THE EMIGRANT AID JOURNAL. ®sr Ift i.'
Transcript of THE EMIGRANT AID JOURNAL. ®sr Ift i.'
®sr Cmigrnnt Ift Stem®!,Cm OF KIKINCIER, Dakota Co., N. T.«
SATURDAY, JULY 4, 1857
Our Paper.We present our readers with the third number of our
paper. We are happy to be able to say that our lastmet with a very cordial reception and we are encouragedto go on energetically in our labors.
To our patrons, to our fellow-citizens, to the public at
i large, and more particularly to advertisers, we say, thatno labor will be leftunperformed, no pains willbe spared,to make the Emigrant Aid Journal one of the lead-ing papers of Minnesota. We are of those who believethat whatever is worth doing at all, is worth doing well.
Our paper has many advantages which those desirousof advertising should reflect on. It has a very large circu-lation both east and west. Our next issue willcontainan advertisement in reference to the Nininger and St.Peter Western Railroad Company, and five thousandcopies of the paper will be taken by the Company forgratuitous distribution. In the same manner, indepen-dently of the legitimate circulation of the paper, whichis large, very many copies are sent around* the countryto such points as are deemed important. Numbers findtheir way East and even to Europe. There are fewsheets in which parties desiring to advertise will findgreater advantages than in this.
From our brethren of the Press we have also receiveda flattering welcome. Our object and aim in theJournal are hailed as timely. Our efforts are commendedas being in the right direction to be productive of incal-culable good to the Territory. With them, shoulder to
shoulder, we shall march on in solid column,bearing aloftrhe banner of peace and good willto everything thatshall extend the greatness of our chosen land. Withthem we shall live to rejoice in the rapid growth of our
Territory, until it shall enjoy the accumulated blessingsof a great, prosperous and virtuous population, happyunder a social and educational system that shall extendtheir advantages to unnumbered millions.
We are encouraged to hope that we shall soon beenabled to issue the Journal weekly. In that case theyearly price to those already on our list will not beincreased, whatever it may be to others.
Our Town.
Nothing can be more lovely than the appearance ofthe town at this time. The fields around are decked withrich and variegated flowers, whose perfumes euliven thehealthful breezes as they sweep over the hills. On our
outmost bluff we become impressed with the matchlessbeauty of the green lawn-like slopes that stretch out formiles up, down, and across the placid river, and backinto the distant prairie.
Improvements are still rapidly going on ; the drivinghammer and humming saw echo their cheering soundsas they ply on their busy work. Some twenty buildingsare now under way, and many others are projected ;
among the latter is a building for the ManufacturingCompany, and one for a hardware store.
The avenues and streets have been much improvedunder the vigorous labor of a large gang of workmen,and the plowed lines that indicate their bounds givepromise of being marked by the uprising buildings thatwild extend along in close array.
The contract for cutting and grading Clarke Avenue
has been given to Mr. J. Jackson, who is to have thework finished within two months. This is an importantfeature in the system of improvements that is to buildup and beautify our town. If the lot owners on thehigh ground below the cutting would combine together
and adopt some plan to have it levelled off with theAvenue, and have a beautiful and even slope extendingalong to the Eagle Mill,there is no estimating the ad-vantage that would result from it. With a landing equalto any on the river, and extending almost a mile long,the incomparable beauty Nininger, with all its growingadvantages, would then be brought into full view fromthe river, and an effect produced on every beholder thatwould be spread abroad as a standard of loveliness andfacility.
The roads to the back country will likely be underway before the issue of another number ; the ferry boatnow on its way hither, willthen also be plying back andforth on its stated mission, bringing accommodating ad-vantages to add to our business prosperity. By thattime, too, will the preliminary arrangements of the rail-road be so far advanced as to add strength to the swell-ing tide of prosperity. In regard to the railroad thereare matters necessarily withheld from publication for a
time, that no hindrance be placed in carrying out theobject in view ; but those cognizant of the variousmovements and influences brought to bear in the matter
express themselves perfectly satisfied that the under-taking will be carried right through.
We are happy to chronicle the arrivalof G. 0. Rob-ertson, Esq., and family, who are now numbered amongour permanent population. In their society the town
willbe rich gainers. From a city life of extensive andhonored business relations, Mr. R. has early retired to
enjoy the beauties of a residence in this town, whoseclaims he carefully examined ere he gave it the prefer-ence.
We can also announce that Ignatius Donnelly, Esq.,is now at St. Paul, and with his family willshortly takerooms at the * Handyside House' until his own mansion,now in course of construction in Nininger, is ready forhis reception.
Too Much Special Legislation.
When the foundations of our institutions were laid,the men who performed the work accepted no model orexample to copy from. They cast aside the blind pre-cepts and maxims that bad governed men in establishingcodes of laws in all ages, and chose as their standard theirown common sense, that they might develope a armo-
nious and just system in the machiney of govern-ment that should give to the whole people theirequal share in its burdens and blessings. From thetime they promulgated their great Declaration of prin-ciples up to the present day, the profound wisdom of
their course has been verified as being founded in truthand justice. Precedent they entirely ignored as theyreared their Constitutional plan, and regarded the mov-ing influences around them with an outward eye, andsought to adjust them in harmonious action. In thistheir greatness laid more in their power to resist theinfluences of the extreme systems that the statesmen andphilosophers of the old world at that time consideredthemselves compelled to choose from, than in workingout a new order of things.
But the great example thus set has had but littleeffect in controlling the action of oar modern legislation.Precedent,as ofold,still sways in all the Councils of our
Constitution and law makers, while they rear monuments
to those who ignored such precedent And thus theworld finds no progress—no onward movement—from
the time of the inauguration of that system that hasdeveloped whatever is glorious in our Republican insti-tutions.
Democracy is acknowledged to truly underlie the
structure of our Government, and yet in rearing our
various fabrics of State government the claims of those
principles are not properly revered, and power and in-fluence are too often given into the keeping of systems
and irresponsible agents, when they might be better left
in the hands of tbp people. ,
The Delegates to our State Convention are chosen
their< duty will be to Jay down the fundamental
pnnciples upon which the future legislation of the Sjate
is to be based. We doubt not but their labors will becreditable to them, as they have been chosen with duedeliberation as the men eminently fitted for the dutydevolving upon them. What we fear is that the cry of‘ innovation ’ may impel them to comply too strictlywith the customs and habits of thoughts too generallyprevailing, that in the State legislation may all the wants
of the people be safely confided.We have no more profound reverence for men chosen
as legislators than for any other body of men : we be-lieve they are as liable to err, and be injudiciouslyswayed as other classes of meu, ami therefore wouldremove from their control all exercise of power whereit does not affect the State at large, and leave it entirelywith the parties affected. What is needed to do thiswith safety is some system of general laws to obviatethe necessity of special legislation. Provision shouldbe made requiring individuate, families, towns —thecommunity to any extent where the interests are com-mon—to conform to certain preliminaries, and establishtheir compliance, therewith before some responsibleofficial, and then to be allowed to enter upon the desiredprivilege in accordance with the true domocratic principleof the majority.
What we have to suggest at this time, and what wedesire to see followed by the Convention, is to have theLegislative power thus restricted as far as practicable,without interfering with the machinery of the StateGovernment, and open to the people, iu their variouscommunities, the power to legislate for themselves underthe general provisions above suggested.
Legislative assemblies are but encumbered with ill-
understood duties whiclT are impolitic for them to
enforce, in having specially to provide for the wants oftowns, villages, cities, and other small divisions ofterritory, iu their local administration, also for banking,manufacturing and other combinations of business. Itleaves members open to unpleasant suspicion often, whenin good faith they become misled by the sinister designsof arful men, even where they may not be influenced bybase motives.
at Klnlnger.
What can be more useless than the legislative func-tion exercised upon the private affairs of some smallremote district, unknown to or understood by men acci-dentally invested with such powers ; or their solemndebate over the change of a name, or some such trivialmatter ?
In the case of the last winter’s Territorial legislationwe may learn how prone such bodies are to over-estimatetheir importance, and how easily they are led to believethemselves furthering the interests of the Territory,in wrangling over an ill-advised matter, to the neglectof the wants of the honest and industrious settler,
whose interests, wide-spread though they were, amountedto many times the importance of the removal of thecapital.
How much injury is yearly done the Territory in thushedging in the efforts of those seeking to develope theabundant resources around them—how many towns havetheir prosperity checked, and the remedy convenient at
hand—how many persons have their hopes blasted,themselves discouraged, and disheartened, for the lackof some despotic-like pass withheld—and other unnum-bered evils resulting from the almost necessary neglectof duties that in nO wise should devolve on the Stategovernment—no imagination can fathom.
Neglecting Opportunities.
In our last issue we presented some thoughts in re-gard to the aspects of Minnesota in 1857. We now
wish to offer, in connection, some suggestion in review
of past emigration in comparison with the present, in
order to urge upon those who are aiming to improvetheir condition out. West, to spare no time iu puttingtheir plan in execution.
It is yet but a few years comparatively, since the first
hardy pioneer of western life left the sterile lands of
the eastern settlements to make himself a home inthe richer and more inviting lands of the West. Hissole object was to claim undisputed possession of a spot
whereon, in manly independence, he could rear hisfamily. His faith was never enlivened by the hope ofattaining to wealth or honors by the steady accumulationof numbers around him. Imperceptibly the movement
went on at first, for no streams of population from theold world were then breaking upon the shores of thenew. But uninviting as such a life of toil and depri-vation must have been, the life of the settler was also
one of disquiet and danger. The ferocious beast of theforest disputed with him his right to encroach on hislono'-held domain, and whose numbers made the contest
one of doubtful import during many of the early yearsof his new life. But a worse than brute enemy was thered man of the forest to the emigrant, untamed or spirit-broken as he is now, whose craftiness and cruelty in
pertinaciously contesting the white man’s advance into
his hereditary wilds, marked every foot with scenes of
strife and bloodshed, and clothes the history of thatperiod with scenes of harrowing cruelty and daring ad-venture, that make it seem but a startling romance.
Slowly the dangers and difficulties of those days woreaway. The trudging, foot-wearied settler was followedby the emigrant wagon on the government road, and that
again by the indifferently provided steamer, that now
commenced to ascend the large rivers ; he began alsoto enjoy the fostering care of government, whose pro-
tecting arm was thrown around the infant settlement.Swifter and wider, too, under these influences, becamethe advances of civilization, aided by the rapid improve-ment of steam with all its facilities, until the few acres
that were, year by year, at first taken up, increased to
wide and extended districts.But the early settler had become stricken with his
life’s weary toils aud strifes, ere this picture rose beforehis eye. No repining thought crossed his mind, how-ever, that his life had thus passed away, while the wholelegacy he bequeathed his children was as nothing com-
pared to the rich domain that may be possessed at once
in our Territory at this day. His children had to .groweye-dim in looking forward to the day when they shouldsec their children cujoying the blessings of life’s refine-ments around them.
How different all things now : the emigrant with hismaps, guides, and government reports, studies the exactspot where he wishes to go ; he reviews all the advan-tages present and prospective—couuts on the railroad andsteamer that bring with them to his door all the lux-uries of life—and almost with the certainty of dem-onstration sums up, that by a certain number of years,that leave no mark of care or anxiety on his as-
cending life, he will have attained to the enjoyment ofeasy affluence. In setting forth on the magnificentsteamer or luxurious car, to enjoy the well appointedaccommodations throughout his line of travel, no fear of
forest beast or cruel man to be encountered, interfereswith the enlivening pleasure he feels at the happinessprevailing all around him. His accession to his new
home is hailed with delight, and he enters upon all theprivileges of the place upon an equal footing with themost favored. Schools and churches, now so much con-tributing to the happiness of our race, shed forth theirlight and comfort with the early advent of the settler ;
and he is hardly made to feel the loss of the refinementsof early life, so readily are they transferred to his wil-derness home.
Here we have slightly sketched the contrast of theearly with the present emigration ; the imagination canfill up the picture with like favoring advantages nowenjoyed, that rise in unbidden thousands as we dwell onthe subject. But broad and extended as is the domainthus offered to the free acceptance of the world, its out-
most limits must soon be reached.*
Already are weplanted on the west bank of the great*) Valleyof the
Silver Trade.
Mississippi by the rushing torrent that pours in fromthe old world. Accumulating day by day, these down-trodden hosts will, in their children, rule the destiniesof this favored land, as lords of the soil, while thosewhose good the gift of the laud was intended to further,arc content to forego the permanent blessing in the en-joyment of the crumbs that fall to their share. .
From this important position as the garden ot theworld, the tide begins fast to flow onward west, over landscontinually decreasing in value, until on the sterile des-erts at the base of the Itoeky Mountains, it shall meet
the surging tide already rapidly setting in this way from
the Pacific coast.
A few years hence all that is desirable in the goodlyheritage will be gone ; the longing regrets that are
now wasted because men have not been the heirs of the
rich possessions gained with so much suffering and priva-tiou, will be augmented a thousand-fold in havingslighted the legacy that will, under their own eyes, at-
tain an importance and attractiveness equalling the most
favored spots of the old world.
Grand Celebration of the Fourth of July
As will be seen from the advertisement in anothercolumn our citizens have made preparations to celebratethe Fourth on a grand scale in this town. No pains or
expense have been spared to have it exceed anythingthat willcome oft' elsewhere in the Territory. This en-tertainment has been got up with especial reference to
afford an opportunity to our citizens far and near,aroundus, to here join in friendly meeting to commemorate theday of our beloved country’s independence.
We are happily provided in our citizens with a classwhose abilities and accomplishments have graced thepublic halls in the great eastern cities. Their serviceswill be brought into requisition to give our citizens andvisitors an intellectual treat worthy of the day. Besidesthe oration to be given by I. Donnelly, Esq., who onmany like occasions has drawn warm applause from
gratified thousands in other places, and the reading ofthe Declaration of Independence by G.H. Burns Esq. —.
whose graceful elocution willbe the none less appreciatedin having it exercised to give interest to that noble lega-cy of our forefathers—ample provision will be made - to
meet every want and gratify every taste. A splendidbanquet at the Handyside House willbe spread in theafternoon, and Music,Fire Works with all the pharapha-nalia that so much adds to the zest of that day’s pleasurewillbe brought to bear on this occasion.
In the evening, those who are so diposed may enjoy
themselves in the mazy dance, the cheerful song or inlistening to the discoursing of sweet music.
But what we esteem more than all these sources of en-
joyment will.be the auspicious time to form endearingties and bind in friendship’s silken cords of love, thosewho from every quarter of the land,have come out hitherto hew themselves homes in the great West. Wepromise all a greeting of open hands and warm heartsfrom every man, woman and child,who will layby every
care to heartily engage in this labor of love.We cordially invite our neighbors from Prescott,
Point Douglas, Hastings—all above, below and around—-to join us on this occasion, and come up with glad feelingsthat here we may commence that cementing of kindlyinterests that we hope willbring forth glad fruits to us,our children, and children’s children, as our centeringinterests year by year become molded together. In thesetowns are many citizens whose names we delight to honor,and on fitting occasions we shall show how we can ap-
preciate the acceptance of our kindly greeting. Weshall feel that in our mutual endeavors to bring intolivelyexercise our ennobling faculties of love and friend-ship on that great and sacred day,we shall be made hap-pier for all time, we shall all feel the sustaining arm
of friendly sympathy as we go forward to complete thegreat work so auspiciously begun by us, to make the
wilderness blossom like the rose.
To those our neighbors, then, one and all, we sendout glad welcome to join with us in our celebration ofthe Natal Day of our country’s blessed and glorious in-stitutions.
Important. —We understand that the proprietors ofthe town on the first Monday of August next, intendcalling a public sale here, and selling the lots of allsuch persons as have not before that time commencedbona fide their improvements in accordance with thestipulations of their deeds. We are glad of this. Weare also glad that this sale will include those lots uponwhich four logs have been left to blacken in the sun as
an earnest of a house at some future time, —a’perfect bur-lesque and an imposition both upon the town and theproprietors. When such parties bought lots at the ori-ginal cost, they entered into an undertaking to improveon them—and that undertaking must be carried out ingoodfaith , —the essential element of all contracts ; andcertainly good faith is not shown by any such trick or
catch upon words. A public sale will however be madeand the claimant allowed to settle his claim by a suit atlaw afterwards.
The pleasantness of travel up the Mississippi river isnot well understood East; many believe that the voy-age is one of discomfort and poor accommodations onordinary steamboats. Such people forget the rapiditythings have progressed within a fewyears out here; andsuppose that the one-horse steamboat that occasionallywended its slow and tedious way into the upper wilder-ness to bear supplies to the Indians and traders ; or con-
veyed a company of U. S. troops to some station is stilldepended on or but little improved. This is very erro-neous —nothing can be found anywhere to excel the mag-nificent accommodations provided for the weary railroadvoyager, who, on board of the large and roomy steamer,is regailed with all the elegancies of the season,and retiresat night to repose iu luxurious saloons,while he is speededon his way as fast as on any other river in the country.
There are eleven large side-wheeled steamers belongingto ouecompany alone; these were fitted up without regardto expense to equal the best on the river. Besides thesethere are at least twenty or thirty more, some makingregular trips and others only occasionally, going backand forth to various points on the lower part of the riverand also up the Ohio.
Political Papers. —As our Territorial affairs are solikely to be interesting for a season,some of our Easternreaders may perhaps wish to consult their respectiveparty papers on various points; wo therefore give thenames of some of the principal organs of the variousparties. St. Paul, of course, being the metropolis, haswithin herself the leading journals, and they would docredit in their intellectual and mechanical preparation to
any of the large cities East.The Pioneer and Democrat stands high in the estima-
tion of the Democratic Party and well deseves its charac-ter for great ability; it has access to information throughthe Territorial officials that gives it importance amongall classes. It is no party hack, however, but speaksfairly and candidly on all matters relating to Territorialaffairs of a political nature.
The Times and the Miancsotian are both Republican,the former being more reformatory in its tendencies thanthe latter. Both, however, ably and zealously advocatethe principles of their party. The Republican , of St.Anthony is awcll conducted weekly paper, sustaining thesame party, and is highly esteemed for its fearlessnessand ability, and will compare with its metropolitan co-temporaries as a leading journal of that party
The Advertiser, although not a political paper, may
be mentioned here a» the business orgqj) of St. Paul.Through its columns access is had to a very large plassof business men, who consult it in regard to the specuhk-and adventures of the day. It is much prized as 1careful collater of interesting information, and is prefeimred by the business community who eschew politics. 1
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THE EMIGRANT AID JOURNAL.
Modern Spiritualism.
Travelers in Minnesota.
Notwithstanding all the exposures, attacks and defeatsof this modern wonder, it still seems to be progressingnot only in this country but throughout the world.—Spiritualism has now been fairlyestablished as aregularsystem of religion in this country; its preachers arevery numerous—among whom rank some of the bright-est intellects of our day. The fierce opposition it hasmet with has but aided to its spread, until now its vo-taries aro counted by millions. For a long time it metwith but littleelse than ridicule from the clergy and theprofessors of learning, but whenever either of theseclasses gave the matter a personal examination, theywere generally forced at least to admit there was somewonderful phenomena attached to it, which they couldnot account for. While many of these still vehementlyopposed it, others accepted its claims, and became itsmost active votaries. Doctors of Divinity, Professors,and Judges have each successively advocated the claimsof the Spiritual Theory in voluminous books, and inthe weekly and monthly periodicals that have sprung upso numerously all over the land to advocate it.
There seems at present a more ready ear open to itsclaims on the part of the literati. At CambridgeCollege an earnest and thorough investigatiou is goingon under the'- supervision of Prof. Agassiz and hiscolleagues. Itwas brought about by reason of its spreadamong the students of that institution.
In trance, Louis Napoleon and court have also beenpaying Spiritual manisfestations attention. A younggentleman from this country was the medium throughwhom the mysterious phenomena were exhibited, andthe journals there say, the effect was convincing to allwho witnessed them, that they were supernatural.
The Catholic journals are complaining of the greatprogress the belief is making among their clergy. ThePontiff and his court having endeavored to disprove it,have aided its rapid promulgation throughout Italy.
While we may well doubt its claims to spiritual ordivine origin, from the fruits it has tints far broughtforth j or from any new principles it has enunciated toadd to the happiness of the human family, we believethe causes of these modern phenomana must soon be estab-lished to the satisfaction of all minds when once itsclaims pass through the ordeal of the never-failing testsof natural laws.
The Indian Trust Lands.— ln all the Territoriesthere are large tracts of land which been speciallyreserved to various tribes of Indians. Whenever it be-comes necessary to have these Indians removed, theGeneral Government takes charge of the disposal oftheir lands, holding them in trust until they can be ad-vantageously disposed of. But emigration often over-strips the calculations of the Government, and the set-tler recognizes no distinction of ownership in the greatwilderness whither he has sought himself a home, andbis claims are generally allowed. In Minnesota thereare very populous towns that have been built on someof these reservations, as they are called, and the districtsaround have been thickly settled, long before any title,save that of the squatter’s, can be bad for the land.
It is in these districts more particularly, where the
squatter laws, heard of so much East, bear such su-preme sway, aud visit such terrible punishment on theinfringers of them. It is not beoause of any cruelty ofdisposition, nor unjust selfishness, that these settlers act
in so summary a manner, as they are as anxious to pro-tect those that seek a home in accordance with them as
to punish their infractors. Their property can alonebe preserved to them by maintaining their own supremesway.
By these squatter laws and customs, very little sufficesto make a claim upon these tracts. You find an unoc-
cupied quarter section, you lay upon it a foundationconsisting of four logs laid across each other, with yourname written on one of them. This holds your land a
month ; at the end of the month you must build a logcabin, break up a few acres and inclose them, and your
title is perfect. Thsse laws do not bind you to hold theland in person ; you may often do it by tenant. You
must be careful, however, that your tenant is reliable,for should the claim be deserted for a week or more itbecomes liable to be ‘jumped.’ An appeal to yourneighbors to protect your claim while you are necessari-ly absent, even for a long period, is sure to be heeded.Itoften happens that a settler may desire to go Eastfor his family, in which case his cabin is fitted up forhim, his crops looked after, and other matters attendedto for him, if he is not able to pay for such help, by a
concerted action among his neighbors.
Our town being on the river enjoys much of thenotice of those passing up and down on their tour throughour Territory. We could publish extracts laudatory of
Minnesota from the letters of these tourists that wouldfill our paper. must not overlook a late letter in
the Philadelphia Bulletin , however, as the writer ispleased to refer to our establishment, in noticing Ninin-ger in his observations on the attractive spots that tookhis attention while out here. He says :
After dinner, as you come on deck picking your teeth,fresh varieties of bluffs and islands please the eye, thetimber on the bank grows larger and things have almosta Pennsylvania look. Prescott is the next importanttown, after which comes Hastings. This latter placelies in a prairie three miles long, and has grown upwithin three years. It will be an important town, andeven now does a lively business.
Nininger is the next thriving place you pass. Welooked at it with much interest, remembering that a
year ago itwas nothing, and that, by the enterprise andenergy of its proprietors, (Philadelphians and Pennsyl-vanians, among whom are I. Donnelly, John Niningerand George H. Burns, Esqrs.,) it has already taken afront rank in the real, solid river towns of Minnesota.It lies beautifully, just at a bend of the river, though asaw mill which puffs away right on the bank does notadd anything to the picturesqueness of the view. Back
*of the town, which, as nearly as we could tell from thedeck, is well laid out, is a most beautiful rolling plain,which, we should think, extended nearly twenty miles inundulations pleasant t<J the eye; above and below, asfar as the eye could reach, were forests of beach, oakand other trees, whose genus we could not distinguish,though they seemed familiar. Subsequently we learnedthat the lots in Nininger are held very high in St. Pauland that the projected railroad to St Peter (to whichthe capital may be removed, if the influence of St. Paulis not too powerful,) is a settled thing. A newspaperis about being established there (or may be by this time)the steam press having been ordered some time ago.—The power willbe supplied by the saw-mill, so that thesame puff of steam which sends out a sawn plank, willaid iu sending out a great number of icise saws, andevery puff from the steam pipe may be tallied by a pufffrom the editorial columns.
The California Farmer. —This is one of the mostable farm journals in the United States and is equal to
any of our eastern papers in point of mechanical ap-pearance. California has been noted from the first forits able and beautiful papers, many of which with theFanner, we have constantly received during our inter-regnum. No farmer who proposes to leave the East forCalifornia should fail to have this instructive journal topost himself thoroughly in all that pertains to the inter-nal wealth of that fine State. We are sorry to learnby our coteraporary that an unexampled drought is like-ly to blast all the hopes of the farmer for this season,and other journals express great fears of having a fam-ine from the total destruction of crops there.
The Farmer is published weekly at San Francisco,at $5 a year. We willsupply any one with a specimennumber, and will receive subscriptions at this office.
Dred Scott, whose case caused so much commotionlately on account of the extraordinary decision of the U.S.Supreme Court, has been made free by his owner, to-gether with all his family*
We are not yet fully posted iq regard t.Q legal adver-tising, but suppose that journals of large circulationmust be the medium for legal notices. WillSome one inform us on this point ?
Home Summary.The St. Anthony papers state that both gold and cop-
per mines have lately been discovered there. The pro-prietor was offered and refused SIO,OOO for the ore thatwould be taken up in digging a canal through the minefor a water power on his place.
Nininoer and St. Peter Railroad Co. —By anotice in another column it will be seen that the stockbooks of a railroad from Nininger to St. Peter, Min-nesota, willshortly be opened at St. Paul and Nininger.The raod willbe put under contract almost immediatelyand will be a paying concern, as it runs through one ofthe best portions of the Territory, which is settling upwith marvelous rapidity. The termini are both impor-tant towns, and if the design ofmoving the State Capitalto St. Peter is carried out, that place will rank next toSt. Paul.— Philada.Bulletin.
A large black bear was killed on an island in SibleyCo., on the 3d. inst. It weighed 500 lbs.
A deer that had evidently been chased by dogs pass-ed through the outskirts of Nininger last week. A shotor two was fired at it as it passed through to the river.The poor brute must have been astonished to find a
city here where last year it may have roamed at ease.The survey of the road from Winona to St. Peter has
been placed on file at the land office in the latter place.The Hutchinson family, of singing celebrity, are all
engaged in farming in their new home in this Territory.A gentleman writing to the Minnesotian says of them :
In passing through the pleasant village ofHutchinsonon Wednesday last, I saw Asa B. of the HutchinsonFamily, leading off some six men planting corn. Theway Asa used the hoe plainly shows that he knows howto farm. He looks very much like a New Hampshirefarmer, withdiis hickory shirt and tow pants. John, ofthe same family, has also a good crop in ; but not so muchas Asa. The three boys, Judson, John and Asa, haveexpended nine thousand dollars in Hutchinson whichis their future home, and by the class of people they arebringing in, any one would suppose that Hutchinson israther a Yankee settlement.
Hon. W. B. Gere, the newly appointed U. S. Mar-will commence taking the census of the Territory as
soon as the Constitutional Convention accepts the Con-gressional Enabling Act.
Important to Pre-Emptors —We have been showna copy of a Circular from the General Land Office atWashington, dated June 22d, 1857, and directed to theDistrict Office in Minnesota, instructing them * not toallow any pre-emption claim predicated upon a settle-ment made within four months after the receipt of theCircular, on any of the lands withdrawn from market,in view of the provisions of the law of the 3d of Marchlast, making a grant of lands to the Territory of Minne-sota for Railroad purposes.’ An order to this effect hasbeen made by the Secretary of the Inderior.—Minneso-tian.
Severe storms of rain and lightning have visited theTerritory throughout, lately. We notice at the sametime that at the South and East, from Virginia to Maine,they prevailed to a still greater extent, doing immensedamage in many places.
The grasshoppers that caused ,so much damage to thespring crops in the northern part of the Territory, haveall disappeared- Many of the settlers had prepared toleave"the infested district. This visitation is only occa-sional.
Public Land Offices.Land Offices for the sale of the public lands in
Minnesota, Nebraska, and Kansas Territories, and theStates of Wisconsin and lowa, are situated as follows :
Minnesota—At Stillwater, Sauk Rapids, Chatfield,Minneapolis, Farribault, Henderson, Buchanan, andOjibwa.
Nebraska —Omaha City, Brownsville, Nebraska City,and Dakota City.
Kansas —Lecompton, Doniphan, Fort Scott, andOgden.
Wisconsin—Mineral Point, La Crosse, Menasha,Hudson, Steven’s Point, and Superior.
lowa—Dubuque, Charton, Fort Des Moines, CouncilBluffs, Osage, Fort Dodge, and Sioux City.
Summary or Hews.The Grand Trunk Railway Company of Canada has
announced that arrangements have been entered intowith the proprietors of the Great Eastern, so that thismammoth steamship, of 22,000 tuns burthen, and 2,700horse power, willmake her first voyage to Portland, Stateof Maine, in connection with the through booking systeminstituted by this company for the conveyance of passen-gers to Canada and the Western States.
Ex-Gov. James H. Hammond of South Carolina hasplanted 100 acres of the Imphy, the new Sugar Cane
f referred to in last week's Journal. Mr. Leonard Wray,who has been at Silverton, Gen. Hammond’s place on
1 the Savannah river, is superintending the planting of
1 the ground and will direct the cultivation and process, of manufacture according to his patented process, by
which he produces granulated sugar.It is Dr. Holmes who says the sons of New England
are deteriorating as a race, and says the reason is the> want of material in the soil to produce muscle and bone.
The granite soil does not furnish the proper ingredients,1 mainly limestone, to form the bones ; or the richness of
f materials to form muscle and the softer parts of the body.| In Kentucky, Ohio, and western Vermont men grow to
, a large size, because of the limestone formation beneaththe soil. Parts of families have emigrated from Massa-
-5 chusetts to limestone regions, and the result in the next¦ generation has been a larger bone deyelGpemeqt inthose who left Massachusetts than in those who remained.Kentucky, Ohio, lowa and Minnesota will grow largemen. The finest figures in the world will be found iu
J the valley of the Mississippi in a few generations. In-. door labor, so unnatural for men, will weaken the vital
' powers and stop the growth in large cities, but the great, and growing West, with its broad prairies, willcompen-| sate for the growing feebleness of the Eastern States.
Singular Effects of Electricity. —A singularoccurrence took place a short time since at the locomo-tive works, illustrating the powerful effects of electricity.A locomotive was being moved from the manufactory tothe Central depot, and had arrived in the middle of thestreet, when suddenly all hands dropped the bars withwhich they were moving the machine and fell back inamazement. Resuming them at the order of the manin charge,they applied them again and fell back paralyzedthe instant they touched the iron. The director of thejob caught up one of the bars, making a savage thrust,planted it under a wheel, preparatory to giving a hugelift. No sooner had it touched, however, than hesaw it fall from his grasp to the ground, as it haddone in every case before. Such singular occurrencesexcited attention, and an examination was made as tothe cause, when it was found that the locomotive, inpassing under the telegraph line, had come in contactwith a broken wire that hung sufficiently low to reach it.
The whole mass of iron composing the locomotive hadthus become charged with electricity, which had com-municated itself to the bars that the men held in theirhands, and caused the effect above described. The wirewas theu removed,and the difficulty obviated in a moment.Detroit Free Press.
A steam plow has been invented and put in operationin France ; the working implement consists of eightplowshares, four facing one way and four the Other, andthence placed back to back to obviate thgfnecessity ofturning; that these eight shares can plow from 19 to 25English acres in a day, and this with four men, oneacting as stoker to the machine, a second as driver orplowman, seated on the implement, *third at the capstanand a fourth as assistant.
When a Mormon Elder or graadee dies, his obituary,in noticing the relatives, refer# to them as follows, as inthe case of a late chief J. M. Grant :
‘ He has gone now, leaving seven disconsolate widowsand several children, four Qswhom are under eight weeksofage, to mourr? their irreparable loss.’
100 cents of the new cdin are said to weigh a pound,avoirdupois. They overweigh a little, now, but wear iwillbring them down. Nevertheless they will be very ibandy weights.
The United Association of Schoolmasters of Great iBritain have offered a prize of $125 for a paper on ‘The ibest means of making the schoolmaster’s function more <efficient than it has hitherto been in preventing misery jand crime.'
A largo meeting in support of the Maine Liquor Law <was held in Exeter Hall, England. The orator of the 1night and the tnau who was the principal means of at- jtrading the vast assembly together was the Hon. NealDow. 1
A Washington paper suggests a reform iu the present «.corrupt system of disposing of the public printing. A inational convention of the Democratic journalists is to 1be called, w> suggest a fairer n;ode of action, 'fhe costof the public printing has risen, in a few years, from jsooo,ooo to $1,500,000 per Congress—a monstrous cor* truption and fraud. j
A Panther Booted to DEATH.-Mr.W. B. Stoek*i.' end, a sinewy, stout, active young SostebmftM associated. : in faming with Mr. T. Linklater, Tenalqnot Plains in
tthis connty> recently killed a large six feetseven inches in length, in a fair fistana boot light. The
9 circumstances are related as follows:It see ms that at the further end ofa large field , about
i a quarter of a mile from the house. Mr. Stoekend dis:- covered quite a movement and disturbance among a lot. of hogß that were kept in the field. He at once proceeded
. in the direction to ascertain the cause, when, to his sur-r prise, at a short distance from the hogs, he discoveredf that a favorite young dog was engaged in a conflict with
> a panther. Determined to save the dog at all hazards,. he resolved to interpose in the fight, expecting tofrighten
1 the panther up a tree that stood hard by, when he could> return to the house for a rifle and bring it down. He
accordingly gave the animal a substantial kick, when itceased its engagement with the dog, straightened iteelfon its hind legs and pitched into him. In the meantimethe young dog made a hasty retreat for some distance.
The contest now seemed to be a desperate and unequalt one, but there was no escape from itforour friend Btoek- ‘
end. The panther made a furious dash at hipa, but re-a taining his presence of mind, he met it with' a (qyfcqf
kick. The fight now assumed the character ofs *9MMiLand tumblea volley of well directed blows andAjoo
s disabled the animal somewhat. He called Ids back,.
and the faithful young animal, as ifashamed uuriof1 deserted its master in the hour of peril, and as ifto jMapt
amends for its ungrateful conduct, entered into the con-* flict with great fierceness Mr Stoekend snceeeded m: getting one foot firmly upon the neck of hie assailant,a and keeping the other in rapid motion in the directiona of the animal's head, soon brought the contest to a close,e He has no doubt that the long heavy boots that hev had on were the means of saving his life.e The fight lasted, first to last, about fifteen minutes, inf the course of which Mr. Stoekend was somewhat rough*h ly handled. His shoulder was badly scratched—he re-e ceived a severe wound in the thigh from the teeth of theb animal, and was scratched in several places, although bye no meaus dangerously, or by which he will hereafter bes disabled.— Olympus Pioneer.
A distinguished sporting character of this country•- lately took out some noted American race-horses to trys them against those of the English. lie found it diffi-
cult to bring about a match such as he desired, viz.,straight four-mile beats; but eventually agreed to run amatch as prescribed by the English rules, which was to
a have taken place soon after our last news from there,t This attempt to run against the English racers, wase made the occasion forgreat ridicule by the sporting printso there, designating American horses and riders as only
fit for the common road races. This is not uncommone treatment for Brother J onathan to meet with, willbe
remembered in the case of the reaping and other agricul-u tural implements tested at the great Exhibition, but- more particularly in the great yacht race, when thes America left her English competitors “no where " be-- hind.
P. T. Barnuin, the world-renowned showman, whosee tide of long-continued good fortune was so suddenlye blasted two years since, has just returned from isurope,t sick and dispirited. He went out with the intention of3 recruiting his fortunes with the help of the exhibitions
that succeeded so well on a former occasion, and hadB added other celebrities to his undertaking, but could find“ no encouragement there. Ever since he wrote his own5
biography the charm has left him, and every attempt torecover himself but makes his case worse. Althoughnot a bad-hearted man, his career and disaster points amoral that should not bo lost.
, The grasshoppers in some portion of the Territory4 north have scourged the farmers excessively. Whole. fields of wheat have been destroyed by them in a few* days. In one town everything was nearly destroyed,andj farmers gave up cultivating.
A mob of men and boys got up a mock serenade toannoy ex-Gov. Bibb of Ohio, but now residing in Illi-
’ nois, who had just been married : after giving them fairj warning of his intention, he fired upon them, killing two
men, when the rest fled., Curious Athiospheric Phenomenon A oorres"
poudent of The Con gressionalist,[writing from Asbtabu--1 la County, Ohio, after giving an account of a shock of
an earthquake in that vicinity, says :“The most singu-
lar phenomenon connected with itwas thefalling of largeballs of snow. It was snowing heavily at the time, al-s though the snow was slightly moist. The next merniug
, several gentleman in different parts of the town noticeds large balls of snow lying scattered around, not only in) the vieinity of their dwellings, but in the open fields ;; those who examined them describe them as being
i as large as a child’s head, and resembling thinlayers of snow, rolled together very lightly and droppeddown.’ Where they fell upon the side-hill they had
j rolled in some instances, two or three feet. I mentionj these facts as scraps for the curious.”
' The operations of the Agricultural Bureau of thei U. S. Patent Office, are spreading themselves over everyP part of our extended country. The following is a letter, received from a gentleman in Texas :
r You will find cqntaiqed ip this, and ajsg in anotherpackage mailed at tlie same time, what we suppose to bethe native potato. They were certainly growing ip a
, wild state, and are found in several places on the Limpiaand elsewhere, in the narrow valleys of the Sierra Dia-bolo. These grew in a gravelly scrtl, with a mixture ofrich loam, the gravel greatly prevailing, as if washedupon the loamy soil. Thepe $ great- number of piole
> aQ d rat holes in the locality. Perhaps the gravel pro?| tected the potato from them
One of the Correspondents of the N. Y. Tribune nowt in Kansas, thus speaks of the emigrants who go out there,
i Somq ofthe returned emigrants have assured us the nupi?. ber was nearer nine Ttentb§ who eame bapk.
Do not imagine that of the Northern hordes nowi pouring into Kansas all remain One half return. Of
* those who arrive one third come merely to look at thecountry, with a view to future settlement, to specplptiop.and to selecting lands for companies who are to follow.Of the remainde^ a large number are disappointed inthe country, in the climate, or in the facility oftaking up claims. Many travel a thousand or fif-teen hundred miles, land at Leavenworth, ride sometwelve miles out of the city, find lands as high as intheir own neighborhood, and go home and say they haveseen Kansas. It is not men like these who build up anew country. -f .
A little yacht of 23 tons, started from the port ofNew York the 15th inst. for a voyage to Liverpool.—The crew willconsist of five perrons, and a afore of pro-visions for 90 days will be shipped. She is only 4| feptlong, with 13$ feet beam, but can spread 800 yards ofoanvass. *
A curious table, which is given for the first time inthe Irish census, looks like an indication of the approach-ing extinction of the Irish language. Less than fiveper cent, of the population have returned themselves asignorant of English, and not a fourth of the whole areable to speak the original language of their country.
Chicago and Liverpool Direct. —The Chicago(111.) Press, says that the Canadian bark Chieftaiq hasboeu chartered by parties in that city to take out wh<atto Europe, early this season, and bring back salt or pigiron. Charter tor the voyage, $15,000, under penaltyof $2,000, in the event of failure to fulfil the contract*
Elder Pratt, one of the most noted of the Mormonprophets, was lately murdered at Fort Gibson, CherokeeNation,by a man whose wife he had seduced and taken ofwith him- It seem? that the woman in question wasmore than ordinarily intelligent, apd was the mother ofseveral children, and bad nothing to complain of againsther husband, who was well off. Elder Pratt first madeher acquaintance in St. Francisco, and brought her to be-lieve in his doctrines, and persuaded her to elope withhim to the East, although he had already eight wives.—The husband followed the pair up closely,and after a longchase back and forth for thousands of miles, oame acrossthem at the above place, where he had Pratt arrested forthe abduction of his wife. The Judge, however, dis-missed the case, when Pratt made off and was followedby the injured husband determined on taking summaryyengeance in las own hands. ‘He soon Overtook hiA?and shot him dead. The papers in that neighborhoodall justify the act.
'
The Mormops must soqn feel tfie power of the {Joi,ted States government, in putting a stop to the outragessaid to be prevailing in Utah. But this willnot be ac-complished until more bloody scenes than they have yetgone through will be wreaked upon them.
Gen. Harney, a well-known Indian fighter and anofficer who willgladly avail himself of any good pretextto remind them that they are still subject to the U. 8government; his just been dispatched do that Territorywith an army adequate to enforce his authority. If lshigh time. Lately several judges and other governmentofficials were driven out of Utah by Brigham Young.—
.
As a conflict seems inevitable, the sooner it is settledth*better for the credit of our country.Col. Gumming, a St, Louis gentlemm, has been an-pointed Goyerpor of and has signified his iflcep-
tance of the post. He is represent as being ably com-petent for the important trust.