Iowa History

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History of Iowa

Volume III

CHAPTER IV

The Democratic State Convention was held at Des Moines on the 14th of June, 1871, and nominated for Governor, J. C. Knapp; for Lieutenant-Governor, M. M. Ham; Supreme Judge, John F. Duncombe; Superintendent Public Instruction, E. M. Mumm.  The resolutions declared in favor of universal amnesty, opposed the annexation of San Domingo, denounced the extravagance of the National Administration and demanded taxation of railroad property on the same basis as that of individuals.

The Republican State Convention assembled at Des Moines on the 21st of June and put in nomination the following candidates:  Governor, C. C. Carpenter; Lieutenant-Governor, H. C. Bulis; Judge of Supreme Court, James G. Day; Superintendent Public Instruction.  Alonzo Abernethy.  The platform declared for a tariff for revenue, for a uniform system of State taxation of individuals and corporations, for legislative control of railroads to prevent extortion, for the requisition of San Domingo by treaty, cordially approved and indorsed the administration of President Grant, also the State administration.

At the election of Republican candidates were chosen by a majority of about 42,000.

The Fourteenth General Assembly convened in January, 1872.  During the season previous to the election there had been carried on the most energetic and bitter contest over the choice of a Republican candidate for United States Senator ever known in the political history of the State.  Hon. James Harlan, whose term was soon to expire, was a candidate for reelection and, as it was practically certain that the Republicans would have a large majority in the Legislature to be chosen, the only contest that could arise would be before the joint Republican caucus which would select the candidate who should be elected by the General Assembly to be chosen at the October election.  This transferred the fight to the Republican party.  So warm was the contest that the supporters of the three candidates, in many of the Senatorial and Representative districts, made strenuous efforts to secure the nomination of candidates who, if elected, would vote for their choice for Senator.  These contests were waged with intense vigor and in many cases much bitterness.  As the campaign progressed almost the entire interest centered in the choice of members of the Legislature.  Most of the Republican papers made their choice for Senator known and gave him warm support.

The chief competitor of Senator Harlan was William B. Allison of Dubuque, who had two years before been defeated by Senator, Wright, in the Republican Legislative caucus.  James F. Wilson, of Fairfield, a former well known member of Congress from the First District, was also candidate.

As the time for election of members of the Legislature approached so warm had the contest become that several Republican candidates were defeated in Republican districts, owing to the defecting of voters who would not help to elect a candidate committed to the support of one of the candidates for United States Senator.

Senator Harlan had the active and earnest support of the Burlington Hawkeye, Sioux City Journal, Des Moines Republican and other of the leading daily papers of the State and of a majority of the Republican weeklies.  He was also warmly supported by a large majority of the Federal officers and old time Republican leaders of the State.  Mr. Allison on the other hand was supported by the State Register, the Dubuque Times and a large number of the most influential weeklies and generally by the younger men of the Republican party.  In addition he was the candidate of northern Iowa which had never been represented by a Republican in the Unite States Senate.  When the contest was transferred to the Capital where the Legislature was assembling, the city was crowded with the enthusiastic friends and supporters of the three candidates.  It was generally believed that either Harlan or Allison would be nominated, as Harlan had the warm support of a large majority of the Republicans of southern Iowa and if he could not be nominated it was evident that no other man in the southern part of the State could succeed.  It was equally certain that the supporters of Mr. Allison would stand by him to the end.  Thus, while Mr. Wilson was the intellectual equal of either of his competitors, a legislator who ranked high and was in every respect well equipped for the position, his success at this time was not anticipated by well informed persons.

In the heat of the conflict serious charges were made by enemies of Senator Harlan against his official conduct which left some bitterness in the hearts of his host of devoted friends.  As the first Republican United States Senator from Iowa, always true to the great cause of human freedom upon which that parry was founded, for many years one of the most influential leaders in the Senate, a trusted friend of Lincoln and Grant, no man in the State possessed in a greater degree the confidence, esteem and admiration of the Republicans of Iowa than Senator Harlan.  Had his home been in the northern part of the Senate his success would have been assured.  Locality largely decided the contest.

The joint caucus met on the 10th of January, 1872, and on the informal ballot the vote stood as follows:

On the third ballot the vote was:

giving the nomination to Mr. Allison by a majority of six votes over both of his competitors.

The Fourteenth General Assembly convened on the 8th of January, 1872.  Robert Lowery of Scott County, was chosen President pro term of the Senate.  In the House James Wilson of Tama County was elected Speaker.  On the 11th, the General Assembly met in joint convention and inaugurated Governor C. C. Carpenter and Lieutenant-Governor Bulis.  Governor Carpenter delivered his inaugural address and on the 15th Lieutenant-Governor Bulis was installed President of the Senate.  On the 16th of January William B. Allison was elected United States Senator for six years from the 4th of March, 1873, receiving the votes of all of the Republican members; Joseph C. Knapp received the votes of the Democratic members of the General Assembly.

Under the recent census Iowa was entitled to nine members of the House of Representatives in Congress and the Legislature proceeded to apportion the State into nine Congressional Districts.

Amendments were made to the prohibitory liquor law curing some defects that had become apparent.  It was made the duty of the State Census Board to assess railroads for taxation.  It was provided that railroad companies should be released from all taxes heretofore assessed by local authorities.  An act was passed abolishing the death penalty as a punishment for crime.  Another act authorized a council of any incorporated town or city to levy a tax for the establishment of a free public library and its maintenance.  An act was passed to establish a board of Capitol Commissioners to take charge of the erection of the new State House.  Provisions was made for the establishment of an additional penitentiary at Anamosa.  A resolution passed the House to submit to a vote of the electors an amendment to the Constitution granting the right of suffrage to women.  It was defeated in the Senate by a vote of twenty-four to twenty-two, four senators being absent or not voting.  The General Assembly adjourned to meet on the third Wednesday in January, 1873, to complete the revision of the laws of the State.  Under an act of the Thirteenth General Assembly three commissioners had been appointed to revise the Statutes of the State.  The commissioners, W. H. Seevers, W. J. Knight and W. G. Hammond, were invited to sears on the floor of the two houses of the General Assembly to participate in considering and perfecting the new code.

The first political State Convention of the year was held on the 27th of March, 1872, at Des Moines by the Republicans, to select delegates to the National Republican Convention to nominate a candidate for President.  It adopted resolutions indorsing the administration of President Grant and instructing the delegates to vote for his re-nomination and to support James F. Wilson for Vice-President.

On the 23d of April a mass convention was held at Davenport to choose delegates to the Liberal National Convention called to meet at Cincinnati to nominate a candidate for President.  One hundred and fifty delegates were chosen to the National Convention and instructed to oppose the nomination of President Grant.  The resolutions declared for economy, amnesty, reform, and one term for the President.

The Democratic State Convention met at Des Moines on the 11th of June and elected delegates to the Democratic National Convention at Baltimore, also passed resolutions indorsing the platform and candidate of the Liberal Republicans made at Cincinnati.  On the 1st of August the Democrats and Liberal Republicans united in holding a State Convention at Des Moines and agreed upon the following candidates for State officers:  Secretary of State, E. A. Guilbert; Treasurer, M. J. Rohlfs; Auditor, J. P. Cassady; Attorney-General, A. G. Case; Register Land Office, Jacob Butler.

The Republican State Convention was held at Des Moines on the 21st of August and nominated for Secretary of State, Josiah T. Young; Treasurer, Wm. Christy; Auditor, John Russell; Attorney-General, M. E. Cutts; Register Land Officer, Aaron Brown.  No important resolutions announcing new issues were adopted by the various political conventions that year.

The election resulted in the success of the Republican candidates by an average majority of about 57,500.  On Secretary of State the vote was as follows:  for Guilbert, Democrat and Liberal Republican, 74,497; for Wright, regular Republican, 132,359; Republican majority, 57,862.

The first National Convention for the nomination of candidates for President and Vice-President this year was that of the Labor Reform party, which assembled at Columbus, Ohio, on 21st for February.  Twelve States were represented, including Iowa.

The platform declared for a National currency issued directly by the General Government without the intervention of banks, the currency to be legal tender for all purposes; public lands to be granted free to landless settlers; modification of the tariff as to the taxation of luxuries and free trade in articles of necessity not produced in this country; prohibition of Chinese immigration; an eight hour law for laborers; abolition of contract labor in prisons; regulation of railroad and telegraph charges by law; limiting the term of the President to four years; general amnesty for all persons engaged in the late war; subjection of the military to civil authority; opposition to the exemption of Government bonds from taxation.  Judge David Davis of the United States Supreme Court was nominated for President and Governor Joel Parker of New Jersey for Vice-President.  Both candidates declined the nominations and Charles O'Connor of New York was substituted as candidate for President, the other vacancy was not filled.

A National Convention of the colored race was held at New Orleans on the 15th of April at which thirteen Stares were represented.  Frederick Douglass presided.  The convention warmly indorsed the administration of President Grant and favored his reelection.  It also declared allegiance to the principles of the Republican parry which had given freedom to the slaves.

A National convention of "Liberal Republicans" assembled at Cincinnati on the 1st of May and adopted a platform in which the following declarations were the most important:  equality of all men before the law; endorsement of the late amendments to the National Constitution; universal amnesty; supremacy of the civil over military authority; radical civil service reform; maintenance of the public credit and a speedy return to specie payment; preservation of the public lands for actual settlers; cultivation of peaceful relations with all foreign nations.  Horace Greeley of the New York Tribune was nominated for President on the sixth ballot over Charles Francis Adams, Lyman Trumbull, David Davis and others.  B. Gratz Brown of Missouri was nominated for Vice-President.

The regular Republican National Convention assembled at Philadelphia on the 5th of June and nominated President Grant for reelection by acclamation.  Henry Wilson of Massachusetts was nominated for Vice-President on the first ballot.  A lengthy series of resolutions was adopted reaffirming the well-known principles of the party.

The Democratic National Convention met at Baltimore on the 9th of July, and nominated Horace Greeley for President and B. Gratz Brown for Vice-President and adopted a platform similar to that of the Liberal Republicans in all important declarations.

Other so-called National Conventions were held, one by Democrats at Louisville, which nominated Charles O'Connor for President; another at the same place by colored men, which indorsed the nominations of Greeley and Brown.

In Iowa the Presidential campaign was contested between the supporters of the regular Republican ticket and the united Democrats and Liberal Republicans, the other candidates receiving an insignificant vote.  The result of the State vote in the Presidential election was as follows:

Grant's majority over Greeley was 60,1`14.  The number of Republicans in Iowa who voted for Greeley could not have been more than three hundred and ninety-seven, as the vote for Grant lacked but seven hundred and ninety-three of being as large as that for Young, Republican candidate for Secretary of State; while about 2,166 Democrats withheld their votes from Greeley.  Grant's majority exceeded that for the Republican State ticket.  The result of the Presidential election in the country was as follows on the popular vote:

giving Grant over Greeley 762,991. Of the electoral votes Grant received two hundred and eighty-six to eighty opposition; Greeley having died before the Electoral College met, this vote was scattered among several person.

The Fourteenth General Assembly met in adjourned session on the 15th of January, 1872, and proceeded to consider the new code of laws reported by the Commissioners, making some amendments and enacting it into law.

Rumors had been circulated for some months of a defalcation in the State Treasurer's office.  Major Samuel E. Rankin whose term as Treasurer had expired on the 1st of January, sent a communication to the Senate in which he acknowledged having  used the funds of the State Agricultural College, of which he had long been treasurer.  He had assigned to that institution all of his available property to secure the college against loss.  In his confession he made the following statement:

"A few years ago when times were good and money easy to obtain on loan, I invested my means in land and other property and in business and borrowed money for the same purpose and in some cases bought partly on time.  Some of these investments did not prove profitable and especially the business in which I had invested the largest amount, but as money was easy I had no difficulty in procuring extension of time on my notes as they became due.  I held on to my property believing that in a short time I could dispose of it all a profit; but within the last six months times changed, business became dull and money scarce, those to whom I was indebted needed their money and required payment and, relying in part upon promise of money to borrow, and in part upon the belief that I could obtain the money by sale or mortgage of my property before it would be needed by the College, I used their funds."

Upon receipt of this communication a joint committee was appointed consisting of three members of the House and two of the Senate to make a thorough investigation of the affair.  At the close of the investigation the following facts were found:  Major Rankin had been successively elected treasurer of the college for five years but in 1869, 1871 and in 1872 no bond had been given as required by law.  Early in 1869 he began to use the college money unlawfully for his own purposes, first in small amounts which he replaced, and afterward in larger amounts which were retained.  On the 25th of January, 1871, the college treasury had become empty and the aggregate amount abstracted had reached $36,000.  He then resorted to the State Treasury to meet drafts from the college for the sum of $38,500 which had been appropriated for the use of that institution by the Legislature.  A warrant to meet this requisition was paid and the amount placed to the credit due the college and this enabled the Treasurer to meet all demands until December, 1872, when a draft for $3,000 was received and paid out of the State funds, this deficiency being afterward made up by Major Rankin.  After that time there was no evidence of misappropriation of the funds.  When the defalcation became known to the trustees of the college they appointed a committee to take steps to secure it against loss.  This committee settled with Rankin, taking his obligation for the amount of the deficit and an assignment of all his real and personal property except household furniture.  This was done under the advice of the Governor and the Attorney-General.  In concluding the report, the committee of the General Assembly said:

"From all the facts developed in this investigation the committee feels compelled, however unpleasant the duty may be, to say that in its opinion, while Major Rankin has probably made himself criminally liable for an infraction of the law, yet the several boards of trustees who were entrusted by the people to execute the laws in regard to the college are morally responsible for the losses sustained and should be so regarded by the people.  While each and every member of the board of trustees in office at the time and every officer of the college should be held liable to some extent to the bar of public opinion for the embarrassment caused and losses sustained by the defalcation of the late Treasurer, yet we are constrained to say that some of them should be held to more rigid accountability than others.  About midsummer, 1869, the then chief executive officer of the State, who was also ex-officio member of the Board of Trustees, had his suspicions aroused and opened a correspondence with the president of the college and secretary of the board in regard to the official bonds of the officers.  In this correspondence he received information which should have led him, as Governor of the State and a member of the Board of Trustees, to act promptly and energetically but he let the matter drop and we hear no more of him in this connection until some time in December, 1872, when at a meeting between a committee of the college board and Major Rankin he very innocently told them, 'that the responsibility was theirs and they must shoulder it.'  The president of the college, although the chief executive of the institution, seems to have paid but little or no attention to the warnings he had received from Governor Merrill."

During the summer of 1873 some fifteen counties in the northwestern part of the State were visited by immense swarms of grasshoppers, surpassing in numbers any similar visitation before experienced.  Crops were devoured, leaving thousands of farmers destitute of the means of subsistence or seed for the next season's crops.  Many of the settlers in that section were of limited means who had recently settled on homesteads and were entirely dependent upon farm produce for subsistence for the coming year.  Without liberal assistance form other parts f the State they would be compelled to abandon their homes.  The Granges in various parts of the State collected grain, provisions and money which were distributed among the most needy.  Hundreds of these farmers had been soldiers in the late war, had recently made homes on the wild prairies and were just beginning to erect buildings and bring a portion of their homesteads under cultivation.  As winter approached their situation became desperate and as there was no session of the Legislature to provide for the emergency private citizens were obliged to come to their relief.  In order to establish an effective system for the collection of supplies and provide for an equitable and judicious distribution, General N. B. Baker, the well-known Adjutant-General of the State,  volunteered to superintend the work.  He appealed to the people at large to contribute of their money, clothing, provisions and seed grain to help their unfortunate fellow citizens.  He arranged with the railroads to carry all contributions at very low rates to the various points selected for distribution.  The people responded generously and, with the aid of an efficient corps of assistants, the good work was carried on for months.  Thousands of the settlers were by this aid enabled to remain on their homesteads, sustaining their families on the absolute necessaries of life, until another crop could be raised.

The attempt of the General Assembly in 1870 to fix by law maximum rates for the transportations of freight by railroads was earnestly pressed upon the members by the farmers of the State and was also urged but with less determination by grain and lumber dealers.  Exorbitant rates had been exacted by the western roads on the plea that the country along their lines was sparsely settled and high rates must, in consequence, be charged enable the western roads to pay fair dividends on the capital invested in their construction and operation.  It was urged on the other hand that the rates charged took so large a portion of the value of farm products, that the producers in many cases realized from their crops less than the cost of production.  The rates on coal, lumber, farm machinery and all good brought to the farms from distant regions were also exorbitant and, as the freight both ways was ultimately paid by the farmers, they felt the burdens imposed upon them to be oppressive, leaving them but a bare living and often a load of debt at the close of a year of toil.  When the attempt before the Legislature in 1870 failed to give them relief, the farmers conferred together to devise some plan to cooperation whereby the burden could be lifted from their chosen vocation.

A secret organization had been instituted having its origin in the District of Columbia and known as "The Patrons of Husbandry."  The aim of this organization was to secure cooperation among farmers in all ways wherein they could be mutually helpful.  Each local organization was known as a "Grange."  Meetings were held at stated times at which plans were made for cooperation in buying groceries, lumber, wire, coal and such other articles as were largely purchased by farmers.  Agencies were established for the purchase of farm supplies in large quantities, thus enabling individual farmers to order what they might need, the articles being furnished them by these agencies at wholesale prices less actual expense incurred in maintaining the agency.  In the same way farm products were delivered at the agency, sold in Chicago or New York for a price equal to that obtained by the local produce buyer and the profit he had heretofore made was saved to the farmers, less the small expense of the agents' salary.  Those local Granges were gradually established through the State but more numerous by far in the great grain and live stock producing regions of the middle west.

In 1872 the number of local Granges in Iowa was more than five hundred and new Granges were being organized every week.  A State Grange was established known as the Iowa State Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry which was composed of delegates from the local Granges and held annual meetings.  A State Lecturer was chosen who traveled about explaining the principles of the order and assisting in organizing local Granges.  Councils were established by several local Granges cooperating and these councils were the executive body through which the business of buying, selling and shipping was transacted.  While the Patrons of Husbandry abstained from engaging in partisan politics, they became a power in securing legislation in the interest of the producers of the country where they came in conflict with the powerful corporations engaged in the transportation of farm products and supplies.  They could, through their Granges, ascertain whether candidates for Congress and the State Legislature were favorable to the measures which they regarded as essential to their prosperity or were likely to favor the corporations which they regarded as hostile to their principles and thus, by working together, often turned an election in favor of friendly candidates.  The subject of transportation was one in which they were most vitally interested and here they came in conflict with the powerful railroad corporations.  When the active agitation of the control and fixing of rates for transportation, by act of the Legislature began, there were but few railroads in the State.  All communities were desirous of securing railroads as they were essential to the development and prosperity of both town and country.    The first aim of citizens was to encourage the building of railroads and in addition to the land grants of the general Government, free right of way and local aid by voting taxes, were common inducements tendered to the construction companies by various towns, cities and farm communities.  Such localities were unwilling to have any "hostile legislation," as it was termed, that would retard railroad building so that this influence was for many years used to defeat legislative control by limiting or fixing rates for transportation.  The combined influence of the corporations and these communities was so powerful that many years elapsed before the reform could be accomplished.  During the period when the conflict was most determined it is generally conceded that no one agency was so powerful in molding public opinion as the Grange.

The Granges also did a good work in promoting a spirit of sociability among families in rural neighborhoods.  Women became deeply interested in the meetings and were important factors in the social work. Their home and household duties were talked over at these gatherings which became educational as well as social.  The order of Patrons of Husbandry had a permanent helpful influence upon hundreds of farm neighborhoods in bringing the people into closer relations with each other and thus disseminating various improvements in farm and household labors.  They were also valuable in introducing into the rural districts a general knowledge of conducting public as well as private business.  Their tendency was to elevate the aims of the country people by the introduction of improvements among them both educational and cooperative.  In Iowa, General William Duane Wilson was for several years State Lecturer, and through his work and influence there were more local Granges established in Iowa than in any other State.

The two principal political parties found it necessary to incorporate in their platforms a recognition and endorsement of the demand made by the farmers through the Grange movement for the Legislative control of railroads and the establishment by law of reasonable charges for transportation.

On the 25th of June, 1873, the State Convention of the Republican party was held at Des Moines, and in its platform gave special attention to the demands of the farmers in relation to the transportation problems.  It declared for the protection by law of the interests of the people in the granting of all franchises by legislation.  The third resolution was as follows:

Resolved:  that the producing, commercial and industrial interests of the country should have the best and cheapest modes of transportation possible and, while actual capital invested in such means of transit, whether by railroad or otherwise should be permitted the right of reasonable remuneration, any abuse in their management, excessive rates, oppressive discriminations against localities, persons, or interests, should be corrected by law and we demand Congressional and Legislative enactments that will control and regulate the railroads of the country and give to the people fair rates of transportation and protect them against existing abuses.

Another resolution denounced the political corruptions of public officials recently exposed by congressional investigations in relation to the "Credit-Mobilier" and official misconduct, and the punishment of unfaithful public men.  The sixth resolution condemned the "back-pay steal" of Congress, denounced all member who voted for or received the money thus appropriated and demanded the repeal of the act.  The last resolution expressed a desire for political reform and honesty, purity and economy in all official administration and declared it the duty of every Republican to oppose the election of a bad or incompetent candidate whether he be upon our own or any ticket.  Governor Carpenter, Judge J. M. Beck and Superintendent Alonzo Abernethy were renominated, and Joseph Dysart was nominated for Lieutenant-Governor.

The regular Democratic party of the State held no convention but united with the new Antimonopoly party which held a convention at Des Moines on the 13th of August and adopted a platform embracing the following declarations upon the issue most prominent before the people:  in favor of Legislative and Congressional control of all corporations, to prevent their becoming engines of oppression; in favor of the property of all corporations being assessed and taxed as that of individuals; in favor of the Legislature fixing a maximum rate of freight to be charged by railroads and such modification of the banking system as to extend its benefits to the whole people; in favor of a modification of the tariff on a revenue basis with salt, iron, lumber, cotton and woolen fabrics free; in favor of the support of none but honest and competent men for office.  The resolutions demanded the repeal of the back salary act, a return to the treasury of the money drawn from it under that act and the reduction of all salaries to public officials.  The platform condemned the Credit-Mobilier steal and all other frauds and swindles by which Congressmen and other office-holders defraud the country.  The following candidates were placed in nomination:  Governor, Jacob Vail; Lieutenant-Governor, C. E. Whiting; Judge of the Supreme Court, Benton J. Hall; Superintendent of Public Instruction, D. W. Prindle.

A mass convention of the advocates of woman suffrage was held at Des Moines on the 4th of March, at which the following resolutions were adopted:

Resolved:  that we deeply regret that the Fourteenth General Assembly refused to submit the question of woman suffrage to a vote of the electors of the State but that we will still labor in the earnest and confident hope that our legislators will at an early day grant to all, without distinction of sex, an equal voice in the formation of laws and election of rulers.

Resolved:  that the action of the adjourned session of the Fourteenth General Assembly, in striking from our code of laws all legal disabilities expressed therein to the rights of women, save that of suffrage, is a move in the right direction and we feel it our duty to express our high appreciation of their action in that respect.

Resolved:  that we believe that the ballot in woman's hands will be used in favor of virtue against vice, in favor of purity against corruption, in favor of peace against dissension and so believing, call upon the friends of all parties to come forward.

Resolved:  that we observe with special gratification the rapid improvement in public sentiment concerning this movement and the attitude of the most prominent and influential newspapers of the State towards it, some of which are fearless advocates of the cause and nearly all of which give it respectful consideration.

The result of the election in October was the success of the Republican candidates by majorities ranging from 22,012 to 36,294.

The extension of lines of railroad westward from the Mississippi River,  where they made close connection with lines to Chicago, New York and the great seaports, had opened the interior prairie regions of Iowa to available settlement.  Stage lines conveyed passengers, mail and express in numerous directions from the termini of the Iowa railroads.  Freight lines were established by wagons to transport coal, lumber and goods to the chief towns of the interior and western portions of the State and return farm products to eastern markets.

The earlier settlers were now building frame houses, barns and better school-houses.  Pretentious business blocks, substantial churches, and tasteful private dwellings were beginning to take the place in city, village and country of the log structures which everywhere prevailed in earlier years.  Factories were relieving the overworked women by making cloth for the family garments.  Farmers were buying reapers to displace grain cradles and mowers were taking the place of scythes.

Pine lumber was floated down the Mississippi River in huge rafts supplying lumber for fencing, emancipating the land owners from the slavish toil of rail making and furnishing the material for frame buildings in place of the pioneer log cabins.  Improved breeds of domestic animals were introduced and spring wagons and carriages were gradually taking the place of the saddle horse and lumber wagon.

The Auditor's report showed the receipts of the State Treasurer, from November, 1871, to the same date in 1873, to be $2,129,577.51; the disbursements $2,180,100.69, leaving a balance of $32,217.66.  The amount of the permanent school fund was reported at $3,294,742.83.  The number of children of school age was 491,344, showing an increase in two years of 29,862.  The Soldiers' Orphans' Home supported five hundred and eight children in the three schools.  The number of miles of railroad completed in the State at the end of the year 1873 was reported at 3,800, of which four hundred and sixty-nine miles were constructed in the past two years.