Historical 'Tteview £l Charles, 6ily ofS? l l, BI v^^Jes*^*^*~-^<&u&Ourrs&orIy Indian, Furlrade ^^?"' ":^V7 whiSKeyzrxiriq?f "' 'WB ES^S Fn? ^Published by StatetMniealSocidj^Mimni Jarmaryl94Z OFFICERS OF THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF MISSOURI, 1941-1944 GEORGE A. ROZIER, Perryville, President MARION C. EARLY, St. Louis, First Vice-President E. E. SWAIN, Kirksville, Second Vice-President HENRY C. CHILES, Lexington, Third Vice-President RUSH H. LIMBAUGH, Cape Girardeau, Fourth Vice-President A. P. GREEN, Mexico, Fifth Vice-President THEODORE GARY, Macon, Sixth Vice-President R. B. PRICE, Columbia, Treasurer FLOYD C. SHOEMAKER, Secretary and Librarian TRUSTEES OF THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF MISSOURI Term Expires at Annual Meeting, 1942 MORRIS ANDERSON, Hannibal WM. SOUTHERN, JR., Independence LUDWIG FUERBRINGER, St. Louis HENRY C. THOMPSON, Bonne Terre HENRY KRUG, JR., St. Joseph GEORGE H. WILLIAMS, St. Louis JUSTUS R. MOLL, Springfield CHARLES L. WOODS, Rolla JOHN F. RHODES, Kansas City Term Expires at Annual Meeting, 1943 JESSE W. BARRETT, St. Louis H. S. STURGIS, Neosho ALBERT M. CLARK, Richmond JAMES TODD, Moberly HENRY J. HASKELL, Kansas City JONAS VILES, Columbia WM. R. PAINTER, Carrollton L. M. WHITE, Mexico JOSEPH PULITZER, St. Louis Term Expires at Annual Meeting, 1944 FRANK P. BRIGGS, Macon ISIDOR LOEB, St. Louis BEN L. EMMONS, St. Charles ALLEN MCREYNOLDS, Carthage STEPHEN B. HUNTER, Cape Girardeau E. E. SWAIN, Kirksville WALDO P. JOHNSON, Osceola ROY D. WILLIAMS, Boonville EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE The twenty-six trustees, the President and the Secretary of the Society, the Governor, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, and President of the University of Missouri constitute the Executive Committee. (^Missouri Historical cR^yiew Floyd Q Shoemaker, Editor Volume XXXVI Slumber Two "January 1942 The Missouri Historical Review is published quarterly. It is sent free to all members of the State Historical Society of Missouri. Membership dues in the Society are $1.00 a year. All communica­ tions should be addressed to Floyd C. Shoemaker, the State His­ torical Society of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri. The Society assumes no responsibility for statements made by contributors to the magazine. "Entered as second-class matter at the postoffice at Columbia, Missouri, und&r Act of Congress, October 3, 1917, Sec. 422." Qontents THE BACKGROUND OF PUBLIC SPEAKING IN MISSOURI, 1840-1860. By Dudley J. Bidstrup 133 ST. LOUIS AND THE GREAT WHISKEY RING. By Lucius E. Guese 160 ST. CHARLES, CITY OF PARADOXES. By Floyd C. Shoemaker 184 SOME ASPECTS OF EARLY INDIAN FUR TRADE. By Isabel S. Dolch... 190 ERRATA AND ADDENDA 199 MISSOURIANA 200 Peanuts and "Sawdust 200 Mrs. Murphy's Sunday School 203 In Honor of Joe Bowers 204 The Quinine Brigade 208 Mohongo's Story 210 Chronology of Ironmaking. By Arthur B. Cozzens 214 Missouri Miniatures—William Marion Reedy 221 Red-Letter Books Relating to Missouii—Encyclopedia of the History of Missouri. Review by Frederic C. Ault 225 Missouri Scrapbook 230 HISTORICAL NOTES AND COMMENTS 232 Members Active in Increasing Society's Membership 232 New Members of Society, August—October 1941 234 Activities of County Historical Societies 237 Acquisitions 239 State Historical Society Begins New Weekly Series 240 Anniversaries 241 Monuments and Memorials 245 Notes 246 Historical Publications 249 Obituaries 253 MISSOURI HISTORY NOT FOUND IN TEXTBOOKS 257 High Prices in Hannibal 257 Ironton Goes After Roaming Hogs 257 They Pray For Rain 258 Chimney Sweeping in St. Louis 258 Bicycle Party in the Nineties 258 Southeast Missouri Militia Enrolled to Fight Ku Klux 258 Land Buying Near Glasgow 260 Lincoln County Progresses 260 (J) Missouri Historical Review Reminiscences of the Jasper County Circuit Court 260 State Seminary 262 Indians Give War Dance in Oregon, Missouri 262 Kidder Wins Baseball Game from Cameron 263 When the Circus Came to Town 263 Education 263 An Historic Gavel 264 Horse Race in Cedar County 264 Two Cars in Kansas City and They Collide! 264 Macon's New Schoolhouse 266 Take Your Pick, Girls! 266 Rebuke 267 Bishop Marvin Visits St. Charles 267 Fayette Circulating Library 268 Balloon Ascension 268 Historical Articles in Missouri Newspapers and in Magazines, August 15—November 10, 1941 269 THE BACKGROUND OF PUBLIC SPEAKING IN MISSOURI, 1840-1860 BY DUDLEY J. BIDSTRUP1 Jacksonian democracy, with its emphasis on the im­ portance of the common man, found ready support in Mis­ souri. Under the leadership of Senator Thomas Hart Benton, Missouri became a great stronghold in the 1820s and 1830s of that theory which seemed to bring more freedom to the commoner, and more particularly to the westerner. Having been nursed on the belief that men deserve equal opportunity and possess equal ability, the people of Missouri were very much interested in public affairs. Believing as they did that their opinions were important and might actually produce results, Missourians were willing and anxious to express them­ selves. The government, they believed, should be by the people as well as for the people, and government by the people hinged on public discussion. The public meeting which gave the citizens the desired opportunity for expressing their beliefs and ideas and furnished the necessary procedure for formulating group opinion was the natural focal occasion for the public speaking of the period. Accounts of such meetings occupied considerable space in the newspapers. On February 29, 1844, the Jefferson Inquirer for example devoted almost the entire front page to accounts of four public gatherings, and on the second page of the same issue appeared a full report of a public meeting held in another part of the State. Since the people congregated to discuss a wide variety of subjects, the meetings formed an important part of their lives. Occasionally, meetings were called to express an opinion on a proposed railroad2 and in one instance to ex­ amine the possibilities for increasing the production of to- ^xjDLEY J. BIDSTRUP, a native of Cooper county, Missouri, is now instructor in speech and assistant director of forensics at the University of Missouri. He received an A.B. degree from the University of Missouri in 1939, and an M.A. degree from the same institution in 1940. The present article is based on his master's thesis, Public Speaking in Missouri, 18J/-0-1860. 2Liberty Weekly Tribune, January 6, 1854, p. 1. ( 133) 134 Missouri Historical Review bacco.3 In the period immediately preceding the Civil war, the activities of abolitionists sometimes aroused public indignation and occasioned numerous public meetings.4 Whatever the subject to be discussed, however, whether the annexation of Texas,5 the colonization of California,6 or the protection of the slave interests in Kansas,7 the citizens con­ gregated at the courthouse, at the schoolhouse, in a private home, or out in the open if the weather was warm and pro­ ceeded to voice their sentiments on the question that had brought them together. Nor were these gatherings always scenes of confusion where everyone talked at once and where the speaker with the loudest voice gained audience. Instead, the meetings were definitely organized and usually followed closely a standard and accepted procedure. The first step was to name a chair­ man who in turn appointed a secretary. The chairman or some other competent person would then state the purpose of the meeting and would usually appoint a committee to draft resolutions bearing on the subject to be discussed. During the absence of this committee, it was customary for the orators of the period to take advantage of the opportunity to address the meeting. When the committee returned, its chairman usually introduced a group of resolutions and moved that the group go on record as favoring them. This special procedure was of course not always strictly adhered to, but it was the one which was customarily fol­ lowed. The procedure of the following meeting is fairly typical. At a meeting of the citizens of McDonald county, held in Elk River Township, on the 5th of October, 1849, previous notice being given, the meeting was organized by calling C. J. Pickle, Esq., to the Chair, and appointing that sterling old democrat, Capt. Sam. Walker, to act as Secretary. Wm. Claude Jones, of Springfield, being present, was called on for a speech. He came forward and in his usual happy and masterly manner sustained the instructions of the last Legislature, opposed the ^Boon's Lick Times (Fayette), January 15, 1842, p. 3. ^Palmyra Weekly Whig, October 22, 1857, p. 1. 5St. Louis Democrat, May 28, 1844, p. 2. ^Boonville Observer, March 21, 1850, p. 3. 7Glasgow Weekly Times, July 5, 1855, p. 1. The Background of Public Speaking in Missouri 135 Wilmot Proviso, demonstrated the right of the Legislature to instruct their Senators, and showed in the clearest manner the high-handed, dis­ organizing, dictatorial and disrespectful course of Senator Benton. When he had concluded, Gen. James S. Rains rose and offered the following resolutions which he stated he had drawn up hastily, and after making a few plain and pertinent remarks, called on every man present to vote his sentiments like freemen, let them be for or against the resolutions. The vote was then put by the Chairman, and every man present, judging from the sound, voted for the resolutions 8 THE POLITICAL OCCASION Since the meeting just described was obviously political in nature, it will serve to introduce the occasion that brought forth the greatest number of speeches, the political occasion. Jacksonian democracy placed a new emphasis on the importance of officeholding. Moreover, its tendency to encourage the common man in the belief that he was fully qualified to hold office caused the elective offices to be sought more eagerly. If a man gained success or popularity, he almost inevitably capitalized on it by becoming a candidate for office.