Year: 1868




The st. Louis Democrat of Monday re-
ports that the steamer Great Republic
which cost s26O,OoO, was put up for sale
the other day by the United States Marshal,
and only $4,000 was bid for her. The
Marshal made the following return of the
sale to the court:


That he executed the writ by publishing
notice of sale of the within named steam
boat, ETC., by advertisement in the St.
Louis papers, Cincinnati Commercial and
Pittsburg Commercial, daily twenty DAYS,
as herein ordered. And at the time and
place named in said notice, fearing that
from combination of bidders that said
vessel would be sacrificed, l notified all
parties that unless should receive fair.
reasonable bid, that l would not put said
boat up for sale, that reserved the right
to refuse all and any bids not deemed rea-
sonable; that Captain Henry Symmes of
fOred the sum Of S25,000; that l promptly
told hlm would not receive said offer or
put the vessel up at that sum; that ii any
one would advance on the sum of $50 600
| would put her up and sell her. No one
bid or offered anything but said Symmes.
After seeking for bids, and no other bid
being made, and believing that if put
said boat up no higher bid would be re-
ceived or made, and at the earnest request
and desire OF the parties in interest present
and their counsel, l declined to put up or
sell said vessel for want OF bidders.


The attorney for Captain Symmes ap-
peared before the District Court Monday.
and filed the following motion to amend
the Marshal's return:


W. FL. Brown vs.. steamboat Great Re
public.-Now at this day comes Henry
Symmes, the purchaser of the steamboat
Great Republic, at a sale of said boat.
made on the twenty-seventh day of Noyem-
Der, 1868, under order of this court here
tofore made, and says hat said boat was
duly advertised for sale in pursuance of
said order, and in pursuance of said order
and adverti> ement the said boat was mt
up at public auction, and offered for sale
to the highest bidder by the United States
Marshal on the day last aforesaid that the
said Henry Symmes bid the sum of thirty
thousand dollars for said boat; that for some
time after said bid the boat was still offer
ed for sale by said Marshal, but that no
one else bid more than the said sum of
thirty thousand dollars, his being the cnly
bid for that amount, and so he says he was
the highest and best bidder for said boat;
he asks, therefore, that the Marshal NAV be
required to amend his return on said order
of sale, so as to show that the said steam
boat-Great Republicans regularly Of
fered for sale in accordance with the re-
quirements of said sale, and that the said
Henry Symmes was the highest and best
bidder; and that he became the purchaser
thereof for the sum of thirty thousand dol
lars.


This motion was argued by Colonel
Broadhead, who contended that the sale
having been administered, and Captain
Symmes being the highest and best bidder
was entitled to the possession of the boat.
A number of the 1ibellants were present at
the sale and had an opportunity to protect
their claims by advancing the bids. q


Mr.. Rankin and Mr.. Hart opposed the
motion, and claimed that the sale was not
in accordance with the order of the court.
The court had ordered the boat to be sold
"at Carondelet,p whereas the boat was not
within th limits of Carondelet when sold,


Judge treat said that If, as was alleged,
the libellants were present and permitted
the vessel TO be sold at smaller sum than
was required 10 cover their claims, the
fault was their own and they could not
claim the protection of the court. He
stated that he would hear the testimony on
Wednesday next, when the matter would
be disposed of. er---s.