Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-07-18

Photographing Old Books.
when these rare books are so rare as
to be practically unobtainable we photo
graph them in order to get fac-simile of
the original. Only the paper is modern.
We do this wherever there is sale that
will warrant the expensive reproduction.
By the Photographic method all the old
errors are reproduced, but no new ones
made. We brought out recently as one of
these reprints the temporary laws of the
province of New Hampshire of 1851, of
which only one complete copy was known
to exist, and that was in the Connecticut
State Library. The next best was in the
New Hampshire State Library, but 1t
lacked three pages. and the state OF New
Hampshire, in having 1t reprinted from
type some years before, had concealed the
fact that any pages were missing by leav-
ing off the catch word at the bottom Of the
last printed page.
THE way political geography connects it.
self with these law books is significant
From 1877 to 1900 the northwest territory
remained intact. Indiana territory was
then erected out of that part which is west
boundary of Indiana In 1903 Ohio was
made a state, and the eastern half of the
lower peninsula of Michigan was turned
the old northwest territory except Ohio. In
1895 that part of Michigan east of Lake
Michigan was made a territory, and Indi-
ana then included, besides her present
limits. Illinois and Wisconsin, the upper
peninsula of Michigan, and that part of
Minnesota which Is east of the Mississippi
river. In 1900 a division was again made at
the present eastern boundary of Illinois,
and Illinois territory was created, including
what is now Illinois and Wisconsin, and
the part of Minnesota previously referred
to. In 1916 Indiana and in 1918 Illinois
We're admitted as states, and the remain
Ing parts of the northwest territory were
given to Michi, an territory. When Mfchi-
gan was admitted to the Union in 1896 it's
Oiy tn in,
recompenSe for the strip taken from its
southern boundary and given to Ohio and
Indlana, IN contrayention of the ordinance
OF liSI, which fixed the northern bounda-
RES OF the states to be formed out of the
southern part of the northwest territory at
a line drawn at the parallel of the southern
pend of Lake Michigan. The following of
the letter OF the great ordinance would
nave given Chicago to Wisconsin and South
BEND and other northern Indiana towns
and Toledo to Michigan. Ohio did not want
10 lose an important lake port, and this
brought about the Toledo war between
OHIO and Michigan. There was some poll
ucs back of this, as it was thought wise to
add northern strip to Illinois and Indiana
to offset the pro-slavery sentiment of the
southern and earlier settled parts OF these
states. largely peopled from the south.
Old Louisiana.
When Louisiana was purchased in 1893
it was divided into two governments The
hrst was called the territory of Orleans.
and it had about the same boundaries as
the present state of Louisiana. The rest
was called the District of Louisiana and
was not regarded by Congress as entitled
TO separate government, and was at
tached Tor governmental purposes, to the
then ter ritory of Indiana which at that
time included Illinois and extended to the
MISSISSIPPI river. and hence was contiguous
to the Louisiana district. William Henry
Harrison. governor. and the three judges
of the Indiana territory constituted the leg
:slative body for the District of Louisiana
from 1904 to 1865, and passed laws which
We're printed at Vincennes in 1904 by Elihu
Stout. the first Indiana printer. There are
only four or five copies of this book in ex-
1stence. In 1905 Congress decided to give
the District of Louisiana a government of
Its own. Its capital was made at st. Louis,
and the appointed governor and the ap-
pointed judges constituted also the legisla-
tive body of the territory, There was a
first and second grade of territorial gov
eminent in those days. Territories which
did not have enough Inhabitants to justify
an elective legislature were of the first
grade. and in them the governor and the
judges passed The laws. IN the second
grade. where population did not justify two,
the legislative body had but one house
In 1872 the name of the territory of
Louisiana was changed to the territory of
Missouri. In 1919 the part lying between
what Is now Missouri and Louisiana (which
had been admitted as a state in 1872 was
set apart as the territory of Arkansas but
with larger extent westward than the
state of that name was given when ad-
mitted in 1896. The rext change was the
admission of Missouri as a state in 1920
under the famous Missouri Compromise
All the rest of the Louisiana purchase the
vast territory north and west of Missouri,
was left entirely without local government
until 1894, when that part of 1t east of the
Missouri river. and east of the tributary of
that river called the White Earth now in
North Dakota, was attached to the then
territory of Michigan: thus joining part of
the Louisiana purchase to part of the old
Louisiana purchase. west of Arkansas
Missouri and the Missouri river was still
left without local government and re-
manned so until the famous Kansas
Nebraska act of 1854.
In the Middle West
'In 1886 the state of Michigan was adj
United, and the territory of Wisconsin
created, including all of the territory of
Michigan except the present state. and
therefore extending from Lake Michigan
to the Missouri and White Earth rivers.
In 1893 the territory of Iowa was set off
leaving to Wisconsin, besides it's present ex-
tent, the part of Minnesota east of the
Mississippi river and of line drawn from
its headwaters to the international bound
airy line. but Wisconsin was cut down to
its present bounds when it was admitted in
1S4S. having still earlier lost the upper
peninsula on the northeast and the part
given to Illinois on the south. This terri
tory of Iowa remained with this extent
until 1916. when Iowa. after a struggle
with Congress like, but more successful
than. that of Michigan, was admitted to
the Union with its present boundaries.
The territory north of Iowa and east OF
the Missouri was without local govern
ment until 1s49 when Minnesota was
created as a territory. 1t included that
part of the two Dakotas east of the Mis-
souri, river
1.-The laws of the Northwest territory,
prior to 1900. and the laws of Indiana ter
ritory, prior to 1902 were as much laws
of Illinois as We're ever the laws of Ill-
nois herself. In the same way the laws
of Michigan territory, after 1884 and prior
to 1896, We're the laws of Iowa and Min
nesota, they being then a part of Michi-
gan territory. and her laws were in effect
out there. provided there was anything for
them to have effect upon. In this way 1t
comes about that boundary lines are of so
much Importance in making complete sets
of statute books for any particular state.
Of Value to Historians.
'"These old books, which are now so scarce,
are OF the utmost value to historical stu
dents as original sources for American his
tory though until recently they have not