The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1897-08-21

Hon. Champ Clark delivered a char
acter:stically eloquent and entertain
ing address on Imperial Missouri" in
which he said:
OF all the puissant states carved from
the magnificent empire which jefferson
bought for a song from the self-styled
ARMED Soldier of Democracy" Mis-
souri, is easily the tirst-first in soil,
first in climate, first in wealth, first in
resources, first in influence, first in
educational advantages, first in popu-
~lation, first in possibilities.
Knowledge, like charity, should be-
gin at home. In teaching my children
geography l have moved the hub of the
universe from Boston, Mass, to Bowl
ing Green, Pike county, Mo-; and, SO
far as they are concerned, their map of
this mundane sphere is laid off in o n
centric circles whose center is the seat
of Justice of the land of Joe Bowers,
and every other place or earth is locat-
ed by it's distance and direction from
the spot where they were born.
1t was said hal a stranger could not
stand out of a shower u quarter of an
hour under an arch with Edmund
Burke without discovering that he was
a profound scholar. Neither shall any
body ever be able to stay len minutes
with my children without learning that
they are MISUNDERSTANDING proud
OF their birthright.
AS we came from Washington my
little boy stopped in Kentucky to visit
relatives. One day my little 2I-year-
old girl was cutting some wild and
woolly western capers, and her aunt
said: ''Genevieve, if you don't behave
better, you'll never go to Heaven"
81 don't want to 90 to Heaven" an
swered the child: 81 want to go to Mis-
souri,"
As we were crossing the Mississippi
river on our recent return from WASH
ington my little son made me tell him
when we reached the middle of the
channel and he astonished his drowsy
fellow-passengers by whooping, "IIur-
rah for sweet Missouri II a tone loud
enough to wake the turtles sleeping on
either shore. This is patriotism of the
purest sort, for what is patriotism any
how but an extended aud sublipated
love of home and kindred and neigh
bors and friends?
From 1851 to 1S65-those days that
tried mems souls-the MISsourians
were SO patriotic and bellicose that
they could not find lighting enough to
do on one side, % they volunteered in
about equal numbers on both sides
and put in four bloody and awful years
fighting each other, and they are so
generous that it is difficult to-day to
discern which they love the most, old
Pap Price, John 5. Marmaduke and Joe
Shelby, or Frank Blair, John 5. Phelps
and brave Bob Fyan.
1t is said that when Hon. Thomas B.
Reed first Toasted his eyes upon Mis-
souri,, he threw up his hands in as
constituent and exclaimed: My God,
this soil is SO rich hat if we had it
back in New England we would sell it
by the peck for seedT
Missouri has three billions of wealth
in above ground. How much is hoard
ed in safety deposit vaults, bank vaults,
old stockings and old tea kettles, invis-
ible to the eye of the assessor, this de-
ponent saith not. What an ininitude
of wealth is under her crust Omnis-
cience only knows.
She has IS, 500 square miles Of land
not one acre of which is desert land,
and a vast quantity of which will pro-
duce so bushels of wheat or 100 BUSH
els of corn per acre.
Missouri stands first among the states
In the production of manufactured to-
bacco. She leads the world in the pro-
iuction of zinc; stan l. second in lead,
with an absolute certainty of soon be-
ing first. She has iron enough to last
the entire human race till crack Of
doom.
In the ~ great counties north of the
Missouri river there is not a scrub COW,
O scrub sheep, or a razor-backed hog
unless they have been bought in for
feeding purposes Herds of short horns,
Herefords, Holsteins, polled Anguses
and Jerseys browse upon a thousand
hills and beautify the broad prairies.
Blooded horses, blooded cattle, blooded
sheep and blooded swine abound on
every hand.
In 1896 besides what we used at home,
Missouri shipped 100. 900 head of cattle.
1900, O00 head of hogs, 7O,0D0 head of
horses, 800, 900 sheep. 5000. 900 pounds