MISSOURI. 



567 



not be, and the committee point out the urgent 

 necessity for erecting new asylums, or enlarg- 

 ing the existing ones. In all the institutions 

 there is a sitting-room for each hall. All these 

 sitting-rooms are now provided with cots. It 

 was originally intended that each patient should 

 have a small, separate room ; but the pressure 

 upon the asylums has caused this to be aban- 

 doned, and in some of the buildings as many as 

 eight patients are now quartered in one room, 

 and the halls are provided with cots, in which 

 patients sleep at night, but which have to be 

 removed in the day. The cost to the State of 

 the 1,150 patients in the asylums is about fifty 

 cents a day each. 



The State has been rid of a notorious band 

 of robbers by the efficiency of Governor Crit- 

 tenden. He alludes to the subject in his mes- 

 sage to the State Legislature, and says : 



I paid $20,000 in rewards to various persons for the 

 capture and overthrow of this band of desperadoes, 

 not one dollar of which was taken from the State 

 Treasury. It is not probable that Missouri will again 

 be cursed and disgraced by the presence of such a 

 band of men, confederated together for desperate pur- 

 poses. It is fully redeemed and acquit of that unwar- 

 ranted appellation of " robber State." But an insig- 

 nificant number of people in two or three counties 

 gave countenance to such lawlessness. Our people, 

 with one accord, heartily approve of the measures 

 and means employed to compel these violators of the 

 law to confess its power and majesty, and applaud 

 the stern, unbending determination of the officers 

 who contributed so much to the fulfillment of that 

 purpose. 



It is done ; and Missouri is to-day one of the most 

 peaceful States in the Union. Fewer crimes are com- 

 mitted within her borders than in those of surround- 

 ing States. 



Since my inauguration, three other lawless bands 

 were formed and operated in different portions of the 

 State. The " Meyers gang," composed of six men, was 

 organized in New Madrid County for the purposes of 

 robbery and murder. Within a few weeks after its 

 formation two of its members were shot to death 

 while resisting arrest, two were captured, tried under 

 the law and executed, and the other two were sent to 

 the Penitentiary for their crimes. 



A band known as the "Mason gang" was organ- 

 ized in Adair County, for the purpose of robbing 

 banks and committing other crimes. It consisted of 

 four men, under the leadership of Frank Mason. In 

 the month of June, 1882, they robbed a bank at 

 Brookfield, Mo. Within one week from the date of 

 the robbery these men were captured, indicted, tried, 

 and sentenced to twenty-five years' imprisonment 

 each in the Penitentiary. The Lewis brothers formed 

 a band in Jasper County for similar purposes. With- 

 in a few weeks after commencing their lawless career 

 they were captured and are now in jail awaiting 



A system of " high license " has for some 

 time been in operation in the State. It seems 

 to have been successful, as appears by the fol- 

 lowing facts: In Oarrollton, a town of 2,500 

 inhabitants, there are only six saloons, which 

 pay a revenue of $3,000 half enough, prob- 

 ably, to meet all the expenses of the city gov- 

 ernment. In Clarksville, with a population of 

 2,500, there are only two saloons, which pay 

 $600 each. In Carthage there are four, which 

 pay $800 each. In Fulton there are three, 

 which pay $3,763 a year to the city quite 



one half the whole revenue, if not more. In 

 Higginsville there are four, which pay $1,600 

 a year. In Kirksville there are two, which 

 pay in a revenue of $1,400. In Louisiana there 

 are seven, which pay $4,800 a year. In Lamar 

 there are four, which pay $2,400 a year. In 

 Maysville there are eight, which pay $9,000 a 

 year. In Mexico there are four, which pay 

 $5,200 a year. In Marshall there are four, 

 which pay $2,400 a year. In Linneus there is 

 one, which pays $600 a year. In Neosho there 

 are two, which pay $1,000 a year. 



In those towns where the number of saloons 

 is much greater the revenue yielded by them 

 is much smaller, and it may be added that the 

 general results are less satisfactory. Thus 

 Boonville has ten saloons, which yield only 

 $1,257 in the aggregate. Cape Girardeau has 

 twenty-three, but the revenue from them all is 

 only $1,725, less than half as much as Fulton 

 derives from four. Fayette has eight, which 

 yield only $793. Hermann has fourteen, which 

 only yield $210. Jefferson City has twenty- 

 seven, which yield only $1.295. Kansas City 

 has two hundred and thirty-nine, which pay 

 $46,000. Lexington has sixteen,' which pay 

 $1,600. Sedalia has thirty-three, which pay 

 $3,730 about the same as Fulton derives from 

 four. St. Charles has twenty-eight, which pay 

 $1,120. St. Joseph has one hundred and eighty, 

 which pay $12,000. 



It would appear clear enough from this that 

 the greater the number of saloons in a place 

 the less aggregate revenue they pay, and that 

 the most effective way of securing substantial 

 revenue from them is to charge them a license 

 so high as to reduce the number. 



The State election, held in November, was 

 for the choice of a Judge of the Supreme 

 Court, a Railroad Commissioner, and a Super- 

 intendent of Schools. 



For Supreme Court Judge Sherwood, Dem- 

 ocrat, 198,620; "Wagner, Republican, 128,239; 

 Rice, Greenback, 33,407. 



Railroad Commissioner Harding, Demo- 

 crat, 202,137; Hunt, Republican, 125,591; 

 Ritchey, Greenback, 32,576. 



Superintendent of Schools Coleman, Dem- 

 ocrat, 202,855; Hill, Republican, 124,759; 

 Booth, Greenback, 32,264. 



Sherwood's plurality over Wagner, 70,381 ; 

 majority over all, 36,974. 



Harding's plurality over Hunt, 76,546 ; ma- 

 jority over all, 43,970. 



Coleman's plurality over Hill, 78,096; ma- 

 jority over all, 45,832. 



The constitutional amendment increasing 

 the number of Judges of the Supreme Court 

 to six, and dividing the court into two branches, 

 was lost: yeas, 44,149; nays, 142,742. 



The Legislature chosen was divided as fol- 

 lows : 



