MISSISSIPPI SCHEME 



3854 



MISSOURI 



true, the "Father of Waters" may see restored 

 the period of romance and of glory. J.R. 



Consult Chambers' The Mississippi River and 

 Its Wonderful Valley; Shea's Discovery and Ex- 

 ploration of the Mississippi Valley. 



MISSISSIPPI SCHEME, known also as the 

 "Mississippi Bubble," a gigantic financial 

 scheme projected in Paris in 1717 by John Law, 

 a Scotchman. The object of this experiment 

 was to secure money for France to pay war 

 debts and other national obligations which fol- 

 lowed upon the reign of Louis XIV. The sys- 

 tem, as stated by Law, was to create and formu- 

 late a vast association for trade, to be known as 

 the Mississippi Company. The French govern- 

 ment granted to the company the territory of 

 Louisiana, then an indefinite region, and also 

 lent its credit to the bank. The company was 

 incorporated in 1717, and 200,000 shares were 

 placed on the market and eagerly purchased, 

 the people of France going wild in a fever of 

 speculation. It was claimed that mountains of 

 gold and precious stones had been found, and 

 the shares of the association rose to fabulous 

 prices. The inflated scheme, which was to 

 make everybody happy and rich, collapsed in 

 July, 1720, when the bank stopped payment and 

 Law was compelled to flee from the country, 

 while the investors found themselves facing 

 financial ruin. See LAW, JOHN. 



MISSOULA, mi zoo 'la, MONT., the county 

 seat of Missoula County and a distributing 

 point of importance in its territory. It is in the 

 western part of the state, midway between the 

 northern and southern state lines, and on the 

 Missoula River. Helena, the state capital, is 

 120 miles east and south, Butte is 120 miles 

 southeast, and Spokane, Wash., is 257 miles 

 northwest. Railway transportation is provided 

 by the Northern Pacific and the Chicago, 

 Milwaukee & Saint Paul railways. Missoula 



was founded in 1864 and was incorporated in 

 1884; it was the first city in Montana to adopt 

 the commission form of government (1910). In 

 that year the population was 12,869; in 1916 it 

 was 18,214 (Federal estimate). The area of 

 the city exceeds four square miles, 



Missoula is the commercial outlet of Bitter 

 Root Valley, by irrigation made beautiful and 

 productive of agricultural produce, especially 

 fruits and grains. The industries of the city 

 are dependent upon the agricultural, lumber 

 and mining resources of the locality. Large 

 shipments of the finest fruit of the Northwest, 

 grain, hay, lumber, wool and live stock, are sent 

 from this point, and its lumber mills employ 

 over 1,000 men. Missoula has a $175,000 Fed- 

 eral building; a courthouse, erected at a cost 

 of $205,000; a Masonic Temple; a Knights of 

 Pythias Building; Saint Patrick's Hospital, one 

 of the best-equipped institutions of its kind in 

 the West, and the Northern Pacific Railway 

 Hospital. The University of Montana, Acad- 

 emy of the Sacred Heart, Roman Catholic high 

 school for boys and the Missoula Business and 

 Normal College, offer educational advantages, 

 in addition to the public schools. In the vi- 

 cinity is Fort Missoula, a United States mili- 

 tary post. 



The name Missoula was given to the settle- 

 ment by the Flathead tribe of Indians, and 

 means at the water oj ambush; here, at the en- 

 trance to Hell Gate Canon, behind rocks and 

 willows, the Indians were accustomed to attack 

 the enemy. Throughout the state, however, 

 Missoula is known as the Garden City, because 

 of its rich gardens and abundance of flowers. 

 On account of its mountain scenery, its loca- 

 tion on the National Parks Highway and the 

 many trout streams in the vicinity, it is rap- 

 idly growing in popularity as a resort for 

 tourists. 



THE STORYOF MISSOURI 



.ISSOURI, misoo'ri, or mizoo'ri, a and progress of the country. Lying in the 



state of the west-central group of the American fertile Mississippi basin, the state has agricul- 



Union, rich in natural resources and occupying tural resources of vast extent, but these are not 



a conspicuous position in the trade, industry its only source of wealth. The Ozark and Iron 



