb
Iowa City, Iowa
^■.
THE ATTITUDE OF CONGEESS TOWAED THE
PIONEEES OF THE WEST
1820-1850
RELATIONS BETWEEN THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS
THE FBONTIE» IN 1820
In the year 1820 a line of outposts extending from the
Lakes to the mouth of the Mississippi marked the military
frontier in the West. At the northern end of this line stood
the island town and fort of Michilimackinack in the straits
of Lakes Michigan and Huron. Thence southward lay Fort
Howard on Green Bay and Prairie du Chien at the mouth
of the Wisconsin Eiver. Two regiments of infantry were
encamped along the Missouri Eiver ; while in the South, the
Sabine Eiver was guarded by a small detachment. Thence
eastward several small posts completed the border defenses
through Louisiana to New Orleans.^
A glance at the census map of 1820 will show that there
existed a gap between this f ar-spreading miUtary line and
the established settlements.^ In the South the pioneers had
advanced beyond the Mississippi into Missouri and Arkan-
sas ; and parts of western Louisiana had long been occupied.
But north and west of the Missouri settlements the Missis-
^Niles' Weekly Begiater, Vol. XIX, p. 251; American State Papers, Military
Affairs, Vol. II, p. 37. For a picture of army life on this frontier, see Colonel
Cooke's Adventures in the Army (Philadelphia, 1859).
2 Map facing page zxii, Eleventh Census, Population, Vol. I, Part 1. See
also Turner 's Colonisation of the West in the American Historicai Review, VoL
XI, p. 307. For a comparison of the "farmer's frontier" and the military
frontier, see Turner's Significance of the Frontier in American History in the
Annual Beport of the American Historical Association, 1893, p. 211.
IM
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 197
sippi Valley was unbroken Indian country. On the eastern
side of the river, the body of settlements had hardly ad-
vanced further northward than a line drawn from the mouth
of the Missouri Eiver to Detroit in Michigan.
Eastward, also, within the interior lay large districts
barren of legal habitation, because the Indian title had not
been extinguished. Along the old Spanish border of Flor-
ida, the army had but recently been employed in subduing
the Seminoles and their allies. Again, in the States of Indi-
ana and Illinois and in the Territory of Michigan there were
extensive wildernesses where the Chippewas, Ottawas, Pot-
tawatomies, Winnebagos, Menomonees, Miamis, and Sac
and Fox Indians still retained their possessory rights to the
soil and sullenly resisted the encroachment of settlers.
Even as far east as the State of Georgia the Cherokees and
the Creeks stubbornly clung to their native land, as did the
Choctaws and Chickasaws in Mississippi and Alabama.
White settlements encroached upon these Indian lands from
all directions, so that some tribes like the Cherokees and
the Creeks were almost surrounded by citizen pioneers.
Thus conflicts between the two races were inevitable.
Frontiersmen, impatient at the Government's delay in ac-
quiring the Indian title to these rich valleys, frequently
staked out their little claims within the Indian territory and
thereby brought down upon themselves the resentment of
the original claimants who retaliated by pilfering com and
stealing cattle. The Indians on their part, after ceding
their lands to the United States and agreeing to retire to
other possessions, were often loath to leave and hung about
the new settlements much to the annoyance of the settlers.'
The relations between the pioneers and the aborigines were
theoretically prescribed by Federal laws. These ** trade
8 The American State Papers^ Indian A fairs, contain a mass of evidence
conceming the relations of the backwoodsmen and the Indians.
198 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
and intercourse acts, * ' as they were called — the first one
being passed as early as 1796 — provided severe penal-
ties not only for attempting to settle npon any lands, the
Indian title to which had not yet been extingnished, but
.they even imposed a penalty for going into the Indian coun-
try without a passport. The military force of the United
States might be used to expel such intruders.* But in spite
of these Federal enactments, there always existed on the
frontier more or less irritation and tension. Pioneers im-
patient for land eluded the scattered dragoons of the small
western army and encroached upon the Indian country.
The Iowa country was thus invaded by a few bold settlers
who crossed the Mississippi at Dubuque in 1830.*^ The ma-
jority of the frontier pioneers were content to wait until
the Government had bought the Indian title to the western
lands. But even after this title had been secured troubles
sometimes arose — due to the failure of some Indians to
comprehend the papers which they had signed or on ac-
count of their simple and savage unwillingness to perform
their obligations.®
To this state of things the plan to remove all tribes from
the east to the west of the Mississippi owes its origin in the
early years of the nineteenth century. Jefferson was the
first to elaborate the idea. Colonization in Upper Louisiana
was the plan that occurred to him in the year 1803.'' Al-
4 United States Statutes at Large, Vol. I, pp. 470, 745; Vol. II, p. 139; Vol.
m, p. 332.
B Parish '8 The Langworthys of Early Dubuque ar^ Their Contributions to
Local History in The Iowa Joubnal op History and Politics, Vol. Vni, No.
3, p. 317.
9 The Indians' side of the story is well told in the Life of Black Hawk
(Boston, 1834). Mrs, Gratiot's Narrative in the Wisconsin Historical Col-
lections, Vol. X, p. 261, is a good type of the pioneer accounts.
T Ford's The Writings of Thomas Jefferson, Vol. VIII, pp. 241-243. Jef-
f erson 's first proposal of such a plan to any tribe was his address to the Chiek-
asaws in 1805. — ^Washington's Writings of Thomas Jefferson, Vol. VIII, p. 199.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 199
though he made no definite reconunendations thereon to
Congress his views were widely known by correspondence
and personal conversations ; and through such means it was
that the sixteenth section of the Louisiana Territorial Act
of 1804 was written, empowering the President to exchange
Indian lands east of the Mississippi for lands on the
west side. Attempts to secure removal during Jefferson's
administration were neither energetic nor successful, al-
though the application of this remedy to the Indian problem
was urged by the Governor of the Territory of Indiana,
William Henry Harrison, and was occasionally advocated
in Congress.®
The idea of westward removal appealed most strikingly
to Southerners. Four great tribes — the Cherokees and
Creeks and the Chickasaws and Choctaws — were coming to
be a most serious menace to the progress of the southwest-
em frontier. These tribes still retained their possessive
rights to large tracts of most fertile land in Tennessee,
Georgia, and the Territory of Mississippi, and thus their
presence threatened seriously to retard industrial develop-
ment. In the Northwest the need of removal beyond the
Mississippi was not so ardently demanded until after the
War of 1812 because the over-strenuous administrations of
General Anthony Wayne and Governor Harrison acquired
from the Indians vast sections of land years in advance of
The origin of the removal policy is exhaustively discussed by Dr. Abel in
Indian Consolidation West of the Mississippi in the Annual Beport of the
American Historicai Associ€Uion, 1906, Vol. I, p. 235 et seq. Dr. Abel de-
scribes the Indian removal chief 7 from the aide of the Executive Department,
Tvhile Phillips in Georgia and State Bights describes the episode of the Greek
and Cherokee removals from the viewpoint of the States concerned. — Annual
Report of the American Historicai Association, 1901, Vol. IL On the other
hand, the removal of Indians across the Mississippi is portrayed from the In-
dians' side in the monograph by Royce entitled The CheroJcee Nation of In-
dians in the Fifth Annuctl Beport of the Bureau of Ethnology, p. 129.
8 Annals of Congress, 1st Session, 8th Congress, pp. 41, 440. Senator James
Jackson of Qeorgia and John Randolph of Virginia casually mention the plan.
200 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
the actual economic need of that section of the country ; and,
moreover, the Indians themselves retreated westward more
rapidly than did their southern brothers before the stream
of eastern emigration. Perhaps the first serious proposal
to exchange the lands of the northern Indians for lands be-
yond the Mississippi occurred in 1817, when Lewis Cass,
Governor of Michigan Territory, was instructed by Mon-
roe's Secretary of War to propose to the Indians of the
Ohio that they exchange their lands for equal tracts beyond
the Mississippi — reserving, however, a certain number of
acres in the ceded territory to each head of a family who
wished to remain.* A year later the first treaty whereby a
northern tribe — in this case the Delawares — ceded their
lands in Indiana for a tract beyond the Mississippi was ne-
gotiated by Lewis Cass and two other commissioners.^^ In
1819 a similar treaty was negotiated with the Kickapoos of
Ulinois.^^ Then the score of years following was marked
with similar zealous and successful efforts to evict the In-
dians from the Old Northwest under the guise of solemnly
negotiated treaties.
In July of the year when removal was inaugurated in the
Indian affairs of the North, Andrew Jackson secured with
much effort a treaty with a southern tribe, the Cherokees,
providing for the removal of such individuals of that tribe
as were willing to make the change.^ The question of the
removal of these Indians and the Creeks soon became in-
volved in the fierce controversy between these nations and
the State of Georgia. Thereupon the whole affair was sev-
eral times reviewed in Congress as will be further noted.
These then were the beginnings of the removal policy.
» American State Papers, Indian Affairs, Vol. II, p. 136.
lOKappler'g Indian Affairs, Laws and Treaties, Vol. II, p. 170.
11 Kappler 'a Indian Affairs, Laws and Treaties, Vol. II, p. 182.
i2Kappler'8 Indian Affairs, Laws and Treaties, Vol. II, p. 140.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 201
Its ori^ was executive, not congressional. Indeed, we
shall see that the stimulus for a national plan of removal
came almost entirely from the Executive Department, al-
though local interests never ceased to memorialize Con-
gress for the removal of individual tribes whose presence
annoyed particular States. Before the third decade of the
century the plan was little dreamed of; but what the atti-
tude of Congress would be when it should seriously con-
sider the subject was already forecasted. Commiseration
for the retreating Indians, whether maudlin or philanthrop-
ic, was to be put aside. The story of Clay's futile elo-
quence on behalf of the Seminoles has already been told.^*
On all points was Jackson's decisive conduct with the Flor-
ida Indians sustained, not only in the Fifteenth Congress
but as well in the first session of the Sixteenth Congress.^*
BBGINNINGS OF THE GEOBGIA INDIAN CONTBOVEBST
Of the thirteen original States, Georgia was the only one
possessing in 1820 a considerable frontier.^*^ In the North, .
the Indian frontier had passed westward beyond Ohio, al-
though a few isolated tribes and individuals still remained
in New York and in New England. From Virginia the bor-
der difficulties in the back country which filled the corre-
spondence of Governor Patrick Henry were now long van-
ished. Even Kentucky — the first of the admitted States in
the West — was quite free from aboriginal inhabitants.
Prosperous plantations covered these once famous hunting
grounds.
18 The Iowa Joubnal of Histoby and Politics^ VoL vm, No. 1, pp.
109-114.
^* Annals of Congress, Ist Session, 16th Congress, p. 1542.
16 No less a historian than Frederick J. Turner has included the back coun-
try of Georgia, daring the years following 1820, as a part of the western
frontier. — Bise of the New West, p. 57. The settlers who were encroaching
upon the Cherokee and Creek lands west of the Ocmulgee Biver had much in
common with the settlers who were crossing the Mississippi at the same time.
VOL. IX — 15
x
t
\
202 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
But Georgia presents another story. One-third of the
State, in fact all of the lands north and west of the Ocmul-
gee Eiver, was still held by the Creeks and Cherokees.^*
The Cherokees were semi-civilized but annoying. The
Creeks were more war-like. Divided in their councils, a
part had struck the Government in the War of 1812, while
the other part had been actively loyal. The danger of their
presence was ever a source of worry ; and this the Georgia
delegation often told Congress.^'' **The unprotected situa-
tion of the frontiers invited aggression and the predatory
and sanguinary depredations of a dark and insidious ene-
my, whose track was to be traced by blood and desolation,
cried aloud for vengeance * \ declared one Georgian Eepre-
sentative.^8 This utterance was made when Georgia was ad-
vocating her Militia Claims. The debates upon these
claims, although referring to conditions at the close of the
eighteenth century, reflect much of the contemporary atti-
tude of the Georgia delegation. As an example of the hun-
dreds of similar claims presented to Congress by western
members almost every year they may beg the attention of
the reader for a moment. The Georgia Militia Claims orig-
inated in the border outbreaks of 1792, when the State had
employed her militia in suppressing the Indians. Some
years later Georgia demanded recompense therefor, al-
though these claims were said to have been liquidated in the
transactions of 1802 when Georgia ceded her lands to the
United States.^® For a score of years thereafter the im-
passioned speeches of the Georgians presented Congress
16 Annals of Congress, Ist Session, 18th Congress, p. 465.
17 oamer '• SJceiches of the Settlers of Upper Georgia, p. 504 et seq.
18 Annals of Congress, 2nd Session, 17th Congress, p. 163.
19 The argument for these claims is given at length in Senator Elliott 's re-
port of 1822. — Annals of Congress, 1st Session, 17th Congress, p. 383. Annals
of Congress, 2nd Session, 7th Congress, p. 461. For the argument against the
claims, see pp. 523, 535.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 203
with a vivid picture of the State's border position. That
eastern members could never appreciate the horrors of
Georgia's exposed condition nor comprehend the service
that she was rendering to the nation by standing as a bul-
wark against the Indians was the burden of these har-
angues* Heart- thrilling accounts of the ** midnight char-
acter of Indian hostility'* depicted in rather lively col-
ors this frontier and idealized the settlers who ventured
with their families so close to the aborigines.^ Persistence
in these addresses finally won an appropriation from Con-
gress in the year 1827, in spite of the bar to the claims.*^
Meanwhile Georgia had carried to Congress the most ob-
stinate of all frontier problems. Should the Creeks and
Cherokees continue to hold wildernesses in a civilized State
and bar the progress of American settlement? True, the
Cherokees were of all American tribes the most civilized;
both they and the Creeks had made progress in agriculture
and were becoming attached to the land they occupied by
stronger bonds than those which bound the roving Indians
of the Northwest to their hunting grounds.^^ But the eco-
nomic interests of Georgia were ready for expansion upon
20 Mr. WDej Thompson of Georgia exclaimed that Georgia had been "del-
uged by the blood of her citizens, slaughtered in defending the United States;
and still justice .... is withheld from them." — Begister of Debates,
2nd Session, 18th Congress, p. 81.
Indian troubles were unavoidable, Thompson contended. Eastern States
seemed not to appreciate Georgia's position — how she stood as "a bulwark
between the Indians and the interior States, while she received the death stroke
of the Indian tomahawk in her own bosom". — "Register of Debates, 2nd Ses-
sion, 19th Congress, p. 1245.
John Forsyth charged that the claims had been rejected simply because the
State operations against the Creeks and Cherokees had taken a direction of-
fensive to the Administration. — Register of Debates, 2nd Session, 18th Con-
gress, p. 581.
21 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, pp. 1266, 488.
22 Royce 's The Cherokee Nation of Indians in the Fifth Annual Beport of
the Bureau of Ethnology, p. 23L
204 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
the Indian lands ; the aggressive settlers demanded portions
of the unused districts still held by the Creeks and Chero-
kees; but demand as they might, these tribes began stub-
bornly to refuse any further cessions of their remaining
domain.^'
Such a condition boded trouble indeed. One third of a
Commonwealth in the hands of some thirty thousand per-
sistent aborigines was a fact which naturally provoked the
citizens, who were nearly two hundred thousand in number
and rapidly increasing.^*
The problem would have been quickly solved had the
State controlled the lands in question. But in 1802 Georgia
had ceded her public lands to the United States. In the
compact, however, the Federal Government stipulated that
the title to Indian lands lying within the State should be
extinguished as early as could be peaceably done upon rea-
sonable terms.^*^ This the Federal Government proceeded
to accomplish, and by treaties with the Creeks and Cher-
okees secured for both Georgia and Alabama prior to the
year 1824 some fifteen million acres of land.^* Ten million
still remained in the possession of the two tribes when they
manifested their determination to cede no more.
Since 1802 the Executive Department had been sincerely
willing to fulfil its promises, although ever insisting upon
treating the Indians with diplomatic courtesy. And Con-
gress as well had voted generous appropriations to conduct
treaties of cession. Now, however, it was apparent that if
the diplomatic attitude of the Executive continued no more
2s For a comparative map of Indian land cessions in Georgia, fee the Eight-
eenth AnnwU Bepori of the Bureau of Ethnology, Part 2, Plate XV.
24 For population of Creeks and Cherokees, see American State Papers, In-
dian Affairs, Vol. II, p. 546.
25 American State Papers, Public Lands, Vol. I, p. 125.
2« Beport of Secretary of War. — Annals of Congress, Ist Session, ISth Con-
gress, p. 465.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 205
cessions could be obtained. A commanding attitude was
necessary to make these Indians retreat ; and the Georgians
were disappointed and provoked because such a course of
action was not vigorously followed by Monroe and Madi-
son.^ ^ The Governor and legislature frankly told the Gov-
ernment so at different times with increasing irritation.^®
That the Federal Executive was disinclined to coerce the
Cherokees and Creeks was evident in Monroe 's message of
March 30, 1824. **I have no hesitation *^ wrote the Presi-
dent, * * to declare it as my opinion, that the Indian title was
not affected in the slightest circumstance by the compact
with Georgia, and that there is no obligation on the United
States to remove the Indians by force. '^ But he added:
* * My impression is equally strong that it would promote es-
sentially the security and happiness of the tribes within
our limits, if they could be prevailed on to retire west and
north of our States and Territories, on lands to be procured
for them by the United States, in exchange for those on
which they now reside. ' '^®
27 Calhoun when Secretary of War under Monroe disapproved the policy of
treating with the Indian tribes as with States or nations. — American State
Papers, Indian Affairs, Vol. II, p. 276.
The attitude of Monroe and Adams in this respect is open to just criticism.
The Georgia delegation pronounced formal treaty-making to be a farce. Why
should the Government act as if the Indians were foreign powers f asked For-
syth. The question seems never to have been satisfactorily answered. — Begister
of Dehates, 1st Session, 19th Congress, p. 2614.
For an army officer's opinion in later days, see Centenniai of the United
States Military Academy at West Foint (Washington, 1904), p. 527.
28 Phillips 's Georgia and State Bights in the Annual Beport of the American
Historical Association, 1901, Vol. II, p. 52 et seq. The attitude of Georgia was
nicely expressed in the memorial addressed by the legislature to the President
of the United States in 1819. "The State of Georgia'', read this protest,
''claims a right to the jurisdiction and soil of the territory within her limits.
. . . . She admits however, that the right is inchoate — remaining to be
perfected by the United States, in the extinction of the Indian title; the United
States pro hac vice as their agents." — See Worcester vs. State of Georgia, 6
Peters 585.
29 Annals of Congress, 1st Session, 18th Congress, p. 463. The Message and
206 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Monroe admitted that the question had developed beyond
executive control ; and he therefore submitted to the consid-
eration of Congress, trusting that the Indians as well as the
people of Georgia would receive equal justice. If Monroe
hoped by this message to throw the responsibility for action
upon Congress he was doomed to disappointment. The so-
lution which he tentatively proposed was to peaceably in-
dine the Cherokees toward accepting the removal plan.
But Congress was not ready to assume the responsibility.
The President possessed the treaty powers under the Con-
stitution. Why should he not continue to treat and the
Senate to ratify?
While Congress hesitated to touch the affair, the Georgia
delegation were loud in their attempts to secure decision.
**If the Cherokees are unwilling to remove,'^ they said,
**the causes of that unwillingness are to be traced to the
United States. If a peaceable purchase cannot be made in
the ordinary mode, nothing remains to be done but to order
their removal to a designated territory beyond the limits of
Georgia '^^® It is needless to say that their efforts* were in
vain. The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs passed over
the matter without reporting.^^ The House Conmaittee, be-
ing headed by John Forsyth, naturally reported that im-
mediate removal was wise, but the measure was lost in the
House.^^ The times were premature for drastic solution,
although the issue had become well defined. If the Georgia
Indians refused to emigrate should their possessive rights
accompanying documents were printed in Senate Documents, Ist Session, 18th
Congress, No. 63.
80 Anndls of Congress, 1st Session, 18th Congress, p. 471.
81 The Senate referred the Georgia Indian controversy to its Committee on
Indian Affairs, of which Benton was chairman. — Annals of Congress, 1st Ses-
sion, 18th Congress, p. 474. The Journal of the Senate does not indicate that
the Committee reported during the session. — Journal of the Senate, Ist Session,
18th Congresty p. 28.
82 Annais of Congress, Ist Session, 18th Congress, p. 2348.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 207
to soil in Georgia's jurisdiction be maintained by Federal
authority T Or, should the stubborn Indians be forced to
emigrate f The first horn of this dilemma was intolerable
to the State of Georgia and to her sympathizers ; while nei-
ther eastern Congressmen nor the President would seize
the latter*
MONBOB AND THE REMOVAL POLIOT
The Georgia delegation little realized that their persist-
ent demands in Georgia's behalf would gradually force
Congress and the Executive to the adoption of some general
plan for disposing of the Indians. But that event was to
be in the future and at present was little contemplated by
members of Congress, although signs of the disastrous pol-
icy, then being pursued, were not lacking even in the halls
of Congress. In December, 1823, a most egregious blunder
had been exposed, concerning the assignment of lands to the
Choctaws ^nd Cherokees west of the Mississippi. It ap-
pears that the most fertile of the lands ceded to these tribes
during the years 1817 to 1820, in exchange for their eastern
possessions, lay within the Territory of Arkansas and were
already occupied in part by white ** squatters '*. In the case
of the Cherokee tribe the United States agreed by treaty to
remove all intruders upon the ceded lands ; while the Choc-
taws relied upon the promise of General Jackson, who was
acting as commissioner on the part of the United States,
that ' * the arm of the Government was strong, and that the
settlers should be removed. * '^
Their reliance upon the Government was disastrous to
themselves, for within a few years local interests caused
even the national legislature to undermine their rights.
saKappler's Indian Affairs, Laws and Treaties, Vol. II, p. 142; American
State Papers, Indian Affairs, Vol. II, p. 549. For a map of the cesaions, aee
Royce 's Indian Land Cessions in the Eighteenth Annual Beport of the Bureau
of Ethnology, Plate VI.
208 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
The occasion was an angry remonstrance from the Terri-
torial legislature of Arkansas against the action of Con-
gress in establishing the western boundary of the Terri-
tory.'* This line, the citizens complained, cut off from the
Territory large numbers of **most respectable inhabitants"
who had intruded upon the public domain. Henry Conway,
the Delegate from ALrkansas, loudly maintained the alleged
rights of the intruders. **I can never consent*', he wrote
to the Secretary of War, **to any measure which is calcu-
lated to check the prosperity of my Territory, or to destroy
the interests of any portion of its inhabitants. * ^'
In the Senate the memorial from Arkansas was presented
by Benton and it was referred to a select committee con-
sisting of Benton, King of Alabama, and Lowrie of Penn-
sylvania.** This occurred in December, 1823. In March
the committee reported a document of surprising ingenu-
ity.*'' There were three questions comprising the solution
of the case, the committee began to explain. Should the in-
habitants cut off by the line of 1823 be left as they were
without law to govern them t Or, should they be compelled
to come within the present limits of the Territory? Or,
should the western boundary be extended to include themt
The first method the committee rejected, for reasons **too
obvious to require specification. ' * The second was also re-
jected with a confusing number of objections. And so, by
elimination, what was left but the third plant Accordingly,
the conmaittee reported a bill for the extension of the west-
em boundary. How the adjustment of the Choctaw and
Cherokee boundary lines with this new Territorial line
^* American State Papers, Indian Affaire, Vol. 11, p. 556; United States
Statutes at Large, Vol. HI, p. 750.
«» American State Papers, Indian Affairs, Vol. II, p. 556.
s« Annals of Congress, lit Session, 18th Congress, p. 47.
87 Annais of Congress, Ist Session, 18th Congress, p. 420.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 209
might be accomplished the committee did not venture to
prophesy, save merely to express a hint that the Executive
would find such conflicts occasions for further treaties with
the Indians.
The bill as later amended in the Senate directed the Presi-
dent to treat with the Choctaws for a modification of the
Treaty of 1820.'® In this form it passed both houses and
became law in May, 1824. Thus the Executive Department
was forced into the position of breaking public faith with
the western Choctaws. The consequence was what might
have been expected : the Choctaws were compelled, in 1825,
to retire west of the Arkansas line, leaving their promised
lands in the hands of the irrepressible pioneers.*® The
Oherokees on the lands to the north of them soon met the
same fate.*®
That such miserable procedures were the inevitable out-
come of the haphazard and sporadic attempts in solving the
Indian problem, Monroe was more than ever convinced.
The last years of his administration were enough to show
him that sectional bickerings and extravagant expense
would ever be attendant upon a continuation of the present
imsystematic Indian policy. With the opening of the sec-
ond session of the Eighteenth Congress barely three months
of legislative sittings were left to his administration ; yet he
did not evade the bold presentation of the problem in its
larger scope. He recommended to Congress the advisabil-
ity of adopting *'some well digested plan'* of establishing
S8 Annals of Congress, 1st Besiion, 18th Congress, p. 778 ; United States Stat-
utes at Large, Vol. IV, p. 40.
The Executive Department apparently disregarded that part of the act which
extended the boundaries of the Territory of Arkansas west of the southwest
corner of Missouri. — Note the United States Statutes at Large, Vol. VTI, p.
311; Vol. V, p. 50; Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 26th Congress, p. 54.
89 Kappler's Indian Affairs, Laws and Treaties, Vol. II, p. 211.
*o Kappler's Indian Affairs, Laws and Treaties, Vol II, p. 288.
210 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
an Indian district '* between the limits of our present States
and territories, and the Eocky Mountain [s]^^ where the
Government should carefully supervise their progress in
civilization.*^
Having announced his attitude, the President left the
elaboration of his ideas to his Secretary of "War, John C.
Calhoun. Calhoun developed a plan — one unusual com-
pared with those hitherto proposed. It was communicated
to Congress on the 27th of January, 1825.** It contemplated
the establishment of a permanent Indian Territory west of
the settlements with a government uniting all tribes in one
organization. To this end the Secretary recommended that
Congress provide for a convention of the leaders of aU east-
em tribes in order to explain to them the views and prom-
ises of the government.
Already the committees on Indian affairs in both houses
were considering the first suggestions of Monroe in his mes-
sage at the opening of Congress. Benton, the chairman of
the Senate committee, approved a definite national plan of
reUeving the western States from their undesirable Indian
population. The bill which this committee reported came
from the pen of Calhoun and gave legal form to the **weU
digested'* plan which Monroe had suggested. Its title an-
nounced it as an act for the preservation and civilization of
the Indians. On February 23rd it passed the Senate.*'
In the lower chamber the bill was referred to the standing
committee of which John Cocke of Tennessee was chairman*
The records do not indicate that it was ever considered in
the Committee of the Whole House — perhaps because of
the press of other matters. A bill of similar nature, con-
*i Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 18th Congress, Appendix, p. 7.
*2 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 18th Congress, Appendix, p. 57 ; Senate
Documents, No. 21; Niles' Weekly Begister, Vol. XXVII, p. 404.
48 Journal of the Senate of the United States, 2nd Session, 18th Congress,
p. 187.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 211
cocted by the House committee itself, met the same fate. To
the proposals of the President little further attention was
given, save by the easily frightened Delegate from the Ter-
ritory of Arkansas, who demanded that no lands of his con-
stituency be granted to the emigrating Indians.**
Such apathy on the part of western Congressmen, when
Illinois, Indiana, Michigan Territory, Missouri, Mississippi,
Alabama, and Georgia were looking with restless glances at
the Indians within their borders, can only be explained by
the supposition that sectional interests had not yet been
combined into one great national plan. While Elliott of
Georgia supported Calhoun *s bill in the Senate,**^ the re-
mainder of the Georgia delegation appeared strangely si-
lent in the House, except in respect to their own grievances
with the Creeks and the Cherokees. Headed by Forsyth
they called for the vengeance of Congress to descend upon
these stiff-necked Indians. Their vexation — fanned into a
passionate rage by the inertia of Congress — adopted the
method of blocking all proposals to extend any act of cour-
tesy or justice to these Indians, even when such acts would
not interfere with the rights of Georgia.**
^^Niles' Weekly Begister, Vol. XXVII, p. 271.
«s Begister of Debates, 2iid Session, 18th Congress, p. 639.
^ The Cherokee claim in regard to the Wafford Settlement gave one occasion
for this ungenerous display on Georgia's part. Among the items of the mili-
tary bill, the Committee on Ways and Means had included an appropriation to
cancel the obligation of the long neglected treaty ceding the lands in question.
— Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 18th Congress, p. 536.
The gist of the matter was that the Government had undertaken in the year
1804 to protect certain settlers who had invaded the Indian lands in violation
of the Federal laws and treaties, but had failed to recompense the Cherokees
for the land thus illegally seized. — Royce 's The Cherokee Nation of Indians in
the Fifth Annual Beport of the Bureau of Ethnology, p. 186.
John Forsyth and his colleagues protested against this appropriation. They
were outvoted. — Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 18th Congress, p. 546.
The episode is an illustration of Congress condoning illegal settlements.
* * The Cherokees ' ', said McLane of Delaware during the debate, ' ' were in pos-
session of this land within the limits of Georgia, in 1804. Their lands were in-
212 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
THE END OF THE CBEEK CONTBOVEBSY
Before the last session of his administration had closed
Monroe was able to submit to the Senate tangible results of
his efforts to continue the policy of treaty-making with the
Creeks in Georgia. At Indian Springs on the 12th of Feb-
ruary the commissioners of the Government had succeeded
in persuading certain chiefs of the Creek nation to sign a
treaty ceding all their lands lying within the State of
Georgia.*^ Without inquiring too closely into the history
of the negotiations Monroe transmitted it, late in February
and only a few days before the end of his administration, to
the Senate. This body, on the third of March, hastily ad-
vised and consented to ratification,*® although the fact had
become officially known that the Alabama chiefs of the
Creek nation had never agreed to the cession.** On March
truded on by citizens either of that state or some other; and an application
was, in consequence, made by the Cherokees to the United States to dispossess
the intruders. The Government of the United States felt that it was their duty
to do so. Orders were issued accordingly, and, military force sent to put them
into execution. When the troops arrived on the spot, they found that the set-
tlers, for the most part, had crops then growing, and not gathered; and the of-
ficers interceded with the Cherokees to delay the removal of the intruders until
their crops could be gathered in, and finally succeeded in persuading them to
sell the land to the United States. The Government accordingly issued a com-
mission to Messrs. Meigs and Smith, to negotiate for the purchase. A treaty
was held, in which the Indians agreed to sell, and the commissioners to buy their
land. ... As soon as this treaty was made, the Indians abandoned their
land, and the settlers were suffered to remain, and others to enter. The Indians
executed the treaty in good faith, and the only question that we ought to have
any difficulty in deciding, would be, not whether they are entitled to receive the
arrearages of the annuity, but whether we ought not to allow them interest for
the whole time it has not been paid. — Register of Debates, 2nd Session, 18th
Congress, p. 539.
*T Kappler's Indian A fairs. Laws and Treaties, Vol. II, p. 214.
^9 Executive Journal of the Senate (1828), Vol. Ill, p. 424.
*9 Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VII, p. 12. The correspondence
transmitted to the Senate along with the treaty, must have appeared to a care-
ful peruser strangely suspicious. — American State Papers, Indian Affairs, Vol.
II, p. 579.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 213
7th John Quincy Adams, respecting the acts of his prede-
cessor, proclaimed the treaty without ado.*®
To the Georgians, who coveted the Creek lands like the
vineyard of Naboth, the treaty was most gratifying. It
promised to end their long contention with the Creeks and
undoubtedly would have ended the affair had the treaty
been genuine. But the scandalous conduct of the commis-
sioners, although legalized by the Senate, was not to stand
unrepudiated by either the President or the Senate itself*
Before the next session of Congress the ugly rumors and
hints of the early part of the year were fully confirmed in
Washington. It became well known that an impotent and
discredited faction of the Creeks had signed the treaty in
direct opposition to the will of the whole nation. Acting up-
on this light Adams directed the Secretary of War to nego-
tiate a new treaty with the accredited chiefs of the Creeks
who had journeyed to the capital protesting the affair of
Indian Springs.*^^
By his action the President found himself immediately at-
tacked by Governor Troup and the Georgia delegation in
Congress.^^ While Governor Troup directed the quarrel
with so much vehemence that his name was ever after known
for angry defiance to the Federal Executive, the Georgia
delegation in Congress were none the less extreme.*^* On
January 7, 1826, they declared to the Secretary of War that
Georgia would never admit the invalidity of the treaty of
Indian Springs. Their method of proving its genuineness
was an argumentum ad ignorantiam. The citizens of
60 Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VII, p. 12. Compare with the mes-
sage to the Senate, January 31, 1826. — Bichardson's Messages and Papers of
the Presidents, Vol. II, p. 324.
61 Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VII, pp. 74, 108.
62 Phillips 's Georgia and State Bights in the Annual Beport of the Americaf^
Historical Association, 1901, Vol. II, p. 59.
68 American State Papers, Indian Affairs, Vol. II, p. 747.
214 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Georgia, they maintained, being * * resident near the scene of
this controversy, and deeply interested in its result ....
have been attentive observers of the process by which it has
been conducted" — evidently meaning to imply that the
Georgians were better judges than the Federal Government.
The President did not surrender to the demands of
Georgia, although his position was rendered the more per-
plexing by the Creeks who, while willing to legally cede part
of their lands, refused to cede any west of the Chatta-
hoochee.*^*
In his annual message on December 6th, Adams had prom-
ised to submit the whole tangled affair to the consideration
of Congress.**' If the President hoped thereby to secure
congressional cooperation in solving the problem as Monroe
had hoped in the preceding year he evidently changed his
mind, for the special message was never transmitted. Web-
ster undoubtedly helped him to this decision by his sound
advice that nothing would be gained, since Congress would
do nothing. He even explained to the President the various
motives by which different members would be actuated
to do nothing, leaving the Administration to pursue its way
alone.**® Adams was so impressed with the fear of provok-
ing a damaging controversy in Congress that he submitted
none of the papers concerning the Georgia question when at
last he sent to the Senate the new treaty which Barbour had
negotiated with the Creek delegation in Washington as a
substitute for the Treaty of Indian Springs.**^
Barbour's treaty did not provide for the cession of the
entire Creek country in Georgia.**® So its reception by the
8* Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VTI, p. 66.
ss Begister of DeJxites, Ist Session, 19th Congress, Appendix, p. 4.
8« Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VII, p. 73.
«T Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VII, p. 110.
s9 Kappler 's Indian A fairs. Laws and Treaties, VoL II, p. 264.
j^
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 215
Senate Committee on Indian Affairs might easily be fore-
known, since Benton was chairman and Cobb of Georgia a
leading member. The conunittee reported on March 17,
1826, that the Senate should not advise and consent to the
ratification.**® Two weeks later Adams was able to submit a
supplementary article by which the Creeks conceded the
Senate 's point and ceded what was then supposed to be all
their remaining lands in Georgia.®^ Benton *s conunittee of
course accepted this concession, and reported back to the
House the article without amendment.®^ In the Conunittee
of the Whole a stubborn but unsuccessful effort was made
by Berrien of Georgia to alter the first article so as to annul
the treaty of Indian Springs without reflecting upon the na-
ture of its negotiation.®^ Upon the final question of advis-
ing and consenting the vote stood thirty yeas and seven
nays.®^ The negative vote was headed by the two Georgia
Senators. The five Senators who voted with them probably
based their objection to the treaty on constitutional consid-
erations.®*
Bealizing that the Indians would be loath to emigrate
even from the ceded lands, Berrien immediately introduced
resolutions looking toward the Government 's assisting and
encouraging such emigration.®* With that purpose in view
a bill appropriating sixty thousand dollars passed both
houses.®®
59 Executive Journal of the Senate (1828), Vol. Ill, p. 521.
«o Kappler 's Indian Affairs, Laws and Treatiest Vol. II, p. 267.
^i Executive Journal of the Senate (1828), Vol. Ill, p. 526.
•2 Executive Journal of the Senate (1828), Vol. Ill, p. 531.
«8 Executive Journal of the Senate (1828), Vol. Ill, p. 533.
«* This at least was the supposition of contemporaries. — See Niles ' Weekly
Begister, Vol. XXX, p. 297.
^ti Executive Journal of the Senate (1828), Vol. Ill, pp. 527, 532; Begister
of Debates, 1st Session, 19th Congress, p. 620.
^^ Begister of Debates, 1st Sesiion, 19th Congress, p. 2623; United States
Statutes at Large, Vol. FV, p. 187.
216 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Within a week of the ratification of the Washington
Treaty the Committee on Appropriations in the House in-
troduced a bill to carry into effect its provisions. The dis-
cussion thereon was almost entirely by the Georgia delega-
tion, who protested against the late action of the Senate and
criticised the whole policy of Federal control of Indian Af-
fairs as an abridgment of State sovereignty.*^ Their
speeches did not, however, long delay the roll call on the bill
which passed with 167 affirmative votes. All but one of the
Georgia delegation voted in the negative.*® Again return-
ing to the Senate we find Senator Benton self-righteously
assuming the task of amending the bill so as to prevent the
"corrupt distribution** of the purchase money ** among a
few chiefs * * instead of to the whole nation.**
The ratification of Barbour's Treaty would have prac-
tically ended the Creek Indian contention with Georgia had
not Governor Troup insisted upon surveying the boundary
between Georgia and Alabama before the date set for the re-
linquishment of the Indian lands — and, moreover, the line
which he sought to establish passed through lands not ceded
by the treaty.*'^ This action of surveying territory where
the Indian title had not been extinguished was a palpable
violation of the treaty and of the Federal trade and inter-
course law of 1802.*^^ Adams ordered Governor Troup to
desist ;^^ but the Governor supported by his legislature
*f Begigter of Debates, Ist Sessioxi, 19th Congress, pp. 2606 et seq, Adams
was also criticised by the opposition for not fulfilling his promises concerning
submitting the whole Georgia transactions to Congress. — Begister of Dehates,
1st Session, 19th Congress, p. 2607.
88 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 19th Congress, p. 2626.
••Benton's Twenty Years' View, Vol. I, p. 60.
70 Phillips's Georgia and State Bights in the Annual Bepori of the American
Historical Association, 1901, Vol. II, p. 60 et seq,
71 United States Statutes at Large, Vol. II, p. 141. — See Section 5.
72 American State Papers, Indian Affairs, Vol. II, p. 744.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 217
again violently defied the Federal authority.^* The United
States Attorney for the District of Georgia refused to obey
the President's order to prosecute the surveyors J*
On February 5, 1827, Adams appealed to Congress. He
sent **the most momentous message he had yet written *'J*^
In both houses it was referred to select committees ; of the
one Senator Benton was chairman, and over the other Eep-
resentative Edward Everett of Massachusetts presided.
The report of Benton 's committee on March 1st upheld the
claims of Georgia ; while the House report maintained that
the Treaty of Washington should be executed by **all neces-
sary constitutional and legal means '^''® Both advised the
Executive to continue his exertions to obtain a cession of the
remaining Creek lands in Georgia as the only possible al-
leviation of the embarrassment. This, indeed, was what
Adams had already undertaken.'''' Late in the year the hun-
dred and ninety thousand acres of pine barrens still held by
the Creeks in Georgia were relinquished by treaty.^® Thus
Georgia 's contention with these Indians was brought to an
end. But this was not the end of all Indian quarrels. Ten
thousand Cherokees still remained on Georgian soil, prom-
ising troubles of their own ; while the attitude of the State of
Alabama toward the Creeks still within her borders prom-
ised a repetition of the strife so lately consummated in the
sister State.*^®
f^ American State Papers, Indian Affairs, VoL II, p. 149 et aeq.; NUes*
Weekly Begister, Vol. XXXII, p. 16.
74 Phillips '8 Georgia and State Bights in the Annual Beport of the Ameriean
Historiccd Assodation^ 1901, Vol. II, p. 62.
75 Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VII, p. 221.
76 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, pp. 498, 1534. The Sen-
ate report is in Senate Documents, 2nd Session, 19th CongreiB, No. 69.
fT House Documents, 1st Session, 20th Congress, No. 238, p. 7. Secretary
Barbour to Colonel Crowell, January 31, 1827.
78 Kappler 's Indian A fairs. Laws and Treaties, Vol. II, p. 284.
T» American State Papers, Indian A fairs. Vol. II, p. 644.
VOL. IX — 16
218 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
AGITATIONS FOB A GENERAL BEMOVAL POLICY
Meanwhile the movement for westward colonization of the
Indians was gaining ground. The story of the Senate bill
of 1825 for **the preservation and civilization" of the In-
dians — how it failed in the House — has already been told.
The next congressional attempt at a general plan originated
in the House, and likewise received inspiration and direction
from the Executive Department, particularly from the new
Secretary of War, James Barbour. In the early months of
his administration Barbour tentatively nursed a plan for in-
corporating the Indians in the body politic of the several
States.®^ By the time, however, that the House Committee
on Indian Affairs applied to him for advice in January of
the year 1826 he had completely revised his first opinions.®^
The project of a bill which the Secretary prepared for the
House committee aimed to establish an Indian Territory to
be maintained by the United States and quite similar in de-
tails to the first grade of territorial government.®^ This In-
dian government he proposed to locate west of the existing
States and Territories and entirely west of the Mississippi^
save that it was to include a part of the Michigan and Wis-
consin country. That the bill proposed an Indian reserva-
tion so close to the settlements in the Northwest would have
been an object of protest had it received much attention in
Congress. Despite this mistake Barbour's intentions were
evidently, as he himself said, the result of a * * desire to com-
ply with the requests of the People of the United States re-
siding in the neighborhood of Indian settlements.'' As it
80 Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VII, p. 89.
«i Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VII, p. 113. The Committee on In-
dian Affairs had considered reporting to the House Calhoun's bill of the pre-
ceding session. — Register of Debates, 2nd Session, 24th Congress, Appendix,,
p. 55.
82 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 19th Congress, Appendix, p. 40.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 219
was Chairman Cocke of the House committee reported a bill
comprising the essential features of Barbour's plans on
February 21st f^ but the records indicate that the Commit-
tee of the Whole House never reported progress thereon.
There can be no doubt of Cocke 's earnestness in the matter
of removal and that he really did view with regret, as he
said he did, the condition of the aborigines.^ ^
In the next session the opinion of the Secretary of War
was again sought, this time by a resolution of the House re-
questing information upon the obstacles in the way of re-
moval beyond the Mississippi.®* The mover of the resolu-
tion was John McLean of Ohio. Another Representative,
Haile of Mississippi, presented a resolution exhibiting a
different side of the removal question.®* It has already
been noted that settlers were intruding upon lands in
Arkansas granted to the Choctaws who had migrated from
Mississippi and Alabama.®'' Haile now demanded an in-
vestigation. Such breaches of the public faith, he explained,
were causing suspicions among the remaining Indians in
the State of Mississippi and increasing their opposition to
emigrate. **If these encroachments are permitted,'' he
said, * * the Indians will be fastened upon us without the hope
of removal. ' '
The Delegate from Arkansas, who two years before had
so energetically defended these pioneer intruders in the
western boundary episode, moved an amendment to the res-
olution, the real purport of which was to exonerate the citi-
zens upon the lands in question. The House readily agreed
88 Journal of the House, let Session, 19th Congress, p. 276. The title of this,
bill copied that of the year 1824, namely : ' ' A biU for the preservation and civ-
ilization of the Indian tribes within the United States. ' '
84 American State Papers , Indian A fairs, Vol. II, p. 667.
88 Register of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, p. 538.
86 Register of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, p. 544.
8T See above p. 207.
220 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
to the amendment.®® The question was too trifling for de-
bate, but a world of prophecy lay hidden therein and por-
tended the fate of the wanderers. Was the tragedy of the
eastern portion of the Mississippi Valley to be repeated on
the western side ? Were local interests to hamper and clog
the already weak policy of Indian preservation? Were
these tribes to be cast from territory to territory as soon as
their lands were desired by settlers, all for the lack of a def-
inite national system of removal and colonization?
Congress had been advised for years that some system
should be adopted. Jefferson, the Eeverend Jedidiah
Morse, the Eeverend Isaac McCoy, Monroe, Calhoun, and
Barbour had outlined plans and formulated projects for
bills, but to no purpose. Local communities easily pre-
vailed upon Congress to effect local removals ; but a nation-
al plan to colonize the removed went begging.
While Haile in the House was attempting to interest the
Government in the removal of the Mississippi Indians, Sen-
ator Eeed of the same State was calling upon the Adminis-
tration for the causes of the failure of the late negotiations
with the Choctaw and Chickasaw Indians.®* PersonfiUy he
attributed the failure to the interference of certain whites
living among these Indians, and hinted that missionaries to
these tribes were also not above suspicion. The wretched-
ness and misery of the Indians is so great, he said, that they
* * are desirous of seeking a new abode on our Western bor-
ders", but are prevailed upon to remain by the intrigues
of **a few interested individuals, white men, and mixed-
blooded Indians '^ Continuing Eeed said:
It is well understood, that a great many white men, fleeing from
their crimes, and from debt, have sought refuge from the conse-
quences of both, upon the Territories occupied by the Indian tribes
88 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, p. 546.
99 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, p. 71.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 221
within the State of Mississippi. They are there contrary to the
laws of the United States to the great detriment of the Southern
country; and provision ought, long since, to have been made for
their removal. Those are the People, many of them more savage
than the Indians themselves, who instigate the tribes, for their own
purposes, to decline every overture made for their removal, and for
a cession of their Territory.*^
In the House it appears that John Cocke of Tennessee^
chairman of the Committee on Indian Affairs, also held
that removal was retarded by the * * influence of a number of
profligate vrhite men, who had fled from their debts or from
justice, and had a personal interest in preventing the re-
moval of the Indians/*®^ And when John Woods of Ohio
expostulated at the coercive language used by the late com-
missioners who had attempted to negotiate a treaty with
the Choctaws and Chickasaws, Haile in reply thanked **the
gentleman from Ohio for the sympathy he had manifested
towards the Indians of Mississippi. The Indians are re-
moved beyond the limits of the State of Ohio, and they no
longer annoy the gentleman. His sympathy manifests it-
self at a late period. ' '^^ James K. Polk of Tennessee also
defended the commissioners against the charge of using co-
ercive language,®® as did John Forsyth of Georgia, who
could not well refuse aid to a sister State in the same pre-
dicament that Georgia had faced from the beginning of the
national epoch.®*
The session passed with no more serious accomplishment
than calling upon the Executive Department for informa-
tion concerning the obstacles to removal. The reports
which Barbour and his Commissioner of Indian Affairs,
•0 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, p. 73.
»i Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, p. 838.
92 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, p. 839.
»s Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, pp. 842, 843. ?
»* Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, p. 847. i ^
222 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Thomas McKenney, prepared gave encouraging signs that
a well directed continental plan of colonization would meet
the disposition of the Lidian tribes and succeed in prac-
tice.*' But Congress responded with no law.
When Congress again convened on December 3, 1827,
there was a brighter prospect for the adoption of some
scheme of removal. Li the summer of 1827 Thomas McKen-
ney had made a tour of the southern States in the interests
of removal and had returned confident that at least three of
the principal nations in the South were disposed to emi-
grate.*® The results of his investigation were summed up
by the Secretary of War and transmitted to Congress in the
President's annual message.®^ Another stimulus to action
was found in the person of Isaac McCoy, a Baptist mission-
ary to the Pottawatomies who had become convinced that
removal and colonization was the only hopeful solution
of the Indian problem and who arrived in Washington to
lobby for that purpose.*®
Early in the session the House Committee on Indian Af-
fairs took into consideration a plan for the gradual removal
and establishment of a Territorial government for all the
Indians.*® But distracting sectional jealousy robbed the
plan of its national scope and allowed it to develop into an
undignified scramble of the several States to insure their
individual accommodations. The Georgia delegation know-
ing that Georgia's legislature contemplated extending the
State jurisdiction over the remaining Cherokee lands in
that State refused to consider any plan which did not have
OB House Documents, 2nd Session, 19th Congress, No. 28.
99Naes' Weekly Begister, Vol. XXXIH, p. 274.
07 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 20th Congress, p. 2789.
M Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 20th Congress, p. 661 ; Memoirs of John
Quiney Adams, Vol. VII, p. 410; McCoy's History of Indian A fairs, p. 321;
Bemarlcs on the Practicability of Indian Beform (Boston, 1827), p. 25.
99 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 20th Congress, pp. 819, 823.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 223
peculiar reference to Georgia. The Mississippi delegation
blocked all proposed legislation which did not conform to
their peculiar needs.^^^ And two Eepresentatives of Ohio
in the House, Woods and Vinton, intentionally embarrassed
the proposition — the former because he opposed any plan
of inducing the Cherokees to emigrate from Georgia, and
the latter because he was seized by a fear that the proposed
Indian Territory might be so placed as to impede the ex-
pansion of Free-soil territory. ^^^ The Delegate from Ar-
kansas did not fail to denounce all proposals for removing
the Indians in the direction of his Territory. ^^^ And an un-
expected opposition was found in a New York Eepresenta-
tive — Henry E. Storrs — who opposed removal to the West
as placing **an insuperable bar to the progress of emigra-
tion, in that direction, by the Whites ' \ A sparse and un-
civiUzed Indian population, he contended, should never hold
these lands in the face of industrious white citizens who
would turn the wilderness into fruitful fields.^«»
There were not lacking, however, signs that the day for
the adoption of a concerted policy was about to come. In
June, 1828, Barbour was sent on the mission to England.
He was succeeded in the portfolio of War by Peter B. Por-
ter of western New York. The Indian policy of the new
Secretary forecasted what might be expected when would
begin the inevitable administration of the Teniiesseean
whose four years of waiting were now nearly at an end.
Porter believed that the missionaries and teachers among
the Indian tribes were defeating the efforts of the Govern-
ment agents to further the project of emigration. He rec-
100 Note the wrangle over the Indian Appropriation BiU. — Begister of De-
bates, 1st Session, 20th Congress, p. 1533 et aeq.
101 Begister of Debates^ Ist Session, 20th Congress, pp. 1539, 1566, 1568-1584.
102 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 20th Congress, p. 2494.
los Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 20th Congress, p. 2482.
224 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
ommended that Federal aid to the cause of civilizing the
Indians be withdrawn from all tribes east of the Mississippi
and be expended solely upon those in the far West.^®* A
similar opinion had been held by Cocke who was chairman
of the House Committee on Indian Affairs in the eighteenth
and nineteenth Congresses and who once reported to the
House that the failure of the removal policy was due to the
obstinacy of the Indians arising from their partial civiliza-
tion.i«»
But despite these manifestations the removal policy had
not gained sufficient momentum to call for a definite com-
mittal on the part of Congress. It is a curious commentary
on American legislation to note that the western States did
not attempt to conceal their true motive for expelling the
Indians. No veil was thrown over the thoughts which rose
uppermost in the minds of Congressmen from the frontier.
The demands of western communities were hid under no
shabby coats of hypocrisy. It was seldom if ever denied
that the settlers coveted the lands of **the children of the
forest ' \ White of Florida referred to the Seminoles as the
Indians ** which are the annoyance of my constituents",
and Lumpkin of Georgia declared that the Cherokees should
learn the destiny of their race, namely, to flee before the
face of civilization.^^® An Alabama Bepresentative frankly
pronounced the Indians a *' curse upon the newer States* ^^^^
Nor were there lacking Eastern members to sympathize
104 Begister of Debates, 2iid Session, 20th Congress, Appendix, p. 10.
106 It is interesting to note that Indian Commissioner McEennej reported to
Barbour, in 1827, that all teachers of Indian schools were believed to be, with
a single exception, in favor of emigration westward. Concerning the effects of
becoming civilized in prejudicing the Indians against removal Cocke was right.
Witness for instance the tenacity with which the most civilized tribe, the Cher-
okees, clung to their Georgian lands.
io« Register of Debates, Ist Session, 20th Congress, pp. 1537, 1587. See also
Ivt Session, 24th Congress, p. 1463.
107 Begister of Debates^ 2nd Session, 19th Congress, p. 838.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 225
with the West. A Maryland Eepresentative declared that
he had seen the Indian half-breed, whose hand he declared
was against every man and every man's hand against him;
and for his own part he would rather have him **a little
farther off^.^^® M'Duffie of South Carolina held it to be
**the settled opinion of a large majority of the House, that
the Indians within the limits of our settled States must ei-
ther be induced to emigrate, or must infallibly sink into a
state of indescribable and irretrievable wretchedness/^ He
considered **the idea of civilizing and educating them as
wholly delusive. The experiment had been tried, and the
result had proved, that, while surrounded by the whites, the
Indians acquired all the vices of a civilized People, and none
of their virtues. *^^®
Strangely enough it remained for a western Represen-
tative to suggest at this time that the pioneers were respon-
sible for the sufferings and degradation of the Indians. In
a most sarcastic speech Vinton of Ohio declared that it
would ever be impossible to place the Indians beyond the
pale of corruption.
If it were so much as known to what district the Indians were to
remove, no matter how distant the country .... the pio-
neers would be there in advance of them; men of the most aban-
doned and desperate character, who hang upon the Indians to de-
fraud them. You cannot run away from these men nor shut them
out from access to Indians, scattered over the wilderness ; for, with
the pioneers, the law is a jest, and the woods their element; the
farther you go with the Indians, with just so much more impunity
will they set your laws at defiance."*^
Harshly stigmatizing the plan of colonization as * * a high
handed outrage upon humanity", he maintained that the
Indians were fully capable of civilization, and proposed as
108 Register of Debates, Ist Sesmon, 20th Congress, p. 1566.
109 Register of Debates, 1st Session, 20th Congress, p. 1540.
110 Register of Debates, Iwt Session, 20th Congress, p. 1579.
226 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
an absolute solution of the whole matter that they should
be granted farms in fee simple like the settlers.
Before sectional jealousies and diversity of opinion the
project of colonization crumbled again with the adjourn-
ment of the first session of the Twentieth Congress. Four
sessions had now opened and adjourned since Monroe first
asked for some well-digested plan for relieving the western
States of their Lidian encumbrance and preserving the Vi-
dians from the inevitable and destructive pressure of west-
em settlements. Many plans had been suggested but none
crystallized into law. It was indeed with a melancholy but
an altogether true reflection that Adams referred to the
subject in his last annual message. **We have been far
more successful", he said, *'in the acquisition of their lands
than in imparting to them the principles, or inspiring them
with the spirit, of civilization. ''^^^
JACKSON AND THE REMOVAL POLICY
President Adams, although deeply interested in the wel-
fare of the Lidians, lacked the confidence of Congress to
inspire any far-reaching solution of the problem; nor is it
certain that he had any definite solution in mind. It re-
mained to the President of the eleventh administration,
filled with the spirit of the West, to grip the discordant
clamors of sectional interests into a nation-wide scheme:
and that scheme was of course westward removal.
Jackson understood the Lidian problem. He was a
Tennessee pioneer, educated in the life of the woods, the
prairies, and miUtia camps. His miUtary prestige rested
as well upon his exploits as an Indian fighter as upon his
defense of New Orleans against Pakenham. In three
pitched skirmishes he had vanquished the Creeks, and the
episodes of his Seminole campaign were household stories.
Ill Begiater of Debates, 2nd Session, 20th Congress, Appendix, p. 5.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 227
As an Indian commissioner he had been the guardian of
many tribes. Four important treaties with Creeks, Cher-
okees, and Chickasaws he had negotiated in person. There
was scarcely an Indian community in the South but had en-
dured his chastisement or listened to his talks. Those who
had accepted his advice had seldom regretted it ; those who
had repulsed him had learned to rue their mistake. But
withal Jackson had attained a reputation for justice. In
some peculiar way he impressed the minds of his savage
wards with respect, trust, and confidence. His election as
President was actually hailed by the Cherokees with re-
joicing.
The first year of the new administration sufficed to show
how utterly useless were their hopes. The Cherokees had
attempted to establish a national government upon their
lands within the State of Georgia. The President's atti-
tude toward this anomalous Indian organization was in-
stantly hostile, and the first annual message in December,
1829, minced no words in declaring that all attempts on the
part of the Indians to erect independent governments with-
in States would be rigidly suppressed. *'It is too late to in-
quire**, read the message, ** whether it was just in the
United States to include them and their territory within
the bounds of new States. . . . That step cannot be re-
traced. A State cannot be dismembered by Congress, or
restricted in the exercise of her constitutional power. **^^*
But in order to render a tardy justice to this long neglected
race, Jackson resurrected the old plan of an Indian district
west of the Mississippi.
Despite the air of justice which pervaded the message
there was one sentence which to Adams men wore the veil
of hypocrisy. These words were: ''This emigration should
be voluntary : for it would be as cruel as unjust to compel
112 Begister of Debates, let Session, 21st Congress, Appendix, pp. 15, 16.
228 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
the aborigines to abandon the graves of their fathers, and
seek a home in a distant land/' From any charge of in-
consistency, however, Jackson saved himself at this point
by the admission that if the Lidians chose to remain within
the limits of the States they might so remain providing
they be subject to State laws. And in return for their obedi-
ence they would without doubt, thought Jackson, be pro-
tected in the enjoyment of those ''possessions which they
have improved by their industry. ' ' These fair words could
hardly have deceived anyone into believing that Jackson's
policy was any other than a force policy. Could anyone
doubt the true meaning of the closing sentence which read:
''It seems to me visionary to suppose that . . . .
claims can be allowed on tracts of country on which they
[the Lidians] have neither dwelt nor made improvements^
merely because they have seen them from the mountain, or
passed them in the chase ' '.
A month later the President 's attitude was tersely inter-
preted by Governor Cass of Michigan Territory. The Pres-
ident offers them a country beyond the Mississippi, wrote
the frontier governor in the North American Review, but
those who refuse to migrate must submit to the jurisdiction
of the States.^^^ Congress and the country needed no
further elucidation of the Presidential program.
The new Congress received the dictation of the White
House with a willingness that boded a speedy conclusion to
the whole matter. The Committee on Indian Affairs in
both houses immediately took the matter into consideration.
Their reports might easily have been predicted by a perusal
of their membership. Of the Senate Committee, Hugh L.
White of Tennessee was chairman, and his four colleagues
118 North American Beview, January, 1830, Vol. XXX, p. 86. This article
provoked various controversial replies among whdch may be noted the semi-
religious appeal in the Americom MoniMy Magazine (Boston: 1829-1831) Vol.
I, p. 701.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 229
were Troup of Georgia, Hendricks of Indiana, Benton of
Missouri, and Dudley of New York.^^* The House Com-
mittee was also headed by a Tennessee member, John Bell ;
and his colleagues were Gaither of Kentucky, Lewis of Ala-
bama, Storrs of Connecticut, and Hubbard of New Hamp-
shire.^^**
On February 22, 1830, the Senate Committee reported an
elaborate argument in favor of removal, and a bill ' ' to pro-
vide for an exchange of lands **.^^® Two days later the
House Committee made its report accompanied by a bill
*' to, provide for the removal of the Indian tribes *\^^'' The
two bills were practically the same; and since the Senate
bill was passed first the Committee of the Whole in the
lower house substituted it for the original House bill.^^®
The fact could not long be concealed from the Whigs that
the leaders of the Democrats were making the bill a party
measure and that the friends of the Administration were
pledged to support it.^^® Jackson had issued his pronuncia-
mento : the Indians must be removed. That fact was reason
enough for the Jacksonian Democrats to vote aye. And the
votes of most States Eights Democrats might certainly be
relied upon in this affair.
The crux of the subject was contained in the second sec-
tion of the bill. It empowered the President to exchange
any lands occupied by Indian nations within the boundaries
of a State or Territory for lands beyond the Mississippi.^^^
11* /ottmol of Senate, Ist Sessioiiy 21et CongresB, p. 23.
116 Journal of the House of Bepresentatives, Ist Session, 2l8t Congress, p. 30.
lis Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 2l8t Congress, Appendix, p. 91. Senate
Documents, No. 61.
117 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 2l8t Congress, p. 581.
118 Journal of the House, 1st Session, 21st Congress, pp. 570, 648. The House
asked the President for estimates of the expense of removing and supporting
the Indians west of the Mississippi. — House Documents, No. 91.
ii9Niles' Weekly Begister, Vol XXXVni, p. 402.
120 Niles' Weekly Begister, VoL XXXVILI, p. 234.
230 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Not one word of coercion was employed. To all outward
appearances the act called for voluntary removal. But the
friends of the Lidian read between the lines and found there
extortion, force, and heartlessness.^^^ For if the bill be-
came law, would not its executor be the hero of the Seminole
Indian Wart
The philanthropists of the East were now fully aware
that the crisis in Lidians affairs was reached and about to
be passed. The rise or fall of the Administration 's Indian
policy was to be determined by the vote on Senator White *8
bill. And if at first there was any doubt as to what this
policy was, that doubt had entirely vanished on the appear-
ance of the bill. Churches and benevolent societies, colleges
and villages began to frame protesting petitions by the
score.^^ The ''friends of the Indians'' had studied the
able articles of Jeremiah Evarts appearing in the National
Intelligencer under the name of WiUiam Penn. ''Cursed
be he, that removeth his neighbor's landmark. . . .
Cursed be he that maketh the blind to wander out of the
way ' ', exclaimed this devoted idealist ; and the New England
people said "Amen".^^^
As the Opposition were convinced that the inherent evil
of the bill lay more in the drastic manner with which the
pioneer President would certainly enforce it than in its con-
tents, so the delegations from Georgia, Alabama, and
Mississippi and from the northwestern States saw the In-
dians within their borders disappear before the iron hand
of the President when he should come to apply the second
section. Especially did the Georgia delegation rejoice that
at last legal means for disgorging the Cherokees were in
121 Compare Niles' Weekly Begisier, Vol. XXXVIII, p. 67.
122 Senate Documents, Ist Session, 2l8t Congress, Nos. 56, 66, 73, 74, 76, 77,
et cetera; House Documents, Nos. 253, 254, et cetera.
^i^ Essays on the Present Crisis in the Condition of the American Indians
(Boston: 1829), p. 100.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 231
sight and they thereupon lost no opportunity to maintain
the proposition of States Bights in the debate.^ ^* The case
for Georgia was strong. Who was there but would admit
that such a condition as the erection of an independent In*
dian government within the borders of a State and not un-
der the jurisdiction of the State was not only intolerable but
unconstitutional? Constitutionally there could not be an
imperium in imperio. But what if the Indians resisted the
jurisdiction of civilization? Could there then be a better
solution to the whole problem than to remove them to the
far West — gently if possible, harshly if necessary? In the
Senate the case for removal was tersely stated by Forsyth
of Georgia, White of Tennessee, and McKinley of Ala-
bama.^2*
Not only did these advocates base their argument upon
State Sovereignty, but they also flung wide the doctrine that
removal was in the best interests of the ''ill-fated Indians.'^
Their position had been well canvassed in the conunittee re-
port itself. How can Georgia have a republican form of
government, read this document, unless a majority of the
citizens subscribe to the rules to which all must conform?
The Indians must either submit to State law or they must
remove. The committee apprehended no reason that any of
the States contemplated forcing them to abandon the coun-
try in which they dwelt, should they subject themselves to
the laws of these States. But obstinacy on the part of the
Indians would, the conunittee admitted, result only in
further distress. ^^®
Frelinghuysen of New Jersey replied for the Opposition^
and he was ably supported by Sprague of Maine and Bob-
i2« Begister of Debates, let Sesdon, 2l8t Congress, p. 325 et aeq,
iss Begister of Debates, let Session, 2l8t Congress, pp. 305, 324, 325, 377^
381.
120 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 21st Congress, Appendix, pp. 91-98.
232 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
bins of Bhode Island. ^^^ Their speeches, while maintaining
a dignified reserve, were nevertheless scathing criticisms of
both the doctrine of State Sovereignty and of (Georgia *8 at-
tempt to oust the Indians from their lands. That the claim
of the Cherokees outdated the Constitution was their prin-
cipal contention.
In the end the bill passed the Senate.^^® Webster and
Clayton were among the nineteen who voted in the nega-
tive, although neither spoke at length against the bill.
From the beginning of the session the result had been evi-
dent although the Opposition, small as it was, had been so
persistent as to cause much anxiety to Judge White. On
April 28th, the Chairman expressed his relief in writing to
a friend in these words :
The Bill to provide for a removal of the Indians west of the
Mississippi has finally passed the Senate by a vote of 28 to 19. This
has taken off my mind a burthen which has been oppressive from
the commencement of the session. I hope it may pass the other
House.
Cold as the notice taken of our exertions in the Telegraph is, no
G^rgian nor Tennessean will ever be mortified by hearing the de-
bate spoken of, if truth be told. We had, I think, in the estimation
of all intelligent men, at least as much ascendancy in the argument
as we had in the vote. As good fortune would have it, Judge Over-
ton, Collingsworth, district attorney of West Tennessee, Major
Armstrong, and many others from different quarters, were present,
and know that our side was sustained in a style which gratified our
friends, and mortified our enemies.^'*
While congratulating himself upon the ascendancy of the
Administration's argument. Judge White rejoiced that his
bill had escaped the lime-light of the Webster-Hayne de-
127 Begisier of Debates, Ist Session, 2l8t Congress, pp. 305, 343, 374.
128 Journal of the Senate, Ist Session, 21st Congress, p. 268.
i2» Scott 's Memoir of Hugh Lawson White, p. 270. The newspaper referred
to, the Telegraph, was the organ published by Duff Qreen in the interests of
Calhoun.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 233
bate. In the lower house, on the other hand, he had more
to fear. Here the opposition was to be more intense. The
sharp discussion was such as might be expected from a
party measure. On May 13th the debate began in the Com-
mittee of the Whole.^^® Bell of Tennessee, Lumpkin,
Wayne, and Wilde of Georgia contended with Bates of
Massachusetts, Edward Everett of Massachusetts, Storrs
and Judge Spencer of New York, and Evans of Maine.
Storrs in a logical speech pointed out the usurpation
of the President when he refused protection to the Cher-
okee nation from the Georgia laws of 1828.*^^ By this
action, Storrs maintained, the President had (without
consulting Congress) not only admitted the sovereignty
of the State of Georgia, but also virtually nullified the Fed-
eral intercourse laws and denied the validity of Indian
treaties solemnly ratified by the Senate. The Executive has
no power, declared Storrs, to abrogate treaties *'by an or-
der in council '^ or to *'give the force of law to an executive
proclamation.'^
Everett adroitly confronted the argument that removal
would improve the condition of Georgia Indians by an em-
barrassing question. What benefit would accrue to the al-
ready civilized Cherokees to be driven from '* their houses^
their farms, their schools and churches * * to lead a wander-
ing and savage life in the wilderness t^*^ He produced evi-
dence to show the advanced stage of civilization attained by
the Cherokees, and attempted to prove that the Choctaws
and Chickasaws were not far behind them. Wilde of
Georgia answered Everett with an argument similar to that
displayed in the report of the Senate committee. He main-
tained that Georgia would not object to permitting the
180 Begister of Debates, Ist Seedon, 21st Congross, p. 988.
jsi Begister of Debates, lit Session, 2l8t Congress, p. 1000.
182 Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 21st Congress, p. 1060.
VOL. IX — 17
234 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Cherokees to remain and occupy such land as they could
cultivate, provided they submitted '*in obedience to our
laws, like other citizens/ *^^* But what right had the Cher-
okees under the present conditions to impede progress by
refusing their lands for settlement? K five-sixths of the
Cherokee lands in Georgia were ceded there would yet re-
main one thousand acres to every Lidian family. Foster of
Georgia further expanded the idea of the Indian obstruction
to the progress of civilization.^ ** They possessed, he main-
tained, no national sovereignty: their title to lands was
based strictly on occupancy. So far he did not exceed the
opinion of the Supreme Court delivered by Justice Marshall
in the case of Johnson vs. McLitosh.^^*^ But since that court
declined to ' * enter into the controversy, whether agricultur-
ists, merchants, and manufacturers, have a right, on ab-
stract principles, to expel hunters from the territory they
possessed, or to contract their limits*' it was necessary for
the Georgia Representative to outdistance the Federal Ju-
diciary when he proceeded to the last conclusions of his ar-
gument, namely : the Lidians had no rightful claim upon the
vacant lands surrounding them. And to the support of this
conclusion Foster called no less an authority than the late
President himself. Three decades before Adams, in an ora-
tion delivered at the Anniversary of the Landing of the Pil-
grims, had given the clearest expressions on this moral
question, when he said :
The Indian right of possession itself stands with regard to the
greatest part of the country, upon a questionable foundation. Their
cultivated fields; their constructed habitations; a space of ample
sufficiency for their subsistence, and whatever they had amiexed
to themselves by personal labor, was undoubtedly by the laws of
li^Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 21st Congress, p. 1095.
is^Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 2l8t Congress, p. 1030 et seq,
185 8 Wheaton 543.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 235
nature theirs. But what is the right of a huntsman to the forest of
a thousand miles over which he has accidentally ranged in quest of
prey t Shall the liberal bounties of Providence to the race of man
be monopolized by one of ten thousand for whom they were cre-
ated? Shall the exuberant bosom of the common mother, amply
adequate to the nourishment of millions, be claimed exclusively by
a few hundreds of her offspring! Shall the lordly savage not only
disdain the virtues and enjoyments of civilization himself, but shall
he controul the civilization of a world t Shall he forbid the wilder-
ness to blossom like the roset . . . No, generous philanthro-
pists! Heaven has not been thus inconsistent in the works of its
hands ! Heaven has not thus placed at irreconcileable strife, its mor-
al laws with its physical creation.^**
All the debates for the last score of years had never ex-
hibited a more beautiful argument for Indian expulsion.
Was the contempt of Georgia for the Cherokees better ex-
pressed than by the words, *' lordly savages*'? Should the
'^Uberal bounties of Providence ''— one-third of the fair
Georgia — be conferred upon a meagre Indian population,
while civilization chafed in constrained limits t And should
philanthropists forbid the wilderness to blossom Uke the
rose t No, generous philanthropists !
Throwing sarcasm to the winds Foster's speech discussed
the question from the broadest view-point. No matter how
much his opponents might yearn to prove that ' ' the superior
title of civilization" could never override the original
claims of the natives, few were so bold as to attempt this
impossible argument. Evans, however, did declare that civ-
ilization should never demand that savages give space until
its borders were full to over-flowing — which certainly was
not the case in Georgia nor in the Middle West.^^^
But the fate of the bill was to be decided by party votes
and not by argument. On the 18th of May the Conmiittee of
199 An Oration Delivered at Plymouth, December gg, 180(8 (Boston: 1802),
p. 23 ; Register of Debates, Iflt Session, 21st Congress, p. 1031.
187 Register of Debates^ Ist Session, 21st Congress, p. 1043.
236 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
the Whole House reported the Senate bill with amendments.
These were accepted, and on the 26th the bill passed by a
vote of 103 to 97 and returned to the Senate.^ ^ For the
minority, defeated by six votes, there was nothing left but
to ''record the exposure of perfidy and tyranny of which
the Indians are to be made the victims, and to leave the pun>
ishment of it to Heaven '^ Adams furiously wrote in his
diary.* ^®
On the same day the amendments from the House were
considered in the Senate. In the upper chamber the attitude
was plainly intolerant of further discussion. Prompt con-
currence in the relatively unimportant amendments was the
ruling sentiment. But Frelinghuysen seized this last oppor-
tunity to move an amendment providing that all tribes
should be protected from State encroachment until they
chose to remove.**® It was voted down. Another amend-
ment by Sprague to the effect that all existing treaties
should be executed according to the original intent was
promptly rejected. Likewise was Clayton *s proposal that
the act extend only to the Georgia Indians.*** The Senate
thereupon concurred in the House amendments. The Presi-
dent attached his signature on the 28th of May, and the bill
facilitating Executive expulsion of Indians from the South
and Middle West became a law.**^
Such was the victory of the removal scheme under the
leadership of Jackson. The project long entertained by Jef-
ferson, Monroe, Calhoun, and Barbour was at last consum-
mated by a short act of eight briefly worded sections. As a
measure to relieve the frontier of its encumbering Lidian
188 Begister of Debates, Ist Seesion, 2l8t Congreas, p. 1135.
i8» Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VIII, p. 206. The speeches m this
debate were collected into book form and published at Boston in 1830.
1*0 Journal of the Senate, Ist Session, 21st Congress, p. 328.
141 Journal of the Senate, Ist Session, 21st Congress, p. 329.
1*2 United States Statutes at Large, Vol. IV, p. 411.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 237
population it was all that might be asked; for it granted
carte hlanche to an energetic President — himself a man of
the frontier. And no one doubted how he would use his
newly granted power.^** But as a measure to promote the
civilization of the removed aborigines it was an engine of
destruction. The Indian Territory of Monroe, Calhoun, and
Barbour had crumbled into dust.
In despair the Cherokee delegation at Washington came
to Webster and Freylinghuysen for personal advice: they
were counselled to expect no relief from the legislature.
Their last resource, said their counsellors and friends, lay
in petitioning the Supreme Court. And this advice they ac-
cepted.^**
With the appeal of the Cherokees to the judicial depart-
ment the problem concerning the removal of this nation
passed for a time from legislative consideration. The
Cherokee question, indeed the question of removal of all
tribes, as far as Congress was concerned, was settled by the
act of May 28, 1830. Whether the Judicial Department
would decide against the removal of the Cherokees and
whether the Executive would enforce any such decision if it
were rendered were questions outside of legislative com-
petence.
AN INDIAN TEBBITOBY IN THE WEST
The inadequacy of the Act of 1830 in disposing of the In-
dians after they had emigrated beyond the Mississippi was
148 In 1836 John Bosi, the principal chief of the Cherokees, in a memorial to
Congress, said concerning the act of May, 1830: "That law, though not so de-
signed by Congress, has been the source from which much of the Cherokee suf-
ferings have come." — Executive Documents, 1st Session, 24th Congress, No.
266, p. 9.
For an account of how Jackson used his power, see Abel's Indian Consolida-
tion in the Annual Beport of the American HistoriccU Association, 1906, Vol. I,
p. 381 et seq,
1** Kennedy's Memoirs of the Life of WiOiam Wirt, Vol. U, p. 254.
238 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
apparent to even the uninterested. The friends of the Li-
dians confidently expected more congressional action, and
the several years following were full of proposals of all
sorts.^*** Even before the birth of the act of 1830 Secretary
Eaton had recommended the establishment of an Lidian
Territory in his first report of December, 1829.^*® But the
emphasis of the Executive had been so emphatically upon
removal that the complete program of the Government had
been overlooked.
By 1832 the confusion of Lidian affairs in the West could
scarcely be further overlooked. Congress resorted to the
expedient of providing a commission to examine the appor-
tioning of tribes to lands in the West and to arrange the
quarrels among the various tribes. To these duties was also
added that of preparing a plan for Lidian improvement and
government.^*'' Li short the conunission was to devise a so-
lution of the whole matter.
By this time had occurred the resignation of Jackson's
first cabinet. Lewis Cass who had interpreted the Presi-
dent's Lidian policy in 1830 now succeeded Eaton as Secre-
tary of War. Cass already had his solution in mind. Eight-
een years of governing both the settlers and Lidians of
Michigan Territory had convinced him that the visions of
Calhoun and Barbour of an Lidian State were as vain as the
tower of Babel.^*® Li his first report as Secretary he
145 The Reverend Isaac McCoy, a Baptist missionary to the western Indians,
commenced in 1835 the publication of an Annual Begister of Indian A fairs as
an organ for advocating reform. McCoy's plan embraced the establishment of
an Indian Territory.
Among other plans from different sources, should be noticed that proposing
the assignment in severalty of lands belonging to the emigrating tribes. —
Senate Documents, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, No. 425.
i4« Register of Debates, 1st Session, 2l8t Congress, Appendix, p. 28.
i*T United States Statutes at Large, Vol. IV, p. 595.
i« For eighteen years, 1813-1831, Cass was Governor of Michigan Territory.
The Qovemor was also Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Territory. In
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 239
summed up his conclusions in regard to the proper regula-
tion of the Indians who had emigrated.^^^ Laying down as
his first proposals the platitudes that the reservations in the
West should be permanent, that whiskey should never be
sold within the reservations, and that military forces should
preserve peace on the borders, he proceeded to establish the
proposition that the ownership in severalty of property and
the pursuit of agriculture should be encouraged, although
the pecuUar tribal relations and institutions of the Indians
should not be disturbed. These practical considerations of
Indian conditions quite discredited any idea of an Indian
State as idealistic and visionary. Coming as they did from
one so well versed in frontier affairs as was Secretary Cass
they carried more than ordinary conviction. In spite of
many plans of the next few years they remained substan-
tially the policy of the Government for almost half a cen-
tury.
The proposals made by the Commissioners- of 1832 de-
serve, on the other hand, some attention. Their long await-
ed report was ready in the first session of the Twenty-third
Congress. The remedy proposed therein was a Territorial
government for the Indians.^^ On May 20, 1834, these pro-
posals took concrete form when Horace Everett of Vermont,
from the House Committee on Indian Affairs, reported
three bills — the work of the Comomission. One bill assayed
to reorganize the whole Department of Indian Affairs;
one to regulate trade and intercourse with the Indians;
this office the sucoeeB of Cass as guardian of the Indians is highly praised. —
McLaughlin's Lewis Cass, p. 131.
^*9 Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 22nd Congress, Appendix, p. 14. In
1838, Hugh L. White, who from the year 1828 to 1840 was chairman of the
Senate Committee on Indian Affairs reported to the Senate that the assign-
ment of Indian lands in severalty was unwise. — Senate Documents, 2nd Session^
25th Congress, No. 425.
^^0 Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 23rd Congress, Appendix, p. 10.
240 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
and the third to establish a Western Territory for the
Indians.^ **^
The Trade and Literconrse Bill defined the * ' Indian conn-
try *' as that part of the United States west of the Mississip-
pi and not within the States of Missouri and Louisiana,
or the Territory of Arkansas, and also all lands east of the
Mississippi to which the Indian title had not been extin-
guished. Over this country it extended regulations similar
to the Trade and Intercourse Law of 1802 providing that
traders should be licensed, that intruders and settlers should
be removed by miUtary force, and that the country west of
the Mississippi for legal purposes should be attached, part
to the Territory of Arkansas and part to the judicial district
of Missouri. The first two bills passed both houses, al-
though late in the session, and were presented to the Presi-
dent upon the last day.^***
The third bill — the only really new feature of the Com-
missioners ' work — met instant opposition in the House and
was tabled.^*^^ It proposed to establish a Western Territory
for the Indians (who should be organized into a confedera-
tion of tribes) which should enjoy the right of a Delegate to
Congress. Ultimate admission as a State might be the log-
ical outcome of this arrangement. Congress was not ready
for any such solution nor were the western members willing
to block the expansion of the West by a permanent Indian
Territory such as the bill proposed. The excuse for tabling,
and undoubtedly the chief reason for the moment, was lack
of time for discussion.^"
iBi Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 23rd Congress, p. 4200. Everett ac-
companied the bills hj a scholarly report of his own composition. — See Beports
of Committees, Vol. IV, No. 474.
162 Journal of the House, let Session, 23rd Congress, pp. 852, 911, 912, 915,
916; United States Statutes at Large, VoL IV, pp. 729, 735.
lis Journal of the House of Bepresentatives, Ist Session, 23rd Congress, p.
834; Begister of Debates, p. 4779.
iB^Note Archer's speech. — Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 23rd Congress,
p. 4775. NUes' Weekly Begister, Vol. XLVI, p. 317.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 241
For several sessions following this first attempt Everett
and Senator John Tipton of Indiana introduced bills for an
Indian Territory. All failed to become law, although Tip-
ton 's bill actually passed the Senate in two succeeding ses-
sions.^^
The Executive stimulus to removal having been so ef-
fective, what now were the Executive plans in regard to civ-
ilization of the Indians in their new homes f Naturally one
turns to Jackson. In the annual message of 1829 which pre-
ceded the train of debates leading up to the act of May,
1830, Jackson distinctly suggested the plan of separate
tribal governments on allotted lands in the West, with
enough supervision on the part of the United States to pre-
serve peace and to protect the Indians from intruders.^*^^
Jackson evidently gave no favor to the Utopian proposals
for a united Indian State, although his message of De-
cember 3, 1833, indicates a disposition open to conviction on
this subject since he tells Congress that he awaits the report
155 In February, 1835, Everett's bill was taken from the table, half-heartedly
debated, and then dropped. — Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 23rd Congress,
pp. 1445, 1462. On February 19, 1836, Everett reported for the second time a
bill. — Journal of the House of Bepresentativee, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p.
369. Again in 1837 he reported a third bill. — Journal of the House of Bepre-
sentatives, 2nd Session, 24th Congress, p. 325. His fourth bill was introduced
in the year 1838. — Journal of the House of Bepresentatives, 2nd Session, 25th
Congress, p. 330.
In the session of 1835-1836, Tipton introduced a bill supplementary to the
removal act of May, 1830. This bill omitted many details contained in the
House bill, outlining a more general plan. An amiable report accompanied it.
— Senate Documents, No. 246 ; Annual Begister of Indian A fairs, 1837, p. 71.
The bill failed. — Joumai of the Senate, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 220. In
the next session Tipton's bill was again introduced. — Joumai of the Senate,
2nd Session, 24th Congress, p. 31.
Again in 1838 Tipton introduced another bill. — Joumai of the Senate, 2nd
Session, 25th Congress, pp. 367, 385. This bill passed the Senate, but failed in
the House. Again, being introduced in the next session, the Senate passed the
bill, but it never came to a vote in the House. — Journal of the Senate, 3rd
Session, 25th Congress, pp. 35, 272.
^^^ Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 21st Congress, Appendix, p. 16.
• •
242 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
and recommendations of the Commissioners then examining
western affairs.^*^^ It is difficult to see how this Commission
could mnch enlighten the President. His detailed knowl-
edge of Indian affairs and Indian nature has ever been a
matter of fame. Be that as it may, the President desired
some definite system of government. As to what this should
be the awkward phrases of his message of December 7, 1835,
indicate some vagueness on his part.^^ To regulate the In-
dian affairs of the far West from Washington was a difficult
matter. But the real need of the emigrant Indians was un-
doubtedly protection and competent supervision by honest
government agents resident among the tribes rather than
any scheme of united Territorial government. If all Indian
Agents in the West had been men of Jackson's type order
would have been created out of chaos and the bitter criti-
cisms of Calhoun would have been unfounded.^**
While the Government was faltering in the choice of an
Indian policy, projects from all sides were never lacking.
Horace Everett in the House desired a western Territory
and perhaps its future admission as a State. Similar but
less definite views were championed in the Senate by Tipton
of Indiana. The Reverend Mr. McCoy was ever urging a
definite system of colonization and intertribal government;
while Forsyth of Georgia presented a plan by which all In-
dians should become citizens in the year 1900.^®^ But the
problem was so baffling, the previous efforts at civilization
so often discouraging, that Senator Bobbins might well ex-
claim : * * HI fated Indians I barbarism and attempts at civi-
i«T Begister of Debates, let Session, 23rd Congress, Appendix, p. 6.
168 Begister of Dehates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, Appendix, p. 10.
ISO Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 1459.
i«o Annual Begister of Indian A fairs, 1838 ; Executive Documents, 2nd Ses-
sion, 25th Congress, pp. 566, 579; Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 21st Con-
gress, p. 327.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 243
lization are alike fatal to your rights ; but attempts at civi-
lization the more fatal of the two/*^®^
The administration of Van Bnren was a wet blanket to all
proposals for an Indian government. Not that the Presi-
dent was hostile to an Indian Territory, for he continually
reminded Congress of the need therefor.^®^ But neither
Van Buren nor his immediate advisers were interested to
the extent of making definite recommendations. Tacitly the
bills of Everett and Tipton had the Administration support ;
but curiously enough they were opposed by Benton as well
as by Calhoun, while Clay never loaned his eloquence to
their cause. Why should the most talented champions of
Indian rights hold themselves aloof f The probable con-
jecture is that both Clay and Calhoun considered the project
futile.
The year 1839 was not the end of proposals for an Indian
government. Individual schemes were often projected, but
never again did any bill similar to Tipton *s or to Everett 's
pass either branch of Congress.^^
INDIAN WABS OF THB DBOADB 1830-1840
It was soon after the termination of the Seminole Indian
War that Congress reduced the army of the United States
to six thousand men. This was during the session of 1820-
1821. Clay, who was ever an advocate of the employment
of militia in preference to a standing army, led the senti-
ment in favor of reduction.^®* A desire on the part of Dem-
ocratic members to retrench public expenditures induced
i«i Begisier of Debates, let Session, 21flt Congress, p. 377.
^^^ Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 7; also 3rd Session,
25th Congress, p. 7.
163 For the later history of these efforts, see Abel's Proposals for ar^ Indian
State in the Annual Beport of the American Historical Association, 1907, Vol.
I, p. 99 et seq.
19* Annals of Congress, 1st Session, 16th Congress, p. 2233.
244 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Hiem to follow Clay. The proposal was quite ruiopposed.
Floyd of Virginia, who for two sessions had been advo-
<5ating the military occupation of Oregon, spoke for the re-
duction bill.^®* Even western members declared that a
small army was sufficient for the protection of the frontier
if supported by the local militia.
Trimble of Kentucky went into an elaborate discussion
to show that the line of forts from Michilimackinack to New
Orleans formed a ** cordon*' of sufficient strength for the pi-
oneers and was far superior to the protection of the frontier
in the year 1802. He claimed that the pioneer settlements
now were stronger than those in the early days of the cen-
tury, and that the Indians of the West had become less
numerous and less warlike.^*® Cannon of Tennessee could
not refrain from delivering a eulogium upon the superiority
of militia organized from the ** hardy sons of the West".^®^
Such argument cannot but raise the suspicion that west-
erners were better pleased to execute the Indian trade and
intercourse laws with their own hands than to submit to the
more impartial supervision of regular army officers. As it
was the bill passed both houses with large majorities.^®®
As if to further relax the Government's control on the
frontier, the factory system was abolished the next year.
This department had been established in 1796 upon the
recommendation of Washington. Its object was to counter-
act the influence of Canadian fur traders and to control and
protect the Indians by maintaining trading posts where the
Indians might exchange their furs for goods at cost.^®*
i^^ Annals of Congress, 2nd Session, 16th Congress, p. 891.
iMAnnaU of Congress, 2nd Session, 16th Congress, p. 879.
167 Annals of Congress, 2nd Session, 16th Congress, p. 136.
^99 Annals of Congress, 2nd Session, 16th Congress, pp. 936, 379; Niles'
Weekly Begister, Vol. XXII, p. 75.
160 Bichardson 's Messages and Papers of the Presidents, Vol. I, p. 185.
Benton's Thirty Years' View, Vol. I, p. 21.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 245
The move against the department was by Benton. He ac-^
cused the factors of * * scandalous abuse ' ', and characterized
the system as a means **to make the West purchase from
the East ' '. Benton proposed that the trade be left entirely
in private hands.^^® His bill passed both houses, provok-
ing debate in neither, save a most violent speech by a Ken^
tucky representative who proposed to repeal all acts at-
tempting to civilize the Indians.^^^
In Congress little attention was thereafter given^ to de-
fenses of the northwestern frontier. Nor was there any
great need of such defenses since peaceful conditions on
the whole prevailed until the breaking out of the episode-
known as the Black Hawk War.^^^ Hostilities began in
the summer of 1831. In the following session of Congress,
the condition of the Northwest received consideration and
was the occasion of several eulogiums on behalf of the west-
em people by western Congressmen. Senator Tipton of
Indiana declared that the pioneers could not be blamed if
they exterminated all the Indians from Tippecanoe to the
Mississippi, unless the Government more energetically
undertook the defense of the frontier. He said :
It is our duty, in self-defence, to do this [i. e. exterminate the
Indians] ; and, after it is done, let me not be told, you Western peo-
ple are savag/es; you murdered the poor Indians. Do gentlemen
expect us to beg the lives of our families upon our knees ? . . .
Congress will adjourn in a few days; and when we return to our
people, and tell them that we have done all in our power to procure
men for their defence, and have failed, then, sir, our constituents
know what to do, and upon you, not upon us, be the charge of what
follows; for these wars will be brought to a close in the shortest
possible way."*
170 Annals of Congress, Ist Session, 17th Congress, p. 317 et seq,
^"^^ Annals of Congress, 1st Session, 17th Congress, p. 1801.
172 Por an account of the war, see Stevens's The Black Hawk War,
if^ Register of Debates, 1st Session, 22nd Congress, p. 1075. This was the
same Senator Tipton who later advocated a Western Territory for the Indians^
246 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Again Senator Tipton declared :
We must sweep these people [the Indians] from existence, or
keep them peaceable. ... No one can imagine the distress that
an alarm on the frontier produces, without witnessing it. Those
who are at the point of attack, flee with their families ; those next in
the rear, though more secure, are not safe. No man can leave his
own family to help his neighbor ; and the consequence is, that they
break up and desert their homes, taking little with them, and leave
their property to be pillaged by the dishonest whites, as well as the
Indians.^^*
Senator Alexander Buckner of Missouri expressed **a
deep feeling for the people of Illinois^', which was natural,
for like Benton and Tipton he himself had fought in Indian
wars.^^*
On June 15, 1832, the bill to raise six hundred volunteers
was passed — too late, however, to aid even in the closing
campaign of the Black Hawk War.^^® The whole affair
was reviewed by Jackson in his annual message to Con-
gress in the following December, wherein he urged a more
perfect organization of the militia for the protection of
the western country.^'''' After praising the militia of Illi-
nois and the government troops under Generals Scott and
Atkinson, Jackson did not let pass the opportunity of point-
ing out the moral to be learned by the savages from the de-
feat of Black Hawk. "Severe as is the lesson to the In-
dians," he said, **it was rendered necessary by their un-
provoked aggressions, and it is to be hoped that its impres-
sion will be permanent and salutary." That the Indians
in fact were learning this lesson of civilization might be in-
ferred from another part of the message, where Jackson
was happy to inform Congress * * that the wise and humane
^"r^Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 22nd Congress, p. 1083.
"^f^Begisier of Debates, 1st Session, 22nd Congress, p. 1087.
i7« United States Statutes at Large, Vol. IV, p. 533.
177 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 22nd Congress, Appendix, p. 6.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 247
policy of transferring from the eastern to the western side
of the Mississippi the Remnants of our aboriginal tribes,
with their own consent and upon just terms, has been
steadily pursued, and is approaching, I trust, its con-
summation. ' '
The Black Hawk War was suppressed without any aug-
mentation of the standing army. But the harrowing scenes
of this episode were frequently pictured during the debates
when Benton in the year 1836 proposed an increase of the
army, avowedly for western defense.
In the meantime attention was directed to the South.
Hardly had three years passed after peace in the North-
west, when there broke out one of the most perplexing of
Indian hostilities — the Florida Indian War. For seven
years this conflict continued. The tangled everglades and
swampy wastes of Florida and the persistence of the In-
dians long baffled and delayed the generals and troops of
the United States; and withal some thirty millions of
dollars were expended before the Seminoles were subdued.
To an observer from afar the conduct of the war appeared
bunglesome, its cause unjust, and its ultimate purpose
simply the oppression and the extermination of a gallant
band of exiled Indians. So the opposition to the Adminis-
tration became loud in condemning the war and its manage-
ment.^*^®
Besides the early discussions upon the Florida War in
the session of 1835-1836 other questions of similar nature
were brought before Congress, which gave occasion for a
review of all phases and problems of the question of south-
ern frontier protection. Among these were the demand of
Alabama for the removal of the Creek Indians,^*^® the
178 Benton '8 ThiHy Years' View, Vol. II, p. 70.
nsJourruU of the Senate, 1st SeMion, 24th CongreMy p. 146; Senate Docu-
ments, No. 132.
248 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
threatened hostilities of the Creeks,^®® the memorials pray-
ing the recognition of the independency of Texas,^®^ as well
as the demand from the West for an increase in army pro-
tection.^®*
In regard to the Seminole Indian War it appears that
Congress took prompt action. No matter whether the
cause was jnst or nnjnst, no delay occurred in providing
for the immediate protection of the pioneers from the fury
of the Indians. The first act of the session was an appro-
priation for suppressing the hostiUties of the Seminoles
and was hurriedly passed on January 14, 1836.^®* Two
weeks later the second act of the session was passed, mak-
ing a still larger appropriation.^®* Three days later a reso-
lution was passed authorizing the President to furnish
rations from the public stores to the frontiersmen in Flor-
ida who had been driven from their homes by the depreda-
tions of the Indians.^®*^ All of these measures were adopted
without extended debate — only when the second appropria-
tion was proposed Clay asked the cause of this war which
was raging with such ** rancorous violence within our hoT-
ders".^®® No one could adequately reply. Webster, the
chairman of the finance committee who reported the bill,
avowed that he could not give any answer to the Senator
from Kentucky; but he added impressively: **The war
rages, the enemy is in force, and the accounts of their
ravages are disastrous. The Executive Government has
ISO Begiater of Debates, Ist Sessioiiy 24th CongreaSy p. 2556; NQes' Weekly
Begister, Vol. L, pp. 205, 219, 267, 321.
181 Eegister of Debates, Ist Seesion, 24th CongraeB, pp. 1286, 1414, 1759,
1762, 1877.
1S2 Register of Debates, iBt Session, 24th Congress, p. 3493.
i«8 jjnited States Statutes at Large, Vol. V, p. 1.
i«* United States Statutes at Large, Vol. V, p. 1.
i«» United States Statutes at Large, Vol. V, p. 131.
186 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 290.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 249
asked for the means of suppressing these hostilities ''i
and he conceived it necessary to provide for the imme-
diate protection of Florida. Even the loquacious Ben-
toUy despite the fact that he was in the confidence of the
Administration, confessed his entire ignorance concern-
ing the causes of the war.^®^
Nevertheless, after continued appropriations were de-
manded by the Executive, and a bill to increase the army
was vigorously advocated by its friends, the Opposition
began to inquire earnestly into the cause of this commo-
tion. '*One would have supposed ^^ remarked Clay,
'^that all at once a gallant nation of some millions had
been suddenly precipitated on our frontier, instead of a
few miserable Indians."^®® Yet all the bills providing
for the suppression of the Seminole hostilities which
Jackson *s government asked for were promptly passed.^®*
So also was the bill to provide for ten thousand volun-
teers, Calhoun himself being the manager of the bill on
the part of the Senate in the conferences between the two
houses.^®® But Benton *s proposal to increase the stand-
ing army met disagreement as shall be related below.
To the opponents of the Government's Indian policy
the cause of the Seminole hostilities was clear enough.
Some blamed the pioneers, some the speculators, but all
blamed the Government. Calhoun, for instance, exoner-
ated the pioneers but denounced the frauds of the Indian
Bureau. ^®^ He regretted that the speculators in Indian
lands were not the persons to suffer, instead of the
frontier inhabitants. Indeed, he said, it made his ** heart
i^'r Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 291.
^»»Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 1756.
180 United States Statutes at Large, Vol. V, pp. 1, 8, 17, 33, 65, 131, 135, 152.
100 Journal of the Senate, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 366.
101 Begister of Debates^ Itt Session, 24th Congress, pp. 1459, 1460.
VOL. IX — 18
250 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
bleed to think of the sufferings of the innocent frontier
settlers.'* All these evils were the result of mismanage-
ment. The Indian agents had generally been incapable
or unfaithful. Calhoun continued:
The Qovemment ought to have appointed men of intelligence, of
firmness, and of honor, who would have faithfully fulfilled their
obligations to the United States and to the Indians. Instead of
that, men were sent out to make fortunes for themselves, and to op-
press the Indians. ... If they would appoint honest, faithful^
intelligent men, to transact their business with the Indians, instead
of broken down politicians, men sent out to be rewarded for party
services, these Indian disturbances would soon cease; but unless
that was done, it was apparent that there would be continual dis-
turbances, creating causes for wars, to be followed by a large in-
crease of the standing army.
In the House Mr. Vinton of Ohio expostulated in these
words :
When the cry is sent up here that the people of the frontier are
assailed by Indian hostility, we raise the means of making war upon
them without a moment's delay; we crush them by our superior
power. But we never inquire, while the war is going on, or after it
is ended, into its causes; we make no investigation to learn who
were the instigators of the war, or who was to blame I
told the House there were those on the frontier who had an interest
in exciting Indian wars ; that there were those who disregarded the
rights of the Indians, and were disposed to encroach upon them;
that if we omitted to investigate the causes of these disturbances,
and thus induce those who have an interest in exciting them to
think they can involve us without scrutiny and without exposure, we
should have other Indian wars, in all probability, before the end of
the session. ... If we suffer ourselves to go on in this way, in
three years' time every Indian will be driven by force from every
State and Territory of the Union. In the States and Territories,
wherever they are, they are regarded as an incumbrance, and there
is a strong desire to get them out of the way ; and if we will furnish
the means without inquiry, they will be disposed of. Sir, our
frontier inhabitants know our strength and their weakness ; and if
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 251
we are to stand armed behind them, and let them have their way,
we must expect they will overbear, and encroach upon them. The
Indians with whom we are in contact know full well their weakness
and our power ; and it is hardly credible that they will open a war
upon us except from a strong sense of injury. . . . We ought
to send the immediate means of defending our frontier inhabitants
from massacre and pillage; and it is, in my opinion, our further
duty to set on foot immediately an investigation into the cause of
these disturbances ; and if we are in the wrong, we ought instantly
to send commissioners to offer them reparation and do them justice.
When we look at the contrast, and see how weak and defenceless
they are, and how strong and mighty we are, the character of the
House, the honor of the country, and the feelings of the world, call
upon us to pursue this course toward them.^"
Edward Everett summed up the causes of the Florida
War to be the efforts of the whites to capture negro slaves
among the Seminoles and to vnrest from these Indians
their lands per fas aut nefas.^^^ But of all the speeches
the most widely noted denunciation of the war was made
by Everett's colleague, Adams the ex-President.^** The
inoLmediate occasion for Adams's speech was a joint reso-
lution from the Senate authorizing the President to dis-
tribute rations to the suffering frontiersmen in Alabama
and Georgia as had been done to the sufferers in Florida.^**^
Although stating that he should vote for the resolution
because of his sympathy for the sufferers, Adams main-
tained that **mere conuniseration, though one of the most
amiable impulses of our nature, gives us no power to
drain the Treasury of the people for the relief of the suf-
fering".^®® After an irrelevant discourse in which the
182 Begtster of Debates, let SeBsion, 24th Congress, p. 3767.
^93Begi8ter of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 4158.
i9*Niles* Weekly Begister, Vol. L, p. 276; Memoirs of John Quincy Adams,
Vol. IX, pp. 290, 298.
195 Begtster of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 4032.
i^^Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress^ p. 4037.
252 IOWA JOUKNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
venerable statesman detected the curse of slavery in
frontier disturbanoeSi he concluded his discourse by
charging the cause of the Seminole War to the injustice
of the present Administration. All preceding Adminis-
trationSy he claimed, had sought to civilize the Indians
and attach them to the soil upon which they lived. But
this humane poUcy was now abandoned.
Instead of it you have adopted that of expelling by force or by
compact all the Indian tribes from their own territories and dwell-
ings to a region beyond the Mississippi^ beyond the Missouri, be-
yond the Arkansas, bordering upon Mexico ; and there you have de-
luded them with the hope that they will find a permanent abode —
a final resting-place from your never-ending rapacity and persecu-
tion. ... In the process of this violent and heartless operation
you have met with all the resistance which men in so helpless a con-
dition as that of the Indian tribes could make. Of the immediate
causes of the war we are not yet fully informed ; but I fear you will
find them, like the remoter causes, all attributable to yourselves.^*^
Toward the end of the session a surprising memorial
was presented to Congress from citizens resident at the
seat of the Creek and Seminole hostilities, i. e. Eastern
Alabama and Georgia.^®® These memorialists represent-
ed that the Indian disturbances were ** caused by individ-
uals jointly associated under the name of land companies,
whose proceedings and contracts were of the most ne-
farious character." The memorialists prayed that an in-
vestigation be instituted, and intimated that it would be
found that **the press of that country is entirely under
the control of these heartless agitators, and that, through
bribery and corruption, all channels of information to the
public and to the Government on this subject are closed."
Lewis of Alabama moved that the investigation be
placed in the hands of the President with power to prose-
197 Begister of Debates, 1ft Session, 24th Congress, p. 4049.
i9BBegi8ter of Dehtxtes, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 4578.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 253
cute the guilty persons if any might be apprehended.
Wise of Virginia, Adams of Massachusetts, and Peyton
of Tennessee sprang to the opposition. The Virginian
moved to amend by selecting a committee of the House to
investigate. Executive officers, he claimed, were impli-
cated in the charges and to refer the matter to the Presi-
dent would **have the effect to cover up these frauds, in-
stead of exposing them."^®* After a hot debate, in which
Peyton likened Andrew Jackson to Warren Hastings and
dubbed all Indian agents as *' petty tyrants*' engaged in
plundering the savages and ''then aiding and encourag-
ing them to make war upon your defenseless frontier'',
the amendment proposed by Wise was rejected and the
motion of Lewis passed by so many ayes that the noes
were not even counted.*^®
The last annual message of Jackson in December, 1836,
called for further appropriations to subdue the Seminoles
and Creeks and urged an increase of the regular army as
well as a reorganization of the militia.*®^ The appropria-
tions were supplied by Congress, but not the increase in
the standing army.^®^ In the following December his
successor, perforce, repeated similar recommendations not
only for the increase of the regular army but also to
continue suppressing the Seminole hostilities.^^* Al-
ready the members of Congress who had voted for the
early appropriations merely in the hope that immediate
aid would quiet the disturbances on the frontier were
much provoked because of the never-ending campaigns.
Webster mildly advised more deliberation in expendi-
199 Begister of Debates, Ist SesBion, 24th Congress, p. 4583.
200 Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congress, pp. 4597, 4604.
^oiBegister of Debates, 2nd Session, 24th Congress, Appendix, p. 8.
202 United States Statutes at Large, Vol. V, pp. 135, 152.
toi Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 6. Also Appendix,
p. 3.
254 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
tnres.*®* Twenty million dollars had been expended, he
said, and little accomplished. Before greater appropria-
tions were voted the whole matter should receive a thor-
ough investigation. Preston of South Carolina also de-
manded an investigation.^*^ And Senator Southard of
New Jersey brought serious charges to the door of the
Administration by maintaining that **a fraud was com-
mitted upon the Florida Indians in the treaty negotiated
with them for their removal to the West; that the war
which has ensued was the consequence of this fraud; and
that our Government was responsible to the moral sense of
the community, and of the world, for all the blood that has
been shed, and for all the money that has been expended,
in the prosecution of this war.*^°®
These pleas for investigation called down a torrent of
abuse and wrath. Benton replied to Southard in a
trenchant speech, the burden of which was a condemna-
tion of ^Hhe mawkish sentimentaUty of the day ... .
a sentimentaUty which goes moping and sorrowing about
in behalf of imaginary wrongs to Lidians and negroes,
while the whites themselves are the subject of murder,
robbery and defamation. ^^^^^ Clay of Alabama replied to
Webster and Preston in a harangue quivering with in-
vective heaped upon philanthropists who assayed **to
take care of the national honor I "^^^ Other arguments
followed depicting the depraved condition of the Indians,
and therefore their lack of rights. Indeed, almost all of
the arguments in the entire Seminole War debates con-
sisted largely of vivid defenses of pioneer character, and
204 Congressional Olobe, 2nd Sesgion, 25th Congren, Appendix, p. 373.
205 CongressioncH Olohe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, Appendix, p. 373.
206 Congressional Olobe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, Appendix, p. 353.
207 Congressional Olohe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, Appendix, p. 354.
208 Congressional Olobe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, Appendix, p. 376.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 255
philippics against the American aborigines, enlivened
with bloody descriptions of the scalping knife and toma-
hawk.
The following words from the remarks of Towns of
Georgia well illustrate the tone of these debates :
Every mail from Georgia tells me the story of death ; butcheries
the most revolting are perpetrated every day in the borders of Ala-
bama, and on the frontiers of Georgia. . . . One scene of wide-
spread desolation alone is to be seen in that quarter, where but a
short time since there was peace, quiet, and prosperity. And such,
sir, has been the imparalleled devastation of property and life, that
there is scarcely a human being to be seen in all that country, unless
it be the merciless foe, or some unfortunate settler flying from the
tomahawk and scalping-knife. So sudden has been this war, when
the Indian was ready to deal out death in all its horrors, few, if
any, were prepared to give the slightest resistance; unprotected
with arms or ammunition, the honest settler of the country felt it to
be his first duty to yield to the entreaties of wife and children, to fly
for safety ; and the melancholy story but too often reaches us, when
thus flying, that many of them have fallen victims to the most cruel
of all deaths, the scalping-knife and tomahawk.'®^
Alf ord of Georgia declared that when he heard appeals
for justice to the Seminole Indians his mind ** reverted to
his own people, who deserved the sympathy of the House
more than the savage Indian. '^^^^ Richard M. Johnson of
Kentucky pictured southern rivers as deluged **with the
blood of innocence", and that Florida lay bleeding ** un-
der the hand of savage barbarity. '^^^^ Mr. Jonathan
Cilley of Maine declaimed as follows :
My blood thrills in my veins to hear the conduct of faithless and
murderous Indians lauded to the skies, and our sympathies invoked
in their behalf, while in the same breath our own government and
its most distinguished citizens are traduced and villified to the low-
209 Begister of Debates, let Session, 24fth Congress, p. 4034.
210 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 24th Congress, p. 1559.
211 Begister of Debates, lot Session, 24th Congress, p. 2725.
256 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
est degree. ... I hope gentlemen^ whose sensibilities are now
so much enlisted in the conditions of the Seminoles and Cherokees,
now in Florida and Georgia, will not forget how their own fore
fathers .... when they were a frontier people ....
dealt with similar enemies.*^
In a fiery harangue Mr. Bynum of North Carolina
asked :
What are our obligations to protect the exposed inhabitants of
that Territory [Florida] t Surely all that is sacred ....
should prompt us to a speedy and determined resolution not only to
defend, but reserve that Territory at every hazard ....
from the blood-stained hands of these unrelenting savages. Gentle-
men surely could not be in earnest to talk of peace, until these
bloody, perfidious, treacherous devils were whipped.*^*
Peyton of Tennessee, replying to Adams of Massachu-
setts, said: '^That gentleman does not know, living, as he
does, far from such scenes, the vivid feeling of Southern
and Western men, when they see hostile savages hovering
around their villages, and lying in ambush, to murder the
old and the young ".^^^
Thus, figuratively speaking, with brandishing of toma-
hawk and scalping knife bill after bill appropriating mon-
ey for the suppression of Seminole hostilities was passed.
The reactions of Jackson's Indian policy fell upon his
successor. Throughout the whole of Van Buren's term,
the Seminole hostiUties raged in Florida, and the conduct
of the warfare was constantly used by the Opposition in
Congress as a weak point for attacking the Administra-
tion. At last Benton in 1839, after consultation with his
Administration friends, proposed a plan for the ultimate
2i« Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, Appendix, pp. 78, 79.
218 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, Appendix, p. 75.
21* Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 3520.
These speeches may be compared with such current pamphlets as the Nar-
raiive of the Massacre, by the Savages, of the Wife and Children of Thomas
Baldwin (New York: 1836).
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 257
suppression of these long-drawn-out hostilities.^" Fed-
eral encouragement to the pioneers was the basis of Ben-
ton's scheme. Settlers were to be emboldened to brave the
dangers of Florida settlement by free grants of land, and
ammunition, and provisions for one year. Into the de-
fense of this measure Benton flung himself with his char-
acteristic vigor, calling upon the North not to begrudge
generous treatment to Southern pioneers since it was by
armed occupation only that the treacherous lands of Flor-
ida might ever be settled.^ ^®
That the pioneers should possess the wilderness was
Benton's pet axiom. ** Every inch of territory on this
continent, now occupied by white people,** he exclaimed,
^'was taken from the Indians by armed settlers and pre-
emptions and donations of land have forever rewarded
the bold settlers who rendered this service to the civiliza-
tion of the world. • • • The blockhouse, the stockade,
the rifle, have taken the country, and held it, from the
shores of the Atlantic to the far West; and in every in-
stance grants of land have rewarded the courage and en-
terprise of the bold pioneer. '^^^^ Armed settlement was
ever the true course of pioneer progress in America.
** Cultivation and defense then goes hand in hand. The
heart of the Indian sickens when he hears the crowing of
the cock, the barking of the dog, the sound of the axe, and
the crack of the rifle. These are the true evidences of the
dominion of the white man; these are the proof that the
owner has come, and means to stay ; and then they feel it
to be time for them to go.*^^® The story of the recession
218 jViZc«' Weekly Begister, Vol. LV, p. 314; Benton's Thirty Years' View,
Vol. II, p. 167, et seq.; Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 25th Oongreas, p. 89.
2^^ Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 25th Congress, Appendix, p. 165.
217 Congressional Globe, 3rd Bession, 25th Congress, Appendix, p. 163.
218 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 26th Congress, Appendix, p. 73.
258 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
of the Lidians before the pioneers as told by Benton
(himself a pioneer) thrills with a shuddering coldness;
but its truth can not be gainsaid.
Both Clay and Webster, as might be expected, opposed
Benton 's bill for armed occupation and free grants — but
unsuccessfully in the Senate.^ ^® Li the lower house the
bill was lost.220
Among those who voted against the bill in the House
was Joshua R. Giddings, who later leaped into prominence
by his vehement speech in opposition to a bill proposed by
Thompson of South Carolina. Thompson's bill provided
for the removal of the Seminoles to the West.^^^ Giddings
chose the subject of the Seminole War not so much to de-
fend the Lidians as to attack the institution of slavery, and
in his speech of February 8, 1841, he assigned as the causes
of the Florida War the attempts of slave-hunters to capture
fugitive negroes who had taken refuge with the Seminoles
and intermarried with them. All the public treasure spent
to suppress the hostilities, all the blood of the defenseless
pioneers, women and children murdered by the Indians, and
the disgrace to the American army he attributed to the at-
tempts of the Georgia slaveholders seeking to recover their
runaway slaves and to the ** unlawful interference by the
people of Florida with the Lidian negroes ' \^^^ The replies
which Giddings received were bitter and offensive, and, as
might be expected, concerned slavery more than they did
the war.
Li the chaos of the Florida discussion Benton alone ap-
peared with a clear-cut and consistent remedy for the exas-
^^9 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 25th Congress, p. 194.
220 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 25th Congress, p. 235.
221 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 26th Congress, Appendix, p. 346 ;
Memoirs of John Quinoy Adams, Vol. X, p. 416.
MS Congressionai Globe, 2nd Session, 26th Congress, Appendix, p. 349.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 259
peratmg condition in that Territory. His bill for armed
occupation — the same which was rejected by the House in
1839 — was the embodiment of his program. With his
usual tenacity Benton introduced this bill in the following
sessions, and spoke on the subject, as he himself said, when-
ever no other Senator manifested a desire to speak.**^ The
scheme was ably supported in the Senate by Benton's col-
league, Lewis F. Linn,22* by Clay of Alabama,^^** and by
Tappan of Ohio;^^® and in the House support came from
Butler of Kentucky — the latter sighing for the days of
primitive simplicity when it was thought no disgrace to kill
an Indian enemy.^*^ John Robertson of Virginia,*^® Crit-
tenden of Kentucky ,22» and Preston of South Carolina^^
were opposed.
**The inducements which you hold forth for settlers'',
declared Crittenden, **are such as will address themselves
most strongly to the most idle and worthless classes of our
citizens. ' ' And again he said that * * these garrison citizens ' '
would in no respect resemble, nor could they accomplish the
achievements of, the ** hardy and resolute pioneers of the
West. ' '2** Senator Preston prophesied that the settlers un-
der the proposed act would not be such as the * * daring, res-
olute men ' ' who settled the Northwest frontier, but instead
* * speculators, men expecting a bounty rather than desiring
^^^ Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 26th Congress, p. 20; 2nd Session,
27th Congress, p. 503.
224 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 25th Congress, Appendix, p. 165 ; End
Session, 27th Congress, p. 623.
228 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 26th Congress, Appendix, p. 47.
226 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 26th Congress, Appendix, p. 74.
227 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 26th Congress, Appendix, p. 669.
228 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 25th Congress, p. 202.
229 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 26th Congrew, Appendix, p. 80.
230 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 26th Congress, Appendix, pp. 74, 84.
281 Congressional Globe^ Ist Session, 26th Congress, Appendix, pp. 80, 81.
260 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
to make permanent settlements ' \^^^ Tappan of Ohio saw
the matter in the same light when he said : ^ ^ The men you
will probably obtain nnder this law, will be the idle and
worthless population of our large cities *^^"
Benton's persistence in the end won the day. The bill,
despite dire predictions, was passed by both houses and
signed by the President on August 4, 1842.*** Benton, as he
tells the story in his Thirty Years^ View implies that the
enacting of this law marked the close of the Seminole Indian
War.^'^ There continued, however, a smouldering resist-
ance from the wretched remnants of Florida tribes, who
were not transplanted West, long after the announcement
by the commanding officer of the army in August, 1843, to
the effect that hostilities in Florida had ceased. Indeed, as
late as 1858 Giddings, writing in his Exiles of Florida main-
tained that the. United States was still in open war with
these forlorn people.^^®
As far as general interest was concerned, this session
did mark the end of the discussion of the Florida War, save
for the intermittent speeches of Abolitionists who used
the subject as a handle for attacks upon slavery.**^
i*^ Congressional Oiohe, Ist SessioiXy 26th CongreeSf Appendix, p. 75.
2M Congressional Glohe, Ist Seesion, 26th Oongren, Appendix, p. 74.
2s« United States Statutes at Large, Vol. V, p. 502.
a«B Benton's Thirty Tears' View, Vol. EC, p. 70.
S8« GiddingB'B The Exiles of Florida, p. 316.
SS7 The efforts of this Abolitionist in behalf of Seminole-Negro people are
not to be east aside. His exertions for justice to them oontinoed after the
greater part of them had been transported to their new homes in the Cherokee
lands of the West. Here he sought in Congress to protect the Seminole-Negroes
from the Creeks, who claimed them as slaves, and from slave-hunters from the
States. During his last term in Congress, 1857-1859, Giddings puUished a re-
markably inspiring account of the exiles of Florida. The object of this book,
he frankly stated, was to disabuse the public mind of the opinion that the Sem-
inole Wars were caused by the depredations of the Indians upon the white
settlements, but rather by the persecutions of the Southerners and of a gov-
ernment subservient to the institution of slavery. Qiddings closed his tragic
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 261
FLANS FOB THB DEFENSE OF THE WESTEBN FBONTIEB
The war panic in the fall of 1835 stdmnlated an interest
in national defense which ultimately accrued to the advan-
tage of the frontier. The President's annual message of
December, 1835, had vigorously reviewed the diplomatic
friction over the Spoliation payments from France, and his
message of January, 1836, definitely called for naval and
coast defenses.^^ Some months later the elaborate report
of Secretary Cass upon the land and naval defenses was
sent to the Senate.^^® But the war sensation was soon end-
ed. For scarcely a month later the delayed installments
were in the hands of the United States.^^ Meanwhile had
occurred both the desultory debate upon Benton's resolu-
tion to appropriate the surplus revenues for the purposes
of national defense and the debate upon the elaborate pro-
visions of the Fortification Bill reported by the Senate Mili-
tary Committee.^*^
In this hubbub Benton and Linn contrived to bring some
actual advantage to the fortification question. Western
men were coming to consider the lack of adequate frontier
defense as a matter of acute danger. For some time Benton
and Secretary Cass had consulted with each other. Both
were impressed with the danger of Indian uprisings in the
Northwest (the region where the Black Hawk War was not
soon to be forgotten) and both were of the opinion that the
Seminole hostilities might stimulate the prairie Indians to
like bold attacks. Reports from western army officers con-
story with a relation of the fate of the exiles whom the United States had
transported to the West. He pictured this band of miserable people, still har-
assed by slave-hunters, finally attempting to flee toward Mexico.
288 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 167, Appendix, p. 3.
230 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, Appendix, p. 81.
2M Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 1426; NUes' Weekly
Begister, Vol. L, p. 185.
2«i Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, pp. 130, 591.
262 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
firmed their fears.^*^ These military advices were to the
effect that the force on the frontier was inadeqnate both to
protect the settlements and to command respect from the
warlike tribes. This condition was exhibited to the Senate
in a letter from the War Department early in March.^*^
Secretary Cass called attention to the necessity of advanc-
ing the troops and posts westward, simultaneously with the
receding Indian country. As a basis for the development of
the fortification of the new frontier he proposed new mili-
tary roads and posts west of Missouri and Arkansas, as
well as an increase of the army. These plans were substan-
tially repeated in his report on the military and naval de-
fenses made in April.^** Benton had already reported from
the Military Committee a bill for the construction of a mili-
tary road in the West, and now he reported a bill to increase
the army of the United States in accordance with the recom-
mendation of the Secretary of War.^*^
Li the House, Johnson of Kentucky had reported from
the Military Committee a bill authorizing the President to
raise ten thousand volunteers, and a bill for a military road
and forts in the western country .^^^ The bill for the vol-
unteers had special reference to the Florida War.
In support of these measures Benton presented the Sen-
ate with a mass of pertinent and detailed information.
Using the estimates of Cass, Benton claimed the number of
Indians upon the western and northwestern border to be
253,000 souls, of whom 50,000 were warriors.^ *^ To protect
2*2 American State Papers, Military Affairs, Vol. VI, p. 153; Register of
Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, Appendix, p. 100.
2*^ Register of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, Appendix, p. 96.
2** Register of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congress, Appendix, p. 81.
2*& Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 24th Congress, Appendix, p. 126; Jour-
nal of the Senate, p. 244.
246 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1st Session, 24th Congress, pp.
253, 454, 3593.
2*7 Register of Debates, Ist Session, 24tii Congress, p. 1746.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 263
the people of the West and Northwest from the incessant
danger of such a vast array of savages only a small part of
the small United States army was employed. The six thou-
sand soldiers of the United States were distributed along
the lake, maritime, gulf, and western frontiers — a circuit
of some twelve thousand miles. The fortifications upon the
maritime and gulf coast required a great part of the force ;
and of that allotted to the West a part had to be kept not on
the frontier but at a convenient position for mobilization*
The greater division of the western troops were now on the
Eed Eiver, watching the progress of events on the Texas
frontier. The result was that the Middle West and North-
west, always insufficiently guarded, were nearly stripped of
defense — and this at a time when the Indian wars in the
South were exciting the Indians in all quarters. The East-
em States, moreover, owed a moral obligation to protect
the Western States from the hordes of Indians which had
been and were still being removed westward in order to
relieve the old States from a dangerous and useless popu-
lation.
In his dramatic manner Benton appealed to the Senators
*4n the name of that constitution which had for its first ob-
ject the common defense of the whole Union'* to prevent a
repetition in the Northwest of the scenes of **fire and blood,
of burnt houses, devastated fields, slaughtered inhabitants,
unburied dead, food for beasts and vultures, which now dis-
figure the soil of Alabama, Florida, and Georgia*'.^*® Ben-
ton 's fascinating arguments were reinforced by the earnest
appeals of his colleague, Lewis F. Linn, and of Alexander
Porter of Louisiana. The former maintained that the pres-
ent frontier population of Missouri was ''very different
from those hardy and warlike adventurers who conquered
the valley of the Mississippi. They were generally per-
248 Begister of Debates, let Session, 24th Congress, p. 1750.
264 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
sons in easy circumstances^ who had emigrated from the
East for the purpose of acquiring land for their growing
families, and were more fitted for the pursuits of peace
and industry than the hardships and dangers of Indian war-
fare." To such it was all-important to pursue their usual
vocations without the constant dread of savage depreda-
tions. There was no doubt but that they could conquer the
Indians, but it would only be after **many fair fields had
been made desolate, and many a widow would be weeping
over her fatherless children. "^^^ Linn also referred to the
consequences of the removal policy. The Government was,
he asserted, peculiarly responsible for the protection of the
frontier States, after ^ ^ throwing large masses of Indians on
them, contrary to the wishes of the frontier States, and in
defiance of the solemn protest of one of them."**^
The unprotected condition of the Texan frontier was an-
other argument for military augmentation. Besides linn,
Preston of South Carolina, Porter of Louisiana, Buchanan
of Pennsylvania, and Walker of Mississippi in the Senate
prophesied much trouble from this direction and urged a
more careful patrol of the southwestern border line.*®^
Of the various army bills under consideration, the Senate
passed Benton's for the increase of the standing army, but
passed it too late in the session to get action in the House.*'*
On the other hand the House passed Johnson 's bill for the
240 Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 1852.
2^0 Be gist er of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 1386. See also p.
1304.
251 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, pp. 1386, 1391, 1394,
1417, 1755. Linn, however, denied that he urged the bill with a view toward
the state of affairs in Texas. — See p. 1395.
In the issue of the NattoncU Intelligencer, December 24, 1835, Rice Qarland,
a Representative from Louisiana published a statement declaring that the
Government had acquired too much land by extinguishing Indian titles and
locating the Indians on the southwestern border.
262 Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 1854.
)
(:■
\.-
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 265
ten thousand volunteers and his bill for a military road and
posts in the West, and the Senate concurred therein.**^
Benton was determined, however, to increase the stand-
ing army. In the next session he introduced another bill.
The Senate was willing to pass it, with a majority of thir-
teen, but the House deferred.*** The next regular session
(1837-1838), however, saw the triumph of the bill. The irri-
tating hostilities in Florida as well as the universal feeling
of insecurity for the western frontier militated against
further postponement. Even the sensation caused by the
Caroline affair on the Canadian border contributed to the
merits of the discussion.*** But the basic argument was
that of defense for the West. Benton spoke in these words :
The whole Indian population of the United States are now ac-
cumulated on the weakest frontier of the Union — the Western,
and Southwestern, and Northwestern frontier — and they are not
only accumulated there, but sent there smarting with the lash of
recent chastisement, burning with revenge for recent defeats, com-
pletely armed by the United States, and placed in communication
with the wild Indians of the West, the numerous and fierce tribes
towards Mexico, the Bocky Mountains, and the Northwest, who
have never felt our arms, and who will be ready to join in any in-
road upon our frontiers.**'
A Senator from the new State of Arkansas made a plea
for his people. The Indians with whom our forefathers
contended, he argued, were ** wholly undisciplined, and
armed only with war clubs and bows and arrows*'; they
were remote from each other and at war with each other.
But the Indians who face the Arkansas frontier are better
armed than even our citizens. These western Indians were
^tisBegister of Debates, let SeiBion, 24th Congress, pp. 3375, 3756, 1523,
1930.
2S4Begister of Dehaies, 2nd Session, 24th Congrets, p. 840; Jowmai of the
Eouse of Bepresentatives, p. 600.
25& Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 484.
256 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 24th Congress, p. 813.
VOL. IX — ^19
266 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
located ^'thousands of miles from this Capitol, and hnn-
dreds of miles distant from the nearest points from which
relief to the frontier settlements could be brought in the
event of war. They have been taken from ....
Georgia, Alabama, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, and the Caro-
linas, and located together upon the borders of the weakest
and most remote States in the Union. ''^^^^
Linn replied to the charge made against the Missouri
people of having plundered and oppressed the Indians on
her borders^
There was not a man in either Missouri or Wisconsin who did not
possess too much sense to attempt to plunder Indians. They
all knew that at that game they were very sure to come off losers:
for the Indians could beat all the white men on the face of the
earth at stealing. No ; the people of Missouri had never robbed or
trampled on these natives of the forest. All the injuries in the case
had been perpetrated by Indians upon the peaceable white settlers
and their families. The Indians had been represented as a x>oor,
spiritless, down-trodden race, ignorant of their own rights, and con-
tinually imposed upon by the whites. Nothing could be more op-
posite to the truth. A deal of trash of this kind had been uttered in
the course of this debate, by those who ought to know better. No
people on the face of the earth were keener sighted, or more fully
awake to their rights and interests, than the North American In-
dians. . . . Never had they been more fierce, never more bent
on war.*"*
Such speeches exhibited much solicitude on the part of
western members; but their statements were so sweeping
and so generaUzing that the suspicion of exaggeration
might well arise. Calhoun, Clay, and Crittenden of Ken-
tucky called in question this warlike panic. **What had
created so great a dread of those 70,000 Indians,'* ex-
claimed the latter, * * composed of the fragments, the broken
2^f Begistcr of DebateSy 2nd Session, 24th Congress, p. 835.
t^^ Register of Debates^ 2nd Session, 24th Congress, p. 837.
/
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 267
fragments, of a poor, disheartened, dispirited, down-trod-
den people! It was in vain to effect a terror of this now
fallen race, trampled in the dust, and broken in spirit, as an
argument for the increase of the standing army.**^^® The
pioneers of Kentucky and Tennessee, Crittenden told the
Senate, had conquered their wilderness without the aid of
Federal troops. Why should not the pioneers of the far
West do the same in their region?
Concerning the influence that annuities might have in pre-
serving peace with the Indians, the opinions of Calhoun and
Linn directly opposed each other. Calhoun believed that
the Cherokees, Creeks, Choctaws, and Chickasaws, all of
whom were friendly to the United States and received large
annuities from the Government, would never forfeit these
bounties by a hostile act.^®^ Linn replied :
The great tribes, to whom large annual payments in money had
been guaranteed, would not go to open war with this Gtovemment,
lest their annuities should be forfeited ; but there were some smaller
^^^Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 24th CongreaSy p. 829.
The technical objection to Benton 's bill which pertained to a point of military
economy Was that of replenishing the file of the regiments or of increasing the
regiments. In other words that of increasing or not the proportion of priTates
to the officers. Galhoon, who it will be recalled was Secretary of War under
President Monroe, held that the staff of the army should be increased, and
not the file. Clay disfavored a considerable standing army and advocated re-
liance on the militia. — Register of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 1852 ;
Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25tii Congress, p. 133.
It is interesting to note some of the other objections to increasing the stand-
ing army. For instance, Everett of Vermont objected because any increase in
the army must be made up chiefly from an enlistment of foreigners, and he
hoped never to ''see that day when Irishmen, Englishmen, and other aliens
should be organized and armed to keep the citizens of his State in order." —
Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 484.
260 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 24th Congress, p. 808.
Calhoun's position on this point is self-explanatory. As told by the con-
gressional reporter, Calhoun said in part: — ''The bill proposed to increase
our existing military establishment. ... by the addition of 5,500 men,
. . . and augmenting the expense of its maintenance by a million and a
half or two millions of dollars. Was this necessary f He contended that it was
268 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
tribes not so restrained; these were not unlikely to commence a
hostile movement; and, the moment they should do so, there were
multitudes of the young warriors from the larger tribes ready and
eager to join them.'*^
not. . . . Abroad we were at peace with all the world; and as to Mexico^
he believed no gentleman serioualy contemplated that we were to go to war
with her. Never had there been a time when so little force was necessary to
pot our Indian relations upon the safest footing. Our Indian frontier had^
within a few years, been contracted to one half its former dimensions. It
had formerly reached from Detroit all the way round to the month of the
St. Mary's, in Georgia; whereas, at present, its utmost extent was from St.
Peter's to the Bed river. To guard this frontier, the (Government had nine
regiments of artillery, seven of infantry, and two of dragoons. He would
submit to every one to say whether such a line could not be amply defended by
such a force. Supposing one regiment to be stationed at St. Louis, and an-
other at Baton Bouge, there still remained seven regiments to be extended
from St. Peter's to Bed river. Supposing one of them to be stationed at
St. Peter's, one upon the Missouri, one in Arkansas, and one upon the Bed
river, there were still three left at the disposal of the Government. He con-
tended that this force was not only sufficient, but ample. He should be told
that there was a very large Indian force upon this frontier. That was very
true. But the larger that force was, the more secure did it render our posi-
tion; provided the Government appointed among them faithful Indian agents,,
who enjoyed their confidence, and who would be sustained by the Government
in measures for their benefit. Of what did this vast Indian force consist t
In the first place, there were the Choctaws, who had removed beyond the
Mississippi with their own consent; a people always friendly to this Govern-
ment, and whose boast it was that they had never shed, in a hostile manner^
one drop of the white man 's blood. Their friendship was moreover secured by
heavy annuities, which must at once be forfeited by any hostile movement.
Whenever this was the case, the Government possessed complete control, by
the strong consideration of interest. Next came the friendly Creeks, who
had all gone voluntarily to the west bank of the river. Then came the friendly
Cherokees, who had done the same thing; and next the Chickasaws, whom we
also held by heavy annuities. All this vast body of Indians were friendly
toward the United States, save a little branch of the Creeks; and it would
be easy for any prudent administration, by selecting proper agents, and sus-
taining them in wise measures, to keep the whole of these people peaceable and
in friendship with this Government, and they would prove an effectual barrier
against the incursions of the wild Indians in the prairies beyond. But to
increase largely our military force would be the most certain means of pro-
voking a war, especially if improper agents were sent among them — political
partisans and selfish land speculators. Men of this cast would be the more
bold in their measures, the more troops were ready to sustain them". Note
also a further speech on p. 826. Compare Nilea' Weekly Register, VoL LII,
p. 99.
261 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 24th Congress, p. 838.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 269
Thronghont the debate there appeared vagae accusatioiis
against Clay and Calhonn. Were Clay and Calhoun hostile
to adequate frontier defense? No one can read the speeches
on the Army Bill without perceiving that more than a few
individuals considered them so to be. But such sentiments
were without foundation. Clay's attitude had been ex-
pressed on this very question time and time again for a
score of years. It was always the same. Clay disliked a
standing army; he would have the western country rely
upon an efficient militia.^®^
As to Calhoun, if he were seeking an alliance between
South Carolina and the West, as his correspondence during
this period might lead one to suppose, then there existed a
powerful political motive to prohibit his taking an attitude
in any way unfriendly to Benton's Army Bill.^®^ But as a
matter of fact, Calhoun was ever zealous for western de-
fense. His administration of the War Department under
Monroe exhibited in that respect a record which he could
point to with pride.^®* Like Clay he opposed a large stand-
ing army. While disapproving Benton's broad plan of mili-
tary establishment, Calhoun nevertheless voted for the
Army Bill in 1836 ;2®'^ and during the same session he was
manager of the Volunteer Bill in the conferences between
the two houses.^®^
262 Clay '8 opposition to the Army Bill may haTO contributed to his unpopu-
larity in some sections of the West in the same way that his Land Bill did. —
Pelzer's The Early Democratic Party of Iowa in The Iowa Journal of His-
tory AND Politics, Vol. VT, p. 30.
2«3 Calhoun Correspondence, Annu{U Beport of the American Historicdl Asso-
ciation, 1899, Vol. II, pp. 349, 353, 366.
^^*Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 24th Congress, p. 826.
2^'i Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 1853. For Calhoun's
votes against the bills of 1837 and 1838, see Begister of Debates, 2nd Session,
24th Congress, p. 840 ; Journal of the Senate, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 170.
2M Journal of the Senate, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 366; Begister of
Debates, p. 1503.
270 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
More truth, however, lies in the assertion that Benton
pressed his Army Bills upon Congress with an eye single
to his elaborate scheme of national defense. Benton was
almost vindictively opposed to the Surplus Revenue Dis-
tribution Bill. So the more surplus of the treasury diverted
to the army, the less there would be for distribution to the
States.**^ The frontier scare was a convenient argument.
As a matter of fact the Indian outcry of the day was
somewhat exaggerated.^^^ Even Benton admitted that the
267 Compare with Meigs' Benton, p. 171, and with Linn and Sargent's Life
and Public Services of Br, Ltnn, p. 280. Many charges were made that the
Fortification Bill of 1835, as well as the bill for the increase of the army,
was a political maneuver. For instance, see Begister of Debates, 1st Session,
24th Congress, pp. 2390, 2436.
s«*The following letters from the southwestern frontier show an ulterior
motive in spreading rumors of Indian hostilities. One letter dated August 28,
1836, at Natchitoches, Louisiana, says: "One of the ostensible causes of this
permanent military occupation of Texas is the reported disaffected state of a
number of tribes or fragments of tribes, of Texian Indians, and some that once
lived in the United States. The Tezans are pleased by the presence of our
troops as giving their cause countenance, and with that policy they raise and
spread rumors of threatened attacks. ' ' — NUes ' Weekly Begister, Vol. LI, p. 87.
Another letter from Camp Sabine declares: *'This frontier is perfectly quiet.
No Indian disturbances, and none likely to take place. The Indians are few
in number, quietly pursuing their avocations, and in my opinion dare not mo-
lest the frontier settlements of Louisiana; and it is believed that they have
never entertained an idea of the kind. A thousand stories have been circulated
to the prejudice of the Indians, which have proved false. On this frontier, a
man would be considered very credulous, who should regard the reports that
daily come from Texas." — NUes' Weekly Begister, Vol. LI, p. 162. A letter
from Camp Nacogdoches, dated September 21st, says: "There is something
singular in our occupation of Nacogdoches. There never has been, nor is there
likely to be, any difficulties with the Indians. — They are as peaceable as could
be expected, urging the necessity of keeping white men out of their country. ' ' —
NUes' Weekly Begister, Vol. LI, p. 162.
The maneuvers of General Gaines upon the Texan boundary in the summer of
1836 raised a storm of protest from those in the United States opposed to
annexation, and the denials of possible Indian hostilities were quite likely
exaggerated. However, these were undoubtedly false rumors about Indian
dangers. Further opinions of the time may be found in Benjamin Lundy 's The
War in Texas (Philadelphia: 1837), pp. 44-51; William Kennedy's Texas
(London: 1841), Vol. II, p. 291; and Mrs. Mary Austin Holley's Texas (Lex-
ington, Kentucky: 1836), p. 161.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 271
western people had their just proportion of the American
army.^** It required no elaborate fortifications of stone
and mounted cannon to repulse such an enemy as the abor-
igines. Crudely constructed posts and a few mounted
dragoons were enough.*^^ Such defenses were already on
the frontier. But if adventurers advanced beyond the out-
posts and into the Indian country, did they deserve any
further protection from the Government! It was a western
Representative, Bell of Tennessee, who turned the question
by suggesting that an army was needed on the border as
much 'Ho coerce our own settlers to an obedience of the
laws * * as to awe the Indians.*^^
The War Department was interested in the enlargement
of the army, and recommendations of the nature of Poin-
sett's report in 1837 carried much weight ^^^ — so also did
the mass of reports from regular army officers.^^' The De-
partment outlined for congressional consideration an elab-
orate system of fortifications in the West ; and in 1838 Ben-
ton introduced a bill to put it into effect, but the bill wa^
lost in the press of other matters.^^* Congressional atten-
tion, however, had been definitely called to the need of the
West, and the appropriation bills for fortifications during
260 Register of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 1746.
270 This is the opinion of Secretary Cass. — Register of Debates, 1st Session,
24th Congress, Appendix, p. 81.
271 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 483.
272 Senate Documents, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, No. 1, p. 171.
2^9 Senate Documents, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, No. 1, p. 204; Executive
Documents, No. 276.
274 Congression<il Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 265.
In the following session Senator Linn 's plan of fortifications to extend from
the Sabine Biver to Fort Snelling deserves attention. For several sessions also,
Senator Fulton of Arkansas introduced a bill for setting apart a belt of land
on the western borders of Missouri and Arkansas as bonntj lands, to be
granted to settlers for a term of years in defense of the frontier. His argu-
ment therefor may be found in Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress,
Appendix, p. 412.
272 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
the following years contained items for carrying out the
War Department's plan, especially for establishing posts
along the Arkansas and Missonri.^*^^
THE END OF THE OHBBOKS^B C0NTB0VEB8Y
The question as to the Cherokees again came to Congress.
This tribe had failed to obtain relief by their appeal to the
Supreme Court; and from the Executive Department they
received only admonitions to sell their lands and depart
westward.*'^' Now they renewed their earnest but utterly
vain petition to Congress. Clayton of Delaware presented
their memorial to the Senate on May 20, 1834.^'^ Forsyth
immediately objected to its reception, but was outvoted —
three nays to thirty yeas.^^® The Senate would not ruth-
lessly deny these Indians a courteous hearing, nor refuse
them the right of petition. But little more than this could
the Cherokees expect from either house. Complete ex-
tinction of the Georgia Indian title had become a tenet of
the Government's policy. All further stubbornness on the
part of the Indians made the business only the more put-
tering and unpleasant. The Senate had learned a lesson,
however, from the unfortunate episode of Indian Springs.
No more minority treaties would be consented to. So when
in the latter part of the session the President transmitted
a treaty (negotiated by John H. Eaton as commissioner on
the part of the United States) which surrendered the Cher-
okee lands in Georgia, the Senate investigated the negoti-
27B United States Statutes at Large, Vol. V, pp. 582, 609, 660.
2T« Cherokee Nation vs. State of Georgia, 5 Peters 1. Worcester vs. State
of Georgia, 6 Peters 515. NUes ' WeeTcly Register, Vol. XXXVI, p. 257.
Note also Jackson's supposed remark in regard to leaving Chief Justice
Marshall to enforce his decision in regard to the Cherokees. — Greeley's The
American Conflict, Vol. I, p. 106.
^ff Register of Debates, lit Session, 23rd Congress, p. 1772.
27S Register of Debates, Ist Session, 23rd Congress, p. 1780.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 273
ations.*^® Hugh L. White of Tennessee, much to the irrita-
tion of Jackson, conducted the inquiry ; and he found that
this treaty like the one of Indian Springs was signed by
only a minority representation. The Senate was advised
of the situation, and without ado refused ratification.*®^
If the Cherokees saw in this rejection of the Govern-
ment's treaty any signs to encourage their persistence, they
deluded themselves. Both houses were impatient of grant-
ing any more consideration to the Cherokees until they
should acquiesce in the demands of the Georgians and in
the advice of the Executive. The few speeches of philan-
thropic New Englanders and Ohioans could never change
this sentiment. The Georgia members and the delegations
from the central and western States were omnipresent and
in the majority. And, indeed, when it came to debate it be-
hooved the champions of the aborigines to explain the sins
of their own forefathers. Their perorations invited cyn-
ical reflections when the Georgia delegation demanded to
know what had become of the hordes of Indians who once
occupied the soil of New England. Surely small-pox alone
had not swept from the woods all of * * those pernicious crea-
tures to make room for a sounder growth '', as Cotton
Mather wrote of the Plymouth fields I The colonists had
pushed back the natives. Why should not the Georgians
follow their example? Did not the oration of John Quincy
Adams in 1802 on the anniversary of the landing of the Pil-
279 Executive Journal of the Senate (1887), Vol. IV, pp. 445, 446. Senator
White was Chairman of the Committee on Indian Affain and reported from
that committee the resolation that the Senate do not advise and consent to the
ratification.
280 In a letter to J. A. Whiteside, September 17, 1835, White defended his
action against the charge that he was hostile to the Administration's Indian
policy. Speaking of the treaty of 1834, he said: '*I could find no principle
or precedent which would justify me in calling that a treaty, which not only
had not the assent of the Indians, but was made against their express wishes;
therefore I held myself bonnd not to recommend its ratification." — Scott's
Memoir of Hugh Lawson White, p. 169.
274 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
grims apply as well to Georgia as to New England f ^' Shall
the lordly savage'*, declared the then youthful Adams, "not
only disdain the virtues and enjoyments of civilization
. . . • but shall he control the civilization of a world f
Shall he forbid the wilderness to blossom like the rosef
. . . • No, generous philanthropists!'*^®^ Adams, now
in the role of philanthropist himself, was compelled to listen
to the sarcasm of the Georgians :
Could the principle which regulated the colonies from their earli-
est day of strength, and beyond which Georgia has never gone, have
been more forcibly expressed, or eloquently illustrated [than by
this same Adams] .... Can it be that in such wide-sweep-
ing assertion of colonial right, the mind of the orator had nar-
rowed its vision to the horizon of New England, and the defense
of his own puritan ancestors! Who, that has heard the announce-
ment of such a principle, could for a moment imagine that the mind
which had adopted, and the tongue which expressed it with sucb
eloquence and force, should now utter immeasured denunciation
against Georgia for having acted short of the extent of his^wi»
principle!*"
No, the Cherokees could never ask for further attention
from Congress unless they quitted their *doumess and ac-
cepted the generous grants in the western country — lands,
indeed desirable, broad in extent and fertile.^®* The advice
2BiAn Oration Delivered at Plymouth, December eg, 1802 (Boston 1802),
p. 23.
A modem defense of the New England Indian policy may be found in
Channing's History of the United States, Vol. I, pp. 338-341, 402, 403, Vol. 11^
pp. 76-79.
^^^ Begister of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 4505.
288 For descriptions of the Cherokee country, see Executive Documents, 1st
Session, 26th Congress, No. 2, p. 466; 2nd Session, 26th Congress, No. 2, p. 310^
During the debates on the bill for the armed occupation of Florida, Benton
elicited information from the War Department which he made the basis for
a defense — one of the most able ever made — of the United States' Indian
policy. — Senate Documents, 1st Session, 26th Congress, No. 616. The purpose-
of his contention was to answer De Tocqueville 's rather flippant but withai
very picturesque account of the American mode for ejecting the Indian peo-
ples from their lands. — Benton's Thirty Years' View, Vol. I, p. 691, et seq^
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 275
of Webster was as prophetic as that of Jackson was authori-
tative. They were contending against the inevitable. The
reception in the Senate of Clay's proposal of February,
1835, exhibited this fact in a pronounced manner. When
Clay brought forward a plan whereby the Cherokees who
did not choose to emigrate westward should receive the pro-
tection of the courts in confirming their titles to small par-
cels of land, his proposal was contemptuously brushed aside
by Cuthbert of Georgia and by Benton, while Hugh L.
White of Tennessee was provoked into delivering a long
eulogy upon the now sacred policy of removal whose origin
he traced to the great Jefferson.^®*
Clay might well reflect that his efforts in behalf of the In-
dians, beginning with his appeal for the Seminoles in 1819,
had ended in much the same manner. We might ask, what
motive could this Kentuckian harbor which moved him to
persist in pleading the Indian cause like Webster and Ev-
erett, Calhoun and Vinton. Unlike Vinton, Clay did not
harbor any prejudice in his heart against the men and wom-
en who left the East to find homes on the f rentier.^®* Clay
was one of them himself. Indeed, this pioneer trait in his
own life accounts for his cheerless attitude toward the des-
Reeve's Translation of De Tocqueville 's Democracy in America (Cambridge:
1863), Vol. I, p. 436, et aeq,
Benton showed that between the years 1789 and 1840, ninety million dollars
had been paid to the Indians by the Government for their land. This was a
sum nearly six times as much as the whole of Louisiana cost and three times
as much as all three of the great foreign purchases of Louisiana, Florida, and
California. To the Cherokees, alone, for eleven millions of acres, was paid
about fifteen millions of dollars, the exact price of Louisiana or of California.
Benton reviewed the patient efforts of the United States to civilize the In-
dians, and the careful mode of treating with them for land cessions. Lo*
gicians will indeed concede that he proved the trivialness of De Tocqueville's
criticism.
284 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 23rd Congress, p. 300, et seq. For a
description of Clay *s eloquence on this occasion, see Mallory 's Life and Speeches
of Eenry Clay, Vol. I, p. 177.
285 See above p. 225.
276 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
tiny of the Indian race. The Diary of John Qnincy Adams
reveals a light on this phase of Clay 's entente, although that
light is somewhat highly colored.^^® Adams records that
when Barbour proposed in the Cabinet meeting of Decem-
ber 22, 1825y to incorporate the Indians as citizens of the
States, Clay declared himself as utterly opposed to granting
the Indians any such privilege. It was impossible to civ-
ilize them, said Clay ; they were destined to extinction ; and
although he would never use or countenance inhumanity to-
wards them, he did not think them as a race worth preserv-
ing. Their disappearance from the human family would in
fact, he asserted, be no great loss to the world.
Such expressions indicate a distinctly pioneer conception
of the Indian problem — for pioneers never idealized the
American aborigines. Their judgment was Teutonic and
harsh. Throughout all of Clay's impassioned appeals in be-
half of these benighted people there is seldom a glimmer of
hope for their advancement as a race. His eloquent plead-
ings for justice were but the promptings of a humane heart
who pitied their condition, read their destiny, and saw how
hopeless and cheerless it was. But, withal, there is a deli-
cate distinction to be noted in Clay's opinion. It was the
race — namely, the tribal relations, and barbarous customs,
and separatism — that Clay believed to be unworthy of
preservation. The civilization of individual members was
another matter. Indeed, the ethnology of these peoples
might seem to prove that Clay was not far in the wrong.
The Twenty-third Congress adjourned unheeding the
Cherokee petition. The day was now at hand when the
chapter of Cherokee struggles in Georgia would be closed.
In December, 1835, the tribe gave way and at New Echota
signed the treaty exchanging all their lands east of the
Mississippi for five million dollars and lands in the West ;
2B9 Memoirs of John Quincy Adams, Vol. VII, p. 90.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 277
and they promised to remove within the space of two
years.*®^ A stubborn faction, headed by the venerable
chief, John Boss, still protested against this decision and
denied the validity of the treaty ; but they protested and de-
nied in vain.*®® Senator White, chairman of the Indian
Committee who in the preceding year had defeated the
Eaton Treaty, found nothing in the negotiations to inval-
idate Jackson's new treaty. On April 19th, he reported in
favor of ratifying.*®^ A month later the ratification was
considered in executive session, and the champions of the
Indians then gave the last battle for Indian rights.*®^ Clay,
Webster, and Calhoun in turn argued for the rejection of
the treaty. What they said has not been accurately pre-
served. But the Administration triumphed on May 18th,
when one vote more than the necessary two-thirds was cast
for ratification.*®^ A small number of anti-administration-
ists in the lower house witnessed the defeat attending the
efforts of Clay, Webster, and Calhoun in the Senate and pre-
pared to make a resistance to the appropriation necessary
to carry the treaty into effect. The Committee on Ways and
Means did not long delay the little conflict. In the annual
bill making appropriations for Indian treaties, which was
soon after reported to the House, an item for the New
Echota Treaty was found.*®* Adams, supported by Wise of
Virginia, moved to strike out.*®* They were answered by
Haynes of Georgia, who confused the Opposition with
28T Kappler 'a Indian Affairs : Laws and Treaties, Vol. II, p. 439.
2»» Executive Documents, Ist Session, '24th Congress, No. 286. John Quincj
Adams presented the John Boss memorial in the House of Representatives. —
Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 576.
280 Executive Journal of the Senate (1887), Vol. IV, p. 532.
290 Benton ^s Thirty Years' View, Vol. I, p. 624, et seq.
291 Executive Journal of the Senate (1887), Vol. IV, p. 546.
292 Register of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 4501.
29SB€gist€r of Debates, 1st Session, 24th Congress, p. 4502, et seq, ; Memair»
of John Quincy Adams, Vol. IX, p. 299.
278 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS^
Adams's own rhetoric on the *4ordly savagefir^\^** Jack-
son's administration was then energetically defended by
Haynes as follows :
When that administration came into power, seven years ago, it
found a partial system of Indian colonization west of the Mississippi
in operation. . . . Within the last six or seven years, the
I>olicy of removing and colonizing the Indians in the States east
of the Mississippi, to the westward of that river, in a region remote
from the habitation of the white man, has been among the topics
of universal and bitter discussion from one end of the Union to the
other. Nor on any other subject has the course of General Jack-
son's administration been more violently or unjustly assailed. And
here I take leave to say, that so far from Indian hostilities having
been provoked, either by the negligence or injustice of that admin-
istration, they may, with much greater justice, be ascribed to the
political philanthropy, so loudly and pharisaically displayed by its
political opponents; and I will further say, that should war arise
on the part of the Cherokees, the sin of it lies not at the door of this
adjninistration, or its supporters.
Bonldin of Virginia in an attempt to be sarcastic, almost
raved when he declared :
What is the policy, the design, of the United States, in regard to
the Indians! .... Whence did they derive the title to all
the wide domain of which they are the proud owner t Did they not
derive it, or rather wrest it, from the possession of the natives — the
Indians! and has it not been the uniform and persevering policy
of the United States, hitherto, to drive them off, or exterminate
them f What means this change of policy f Have they relented, or
repented, and do they mean to change their policy f Let them, then,
give up all the lands they have, by the tomahawk and scalping-
knife, or the rifle, taken from that gallant but unfortunate race, and
I will believe in their pity and their repentance. If they do not
mean this, what do they mean f Do they mean, after having driven
these unfortunate beings from the North and East to the South and
Southwest, by treaties and cruelties far worse than have been lately
practiced^ to use the whole power of the confederacy, thus acquired,
*9ABeg%9ter of Debates, Ist SesBion, 24th Congress, p. 4505.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 279
to compel the people of Georgia and their neighbors to submit to
the scalping-knife and the tomahawk! Do they mean that an inde-
pendent savage nation shall remain forever in the heart of a civil-
ized sovereign State f .... Do they mean that these savages
shall remain there, scalping and tomahawking, under the protec-
tion of the Federal Court or the Federal Gtovemment, until they
have taken their vengeance on these helpless, defenceless women
and children, and obtained as much money for their land as they
may think proper to demand t^**
Grantland, another Georgia Eepresentative, warned the
House against ** misplaced philanthropy *\^®® But no warn-
ing was necessary. The amendment offered by Adams was
rejected without even a division; and Benton was able to
congratulate the country that the North and the South had
united, notwithstanding the opposition of Calhoun, in ex-
pelling the Indians from the South.^*^
Jackson's administration was drawing to a close. Much
had been accomplished for the policy of a general removal
since the President 's inauguration in 1829 ; and Jackson did
not forget to congratulate the nation upon the success of the
removal policy in his last annual message of December, 1836.
He considered this success consummated by the late treaty
of New Echota.^®* To the Opposition these felicitations ap-
peared, perhaps, premature, for the Cherokees under the
terms of their treaty had still a year of grace before quitting
their lands.
The end of the first year of Van Buren's administration
v^itnessed an increased public interest in the Cherokee ques-
tion. The details of Jackson's treaty had become well
known, and Webster could truly say in the Senate that there
was a ** growing feeling in the country that great wrong had
295 Begister of Debates, Ist Sesiion, 24th Congress, pp. 4526, 4550.
2»e Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congress, p. 4554.
^^f Begister of Debates, Ist Session, 24th Congreis, p. 4565; Benton's TMr-
iy Years* View, Vol. I, p. 626.
298 Begister of Debates, 2nd Session, 24th Congress, Appendix, p. 9.
280 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
been done to the Cherokees by the treaty of New Echota ' \^^
Multitudes of petitions adverse to the removal of the Cher-
okees came to the House, only to be tabled at the motion of
the Georgia delegation.*^^ Lumpkin denounced the ** slan-
ders ' ' cast by these memorials with the evil purpose of dis-
paraging the State of Georgia. He condemned ^'the idle,
silly, and false sympathy set forth" as coming from a dis-
tant people **who are obviously ignorant of the merits of the
subject with which they are impertinently intermed-
dling. ' ^^^ Clay of Alabama charged the northern Senators
with an evident desire to ''loose the tomahawk and scalping
knife" upon the Alabama frontiersmen,«>^ King of Ala-
bama declared that the continued discussion of the subject
in Congress created false hopes in the minds of the Cher-
okees and would result in dangerous disturbances. And his
colleague, Senator Clay, said that the recent scenes in Flor-
ida ought to admonish all of the ''danger of tampering with
a subject of such fearful importance, and that firmness and
energy, with a rigid adherence to the terms of the treaty,
was the only course to prevent war and bloodshed."***
When Webster ventured to say that "many excellent and
worthy men had it in their consciences on their pillows, that
some great wrong had been done to the Cherokees in the
treaty of Echota ' \ the proverbial reply was made by Alfred
Cuthbert of Georgia. "Where were the Indian tribes which
once covered the territory of Massachusetts?", he said, us-
ing phrases almost stereotyped by repeated expression.
"Where slumbered the consciences of the people of Massa-
290 Congressional Glohe, 2xid Session, 25th Congress, p. 403.
800 Many petations came from Massachusetts. — JoumcA of the House of
Representatives, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, pp. 726, 776, 778, 911, 986, 1020,
1127 ; Memoirs of John Quinoy Adams, Vol. IX, p. 518.
801 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 376.
802 Congressionol Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 263.
808 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, pp. 263, 402.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 281
chusetts when these tribes were exterminated by themf
Yes, sir, butchered!'*
Further discussions were vain. * * The treaty must be ex-
ecuted", thundered the Georgia delegation on all occasions.
No bill was passed for Cherokee relief.*^* And at last, close
following upon the adjournment of Congress, the problem
was put forever beyond the pale of Congressional recon-
sideration when the treaty was enforced in the Cherokee
country by an officer of the army — General Winfield Scott.
* * The full moon of May is already on the wane, * ' read his
proclamation to the Cherokee people, **and before another
shall have passed away, every Cherokee, man, woman, and
child .... must be in motion to join their brethren
in the far west. ' * When the last remnants of these people
passed the Mississippi their petitions against removal
ceased to annoy Congress.*^*
DEFENSE OF THE OBEGON OOUNTBY
The census map of 1840 presents a different picture of
the frontier line than does the map of 1820.*^® In Louisi-
ana, Arkansas, and Missouri the settlements had been ex-
tended westward to Texas and to the edge of the Indian
country. The country on the right bank of the Mississippi
River was covered with farms as far north as Prairie du
Chien, and straggling claims were found even further to
the north and west. On the east side of the Mississippi the
northern frontier had been pushed well into the interior of
Wisconsin and Michigan. And the great inland frontiers
which appear on the map of 1820 were fast disappearing;
304 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 404. The ilogan of
the Georgian delegation is illustrated by Lumpkin's Bpeeeh, p. 403.
305 l^iles' Weekly Begister, Vol. LIV, p. 210.
306 Eleventh Censtts, Population, Vol. I, Part 1, Map facing p. xiiv. For the
military frontier, see Executive Documents, 2nd Session, 27th Congress, No. 2,
p. 80, pi. D; and American State Papers, Military Affairs, VoL VII, Map facing
p. 780.
VOL. IX — ^20
282 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
for the land titles of the Cherokees, Creeks, Choctaws,
Chickasaws, and of the northern tribes (with a few excep-
tions like the Miamis and the Menominees) had been ex-
tinguished and their lands surveyed and sold to the pioneers
and southern planters. The two decades which had passed
since the year 1820 had witnessed the consummation of the
policy for Indian removal from the eastern half of the
Mississippi Valley, and the scene of Indian affairs was
now shifted across the Mississippi to the further West.
Benton had long kept before Congress the necessity of
patroling the southwestern frontier bordering upon Mex-
ico, which was peculiarly exposed to the attacks of the no-
madic Comanches and Apaches. In the year 1825 he called
upon Congress to protect from the depredation of these In-
dians the overland trade between Missouri, Santa Fe^
Chihuahua, and Sonora.*^^ Five years previously the trad-
ers of the prairies had established the Santa Fe Trail over
the desert prairie between the town of Independence on the
Missouri Biver and the capital of New Mexico; and, said
Benton in 1825, it seemed like a romance to hear of cara-
vans of trade traversing in season the vast plain between
the Missouri and the Bio del Norte. The biU Benton intro-
duced for improving the Trail and pacifying the Indians en
route was passed by both houses.*^®
Starting from the same Missourian locale another and
longer trail traversed the plains and mountains of the
Northwest. This was the trail to Oregon. like the Santa
Fe Trail its congressional guardians were the Missouri
Senators, Benton and Linn. At an early day they urged
Congress to protect the emigrants to Oregon. While the
story of the struggle for Oregon belongs to another chapter
of western history, there are parts of the story which too
»07 Begister of Debates^ 2nd Session, 18th Congress, p. 341.
»08 United States Statutes at Large, Vol. IV, p. 100.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 283
intimately concern the defense of American settiers on the
frontier to be excluded from this narration. A discussion
of one particular phase — defense of the Oregon pioneers
— tangled as it is in a question of greater importance, will
nevertheless throw a new light on the Oregon question.
Since Benton and Linn are the heroes of the tale it is well
to begin with their earliest exertions. Benton in his first
term as Senator from the newly created State of Missouri
ably supported Floyd's bill of 1822 for the armed occupa-
tion of the Columbia Biver, which bill also contemplated
grants of land to settlers and supervision of the Indians. He
had also introduced resolutions on his own initiative looking
towards the retention of the Oregon country.*^^ Sixteen
years later, February 7, 1838, Lewis F. linn introduced the
first of his series of bills for the establishment of an Oregon
Territory f^^ and from that day until his death, he became
the special advocate for Oregon.
To what extent Benton and linn fostered these bills as
an open defiance to England and a part of the game in the
Oregon diplomacy and to what extent they favored them
simply as a means to protect and give the emigrants a
government can not be exactiy measured; nor would it be
profitable to elaborately essay any such measurement. The
latter motive is not to be entirely overlooked, although it is
probably the lesser, in the case of Benton. It should be re-
membered, however, that Benton was a western man ; and of
western problems he studied the real conditions, not merely
the theories. Unlike the ex-President who debated the
same question in the House, and who had played a part in
the early diplomacy of the case, Benton saw not only the
raison d'etat but he also saw the great bare plains of the
Northwest through which ran the Oregon Trail to the South
300 AnruUs of Congress, 2xid Sestion, 17th Congress, p. 246.
810 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 25th Congress, p. 168.
284 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
PasSy and the thousand slow moving caravans of daring
men and pioneer women travelling toward the West to make
their homes in the romantic land of the joint-occnpancy.
The hopes and the fears of these emigrants he understood.
And being himself of kindred spirit he championed their
canse. Nor was Benton alone among western members.
He typified the sentiment of western expansion. Linn and
Douglas were of his mold.
On February 6, 1840, Linn gave a new feature to the Ore-
gon question by moving resolutions calling upon the Secre-
tary of War for his opinion concerning establishing forts
along the Oregon Trail for the purpose of encouraging and
protecting the American fur traders and caravans to the
new country.^^^ Poinsett's report in reply was agreeable
to such a scheme and proposed locations for three posts
along the Trail.*" Linn, however, did not include this item
in his plan of Columbian colonization, although upon the
28th of April he introduced a biU to extend jurisdiction over
Oregon. Later, in May, he agreed not to urge the Oregon
question in any phase, pending the delicate state of affairs
in the Northeastern boundary negotiations.*^*
As to the Tyler administration, both the President and
his Secretary of War, Spencer, were of the opinion that
forts should be established on the Oregon Trail. Lideed,
in his annual report of December, 1841, Spencer asked for
a chain of posts from Council Bluffs to the mouth of the
Columbia, and Tyler added his recommendation in the an-
nual message.*^* Both, forsooth, cautiously limited their
reasons to one, and that was protection of fur traders from
the Lidians. Nine days following the President's message
811 Congressional Globe, let Session, 26th Congress, p. 166.
812 Senate Documents, let Session, 26th Congress, No. 231.
818 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 26th Congress, p. 363.
^i^^ Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 27th Congress, Appendix, pp. 4, 12.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 285
Linn introduced his Oregon bill revised up to date.*^*^ It
contained a section providing for forts along a trail leading
from the Missouri into * * the best pass for entering the val-
ley of the Oregon*'.'^® Before it was discussed at length
Lord Ashburton arrived in Washington, and again congres-
sional discussion of the Oregon question was postponed be-
cause of the international negotiations.*^^
The treaty with Ashburton was concluded in August of
1842, and when Congress convened in December the per-
sistent and patient Linn again introduced his bill.*^* Li re-
gard to Lidian affairs it provided for two agencies to super-
intend all tribes of the westernmost West.*^* The omission
of any compromise on the Oregon boundary in the Webster-
Ashburton Treaty made the time ripe for acute discussion
of such a bill. The opposition was decided. First Cal-
houn,32o then M*Duffie,«2i Choate,*^^ Crittenden,»23 Ber-
rien,*^* and Archer*^ spoke against it. Calhoun interpret-
ed the measure as an act of hostility toward England, and
upon this premise he argued for the rejection of the bill.
The country was unprepared for war if England resented
the action, was the burden of his thesis.*^* The section do-
31S Congressional Glohe, 2nd Session^ 27th Congress, p. 22.
816 For details of bill, see Niles' Weekly Register, Vol. LIX, p. 338; Con-
gressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, p. 112.
317 Linn and Sargent 's Life and Public Services of Dr. Linn, p. 239.
818 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, p. 61.
819 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, p. 112.
»2o, Congressional Glob^, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, pp. 133, 227 j Appen-
dix, p. 138.
821 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, pp. 198, 240.
^^2 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, pp. 171, 239; Appen-
dix, p. 222.
823 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, p. 105.
824 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, p. 212.
^2i Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, pp. 104, 220, 244; Ap-
pendix, p. 130.
826 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, Appendix, p. 139.
286 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
nating lands to settlers he pointedly disapproved as a" vio-
lation of treaty rights.*^^ Calhonn believed the tide of
American emigration would soon reach the Bocky Moun-
tains of its own accord and be ready to pour into the Oregon
country. Such a theory would seem to preclude the idea
that military posts should not precede actual settlement.
Be that as it may, Calhoun closed his speech with a long
defense of his conduct as Secretary of War when, perceiv-
ing the resources of the Northwestern fur trade, he had ad-
vanced the military stations high up the Mississippi and
Missouri.**®
Choate disapproved of the section making donations to
settlers as a contravention of the Convention of 1827.'**
And he further explained at length how Oregon had been
exploited by Massachusetts enterprise. Might not the East,
therefore, be the rightful judge of the disposition to be
made of the country of the Northwest?
So far as to the bill being an act of hostility to Great
Britain it is difficult to conceive such a nature therein, save
in the section making the donation of land. The other fea-
tures gave the settlers the protection which Great Britain
had already given her own Oregon citizens by act of Parlia-
ment in the year 1821.^® But the proposed land grants
were a questionable matter. Calhoun sought the reference
of the bill to the Committee on the Judiciary in order to
strike out this objectionable feature, but the friends of the
bill would permit no such emasculation.'*^ On the other
hand Calhoun was equally stubborn. When Bayard pro-
posed an amendment to the effect that the proposed dona-
i27 Congressional Glohe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, p. 134.
9^B Congressumdl Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, Appendix, p. 141.
tn CangressiofuA Q^he, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, Appendix, p. 222.
uo 1 and 2 Qeoige IV, cap. LXVL
881 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, pp. 134, 239.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 287
tions should be altered to mere claims against the United
States, an arrangement which would be in no wise hostile
to England, Calhoun objected.**^
On February 3rd, by a vote of 24 to 22 the bill passed the
Senate ; but it failed in the House.*** Before the next ses-
sion of Congress death had come to Senator Linn, leaving
to his colleagues the legacy of his Oregon bill.***
In the two sessions following Linn's death several differ-
ent Oregon bills were considered, but all failed to pass both
houses.*** The discussions thereon were of course a part
of the extensive Oregon debate and may be noticed here
only because of references to the question of protection
from the Indians, which was ever but a side issue. Benton
continued to point out, as in earlieir speeches, the dangers
which would ensue if the agents of the Hudson Bay Com-
pany should instigate the natives to war upon the emi-
grants.**® Buchanan,**^ Hannegan of Indiana,*** Doug-
las**® — soon to be appointed chairman of the House Com-
mittee on Territories — and Duncan of Ohio**® also pointed
out this danger.
Arguing from the same fact, namely, the hostilities of the
Indians, Senator Dayton of New Jersey came to different
882 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, p. 134.
888 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 27th Congress, p. 240. For Linn 's bill,
see Appendix, p. 154. Adams from the House Committee on Foreign Relations
to whom the Senate bill was referred reported that the House do not concur
therein. — Journal of the House, p. 382.
88* Benton 'a Thirty Tears' View, VoL 11, p. 486.
^^s Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 28th Congress, pp. 56, 77, 104, 366;
2nd Session, 28th Congress, pp. 36, 38, 63.
836 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 28th Congress, p. 637.
337 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 28th Congress, Appendix, p. 346.
888 Congresswnat Globe, 1st Session, 28th Congress, Appendix, p. 245.
880 CongressioncU Globe, 2nd Session, 28th Congress, p. 226.
840 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 28th Congress, p. 216 ; Appendix, p.
181.
288 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
conclusions. He declared that the United States conld nev-
er wisely make ** Oregon a State of this Union . . . .
[or] a separate government^ the effect of which would be
to pen up 342,000 Indians between it and our western fron-
tier. It would either be the cause of exterminating the In-
dians, or making them a horde of depredators, or both.'***^
Senator Choate of Massachusetts, one of the most persist-
ent opponents to the retention of Oregon, sought to prove
that the Northwestern danger was overrated by western
congressmen f^^ and Adams in the House implied that * * the
enterprising, and warlike young men" of Oregon should be
able to protect themselves.***
In December, 1845, Benton made a sensible move in the
Oregon question — a move, indeed, which it is a matter of
wonder was not made long before. He separated the prop-
osition of immediate protection to the Oregon emigrants
and the vital issue of the Oregon question. This was done
by a bill which he reported from the Military Conunittee,
providing for a regiment of mounted riflemen and several
outposts with the object of guarding the Oregon Trail.'**
Such a bill was one that could consistently be supported by
Calhoun and Crittenden, although the latter considered it
of little real importance.*** The Senate passed it on Jan-
uary 8, 1846, but the House delayed its becoming law until
almost a month after the adoption of the joint resolution to
abrogate the Oregon Convention.**® The credit for this bill
is not entirely to be laid to Benton. President Polk's bold
message at the convening of Congress had practically rec-
841 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 28th Congress, p. 315.
842 Congressional Globe, Isti Session, 28th Congress, p. 407 ; Appendix p.
587.
848 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 28th Congress, p. 228.
844 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 29th Congress, p. 108.
845 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 29th Congress, p. 162.
846 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 29th Congress, pp. 162, 830.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 289
ommended that the question of providing defenses for the
pioneers be separated from the question of the acquisition
of Oregon. In this matter the President and Benton had,
indeed, been in full accord for some time.^*^
The committees on Indian affairs in both houses reported
bills to regulate trade and intercourse with the Oregon In-
dians and to make peace with them ;^*® but both bills were
postponed pending the outcome of the Buchanan-Pakenham
Treaty and were never taken from the table during this ses-
sion.^*®
On August 5, 1846, almost at the close of the session, Polk
was able to communicate to Congress the fact that ratifica-
tions of the convention for the final adjustment of the Ore-
gon question had been exchanged with Great Britain.**®
At last the great objection to giving the Oregon settlers a
government and protection from the Indians was overcome.
The exclusive jurisdiction of the country was now vested in
S47 Congressional Globe, let Sessioiiy 29th CongresSy p. 7 ; Diary of James
K. Polk, Vol. I. p. 70.
It should be noted that President Tyler also had advocated practically a
separate discussion of protection to the emigrants. In his last annual mes-
sage, December 3, 1844, after informing Congress that the negotiations of
Secretary of State Calhoun with the British Government concerning the
Oregon jurisdiction were still pending, he renewed his previous recommenda-
tions for laws * ' to protect and facilitate emigration to that Territory. ' ' Con-
cerning these measures Tyler said: *'The establishment of military posts at
suitable points upon the extended line of land travel would enable our citizens to
migrate in comparative safety to the fertile regions below the falls of the
Columbia, and make the provision of the existing convention for the joint
occupation of the Territory by subjects of Great Britain and the citizens of the
United States more available than heretofore to the latter. These posts would
continue places of rest for the weary emigrant, where he would be sheltered
securely against the danger of attack from the Indians, and be enabled to
recover from the exhaustion of a long line of travel. ' ' — Congressional Globe^
2nd Session, 28th Congress, p. 3. The Executive attitude in 1844-1845 is dis-
cussed on p. 387, but evidently Tyler's attitude had little weight in the matter.
848 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 29th Congress, pp. 121, 888.
8*8 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 29th Congress, p. 834 ; Journal of the
Senate, p. 320.
i^o Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 29th Congress, p. 1199.
290 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
the United States; and Congress under the Constitution
was authorized to give the Territory a government. But
for two years this power was held in abeyance, and the
Oregon country remained in the same lawless state for want
of congressional action. The cause of this inaction had al-
ready been foreseen. The northern extremists pointed to-
ward Calhoun. His policy of a **wise and masterly inac-
tivity** in 1845 had been interpreted into **no more free
soil territory ' ', and now his opponents were to find another
sin to lay at his door. Calhoun was too shrewd a man not
to know that the northern party would insist upon inserting
a slavery restricting clause in the Territorial biU for Ore-
gon. That country was north of the Mason and Dixon line.
No one asserted that slavery would ever find a root there.
Why then meet the question of slavery on a bill so vital to
the Northwest! Simply because this was the logical op-
portunity to force the issue of the constitutionality of slav-
^jy .861 g^^ Calhoun's opponents were not loth to accept the
challenge, no matter what the cost of delay might be to
Oregon.
As soon as the President's message announcing the ex-
change of ratifications in regard to the Oregon Convention
of June and urging the early establishment of a government
for that Territory was communicated to the House, Douglas
from the Committee on Territories introduced a biU pro-
viding both a government and Federal protection for Ore-
gon.^* This bill had been prepared some months in ad-
vance of the President's announcement and had been
framed with an eye single to the welfare of the Territory.
As introduced it contained no clause oti slavery to block its
passage. But on the same day, after the House had put it
«»i For Benton's criticism of Calhoun for ** forcing the issue", see his Thirty
Years' View, VoL 11, p. 698, et seq.
8S2 Congressionai Globe, 1st Session, 29th Congress, p. 1200.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 291
through the first two readings in the Committee of the
Whole, the bill was amended to forever exclude slavery
from the Territory. The vote on this amendment was de-
<5isive — 108 ayes and only 43 nays."* The expedition of
the House in this matter was commendable. Within a few
hours time Douglas's bill as amended passed the third
reading and was sent to the Senate.*^*
Undoubtedly the upper chamber would also have passed
this bill with the same promptness had the slavery restrict-
ing clause been reversed or entirely omitted. As it was the
fiouthem majority tabled it at the instigation of Calhoun —
80 Benton claims.*^** Thus the Oregon people were left for
a year in their extra-legal status, with no authoritative gov-
ernment and embarrassed with threatening Indian wars.
This was also their fate for another year, for the history of
the first Territorial bill was repeated when the second bill
-came from the House in the session of 1846-1847. The Sen-
ate tabled it.*'®
In the whole Oregon a£tair there is one man who stands
out in a peculiarly satisfactory way — and that man is the
President. Polk viewed the question with the executive at-
titude. Oregon was without a government and without ade-
quate protection. Both shoulij be immediately supplied.
Twice, in a special and in an annual message, Polk told
Congress this. He had even promised the Oregon settlers
that he would demand action from Congress;**^'' but that
was all he could do. The situation, he rightly described in
853 Congressional Glohe, let Scsiion, 29th Oongress, pp. 1200, 1204.
354 Congressional Globe, Ist SeeBion, 29th Congress, p. 1205.
855 Journal of the Senate, 1st Session, 29th Congress, p. 505; Benton's Thirty
Years' View, Vol. 11, p. 698, et $eq,
856 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 29th Congress, pp. 199, 571.
357 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 30th Congress, Appendix, p. 40. Com-
pare Diary of James K. Polk, Vol. II, pp. 444-449; also NUes' Weekly Begister,
Vol. LXXII, p. 148.
292 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
his Diary when he wrote: "The present defenseless condi-
tion of the people of Oregon is wholly to be attributed to the
neglect and inattention of Congress to their condition^ and
• . • • refusal to legislate in accordance with the Exec-
ntive recommendation *\**^® Polk could not lead Congress
in the thorny path it had elected to pursue on the slavery
question.
It was with a decided tone of irritation that Polk remind-
ed Congress in his annual message of December 7, 1847,
that no government or Indian agencies for Oregon had been
established.**^® The Federal defense of the Oregon Trail
and the Oregon country at this time was indeed weak.
Benton *s bill of 1846 had provided for a regiment of mount-
ed riflemen for duty in the Northwest, but they had hardly
been recruited before they were ordered to service in the
Mexican War.*®® The Northwest was left quite defenseless.
In regard to this condition the report of the Commissioner
of Indian Affairs sounded a distinct warning.'" Thirty
thousand savages inhabited the Columbia Biver valley, the
report pointed out, rendering the position of the settlers in
this far-away country peculiarly exposed.
Benton repeated this warning in the Senate. He attrib-
uted **all the murderous outrages** committed by the In-
dians upon Oregon settlers to the delay of the Government
in extending its political jurisdiction and protection over
the new Territory in the Northwest. * ' Our meritorious set-
tlers, at a distance of three thousand miles, have deserved
well of their country from their enterprise*', Benton de-
858 Diary of James K, Polk, Vol. IV, p. 155.
8B» Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 30th Congress, p. 10.
860 For the history of this regiment, see Diary of James K, Polk, Vol. IV^
p. 155 ; Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 30th Congress, Appendix, p. 20 ; 2n(l
Session, 30th Congress, Appendix, p. 21; 1st Session, 3l8t Congress, Appendix,,
pp. 11, 12.
861 Senate Documents, Ist Session, 30th Congress, No. 1, p. 752.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 293
dared, and he hoped ''they would not be left exposed to
danger and inconvenience from calamities which a proper
attention to their wants on the part of the Government
would prevent. '*^®2 Senator Hannegan, one of the few re-
maining Senators who seems to have retained the confi-
dence of the Administration, called upon Congress to drop
the useless discussion of slavery in regard to this question
and give attention to *'the cries of our citizens in Oregon,
surrounded by hostile Indians ' ^
Full intelligence of the beginnings of Indian hostilities in
Oregon was confirmed in May, 1848, by the arrival in Wash-
ington of two messengers to the President.®^* They came
from the provisional government of the settlers. One had
sailed by the way of San Francisco and the Isthmus of Pan-
ama ; the other had followed the Oregon Trail to St. Louis,
and thence to Washington. When their definite informa-
tion of outbreaks on the Columbia River was received, Polk
immediately communicated it to Congress and urged expe-
dition. Territorial government should immediately be es-
tablished and authority granted to raise a volunteer force
for the protection of the inhabitants. Besides, according
to the program Polk outlined for Congress, a regiment of
mounted men should be enlisted. If aid was to be carried
to Oregon before winter blocked access to the country from
the land side immediate action was necessary. And a delay
of another year **may prove destructive to the white settle-
ments in Oregon", urged Polk.*®* With all the force that
he could exert, Polk recommended personally to members
of Congress the immediate needs of Oregon and proposed
that the Missouri Compromise line be revived and extended
to the Pacific.^^^ Such an agreement would make possible a
M2 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 30th Congress, p. 804.
863 Diary of James K. Polk, Vol. Ill, p. 463.
M* Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 30th Congress, p. 788.
866 Diary of James K. Polk, Vol. Ill, pp. 501, 504; Vol. IV, p. 12.
294 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
logical retreat by both parties upon a precedent already es-
tablished.
Pricked by the exasperating condition in Oregon, the Sen-
ate resumed discnssion of the Territorial bill, and after a
prolonged debate resorted to a select committee headed by
Senator Clayton.* •• This compromise committee respond-
ed with a bill to organize the Territories of California and
New Mexico as well as Oregon. The laws of the provisional
government of Oregon prohibiting slavery were to remain
until altered by the new Territorial legislature; while the
legislatures of California and New Mexico were forbidden
to make laws interdicting slavery.*®^ This compromise was
finally accepted by the Senate, but the House contemp-
tuously rejected it.*®® After the failure of the compromise
of the Committee of Eight, Douglas proposed Polk's com-
promise.**® The Senate accepted it, but the House again
refused to compromise.*^® Finally at the end of a tiresome
session the Senate gave up, and the Douglas bill with the
restrictions of the Northwest Ordinance was accepted by
both houses and presented to the President upon the last
day of adjournment.*^^ Polk immediately gave his sanc-
tion — which indeed he had been prepared to give for some
time, although Calhoun had personally exerted his utmost
influence upon him to obtain a veto.*^* The President's
prompt signature was a rebuke to the long wrangle in Con-
gress, which for two years had delayed justice to Oregon.
M6 Congressionai Globe, let Session, 30th Congress, p. 932.
997 Congressionai Globe, 1st Session, 30th Congress, p. 950. The bill is
printed on p. 1002.
888 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 30th Congress, p. 1007.
860 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 30th Congress, p. 1048.
3T0 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 30th Congress, pp. 1061, 1062.
871 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 30th Congress, p. 1078.
872 Diary of James K, Polk, Vol. IV, pp. 22, 72-74.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 295
OREGON TEBBITOBT AND THE INDIANS
The first session of the Thirtieth Congress i>assed a Ter-
ritorial bill for Oregon, but the entire program of legisla-
tion for that Territory as laid down by the President in his
message of May, 1848, was not carried out.'^' The struggle
over the slavery clause had been too engrossing and all-
absorbing for careful consideration of other details; and
perhaps there was also some truth in the President's bitter
reflection that Congress had been **more occupied at the
last session in President making than in attending to the
public business/'*^* On the tenth of October Polk wrote:
I read to the Cabinet a communication which I received this
morning from George Abemethy, the Governor of the Temporary
Government in Oregon, dated April 3rd, 1848, in which he states
that an Indian war is raging in Oregon, presents their destitution
of arms and the means of defense, and earnestly calls upon the
Government of the U. States for assistance and protection. We
have no means of affording timely aid other than that which has
been already ordered. It is most unfortunate that Congress had
not granted the force for which I called to protect the people of
Oregon in my message of May last. . . . Congress not only re-
fused to do this, but after the orders had been issued, upon the con-
clusion of the Mexican War, to have the Mounted Rifle Begt. march
to Oregon the last summer for their protection, that body, without
the recommendation of the Executive & against our wishes, author-
ized every man of that Regiment who would ask it to be discharged.
The effect [of] this was .... to disband the Regiment &
to recruit it again, and in the mean-time the season was too far ad-
vanced to enable the Regiment to be marched across the Rocky
mountains before the impassable snows of winter would set in. The
present defenseless condition of the people of Oregon is wholly to be
attributed to the neglect and inattention of Congress to their con-
dition, and .... refusal to legislate in accordance with the
Executive recommendation at the last Session.*^'
873 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 30th Congress, p. 788.
374 Diary of James K. Polk, Vol. IV, p. 155.
876 Diary of James K, Polk, VoL IV, pp. 154, 155.
296 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
In lien of a military force during the autumn of 1848,
Polk used the navy to succor the Oregon people. Orders
were transmitted to the commander of the American squad-
ron in the Pacific to dispatch to the assistance of the Oregon
settlers a part of the naval forces under his comjuand, and
to furnish them with arms and ammunition and protection
until the army could arrive.*^® When Congress convened in
December a large part of the President's message was de-
voted to the state of affairs in the Oregon country.'^ ^ In
plain words Polk exhibited the culpable neglect of Congress
for **the continuance of the Indian disturbances'* and for
**the destitution and defenseless condition of the inhabit-
ants. ' ' If Indian agencies had been established in Oregon,
Polk declared, the aboriginal tribes would have been re-
strained from making war.
The immediate and only cause of the existing hostility of the In-
dians of Oregon is ... . the long delay of the United States
in making to them some trifling compensation .... for the
country now occupied by our emigrants, which the Indians claimed,
and over which they formerly roamed. This compensation had
been promised to them by the temporary government established in
Oregon, but its fulfillment had been postponed from time to time,
for nearly two years, whilst those who made it had been anxiously
waiting for Congress to establish a territorial government over the
country. The Indians became at length distrustful of their good
faith, and sought redress by plunder and massacre, which finally
led to the present difficulties. A few thousand dollars in suitable
presents, as a compensation for the country which had been taken
possession of by our citizens, would have satisfied the Indians, and
have prevented the war.
Again the President called upon Congress to provide In-
dian agents to reside among the Indian tribes and for ap-
propriations to enable these agents to cultivate friendly
979 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 30th Congress, p. 7.
877 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 30th Congress, pp. 6, 7.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 297
relations with them. Especially did the President recom-
mend an appropriation to cover the militia service of **onr
fellow-citizens of Oregon [who] have been compelled to
take the field in their own defense * \
Howbeit, the session passed by with little effort to formu-
late into law any of these Presidential recommendations.
The militia claims were not, of course, even broached, for
the reason that there was no one to present them for allow-
ance. By the Organic Act of August 14, 1848, the Territory
was entitled to be represented by a Delegate to Congress.*^®
None appeared, however, in this session, for the Territorial
act had been passed so late in the summer of 1848 and the
journey to Oregon was so long that time did not permit
a Delegate to arrive or even to be elected before the ses-
sion of 1848-1849 adjourned. The Organic Act had been
carried to the new Territory by the first Governor and Mar-
shal whom the President had hastily dispatched to the West
immediately following the passage of the act of August 14,
1848. Taking the Santa Fe and Gila trails to California,
because the approaching winter forbade access by way of
the Oregon Trail, these officers crossed the continent to San
Pedro harbor ; thence they sailed to their destination, arriv-
ing on the second day of March, 1849. The proclamation
of Oregon 's Organic Act was made the next morning.
The days of legislative neglect were now numbered. Af-
ter the establishment of the Territorial government, a Dele-
gate to Congress was elected.*^® This Delegate — Thurs-
ton by name — arrived at Washington in November before
the first session of the Thirty-first Congress convened. The
character of this first Delegate from the Northwest is
worthy of note. Bom in Maine and educated at Bowdoin
College, Thurston emigrated to Oregon in 1847 while yet a
878 United States Statutes at Large, Vol. IX, p. 329.
879 The Whig Almanac, 1850, p. 51.
VOL. IX — 21
298 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
young man. Despite his short sojourn in the new Territory
of the Northwest, he is said to have rivaled the crudest of
western politicians with his harsh and impulsive manners
and his over-bearing confidence.^® Be that as it may,
Thurston knew what legislation the Territory needed and
how to obtain it from Congress. He addressed himself
most carefully to the committees of both houses before tak-
ing the floor of the lower house in person. The results of
his activities may be judged from the statute book of the
United States at the end of the session.'®^
One of the first bills which the Delegate had a share in
bringing to a successful issue was a bill reported to the
Senate by its Committee on Indian Affairs.*®* Early in the
session the committee had under advisement a resolution
offered by Douglas concerning the expediency of extin-
guishing the Indian title to certain portions of the western
Territories, including Oregon and California.^' Senator
John Bell of Tennessee was chairman; and seems to have
depended entirely upon Delegate Thurston for his informa-
tion in regard to conditions in Oregon.®®* It was high time
that some measure be taken in regard to Indian cessions.
All American settlers save those who appropriated to them-
selves the property of former British subjects were nothing
more nor less than trespassers upon unceded Indian terri-
tory. There was not an inhabitant, Bell truly declared, who
could improve his land or build a home with confidence, be-
cause there was no land to which some Indian tribe did not
set up a claim.®®** The necessity of the inmiediate extin-
880 Bancroft 's History of Oregon, Vol. II, pp. 114, et seq,
881 United States Statutes at Large, Vol. IX, pp. 437, 438, 440, 496.
882 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 31st Congress, p. 262.
883 Journal of Senate, 1st Session, 31st Congress, pp. 42, 62, 122.
884 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 31st Congress, p. 262.
9BS Congressional Qiohe, let Session, Slst Congress, pp. 262, 411.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 299
guishment of these Indian titles in order to preserve peace
was beyond the need of elaborate proof. Under the man-
agement of the chairman and Douglas the bill passed the
Senate in April and the lower house on May 29th.*®®
Well it was for the good fame of the American Indian
policy that the Indian treaty bill preceded in point of time a
certain bill already reported to the House by its Committee
on Public Lands. This was a bill to survey the public lands
of Oregon and to make donations to the white settlers. Al-
though following so closely upon the act to treat with the
Indians for the purchase of their Oregon lands the objec-
tion does not seem to have been made that the act of May
29th might not be successful in exfinguishing the Indian
titles. The right of the Oregon settlers to the Indian lands
upon which they had squatted without so much as asking
leave was unquestioned in Congress, and no one burdened
the Delegate to frame a defense of their technical trespass-
ing.*®^
In regard to military matters, the Senate was equally
compliant to western demands. Jefferson Davis, Chairman
of the Committee on Military Affairs, introduced a bill to
increase the army with the avowed purpose of protecting
the Indian f rentier.*®® **You cannot stop the travel to Cal-
ifornia ' \ said Rush of Texas, thinking more of his own lo-
cality than of the Northwest, **or the settlement on the
frontiers of Texas and in New Mexico, and it becomes there-
fore the imperative duty of Congress to protect them.'**®*
The bill passed both houses.**® Moreover, in the following
session Thurston with the aid of Douglas**^ and Armistead
886 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 31st Congress, pp. 798, 1090.
887 Congressional Globe, Itt Session, 31st Congress, pp. 791, 1030.
888 Congressional Globe, Ist Session, 3l8t Congress, pp. 395, 1139.
ZS9 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 3l8t Congress, p. 1180.
890 United States Statutes at Large, Vol. IX, p. 438.
801 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, Slst Congress, p. 332.
300 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Burt,'** Chairman of the House Committee on Military Af-
fairsy procnred a settlement of the Caynse War claims —
the same militia claims mentioned by Polk in his last annual
message.***
At the close of the Thirty-first Congress, Thurston might
truly write his constituents that the last of the measures to
meet Oregon's present needs had been consummated.**^
All this was done in spite of the exhaustive debates on the
compromise bills which excluded the much needed legisla-
tion in the first session. The attention of Congress had
been definitely fixed upon the Pacific coast and the period of
its neglect was past.
CONCLUSION
As to the frontier in the three decades from 1820 to 1850
the story is briefly told by the census maps for the begin-
ning and the end of the period. In 1820 this frontier had
hardly crossed the Mississippi above the Missouri settle-
ments ; and vast stretches of wilderness existed even within
the boundaries of some eastern States. By 1850 the west-
ernmost frontier was far beyond the Mississippi, while the
interior frontiers had been reduced to ahnost nothing, espe-
cially in the South. The land titles of the Indians had been
extinguished in exchange for lands beyond the Arkansas
and the Missouri rivers, and the aborigines who had been
the annoyance of every Middle State were now far re-
moved.*®"
But even in their new homes the advance of civilization
was following the Lidians. From Texas they were being
pushed northward; from the Iowa country pressure west-
892 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, Slst Congress, p. 446.
80S United States Statutes at Large, Vol. IX, p. 566.
894 Bancroft 's History of Oregon, Vol. II, p. 134.
896 Eleventh Census, Population, Vol. I, Part 1. Map facing p. xxiy.
THE PIONEERS AND THE INDIANS 301
ward and southward was about to begin ; while their retreat
across the Rocky Mountains, as if it were not already pro-
hibited by Nature, was cut off by the new settlements in
Oregon and California. Economic forces were the cause
of this contraction of the Indian country. Every period of
financial distress in the older States increased the influx of
settlers into the bounty lands of the West, while large
German and Irish migrations from Europe had swelled the
tide of pioneers.
Now in all this matter the sympathy of the majority in
Congress was with the advance of civilization, as the pre-
ceding pages have shown time and again. How pertinently
had the case been stated by Adams in 1802 1 The rights of
the lordly savage were light in the balance with the rights
of civilization. This even the philanthropists could not dis-
prove; nor did many care to deny it. But withal the ma-
jority in Congress was ever aware of Indian rights. Sel-
dom do we find even individuals who had the heartlessness
to condemn the Indians as hopeless or to assert that the
only **good Indian" was a **dead Indian**. Their rights
were to be observed and their customs respected as much
as was possible in the nature of the case. Their lands were
to be purchased by annuities and by the grants of new lands
in the far West. Treaties negotiated with minorities of
tribes were rejected. Trade and intercourse laws, revised
and perfected as needs arose, were to guard them from the
lawless encroachments of the whites. Against lawless in-
vaders the army of the United States was to strike.
But on the other hand any Indian denial of the inevitable
retreat before civilization was suppressed. There could
not exist an imperium in imperio in Georgia nor in any oth-
er State. Civilization must not be thus thwarted. The pio-
neer settlers on the frontier, also, deserved on their part
protection from savage resentment, and unprovoked hos-
302 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
tilities must be suppressed and punished, and prevented in
the future by separation.
Thus Congress was between two fires. While westerners
complained that the Indian title was not being extinguished
rapidly enough, many easterners denounced in bitter terms
the policy of removing the Indians. Each side had its
spokesmen in the long debates on the removal question.
When it came to vote, however, the policy of continuing the
western expansion was not impeded.
Even before all of the Indians had retreated across the
Mississippi, the frontier line had also passed beyond its
western bank; and much of the Lidian history of the Mid-
dle West was beginning to be repeated in the far West
The annexation of Texas, and the acquisition of the South-
west and of Oregon enlarged the Lidian problem without
adding many new features. The problem in Oregon had
been under congressional consideration since 1840. When
action was finally taken in 1849 and in 1851, that action was
simply a repetition of the former Federal policy as to In-
dian lands and supervision. The questions relating to the
Calif omian and Texan Indians belong properly to the next
decade.
Kenneth W. CoiiOROVB
Habvabd Univeesity
Cambeidoe
SOME PUBLICATIONS
AMERICANA
GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS
The Library of Congress has recently published an elaborate
catalogue of American and English Genealogies in the Library of
Congress.
The work of taking the United States Census of 1910 is described
with considerable detail in the Report of the Director which has
recently been published.
The fourth number of the Maryland Quarterly, published by the
Maryland Peace Society, contains a paper entitled The Peace Move-
ment Practical, by Theodore Marburg.
An Education Department Bulletin published in February by
the New York State Library is devoted to a digest of American
Ballot Laws, 1888-1910, compiled by Arthur C. Ludington.
The Story of the Short Ballot Cities is the title of a pamphlet
published by the Short Ballot Organization, which contains infor-
mation concerning the workings of the short ballot under the com-
mission plan of municipal government.
A paper on The Doctrine of Continuotts Voyage, read by Charles
Noble Gregory at the Guildhall in London on August 2, 1910, at a
conference of the International Law Association, has been reprint-
ed from the Harvard Law Review.
The Importance of Judicial Settlement is the subject discussed
by Elihu Root in a pamphlet published in February by the Amer-
ican Society for Judicial Settlement of International Disputes, the
headquarters of which are at Baltimore.
A Bulletin of the Virginia State Library published in October
contains a v^ry comprehensive Bibliography of the Conventions
808
304 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
and Constitutions of Virginia including References to Essays, Let-
ters and Speeches in the Virginia Newspapers, prepared by Earl
G. Swem.
Samuel O. Dunn is the writer of a pamphlet devoted to Current
Bailway Problems. The valuation of railways, the limitation of
railway profits, railway rates and efSciency, and the new long and
short haul law are the problems discussed.
General Wesley Merritt is the subject of a biographical sketch,
by Eben Swift, in the March number of the Journal of the United
States Cavalry Association. Among the Reprints and Translations
is a lengthy article on The Campaign of 1777, by Charles Francis
Adams.
David Ricardo: A Centenary Estimate is the title of a mono-
g^raph by Jacob H. Hollander, which appears as number four, series
twenty-eight of the Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical
and Political Science. It is divided into three chapters devoted
respectively to the life, work, and influence of the great economist.
Pamphlets published during January, February, and March by
the American Association for International Conciliation are re-
spectively: School Books and International Prejudices, by Albert
Bushnell Hart; Peace and the Professor, by Grant Showerman;
and Wom^in and the Cau^e of Peace, by Baron d'Estoumelles de
Constant.
E. P. Ripley contends for the value-of-the-service principle in the
regulation of railway rates in an article on The Railroads and the
People, which is reprinted from The Atlantic Monthly for January.
The writer has discussed the subject in a sane and conservative
manner, devoting himself to its ethical phases rather than its ju-
dicial aspects.
The Heroic Story of the United States Sanitary Commission,
1861-1865, by William Howell Reed, which has been reprinted from
the Christian Register, is a contribution in a field in which com-
paratively little has been written. The work of the various agen-
cies engaged in the alleviation of suffering in tiie armies during the
war deserves much study.
SOME PUBLICATIONS 305
One of the most pretentious works of genealogy which has ap-
peared recently is that devoted to the Descendants of Edward Small
of New England and the Allied Families with Tracings of English
Ancestry, prepared by Lora Altine Woodbury Underbill. The
work covers three large volumes, and is amply illustrated by nu-
merous excellent cuts.
An account of the visit of Governor John Winthrop, of Con-
necticut, to New Amsterdam in July, 1661, is to be found under the
title, A Notable Visit to New Amsterdam, in the January number
of The New Netherland Register. The most extended article is one
dealing with Pioneers and Founders of New Netherland, which is
•contained in the February number.
Hiram Bingham, in the January number of the Bulletin of the
American Geographical Society, writes a description of Potosi, the
■ancient and interesting South American city which was so long
famous for its fabulous wealth. F. Y. Emerson is the writer of a
pertinent article on Geographical Influences in the Distribution of
Slavery, which is continued in the February number.
The Twenty-fourth Annual Report of the Commissioner of Labor,
recently issued from the (Jovemraent Printing OfBce, consists of the
first volume of a treatise on Workmen's Insurance and Compensa-
tion Systems in Europe. The systems employed in Austria, Bel-
gium, Denmark, France, and Germany are treated in this volume
by diflPerent writers. The work will be in two volumes.
Albert Anthony Giesecke is the author of a volume entitled
American Commercial Legislation Before 1789, published by the
University of Pennsylvania. The book deals with England's com-
mercial policy toward the American colonies; import, export, and
tonnage duties; bounties, inspection laws, and embargoes; port
regulations; and commercial policy from the Revolution to 1789.
There is a bibliography which, as the author indicates, is only
partial.
The Legislative Power of Congress Under the Judicial Article of
the Constitution is the subject discussed by Frank J. Goodnow in
an article which opens the December number of the Political Science
306 IOWA JOUBNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Quarterly. Clement F. Robinson writes on The Mortgage Record-
ing Tax; Joseph B. Ross tells of Agrarian Changes in the Middle
West; and Charles Franklin Emerick presents an article on A Neg-
lected Factor in Race Suicide.
The four hundred page BuUetin of the University of Mississippi
published in June, 1910, is entitled Historical Catalogue of the
University of Mississippi, 1849-1909. It contains a history of the
University and of all the various departments and schools, together
with sketches of the Presidents and Chancellors and lists of trus-
tees, officers, professors, instructors and students, from the begin-
ning down to the present time. The volume is worthy of hearty
commendation.
Edinburgh in 1544 and Hertford's Invasion is the title of a con-
tribution by J. Balfour Paul which appears in the January num-
ber of The Scottish Historical Review. A number of Jacobite
Songs are contributed by Andrew Lang. Henry W. Meikle is the
writer of a brief article on Two Glasgow Merchants in the French
Revolution. Other articles are : Charter of the Abbot and Convent
of Cupar, 1220, by James Wilson; and an illustrated account of
A Roman Outpost on Tweedside: The Fort of Newstead, by Joseph
Anderson.
The January number of The Annals of the American Academy
of Political and Social Science is devoted to the general subject of
Electric Railway Transportation. Traffic and financial problems
and public regulation of electric railways are the main subdivisions
under which the numerous articles are grouped. The supplement
to this number contains a number of addresses on the subject of
The Need for Currency Reform. In the March number The Public
Health Movement is the topic of discussion.
Among the articles in The Survey during the past three months
are: The Findings of the Immigration Commission, by H. Parker
Willis; Immigrant Rural Communities, by Alexander E. Cance
and Immigrants in Cities, by E. A. Ooldenweiser (January 7)
The St. Louis Meetings, by Henry Raymond Mussey (January 14)
The Correction and Prevention of Crime, by Edward T. Devine
SOME PUBLICATIONS 307
(January 21) ; The Pittsburgh City Plan, by Frederick Law Olm-
sted (February 4) ; The Social Basis of Religion, by Simon N. Pat-
ten (March 4).
Arthur Wentworth Hamilton Eaton is the author of a nine hun-
dred page volume devoted to The History of Kings County,
Nova Scotia: Heart of the Acadian Land. The volume, as is further
indicated on the title page, contains a sketch of the French and
their expulsion, and a history of the New England settlers who
came in their place, together with a large number of brief bio-
graphical and genealogical sketches. The work is apparently done
with care, but it is to be regretted that are no citations of sources
and that the index is so brief.
Among the articles in the January number of the Journal of the
American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology are the fol-
lowing : Needed Reforms in the Law of Expert Testimony, by Ed-
ward J. McDermott ; Crime and Punishment, by George W. Kirch-
wey ; and Public Defense in Criminal Trials, by Maurice Parmalee.
In the March number may be found : Needed Reforms in Criminal
Law and Procedure, by William P. Lawler; The Unequal Applica-
tion of the Criminal Law, by Gerard G. Brandon; and the State's
Guardianship Over Criminals, by Stephen H. Allen.
Volume four, number one of The University Studies published
by the University of Illinois is devoted to a monograph on The
Origin of the Land Grant Act of 1862 and Some Account of its
Author, Jonathan B. Turner, written by Edmund J. James. The
author's thesis is that Jonathan B. Turner, who was at one
time a professor in Illinois College at Jacksonville, deserves the
credit for having brought about the movement which resulted in the
Morrill Act of 1862, making land grants to the States to encourage
education along the lines of agriculture and mechanic arts.
The Lure of Buried Wealth is the title of an interesting article
by Louis Baury, which appears in the December number of Amer-
icana, J. B. Ofner is the writer of a discussion of Military Orants
in the United States, which is begun in this number and concluded
in the January number. In the latter number may also be found
308 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
an account of The President's New Year Receptions, Then and Now,
by Helen Harcourt ; and an unsigned article on The Settlement of
the Maine Boundary Dispute, The series of articles on Little Wars
of the Republic, by John R. Header, runs through these munbers
and an installment may also be found in the February number.
A. L. Smith is the writer of an article entitled A Nation in the
Making, which appears in The Yale Review for February. The
Union of South Africa is the subject discussed. Another article
deals with the Taxation of Corporate Franchises in Massachusetts
and is written by Charles A. Andrews. A second chapter on The
Statistical Work of the Federal Oovemment is contributed by
Julius H. Parmalee. In a discussion of Rhine and Mississippi River
Terminals, E. J. Clapp points out some important facts concerning
the possibilities of river transportation in America. The concluding
article is an analytical description of The British Election Address,
by George L. Fox.
The January number of The Quarterly Journal of the Univer-
sity of North Dakota opens with an excellent article by O. G. Libby
on The Correlation of Literature and History, in which he points
out how the spirit of various periods of the world's history has been
reflected in the great literature of those periods, and how, on the
other hand, literature has had a great influence over the people and
has thus helped in shaping their ideals. There is a second chapter
of John Morris Gillette's discussion of the City Trend of Popula-
tion and Leadership; Andrew Alexander Bruce contributes An Un-
written Chapter in the History of South Africa; and Frank L.
McVey discusses A Rational System of Taxing Natural Resources,
Among the articles in the Columbia Law Review for January
are : The Constitutionality of Race Distinctions and the Baltimore
Segregation Ordinance, by Warren B. Hunting; and Nature and
Scope of the Power of Congress to Regulate Commerce, by Freder-
ick H. Cooke. In the February number Alfred Hayes, Jr. is the
writer of a discussion of Partial Unconstitutionality with Special
Reference to the Corporation Tax. Two contributions of special
interest among the contents of the March number are : American
SOME PUBLICATIONS 309
Citizenship, by Dudley 0. McGovney ; and The Exclusive Power of
Congress over Interstate Commerce, by Charles W. Needham. A
cumulative index of over one hundred pages, covering the first ten
volumes of the Review, has recently been published.
In an article in the January number of The American Journal of
Sociology Sophonisba P. Breckinridge and Edith Abbott point out
the need of improvement and regulation in the Housing Conditions
in Chicago Back of the Yards. Gteorge E. Vincent presents some
observations concerning The Rivalry of Social Groups, in which he
shows the importance of studying the conduct of the individual
from the standpoint of the social group to which he belongs.
Municipal Review 1909-1910, by Clinton Rogers Woodruff; and
The Transition to an Objective Standard of Social Control, by
Luther Lee Bernard, are other articles in this number.
An article of interest to the average citizen is one by William Z.
Ripley on Railway Speculation which opens the February number
of The Quarterly Journal of Economics. The writer outlines the
course of speculative activity since 1890 and illustrates his points
by discussions of various railroad pools and syndicates, closing with
suggested remedies and an estimate of future developments. Rob-
ert H. Smith is the author of an article on Distribution of Income
in Great Britain and Incidence of Income Tax. Other articles are :
Economic History and Philology, by Leo Wiener ; a second install-
ment of Railway Rate Theories of the Interstate Commerce Com-
mission, by M. B. Hammond ; and Some Aspects of the Wool Trade
of the United States, by P. T. Cherington.
The presidential address on the subject of The Law and the Facts,
delivered by Woodrow Wilson at the seventh annual meeting of the
American Political Science Association occupies first place in the
February number of The American Political Science Review. The
address is a plea for a more earnest eflPort to fathom the spirit and
the motives behind political phenomena, rather than the mere study
of the facts as they appear on the surface. Paul S. Reinsch pre-
sents a careful survey of Diplomatic Affairs and International Law,
1910, Oswald Ryan discusses The Commission Plan of City Gov-
ernment in the light of its workings thus far, and his conclusions
310 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
on the whole are distinctly favorable to the plan. Tendencies To-
ward Ministerial Responsibility in Oermany is the subject of an
article by Walter J. Shepard.
The State of New York has added another handsome volume to
its already large list of publications of documentary material. This
time it is volume one of the Minutes of the Executive Council of the
Province of New York which is printed, and the editor is the State
Historian, Victor Hugo Paltsits. The material included in this vol-
ume covers the administration of Francis Lovelace, the second
English Governor of New York, from 1668-1673. No minutes for
the administration of Richard NicoUs, the first Governor, have
been found and in fact it is not known that any such records were
kept. Besides the minutes themselves, which occupy less than half
of the volume, there are a number of Collateral and Illustrative
Documents which throw much additional light on the transactions
of the Council. The editorial work has evidently been done with
great care. The documents have been transcribed with commend-
able accuracy, and the notes and annotations are unusually fuU
and explanatory.
Defense of American Commerce and the Spirit of American Unity
is the subject of an article by Henry Moore Baker which appears
in The Journal of American History for the first quarter of the
current year. The article centers about the siege of Louisburg in
1745 and the events immediately preceding. Under the heading,
Original Manuscript of a Witness of the American Revolution,
Yamum Lansing Collins contributes a description of the battle of
Princeton and of the ravages of the British and Hessians, written
by an eye-witness. The results of an Investigation into American
Tradition of Woman Known as '^Molly Pitcher'^ are presented by
John B. Landis. Among the other contributions are : a third in-
stallment of transcripts from Original Orderly Books Written on
the Battlefields of the American Revolution, by Charles Tallmadge
Conover ; Discovery of the Cheat Anthracite Regions of the Middle
West, by Louise Hillard Patterson ; and a discussion of a Journey
to the Northern Regions "before the American Republic, by Eliza-
beth W. Chandler.
SOME PUBLICATIONS 311
WESTERN
An address by J. B. Oakleaf on Abraham Lincoln: His Friend-
ship for Humanity and Sacrifice for Others has been printed in an
extremely neat and attractive pamphlet.
A History of Macalester College, by Henry Daniel Punk, is a
three hundred page volume of western interest. The volume has
been written in a scholarly manner, with frequent references to
sources of material, and is worthy of emulation on the part of other
colleges and universities.
Among the articles in The Graduate Magazine of the University
of Kansas for January is a brief sketch entitled Thirty Years Ago
at K. U., by Edwin C. Meservy. The February number opens with
an article on The Alien, by R. D. O'Leary. There are also a num-
ber of articles paying tributes to the memory of the late Professor
Frank Egbert Bryant.
A bulletin published in December by the University of Oregon
contains the proceedings of the Second Annual Commonwealth
Conference held at the University on February 11 and 12, 1910.
The University is performing a worthy service in maintaining this
conference at which questions relative to the welfare and progress
of the State of Oregon are discussed.
Cherokees **West** 1794 to 1839 is the title of a volume compiled
and published at Glaremore, Oklahoma, by Emmet Starr. It con-
tains, in the first place, a number of reminiscent letters written by
Cephas Washburn, an early missionary among the Cherokees. Then
follow a number of laws of the Cherokee Nation, together with some
historical notes relative to the tribe. The lack of an index is to be
deplored. Mr. Starr announces his praiseworthy intention to pub-
lish a number of other volumes on the Cherokees.
The Pox Farm in Mason County, Kentucky, near Maysville and
not far from the historic town of Washington, is the locality the
aboriginal history of which is related by Harlan I. Smith in a mono-
graph on The Prehistoric Ethnology of a Kentucky Site, which
constitutes volume six, part two of the Anthropological Papers of
312 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
the American Museum of Natural History, The writer has sac-
ceeded in an admirable manner in reconstructing the life of the pre-
historic inhabitants of the locality, and the monograph contains a
large number of excellent illustrations.
The Stone Age in North America is the title of a two-volume
work by Warren K. Moorehead, which has come from the press of
the Houghton Mi£9in Company. It is, as stated on the title page,
an archaeological encyclopedia of the implements, ornaments,
weapons, and utensils of the prehistoric races of this continent.
The many hundred illustrations, some of thei^ in color, form a most
praiseworthy part of the work, which throughout gives evidence of
a vast amount of diligent labor in preparation.
lOWANA
A Biographic Sketch of 8. B. McCaU, written by C. L. Lucas,
is printed in the Madrid Register-News of March 23, 1911.
A supplement to the Morningside College Bulletin issued in De-
cember contains the proceedings and addresses at the inauguration
of President Freeman on October 6, 1910.
The Swastika, Its History and Significance is an article by
Thomas Carr in the January number of The American Freemason,
and there is a second installment in the February number.
College Purpose and College Failures is the topic of a sketch in
the February number of The Chrinnell Review, where may also be
found a brief article on Orinnell College and Public Affairs.
A neat pamphlet containing an account of the Dedication of the
First English Evangelical Lutheran Church of Cedar Rapids opens
with a brief historical sketch of the church, which was organized in
1856.
The Sage of Monticello is the topic of a sketch by William Cyrus
Hanawalt in the January number of Midland Schools. Here may
also be found a Proposed Pension Bill for the benefit of public
school teachers.
The Efficiency and Limitations of Bank Examinations is the title
of an article by M. A. Kendall which appears in The Northwestern
SOME PUBLICATIONS 313
Banker for January. The Banker and the Farmer, by Henry Wal-
lace; and Banking and Finance, by E. B. Qumey, are other articles
in this nnmber.
Some interesting local history of Jefferson County is to be foun^
in an article on The Oldest Burj^ng Ground in the County, by
Hiram Heaton, in the issue of the Fairfield Tribune for January
25, 1911.
Emma Robinson Eleckner is the writer of a little pamphlet en-
titled Sioux City. The author traces the history of the city from
the time when Lewis and Clark and their party camped on Iowi|
soil at that point, and buried Sergeant Charles Floyd on a high
bluff overlooking the river.
A handsome volume of over two hundred pages contains the Re-
port of the Iowa State Drainage Waterways and Conservation Com-r
mission for the biennial period ending in January, 1911. The
Commission was created by an act of the legislature in 1909 and
consequently this is the first report. A large number of excellent
illustrations and maps accompany the report.
0. A. Byington is the writer of a brief article on Universii$
Alumni and the Legislature which is printed in the January nun^
ber of The Iowa Alumnus. In the February number there is a state-
ment concerning the Resignation of President MacLean, and an
article by Mira Troth on General Thomas J. Henderson, who was a
student in the institution known as Iowa City University in 1845-
1846.
The proceedings of the Eleventh Annual Conference of the Iowa
Daughters of the American Revolution have been printed in a neat
pamphlet. This organization is performing valuable historical ser-
vices in the way of marking and preserving historic sites, colleetiiig
historical relics, and educating the people on historical subjects. It
is also aiding in the movement for child labor legislation and other
similar reforms.
A paper on Education for the Iowa Farm Boy, read by H. C.
Wallace before the Prairie Club of Des Moines, has been printed in
pamphlet form. The author discusses the systems of agricultural
VOL. IX— 22
314 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
education .and rural public schools employed in yarious European
countries, and compares tiiem with the conditions, past and present,
along the same lines in this country in general and in Iowa in par-
ticular. The great need for improvement is pointed out.
^^ Yida E. Smith is the writer of a Biography of Patriarch Alex-
ander Hale Smith which occupies first place in the January number
of the Journal of History published at Lamoni by the Reorganized
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. An Open Letter of
Charles W. Wandell to the President of the United States is an-
other contribution, and the remainder of the Journal is largely
taken up with continuations of biographical sketches, as is also the
April number.
In the February number of Midland Municipalities there may be
found An Open Letter to County Attorneys of Iowa, by f^rank O.
Pierce. Municipal Law of Iowa, by A. W. Osborne ; Uniform Ac-
counting, by Henry Shuff ; and Need of Comparative Reports and
Uniform Accounting, by Thomas H. Pratt, are among the articles
in this number. In the March number there are some extracts from
a paper on Railroad Taxation in Iowa, by Frank T. True; and
Extracts from a Paper on Tax Reform in Iowa, by John E. Brind-
ley.
SOME RECENT PUBUCATIONS BY IOWA AUTHORS
Bailey, Bert Heald,
Two Hundred Wild Birds of Iowa (New edition). Cedar
Rapids : Superior Press. 1911.
Betts, George Herbert,
The Recitation. Mount Yemon, Iowa: Hawk-Eye Publishing
Co. 1911.
Breckenridge, Mrs. John,
Mahanomah. New York: Cochrane Publishing Co. 1911.
Brewer, Luther A., and Wick, Barthinius L.,
History of Linn County, Iowa. Cedar Bapids: The Toreh
Press. 1911.
Brindley, John E.,
History of Taxation in Iowa (2 volumes). Iowa City: The
State Historical Society of Iowa. 1911.
SOME PUBLICATIONS 315
Brown, John FranUin,
The Training of Teachers for Secondary Schools in Oermany
and the United States. New York : The Macmillan C!o. 1911.
Cooky (George Cram,
The Chasm. New York : Frederick A. Stokes Co. 1911.
Fairbanks, Arthur,
A Handbook of Greek Religion. New York: American Book
Co. 1911.
Garland, Hamlin,
Hesper. New York: Grosset and Dnnlap. 1911.
Herr, Horace Dnmont,
Country and River-side Poems. Humboldt : Published by the
author. 1910.
James, Edmund Janes,
The Origin of the Land Grant Act of 1862. XJrbana : Univer-
sity of Illinois. 1911.
Jones, Marcus Eugene,
Montana Botany Notes. Missoula: University of Montana.
1911.
Eleckner, Emma Robinson,
Sioux City. Sioux City : Published by the author. 1910.
Mangold, George B.,
Child Problems. New York: The Macmillan Co. 1911.
Marshall, Carl Coran, and (Goodyear, Samuel Horatio,
Inductive Commercial Arithmetic. Cedar Rapids: Goodyear-
Marshall Publishing Co. 1911.
Rich, Joseph W.,
The Battle of Shiloh. Iowa City: The State Historical So-
ciety of Iowa. 1911.
Rockwood, Elbert W.,
Laboratory Manual of Physiological Chemistry (Revised and
enlarged edition). Philadelphia: F. A. Davis Co. 1910.
Starch, Daniel,
Principles of Advertising. Madison: University Cooperative
Co. 1910.
Tilton, John Littlefield,
Pleistocene Deposits in Warren County, Iowa. Chicago : Uni-
versity of Chicago. 1911.
316 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Veblen, Oswald (Joint author),
Projective Oeometry. Boston : Ginn & Co. 1911.
Wallace, H. C,
Education for the Iowa Farm Boy. Des Moines: The
Club. 1911.
White, Hervey,
A Ship of Souls: A Oroup of Poems. Woodstock, New York:
Maverick Press. 1911.
New Songs for Old. Woodstock, New York: Maverick Press.
1911.
In An Old Main's Garden: Poems of Humor. Woodstock, New
York: Maverick Press. 1911.
SOMB REGENT HIBTOBIOAL FTEMS IN IOWA NEWSPAPERS
The Register and Leader
T. E. Booth — One of the Honored Veterans of Newspapering in
Iowa, January 8, 1911.
Dr. A. A. Noyes — Oldest Practicing Physician in the United
States, January 8, 1911.
Earliest Street Cars of the Des Moines System, January 15, 1911.
James Hayes — One of Iowa's Noted Pioneers, January 22, 1911.
Mrs. Mary McFall — One of the Pioneer Women of Iowa, January
22, 1911.
Story of the Early Iowa Banditti and the Fight at Bellevne, Jan-
uary 29, 1911.
Calvin Brockett, a Polk County Pioneer, by L. F. Andrews, Jan-
uary 29, 1911.
"Uncle" Asa Turner, January 29, 1911.
Circus Men Who Were Bom in Iowa, February 5, 1911.
Crimes of Pioneer Days, by L. F. Andrews, February 5, 1911.
Founder of the Henderson Family, a Pioneer of Four States, Feb-
ruary 5, 1911.
Lincoln as his Neighbors Knew Him, by Wayne Whipple, February
12, 1911.
A Oet-Bich-Quick Scheme of the Olden Days, by L. F. Andrews,
February 12, 1911.
SOME PUBLICATIONS 317
Memories of the Prohibitory Amendment Campaign of 1882, by
Mrs. Addie B. Billington, February 12, 1911.
Cousins of Abraham Lincoln Living in Iowa, February 12, 1911.
Some Men Who Helped Make Iowa at an Early Date, by L. F.
Andrews, February 19, 1911.
How Edward P. Heizer Made Gk)od in the Newspaper Oame, Feb-
ruary 19, 1911.
Judge David Ryan's Career, by L. F. Andrews, March 5, 1911.
General William L. Alexander — One of Iowa's Famous Fighting
Men, March 5, 1911.
Jones County Calf Case which Began in 1874, March 5, 1911.
Iowa Soldiers at Columbia, South Carolina, by A. W. Hepler,
March 19, 1911.
John Howard Stibbs — An Iowa Soldier on Commission that Tried
Wirz, March 19, 1911.
Indian Stone Implement Collection at the State Museum of His-
tory, by T. Van Hyning, March 19, 1911.
Injustice to the Tama Indians, by 0. H. Mills, March 19, 1911.
The Burlingtan Hawk-Eye
Twenty Years Ago. (In each Sunday issue.)
The Last White Man Scalped by MusquaMe Indians in Iowa, by 0.
H. Mills, January 15, 1911.
Sketch of Life of Lafayette Young, January 22, 1911.
The Tax Ferret Must Go, January 29, 1911.
Failure of the Third Party Prohibitionists in Iowa Politics, Janu-
ary 29, 1911.
Abraham Lincoln's **Must", by George L. Ferris, February 5, 1911.
Tribute to T. G. Foster, February 5, 1911.
Recollections by W. P. Elliott, February 19, 1911.
Hugh L. Cooper, Father of the Keokuk Water Power, by G. Walter
Barr, February 26, 1911.
The Law of the Taxation of Moneys and Credits, by W. M. Kelly,
February 26, 1911.
The Test of a Year of the Commission City Govemmenti March 12,
1911.
318 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Sketch of Lives of Mr. and Mrs. Angust Feldman, March 19, 1911.
The Pioneer Ross Family in Burlington and Southern Iowa, March
26, 1911.
The Dubuque Telegraph-Herald
Review of News and Events in Dubuque and Vicinity During 1910,
January 1, 1911.
Booster Club in Olden Days, January 15, 1911.
Old Murder Case Recalled at Tama, January 22, 1911.
Dr. A. A. Noyes — Oldest Physician in the United States, January
22, 1911.
Robert T. Lincoln, son of Abraham Lincoln, February 12, 1911.
The Sioux City Journal
Twenty Years Ago. (In each Sunday issue.)
Recollections of Dakota in Territorial Days, January 1, 29, and
February 19, 1911.
Personal Recollections of Lincoln, January 29, 1911.
The Wreck of the Kate Sweeney, February 19, 1911.
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES
PUBLICATIONS
An address on The History of the West and the Pioneers, by
Benjamin F. Shambangh, has been reprinted from the Proceedings
of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin for 1910.
Number five of the Memorial Papers of the Society of Colonial
Wars in the District of Columbia contains a biographical sketch of
OUbert Thompson, by Marcus Benjamin.
The Sauks and Foxes in Franklin and Osage Counties, Kansas,
is the title of an article by Ida M. Ferris, which has been reprinted
from the eleventh volume of the Kansas Historical Collections.
A brief article on Medford Milkmen, by Francis A. Wait, may
be found in the January number of The Medford Historical Reg-
ister. An unsigned article bears the title, How Medford Began to
Orow.
The December number of the Records of the American Catholic
Historical Society is largely taken up with Propaganda Documents
relative to the appointment of the first Bishop of Baltimore, con-
tributed and edited by E. P. Devitt.
In the January-February number of the Records of the Past may
be found the Preliminary Report to the Minnesota Historical So-
ciety on the Kensington Rune Stone, The report on the whole is
favorable to the authenticity of the stone.
The Third Biennial Report of the North Carolina Historical
Commission contains an account of the work of the Commission
during the years from 1908 to 1910, together with a report of other
historical activities in the State during that period.
The Proceedings of the Bunker Hill Monument Association at the
annual meeting on June 17, 1910, contains three addresses: the
presidential address by John Collins Warren; Fighters and Spec-
319
320 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
tators at Bunker HiU, by Curtis Onild, Jr. ; and A Hero of Dor-
chester Heights, by Archer Bnfler Hulbert.
A Memorial Tablet at Ticonderoga is the title of a pamphlet is-
sued by the Ticonderoga Historical Society. It contains an account
of the exercises on October 4, 1910, at the unveiling of a tablet pre-
sented by the Ticonderoga Pulp and Paper Company.
The New England Historical and Oenedlogical Register for Jan-
uary opens with two biographical sketches : Charles Edtvin Hurd, by
Edward Henry Clement ; and James Brown of Middletown, Conn.,
by Edwin A. Hill. Among the other contributions is a continuation
of Albion Morris Dyer's discussion of the First Ownership of Ohio
Lands.
The Journal of the Presbyterian Historical Society for December
opens with The Earliest Account of Protestant Missions, A. D. 1557,
by J. I. Gk)od. The Early History of the Ninth Presbyterian Church
and the Chambers Independent Church is contributed by John Ed-
mands; and under the head of Ancient Documsnts and Records
there are a number of petitions To the General Assembly of the
Delaware State.
A new series to be known as the Kentucky Historical Series, ed-
ited by Jennie C. Morton, has been initiated. The first volume to
appear is one by John Wilson Townsend, entitled Kentucky: Mother
of Oovemors, Mr. Townsend has presented in a very readable way
some biographical data concerning a large number of the chief ex-
ecutives of Commonwealths and Territories who were sons of Ken-
tucky either by birth or by adoption.
Two brief discussions of the much mooted question of whether
the American Indians or an earlier race built the mounds, written
by E. Ralston Goldsborough and John Sexton Abercrombie, are
printed in The Archaeological Bulletin for December. Newly Dis-
covered Ruins of the Ancient Pueblos, by J. A. Jeancon ; Notes from
Pulaski County, Kentucky, by W. L. GriflSn ; and The Indian Trails
in Clark County, Ohio, by W. H. Ryner, are other contributions.
Among the articles in the January number of the Deutsch-Amer-
ikanische Oeschichtsbldtter are: The Americanizing Influence of
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 321
the Foreign Press in America, by Emil Baensch; Ziistdnde in einer
kleinen Sictdi von Missouri vor 50 Jahren, by Julius Elaufmann;
General W. T, Sherman as a College President, by David French
Boyd; Die Deutschen in der PoUtik im Staate Indiana, by W. IT.
Fritsch ; and Die Deutsch-Amerikaner and die deutsche Revolution,
by C. F. Huch.
John F. Philips is the writer of an article on Governor WiUard
Preble Hall appearing in the January number of the Missouri His-
toricdl Review in the series of articles on the Administrations of
Missouri Governors. Joseph H. Schmidt presents some Recollec-
tions of the First Catholic Mission Work in Central Missouri. E.
M. Violette discusses The Battle of KirksvUle, August 6, 1862; and
there is a second installment of Monumental Inscriptions in Mis-
souri Cemeteries.
Henry FoUansbee Long is the author of an historical sketch of
The Salt Marshes of the Massachusetts Coast which may be found
in the Historical Collections of the Essex Institute for January.
There are continuations of The Houses and Buildings of Oroveland,
Mass., by Alfred Poore ; and of the Revolutionary Orderly Book of
Capt. Jeremiah Putnam of Danvers, Mass., in the Rhode Island
Campaign; and a fifth chapter in Sidney Perley's study of Marble-
head in the Year 1700.
Nathaniel Pope is the subject of a biographical sketch by William
A. Meese which appears in the January number of the Journal of
the Illinois State Historical Society. Isabel Jamison contributes
an interesting sketch of the Independent Military Companies of
Sangamon County in the 30* s. The story of Judge Theophilus L.
Dickey and the First Murder Trial in Kendall County is told by
Avery N. Beebe. Some Extracts from the Memoir of Alvan Stone
are presented under the head of reprints.
The principal contributions in the nineteenth number of the
Publications of the American Jewish Historical Society are: The
Jews and Masonry in the United States before 1810, by Samuel
Oppenheim ; A List of Jews Who were Orand Masters of Masons in
Various States of this Country, by Albert M. Friedenberg; Jews in
322 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Connection with the CoUeges of the Thirteen Original States prior
to 1800, by Leon Hiihner ; and The Beginnings of Russo-Jewish Im-
migration to Philadelphia, by David Sulzberger.
A contribution to the literature on the subject of the Mound
Builders is to be found in Bennett H. Young's monograph on The
Prehistoric Men of Kentucky, which constitutes number twenly-five
of the FUson Club Publications. The writer gives a brief diacnflmon
of the theories concerning the origin and identity of the Mound
Builders and then proceeds with a history of the life and habits of
these ancient people in Kentucky, and with a description of the ma-
terial remains left by them.
The April, July, and October, 1910, numbers of The "Old North-
west'* OenecUogiccU Quarterly are combined into one number. The
first contribution is the Journal of John Cotton, M. D., who was a
lineal descendant of the famous John Cotton of colonial times. An-
other article is on the subject of the Fugitive Slave Law of Ohio.
Other articles are: Prince's Annals and Its Notable List of Sub-
scribers, by David E. Phillips ; and The Notable Pedigree of Wen-
dell Phillips and Phillips Brooks, by the same writer.
The belated September number of The Quarterly of the Oregon
Historical Society opens with an extended biographical sketch of
Peter Skene Ogden, Fur Trader, by T. C. Elliott. T. W. Davenport
writes a brief appreciation of The Late Oeorge H. Williams. Pub-
lic expenditures is the subject treated in the installment of the
Financial History of the State of Oregon, by F. G. Young, here
printed. Under the heading of Documents there is a letter and cir-
cular of information for prospective emigrants to Oregon.
The Heroic Career of a Kentucky Naval Officer: Rear Admiral
Lucien Young is described by George Baber in the January number
of The Register of the Kentucky State Historical Society. John
Wilson Townsend contributes a brief sketch of Rosa Vertner Jef-
frey: Noted Kentucky Singer. Martha Stephenson's discussion of
Education in Harrodsburg and Neighborhood Since 1775 is con-
cluded in this number. There is another installment of the Cor-
respondence of Oov. Isaac Shelby, copied from the State Archives
by W. W. Longmoor.
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 323
In Yolomes fifteen and sixteen of the Documentary History of the
State of Maine the Maine Historical Society continues the publica-
tion of The Baxter Manuscripts, edited by James Phinney Baxter.
The letters and documents presented in volume fifteen cover the
period from January, 1777, to April, 1778, and illustrate the part
played by the people of Maine during the early years of the Revo-
lution. Volume sixteen covers the months from April, 1778, to
August, 1779, and contains an especially good collection of ma-
terial dealing with the Penobscot Expedition.
The life and services of the late Oeorge Pierce Oarrison, whose
death has been greatly felt in historical circles, is discussed by H.
Y. Benedict in an article in The Quarterly of the Texas State His-
torical Association for January. Stephen F. Austin: A Memorial
Address was delivered by Alex. W. Terrell on the occasion of the
removal of the remains of Stephen F. Austin from Peach Point to
the State Cemetery at Austin in October, 1910. The remainder of
the Quarterly is taken up with a scholarly monograph on Apache
Relations in Texas, 1718-1750, by William Edward Dunn.
Some Extracts from a Journal Kept During the Earlier Cam-
paigns of the Army of the Potomac, by Charles C. Bombaugh, which
are printed in the December number of the Maryland Historical
Magazine, relate the experiences of a surgeon with the brigade of
General E. D. Baker. Under the heading, Oeorge Pedbody and his
Services to the State, are published a number of letters from the
Executive Archives. The Last Bloodshed of the Revolution is the
subject of an article by Francis B. Culver. A number of letters re-
lating to the Battle of Bladensburg, and an article on The Quit Rent
in Maryland, by Beverly W. Bond, Jr., may also be found among
the contents of this number.
Two contributions, with an introductory note, make up the con-
tents of the July-September, 1910, number of The Quarterly Publi-
cation of the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio, The
first is the Trenton circular To the Respectable Public, written by
John Cleves Symmes on November 26, 1787, in which he set forth
the advantages and prices of the lands which he owned on the Miami
324 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
River and which he hoped to sell to emigrants from New England.
The second is a letter from John Cleves Symmes to Elias Boudinoi
discussing St. Clair's disastrous campaign against the Indians in
1791. The October-December number is devoted to the annual re-
port of the Society for the year ending December 5, 1910.
A thirty page, illustrated article by A. B. Stout on Prehistoric
Earthworks in Wisconsin opens the January number of the Ohio
Archaeological and nistoric(U Quarterly. Then follows an address
by Frederick Jackson Turner on The Place of the Ohio Valley in
American History. Mrs. Jennie C. Morton is the writer of a brief
paper on the history and character of the American Indian which
appears under the title A Vanishing Race, adopted from Edward S.
Curtis 's picture of the same name. Some notes concerning the Wy-
andot chief tan, Tarhe — the Crane, are contributed by Basil Meek,
who is also the writer of an article on Oener<d Harmar's Expe-
dition. Among the editorials is one on Jefferson's Ordinance of
1784.
The portion of The Randolph Manuscript published in the Jan-
uary number of The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography
covers the years from 1684 to 1686. Perhaps the most notable doc-
ument in this group is a letter from Charles II relative to a grant
which had recently been surrendered by Lord Cidpeper. Among
the Miscellaneous Colonial Documents are a number which throw
light on the regulation of trade and commerce in the colonies early
in the eighteenth century. An Extract from the Sir William John-
son Papers, contributed by G. A. Taylor, contains material relative
to the dealings with the Indians. Franklin R. Carpentier contrib-
utes Henry Bartlett's Diary to Ohio and Kentucky, 1805, which
tells of a journey taken during the months of April, May, and June
of the year indicated.
Volume fourteen of the Buffalo Historical Society Publications is
devoted to documentary material relative to The Holland Land Co.
and Canal Construction in Western New York, edited by Frank H.
Severance. The scope of the volume can best be stated in the words
of the editor's introduction: ''The present volume consists chiefly
of documents bearing on the original construction of the Erie canal
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 325
in Western New York, and on the early harbor work at BuflCalo and
Black Bock. There are also here printed two journals of travel in
New York State in the early years of the canal ; a valuable study of
the influences of the Erie canal on the settlement of the West ; and
sundry other papers which, although perhaps of minor importance,
find an appropriate place in this collection." The editing has been
done in the careful and painstaking manner characteristic of the
work of Mr. Severance, and the volume is printed neatly and on
good paper.
Volumes six to nine, inclusive, of The Chicago Historical Society ^s
Collection are devoted to The Diary of James K. Polk During his
Presidency, 1845-1849, edited by Milo Milton Quaife, with an intro-
duction by Andrew Cunningham McLaughlin. The original manu-
script of this valuable diary has for about ten years been in the pos-
session of the Chicago Historical Society and has been occasionally
<;onsulted by historians, but it is now printed for the first time and
made generally accessible. Viewed as a source for the history of a
period over which there has been no end of controversy the diary is
of great importance. Furthermore, it reveals with minute clear-
ness the daily life of a President sixty years ago, recording with
•equal frankness the whole gamut of executive cares from the peti-
tion of the lowliest ofSce-seeker to the great questions of diplomiatic
affairs. The editing has been done in a careful, scholarly manner,
and the volumes are printed and bound in an attractive and perma-
nent manner appropriate to their contents.
The nineteenth volume of the Collections of the State Historical
Society of Wisconsin, edited by Beuben Gold Thwaites, is devoted
almost entirely to documentary material relating to the early fur
trade in the Great Lake region and the upper Mississippi Valley.
The first collection, however, occupying one hundred and sixty
pages, is entitled The Mackinac Register and contains a record of
baptisms, marriages, and interments covering the period from 1695
to 1821. Then follows A Wisconsin Fur-Trader's Journal, 1804-05,
written by Francois Victor Malhiot for the North West Pur Com-
pany. The journal furnishes a good picture of the life of a fur
trader and the goods used in transacting business with the Indians.
326 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
The Fur-Trade on the Upper Lakes, 1778-1815, is illnstrated by a
large nnmber of documents and letters by various traders, includ-
ing John Askin. The concluding group of documents relates to
The Fur-Trade in Wisconsin, 1815-1817. The volume will be of
great value to students of early western history, and the compre-
hensive index will be appreciated by all who have occasion to use it
The Governors of New York is the title of an extensive article by
Charles Z. Lincoln which appears as the opening contribution in
volume nine of the Proceedings of the New York State Historical
Association. Under the title, A Native of Jefferson County, New
York, First Organized and Named the Republican Party, Irvin W.
Near presents a brief biographical sketch of Alvin Earl Bovay. An
illustrated account of A Recently Found Portrait Medallion of
Jacques Cartier, by John M. Clark, is of general interest. John H.
Brandow discusses Washington's Retreat Through Westchester
County. Everyone engaged in local historical work will be inter-
ested in the Report of the Committee upon the Establishment of
Closer Relations Between the Historical Societies of the State.
Among the other contents are : The Study of History as Corrective
of Economic Eccentricity, by Thomas R. Slicer ; The Executive Re-
lation of New York State to Historical Scholarship, by Victor Hugo
Paltsits ; and a number of papers by various authors relative to The
Ticonderoga Expedition of 1775. It is somewhat surprising that a
volume containing so much valuable material has no index that is
worthy of mention.
A new series in the Collections of the Illinois State Historical Li-
brary to be known as the Bibliographical Series has been begun in a
volume containing a list of Newspapers and Periodicals of Illinois
1814-1879, compiled and edited by Franklin William Scott. In an
introduction the editor presents an historical sketch of the news-
papers of Illinois which, he states, is to be considered only prelim-
inary to a more detailed treatment of the subject to appear later.
The greater part of the volume is taken up with a descriptive list
of newspapers and periodicals, arranged alphabetically by towns
and cities. In each case where information could be secured, the
character and politics of the respective papers, their editors, and
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 327
various other facts are given, and the place is indicated where files
may be found when any are extant. Following this general list
there is a list of libraries containing Illinois newspapers, with the
files which each contains. A chronological list, an index to news-
papers, an index to names, and an index to counties complete the
volume. The arrangement is admirable and offers every possible
convenience to the investigator, to whom the volume will be of great
value.
ACTIVITIES
The Missouri Historical Society has come into possession of some
letters from members of the Doniphan expedition, and from Cali-
fornia gold seekers in 1849.
The Department of Archives and History of the State of Ala-
bama has begun the publication of a quarterly periodical known as
the Alabama History Journal, edited by Dr. Thomas M. Owen.
Professor Julius Goebel of the University of Illinois will edit the
German version of the American adventures of Christoph von Graf-
f enried, which will be published by the Historical Commission of the
State of North Carolina.
The Illinois State Historical Society held a special meeting on
April 14th in commemoration of the beginning of the Civil War.
Two sessions were held, one in the afternoon and one in the evening,
and there were speakers representing the various sections of the
State.
The fourth annual meeting of the Mississippi Valley Historical
Association will be held at Chicago and Evanston May 18-20, 1911.
The Illinois State Historical Society and the North Central Teach-
ers' Association will hold their annual meetings at the same time
and places.
A movement is on foot in Indiana for the erection of a State Li-
brary and Museum Building as a permanent memorial for the cen-
tennial of Indiana's statehood in 1916. The Indiana Historical
Society and other historical agencies have been particularly active
in this movement.
328 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
The annual meeting of the Virginia Historical Society was held
on December 29, 1910. The officers chosen at that time were : Presi-
dent, W. Gordon McCabe ; Vice Presidents, Archer Anderson, Ed-
ward V. Valentine, and Lyon G. Tyler; Corresponding Secretary
and Librarian, William G. Stanard ; Recording Secretary, David C.
Richardson; Treasurer, Robert A. Lancaster, Jr.
At the January meeting of the Louisiana Historical Society the
Battle of New Orleans was the principal topic of discussion. The
following officers were elected at this time : Alcte Fortier, President ;
Charles T. Soniat, First Vice President; Gaspar Cusachs, Second
Vice President; Arthur T. Prescott, Third Vice President; Charles
G. Gill, Recording Secretary; Pierce Butler, Corresponding Secre-
tary ; W. 0. Hart, Treasurer.
The Madison County Historical Society held its eighth annual
meeting at Winterset. There was an interesting program, with sev-
eral papers on local historical topics and an address by Benj. F.
Shambaugh, Superintendent of The State Historical Society of
Iowa. The following officers were elected for the ensuing year:
President, H. A. Mueller; Vice President, E. R. Zeller; Secretary,
Walter F. Craig; Treasurer, W. H. Lewis; Directors, J. J. Gkuston,
W. S. Wilkinson, William Brinson, and Fred Beeler.
THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF IOWA
Dr. Louis Pelzer's biography of Henry Dodge is now in press and
will probably be distributed during the summer.
It is expected that Mr. Johnson Brigham's biography of James
Harlan will be ready to go to press during the summer.
Professor John E. Brindley's two-volume History of Taxation in
Iowa has been distributed. In response to a resolution of the Gen-
eral Assembly each member of that body was furnished with a set
of this work.
The following, persons have been appointed by Qovemor Carroll
to the Board of Curators of The State Historical Society of Iowa:
Mr. Marsh W. Bailey, Washington, Iowa; Mr. F. M. Edwards,
Parkersburg, Iowa ; Mr. J. J. McConnell, Cedar Rapids, Iowa ; Mr.
HISTORICAL SOCIETIES 329
John T. MoflSt, Tipton, Iowa ; Mr. Byron W. Newberry, Strawberry
Point, Iowa; Mr. A. C. Savage, Adair, Iowa; Mr. B. W. Stanton^
Ames, Iowa ; Mr. W. H. Tedf ord, Corydon, Iowa ; Mr. J. B. Weaver,
Jr., Des Moines, Iowa.
The following persons have recently been elected to membership
in the Society : Mr. Henry L. Adams, West Union, Iowa ; Mr. A. L.
Ames, Traer, Iowa ; Mr. James A. Hall, Denison, Iowa ; Mr. Robert
Healy, Fort Dodge, Iowa; Mr. Thos. EQckenlooper, Albia, Iowa;
Mr. F. M. Meyers, Denison, Iowa; Mr. Wm. E. G. Saunders, Em-
metsburg, Iowa; Mr. John H. Stibbs, Chicago, Illinois; Mr. Howard
Vaughn, Ames, Iowa; Mr. A. H. Wallace, Washington, Iowa; Mr.
Charles Baldwin, Salt Lake City, Utah ; Mr. W. J. Brown, Emmets-
burg, Iowa ; Mr. Will L. Clifton, Webster City, Iowa ; Mr. LaMonte
Cowles, Burlington, Iowa; Mr. Ernest M. Engvall, Des Moines,.
Iowa ; Miss Ellen Geyer, Iowa City, Iowa ; Mr. W. F. Hunter, Web-
ster City, Iowa; Rev. John A. McEIamy, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Mr.
W. C. Ralston, Pocahontas, Iowa; Mr. Alfred C. Torgeson, Beres-
ford. South Dakota ; Mr. G. A. Wrightman, Des Moines, Iowa ; Mr.
Edgar Ashton, Iowa City, Iowa ; Mr. John A. L. Campbell, Sheldon^
Iowa; Mr. Walter F. Craig, Winterset, Iowa; Mr. Sherman W. De-
Wolf, Reinbeck, Iowa; Mr. D. A. Emery, Des Moines, Iowa; Mr.
Charles E. Hall, Des Moines, Iowa ; Mrs. Charity Lothrop Kellogg,.
Charles City, Iowa ; Mr. John E. Luckey, Vinton, Iowa ; Mr. W. W.
Mercer, Iowa City, Iowa ; Mr. James M. Pierce, Des Moines, Iowa ;
Mr. C. G. Sauerberg, Ames, Iowa; Mr. James Saum, Adair, Iowa;
Mr. H. H. Stipp, Des Moines, Iowa ; Mr. H. C. Wallace, Des Moines,.
Iowa; and Mr. Arthur Springer, Wapello, Iowa.
NOTES AND COMMENT
The National Civil Service Reform League held its thirteenth
annual meeting in Baltimore on December 15 and 16, 1910.
The third National Peace Congress will be held at Baltimore un-
der the auspices of Johns Hopkins University, May 3-5, 1911.
A Bureau of Economy and Efficiency has been established in the
city of Milwaukee to perform a service similar to that performed by
the Pittsburg Survey.
Mr. Francis W. Dickey, formerly of the Iowa State College of
Agricidture and Mechanic Arts, now occupies the i>08ition of in-
structor in political science at Western Reserve University.
The amount of work devolving ux>on the Legislative Reference
Department of the Indiana State Library during the recent session
of the legislature was so large that four additional assistants were
required.
An effort is being made at Grinnell College to raise a fund of
$450,000 for the establishment of a Department of Public Affairs
embracing chairs in political science, sociology, economics, and mod-
em history.
Elihu Root, John W. Foster, Andrew Carnegie, Eugene Wam-
baugh, Charles Noble Gregory, Simeon E. Baldwin, and Harry
Pratt Judson were among the speakers at a conference on interna-
tional arbitration held at Washington, D. C, December 15-17, 1910.
Qovemor Deneen in his message to the legislature of Illinois in
January urged that action be taken providing for the marking of
the route traversed by Abraham Lincoln when removing from Ken-
tucky to Illinois. He suggests that the route thus marked shall be
known as **The Lincoln Way''.
The movement in favor of the so-called ** Short Ballot", limitiTig
the number of elective offices in State and local governments, has
880
NOTES AND COMMENT 331
become qtiite wide-spread. During the year 1910 the movement re-
ceived decided encouragement in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio,
New Jersey, Iowa, Sonth Dakota, Washington, and California.
The commission form of municipal government is rapidly gaining
ground in Illinois where a number of the smaller cities, including
Springfield, Joliet, Quincy, Eewanee, Oalesburg; Peoria, Jackson-
ville, Moline, and Bock Island, have either decided to vote on the
question or are actively agitating the subject
Professor Herbert E. Bolton expects to return to Mexico during
the coming summer to continue his work in the archives of that
country. He spent the greater part of the mid-winter holidays in
tracing the route of Father Eino, an early missiouary and explorer
who is thought to have been the first white man within the limits of
Arizona after Coronado. It is understood that Professor Bolton is
planning to publish Father Eino's chronicle of early Spanish ex-
plorations which has recently been discovered. It is largely as the
result of Professor Bolton's work that provision has been made for
indexing the Mexican archives.
CONTRIBTTTORS
Kbknbth W. Coloeovb, Pertrna Scholar at Harvard TTni-
TOnity. Born at Waukon, Iowa, in 1886. Graduated from tht
Iowa State Normal School in 1906. Graduated from Ths Statt
lhiiT«int7 of Iowa in 1909. BeeeiTed the degree of !£. A. at
The State TTniTermty of Iowa in 1910. Wou the Colonial
Damee Prize for the heat eesay on Iowa history in 1908. Won
the Jesap Prize for the heat eaaay on present-day citizenship is
1909. Aathor of The Delegates to Congnts from the 7emf«ry
of Iowa.
Glabbnob Bat AimNEB, Member of The State Historical So-
ciety of Iowa. Bom in Illinois. Gnwlneted from the Iowa
State Nonoal School in 1891. Saperintoident of Schools at
Waverly, Adel, Avoca, and Tipton, Iowa. Graduated from
The State Univermty of Iowa in 1903. Received the degree of
M. A. at The State Univendty of Iowa in 1909. Aathor (tf i
Topical History of Cedw County, Iowa.
•' 1 ^
^9-
T L9H
i-
THE IOWA JOURNAL OF fflSTORY AND POLITICS
'^Z' JULY NINBTBBN HUNDRED BLBVBN
VOLUME mm NUMBBR THREE
▼OL.IX— 23
I
THE EXPEDITION OF ZEBULON MONTGOMERY
PIKE TO THE SOURCES OF THE MISSISSIPPI
With the purchase of Louisiana in 1803 the United States
assumed the responsibiUty of the control of a territory
whose expanse was twice the nation's area and whose bor-
ders were little known. When the news of the conclusion
of the negotiations reached President Jefferson he was sur-
prised and not a little embarrassed, for it was his plan to
purchase simply the port of New Orieans and such tract of
land thereabouts as would gain the command of the mouth
of the Mississippi, which was so vital to American com-
merce. But now he found the whole of the vaguely defined
Province of Louisiana thrust upon him, and with it the
burden of a fifteen million dollar debt.^
Jefferson showed his good statesmanship when at this
critical period he planned for an immediate and thorough
exploration of the new territory.^ At the south a command
1 Hosmer 's The History of the Louiaiarui Purchase, p. 148 ; Hosmer 'b A
Short History of the Mississippi V alley , pp. 118-127; Salter's Iowa: The First
Free State in the Louisiana Purch4ise, p. 51 ; Whiting *s Life of Zehulan Mowt-
gomery Pike, published in Jared Sparks 't Library of American Biography,
Vol. XV, pp. 221, 222.
For a full account of the history of this period, tee Adama'a History of
the United States, Vol. II, pp. 1-134; McMaster's A History of the People of
the United States, Vol. II, pp. 621-635; Vol. Ill, pp. 1-36.
s Even before the purchase of the Louisiana territory President Jefferson
transmitted to Congress a confidential message under date of January 18, 1803,
in which he advocated the exploration of the newly acquired territory and out-
lined an expedition which should "explore the whole line, even to the Western
ocean, have conferences with the natives on the subject of commercial inter-
course, get admission amoDg them for our traders, as others are admitted, agree
on convenient deposits for an interchange of articles, and return with the in-
formation acquired, in the course of two summers. ' ' — Annais of Congress, 7th
Congress, Second Session, 1802-1803, pp. 25, 26. See also Biehardson's Mes-
sages and Papers of the Presidents, VoL I, pp. 353, 354.
335
336 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
of the lower Mississippi had opened the West to the control
of the government by way of numerous tributaries. Bnt
to the northy west, and southeast there was much uncer-
tainty as to the boundaries. On the north the territory ex-
tended to the as yet undiscovered sources of the Mississippi.
It was assumed that the mountains, which at that time were
almost unknown to the white man, formed the western
boundary line, but the amount of territory which lay be-
tween them and the Mississippi was a matter of mere con-
jecture. And still more uncertainty prevailed with respect
to the boundary on the southeast.^
In his choice of explorers President Jefferson exercised
remarkable judgment, of which the results of the explora-
tions are ample evidence. In the army he found the most
efficient men for the work, although few scientific men were
available even from that source. Moreover, funds for car-
rying on the work were not to be had without much effort
Jefferson seems to have been reluctant in asking for extra
means for the work — probably because he felt that there
would be opposition to an appropriation, since the adminis-
tration was strongly in favor of ^^ economical reform'*.*
Early in 1804 Captain Meriwether Lewis and Lieutenant
William Clark were chosen for the purpose of exploring the
Missouri to its source and of discovering the most advan-
tageous water route to the Pacific Ocean. This expedition
covered a period of about three years and is without doubt
the most remarkable and creditable of the early explora-
tions of the Louisiana country.*^
8 WMting 's lAfe of Zehulan Montgomery Pike, published in Jared Sparki *b
Library of American Biography, Vol. XV, pp. 221, 222.
« Whiting's Life of Zehulon Montgomery Pike, published in Jared Sparki 'i
Library of American Biography, Vol. XV, pp. 222, 223. See also Salter's lowi:
The First Free State in the Louisiana Purchase, pp. 52, 53, 61; and McMaster's
A History of the People of the United States, Vol. II, pp. 628, 629.
s For a complete account of this expedition, see Thwaites 's Original JounuAs
of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Vols. I- VII.
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 337
Contemporaneous with and probably not less worthy
than the work of Lewis and Clark were the explorations of
Zebulon Montgomery Pike, who, however, had the misfor-
tune to receive his commission from the commander of the
western army. General James Wilkinson, instead of from
the government.®
Bom in what is now a part of Trenton, New Jersey, on
January 5, 1779,'' Zebulon M. Pike moved during his child-
hood to Easton, Pennsylvania. There he received such edu-
cation as the rural schools of the time afforded. He is
described by some of his school-mates as ^ ^ a boy of slender
form, very fair complexion, gentle and retiring disposi-
tion, but of resolute spirit'' and always capable of defend-
ing himself when put to the test.® The time spent in ob-
taining an education was necessarily short, since he entered
his father's company as a cadet when he was about fifteen
<The idea that Pike's Mississippi expedition was conducted hj the goveni-
ment seems quite generaL The expedition was entirely in the control of General
WUkinson. Later goyemment officials approved of the undertaking. — See
Salter's The Eastern Border of Iowa in 1805-6 in the Iowa Bistorieal Beeard,
Vol. X, p. 107.
General James Wilkinson lost his reputation in connection with the Burr con-
spiracy. Although he was tried and acquitted, evidence later appeared which
proved without doubt that he was a traitor. And, indeed, it has been thought
by some that Pike's explorations were a scheme on the part of Wilkinson to
obtain more definite information concerning the western country, which might
be used in carrying out the traitorous plot. However this may have been, Pike
was beyond doubt unconscious of any such purpose.
f The data concerning Zebulon M. Pike's early Hfe used in this paper are for
the most part taken from Whiting's Life of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, pub-
lished in Jared Sparks 's Library of American Biography, VoL XV, pp. 220, 22L
The father of Zebulon Montgomery Pike was Major Zebulon Pike, a soldier
in the Revolutionary War and captain of infantry in the army of the United
States in 1792. He received a promotion to the rank of Major in 1800, and
served in the first regiment of infantry under Colonel Hamtramk in 1802.
Among the ancestors of Zebulon Montgomery Pike wbb one Captain John
Pike, who was noted in the traditions of the family for his gallant service in
the Indian Wars.
8 Whiting's Life of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, published in Jared Sparica'i
Library of American Biography, VoL XV, p. 220.
338 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
years old, and received the commission of ensign at the age
of twenty.®
It was on April 1, 1802, that Pike was promoted to the
rank of First Lieutenant of the First Regiment of United
States Infantry. And under date of July 30, 1805, he re-
ceived orders ^^ from General Wilkinson to undertake the
exploration of the Mississippi Biver to its sources, noting
the rivers, prairies, islands, mines, quarries, and timber, as
well as Indian villages and settlements. He was instructed
to keep a journal in which distances, calculated by time,
were to be noted together with comments on the ^* winds
and weather". Furthermore, suitable locations for mili-
tary posts were to be selected and reasonable means for
conciliating the Indians were to be employed.^^
The journal of the expedition is an interesting and most
valuable source of information. The original edition,^ ^ was
published in 1810 by Lieutenant Pike, and is divided into
three parts, each dealing with a single expedition. To
these parts are added numerous appendices, charts, and
tables. On the whole, the work is exceedingly complicated
in its arrangement, and little or no effort seems to have
been made to put the material in good English. It is inter-
• Coues 's The Expeditions of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, Vol. I, p.
10 The letter containing the orders was transmitted by General Wilkinson
from St. LfOuis. It appears in full in Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the
Sources of the Mississippi and through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc.
(original edition, 1810), Appendix to Part III, pp. 65, 66.
11 All of the purposes noted are mentioned in General Wilkinson '0 communi-
cation of July 30, 1805.
12 There is a publication relative to the Mississippi expedition which ap-
peared in 1807. This, however, was not written by Lieutenant Pike but by
some person who had access to his notes. There seems to be no evidence con-
cerning the identity of the writer.
From Lieutenant Pike's original edition of 1810, an English edition was
prepared under the editorial supervision of I>r. Thomas Bees. There is also
an edition in French and one in Dutch. — Coues 's The Expeditions of ZehuJon
Montgomery Pike, Vol. I, pp. xxxiii-xliv.
EXPEDITION OF ZEBULON M. PIKE 339
estmg to note that at the close of the author's preface a
note by the publisher is inserted to the effect that he
''owes it to truth, and to colonel Pike, to state that he very
much doubts whether any book ever went to press under so
many disadvantages ' \
Lieutenant Pike himself realized many of its defects.
The following extracts from one of his letters will serve to
explain many of its faults :
The journal in itself will have little to strike the imagination,
but a dull detail of our daily march. . . . The daily occur-
rences were written at night, frequently by firelight, when extreme-
ly fatigued, and the cold so severe as to freeze the ink in my pen,
of course have little claim to elegance of expression or style ; . . .
I do not possess the qualifications of the naturalist, and even had
they been mine, it would have been impossible to have gratified them
to any great extent, as we passed with rapidity over the country
we surveyed. . . . And indeed, my thoughts were too much
engrossed in making provisions for the exigencies of the morrow,
to attempt a science which requires time and a placidity of mind
which seldom fell to my lot.^'
Of the three divisions of the work the first, with its ap-
pendices, is devoted entirely to an account of the expedi-
tion to the sources of the Mississippi. The material con-
tained therein forms the basis of the account given in the
following pages of this essay.
Late in the afternoon of August 9, 1805, Lieutenant Pike
sailed from his encampment near St. Louis in a keel boat
with a party of twenty men,^* carrying with him provisions
13 Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Ap-
pendix to Part I, p. 32.
14 In the Appendix to Part III, pp. 67, 68, of the edition of 1810, Lieutenant
Pike gives a lift of the persons employed in the expedition. Of the twenty
men in the company, there were two corporals, one sergeant, and seventeen
privates. The name of an interpreter is also included in the list bnt he was
not of the original party which started from the encampment near St. Lonis.
340 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
for only four months. For more than eight months he and
his imrty were to push their way northward amid dangers
and hardships which all but cost them their lives. But with
the consciousness that he was the first citizen of the United
States to undertake the ascent of the river, and with the
assurance that whatever he should discover would be eager-
ly received by the public, his enthusiasm rose above any
misgivings with regard to the trials of the undertaking.
With considerable difficulty, due to rainy weather and
the numerous islands in the channel, Lieutenant Pike and
his company made their way to the Des Moines Biver,
which marks the junction of the present Commonwealths
of Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri. Here the rapids presented
a formidable obstacle — more especially because there was
no one on board who had ever passed them. The rapids
were eleven miles in length ^^with successive ridges and
shoals extending from shore to shore. . . . The shoals
continue the whole distance. ''^^ In the midst of the diffi-
culty the party was met by an agent to the Sao Indians in
this vicinity, who piloted them safely to his establishment
above the rapids. Here Lieutenant Pike found himself on
the east bank of the river at a point where the dty of Nau-
voo, Illinois, is now located. Directly opposite was the vil-
lage of the Sac Indians on the present site of Montrose,
Iowa.
Impressed with the suitability of the location for a trad-
ing establishment for the Sac, Fox, Iowa, and Sioux In-
dians of the region. Lieutenant Pike tarried for the greater
part of a day. In council with **the chief men of the vil-
lage'' he expressed the desire of the President of the
United States ^Ho be more intimately acquainted with the
16 Thia description appears in the entrj of Augoit 20th in Pike's An Aeeowkt
of BxpedUiont to the Sowees of the Miasiaeippi and through the Wettem FmrU
of LomUiama, ote. (original edition, 1810), Part I, pp. 4, 5.
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 341
situation, wants, &c. of the different nations of the red peo-
ple, in our newly acquired territory of Louisiana**.^* In
addition there was some discussion of the location of a
trading establishment, but no definite conclusions were
reached.
After presenting the Indians with some ^^ tobacco,
Bjiives, and whiskey ^^ Lieutenant Pike proceeded up the
river about six miles, landing on the spot where Fort Madi-
son was erected three years later and where the city by the
same name now stands. Lieutenant Pike made no par-
ticular mention of the place, nor did he recommend it as a
suitable location for a fort or trading post.*^
Two days later the party reached the present site of
Burlington, Iowa, which Lieutenant Pike mentions as ^^a
very handsome situation for a garrison^'*^ and describes
in some detail.
The channel of the river passes under the hill, which is about 60
feet perpendicular, and level on the top. Four hundred yards in
the rear, there is a small prairie of 8 or 10 acres, which would be a
convenient spot for gardens ; and on the east side of the river, there
is a beautiful prospect over a large prairie, as far as the eye can ex-
tend, now and then interrupted by groves of trees. Directly under
the rock is a limestone spring, which, after an hour's work, would
afford water amply sufiScient for the consumption of a regiment.
The landing is bold and safe, and at the lower part of the hill, a road
18 Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
p. 5.
IT Some few writen have erroneously credited Pike with the founding of Fort
Madison. For instance, in the Portrait and Biographical Album of Lee County,
Iowa, p. 627, the writer claims that the first settlers at Fort Madison were
troops sent out by our government under command of Captain Z. M. Pike to
protect the country both from the British and the Indians. A similar error
is made by Stevens in his Black Hawk War, p. 37.
The selection of Fort Madison was made in September, 1808, by Lieutenant
Alpha £[ingeley. — Annais of Iowa, Third Series, Vol. VI, p. 314.
18 This site is the one now oeeupied by Grapo Park at BarHngton, Iowa.
342 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
may be made for a team in half an hour. Black and white oak tim-
ber in abundance. The mountain continues about two miles, and
has five springs bursting from it in that distance.^*
' Li this vicinity the Indians seemed to be quite numerous.
Horses and other signs of inhabitants were seen along the
river bank. A few miles above the bluffs Lieutenant Pike
met a company of Indian traders, with three boats from
Mackinac, who informed him that out on the prairie only
two and a half miles was located one of the largest Sac vil-
lages.2o
After continuing a short distance up the river, Pike and
one of his men went on shore for a hunt.-^ The journal
does not state which bank of the river they were on, but
from the description of the country it is not difficult to infer
that they were hunting on Iowa soil. Owing to the marshi-
ness of the ground, two of their favorite dogs became ex-
hausted and were lost in the return to shore. Two men im-
mediately volunteered for the search. But at evening nei-
ther men nor dogs had returned. Lieutenant Pike, how-
ever, was not in the habit of waiting for anyone on shore.
Accordingly, the party continued up stream but always
camped on the Iowa side and made every effort to attract
the attention of the lost men by firing guns at various inter-
vals. But the men were bewildered by the marshy ground
and the thick undergrowth of the lowlands, and for eight
days they wandered northward half -exhausted from lack of
food. They finally chanced to fall upon a village of Fox
Indians, whose chief gave them com and moccasins and
sent them with a guide to the mines of Dubuque where they
10 Pikers An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
p. 7.
20 Lieutenant Pike was now at a point which was considered half way be-
tween St. Louis and Prairie du Chien.
21 This was on Saturday, August 24, 1805.
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 343
found their commander and the remainder of his company.
Meanwhile Lieutenant Pike had passed the mouth of the
Iowa River, which he merely mentions in his journal. He
had passed the present site of Muscatine — at one time
known as Bloomington — which he describes as the point
** where the river Hills join the Mississippi ' \ He had
crossed the rapids of Rock River with even more diflSculty
than those of the Des Moines. It was here that he met
Black Hawk, who recalled the occasion in detail many years
later. Although Lieutenant Pike makes no mention of the
meeting with Black Hawk, the Indian chief's account of the
visit is so accurate in many points, which may be verified,
that it is hardly to be doubted.
Black Hawk stated that when the boat arrived at Rock
River **the young chief came on shore with his interpre-
ter", made a speech, and gave some presents to the Indians.
Continuing, the chief said :
We were all well pleased with the speech of the young chief. He
gave us good advice ; said our American father would treat us well.
He presented us an American flag, which was hoisted. He then re-
quested us to pull down our British flags — and give him our Brit-
ish medals — promising to send us others on his return to St. Louis.
This we declined, as we wished to have two Fathers! . . . He
went to the head of the Mississippi, and then returned to St. Louis.
. . . He was a good man, and a great brave and died in his
country's serviee.^^
It was at noon on Sunday, September 1st, that Lieutenant
Pike arrived at Dubuque's lead mines, where he was ''sa-
luted with a field piece, and received with every mark of at-
tention, ]}y Monsieur Dubuque, the proprietor".-^ Pike
21* Autobiography of Black Hawk, p. 26.
>3Pike^8 An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
p. 10.
Julien Dubuque, a French Canadian, came to this vicinity for the purpose of
trading with the Indians. Taking a squaw as his wife, he soon made friends
344 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POIilTICS
was charged by General Wilkinsoii with orders to make cer-
tain investigations relative to the lead mines. But owing
to the fact that there were no horses at the house and the
mines were six miles away, the Lieutenant found it ^'impoe-
sible to make a report by actual inspection". His report
was therefore nothing more than a series of evasive and in-
definite answers to questions put by Pike.^^ In transmit-
ting the report to Wilkinson, Lieutenant Pike himself says
that ^^the answers seem to carry with them the semblance
of equivocation ^\
While at Dubuque's quarters. Lieutenant Pike took on
board a Frenchman by the name of Blondeau, who proved a
useful addition to the party since he could speak the lan-
guage of the Indians. Up to this point Lieutenant Pike had
been without an interpreter, and for this reason had found
himself at a great disadvantage among the Indians. But
with means for making known the purpose of his explora-
tion, '*he found himself at once the object of friendly atten-
tion",^ although the first question put by the Indians was
always whether they were ''for war, or if going to war".
Through his interpreter Lieutenant Pike learned that the
Indians of this vicinity were much in dread of white men,
that * * the women and children were frightened at the very
name of an American boat", and that the men believed the
with the Foxes. The diAcoverj of the lead mines induced him to seeure ''a per-
mit to work the mines, with a monopoly of the right" under date of November
22, 1788. Thus was founded the first white settlement in Iowa.
Dubuque died on March 24, 1810. His claim was sold at St. Louis for the
payment of his debts.— See Salter 's Iowa: The Fint Free State in the Lomd-
ana Purchase, pp. 41-45, 79, 86.
s« The report to General Wilkinson appears in the Appendix to Part I, p. 5,
of the original edition of 1810. Perhaps the only definite statement made hj
Dubuque was that the mines were about twenty-seven leagoea long and from
one to three leagues wide, yielding from twenty to forty thonaand pounds of
lead per annum.
M Whiting's Life of ZebuUm Montgomery Pike, publiahed in Jarad Spaifci'k
jAbfwy of Aw^eriean Biography, VoL XV, p. 238.
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 345
whites to be ^^very quarrelsome, and much for war, and
also very brave''. Such information was ^^nsed as pru-
dence suggested''.^*
On September 4th lieutenant Pike reached Prairie du
Chien at the junction of the Wisconsin and Mississippi, and
opposite McGregor, Iowa. Prairie du Chien, an early
French settlement, had been distinguished as a center for
the fur trade of the lake region, but at the time of Pike's
visit it was little more than a village of Indian traders.*^
Among these traders Lieutenant Pike spent several days,
engaged in making choice of a suitable location for a post,
holding councils with neighboring tribes of Indians, and in
preparing for the remainder of the journey.
As the most suitable location for a military post in this
region. Lieutenant Pike recommended a bluff just north of
the present town of McGregor, Iowa, which commanded
both the Wisconsin and the Mississippi.^ Plenty of timber
and a spring near-by added to the desirability of the situa-
tion. On the whole, however, the Lieutenant considered the
Burlington site far superior.
Finding that it would be impossible to continue the ascent
of the river with so large a craft. Lieutenant Pike hired two
light barges and began the work of transferring provisions
and baggage to the new boats.
With the addition of two interpreters, Pierre Bosseau
and Joseph Beinulle,^ the party left Prairie du Chien on
September 8th **with some expectation and hope of seeing
26 Pike 'a An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
pp. 11, 12.
27 For an account of Prairie du Chien and other trading posts of the upper
Mississippi, see Folwell's Minnesota, pp. 39, 40.
28 Coues 's The Expeditions of Zehulon Montgomery Pike, Vol. I, p. 37.
2» This name is probably that of Joseph Beinville or Benville. He was sm
interpreter of some note.
346 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
the head of the Mississippi and the town of Saint Louis"
before the end of the winter. This statement, in a letter to
General Wilkinson,^^ shows how little the Lieutenant real-
ized that many weeks of suffering and discouragement lay
between him and the source of the Mississippi, and that
months of bitter hardship must separate him from his
encampment at St. Louis. Nevertheless, such hopes as
this alone kept up his courage and made possible the long
struggle.
A few miles above Prairie du Chien the party met Waba-
sha, the chief of the four lower bands of the Sioux. The
Sioux had been enjoying a feast the night before. In conse-
quence, the salute which they gave to Lieutenant Pike and
his party as they arrived in front of the lodges was attend-
ed by **some hazard*', since **some of them, even tried their
dexterity, to see how near the boat they could strike. They
may, indeed, be said, to have struck on every side of us.
When landed, I had my pistols in my belt, and sword in
hand.*'^^ Hereupon the chief invited Lieutenant Pike and
some of his men to accompany him to his lodge for a conn-
cil. In a speech of considerable length Wabasha ex-
pressed his pleasure at ha\ing the young Lieutenant in his
own village and a desire always to remain at peace with
the white and red people. To this Lieutenant Pike replied
in a statement of the objects and purposes of his expedi-
tion. He gratefully accepted a pipe which Wabasha pre-
sented to him to be shown to the upper bands as a token of
peace, which later was of much service."
80 Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Ap-
pendix to Part I, p. 3.
81 Pike 's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part It
p. 15.
S2 This pipe was used in the council at Leech Lake on Febniaiy 16, 1806.
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 347
While in the village Lieutenant Pike witnessed a ** medi-
cine dance'' which was attended by **many curious ma-
noeuvres. Men and women danced indiscriminately. They
were all dressed in the gayest manner; each had in their
hand, a small skin of some description, and would frequent-
ly run up, point their skin, and give a puff with their breath ;
when the person blown at, whether man or woman, would
fall, and appear to be almost lifeless, or in great agony;
but would recover slowly, rise and join in the dance ' '. Tliis
they called their great medicine dance or dance of re-
ligion.^^
Before his departure Pike presented the chief with to-
bacco, knives and eight gallons of made whiskey (three-
fourths water). Leaving the Sioux village on the afternoon
of September 10th, and proceeding but a few miles further.
Lieutenant Pike crossed what is now the northern boundarv
of the State of lowa.^* Seven months passed before he
again camped on Iowa soil.
On September 23rd the party reached a Sioux village lo-
cated near the site of old Fort Snelling. Here a council
with the chiefs of the village was held by which Lieutenant
Pike secured for the government a grant of a tract of land
containing about 100,000 acres, for which he gave in return
presents to the amount of only about two hundred dollars.^
38 Pike '8 An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
p. 17.
«< Cones 's The Expeditions of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, Vol. I, p. 48; Sal-
ter's The Eastern Border of Iowa in 1805-6 in Iowa Historical Beeord, Vol.
X, p. 115.
8B This tract of land was near the mouth of the Minnesota Biver and later
included the site of Fort Snelling and the city of Minneapolis. — Pike's Ex-
plorations in Annals of Iowa, Third Series, VoL I, p. 532.
A copy of the speech delivered by Lieutenant Pike, a copy of the treaty, and
a copy of a letter addressed to General WUkinson on the subject appear as
Documents No. 3 and 4 in the Appendix to Part I of Pike's An Account of
348 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
So far as negotiations with Indian tribes are conoernedi
this was doubtless lientenant Pike's most important enter-
prise. Referring to the transaction in a letter to General
Wilkinson, he remarks that the grant was obtained ^'for a
song". At the same time he valnes the land at only two
hundred thousand dollars.
Lieutenant Pike's speech in the council forms a part of
the journal and is a most interesting document. It shows a
keen understanding of the character of the Indians as well
as remarkable tact. There is, however, one pecnliar and
altogether amusing portion of the document, which is sig-
nificant of Lieutenant Pike 's usual attitude toward the sub-
ject referred to. After a rather strong exhortation against
tiie purchase of intoxicating liquors, witii much emphasis on
their injurious effects, Lieutenant Pike concludes his speech
as follows : **I now present you with some of your father's
tobacco, and some other trifling things, as a memorandum
of my good will, and before my departure I will give you
some liquor to clear your throats '*. This clearing process
seems to have required sixty gallons of liquor.**
When Lieutenant Pike had reached the Falls of St
Anthony he began to realize that he had made a serious
blunder in starting on his expedition so late in the season;
for many of his men, unused to the climate and necessary
hardships, were daily succumbing to illness and fatigue.
Pike writes of the situation as follows: ** These unhappy
circumstances .... convinced me, that if I had no
regard for my own health and constitution, I should have
Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and through the Western Pcrts
of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), pp. 6-13.
For a detailed criticism of the treaty and accompanying eommonieationBy see
Coues'e The Expeditions of Zehulon Montgomery Pike, Vol. I, pp. 232-239.
'•Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi tmd
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition^ 1810), Part I,
p. 25; see also Appendix to Part I, p. 8.
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 349
some for those poor fellows, who were killing themselves
to obey my orders/'®^ Accordingly, several days were
spent in the erection of block-houses which should serve as
a shelter for the sick and those who were otherwise unable
to continue the journey. An abundance of game in the
vicinity insured not only comfort for the men who were left
behind but also ** plenty of provision '^ for the return voy-
age.
In order to hasten progress, which was daily becoming
more and more difficult on account of the rapid freezing of
the river, the heavy boats were exchanged for canoes.
These were constructed with no little trouble owing to the
scarcity of tools, there being in the whole party * * only two
falling-axes and three hatchets". In spite of many hin-
drances three canoes were completed, but one sank when
loaded with a large quantity of ammunition. In the process
of drying this powder it exploded and nearly blew up **a
tent and two or three men with it".*®
Such misfortunes, combined with the ** isolation and in-
activity" of the region, cooled somewhat the ardor of the
young commander. He confessed that he found himself
** powerfully attacked with the fantastics of the brain,
called ennui ' ', and elsewhere adds the following :
It appears to me, that the wealth of nations would not mduce me
to remain secluded from the society of civilized mankind, surround-
ed by a savage and unproductive wilderness, without books or other
sources of intellectual enjoyment, or being blessed with the culti-
vated and feeling mind, of a civilized fair.'*
37 Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
p. 34.
38 Whiting's Life of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, published in Jared Spaiks's
Library of American Biography, Vol. XV, p. 246; Pike's An AceowU of Bx-
peditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and through the Western Parts of
Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I, pp. 36, 37.
8» Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
VOL. IX — 24
350 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POIilTICS
The freezing and thawing of the river made it impossible
for the party to proceed with any degree of safety or rapid-
ity. Accordingly, all but one canoe were abandoned early
in December. Provisions and baggage were loaded on
sleds, each drawn by two men abreast. The difficulties
which beset this method of transportation are well illus-
trated in the following entry of December 26th: ** Broke
four sleds; broke into the river four times, and had four
carrying places ' \^^ On many days the distance covered did
not exceed three or four miles. Writing of his misfortunes.
Lieutenant Pike said: ** Never did I undergo more fatigue,
in performing the duties of hunter, spy, guide, commanding
officer, &c. Sometimes in front ; sometimes in the rear ; fre-
quently in advance of my party 10 or 15 miles ; that at night
I was scarcely able to make my notes intelligible."*^
Under such circumstances together with conBiderable dis-
couragement among his men. Lieutenant Pike found it diffi-
cult to keep up his spirits. But as the weather became cold-
er and the ice stronger, progress was much easier. As
much as twenty miles a day were covered.
Early in January signs of Chippeway Lidians were seen,
from whom Lieutenant Pike had every reason to expect a
demonstration of hostility. His fears, however, were soon
relieved when four of these Indians presented themselves
at his camp in company with an English trader who was lo-
cated at a post on Sandy Lake. Mr. Grant, the English
trader, accompanied Lieutenant Pike and his party to the
through the Western Parts of Louisiarui, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
pp. 37, 64.
40 Pike '6 An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
p. 55; Whiting's Life of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, published in Jared
Sparks 's Library of American Biography, Vol. XV, pp. 250, 251.
*i Entry of December 23, 1805. — Pike 'a An Account of Expeditions to the
Sources of the Mississippi and through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc.
(original edition, 1810), Part I, p. 55.
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 351
British trading post, where they made their headquarters
for several days.*^ Such a sojourn among the trading es-
tablishments of this region was altogether agreeable to
Lieutenant Pike since one of the objects of his expedition
was to investigate and report upon the trading posts of the
upper Mississippi. On several occasions he was received
in a most cordial and hospitable manner by the officials in
charge of the various posts of the Northwest Company.
His accounts of existing conditions are detailed and quite
authentic. Aside from general observations on the trade,
Lieutenant Pike's journal contains some interesting cor-
respondence between himself and one of the traders, Hugh
M'Gillis.
Under date of February, 1806, Lieutenant Pike sent a
conmiunication to Mr. M'Gillis,*^ which contained a frank
discussion of the conditions existing among the trading
posts and some pointed remarks on the relations between
the Northwest Company and the government of the United
States. He affirmed the right of the British to carry on
trade with the Indians within the territory of the United
States, but protested strongly against their exemption from
* * paying the duties, obtaining licenses, and subscribing unto
all the rules and restrictions of our laws". It was esti-
mated that the United States was annually defrauded of
duties to the amount of $26,000.** For the correction of this
evil the establishment of a government custom house at the
mouth of the St. Louis Eiver was suggested.
42 Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana^ etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
pp. 56-58.
4s Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Ap-
pendix to Part I, pp. 14-16.
44 Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Ap-
pendix to Part I, p. 37.
352 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
In addition^ lieutenant Pike mentioned the fact that the
savages were being aUenated from onr government by re-
ceiving at the hands of the traders British medals and flags.
In conclusion. Lieutenant Pike expressed the opinion that,
in case war should be declared between the United States
and Great Britain, these establishments would serve as so
many posts for the deposit of arms and ammunition. In
spite of a certain bluntness, with no attempt to evade any
real convictions on the subject under discussion, there is a
tone of genuine courtesy.
In an equally courteous reply,**^ Mr. M'Gillis expressed
his desire to pay the duty on goods imported by the North-
west Company if it could be done without conveying goods
already received to the custom house at Mackinac. Owing
to the fact that most of the year's supply of goods had al-
ready been received, such transportation would be a "vast
expense and trouble ' \
With regard to the use of the posts as garrisons in time
of war, Mr. M 'Gillis was astonished to learn that the Amer-
ican government should have apprehended any such pur-
pose. He explained that the establishments were for the
security of property and life in a country exposed to the
cruelty of many savages. * * We never formed the smallest
idea", he added, **that the said inclosures might ever be
useful in the juncture of a rupture between the two powers,
nor do we now conceive that such poor shifts will ever be
employed by the British government, in a country over-
shadowed with wood, so adequate to every purpose. Forts
might in a short period of time be built far superior to any
stockades we may have occasion to erect."
«s This letter bears the date of February 15, 1806, and appears in Pike's A%
Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Miseissippi and through tho
Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Appendix to Part I,
pp. 17-19.
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 353
Although apparently unconscious of the error conunitted
by exhibiting the flag of Great Britain in American terri-
tory, Mr. M'Gillis pledged himself to use his ** utmost en-
deavors, as soon as possible, to prevent the future display
of the British flag, or the presenting of medals, or the ex-
hibiting to public view, any other mark of European power,
throughout the extent of territory known to belong to the
dominion of the United States *\ The communication is
concluded with a high tribute to Lieutenant Pike 's personal
integrity and to the government which he represented.
On January 20th Lieutenant Pike resumed his journey
toward the source of the Mississippi, reaching the junction
of the waters of Leech Lake with the main channel of the
river on the last day of the month. Instead of continuing
in the direction of Lake Winnibigoshish, up what is now
considered the main course of the river. Lieutenant Pike
turned westward and made his way to Leech Lake, believ-
ing that he had accomplished the chief object of his expedi-
tion, and firmly convinced that this was the ultimate sonrce
of the great Father of Waters.*®
The conclusion with respect to the Leech Lake system is
not surprising since the idea was quite prevalent among the
traders and Indian tribes of the region, from whom Lieu-
tenant Pike obtained most of his information.
Other **true sources" have been found by subsequent travellers,
and the last has gone a little beyond his precursors, and thus fan-
cied himself entitled to the merit of being called the Bruce of the
Mississippi. This may be; but it is probable that all have been
right. It would be difiScult to determine which branch of a large
tree extends furthest from the parent root. It may be equally, or
more so, to determine which of the many head branches of the
Mississippi, that have been discovered, is the most remote from the
«• Coues 's The Expeditions of Zehulon Montgomery Pike, Vol. I, note, pp.
152, 153; Pike's Explorations in Annals of Iowa, Third Series, Vol. I, pp. 532,
533.
354 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Oulf of Mexico; and the initial gush of its waters undoubtedly
varies. A wet season may open many small tributaries to a small
lake, which had no existence in a dry season. Hence the spring
traveller, and the traveller of the summer solstice, may have dif-
ferent descriptions to give, and yet both be correct.*^
It was on February 14th that Lieutenant Pike began
preparations for the homeward journey. Two days later
he held a council with some of the Chippeway Lidians of the
lake region. In a speech of considerable length Lieutenant
Pike persuaded the Indians to give up most of their British
medals and flags.*® Furthermore, he urged the Chippeways
to cease their hostilities with the Sioux, who had also
promised to bury the hatchet. As a token of their promise
the young American produced the pipe of Wabasha.** As
a result of this council two of **the most celebrated war-
riors'* accompanied the party to St. Louis, where Lieuten-
ant Pike planned to have a council of peace with represent-
atives of the various tribes in the Upper Mississippi Val-
ley.
Amid '^acclamations and shouts" on the part of the In-
dians, the party took their departure from Leech Lake on
February 18th. Marching by land across wooded and
marshy ground, they did not reach the Mississippi Eiver
until six days later.*^^ Lieutenant Pike had long since
^T Whiting's Life of ZebtUan Montgomery Pikej published in Jared Sparks 't
Library of American Biography, Vol. XV, pp. 255, 256.
M In return for their British medals and flags. Lieutenant Pike pledged him-
self to send those of the United States to the savage chiefs, ' ' but owing to the
change of agents, and a variety of circumstances, it was never fulfilled". Bee-
ommendations were made, however, to General Wilkinson that such pledge be
kept for the good of the government. — See Pike's An Account of Bxpeditiomi
to the Sources of the Mississippi and through the Western Parts of LouisiaMO,
etc. (original edition, 1810), Appendix to Part I, p. 31.
«• See above note 32.
so Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
pp. 71, 73.
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 355
learned that the only expeditious method of travel was by
means of snow shoes. With the aid of these he was able to
make the descent of the river in much less than half the time
consumed in the ascent. But in spite of many advantages
the task proved arduous enough, as the following entry in
the journal will show :
The pressure of my racket strings brought the blood through my
socks and mockinsons [moccasins] , from which the pain I marched
in may be imagined.^^
On March 5th Lieutenant Pike found himself at the post
where he had left the sergeant in charge of the sick. Much
to his chagrin he found that, while he himself had been ex-
tremely frugal in the use of provisions in order that a
goodly supply might be on hand for the downward journey,
the sergeant in charge of the post had squandered nearly
all of the provisions in his custody and had given away
practically all of the whiskey, including a keg which the
Lieutenant had for his own use."
The party remained at the post until April 7th. Mean-
while several councils were held with some Menominee In-
dians in the immediate vicinity. Without any new or im-
portant experiences Lieutenant Pike continued the descent,
arriving at the northern boundary of the present State of
Iowa on April 16th. At noon on the following day he
reached the camp of Wabasha where he remained all day
and night in the hope of seeing the chief, who unfortunately
remained out all night on a hunting trip.^*
Bi Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sowrees of the Miseiaeippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiantk, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
p. 73.
s2 Whiting's Life of ZebuXon Montgomery Pike, pnbliilied in Jared Sparks 't
lAhrttry of American Biography, VoL XV, pp. 256, 267.
Bs Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
p. 99.
356 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
Leaving some powder and tobacco for him, Lieutenant
Pike left in the morning for Prairie du Chien, which he
reached at two o 'clock in the afternoon. Here he received
a hearty welcome, being presented with some much-needed
supplies and treated in a most hospitable manner by the
traders and Indians of the place. Moreover, he ** received
a great deal of news from the States and Europe, both civil
and military '* — a welcome bit of the civilization from
which he had been isolated for so many months.
On the afternoon of April 20th Lieutenant Pike witnessed
a most interesting game of * * the cross ' ' on the prairie * * be-
tween the Sioux on the one side, and the Puants and Rey-
nards on the other". He describes the game as follows :
The ball is made of some hard substance and covered with leather,
the cross sticks are round and net work, with handles of three feet
long. The parties being ready, and bets agreed upon, (sometimes
to the amount of some thousand dollars) the goals are set up on the
prairie at the distance of half a mile. The ball is thrown up in the
middle, and each party strives to drive it to the opposite goal ; and
when either party gains the first rubber, which is driving it quick
round the post, the ball is again taken to the center, the ground
changed, and the contest renewed ; and this is continued until one
side gains four times, which decides the bet. It is an interesting
sight to see two or three hundred naked savages contending on the
plain who shall bear off the palm of victory ; as he who drives the
ball round the goal is much shouted at by his companions. It some-
times happens that one catches the ball in his racket, and depending
on his speed endeavors to carry it to the goal, and when he finds
himself too closely pursued, he hurls it with great force and dex-
terity to an amazing distance, where there are always flankers of
both parties ready to receive it ; it seldom touches the ground, but
is sometimes kept in the air for hours before either party can gain
the victory. In the game which I witnessed, the Sioux were vic-
torious, more I believe, from the superiority of their skill in throw-
ing the ball, than by their swiftness, for I thought the Puants and
Reynards the swiftest runners.***
B4 Pike's An Account of Expeditions to the Sources of the Mississippi and
EXPEDITION OP ZEBULON M. PIKE 357
The remainder of the journey was uneventful. Numer-
ous unimportant councils and meetings with various In-
dians took place, and in many cases British medals were
given up. The account of the descent, however, is extreme-
ly meagre, there being almost no mention of the country
through which the party passed. This is probably due to
the increase in the distance covered on the return — only
about two months being spent in the descent, while the as-
cent had occupied more than six months.
It was on April 30, 1806, that the party arrived at the
town of St. Louis.^*^ It would seem that there had not been
a loss of a single man on the expedition, since a report*^® of
the number of persons returned to St. Louis corresponds
exactly to the number of the original party.
When his reports and observations were completed.
Lieutenant Pike had accomplished far more than his or-
ders. He had given to the public, as well as to the govern-
ment officials, information which was not only new but espe-
cially accurate in details. This information covered every
phase of the voyage, and included extended observations
with regard to the climate, soil, drainage, timber, etc., of
the country. The results of careful and painstaking inves-
tigation of the British trade brought many corrupt prac-
tices to light which resulted in preventatives on the part of
the general government. Knowledge of the Indians —
their tribes, numbers, and characteristics — was afforded
by tables and charts carefully compiled and included in
Lieutenant Pike's journal. Without doubt the efforts of
Lieutenant Pike did much to create a friendly attitude to-
through the Western Parts of Louisiana, etc. (original edition, 1810), Part I,
p. 100.
B<^ The time consumed in the exploration was, therefore, eight months and
twenty-two days.
B« Annals of Congress, 10th Ck>ngress, Second Session, 1808-1809, p. 1794.
358 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
ward the United States on the part of the Indians of the
Iowa and upper Mississippi regions. British medals and
flags were replaced by the stars and stripes; hostilities
among various tribes ceased; and there was a marked in-
crease in the respect of the Indians for the American peo-
ple.
Although Lieutenant Pike so far as possible carried out
the orders of General Wilkinson as well as those of the gov-
ernment, there seems to be no record of any compensation*^
either to Lieutenant Pike or to any of his companions for
their untiring efforts. At various times attempts were
made in Congress to secure such compensation, but all such
efforts were in vain. Conunittees were appointed, reports
were heard, and the matter was even presented in the form
of bills.*^® The measure, however, was successively de-
feated, even though it was always by a small majority.
Ethyl Edna Mabtin
The State Historical Society op Iowa
Iowa Cfty
ftT AnnaU of Congress, 10th Gongreei, First Session, 1807-1808, Vol. II, pp.
1659, 1767; Annals of Congress, lOth Congress, Second Session, 1808-1809, pp.
486, 487, 862, 902, 1788, 1794; Annals of Congress, 11th Congress, 1809-1810,
Part I, pp. 218, 263; AnniUs of Congress, 12th Congress, First Session, 1811-
1812, Part II, p. 1576.
^» Annals of Congress, lOth Congress, First Session, 1807-1808, VoL n, p.
1767; Annals of Congress, 10th Congress, Second Session, 1808-1809, pp. 862,
902; Annals of Congress, 11th Congress, Part I, pp. 218, 263.
On July 3, 1812, a petition from Lieutenant Pike asking compensation for
services rendered in exploring the interior parts of North America was pre-
sented. But this was ordered to be laid on the table and it seems never to
have been considered. — Annals of Congress, 12th Congress, First Session, 1811-
1812, Part II, p. 1576.
THE SETTLEMENT OF WOODBURY COUNTY
[The following paper is the reeolt of a limitod though critical inyestiga-
tion undertaken hj Professor Garver with a view (1) to ascertaining from
whence the early settlers of Woodbury County came, and (2) to suggesting
the variety of viewpoints from which data upon such a subject may be
studied. — Editor.]
Woodbury County is situated on the western border of
the State of Iowa, and is bounded on the west by the Mis-
souri and Big Sioux rivers. It is a little north of the cen-
ter of the State, there being three counties to the north of
it and five to the south. It is one of the largest counties of
the State both in area and in population. Sioux City, the
largest town, contains about 50,000 inhabitants : the rest of
the population dwell in villages or upon farms. Thus it is
seen that Woodbury County is in no sense peculiar; its
characteristics are similar to those of hundreds of other
counties of the great north central States. Moreover, the
one magnet which served to attract the first settlers was an
abundance of rich, fertile land to be had at a remarkably
low price.
The permanent settlement of eastern Iowa was begun in
the early thirties ; the occupation of western Iowa occurred
about twenty years later. The period of the settlement of
Woodbury County may be set down, roughly, as from 1850
to 1870. The town of Sioux City was laid out in 1854 and
1855. While the ranks of the old settlers are being rapidly
thinned by death, there remain in the county a considerable
number of residents who came prior to 1870, and some, even,
who were here before 1860. The comparative newness of
the county has made possible the collection of the data upon
which this study is based.
John Fiske, the historian, has called attention to the fact
359
360 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
that the migrations of Americans westward from the old
States to new have been, to a remarkable degree, along par-
allels of latitude.^ Li connection with this statement, at-
tention is called to the fact that Iowa covers abont three
degrees of latitude extending, practically, from forty de-
grees and thirty minntes to forty-three degrees and thirty
minntes, north. If the northern and the sonthem bonn-
daries of Iowa are projected eastward across the United
States to the Atlantic Ocean, they enclose a zone which
would include in the north central States, the northern
part of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, as well as the south-
em part of Wisconsin and Michigan ; in the north Atlantic
group, the northern two-thirds of Pennsylvania, the north-
em third of New Jersey, and all of that part of New York
(about two-thirds) which lies south of Lake Ontario; and
in New England, all of Rhode Island, Connecticut, and
Massachusetts, together with the southern part of Vermont
and New Hampshire. These, then, are the States from
which we may expect the early settlers of Woodbury
County to have come if Fiske's statement is correct.
For the purpose of securing the data required for this
brief study a blank was prepared, which, together with a
letter explaining the same, was sent to about one hundred
and forty old settlers of Woodbury County. The blanks
were in the following form :
1 — Name.
2 — Present address.
3 — Place of birth (Give both State and County).
4 — Date of birth.
5 — Nationality.
6 — When did you move to lowat
7 — Prom what State 1
8 — When did you move to Woodbury County!
9 — Prom what County, if from another County in lowat
1 Fiike'6 CivU Oavemment in the United States, p. 81.
SETTLEMENT OF WOODBURY COUNTY 361
10 — Please give the names and addresses of other old settlers in
your neighborhood.
To these inquiries replies were received from ninety-two
individuals. Two of the replies were incomplete and could
not be used. Appeal was then made to other sources, with
the result that the desired information was gathered con-
cerning ten additional old settlers. Thus, facts were at
hand relative to one hundred different individuals — a con-
venient number with which to deal. By a comparison and
analysis of the different items, some interesting results are
ascertained.
Taking up, in the first place, the matter of the nativity of
the one hundred old settlers whose migrations are here in-
vestigated, we find that twenty-six of them were bom in
foreign countries and seventy-four in the United States.
A somewhat different statement of results may be made by
adding those bom in Canada and in the United States, in
which case it may be said that twenty-two were bom in
Europe (including the British Isles) and seventy-eight in
America. Twenty-six per cent of foreign-bom settlers
seems to the writer to be a rather large proportion in view
of the fact that Woodbury County is in the very heart of
the United States and that it was settled so late in the his-
tory of our country — at a time when so many Americans
were moving westward. And yet that same **lure of the
land** which drew the Americans out of Vermont and New
York proved, no doubt, equally attractive to the foreign im-
migrant.
Of the twenty-six old settlers bom outside of the United
States, Germany gave birth to eight, England and Ireland
to five each, Canada to four, Switzerland to two, and
France and Denmark to one each. These facts give Ger-
many the lead, unless those bom in England, Ireland, and
Canada are added together and the total of fourteen is
362 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
credited to the British Empire. Li this group of foreign
settlers those of Teutonic stock predominate over those of
Celtic stock in about the proportion of two to one.
The years 1850 and 1870 have been mentioned above as
bounding, in a rough way, the period of the settlement of
Woodbury County. Li the former year the number of
States in the American Union numbered thirty-one, in the
latter year thirty-seven. A comparison of the facts rela-
tive to the seventy-four old settlers who were natives of
the United States shows them to represent thirteen States
as follows : twenty-four were bom in New York ; eight each
in Vermont and Pennsylvania; seven in Ohio; six in Illi-
nois ; four each in Indiana, New Hampshire, and Connecti-
cut; three in Massachusetts; two each in Virginia and
Iowa ; and one each in Maine and Missouri.
If the States here mentioned are grouped into sections,
the result shows that, of the seventy-four individuals under
discussion, there were bom twenty in New England, thirty-
four in the middle Atlantic States (including Virginia and
West Virginia), none in the southem States, eastern di-
vision, seventeen in the east central States (including Ken-
tucky), three in the west central States (including Mis-
souri), and none in the southem States, western division.
Thus it is seen that the middle Atlantic section leads with
thirty-four to its credit, and that New England comes sec-
ond with twenty. In the two divisions of the north central
States, taken together, twenty also were bom. None seems
to have been bom in either division of the southern States^
but this is because the grouping adopted above, following
the plan of present day geograpliies,^ includes Virginia
among the middle Atlantic States and Missouri in the west-
em division of the north central States.
There are twenty-eight States either wholly or largely
2 Frye '• Complete Geography, etc.
SETTLEMENT OF WOODBURY COUNTY 363
east of the Mississippi River. As far as the facts under
analysis are concerned only eleven of these gave birth to pi-
oneers of Woodbury County. The only southern State to
contribute was Virginia. A more remarkable fact, perhaps,
is that in those sections in which the largest numbers were
bom there were States (located side by side with those most
largely represented) which in themselves gave birth to
none of the old settlers. Thus, in New England every State
is represented except Rhode Island. In the middle Atlantic
section three States are represented (New York, Pennsyl-
vania, and Virginia), while four are not (New Jersey, Del-
aware, Maryland, and West Virginia). It is rather inter-
esting to speculate as to why New York and Pennsylvania
should give birth to so many Woodbury County pioneers,
relatively speaking, and neighboring States to none. It is
true, however, that West Virginia, Maryland, and most of
New Jersey are south of the latitude of Iowa. In the east-
ern division of the central States three are represented
(Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois), and three are not (Michigan,
Wisconsin, and Kentucky). Michigan and Wisconsin were
not old enough to be the birth-place of pioneers who should
settle new lands as early as 1850. Wliile Kentuckj- was old
enough, it was probably far enough to the south of the lati-
tude of Iowa and especially of Woodbury County, to make
the latter fact sufficient reason for her failure to send us
any old settlers.
Glancing for a moment at the individual States and the
number of Woodbury County pioneers to whom each gave
birth, it is seen that New York leads with Vermont, Penn-
sylvania, Ohio, and Illinois following in order. New York^s
lead is large — in fact more of our number were bom with-
in her boundaries than within those of her three closest
competitors taken together. New York gave birth to more
of our old settlers than all of the rest of the middle Atlantic
364 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
section together ; more than all of New England ; and more
than all of the central States. Indeed New York was the
mother of twenty-four per cent of the one hmidred pioneers
whose careers form the basis of this study; of thirty-two
per cent of the seventy-four who were bom in the United
States. New York, Vermont, and Pennsylvania — three
contiguous States — taken together, gave birth to forty out
of seventy-four or fifty-four per cent of those bom in the
United States.
If Virginia and Missouri are counted as southern States,
as has been the rule in American history, then three of our
number were bom in the South as against seventy-one in
the North. Three, also, were bom west of the Mississippi
as against seventy-one east of it. Iowa was a free State
and would not admit slaves. This fact coupled with that
other fact that Iowa was far to the north, and out of the
latitude of the southern States, probably accounts for the
smallness of the number bom south of the Mason and
Dixon line.
Another item on the blanks sent out called for the nation-
ality of each old settler ; but owing, perhaps, to the fact that
sufficient explanation was not given, it would not be safe to
draw many conclusions from the data returned. For ex-
ample, some counted themselves as ** Americans** whose
parents were evidently bom abroad; while others an-
swered **of German descent'* whose ancestors had un-
doubtedly been in the United States for several genera-
tions. To be brief, forty-four out of one hundred indicated
a foreign ancestry, although we learned above that only
twenty-six had been bom outside of the United States.
The numbers returned for each nationality were: Amer-
icans, forty-seven; ** Yankees**, nine; English, nine; Ger-
mans, nine ; Irish, eight ; French Canadians, three ; French,
two ; Welsh, two ; Swiss, two ; Dutch, one ; and Danish, one ;
SETTLEMENT OP WOODBXJRY COUNTY 365
together with six who gave a double nationality. It is in-
teresting to note that nine called themselves ** Yankees**,
of whom five were bom in New England. Adding these
nine Yankees to the group of Americans, we have fifty-six
of the latter. About all that it seems safe to say on the sub-
ject of nationaUty is that twenty-six were bom abroad and
that the number of bona fide Americans is fifty-six. This
leaves eighteen to be accounted for. Undoubtedly all of
them could classify as Americans of some degree. As
between Teutons and Celts, the proportion seems to be
about four of the former to one of the latter. One element
(namely, the French Canadian) did not figure as largely in
the returns as the writer had reason to expect from the
large number of that class who trapped and traded in this
section in its early days. Indeed, only three designated
themselves as French Canadians. The reasons for such a
small number need to be noticed, and so this matter will be
recurred to again in another connection.^
Of the twenty-six pioneers bom abroad (out of the one
hundred studied) twenty-four made at least two moves,
coming first to some other one of the United States and mi-
grating later to Iowa. Still another made two moves, com-
ing from Ireland to Canada and thence to Iowa. Only one
came directly from his foreign home to Woodbury County.
Of the twenty-four who stopped in other States before com-
ing hither, seven came first to Illinois, four to New York,
four to Ohio, two to Nebraska, two to Wisconsin, and one
each to New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Tennessee,
and Missouri.
It has already been explained that one foreign-bom pio-
neer moved from Ireland to Canada and thence to Iowa,
and that a second one moved directly from Canada to this
State. Somewhat earlier in the paper it was noted that two
3 See below, p. 3S1.
VOL. IX — 25
366 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
were bom in Iowa. One of these never left his native State,
while the other one moved to Kansas and back again. In
the following analysis the latter case is ignored, that is to
say, the move to Kansas and back is ignored and the indi-
vidual is treated as a native lowan who never left Ids State.
Eliminating these four cases, we have the result that ninety-
six pioneers, out of one hundred, came to Iowa from some
other State of the American union. Of the ninety-six,
seventy-two were native-bom and twenty-four foreign-
born, as has already been shown.
These ninety-six settlers came into Iowa from eighteen
diflFerent States. The States from which they came, to-
gether with the number in each case, are as follows : from
Illinois, twenty-six; New York, fifteen; Ohio, eleven; Wis-
consin, eight ; Pennsylvania and Indiana, five each ; Massa-
chusetts, Virginia, Vermont, Missouri, and Minnesota,
three each; Connecticut, New Hampshire, Michigan, and
Nebraska, two each; and from Tennessee, Montana, and
California, one each. The number that moved to Iowa from
each State is radically diflFerent from the number that was
bom in each. A glance at the first and last columns of the
accompanying table will show how true is this statement.
(See Table I.)
The migrations of ninety-six persons to Iowa may seem
to be a simple matter, but in reality it is one of great com-
plexity. The case of New York may be taken as an illus-
tration. In that State twenty-four of our pioneers were
born. Nine of them moved directly from the Empire State
to Iowa. The other fifteen came to this State indirectly,
that is to say, they moved first to other States and came
thence to Iowa. Of this number seven came by way of Illi-
nois, four by way of Wisconsin, and one each by way of
Massachusetts, Ohio, Vermont, and Montana. Altogether
fifteen came directly from New York to Iowa. This num-
SETTLEMENT OP WOODBURY COUNTY 367
ber was made up of the nine natives of the former State,
already mentioned, and six who came into New York from
the outside. Two of the six entered New York from other
States — one each . from Connecticut and Pennsylvania.
The other four came from foreign countries — two from
Germany, one from England and one from Ireland. Thus
thirty old settlers were bom in New York or came through
that State to Iowa. Fifteen came direct to this State and
fifteen through other Commonwealths. The cases of sev-
eral other States are as complicated as that of New York
— just as many elements entering in, although not so many
pioneers may have been concerned.
Because of this complexity it is out of question to re-
view all of the facts relative to each State. They are pre-
sented in detail, however, in the accompanying table. (See
Table I). Column one shows how many pioneers (out of
ninety-six) were bom in each State. Colunm two shows
how many of these came directly to Iowa, and column three
how many came indirectly. Columns four and five indicate
the number that came from other States and from foreign
countries, respectively, through each State to Iowa. The
last column shows the number that came directly from each
State to this one. The numbers given in the first column
should equal the sum of those given in the second and third
columns. The numbers found in the last colunm should
equal the sum of those in the second, fourth, and fifth col-
umns. It will also be noticed that colunms three and four
total the same, as they should.
With the facts before us as vividly as the table presents
them, it is possible to make several valuable comparisons.
Let us take first the figures of the first two colunms, those
showing the number of births in each State and the number
of the same that came directly to Iowa. The facts show that
all that were bom in the three States of Virginia, Illinois,
368 IOWA JOTJBNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
and MisBonri came directly to tbiB State. Maine is the only
State representiiig the other extreme. Prom other States
the natiTe-bom pioneers came directly to Iowa in such ra-
TABLEI
S
1
ll
11
III
1:
,t
11^
1
Sis
11
Hi
Maine
Venn out
ConnecticQt
0
1
2
1
1
0
0
0
0
2
3
3
2
Total for Bection
20
5
IS
10
Pennsylvania
Virginia
24
8
9
4
2
15
15
S
3
Total for aection
34
15
19
23
Ohio
Ulinoia
Michigan
WucnaBia
4
2
6
0
0
13
11
3
ZG
2
8
Total for section
14
52
NebrBBka
Missonri
0
0
1
3
2
3
Total for sectioa
1
8
Montana
California
0
0
0
0
0
J
1
1
1
Total scattared
0
0 1 0 1 2
3
Grand Totals
72
33
30
39
24
96
tioB as one out of four, four out of eight, or nine out of
twenty-four. The general average of all these different ra-
tios is found in the totals which show that out of seventy-
two native-bom pioneers, thirty-three, or nearly forty-six
per cent, came direct from the State of their birth to this
State.
SETTLEMENT OF WOODBURY COUNTY 369
The results of this comparison for each section follow :
New England, 5 out of 20 or 25 per cent came direct to Iowa.
Mid. Atlantic, 15 out of 34 or 44 per cent came direct to Iowa.
North Central, 12 out of 17 or 70 per cent came direct to Iowa.
As might have been expected the percentage increases as
the section is located closer and closer to Iowa.
Another fruitful comparison may be made of the number
of pioneers bom in each State and the total number that
came directly from each State to Iowa. (See columns one
and six of Table I). One might expect these numbers to be
practically the same, but this supposition is far from the
truth. Not all that were bom in each State came directly
to Iowa as we have already seen, and certainly not all that
came from each State were bom in the Commonwealth from
which they happened to come.
The total number of pioneers that came directly from the
various States to Iowa was made up of three groups : first,
those bom in the States from which they came; second,
those received from other States ; and third, those received
from foreign nations. The first of these three groups has
just been discussed. The facts relative to the second may
1)8 found by reference to column four of Table I. A com-
parison of columns four and six shows what proportion of
the numbers sent to Iowa by each State was received from
other States. Four States, indeed, (New Hampshire, Penn-
sylvania, Nebraska, and Tennessee) received none; while
four others (California, Montana, Minnesota, and Michi-
gan) received all they sent from this source. In most cases
such accessions were small, only four States (Ohio, Minne-
sota, Wisconsin, and Illinois) receiving as many as three
each. Wisconsin with six and Illinois with thirteen are
easily in the lead. This is logical since these States border
Iowa on the east and were natural gateways into the latter
in the early days.
370 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
The results of this comparison by sections are instructive.
In the following table the figures in the first column indicate
the persons received from other States; the figures of the
second column indicate the persons sent to Iowa.
New England received 4 out of 10 sent, or 40 per cent.
Middle Atlantic received 3 out of 23 sent, or 13 per cent.
East Central received 26 out of 52 sent, or 50 per cent.
West Central received 4 out of 7 sent, or 57 per cent.
From this showing it is seen that the middle Atlantic sec-
tion received the smallest percentage of pioneers sent to
Iowa from other States. It is logical, again, that the north
central sections should receive the largest percentage from
the same sources because they are on the road to Iowa, so
to speak. In the case of New England the percentage is
large ; but this may be abnormal since the total number of
individuals was so small that the movements of one or two
had an undue effect upon the results. Finally, it may be
said that the total number of pioneers received from other
States was thirty-nine out of ninety-six sent to Iowa, or six
more than the number of native-bom sent directly from
their native States.
The third group which goes to make up the ninety-six sent
directly to this State comprises the foreign-bom. The fig-
ures for this group are to be found in column five of Table
I. A comparison with column six shows the proportion of
the foreign-bom to the total number sent. Eight States re-
ceived none from this source, while five received one eacb,
and two received two each. New York, Ohio, and Illinois
received the largest numbers; the two first named States
four each, and the last named seven. Nebraska and Tenn-
essee received all the pioneers whom they sent to Iowa from
this source — which, of course is only a coincidence.
If we tabulate the results for the sections we get the f ol-
SETTLEMENT OP WOODBURY COUNTY 371
lowing percentages — the first figures stand for the number
of f oreign-bom received :
New England received 1 out of 10 sent to Iowa, or 10 per cent.
Middle Atlantic received 5 out of 23 sent to Iowa, or 22 per cent.
East Central received 14 out of 52 sent to Iowa, or 27 per cent.
West Central received 3 out of 8 sent to Iowa, or 43 per cent.
The percentages favor the western sections. While all of
the foreign-born pioneers under consideration came ulti-
mately to Iowa, it is a fact that their original attraction was
for the western States in preference to the eastern sections.
The total number of foreign-bom received was twenty-four
or exactly twenty-five per cent of the whole number sent di-
rectly to Iowa.
It is not to be understood that the contingents sent to
Iowa by the various States were made up in every case of
all three of the elements mentioned above. Indeed, this was
true of only five States, namely, New York, Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, and Missouri. Wisconsin sent no native-bom pio-
neers to Woodbury County; New Hampshire and Pennsyl-
vania contributed none received from other States; while
Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Virginia sent
none who were bom abroad. Four States, namely, Michi-
gan, Minnesota, Montana (Territory), and California sent
neither native-bom nor foreign-bom settlers — their whole
contingents being received from other States. Nebraska
and Tennessee sent only foreign-bom. The number of pio-
neers of each class sent by the sections are as follows :
States Native-horn Born in other States Foreign-horn
NcAv England 5 4 1
Middle Atlantic 15 3 5
East Central 12 26 14
West Central 14 3
From this tabulation it will be seen that the native-bom
element was the most important one in the contingents sent
372 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
by New England and the middle section ; while the two di-
visions of the north central section received from other
States the largest single element in their contributions —
in each case exactly one-half of the total number sent.
Having treated in this detailed way of the various ele-
ments that went to make up the total number of pioneers
who came from the different States directly to Iowa, a brief
comparison should be made between the latter and the total
number that was bom in each State. The figures may be
found in columns one and six of Table I. There it will be
seen that a total of seventy-two pioneers* of Iowa were bom
in twelve different States, and that a total of ninety-six
came to this State from eighteen different States. It may
also be noticed that pioneers were bom in only one State
(Maine) which sent none directly to Iowa; while seven
States which gave birth to none, sent settlers to our State.
Six States gave birth to more than they sent, one to the
same number, while twelve sent more than were bom with-
in their borders. It has already been mentioned that New
York gave birth to the largest number with Vermont, Penn-
sylvania, and Ohio following in order, while Illinois sent
the largest number directly to Iowa, with New York, Ohio,
and Wisconsin coming next in order. As a rule the States
farther east gave birth to more of our numbers, but those
farther west sent us the larger contingents. The compari-
son bv sections is instructive.
«
New England gave birth to 20 pioneers, sent Iowa 10.
Middle Atlantic gave birth to 34 pioneers, sent Iowa 23.
East Central gave birth to 17 pioneers, sent Iowa 52.
West Central gave birth to 1 pioneer, sent Iowa 8.
From this showing it may be seen that there is a relative
falling off in the first set of figures and a relative gain in
the second, without exception, as we come westward. The
* Excluding from consideration the two born in Iowa.
SETTLEMENT OF WOODBURY COUNTY 373
middle Atlantic States were the birth-place of the largest
number of pioneers (thirty-four or nearly one-half of the
seventy-two bom in the United States) and yet its percent-
age relative to the number actually sent was not as great
as that of New England. By far the largest number of
settlers came directly from the north central section, even
that division west of the Mississippi making a respectable
showing.
It appears, then, that the early settlers of Woodbury
County were largely bom in the middle Atlantic and New
England States and that they came to their future home
chiefly from the east central and middle Atlantic States.
This brings up the question of the route, or routes, by which
they came westward — a question already touched upon in
an indirect way, but one of such importance that it needs
further treatment. Table I contains two columns of figures
(the third and the fourth) which tell in a general way the
story of the routes taken by the westward moving pioneers.
By comparing the figures of column three with those of col-
umn two for a moment it will be seen that New England
sent fifteen out of twenty bom in that section to Iowa indi-
rectly ; that is to say, they moved first to other States and
came thence to this State. The middle Atlantic States sent
nineteen out of thirty-four by the same indirect route; but
column three does not show by what States these pioneers
came to Iowa. Column four contains the same total of fig-
ures as three, referring indeed to the same thirty-nine in-
dividuals ; but while it shows the numbers received by cer-
tain States which sent them on to Iowa, it does not indicate
tlie States from which they were received. These two sets
of facts, needed to throw light upon the subject of the routes
taken, are shown in Table II.
Table II is designed to illuminate the facts given in col-
umns three and four of Table I. Down the left-hand side of
374 IOWA JOURNAI^ OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
the table appear the names of the States and countries in
which the one hundred pioneers who comprise this study
were bom. In column one is ^ven, merely for convenient
FABLE II
1
£
1
1
£
1
i
1
1
1
^
i
1
■
1
o
i
,
^
s
s
1
s
S
s
1
1
i
i
New Hampshire
Vermont
Oonneclirnt
4
3
i
U
I
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
3
a
3
1
-
New York
rennsylvania
Virginia
24
B
2
1
1
I
i
.
1
1
7
1
1
4
'
16
4
0
._...
IndiaoB
niinoia
Uicbigan
Wiieonrin
7
i
e
0
0
i
1
2
I
e
0
:
1
1
3
a
0
0
0
1
NobrMka
Uiwouri
Iowa
0
1
8
0
1
a
0
0
0
Montana l| D
California || 0
i
a
0
"6
Q
0
II
Germanj'
Ensland
IrelaiKl
Canada
8wit»r)and
Pranee
Denmark
5
S
4
I
1
3
1
1
1
1
s
1
1
5
1
1
1
1
1
1 1
1
1' '
1!
1
1
B
6
5
3
2
1
I
Sent Directly H 1 01 2' 31 31 2N15| 51 3
111 6
31 2 3H 11 ll 111 ail
reference, the total number bom in each, Reading across
the page from left to right one may see, by reference at the
same time to the names at the top of the table, by what
SETTLEMENT OF WOODBURY COUNTY 375
States — that is by what routes — the native-born of each
State and country came to Iowa. The total number sent in-
directly by each State and country is given in the last col-
umn, at the right-hand side of the table. The number of
native-bom pioneers sent directly to Iowa by the States of
their birth are given in the squares which run diagonally
across the table from the upper left-hand comer toward
the lower right-hand comer — the numbers being indicated
by heavier type in order to differentiate them from the oth-
ers of the table. The figures in heavy type are omitted in
making up the totals given at the right-hand side of the
table.
At the top of the table are found the names of the States
and the one country which sent pioneers directly to Iowa.
Glancing down the columns one may see, by reference at
the same time to the names at the left-hand side of the table,
from what States and countries — that is, by what routes —
the pioneers sent to Iowa were received. The figures at the
bottom of the table indicate the total number sent to Iowa
directly by each State. In this case the numbers standing
for the native-born pioneers sent directly (indicated by the
heavy type) have been added. Table I was limited to those
States of the American union which gave birth to or sent
pioneers on to Iowa. Table II includes those foreign coun-
tries, as well, which performed similar services. The name
of Canada occurs at the top of the table because it sent one
native-bom pioneer direct to Iowa. The name of Iowa ap-
pears on the table, but it affects only the figures of the first
column.
The table under consideration shows very plainly two
things : first, by what States, or routes, the native-bom of
each State and country were sent to Iowa when they did
not come direct from their places of birth ; and second, from
what States and countries — that is by what routes — the
376 IOWA JOURNAL OF HISTORY AND POLITICS
pioneers, exclusive of native-born, sent to Iowa by the dif-
ferent States, were received. Taking up the first group,
who may be referred to as native-bom pioneers sent to
Iowa indirectly, we see that Pennsylvania sent four indi-
viduals by way of four different States, that Vermont sent
six by way of five States, while New York sent fifteen by
way of six States. The States through which these pio-
neers were sent are scattered from Vermont to California.
The only preferences shown by individual States were a
slight one by the Vermont pioneers for the Illinois route
and a more decided one by New Yorkers for the Illinois and
Wisconsin routes. Among the foreign-born, the English
show a slight preference for Ohio and the Germans for New
York; the only marked preference being that of the Ger-
mans for the Illinois route.
A comparison, section by section, reveals the following
marked preferences for the route of the east central States :
New England seni;
• Middle Atlantic sent
Central States sent
Foreign nations sent
The totals for the sections show that, out of sixty-four pio-
neers sent to Iowa indirectly, forty came by way of the
eastern division of the central States as against twenty-
four by way of all other sections. If those coming by the
western division of the central States are added to those
sent by way of the eastern division, the results become
f ortj^-seven as against seventeen.
The results just presented are complemented by those
growing out of a review of the second group of facts which
Table II was constructed to illustrate. In noticing the
States and countries from which the pioneers, sent to Iowa
by the various States, were received we are giving atten-
By Central States
By all other sections
8
7
15
4
3
2
14
11
SETTLEMENT OP WOODBURY COUNTY 377
tion to the same body of facts as those just analyzed but
from a different point of view. Excluding native-bom
pioneers, a glance at the table shows that New York sent to
Iowa six settlers received by her from five different
sources, Wisconsin eight, received from five sources, Ohio
seven received from six sources, and Illinois twenty re-
ceived from nine different sources — that is, from nine
States and foreign countries. In every case the sources
were widely scattered. The chief sources for Illinois were
New York, Germany, and Vermont; for Wisconsin, New
York ; for Ohio, England ; and for New York, Gtermany.
Out of sixty-four pioneers sent indirectly to Iowa, New
England shows no one source of supply predominating
over another. The middle Atlantic States and the western
division of the central States received from foreign nations
a few more than from other sources. The east central
States attracted fifteen from the middle Atlantic section,
fourteen from foreign nations, and eight from New
England.
From such analyses as these it is seen that the pioneers
of Woodbury County came from many different places by
way of many different routes. The tracing of the routes
followed is complicated by the fact that a large number of
the individuals concerned made two or more moves, instead
of only one, in coming to Iowa. Three distinct elements
enter into the proposition. In the first place, there are
those native-bom pioneers who came to Iowa from the
places of their birth by indirect routes. Then there are
those who came directly from certain localities. This num-
ber was made up of two groups, namely, native-bora pio-
neers who came directly from the places of their birth and
those received from other localities to be sent on to this
State. The routes followed may, in a general way, be di-
vided into two parts. First, many routes leading from the
378 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
birth-places of the pioneers converged upon certain inter-
mediate points. Chief among these were Illinois, Wis-
consin, Ohio, and New York. The chief section upon which
the routes of pioneers converged was, of course, the north
central section. The second part of the route taken led
directly from certain centers to Iowa. The most important
centers, as far as the States of the Union are concerned,
are exactly the same as the chief converging points just
mentioned; but, since the pioneers coming over these
routes included an element of native-bom settlers as well
as those received from other sources, the centers in ques-
tion mav not be ranked in the same order. While Illinois
leads, New York comes second, Ohio third, and Wisconsin
fourth. The second part of the general route followed led
directly from these States to Iowa. As far as sections are
concerned, the main-traveled route led from the north cen-
tral section with that from the middle States second, and
that from New England third.
The reader can get a clear mental picture of the general
routes followed by conceiving a map with a heavy line lead-
ing from Europe to the north central States and a some-
what lighter line from Europe to the middle Atlantic sec-
tion ; a heavy line leading from the middle Atlantic section
to the north central States, and a somewhat lighter one
from New England to the same locality ; and lastly a heavj'
line leading from the north central States to Iowa together
with lighter lines from the middle Atlantic section and
from New England to this State. A complete map show-
ing all the by-paths followed by various groups or indi-
viduals would contain many more lines than those just indi-
cated, but the picture here drawn shows the main-traveled
routes and avoids the confusion which would arise from
the crossing and re-crossing of lesser by-paths.
Before leaving this part of the subject it may be pointed
SETTLEMENT OP WOODBURY COUNTY 379
out that seven pioneers (out of ninety-six) entered Iowa
by way of the southern States. Three of them came from
Virginia, three from Missouri, and one from Tennessee.
Four (out of ninety-six) came liither from western States
as follows: from Nebraska two, and from Montana (Ter-
ritory) and California one each. None of these four were
natives of the States from which they came.
From the States which border upon Iowa there came a
total of forty-two pioneers. It is interesting to note that
thirty-four of these came from the two States on the east-
em border, leaving eight to enter from the four States
on the three other sides of Iowa. The numbers entering by
way of each border State were: from Illinois, twenty-six;
Wisconsin, eight; Minnesota, three; Nebraska, two; South
Dakota, none; and Missouri, three. The large numbers
coming from Illinois and Wisconsin are accounted for by
the fact that those States were situated directly in the path-
way of the incoming pioneers. Bearing in mind the fact
that so much early travel was by way of the Missouri River,
the one surprising result in the comparisons just made is
that so few settlers, relatively speaking, came to Wood-
bury County from Missouri. Possibly the pioneers coming
from Missouri desiring, like Daniel Boone, to be ever on
the frontier, had moved on to newer regions before the data
for this paper were gathered. The writer is sure that this
occurred to a certain extent, especially in connection with
the French Canadians to be mentioned below.^
Out of one hundred pioneers whose movements form the
basis of this study, sixty-six came directly to Woodbury
County upon reaching the State of Iowa; thirty-four
stopped first in some other coimty before coming here. It
may be of interest to note from what particular counties
some of them came. A total of sixteen came from four
» See below, p. 381.
380 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
oonnties as follows: from Dubuque, where the first settle-
ment in the State was made, came eight; from Potta-
wattamie, four ; and from Linn and Monona, two each. The
other eighteen came from as many different counties scat-
tered all over the State. Ten came from counties bordering
on the Mississippi ; nine from counties on the western bor-
der of Iowa. Of the latter, seven came from counties on
the Missouri. If these were added to the three who came
from the State of Missouri, it may be said that at least ten
came by the Missouri River route.
The most interesting fact brought out in the last para-
graph is the large number of pioneers coming to Wood-
bury County from Dubuque County located clear across the
State on the Mississippi River. Of the eight who came
from the latter county, one was native-bom, two were from
Pennsylvania, and five from foreign countries. Dubuque
and Woodbury counties are in the same latitude. To-day
they are connected by the Illinois Central Railway, but
this consideration was of no great importance since seven
of the pioneers came to Woodbury Coimty before the rail-
way was built.
From counties bordering on Woodbury there came five
pioneers: one each from Plymouth and Cherokee on the
north, one from Ida on the east, and two from Monona on
the south.
Stopping in other counties of Iowa before coming on to
Woodbury had the effect of increasing the number of moves
made by our pioneers on their way hither. From the char-
acter of the questions asked on the blanks sent out it is not
possible to determine the exact number of moves made by
the one hundred pioneers on their way to Woodbury
County. We are able, however, to figure out that twenty-
two made at least one move ; sixty at least two ; and eight-
een at least three moves before arriving at their destina-
SETTLEMENT OF WOODBURY COUNTY 381
tion. It is not surprising to find that all of the eighteen
who moved at least three times are included in the number
of those who came to Woodbury from some other county
of the State.
In this very limited study of the pioneer settlers of
Woodbury County, Iowa, the emphasis has been placed
upon the source of supply, or the nativity of the pioneers,
the routes by which they came to this county, and the num-
ber of moves made on the way. Eelative to the first point,
it was found that twenty-six out of one hundred were bom
abroad, chiefly in Germany, England, Ireland, and Canada.
The three who came from Canada were French Canadians.
It was remarked above® that such a small number did not
do justice to this particular people because it has been con-
clusively shown by Mr. C. B. Marks that the first settlers
of the county were French Canadians and that they came
to this locality in considerable numbers.^ The explanation
may be found in the character of the French Canadians
themselves. When they first came into this vicinity, prob-
ably as early as the thirties, it was in the capacity of
traders, trappers, boatsmen, hunters, etc. They belonged
largely to the river and the river trade, to the period of
exploration rather than to that of settlement. It was their
work to open up the new country, not to possess it per-
manently: they paved the way for actual settlers. When
the latter came it was time for the French Canadian to
move on up the river to newer and wilder regions — regions
better suited to his particular kind of life. This was actu-
ally done by large numbers, and is a fact which, when taken
in connection with the time that had passed before this
« See above, p. 365.
7 Marks 's PoJit and Present of Woodbury County, Iowa, p. 763 aeq. See alao
his article entitled French Pioneers of Sioux City and South Dakota in the
South Dakota Historical Collections, Vol. IV, pp. 255-260.
VOL. IX — ^26
382 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
investigation was attempted, sufficiently accounts for the
small showing made by the French Canadians in the popu-
lation elements of the county to-day.
The figures showed seventy-four pioneers born in the
United States — only three of them in the South. Among
the sections, the middle Atlantic States led, with New
England and the north central States following in order.
Among the States, New York, Vermont, and Pennsylvania
stood out especially prominent as the birth-place of Wood-
bury County pioneers, giving birth to forty out of the
seventy-four native Americans, or fifty-four per cent. New
York alone had twenty-four to her credit, contributing
thirty-two per cent of the native-bom Americans and
twenty-four per cent of all. It is not too much praise to
call the Empire State the '* Mother of Woodbury County
Pioneers ' '.
We have also seen that our hundred pioneers moved into
Iowa from eighteen different States, together with one com-
ing from Canada. More than half came from the north
central States, with the middle Atlantic States and New
England coming next in order. Among the States, Illinois
led with the large total of twenty-six to her credit. New
York came second with fifteen, while Ohio and Wisconsin
sent eight each.
The foregoing analysis has brought out the radical dif-
ference between the pioneers bom in a State and those sent
to Iowa — a difference, not only in numbers but also in
composition. The complexity of the matter of the routes
taken has also been revealed. Out of seventy-two native
born, thirty-three came to Iowa directly from the States of
their birth, thirty-nine indirectly by way of other States.
Those coming from the various States were found to be
made up of three clafeses: namely, native bom, those re-
ceived from other States, and those received from foreign
SETTLEMENT OP WOODBURY COUNTY 383
nations. The foreign bom came chiefly by way of the north
central States. Among the States they preferred Illinois,
New York, and Ohio in order.
As to the general route followed, an attempt was made to
divide it into two parts : first, converging upon certain sec-
tions and States ; and second, leading from those places to
Iowa. Later it was seen that a thirji part of the general
route was to be found within the State of Iowa. The main-
traveled routes were pictured as running from Europe to
the north central and middle Atlantic States ; from the lat-
ter section and New England to the north central States;
and from all three sections, but especially from the north
central section, to Iowa. Within the State the chief routes
were from Dubuque and Pottawattamie counties to Wood-
bury.
Among other results it was found that four pioneers
entered the State from States west of Iowa; seven from
southern States ; and forty-two from States bordering upon
this one. The number coming from Missouri was surpris-
ingly small. Thirty-four stopped in other coimties of the
State before moving to Woodbury. In general the pioneers
studied may be said to have done much moving about be-
fore they settled down — much more, indeed, than facts
brought out in the paper indicate.
Although this study has been based upon facts which con-
cern only one hundred individuals, the writer has no reason
to believe that the results would have been radically dif-
ferent, as far as percentages are concerned, if figures had
been at hand relative to a much larger number. The one
important exception of the French Canadians has already
been noted. We may say, therefore, that the findings of
this paper relative to the nativity of the pioneers of Wood-
bury County, Iowa, and to the routes traveled by them in
coming to the county are reasonably accurate. What is
384 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
true of Woodbury County would, probably, be true also of
northwestern Iowa. The same claim could not be made for
the eastern and southeastern parts of the State which are
much older sections and — to mention only one point —
received large numbers of settlers from Kentucky, Vir-
ginia, and other southern States.
It may be said in closing that John Fiske's dictum, re-
ferred to at the beginning of this paper, namely, that ^ ^ The
westward movement of population in the United States has
for the most part followed the parallels of latitude", has
been found to be remarkably true when applied to the set-
tlement of Woodbury County, Iowa.
Frank Habmon Gabvbb
MoBNiNasmE College
Sioux Crrr Iowa
THE TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837
The Territorial Convention which was held at Burlington
on November 6, 7, 8, 1837, was perhaps the most important
convention held in the Iowa country prior to the establish-
ment of the Territory in July, 1838. Three subjects of
vital concern were acted upon: (1) the Missouri boundary
line; (2) preemption laws; and (3) the division of the
Territory. Documentary materials relative to this conven-
tion are given below. They include (1) Proceedings of a
Public Meeting of the Citizens of Des Moines County held
on September 16, 1837; (2) Proceedings of a Public Meet-
ing of the Citizens of Dubuque County held on October 13,
1837; (3) Proceedings of a Public Meeting of the Citizens
of Louisa County held on October 21, 1837; (4) Proceed-
ings of a Public Meeting of the Citizens of Henry County
held on October 23, 1837; (5) Proceedings of the Terri-
torial Convention held at Burlington on November 6, 7, 8,
1837; (6) Memorial on the Subject of the Missouri Boun-
dary Line; (7) Memorial on the subject of Preemptions;
and (8) Memorial Praying for a Division of the Territory.
PROCEEJ)INGS OP A PUBLIC MEETING OP THE CITIZENS OP DES
MOINES COUNTY HELD ON SEPTEMBER 16, 1837
[The people of Dee Moinee County took the initiatiye in oaUing the Terri-
torial Convention of 1837. The following account of the meeting held at
Burlington is reprinted literally from the Iowa News (Dubuque), Vol. I, No.
18, September 30, 1837. — Editoe.]
At a large and respectable meeting of the people of Des
Moines county, held in this town on Saturday, the 16th inst.,
in pursuance of previous public notice, the Hon. Isaac Lep-
385
386 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
FLEB, was called to the Chair, and C. S. Jacobs, Esq., ap-
pointed Secretary.
The chair having briefly and appropriately stated the ob-
jects of the meeting, it was moved by David Eorer, Esq.,
and seconded by Col. W. W. Chapman, that a committee of
five be appointed to draft resolutions expressive of the
sense of the meeting. Whereupon, the Chair appointed
David Eorer, Esq., Col. W. W. Chapman, Judge William
Morgan, Col. Arthur Ingram and Dr. George W. Teas, said
committee, who having retired for a short time, returned
and presented the following resolutions, which, after due
deliberation, were unanimously adopted.
1st. Resolved, That while we have the utmost confidence
in the abiUty, integrity and patriotism of those who control
the destinies of our present Territorial Government, and of
our delegate in the Congress of the U. States, we do, never-
theless, look to a division of the Territory, and the organ-
ization of a separate Territorial Government, by Congress,
west of the Mississippi river, as the only means of imme-
diately and fully securing to the citizens thereof, the bene-
fits and immunities of a government of laws.
2d, Resolved, That we view with extreme solicitude and
regret, the efforts of a portion of the people of Missouri to
obtain an extension of their northern boundary line, and
deem it the duty of ourselves and all our fellow-citizens
west of the river, to take prompt measures to prevent the
same, as an infringement upon our Territorial rights.
3d. Resolved, That as settlers on the public lands of the
United States, we are entitled to the protection of the Gov-
ernment in our homes, and the improvements made by, or
paid for by us ; and that [it] is a duty we owe to ourselves
and our fellow-citizens, to call the attention of Congress to
that subject by a fair and full presentation of our claims.
4th. Resolved, That we respectfully and earnestly rec-
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 387
ommend to the people of the Territory west of the Missis^
sippi river, immediately to hold county meetings in their
respective counties, and appoint three delegates from each
county, to meet in Convention at this place, on the first
Monday in November next, to take into consideration the
subjects embraced in the foregoing resolutions, and the best
means of securing the speedy action of Congress thereupon.
5th. Resolved, That as the county of Du Buque is large
and ought and should, in the opinion of the citizens thereof,
be divided, it be entitled to a double representation, or six
members, in said Convention, if they deem it expedient or
necessary to appoint so many.
6th. Resolved, That we deem it our duty to call the at-
tention of the Executive of the Territory to the encroach-
ments of the State of Missouri upon our Territory, and that
he be hereby requested to use all means within his control
to maintain the sacrcdness of our boundary and laws.
7th. Resolved, That the repeated and constant failures
of the mails in the western portion of this Territory, and
the habitual neglect and gross delinquencies of some of the
contractors for the conveyance thereof, is such as in a great
measure to deprive the people of the benefits of the public
mail ; and that the Postmaster General is hereby and most
earnestly requested to correct such abuses, if practicable,
at the earliest possible period.
8th. Resolved, That we have selected the town of Bur-
lington as the place of meeting of the proposed Convention,
by reason of its being the temporary seat of Government,
and as the place of the meeting of the Legislature about
that time.
9th. Resolved, That the people of Des Moines county be,
and are hereby requested to meet on the second Saturday,
388 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
the 12th of October next, in this town, at 10 o 'clock, A. M.,
for the purpose of selecting three delegates to the afore-
said Convention.
Charles Mason, Esq., hereupon made an appropriate ad-
dress to the meeting upon the subject of the 7th resolution.
— The total inadequacy of the present mail arrangement,
and the shameful neglect and delinquencies of some of the
mail contractors and post masters — and concluded by mov-
ing that a committee of be appointed to draft a petition
to the Post Master General, stating the facts in the case, and
soliciting his immediate attention to a correction of the
evils complained of, whereupon the chair appointed upon
said conmdttee, Charles Mason and C. S. Jacobs, Esquires,
of Burlington, Mr. Mason Wilson, of Augusta, Mr. Jona-
than Morgan, of Flint, Mr. William Stewart, of Marshall,
Mr. John Lorton, of Casey Prairie, and Mr. James G. Guf-
fey, of Taney Town.
Judge Morgan then moved that this committee be di-
rected to furnish each Post-Master in the county of Des
Moines (old Des Moines) with a copy of the Petition when
prepared for circulation and signature.
C. S. Jacobs, Esq., addressed the meeting upon the sub-
ject of the mails for some time, and observed that he appre-
hended the resolution in regard thereto, just passed, though
very good in itself, did not go far enough, and cover as
much ground as the importance of the subject seemed to
require, and he would, therefore, offer a short preamble
and resolutions in addition, which were unanimously
adopted. —
Whereas, The present arrangement of the mails for
this portion of the Territory of Wisconsin, is not such as
the population, business character, enterprise and intelli-
gence of the people require or deserve — Therefore, be it
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 389
Resolved, That a committee be appointed, to consist of
seven persons, whose duty it shall be to draft a petition to
the Post Master General, stating fully the facts of the case,
and requesting him to take such steps as may be deemed
necessary in the premises.
(This committee was appointed under the resolution of
Mr. Mason, for which this was substituted.)
Resolved, That it is the decided opinion of this meeting,
that there should be a tri- weekly eastern mail to this town.
Resolved, That it be strongly recommended to the Post
Master General to establish as early as may be practicable,
a tri- weekly, or semi-weekly mail to this place, to intersect
the eastern mail at Peoria, 111.
Resolved, That it be recommended to the Post Master
General, to take the earliest and most efficient steps to cor-
rect the abuses now existing in the present mail arrange-
ment — to investigate the conduct and official character of
the mail contractors in this portion of the Territory — and
also, the manner in which the Post-masters execute their
duties.
Resolved, That our delegate in Congress be requested to
use his utmost influence and exertion, to induce the Post
Master General to have the several subjects of these reso-
lutions carried into early and full effect.
On motion of Jas. W. Woods, Esq., it was
Resolved, That the foregoing proceedings be published in
the Wisconsin Territorial Gazette, and such other papers in
the Territory as feel an interest in the subject matter of
them.
On motion of Judge Morgan, the meeting adjourned.
Isaac LsFFiiEB, Ch'n.
C. S. Jacobs, Sec'y.
390 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
PBOCEEDINOS OF A PUBLIC MEETING OF THE CITIZENS OF DUBUQUE
COUNTY HELD ON OCTOBEB 13, 1837
[The following account is reprinted literally from the Iowa News (Da-
buque), Vol. I, No. 20, October 14, 1837. — Editor.]
At a general public meeting of the citizens of Du Buque
and vicinity, convened at the Court House on Friday 13th
inst., pursuant to previous notice,
Wabneb Lewis, Esq. was called to the Chair, and John
Plumbe, Jr. appointed Secretary.
Whereupon the following preamble and resolutions were
adopted.
Whereas, a number of our fellow-citizens assembled at
Burlington on the 16th day of September last, recommend-
ed, amongst other things, that a convention of delegates,
representing the people of Wisconsin residing in that por-
tion of the Territory lying west of the Mississippi river,
should be held at Burlington on the first Monday of No-
vember next for the purpose of consulting upon the pro-
priety of petitioning Congress to organize us into a separate
Territory. And whereas, the people of Du Buque county
do approve of said recommendation, and do cordiaUy unite
with their fellow-citizens of Burlington in desiring a full
and fair expression of public opinion and promoting con-
cert of action upon this important subject, therefore
Resolved, That there be twenty-one delegates to repre-
sent the county of Du Buque in said convention, and in case
of the death, resignation, refusal to serve, or absence of one
or more of said delegates, that the vacancy so created shall
be filled by such person or persons as a majority of the
delegates attending may select and appoint.
Resolved, That J. T. Fales, W. W. Coriell, S. Hempstead,
John Plumbe, Jun., L. H. Langworthy, L. Jackson, F. Ge-
hon, T. S. Wilson, W. Hutton, and J. M. Harrison, be dele-
gates to said Convention, to represent the Town and
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 391
vicinity of Dnbuque, and that we recommend to the inhab-
itants of the different settlements in this county to meet
together for the purpose of choosing delegates of their own.
Resolved, That in the opinion of this meeting, the im-
portance of our Territory on the score of population, com-
mercial enterprise, and of immense agricultural and min-
eral resources, demand that we should be organized at once
as a separate Territory.
Resolved, That we have full and unabated confidence in
our worthy and highly esteemed Executive, Henry Dodge,
believing as we do, that his administration of our Terri-
torial Government has been conducted with sagacity, pru-
dence and great honesty of purpose.
Resolved, That we have undiminished confidence in our
Delegate to Congress, Geo. W. Jones, and that he deserves
the thanks of the community for the zeal, ability and
promptitude which he has evinced in the discharge of the
trust which has been reposed in him.
Resolved, That the proceedings of this meeting be pub-
lished in the papers of the Territory.
Wabkeb Lewis, Chairman.
John Plumb, Jr. Sec^y.
PROCEEDINGS OF A PUBLIC MEETING OF THE CITIZENS OF LOUISA
COUNTY HELD ON OCTOBE»B 21, 1837
[The following account is reprinted literally from the Wisconsin Territoriai
Gazette and Burlington Advertieer (Burlington) , Vol. I, No. 17, November 2,
1837.— Editor.]
At a large and respectable meeting of the people of
Louisa county, held in the town of Wapello, on Saturday
the 21st inst. in pursuance of previous notice, William Milli-
gan, Esq. was called to the chair, and Z. C. Inghram ap-
pointed Secretary.
The object of the meeting was briefly and appropriately
392 IOWA JOUBNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
stated by James M. Clark, Esq. It was moved by Daniel
Brewer, and seconded by J. M. Clark, that a committee of
five be appointed to draft resolutions expressive of the
sense of the meeting: whereupon the Chair appointed
Daniel Brewer, John H. Benson, B. S. Searls, Isaac H.
Binearson, Esq. and William H. B. Thomas said committee,
who, after having retired for a short time, returned and
presented the following resolutions, which, after due delib-
eration, were unanimously adopted.
1. Resolved, That we highly approve of the objects and
motives of the Territorial Convention, to be holden in
Burlington; and that so far as lies in our power we will
heartily co-operate with our brethren in the adjoining coun-
ties, in carrying those motives into effect.
2. Resolved, That we deem it highly essential to the
interest and convenience of our Territory that a division
of the same take place, and that, in our opinion, the Missis-
sippi suggests a very natural and proper Une of separation.
3. Resolved, That the deficiency of post offices, the in-
equality of mails, and the apparent gross delinquencies of
mail contractors in this western part of our Territory, are
evils, which call loudly for .redress, and that we would sug-
gest to the Territorial Convention the propriety of using
their influence and exertions to have these abuses ferreted
out and corrected.
4. Resolved, That we look upon the attempts of a por-
tion of Missouri to encroach upon our Territory, as highly
unjust and aggressive, and that however much we may re-
gret that any difficulties should arise between us, we are
determined to resist her encroachments by every just and
honorable means.
5. Resolved, That, as settlers upon these frontiers, en-
during the privations and hardships always incident to the
settling of new countries, we are justly entitled to be se-
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 393
cnred in the possession of our homes and improvements by
the passage of a pre-emption law in onr behalf.
6. Resolved, That we would suggest to our own dele-
gates, and the convention at large, the propriety of calling
the attention of Congress to this subject by memorial or
otherwise.
7. Resolved, That we deem this a fitting occasion to ex-
press our entire satisfaction with the present boundaries
of our county, and look upon those who are endeavoring to
effect a division of the same as acting contrary to the best
interest of the county at large.
The committee reported the following list of delegates,
viz : William L. Toole, James M. Clark, Esq., and John J.
Binearson, who were chosen by the meeting.
8. Resolved, That the proceedings of this meeting be
published in the Burlington Gazette.
William Milligak, Ch'n.
Z. C. Inghram, Sec'y.
PROCEEDINGS OF A PUBLIC MEETING OF THE CITIZENS OF HENBY
COUNTY HELD ON OCTOBER 23, 1837
[The following account is reprinted literally from tfae Wiscofmn Territorial
GcLsette and Burlington Advertiser (Burlington), VoL I, No. 17, November 2,
1837. — Editor.]
A meeting of the citizens of Henry county was held at
Mount Pleasant on the 23rd inst. Mr. John H. Bandolph
was called to the chair, and Dr. J. D. Payne appointed
Secretary.
W. L. Jenkins, Esq. explained the object of the meeting,
and the proceedings of the late Burlington meeting were
read and approved of. A motion was then made, that the
meeting ballot for three delegates to the proposed conven-
tion, to represent Henry county; whereupon, tellers being
appointed, it appeared that Messrs. W. H. Wallaob, J. M.
Mters, and M. L. B. Hughes were duly elected.
394 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Resolved, That the proceedings of this meeting be pub-
lished in the Wisconsin Territorial Gazette.
John H. Randolph, Preset.
J. D. Payne, Sec'y.
PBOCEEDINGS OF THE TEBBITOBIAL CONVENTION HEIiD AT
BURLINGTON ON NOVEMBEB 6, 7, 8, 1837
[The proceedings along with the memorials adopted by the Convention were
printed in pamphlet form and thus transmitted to Congress. A oopj of this
pamphlet was discovered by the writer in the office of the Clerk of the House
of Representatives at Washington. The text of the printed pamphlet does not
differ from what appeared in the Iowa News, The following account is re-
printed literally from the Iowa News (Dubuque), Vol. I, No. 23, November 25,
1837.— Editor.]
The Convention of Delegates, from that portion of the
Wisconsin Territory west of the Mississippi, met at the
capitol, in the town of Burlington, on Monday, Nov. 6, 1837.
The Convention was called to order by C. S. Jacobs, Esq.
of Des Moines co., and on motion of Mr. Warren, of Du
Bnque, Mr. Jacobs was elected Chairman, pro tern, of the
Convention for the purposes of organization; and on motion
of Mr. Russell, of Du Buque, J. W. Pabker, Esq. of Du
Buque was elected Secretary pro tem.
On motion of Mr. Davis of Musquitine, the counties were
called over to ascertain the names of the Delegates from
each. The following gentlemen answered to their names,
exhibited their credentials, and took their seats in Con-
vention.
From the county of Du Buque. — P. H. Engle, J. T. Fales,
G. W. Harris, W. A. Warren, W. B. Watts, A. F. Russell,
W. H. Patton, J. W. Parker, J. D. Bell, J. H. Rose.
From Des Moines county. — David Rorer, Robert Rals-
ton, Cyrus S. Jacobs.
Van Buren county. — Van Caldwell, J. G. Kenner, James
Hall.
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 395
Henry county. — W. H. Wallace, J. D. Payne, J. L. Myers.
Musqnitine comity. — J. B. Struthers, M. Couch, Eli Rey-
nolds, S. C. Hastings, James Davis, S. Jenner, A. Smith,
E. K. Fay.
Louisa county. — J. M. Clark, W. L. Toole, S. J. Binear-
son.
Lee county. — Henry Eno, John Claypool, Hawkins
Taylor.
Ordered, That the Convention elect its officers by ballot.
On motion of Mr. Davis, a majority of all the votes pres-
ent was made necessary to the election of officers.
Mr. C. S. Jacobs was elected President of the Convention
upon the first ballot and Messrs. J. M. Clark and W. H.
Wallace, Vice Presidents ; and Messrs. J. W. Parkeb and
J. E. Struthers, Secretaries.
The Convention then adjourned till to-morrow, at 3
o'clock, P. M.
Friday, Nov. 7 — The convention assembled at 3 o'clock
pursuant to adjournment, and was called to order by the
President.
On motion of Mr. Warren,
Resolved, That the Governor, members of the Legislative
Council, Judges, and members of the bar of Buriington, be
invited to take seats within the bar.
On motion of Mr. Eno,
Resolved, That a committee of seven be appointed by the
President, to draft a memorial to Congress on the subject
of the attempt making by the state of Missouri to extend
lier northern boimdary line.
Messrs. Eno, Claypool, Kenner, Ralston, Davis, Watts,
and Toole were appointed said committee.
On motion of Mr. Kenner,
Resolved, That a committee of six be appointed by the
396 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
President to prepare a memorial to the Congress of the U.
States, praying for the passage of an act, granting the right
of pre-emption to actnal settlers on government lands, and
that said committee report the same to this convention at
some period before its adjournment.
Messrs. Engle, Kenner, Payne, Stmthers, Patton, Borer,
and Smith were appointed said committee.
On motion of Mr. Borer,
Besolved, That a committee of seven be appointed by the
President, to draft a memorial to the Congress of the
United States in relation to the organization of a separate
territorial Government in that part of the Territory of Wis-
consin west of the Mississippi river,
Messrs. Borer, Hastings, Caldwell, Myers, Glaypool,
Binearson, and Harris were selected to compose said com-
mittee.
On motion, the Convention adjourned until to-morrow,
at 2 o'clock P.M.
Wednesday, Nov. 8.
The Convention met [pursuant] to adjournment and was
called to order by the President.
The committees appointed yesterday to draft memorials,
being prepared to report, Mr. Engle, chairman of the com-
mittee appointed to draft a memorial in relation to pre-
emptions, reported a memorial, which, on motion, was
unanimously adopted.
Mr. Eno, chairman of the committee to draft a memorial
upon the subject of the northern boundary line of Missouri,
reported a memorial, which, on motion, was unanimously
adopted.
Mr. Borer, chairman of the committee appointed to pre-
pare a memorial relative to the division of the Territory,
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 397
reported a memorial^ which, on motion, was nnanimonsly
adopted.
On motion of Mr. Davis,
Resolved, imanimonsly, that the Hon. G. W. Jones, is en-
titied to the thanks of the citizens of the Territory, for the
able manner in which he has discharged the various and
complicated duties imposed upon him, as our delegate in
Congress.
On motion of Mr. Davis,
Resolved, unanimously. That we entertain the highest of
respect for the able, patriotic, and distinguished manner in
which his excellency, Governor Dodge, has at all times ad-
ministered the affairs of the Territory.
On motion of Mr. Hastings, the following was unanimous-
ly adopted :
In order that a full expression of the sentiment of this
convention may be publicly made known, upon the subject
of the extension of the northern line of the state of Mis-
souri, therefore.
Be it resolved. That we most cordially approve of that
part of the message of the Executive of this Territory,
which relates to the said northern boundary, communicated
to the Legislative Assembly at their present session, and
with him believe that Missouri has made an encroachment
upon our Territorial rights in extending her northern
boundary lines, north from where it was formerly located.
On motion.
Resolved, That the Legislative Council and House of
Representatives be requested to co-operate with the Con-
vention, in memorializing Congress on all the subjects acted
upon by this Convention.
On motion of Mr. Davis,
Resolved, nem. con., That the members of the Convention
jtender their thanks to the members of the House of Repre-
voL. IX— 27
398 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
sentativeSy for their liberality in tendering the use of
Hall for our deliberations.
On motion of Mr. Warren,
Resolved, unanimously, That the President of the Con-
vention be requested to forward the proceedings of this
Convention, with the memorials, to our delegate in Con-
gress, Hon. G. W. Jones.
On motion of Mr. Fales,
Resolved, unanimously. That a vote of thanks be tendered
to the officers of this Convention, for the able and impartial
manner in which they have discharged the duties that de-
volved upon them.
On motion of Mr. Hastings,
Resolved, That the memorials be signed by the officers
and members of the Convention.
On motion of Mr. Davis,
Resolved, That all editors in the Territory be reqnested
to publish the proceedings of this Convention.
On motion,
Resolved, That a committee of three be appointed to
superintend the printing of the proceeding of this Conven-
tion.
Messrs. Ralston, Davis, and Engle were appointed said
committee.
The President, in a short, impressive manner, returned
thanks to the Convention, in behalf of himself and associate
officers, for the honor conferred upon them.
The Convention adjourned, sine die.
Cyrus S. Jacobs, President.
J.M^CnABK, I Vice PresidentB.
W. H. WAUiACE,
I Vi
1. 3
J. W. Pabkeb, I Secretaries.
J. R. Stbuthbbs, f
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 399
lOSMOBIAIi ON THE SUBJECT OF TH^ MISSOUBI BOUNDABT LINE
[The following memorial which was adopted by the Territorial Convention
18 reprinted literally from the Iowa New$ (Dnbnqne), VoL I, No. 23, November
25, 1837.— Editob.]
To the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives
of the United States, in Congress assembled:
The Memorial of a Convention of Delegates, from the sev-
eral counties in the Territory of Wisconsin, west of the
Mississippi river, convened at Burlington, in said Ter-
ritory, Nov. 6, 1837,
RESPECTFULLY BEPBESENTS I
That your memorialists are desirous of asking the atten-
tion of Congress to the adjustment of the boundary line
between the State of Missouri and the territory of Western
Wisconsin. Much excitement already prevails among the
inhabitants situated in the border counties of the State and
Territory, and it is much to be feared, that, unless the
speedy action of Congress should be had upon the subject,
difficulties of a serious nature will arise, militating against
the peace and harmony which would otherwise exist among
them. At the last session of the Legislature of Missouri,
Commissioners were appointed to run the northern boun-
dary line of the State. They have recently been engaged
in the work, and according to the line run by them, there is
included within the limits of the State of Missouri, a con-
siderable tract of country, hitherto supposed to belong to
the Territory of Wisconsin, and which is still believed of
right to belong to it. The northern boundary line of Mis-
souri was run several years ago by conmdssioners appoint-
ed by the State of Missouri, and will cross the Des Moines
river at a point about twenty-four miles from its mouth. —
This line, if continued on due east, would strike the Missis-
sippi river near the town of Fort Madison, about ten miles
above the rapids in said river, long since known as the Des
400 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
Moines rapids ; and this line, so run by the commissioners,
has always been considered as the boundary line between
the State and Territory. The present commissioners, ap-
pointed by the State of Missonri, giving a different con-
struction to the act defining the boundary line of the State,
passed up the Des Moines river in search of rapids, and
have seen proi)er to find them some twelve or fourteen
miles further up the river than the other commissioners of
Missouri formerly did, and, selecting a point which they
call the rapids in the Des Moines river, have from thence
marked out a line which is now claimed as the northern
boundary line of the State. Were this line extended due
east, it would strike the Mississippi river at the town of
Burlington, some thirty miles above the rapids, as stated
above, as the Des Moines rapids.
Missouri was constituted an independent State, and her
boundary lines defined, in June 1820. At that time, the
country bordering on the Des Moines river was a wilder-
ness, and little was known, except from the Indians who
lived on its banks, of its geographical situation. There was
at that time no point on the river known as the Des Moines
rapids, and at the present time, between the mouth of the
river and the Raccoon forks, a distance of two hundred
miles, fifty places can with as much propriety be designated
as the one selected by the commissioners of the State of
Missouri.
Your memorialists conceive that no action of the State of
Missouri can, or ought to affect the integrity of the Terri-
tory of Wisconsin; and standing in the attitude they do,
they must look to the General Government to protect their
rights and redress their wrongs. The difficulties, which, for
so long a period of time, existed between the Territory of
Michigan and State of Ohio relative to their boundaries,
will, it is hoped, prompt the speedy action of Congress on
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 401
this exciting subject. Confidently relying upon the wisdom
of the General Government, and its willingness to take such
measures as will settle this question, the people of Wiscon-
sin will peaceably submit to an extension of the northern
boundary line of the State of Missouri, if so be, that Con-
gress shall ordain it ; but until such action, they will resist
to the utmost extremity any attempt made by the State of
Missouri to extend her jurisdiction over any disputed Ter-
ritory.
We, therefore, pray that Congress will appoint Commis-
sioners, whose duty it shall be to run the line between the
State of Missouri and the Territory of Wisconsin accord-
ing to the spirit and intention of tiie act defining tiie boun-
dary lines of the State of Missouri, and to adopt such other
measures as in their wisdom they may deem proi)er.
MEMOBIAL ON THE SUBJECT OF PBE-BMFTIOKS
[The following memorial which wai adopted by the Territorial Convention
IB reprinted literallj from the Iowa New$ (Dubuque), VoL I, No. 23, November
25, 1837.— Editor.]
To the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives,
of the U. States.
A Convention of citizens representing all the counties in
that part of Wisconsin Territory lying west of the Missis-
sippi river, have assembled at Burlington the present seat
of Government of said Territory for the purpose of taking
into consideration several measures immediately affecting
their interests and prosperity. Among the most important
of these is the passage by your honorable bodies at the ses-
sion about to be commenced, of a pre-emption law by which
the settlers on the public land shall have secured to them at
the minimum price, the lands upon which they live, which
they have improved and cultivated without fear of moles-
tation, or over-bidding on the part of the rich capitalist and
402 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
speculator. It is a fact well known to yonr honorable
bodies^ that none of the land in Wisconsin west of the Mis-
sissippi River in what is called the ^^lowa District/^ has
yet been offered for sale by the Government. It is equally
true that that tract of country is now inhabited by twenty-
five thousand souls composing a population as active, intel-
ligent, and worthy as can be found in any other part of the
United States. The enterprise of these pioneers has con-
verted what was but yesterday a solitary and uncultivated
waste into thriving towns and villages, alive with the en-
gagement of trade and commerce, and rich and smiling
farms, yielding their bountiful return to the labors of the
husbandman. This district has been settled and improved
with a rapidity unexampled in the history of the country,
emigrants from all parts of the United States and from
Europe are daily adding to our numbers and importance.
An attempt to force these lands thus occupied and improved
into market to be sold to the highest bidder, and to put the
money thus extorted from the hard earnings of an honest
and laborious people into the coffers of the public treasury,
would be an act of injustice to the settlers which would
scarcely receive the sanction of your honorable bodies. In
most cases the labor of years and the accumulated capital
of a whole life has been expended in making improvements
on the public land, under the strong and firm belief that
every safeguard would be thrown round them to prevent
their property, thus dearly earned by years of suffering,
privation and toil, from being unjustly wrested from their
hands. Shall they be disappointed! Will Congress refuse
to pass such laws as may be necessary to protect a large
class of our citizens from systematized plunder and rapine!
The members composing this convention, representing a
very large class of people, who delegated them to speak in
their stead, do most confidently express an opinion that
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 403
your honorable bodies will at its present session pass some
law removing ns from danger, and relieving ns from fear
on this subject. The members of this convention for them-
selves, and for the people whose interests they are sent here
to represent, do most respectfully solicit that your honor-
able bodies, will, as speedily as possible, pass a pre-emption
law giving to every actual settler on the public domain
who has made improvements sufficient to evince that it is
bona jfide his design to cultivate and occupy the land, a
right to enter at the minimum government price, one half
section for that purpose, before it shall be offered at public
sale.
MEMORIAL PRATING A DIVISION OF THE TERRTTORT
[Tbe following memorial which was adopted by the Territorial Convention
is reprinted literally from the Iowa New$ (Dubuque) , Vol. I, No. 23, November
25, 1837.— Editor.]
I'o the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives
of the United States, in Congress assembled:
The Memorial of a general Convention of Delegates, from
the respective counties in the Territory of Wisconsin,
west of the Mississippi river, convened at the capitol
in Burlington, in said Territory, Nov. 5th, 1837,
RESPECTFULLY RE^PBBSENTS :
That the citizens of that part of the Territory west of the
Mississippi river, taking into consideration their remote
and isolated position, and the vast extent of country in-
cluded within the limits of the present Territory, and the
utter impracticability of the same being governed as an en-
tire whole, by the wisest and best administration of our
municipal affairs, in such manner as to fully secure indi-
vidual right and the right of property, as well as to main-
tain domestic tranquility, and the good order of society,
have by their respective representatives, convened in gen-
404 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
eral convention as aforesaid, for the purpose of availing
themselves of their right of petition as free citizens, by-
representing their situation and wishes to your honorable
body, and asking for the organization of a separate Terri-
torial Government over that part of the Territory west of
the Mississippi river.
Without, in the least, designing to question the official
conduct of those in whose hands the fate of our infant Ter-
ritory has been confided, and in whose patriotism and wis-
dom we have the utmost confidence, your memorialists can-
not refrain from the frank expression of their belief that,
taking into the consideration the geographical extent of her
country, in connexion with the probable population of West-
em Wisconsin, perhaps no Territory of the United States
has been so much neglected by the parent government, so
illy protected in the political and individual rights of her
citizens.
Western Wisconsin came into the possession of our gov-
ernment in June 1833. Settlements were made, and crops
grown, during the same season ; and even then, at that early
day, was the impulse given to the mighty.throng of emigra-
tion that has subsequently filled our lovely and desirable
country with people, intelligence, wealth, and enterprize.
From that period until the present, being a little over four
years, what has been the Territory of Western Wisconsin f
Literally and practically, a large portion of the time with-
out a government. With a population of thousands, she
has remained ungovemed, and has been quietly left by the
parent government to take care of herself, without the
privilege on the one hand to provide a government of her
own, and without any existing authority on the other to
govern her.
From June 1833 until June 1834, a period of one year,
there was not even the shadow of government or law, in all
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 405
Western Wisconsin. In June 1834, Congress attached her
to the then existing Territory of Michigan, of which Terri-
tory she nominally continued a part, until July 1836, a
period of little more than two years. During the whole of
this time, the whole country west, sufficient of itself for a
respectable State, was included in two counties, Du Buque
and Des Moines. In each of these two counties there were
holden, during the term of two years, two terms of a county
court, (a court of inferior jurisdiction,) as the only sources
of judicial relief up to the passage of the act of Congress
creating the Territory of Wisconsin. That act took effect
on the 3d day of July, 1836, and the first judicial relief af-
forded under that act, was at the April term following,
1837, a period of nine months after its passage ; subsequent
to which time there has been a court holden in but one
county in Western Wisconsin only. This, your memorial-
ists are aware, has recently been owing to the unfortunate
indisposition of the esteemed and meritorious judge of our
district; but they are equally aware of the fact, that had
Western Wisconsin existed under a separate organization,
we should have found relief in the services of other mem-
bers of the Judiciary, who are at present, in consequence
of the great extent of our Territory, and the small number
of judges dispersed at too great a distance, and too con-
stantly engaged in the discharge of the duties of their own
districts, to be enabled to afford relief to other portions of
the Territory. Thus, with a population of not less than
twenty-five thousand now, and of near half that number at
the organization of the Territory, it will appear that we
have existed as a portion of an organized Territory, for
sixteen months, with but one term of courts only.
Your memorialists look upon those evils as growing ex-
clusively out of the immense extent of country included
within the present boundaries of the Territory, and express
\
406 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
their conviction and belief, that nothing would so effec-
tually remedy the evil as the organization of Western Wis-
consin into a separate Territorial government. To this
your memorialists conceive themselves entitled by prin-
ciples of moral right — by the sacred obligation that rests
upon their present government to protect them in the free
enjoyment of their rights, until such time as they shall be
permitted to provide protection for themselves ; as well as
from the uniform practice and policy of the government in
relation to other Territories.
The Territory of Indiana, including the present states of
Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan, and also much of the east-
em portion of the present territory of Wisconsin, was
placed under one separate territorial government, in tiie
year 1800, at a time when the population amounted to only
five thousand six hundred and forty, or thereabouts.
The Territory of Arkansas was erected into a distinct
territory, in 1820, witii a population of about fourteen thou-
sand. The Territory of Illinois was established in 1809,
being formed by dividing the Indiana Territory. The exact
population of Illinois Territory, at the time of her separa-
tion from Indiana, is not known to your memorialists, but
the population in 1810, one year subsequent to that event,
amounted to but eleven thousand five hundred and one
whites, and a few blacks — in all, to less than twelve thou-
sand inhabitants.
The Territory of Michigan was formed in 1805, by again
dividing the Indiana Territory, of which until then, she
composed a part. The population of Michigan, at the time
of her separation from Indiana, your memorialists have
been unable to ascertain, but in the year 1810, a period of
five years subsequent to her separate organization, her pop-
ulation amounted to but about four thousand seven hundred
and sixty ; and in the year 1820, to less than nine thousand
TERRITORIAL CONVENTION OP 1837 407
— so that Michigan existed some fifteen years, as a distinct
Territory, with a population of less than half that of West-
em Wisconsin at present; and each of the above named
Territories, now composing so many proud and flourishing
states, were created into separate territorial governments,
with a much less population than that of Western Wis-
consin, and that too at a time with a national debt of mil-
lions. Your memorialists therefore pray for the organiza-
tion of a separate territorial government over that part of
the Territory of Wisconsin west of the Mississippi river.
PROCEEDINGS OP A COUNCIL WITH THE
CHIPPEWA INDIANS
[The report given below of the proceedings of the Coaneil, held bj Oovemor
Henry Dodge of the original Territory of Witeonain, with the Chiefs and prin-
eipal men of the Chippewa Nation of Indians in July, 1837, is taken from
YoL I, Nos. 11 and 14 of the Iowa News, a newspaper pablished at Dabnqne.
The report is reprinted literally, no attempt having been made to secure uni-
formity in the spelling of the Indian names which appear in the report and in
the treaty. The articles of the treaty concluded at this Council are taken from
Kappler's Indian Affairs, Laws and Treaties, Vol. 11, p. 491. — Editob.]
PBOCEEDINGS OF A COUNCIL HELD BY GOVEBNOB DODGE WITH THE
CHIEFS AND PBINCIPAL MEN OF THE CHIPPE,WA NATION OF
INDIANS, NEAB FOBT SNELLING, AT THE CONFLUENCE OF THE
ST. PETEBS AND MISSISSIPPI BIVEBS, COMMENCING ON THE
20 TH DAY OF JULY, 1837.
The head men of the nation having, by direction of
Governor Dodge, been advised of his desire to meet them in
council, their different bands assembled together near Fort
Snelling, between the 1st and 20th of July to the number
of about a thousand men, women and children, and on the
last mentioned day, met the Governor at the council house.
Gen. Wm. R. Smith, of Pennsylvania, appointed by the
President of the United States, the colleague of Gov. Dodge
in the commission, did not arrive to be present at the coun-
cil.
The following named Chiefs were present, and recog-
nized as such by the Governor :
From Leech Lake. — Aish-ke-boge-kozhe, or Flat Mouth,
and Ozawickanebik, or the Yellow Snake, commonly called
by the French Fiereaince, or elder brother.
From Gull Lake and Swan River. — Pa-goona-kee-zhig,
or Hole in the day, & Songa-komok, or the Strong Ground.
From Mille Lac. — Wash-ask-ko-kowe, or Bat 's Liver.
408
COUNCIL WITH THE CHIPPEWA INDIANS 409
From Sandy Lake. — Ea-nan-dwa-winza, or Le Broch-
enx.
From Snake Biver. — Naudin, or the Wind, Sha-go-bai,
or the Six Pay-a-jig, and Na-qna-na-bic, or the Father.
From Fond du Lac. — Mongo-sit, or Loon's Foot, and
Shin-go-be or the Spruce.
St. Croix Biver. — Pe-she-ke, or the Buffalo.
Ver Planck Van Antwerp, of Indiana, appointed by the
President Secretary to the Commissioners, was also pres-
ent at the meeting of the Council.
The council pipe having been first smoked by Gov. Dodge,
with the Chiefs, the Governor addressed them as follows —
Chiefs, Head men, and Warriors of the Chippewa Nation:
"Your Great Father, the President of the United States,
has sent me to see you in council to propose to you the
purchase of a small part of your country, east of the Missis-
sippi Biver.
This country, as I am informed, is not valuable to you for
its game, and not suited to the culture of com, and other
agricultural purposes.
Your Great Father wishes to purchase your country on
the Chippewa and St. Croix rivers for the advantage of its
pine timber, with which it is said to abound.
A map of the country which your Great Father wishes to
buy from you will be shewn to you, in which the rivers and
water courses are laid down; and such explanations given
through your interpreter, as will fully explain to you the
particular part of your country east of the Mississippi
Biver, which your Great Father proposes to purchase for
the use of his white children.
Your Great Father knows you are poor, and this pine
region is not valuable to you for hunting purposes; his
wish is to make you a fuU compensation for the country by
410 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
giving you its full value, payable in such manner as will be
most serviceable to your people.
An estimate will be made of the probable value of your
country, which it is proposed to purchase, of which you will
be informed. I will request you, after fully deliberating
upon the subject, to tell me your price for the country with
as little delay as possible.
Your Great Father, the President, was desirous that the
Chippewas should be f uUy represented in this council, that
all might know what had been done, and that equal justice
should be done to all. I wish you to be prepared with your
answer to the proposition made you, at our meeting in
council to-morrow.'*
Gov. Dodge having concluded his remarks and intimated
his readiness to hear anything which the Chiefs or prin-
cipal men might have to say to him, Aish-ke-boge-khoze
(Flat Mouth) advanced and spoke as follows: My father, I
have but little to say to you now. Living in a different part
of the country from that which you propose to buy from us,
I will be among the last of those who will speak to you upon
that subject. After those shall have spoken who live in &
nearer to that country, I will talk more to you. My father,
my people have all the same opinion with me, and wiU abide
by what I shall say to you ; I have come to listen first, to all
you have to say to us, and will afterwards speak to you.
My heart is with you. I have nothing more to say now.
Nadin (the Wind) then came forward and said, **My fa-
ther, I once shook hands with our great Father beyond the
mountains, as I do with you now. I have not much to say
at present, and my brother who stands near me wishes to
speak with you. To-morrow, I expect that some more peo-
ple will be here from the country you wish to buy from us.
I was present when they began to run the boundary line
between our country and that of the Sioux at the Bed
COUNCIL WITH THE CHIPPEWA INDIANS 411
Deer's Bump. When you are ready to examine that line I
will say more to you. ' '
Pe-she-ke (the Buffalo) **My Father, I am taken by sur-
prise by what you have said to us, and will speak but few
words to you now. We are waiting for more of our people
who are coming from the country which you wish to buy
from us. We will think of what you have said to us, and
when they come, will tell you our minds about it. Men will
then be chosen by us to speak with you. I have nothing
more to say now.
Na-can-ne-ga-be (the man that stands foremost) My fa-
ther, the people will come from the country where my
fathers have lived before me. When they arrive here, they
will speak to you. Until then I have nothing more to say.
Gov. Dodge, after urgently impressing upon the Chippe-
was the necessity of remaining quiet and at peace with the
Sioux, during the continuance of the council, adjourned to
meet again to-morrow.
Friday, July 21st.
The Governor was advised this morning by Mr. Vine-
yard, their agent, that the Chippewas did not wish to meet
in council to-day, as the people whom they expected had
not yet arrived, and they wanted more time to talk with
one another.
Saturday, July 22.
The morning being cloudy, with an appearance of rain,
the council did not meet until 3 o'clock P. M., when Gov.
Dodge directed the Interpreter to say to the Indians, that
when he had parted with them two days ago, they had told
him that they expected to meet more of their friends here,
and were desirous before taking any further steps about
what he had spoken to them, of talking to one another —
that he had now met them to hear what they might have to
say about their absent friends, and to listen to any com-
412 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
mnnications which they might wish to make to him in re-
gard to the comicils which they had held, and the condnsion
to which they had arrived.
After an interval of 15 or 20 minutes, during which time
the Interpreter, by direction of the Governor, repeated the
expression of his readiness to hear any remarks which the
Indians might wish to make to him, Aish-ke-boge-kozhe,
(Flat Mouth) rose and said, ^'My Father, I shall say but
little to you at this time. I am called a chief. I am not the
chief of the whole nation, but only of my people, or band.
I speak to you now only because I see nobody else ready to
do so. I do not wish to take any further steps about what
you have proposed to us, until the other people arrive who
have been expected here. They have not yet come, and to
do anything before their arrival, might be considered an
improper interference, and unfair towards them. The resi-
dence of my band is outside of the country which you wish
to buy from us. After the people who live in that country
shall have told you their minds, I will speak. If the lands
which you wish to buy were occupied by my band, I would
immediately have given you my opinion. After listening
to the people whom we are expecting, and who will speak
to you, I will abide by what they say, and say more to you
myself.
My father, on getting up to speak to you, I hardly knew
what to say. If I say no more, it is not because I am afraid
to speak my mind before my people and those of the whole
nation, and all others present, but because I have nothing
more to say.
Pe-she-ke (the Buffalo) I am deaf and cannot hear dis-
tinctly what is said. I have seen the lips of the great chief
move, but did not well hear his words, I have turned each
ear to him to listen. There is another man here who has
the confidence of my people beside myself, but we do not
COUNCIL WITH THE CHIPPEWA INDIANS 413
wish to say more, until the rest of our nation we are ex-
pecting shall arrive.
Pay-a-jig. My father, your children are not displeased
with what you have said to them, but they wish you to give
them four times more tobacco than you have given them.
My father, what has happened to yout Have you cut off
your breasts, that you cannot suckle your children. If you
did so, it would render them more pliant and ready to yield
to your wishes. This was the case at the treaty of Prairie
du Chien. I was there, and know what was done. The
boundary line between our country and the Sioux was then
established, and my people wish now to have it explained
to them. I have been told by the warriors and chiefs to say
what I have said to you. I do not say it of my own accord.
My people have chosen me and another to talk with you
about the proposition that you have made to them to buy
a part of our country. I am ready to proceed whenever the
others are ready. Other men of power and authority are
behind, and are expected here. They will soon come, when
we will give you our answer.
Nadin (the Wind.) There is no dissatisfaction; we are
all contented. Your children around you, both Chippewas
and Sioux, wish to be friendly together, and want to carry
on a little trade and bartering among ourselves.
My father, I wish you would give the same advice to the
Sioux you have given us, but do not wish to prevent them
from making friendly visits.
Monday, July 24.
The Council met at 11 o'clock, A. M.
Gov. Dodge directed the Interpreter to inform the lu-
dians that four chiefs of their nation whom they had been
expecting, had arrived at their encampment, and that fifty
others were said to be near here, who had come from La
Pointe with Messrs. Warren and Bushnell, who would prob-
voL. IX — 28
414 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
ably arrive this evening, and as they were all of the same
nation and brethren; he wished those present to consult
with them ; that he did not wish to hurry their deliberations
among themselves, but to give them full time to consult their
friends, who had arrived, and those who were coming, and
that he would not hear any thing they might have to say
to him.
Nadin (the Wind) then rose and said, *'My father, I am
very sorry to keep you so long in a state of suspense re-
specting the matters which you have proposed to us. My
people are glad to see you, and are gratified at the proposi-
tion you have made to them. My father, I now speak to
you through the lips of the Buffalo (the latter had advanced
to the Governor's table with '*the Wind,*' shaking him by
the hand and remarking that he would do the same with all
those present, but his arm was too short; after which he
stepped back to allow the ''Wind*' to speak for him). He
has been to see our Great Father beyond the mountains,
and has come back safe. When I look at you I am struck
with awe. I cannot suflSciently understand your impor-
tance, and it confuses me. I have seen a great many Amer-
icans, but never one whose appearance struck me as yours
does. You have heard of the coming of those whose absence
has prevented our proceedings in the matter proposed to
us. This is the case with all our people here. My father,
listen to what I am going to say to you. I listened to our
Great Father beyond the mountains and have never for-
gotten what he said to me. Others will speak after me,
whose language will please you and put all things right.
My father, we are a distracted people, and have no regular
system of acting together. We cast a firm look on the peo-
ple who are coming and all think alike about this matter.
What we are going to say will not dissatisfy, but please
you.
COUNCIL WITH THE CHIPPEWA INDIANS 415
Pay-a-jig (The one who stands alone.) What I am going
to say to you is not my own language but the words of the
chiefs and others among you. They look at you who are
all white, while they are half breed. How can we forget
our traders in this matter. You are come to dispense bene-
fits to us, and we much think of the traders. I think well of
them. They have used me well and supported me, and I
wish to do them justice. We should certainly be all very
miserable if they would not do for us what they have done
heretofore. And if we do wrong to them, how can we ex-
pect it. My father, look around on all your red children,
the trader has raised them, and it is thro' his means that
they are as they are. We wish you to do them justice.
They will, by this means, go on and support us as hereto-
fore. I referred, when I began to speak, to the half breeds ;
many of them have been brought up among us, and we wish
to provide for them.
Ma-je-ga-bo, (The man who stands foremost) My father,
I shall not say much to you now. You are not a man to be
spoken to in a light manner. I am not a Pillager, (the com-
mon name of the Leech Lake Band) but went among them
when small, which gives me the right to speak as one of
them. My brother, (the Wind) stands beside me, and we
are descended from those who in former days were the
greatest orators of our nation. My father, I am not back-
ward in sajdng what I wish, I am not going to say any
thing to make your heart lean, and am not going to tell you
what will be said by the chiefs. I will answer you when you
make us an oflFer for our lands. As soon as our friends ar-
rive, and I hear their decision, I will say all I have to say.
I finish that subject for the present, and will speak upon
another. My father, listen closely to me, I will hide nothing
from you that has passed. But for the traders, you would
not see all your children setting around you as they do to-
416 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
day. It was not the chiefs, but the traders who have sup-
ported them to the present time. Our Great Father has
told us that an agent would be sent to us, but he has not yet
been among us. The traders are in our country to trade
for the skins of animals, which we take to them. Half of
what they bring into the country and sell to yotir children
is lost to them. I am glad to see the agent here who is to go
into our country, and support our young men, women and
children.
We wish to do justice to the half breeds who have been
brought up among us, and have them provided for.
Sha-go-bai, (the Little Six) My father, I heard of you
when I was yet a young man, a long time ago — and now I
see you. I am struck with awe when you look at me. I am
startled when the wind comes rustling by, and the thunder-
cloud, though I know it will pass along without harming,
alarms me. So it is, my father, when you talk to your chil-
dren around you of their lands, which you wish to buy from
them. I have great confidence in the chief here, and others
who are coming. When they come to treat fully with you,
we (pointing to the two men standing beside him, and him-
self) will set far off and listen. I sprung from the same
stock with the people who stand behind you — white men —
(Sha-go-bai, half breed) and am related to all the half
breeds in the country where I live. My father, look at the
man who is standing near me. His and my ancestors were
the chief men of the country that you want to buy from* us.
The traders have raised our children and we like them. I
owe my life to the traders, who have supported us. I am
glad to see the agent here who will live among us, and give
us tobacco when we want it.
Pe-she-ke (the Buffalo.) My father, listen to what I am
going to say to you, let it enter deeply into your ear, and
rest upon your heart. Tho' I may appear little in your
COUNCIL WITH THE CHIPPEWA INDIANS 417
sight, when I address the warriors of my tribe they listen
to me. Nobody — no trader has instructed me what to say
to you. Those who have spoken before me have told you
the truth, and I shall hereafter speak upon the same sub-
ject. I have been supported by the trader, and without his
aid, could not get through the winter with naked skin. The
grounds where your children have to hunt are as bare as
that on which I now stand, and have no game upon them.
My father, I am glad to see you here, to embrace the earth.
We have not much to give the traders, as our lands and
hunting grounds are so destitute. Do us a kindness by pay-
ing our old debts. I have nothing more to say. You are
our father, and we look up to you, and respect you. I have
come here and seen you, and my heart is at peace. I have
talked with my warriors, and heard their words, and my
mind is tranquil.
Aish-ke-hoge-bozhe (Flat Mouth.) My father, your eyes
are upon me, and mine upon you. Wherever I have been
the print of the white men's hands have been left upon my
own. Yours are not the first I have shaken. It is I and
those men (pointing to the Elder Brother, the Strong
Ground, and the Hole in the Day,) who have brought many
of your children here. Their opinions are mine. My an-
cestors were Chiefs of the tribes, and the villages while
they lived. I do not, however, hold my title from them, but
have obtained it by my own acts and merits.
My father, when I came here this morning, I supposed
you wanted to talk to us about the lands you wished to get
from us, and not about the traders.
After the question about selling the land shall be settled,
it will then be time enough to talk about these traders.
My father, I shall not be backward in speaking about
what you propose to us, at the proper time. Many of my
people have told me to say so ; but we can do nothing until
418 IOWA JOURNAL OP HISTORY AND POLITICS
the other people arrive. We must listen to them. As I
have told you before, after they shall speak I will say more.
Pa-goona-kee-zhig (the Hole in the Day.) He who is the
master of all, hears me speak. I know the traders, and
what has been their conduct. I know which of them are
good men, and those who are bad and act like drunken men.
When our people come, I will speak again.
Wash-ask-ko-kowe, (Bat's Liver.) My father, I am but
little accustomed to speaking, and am generally one who
listens. My father here (the agent) knows me and is ac-
quainted with my character. If I wished to speak much I
should feel no shame for my personal appearance ; but this
you may not wish to hear. We are talking about the land
which you have come for. I have walked over it with my
war club in my hand. My forefathers and those of Pa-
goona-kee-zhig, (Hole in the Day,) were the chiefs and pro-
tectors of that country, and drove the Dakcotah away from
it.
My father, it is only to you that I look and listen, and not
to the bad birds that are flying about us through the air.
My own merit has brought me to the place I occupy to-day ;
and I do not wish any body to push me forward as a speak-
er. I have nothing to add now, but will say more when the
business about the land has been settled.
Que-we-shan-shez, (Big Mouth.) My father, what I am
going to say to you now is not of much consequence. I have
smoked with my friends and come to tell you the result
After reflecting upon the subject, we concluded to agree
with those who have already spoken to you. We do not
wish to do anything to injure the people who wear hats.
My father, all that has prevented us from doing what you
came here to have us do, is that we have been waiting for
others of our people, who have been expected here, and who
we are afraid to dissatisfy; I never before have spoken to
COUNCIL WITH THE CHIPPEWA INDIANS 419
your people at any length, and fear, my father, that you
will think I am drunk, but I have here (putting his hand to
Mb head) a great deal of sense which I have obtained from
the white people, and as soon as the others of our nation
come we will tell our minds to you.
Sha-wa-nig-na-nabe, (South feather seated.) My father,
what I have to say to you place it strongly at your heart.
The Master of life and the earth both listen to us. The
Master of life made the earth, the grass, and the trees that
grow upon it, and the animals that roam over it. When the
Great Spirit made the earth, he placed the red men upon
it ; it became very strong. Some of our chiefs are now here,
and others are coming. They do not wish to act pr 
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