BOTANICAL INDEX 
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literary and musical superiority, renders Cincinnati the first city in the great central, 
North American plateau, — the Queen City of the West, 
But our special object in this article is to talk of the beauties and charms of that 
■wonderful City of the Dead, adjoining Cincinnati, — Sprino Grove Cemetery. Still, 
as this place is entirely the result of the proximity of a large ami wealthy city, and 
its future improvements depends largely upon the prosperity of the city, we will de- 
vote a small portion of this article to a brief historical description of Cincinnati, as 
gathered from the popularly accepted histories, together with the causes that led to 
the settlement. 
Fig. 192. Cincinnati in 1810. 
Although the close of the war for American Independence found the country com- 
pletely exhausted, financially, it also found the colonies engaged in an unnatural and 
uncalled for strife for possession of the unsettled, and as yet almost unknown, pub- 
lic domain west of the Alleghany mountains. But not only was each colonial gov- 
ernment striving (perhaps conspiring would be a better word,) to obtain possession 
of as large a share of the new territory as possible, but, also, in each colony, and in 
almost every city there were organized companies to obtain possession of some of 
the unoccupied new land, which was reported to be of such marvelous fertility. A 
large portion of these anxious emigrants had served in the Revolutionary army 
with merit and distinction, but for their seven or eight years of service and priva- 
tions had received no moneyed compensation of any real value, and in addition, a 
large number had lost by the war all they formerly possessed, so that they must of 
necessity commence anew the battle for life and subsistence. These men claimed, 
and it must be acknowledged with seeming justice, that by rights this unoccupied 
land should be the common property of those who had given their services and 
risked their lives to obtain a national freedom, and accordingly made many at- 
tempts to obtain possession. It was during these dark and gloomy times that 
John Cleve Symmes, the then Chief Justice of New Jersey, purchased for him- 
self and associates from the General Government 2,000,000 acres of land on the 
north bank of the Ohio river, from the Big Miami to the Little Miami rivers, in the 
Ohio country, for 66J cents per acre, payable principally in the then almost worthless 
Continental scrip, (paper money issued by the Continental Congress). Judge 
Symmes’ first proposition was dated August 29, 1787, but so anxious was he to 
survey and settle it up, that he started west before the sale was consummated, 
which created a strong suspicion of an intention of obtaining forcible possession 
of a portion of the country. Orders were accordingly issued by the Government 
to the military commander at Pittsburgh to dispossess him, which, however, only 
had the effect of delaying the settlement one or two years. In 17S8 Judge Svmmes 
reached Marietta, the only settlement on the Ohio River between Pittsburgh 
and Louisville, and there sold to Major Ben Stites and 18 or 20 associates, also 
