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Show APPENDIX. \\'hose hands it was forwarded to me. Those who feel interested in the success of our frontier settlements, will find tbetnselves much gratified by t.he minute det.ails here furnished .. It always gives me pleasure to afford informatwn to those who w1sh to !·emove to the Western Countries as they are called. Let the nahan spread.Scarcity of land and density of population will be felt soon enough, notwithstanding the "im.tnens~ swarms" of settl_ers we are co?stantly throwing off towards the Pacific. .The rage for manufacturmg,. and for imitatiwr Europe in all her luxurres ; and consequently for nvalling at len~th her inequalities, proprietors, grinding leases and final pauperism,"" is sufll.ciently threatening already. Plenty of "elbow 1·oom" must postpone the period of our arrival at this last stage-a.nd therefore it gives me pleasure to see the young and adventurous gomg to seek their fortunes in lands yet unreclaimeJ from the desert. In doing this, they are probably securing fortunes for their progeny, and an easy old age for themselves. Fort Osage, 330 miles up the Missouri ~ Rive,·, Ma1-ch 29, 1817. ~ Sra-1 have recentl.Y had the pleasure to receive your very interesting letter of the 23d September last, aJdres~etl jointly to my brother 'Hopkins and myself: Although it is principally directed t~ my brother at Natchitoches, Jt happened somehow or other to get a drre~tion to St. Louis, from whence it has been forwarded to me at th1s place. To say that I derived pleasure from hearing from an old valued acquaintance, after a lapse of many years, would he but a feel) le expression of my feelings while reading your l~tter. It s.eemeq ]ike a renewal of the days of my boyhood, and l1ke a rev1val of (what we are apt to call it) good old times. Although I am mu.ch pressed Ly official duties, I have taken my station at my desk w1ta U1e ·11 determination to write you a long letter; and to answer as correctly as 1 am able, your inquiries concerning this country. The same express by which I send you this letter to St. Louis post-office, will convey your letter (agreeably to your desire) to Natchitoches, under cover to my brother Hopkins, and you may expect to hear fr?m him in the course of about two months from the very time you rece1.ve this letter. The public newspapers, as well as your letter, bad m· formed me of the genera 1 failure of the grain crops •hroughout the southern and eastern sections of the union-and I observe also that the same scarcity had occurred pretty extensively in Europe. I believe our grain crops in the we~tern country have been generally pretty good, tl'lOugh somewhat inferior to what they are usually. As far as my observation and information extend, I think the last crop was uncomm()nly abundant last year throughout the western co~ntry. Such was the case I know in this territory ; and yet the pnce of pork bas been exceedingly high, and will probably be higher-the u ·ual price of pork is from 2 l-2 to 3 1-2 dollars per hundred ; beef 3 1-2. Now, pork is fj to 6, and beef 4 1-2.-This is altogether owing to the immense swarms of emigrants who are constantly t1ock· ing to the country from all parts of th-e uniono APPENDIX. 303 I refer you to ~he last edition of Bradley's map of the U11ited States. No. I wiJJ copy such part of it here as may be necessary for my purpose. f'!-'he editor is very sorry to be under the neC'essity of omitting the sect1on of map inserted in this part of the leUer. It Jays down the course of .th~ Mi:souri~ through part of the territory of the same n~me, to Jts .J~nctwn With the Missi ·sippi, Boone's Lick settlement, Wtth the positrons of Fort Osage, St. Charles and St. Louis, as well as the .courses of the Osage anJ other tributaries of the Missouri are also latd Jown.J ' This is truly a \'ery rough sketch, but it will answer mn purpose. ~ort Osage was ~sta.bJi~hed in the fail of 1803. At this time the b1ghest human hab.1tat10n on the Missouri, except lnuian huts, was on the banks of tht- nver, about where the red letter A is placed on the annexed sketch, say about 38 miles by land above the vilJagG of St. Charles. In December, 1809, business called me to St. Louis. I traversed the country from Fo~t Osa.ge, (80 miles) to the Arrow Rock at B, wh~re I .crossed the M1ssoun by swimming.-From thence I travelled m a d~rect course toward£ St. Charles, 120 rniles to C. before I came to a house or a mark of civilized beings. In February, I returned to this place, and in my route overtook the first families who mov~d to Boone's Lick~ who were in number about six or eight. I~ 181 J, rn November, I agam went to St. Louis, and fmmd 4t Bmme's L1ck, a settlement of about sixty families. In the summer of 18 I 2 the first settlement was made on the south side of the Missouri abov~ the Osag.e rh·er.. During the late war, these settlements ~ulfereu greatlY: fro'!llnd1an depredation, but still they increased c0nsiderabJy lly em1gratwn. In 181~ a~d 18.16, they increased b.eyond all tormer example. T~e tern tonal leg1slature at their session in 1815-16, passed an act creatmg !he settlement of Boone's Lick; into the County ~f Howard, and all<lwmg them two representatives and one counsellor m the assembly. The new county includes all the settlements above t~e Osage river, on both sides of the 'Missouri, which have all grown s~nceJanuary, 180~. It.is ~aid, and I believe truly, that the popuJatron south ~f the M1ssoun, above the Osage river, is sufi]cientJy numer~ us to ent~tle them to be cretJted a new county, and no doubt the legislature will pass a ~aw to that effect at their next sitting. The settlement of the tract of country comprised in the new couHty. of Howard, seems to me like enchantment. Where nothing but wdd beasts ~f the forest, and savage hunters, were to be met with iH 1809, of lVh1ch not a tree had received the stroke of an axe is JllOW nea~Jy. all swept away, and in its stoad are seen rising co~fm·table habitatiOns, merchants' store-houses, a court-house and all appendages of a sea t o [ J·u str· ce. M erchants, traders, lawye' rs, physicians, Ji. , :ns~u tavern. keepers, a~ound; mechanics find their account in reovmg there, such as smith~, sa<.ldlers, and a variety of others; there :re, several common ~chools; two or. three reputable preachers ; and fi '"eek]y newspaper Is soon io be pnnted there, by two uentlemen of ne talents ; two towns have been laid off. and I am toJd5 the Jots sell ;reJJ ; a~~ther is talked of. It is computed that upward~ of a huned famiiJes moved to the county of Howard, from Tennessee, Ken· |
