Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-04-13
by Maj. Hoyt Sherman in Annals of

Very different manner from what 1t now
IS. AT the time referred to, drawing al
line from McGrsgor, Clayton county, on
the northeast border of the state. south
westwardly to Centervile. the capital
of the Hairy Nation" three-fourths of
the population of the state lived East
of that line. All west and northwest
was the boundless and almost uneN-
plored prairie, thru which the streams,
fringed with groves of timber. flowed
toward the Mississippi and Missouri
rivers. Stretched along these streams
and keeping under the friendly shelter
of the groves, We're the homes & Til,
few enterprising pioneers, who We're all
hoping and patiently waiting far the
good time coming when they would
have neighbours, schools. churches,
roads and all the usual comforts OF
western civilization. There were NOS
railroads in those days. no telephones,
,lostelegraphs, no pools OF differensials,
or traffic managers, or railroad COM
missioners. CT any other of the cen,pli-
Gated machinery of modern tvanspuria-
ton. All freight 10 towns on the Mis-
eissippi river was transported by
steamboats,. ard the counties back of
the river by the old familiar two-horse
team, or the equally familiar, tho
slower. three and four vokcs Of ,ixsn.
There was no surplus product Of any
kind to market as everything raised by
the settler In excess OF his nwil sirrple
wants was required by the npW oqmsr
until he had Tins to raise his aMi, crop.
The keeper of the general store had his
bank account in an sid stocking OF hair
trunk and as h was about the only
man who had money, ii Mas of course
decidedly poor picking for the regular
banker Of those days They We're few
in number ana were all located in the
river towns Their names were Charles
Parsons. af ksokuk, Coolbaush &
Brooks. Of Burlington. Green & Ston@.
of Muscatsrt Cook e sergeant5of DAY
export. W ]. Barney & Co, and Lang
worthy Bros. Of Dubuque
one OF the leading transactions If The
banker of that day, in fact the l9adins
one overriding all others in number
and profit, was that of entering land
or time that is. purchasing from the
government a tract Of land. prev.auslS
selected by the settler ~ speculai IL. al
the regular rate Of sl25 per acre and
selling 1T to him on one year < eresii. at
SITS an acre. That mean; 40 per cent
interest. From 251a 10 3 pr qeat pei.
month was ;hn current rate Of interest
but in transactions cs this character
40 per cent Was paid because it figured
out even change and hseause the Gus
toner could stsKid II. That rate If M
terest obtained FIR severat years in the
central and ives tern parts d the state
and could pe safely paid by land deal
ers. was only ocea Sienally .laa, a
regular bank discount was applied for
a that rate Of interest, al!t: then while
the customer received very little rioney
on his discount, ne had an abundance
OF sympathy
Back from the river towns a few en-
terprising men and firms called them
selves bankers. because it helped them
III the purchase of land warrants In the
eastern cities. and looked we'll on their
printed letter heads. Their principal
business, however, was entering land
en- time. nd buying gevernment land
for non president investors and spect1la-
tors a business call on them, at that
time, for a New York draft or a dis
count would have been received with a
stare of astonishment or treated as d
feeble joke. Many of these same men,
few years later, became Legitimate
bankers by the gradual development
from their land business, and thus were
the founders of prosperous ard we'll
established banks in existence today
Those We're the days. too, of Jaeksorian
principles in Iowa, for we had no banks
Ct issue, The circulating medium was
of many varieties-in gold, American
coin. English sovereigns, French TWEEN
ty-franc pieces and an occasional Span
tsh dcublonn. In silver, Spanish milled
collars and quarters. Mexican dollars
and French ffvefrane pieces-tfe latter
Very plenty and current for % cents. In
PAPER money. principally notes Of the
State Bank Of Ohio. Indiana and Bank
of Missouri. all solid and wall founded
iii public confidence. Besides these a
email quantity of eastern bank notes
we're in limited circulation, but were
looked upon with suspicion because ST
far away from the place of Issue. The
T-aited States land offices were the hus,
places. whore large nonev transactions
ware made in the purchase of govern.
rlent lands: and as only American coir
would be received there in payment fol
the public domain. those offices alb
sorbed all the supply; and In fact a
times the premium for American golt
. lscaiIit 81 STed- t.fltil IL was "a stecldedij
rrofita BILE business for bankers to dea
in It as kind of merchandise. Emf
grants and spectators from the IA
esatern states. attracted by the marvel
Gus and but little exaggerated stories o
the rich and bonntiful soil to be bough
of the government at a nominal price
would come out with drafts on New
York, Boston or Philadelphia bank
Clearing to assume the risk of carryin,
large sums in coin), and exchange thei
crafts at a heavy discount for gold witt
which to make their purchases of tn
government, the price then Of the rich
est and most productive land in tn
world. in an excellent climate, and in
state with promise of marvelou
growth, being only slips per acre; TIL
added discount to convert their draft
or eastern bank notes into coin was IN
nerest trife to them, while 1t gave /
the bankers an important source Z
front. These bankers not only realize
the premiums on the sale of gold coir
but the drafts or eastern bank note
were in the best possible shape for us
in renewing their supply of coin, and /
making the exchange called for by the
mercantile customers,
While the Mississippi and Ohio river
k1,n 49,,