+----------------------------------+------------+-------------+
| | No. of | Per cent of |
| County. |Illegitimate|Total Births.|
| | Births. | |
+----------------------------------+------------+-------------+
| Leinster-- | | |
| Carlow | 27 | 3.56 |
| Dublin | 34 | 1.15 |
| Dublin Co. Borough | 314 | 3.29 |
| Kildare | 22 | 1.46 |
| Kilkenny | 54 | 3.29 |
| King's | 24 | 2.07 |
| Longford | 11 | 1.23 |
| Louth | 27 | 2.01 |
| Meath | 30 | 2.27 |
| Queen's | 18 | 1.70 |
| Westmeath | 19 | 1.57 |
| Wexford | 89 | 4.11 |
| Wicklow | 37 | 2.91 |
| Munster-- | | |
| Clare | 23 | 1.04 |
| Cork Co. and Co. Borough | 151 | 1.69 |
| Kerry | 51 | 1.34 |
| Limerick Co. and Co. Borough | 107 | 3.14 |
| Tipperary N.R. | 19 | 1.49 |
| Tipperary S.R. | 66 | 3.32 |
| Waterford Co. and Co. Borough | 68 | 3.69 |
| Ulster-- | | |
| Antrim | 230 | 5.08 |
| Armagh | 99 | 3.49 |
| Belfast Co. Borough | 355 | 3.13 |
| Cavan | 27 | 1.54 |
| Donegal | 54 | 1.36 |
| Fermanagh | 41 | 3.15 |
| Londonderry Co. and Borough | 145 | 4.35 |
| Monaghan | 24 | 1.55 |
| Tyrone | 116 | 3.80 |
| Connaught-- | | |
| Galway | 32 | .80 |
| Leitrim | 10 | .77 |
| Mayo | 21 | .45 |
| Roscommon | 9 | .50 |
| Sligo | 9 | .52 |
+----------------------------------+------------+-------------+
| Leinster | 716 | 2.67 |
| Munster | 495 | 2.11 |
| Ulster | 1272 | 3.32 |
| Connaught | 81 | .60 |
| +------------+ |
| | 2564 | |
+----------------------------------+------------+-------------+
This latter conclusion may be carried further by saying that in those
European countries where elementary education is most common, the rate
of illegitimacy is high, and that it is low in the more illiterate
parts, e.g. Ireland and Brittany.
It has been said that one of the contributory causes of illegitimacy is
the contamination of great cities; statistics, however, disprove this,
there being more illegitimacy in the rural districts. Table VII. gives
the rate of illegitimacy in some of the principal towns of the United
Kingdom.
That poverty is a determining factor in causing illegitimacy the
following figures, giving the rate of illegitimacy in the poorest parts
of London and in certain well-to-do parts, clearly disprove:--
_Rate of Illegitimacy per 1000 Births._
+--------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| London. | 1901. | 1903. | 1905. | 1907. |
+--------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| Stepney | 12 | 9 | 18 | 10 |
| Bethnal Green | 13 | 15 | 13 | 11 |
| Mile End Old Town | 15 | 13 | 16 | 15 |
| Whitechapel | 22 | 24 | 19 | 19 |
| +-------+-------+-------+-------+
| St George's, Hanover Sq. | 40 | 45 | 45 | 45 |
| Kensington | 48 | 44 | 49 | 54 |
| Fulham | 43 | 42 | 45 | 40 |
| Marylebone | 182 | 186 | 198 | 182 |
+--------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
Tables VIII. and IX. give the rate of illegitimacy for the various
counties of Scotland, and Table X. the rate for Ireland.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.--The Annual _Reports_ of the Registrars-General for
England, Scotland and Ireland; statistical returns of foreign
countries; A. Leffingwell, _Illegitimacy and the Influence of the
Seasons upon Conduct_ (1892). (T. A. I.)
ILLER, a river of Bavaria, rising in the south-west extremity of the
kingdom, among the Algäuer Alps. Taking a northerly course, it quits the
mountains at Immenstadt, and, flowing by Kempten, from which point it is
navigable for rafts, forms for some distance the boundary between
Bavaria and Württemberg, and eventually strikes the Danube (right bank)
just above Ulm. Its total length is 103 m.
ILLINOIS, a North Central state of the United States of America,
situated between 37° and 42° 30´ N. lat. and 87° 35´ and 91° 40´ W.
long. It is bounded N. by Wisconsin, E. by Lake Michigan and Indiana,
S.E. and S. by the Ohio river, which separates it from Kentucky, and
S.W. and W. by the Mississippi river, which separates it from Missouri
and Iowa. The Enabling Act of Congress, which provided for the
organization of Illinois Territory into a state, extended its
jurisdiction to the middle of Lake Michigan and the Mississippi river;
consequently the total area of the state is 58,329 sq. m., of which 2337
sq. m. are water surface, though the official figures of the United
States Geological Survey, which does not take into account this
extension of jurisdiction, are 56,665 sq. m.
_Physiography._--Physiographically, the state (except the extreme
southern point) lies wholly in the Prairie Plains region. The N.E.
corner is by some placed in the "Great Lakes District." The southern
point touches the Coastal Plain Belt at its northward extension called
the "Mississippi Embayment." The surface of Illinois is an inclined
plane, whose general slope is toward the S. and S.W. The average
elevation above sea-level is about 600 ft.; the highest elevation is
Charles Mound (1257 ft.), on the Illinois-Wisconsin boundary line, one
of a chain of hills that crosses Jo Daviess, Stephenson, Winnebago,
Boone and McHenry counties. An elevation from 6 to 10 m. wide crosses
the southern part of the state from Grand Tower, in Jackson county, on
the Mississippi to Shawneetown, in Gallatin county, on the Ohio, the
highest point being 1047 ft. above the sea; from Grand Tower N. along
the Mississippi to the mouth of the Illinois there is a slight
elevation and there is another elevation of minor importance along the
Wabash. Many of the river bluffs rise to an unusual height, Starved
Rock, near Ottawa, in La Salle county, being 150 ft. above the bed of
the Illinois river. Cave in Rock, on the Ohio, in Hardin county, was
once the resort of river pirates. The country S. of the elevation
(mentioned above) between Grand Tower and Shawneetown was originally
covered with forests.
The drainage of Illinois is far better than its low elevation and
comparatively level surface would suggest. There are more than 275
streams in the state, grouped in two river systems, one having the
Mississippi, which receives three-fourths of the waters of Illinois,
as outlet, the other being tributary to the Wabash or Ohio rivers. The
most important river is the Illinois, which, formed by the junction of
the Des Plaines and the Kankakee, in the N.E. part of Grundy county,
crosses the N. central and W. portions of the state, draining 24,726
sq. m. At some points, notably at Lake Peoria, it broadens into vast
expanses resembling lakes. The Kaskaskia, in the S., notable for its
variations in volume, and the Rock, in the N., are the other important
rivers emptying into the Mississippi; the Embarrass and Little Wabash,
the Saline and Cache in the E., are the important tributaries of the
Wabash and Ohio rivers. The Chicago river, a short stream 1 m. long,
formed by the union of its N. and S. branches, naturally flowed into
Lake Michigan, but by the construction of the Chicago Drainage Canal
its waters were turned in 1900 so that they ultimately flow into the
Mississippi.
The soil of Illinois is remarkable for its fertility. The surface
soils are composed of drift deposits, varying from 10 to 200 ft. in
depth; they are often overlaid with a black loam 10 to 15 in. deep,
and in a large portion of the state there is a subsoil of yellow clay.
The soil of the prairies is darker and coarser than that of the
forests, but all differences disappear with cultivation. The soil of
the river valleys is alluvial and especially fertile, the "American
Bottom," extending along the Mississippi from Alton to Chester, having
been in cultivation for more than 150 years. Along the river bluffs
there is a silicious deposit called loess, which is well suited to the
cultivation of fruits and vegetables. In general the N. part of the
state is especially suited to the cultivation of hay, the N. and
central parts to Indian corn, the E. to oats, and the S.W. to wheat.
_Climate._--The climate of Illinois is notable for its extremes of
temperature. The warm winds which sweep up the Mississippi Valley from
the Gulf of Mexico are responsible for the extremes of heat, and the
Arctic winds of the north, which find no mountain range to break their
strength, cause the extremes of cold. The mean annual temperature at
Winnebago, near the N. border, is 47° F., and it increases to the
southward at the rate of about 2° for every degree of latitude, being
52° F. at Springfield, and 58° F. in Cairo, at the S. extremity. The
lowest temperature ever recorded in the state was -32° F., in February
1905, at Ashton in the N.W. and the highest was 115° F., in July 1901,
at Centralia, in the S., making a maximum range of 147° F. The range
of extremes is considerably greater in the N. than in the S.; for
example, at Winnebago extremes have ranged from -26° F. to 110° F. or
136° F., but at Cairo they have ranged only from -16° F. to 106° F. or
122° F. The mean annual precipitation is about 39 in. in the S.
counties, but this decreases to the northward, being about 36 in. in
the central counties and 34 in. along the N. border. The mean annual
snowfall increases from 12 in. at the S. extremity to approximately 40
in. in the N. counties. In the N. the precipitation is 44.8% greater
in spring and summer than it is in autumn and winter, but in the S.
only 26.17% greater. At Cairo the prevailing winds are southerly
during all months except February, and as far north as Springfield
they are southerly from April to January; but throughout the N. half
of the state, except along the shore of Lake Michigan, where they vary
from N.E. to S.W., the winds are mostly from the W. or N.W. from
October to March and very variable for the remainder of the year. The
dampness and miasma, to which so many of the early settlers' fatal
"chills and fever" were due, have practically disappeared before
modern methods of sanitary drainage.
_Fauna and Flora._--The fauna and flora, which are similar to those of
the other North Central States of North America, impressed the early
explorers with their richness and variety. "We have seen nothing like
this for the fertility of the land, its prairies, woods, and wild
cattle," wrote Père Jacques Marquette of the Illinois region, and
later explorers also bore witness to the richness of the country. Many
of the original wild animals, such as the bison, bear, beaver, deer
and lynx, have disappeared; wolves, foxes and mink are rare; but
rabbits, squirrels and raccoons are still common. The fish are mainly
the coarser species, such as carp, buffalo-fish and white perch; of
better food fish, the principal varieties are bass (black, striped and
rock), crappie, pike, "jack salmon" or wall-eyed pike, and sun fish.
The yield of the fisheries in 1900 was valued at $388,876. The most
important fisheries on the Illinois river and its tributaries were at
Havana, Pekin and Peoria, which in 1907-1908 were represented by a
total catch of about 10,000,000 lb., out of a total for this river
system of 17,570,000 lb. The flora is varied. Great numbers of grasses
and flowering plants which once beautified the prairie landscape are
still found on uncultivated lands, and there are about 80 species of
trees, of which the oak, hickory, maple and ash are the most common.
The cypress is found only in the S. and the tamarack only in the N.
The forest area, estimated at 10,200 sq. m. in 1900, is almost wholly
in the southern counties, and nearly all the trees which the northern
half of the state had before the coming of the whites were along the
banks of streams. Among wild fruits are the cherry, plum, grape,
strawberry, blackberry and raspberry.
_Industry and Commerce._--The fertility of the soil, the mineral wealth
and the transportation facilities have given Illinois a vast economic
development. In 1900 more than seven-tenths of the inhabitants in
gainful occupations were engaged in agriculture (25.6%), manufactures
and mechanical pursuits (26.7%), and trade and transportation (22%).
[Illustration: Map of Illinois.]
Historically and comparatively, agriculture is the most important
industry. In 1900 about nine-tenths of the total land area was
inclosed in farms; the value of farm property ($2,004,316,897) was
greater than that of any other state; as regards the total value of
farm products in 1899 Illinois was surpassed only by Iowa; in the
value of crops Illinois led all the states, and the values of property
and of products were respectively 35.6% and 87.1% greater than at the
end of the preceding decade. During the last half of the 19th century
the number of farms increased rapidly, and the average size declined
from 158 acres in 1850 to 127.6 acres in 1870 and 124.2 acres in 1900.
The prevailing form of tenure is that of owners, 60.7% of the farms
being so operated in 1900; but during the decade 1890-1900 the number
of farms cultivated by cash tenants increased 30.8%, and the number by
share tenants 24.5%, while the increase of cultivation by owners was
only 1%. In proportion of farm land improved (84.5%), Illinois was
surpassed only by Iowa among the states. Cereals form the most
important agricultural product (600,107,378 bushels in 1899--in value
about three-fourths of the total agricultural products of the state).
In the production of cereals Illinois surpassed the other states at
the close of each decade during the last half of the 19th century
except that ending in 1890, when Iowa was the leading state. Indian
corn and oats are the most valuable crops. The rank of Illinois in the
production of Indian corn was first in 1899 with about one-fifth of
the total product of the United States, and first in 1907[1] with
nearly one-tenth of the total crop of the country (9,521,000 bushels
out of 99,931,000). In 1879, in 1899 and in 1905 (when it produced
132,779,762 bushels out of 953,216,197 from the entire country) it was
first among the states producing oats, but it was surpassed by Iowa in
1889, 1906 and 1907; in 1907 the Illinois crop was 101,675,000
bushels. From 1850 until 1879 Illinois also led in the production of
wheat; the competition of the more western states, however, caused a
great decline in both acreage and production of that cereal, the
state's rank in the number of bushels produced declining to third in
1889 and to fourteenth in 1899, but the crop and yield per acre in
1902 was larger than any since 1894; in 1905 the state ranked ninth,
in 1906 eighth and in 1907 fifth (the crop being 40,104,000 bushels)
among the wheat-growing states of the country. The rank of the state
in the growing of rye also declined from second in 1879 to eighth in
1899 and to ninth in 1907 (when the crop was 1,106,000 bushels), and
the rank in the growing of barley from third in 1869 to sixteenth in
1899. In 1907 the barley crop was 600,000 bushels. Hay and forage are,
after cereals, the most important crops; in 1907 2,664,000 acres
produced 3,730,000 tons of hay valued at $41,030,000. Potatoes and
broom corn are other valuable products. The potato crop in 1907 was
13,398,000 bushels, valued at $9,647,000, and the sugar beet, first
introduced during the last decade of the 19th century, gave promise of
becoming one of the most important crops. From 1889 to 1899 there was
a distinct decline in the production of apples and peaches, but there
was a great increase in that of cherries, plums and pears. The large
urban population of the state makes the animal products very valuable,
Illinois ranking third in 1900 in the number of dairy cows, and in the
farm value of dairy products; indeed, all classes of live stock,
except sheep, increased in number from 1850 to 1900, and at the end of
the latter year Illinois was surpassed only by Iowa in the number of
horses and swine; in 1909 there were more horses in Illinois than in
Iowa. Important influences in the agricultural development of the
state have been the formation of Farmers' Institutes, organized in
1895, a Corn Breeders' Association in 1898, and the introduction of
fertilizers, the use of which in 1899 was nearly seven times the
amount in 1889, and the study of soils, carried on by the State
Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of
Agriculture.
The growth of manufacturing in Illinois during the last half of the
19th century, due largely to the development of her exceptional
transportation facilities, was the most rapid and remarkable in the
industrial history of the United States. In 1850 the state ranked
fifteenth, in 1860 eighth, in 1870 sixth, in 1880 fourth, in 1890 and
again in 1900 third, in the value of its manufactures. The average
increases of invested capital and products for each decade from
1850-1900 were, respectively, 189.26% and 152.9%; in 1900 the capital
invested ($776,829,598, of which $732,829,771 was in establishments
under the "factory system"), and the product ($1,259,730,168, of which
$1,120,868,308 was from establishments under the "factory system"),
showed unusually small percentages of increase over those for 1890
(54.7% and 38.6% respectively); and in 1905 the capital and product of
establishments under the "factory system" were respectively
$975,844,799 and $1,410,342,129, showing increases of 33.2% and 25.8%
over the corresponding figures for 1900.
The most important industry was the wholesale slaughtering and packing
of meats, which yielded 22.9% of the total manufactured product of the
state in 1900, and 22.5% of the total in 1905. From 1870 to 1905
Illinois surpassed the other states in this industry, yielding in 1900
and in 1905 more than one-third of the total product of the United
States. The increase in the value of the product in this industry in
Illinois between 1900 and 1905 was over 10%. An interesting phase of
the industry is the secondary enterprises that have developed from it,
nearly all portions of the slaughtered animal being finally put to
use. The blood is converted into clarifying material, the entrails are
used for sausage coverings, the hoofs and small bones furnish the raw
material for the manufacture of glue, the large bones are carved into
knife handles, and the horns into combs, the fats are made to yield
butterine, lard and soap, and the hides and hair are used in the
manufacture of mattresses and felts.
The manufacture of iron and steel products, and of products depending
upon iron and steel as raw material, is second in importance. The iron
for these industries is secured from the Lake Superior region, the
coal and limestone from mines within the state. Indeed, in the
manufacture of iron and steel, Illinois was surpassed in 1900 only by
Pennsylvania and Ohio, the 1900 product being valued at $60,303,144;
but the value of foundry and machine shop products was even greater
($63,878,352). In 1905 the iron and steel product had increased in
value since 1900 44.9%, to $87,352,761; the foundry and machine shop
products 25.2%, to $79,961,482; and the wire product showed even
greater increase, largely because of a difference of classification in
the two censuses, the value in 1905 being $14,099,566, as against
$2,879,188 in 1900, showing an increase of nearly 390%. The
development of agriculture, by creating a demand for improved farm
machinery, has stimulated the inventive genius; in many cases
blacksmith shops have been transformed into machinery factories; also
well-established companies of the eastern states have been induced to
remove to Illinois by the low prices of iron and wood, due to cheap
transportation rates on the Great Lakes. Consequently, in 1890, in
1900 and again in 1905, Illinois surpassed any one of the other states
in the production of agricultural implements, the product in 1900
being valued at $42,033,796, or 41.5% of the total output of
agricultural machinery in the United States; and in 1905 with a value
of $38,412,452 it represented 34.3% of the product of the entire
country. In the building of railway cars by manufacturing
corporations, Illinois also led the states in 1900 and in 1905, the
product being valued at $24,845,606 in 1900 and at $30,926,464 (an
increase of nearly one-fourth) in 1905; and in construction by railway
companies was second in 1900, with a product valued at $16,580,424,
which had increased 53.7% in 1905, when the product was valued at
$25,491,209. The greatest increase of products between 1890 and 1900
was in the manufacture of electrical apparatus (2400%), in which the
increase in value of product was 37.2% between 1900 and 1905.
Another class of manufactures consists of those dependent upon
agricultural products for raw material. Of these, the manufacture of
distilled liquors was in 1900 and in 1905 the most important, Illinois
leading the other states; the value of the 1900 product, which was
nearly 12% less than that of 1890, was increased by 41.6%, to
$54,101,805, in 1905. Peoria, the centre of the industry, is the
largest producer of whisky and high-class wines of the cities in the
United States. There were also, in 1900, 35 direct and other indirect
products made from Indian corn by glucose plants, which consumed
one-fifth of the Indian corn product of the state, and the value of
these products was $18,122,814; in 1905 it was only $14,532,180. Of
other manufactures dependent upon agriculture, flour and grist mill
products declined between 1890 and 1900, but between 1900 and 1905
increased 39.6% to a value of $39,892,127. The manufacture of cheese,
butter and condensed milk increased 60% between 1890 and 1900, but
between 1900 and 1905 only 3.1%, the product in 1905 being valued at
$13,276,533.
Other prosperous industries are the manufacture of lumber and timber
products (the raw material being floated down the Mississippi river
from the forests of other states), whose output increased from 1890 to
1900 nearly 50%, but declined slightly between 1900 and 1905; of
furniture ($22,131,846 in 1905; $15,285,475 in 1900; showing an
increase of 44.8%), and of musical instruments ($13,323,358 in 1905;
$8,156,445 in 1900; an increase of 63.3% in the period), in both of
which Illinois was second in 1900 and in 1905; book and job printing,
in which the state ranked second in 1900 ($28,293,684 in 1905;
$19,761,780 in 1900; an increase of 43.2%), newspaper and periodical
printing ($28,644,981 in 1905; $19,404,955 in 1900; an increase of
47.6%), in which it ranked third in 1900; and the manufacture of
clothing, boots and shoes. The value of the clothing manufactured in
1905 was $67,439,617 (men's $55,202,999; women's $12,236,618), an
increase of 30.1% over 1900. The great manufacturing centre is
Chicago, where more than seven-tenths of the manufactured products of
the state were produced in 1900, and more than two-thirds in 1905.
In this development of manufactures, the mineral resources have been
an important influence, nearly one-fourth (23.6%) of the manufactured
product in 1900 depending upon minerals for raw material. Although the
iron ore, for the iron and steel industry, is furnished by the mines
of the Lake Superior region, bituminous coal and limestone are
supplied by the Illinois deposits. The great central coal field of
North America extends into Illinois from Indiana as far N. as a line
from the N. boundary of Grundy county to Rock Island, W. from Rock
Island to Henderson county, then S.W. to the southern part of Jackson
county, when it runs S. into Kentucky, thus including more than
three-fourths (42,900 sq. m.) of the land surface of the state. In
1679 Hennepin reported deposits of coal near what is now Ottawa on the
Illinois; there was some mining in 1810 on the Big Muddy river in
Jackson county; and in 1833, 6000 tons were mined. In 1907 (according
to state authorities) coal was produced in 52 counties, Williamson,
Sangamon, St Clair, Macoupin and Madison giving the largest yield. In
that year the tonnage was 51,317,146, and the value of the total
product $54,687,882; in 1908 the value of the state's product of coal
was exceeded only by that of Pennsylvania (nearly six times as great).
Nearly 30% of all coal mined in the state was mined by machinery in
1907. The output of petroleum in Illinois was long unimportant. The
first serious attempts to find oil and gas in the state were in the
'fifties of the 19th century. In 1889 the yield of petroleum was 1460
barrels. In 1902 it was only 200 barrels, nearly all of which came
from Litchfield, Montgomery county (where oil had been found in
commercial quantities in 1886), and Washington, Tazewell county, in
the west central part of the state; at this time it was used locally
for lubricating purposes. There had been some drilling in Clark county
in 1865, and in 1904 this field was again worked at Westfield. In 1905
the total output of the state was 181,084 barrels; in 1906 the amount
increased to 4,397,050 barrels, valued at $3,274,818; and in 1907,
according to state reports, the output was 24,281,973 barrels, being
nearly as great as that of the Appalachian field. The
petroleum-producing area of commercial importance is a strip of land
about 80 m. long and 2 or 3 to 10 or 12 m. wide in the S.E. part of
the state, centring about Crawford county. In April 1906 the first
pipe lines for petroleum in Illinois were laid; before that time all
shipments had been in tank cars. In connexion with petroleum, natural
gas has been found, especially in Clark and Crawford counties; in 1906
the state's product of natural gas was valued at $87,211. Limestone is
found in about 30 counties, principally Cook, Will and Kankakee; the
value of the product in 1906 was $2,942,331. Clay and clay products of
the state were valued in 1906 at $12,765,453. Deposits of lead and
zinc have been discovered and worked in Jo Daviess county, near Galena
and Elizabeth, in the N.W. part of the state. A southern district,
including parts of Hardin, Pope and Saline counties, has produced,
incidentally to fluorspar, some lead, the maximum amount being 176,387
lb. from the Fairview mine in 1866-1867. In 1905 the zinc from the
entire state was valued at $5,499,508; the lead product in 1906 was
valued at $65,208. Sandstone, quarried in 10 counties, was valued in
1905 at $29,115 and in 1906 at $19,125. Pope and Hardin counties were
the only sources of fluorspar in the United States from 1842 until
1898, when fluorspar began to be mined in Kentucky; in 1906 the output
was 28,268 tons, valued at $160,623, and in 1905 33,275 tons, valued
at $220,206. The centre of the fluorspar district was Rosiclare in
Hardin county. The cement deposits are also of value, natural cement
being valued at $118,221 and Portland cement at $2,461,494 in 1906.
Iron ore has been discovered. Glass sand is obtained from the Illinois
river valley in La Salle county; in 1906 it was valued at $156,684,
making the state in this product second only to Pennsylvania and West
Virginia (in 1905 it was second only to Pennsylvania). The value of
the total mineral product of the state in 1906 was estimated at
$121,188,306.[2]
_Communications._--Transportation facilities have been an important
factor in the economic development of Illinois. The first European
settlers, who were French, came by way of the Great Lakes, and
established intimate relations with New Orleans by the Mississippi
river. The American settlers came by way of the Ohio river, and the
immigrants from the New England and Eastern states found their way to
Illinois over the Erie Canal and the Great Lakes. The first
transportation problem was to connect Lake Michigan and the Mississippi
river; this was accomplished by building the Illinois & Michigan canal
to La Salle, at the head of the navigation on the Illinois river, a work
which was begun in 1836 and completed in 1848 under the auspices of the
state. In 1890 the Sanitary District of Chicago undertook the
construction of a canal from Chicago to Joliet, where the new canal
joins the Illinois & Michigan canal; this canal is 24 ft. deep and 160
ft. wide. The Federal government completed in October 1907 the
construction of a new canal, the Illinois & Mississippi, popularly
known as the Hennepin, from Hennepin to Rock river (just above the mouth
of Green river), 7 ft. deep, 52 ft. wide (at bottom), and 80 ft. wide at
the water-line. This canal provides, with the Illinois & Michigan canal
and the Illinois river, an improved waterway from Chicago to the
Mississippi river, and greatly increases the commercial and industrial
importance of the "twin cities" of Sterling and Rock Falls, where the
Rock river is dammed by a dam nearly 1500 ft. long, making the main
feeder for the canal. This feeder, formally opened in 1907, runs nearly
due S. to a point on the canal N.W. of Sheffield and N.E. of Mineral;
there are important locks on either side of this junction. At the
general election in November 1908 the people of Illinois authorized the
issue of bonds to the amount of $20,000,000 to provide for the
canalizing of the Desplaines and Illinois rivers as far as the city of
Utica, on the latter river, and connecting with the channel of the
Chicago Sanitary District at Joliet. The situation of Illinois between
the Great Lakes and the Appalachian Mountains has made it a natural
gateway for railroads connecting the North Atlantic and the far Western
states. The first railway constructed in the West was the Northern-Cross
railroad from Meredosia on the Illinois river to Springfield, completed
in 1842; during the last thirty years of the 19th century Illinois had a
larger railway mileage than any of the American states, her mileage in
January 1909 amounting to 12,215.63 m., second only to that of Texas. A
Railway and Warehouse Commission has authority to fix freight and
passenger rates for each road. It is the oldest commission with such
power in the United States, and the litigation with railways which
followed its establishment in 1871 fully demonstrated the public
character of the railway business and was the precedent for the policy
of state control elsewhere.[3]
_Population._--In 1870 and 1880 Illinois was fourth among the states of
the United States in population; but in 1890, in 1900, and in 1910, its
rank was third, the figures for the last three years named being
respectively 3,826,351, 4,821,550, and 5,638,591.[4] The increase from
1880 to 1890 was 24.3%; from 1890 to 1900, 26%. Of the population in
1900, 98.2% was white, 79.9% was native-born, and 51.2% was of foreign
parentage (either one or both parents foreign-born). The principal
foreign element was German, the Teutonic immigration being especially
large in the decade ending in 1860; the immigrants from the United
Kingdom were second in importance, those from the Scandinavian countries
third, and those from southern Europe fourth. The urban population, on
the basis of places having 4000 inhabitants or more, was 51% of the
total; indeed the population of Cook county, in which the city of
Chicago is situated, was two-fifths of the total population of the
state; during the decade of the Civil War (1860-1870) the population of
the state increased only 48.4%, and that of Cook county about 140%,
while from 1870 to 1900 the increase of all counties, excluding Cook,
was about 36%, the increase in Chicago was about 468%. Of the 930
incorporated cities, towns and villages, 614 had less than 1000
inhabitants, 27 more than 5000 and less than 10,000, 14 more than 10,000
and less than 20,000, 4 more than 20,000 and less than 25,000, and 7
more than 25,000. These seven were Chicago (1,698,575), the second city
in population in the United States, Peoria (56,100), Quincy (36,252),
Springfield (34,159), Rockford (31,051), East St Louis (29,655), and
Joliet (29,353). In 1906 it was estimated that the total number of
communicants of all denominations was 2,077,197, and that of this total
932,084 were Roman Catholics, 263,344 were Methodist (235,092 of the
Northern Church, 7198 of the Southern Church, 9833 of the African
Methodist Episcopal Church, 5512 of the Methodist Protestant Church, and
3597 of the Free Methodist Church of North America), 202,566 were
Lutherans (113,527 of the Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference,
36,366 of the General Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, 14,768
of the General Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, and 14,005 of
the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Iowa and other states), 152,870 were
Baptists (118,884 of the Northern Convention, 16,081 of the National
(Colored) Baptist Convention, 7755 Free Baptists, 6671 General Baptists,
and 5163 Primitive Baptists), 115,602 were Presbyterian (86,251 of the
Northern Church, 17,208 of the Cumberland Church (now a part of the
Northern Church), and 9555 of the United Presbyterian Church), 101,516
were Disciples of Christ, 50,973 were members of the German Evangelical
Synod of North America, 54,875 were Congregationalists, and 36,364 were
Protestant Episcopalians.
_Government._--Illinois has been governed under four constitutions, a
Territorial constitution of 1812, and three State constitutions of 1818,
1848 and 1870 (subsequently amended). Amendments may be made by a
Constitutional Convention or a two-thirds vote of all the members
elected to the legislature, ratification by the people being required in
either instance. To call a Constitutional Convention it is necessary
that a majority popular vote concur in the demand therefor of two-thirds
of the members of each house of the General Assembly. The executive
officials hold office for four years, with the exception of the
treasurer, whose term of service is two years. The governor must be at
least thirty years of age, and he must also have been a citizen of the
United States and of Illinois for the five years preceding his election.
His veto may be over-ridden by a two-thirds vote of all the members
elected to the legislature. Members of the legislature, which meets
biennially, are chosen by districts, three representatives and one
senator from each of the 51 districts, 18 of which are in Cook county.
The term of senators is four years, that of representatives two years;
and in the election of representatives since 1870 there has been a
provision for "minority" representation, under which by cumulative
voting each voter may cast as many votes for one candidate as there are
representatives to be chosen, or he may distribute his votes (giving
three votes to one candidate, or 1½ votes each to two candidates, or one
vote each to three candidates), the candidate or candidates receiving
the highest number of votes being elected. A similar system of
cumulative voting for aldermen may be provided for by ordinance of
councils in cities organized under the general state law of 1872.
Requisites for membership in the General Assembly are citizenship in the
United States; residence in Illinois for five years, two of which must
have been just preceding the candidate's election; and an age of 25
years for senators, and of 21 years for representatives. Conviction for
bribery, perjury or other infamous crime, or failure (in the case of a
collector or holder of public moneys) to account for and pay over all
moneys due from him are disqualifications; and before entering upon the
duties of his office each member of the legislature must take a
prescribed oath that he has neither given nor promised anything to
influence voters at the election, and that he will not accept, directly
or indirectly, "money or other valuable thing from any corporation,
company or person" for his vote or influence upon proposed legislation.
Special legislation is prohibited when general laws are applicable, and
special and local legislation is forbidden in any of twenty-three
enumerated cases, among which are divorce, changing of an individual's
name or the name of a place, and the grant to a corporation of the right
to build railways or to exercise any exclusive franchise or privilege.
The judiciary consists of a supreme court of 7 members elected for a
term of 9 years; a circuit court of 54 judges, 3 for each of 18 judicial
districts, elected for 6 years; and four appellate courts--one for Cook
county (which has also a "branch appellate court," both the court and
the branch court being presided over by three circuit judges appointed
by the Supreme Court) and three other districts, each with three judges
appointed in the same way. In Cook county a criminal court, and the
supreme court of Cook county (originally the supreme court of Chicago),
supplement the work of the circuit court. There are also county courts,
consisting of one judge who serves for four years; in some counties
probate courts have been established, and in counties of more than
500,000 population juvenile courts for the trial and care of delinquent
children are provided for.
The local government of Illinois includes both county and township
systems. The earliest American settlers came from the Southern States
and naturally introduced the county system; but the increase of
population from the New England and Middle States led to a recognition
of township organization in the constitution of 1848, and this form of
government, at first prevalent only in the northern counties, is now
found in most of the middle and southern counties. Cook county, although
it has a township system, is governed, like those counties in which
townships are not found, by a Board of Commissioners, elected by the
townships and the city of Chicago. A general law of 1872 provides for
the organization of municipalities, only cities and villages being
recognized, though there are still some "towns" which have failed to
reorganize under the new law. City charters are granted only to such
municipalities as have a population of at least 1000.
Requirements for suffrage are age of 21 years or more, citizenship in
the United States, and residence in the state for one year, in the
county ninety days, and the election precinct thirty days preceding the
exercise of suffrage. Women are permitted to vote for certain school
officials and the trustees of the State University. Disfranchisement is
brought about by conviction for bribery, felony or infamous crime, and
an attempt to vote after such conviction is a felony.
The relation of the state to corporations and industrial problems has
been a subject of important legislation. The constitution declares that
the state's rights of eminent domain shall never be so abridged as to
prevent the legislature from taking the property and franchises of
incorporated companies and subjecting them to the public necessity in a
way similar to the treatment of individuals. In 1903 the legislature
authorized the municipal ownership of public service corporations, and
in 1905 the city of Chicago took steps to acquire ownership of its
street railways--a movement which seemed to have spent its force in
1907, when the municipal ownership candidates were defeated in the
city's elections--and in 1902 the right of that city to regulate the
price of gas was recognized by the United States Circuit Court of
Appeals. Railways organized or doing business in the state are required
by the constitution to have a public office where books for public
inspection are kept, showing the amount of stock, its owners, and the
amount of the road's liabilities and assets. No railway company may now
issue stock except for money, labour, or property actually received and
applied to purposes for which the corporation was organized. In 1907 a
law went into effect making two cents a mile a maximum railway fare. An
anti-trust law of 1893 exempted from the definition of trust
combinations those formed by producers of agricultural products and live
stock, but the United States Supreme Court in 1902 declared the statute
unconstitutional as class legislation. According to a revised mining law
of 1899 (subsequently amended), all mines are required to be in charge
of certified mine managers, mine examiners, and hoisting engineers, when
the services of the engineers are necessary; and every mine must have an
escapement shaft distinct from the hoisting shaft. The number of men
permitted to work in any mine not having an escapement shaft cannot, in
any circumstances, exceed ten during the time in which the escapement or
connexion is being completed.
Economic conditions have also led to an increase of administrative
boards. A State Civil Service Commission was created by an act of the
General Assembly of 1905. A Bureau of Labor Statistics (1879), whose
members are styled Commissioners of Labor, makes a study of economic and
financial problems and publishes biennial reports; a Mining Board (1883)
and an inspector of factories and workshops (since 1893) have for their
duty the enforcement of labour legislation. There are also a State Food
Commission (1899) and a Live Stock Commission (1885). A Board of
Arbitration (1895) has authority to make and publish investigations of
all facts relating to strikes and lock-outs, to issue subpoenas for the
attendance and testifying of witnesses, and "to adjust strikes or
lock-outs by mediation or conciliation, without a formal submission to
arbitration."
The employment of children under 14 years of age in factories or mines,
and working employees under 16 years of age for more than 60 hours a
week, are forbidden by statute. The state has an excellent "Juvenile
Court Law," which came into force on the 1st of July 1899 and has done
much good, especially in Chicago. The law recognized that a child should
not be treated like a mature malefactor, and provided that there should
be no criminal procedure, that the child should not be imprisoned or
prosecuted, that his interests should be protected by a probation
officer, that he should be discharged unless found dependent, delinquent
or truant, and in such case that he should be turned over to the care of
an approved individual or charitable society. This law applies to
counties having a minimum population of 500,000. The legal rate of
interest is 5%, but this may be increased to 7% by written contract. A
homestead owned and occupied by a householder having a family is exempt
(to the amount of $1000) from liability for debts, except taxes upon,
and purchase money for, the same. Personal property to the value of $300
also is exempt from liability for debt. Grounds for divorce are
impotence of either party at time of marriage, previous marriage,
adultery, wilful desertion for two years, habitual drunkenness, attempt
on life, extreme and repeated cruelty, and conviction of felony or other
infamous crime. The marriage of cousins of the first degree is declared
incestuous and void. In June 1907 the Supreme Court of Illinois declared
the sale of liquor not a common right and "sale without license a
criminal offence," thus forcing clubs to close their bars or take out
licences.
The charitable institutions of the state are under the management of
local trustees appointed by the governor. They are under the
supervision of the Board of State Commissioners of Public Charities
(five non-salaried members appointed by the governor); in 1908 there
were 18 institutions under its jurisdiction. Of these, seven were
hospitals for the insane--six for specific parts of the state, viz.
northern at Elgin, eastern at Kankakee, central at Jacksonville,
southern at Anna, western at Watertown, and general at South
Bartonville, and one at Chester for insane criminals. The others were
the State Psychopathic Institute at Kankakee (established in 1907 as
part of the insane service) for systematic study of mental and nervous
diseases; one at Lincoln having charge of feeble-minded children; two
institutions for the blind--a school at Jacksonville and an industrial
home at Marshall Boulevard and 19th Street, Chicago; a home for
soldiers and sailors (Quincy), one for soldiers' orphans (Normal), and
one for soldiers' widows (Wilmington); a school for the deaf
(Jacksonville), and an eye and ear infirmary (Chicago). The Board of
Charities also had supervision of the State Training School for
(delinquent) Girls (1893) at Geneva, and of the St Charles School for
(delinquent) Boys (1901) at St Charles.
The trustees of each penal institution are appointed by the governor,
and the commissioners of the two penitentiaries and the managers of
the state reformatory compose a Board of Prison Industries. There were
in 1908 two penitentiaries, one at Joliet and one at Chester, and, in
addition to the two reformatory institutions for young offenders under
the supervision of the Board of Charities, there is a State
Reformatory for boys at Pontiac. The indeterminate sentence and parole
systems are important features of the treatment of criminals. All but
two of the counties have almshouses. In 1908, in some counties, the
care of paupers was still let by contract to the lowest bidder or the
superintendent was paid between $1.00 and $1.80--seldom more than
$1.50--a week for each patient, and he paid a small (or no) rent on
the county farm. Complete state control of the insane and the
introduction of modern hospital and curative treatment in the state
asylums (or hospitals) are gradually taking the place of county care
for the insane and of antiquated custodial treatment in and political
control of the state asylums--changes largely due to the action of
Governor Deneen, who appointed in 1906 a Board of Charities pledged to
reform. By a law of 1905 all employed in such institutions were put on
a civil service basis. In 1907-1908, $1,500,000 was spent in
rehabilitating old buildings and in buying new land and erecting
buildings.
_Education._--Public education in Illinois had its genesis in the land
of the North-West Territory reserved for educational purposes by the
Ordinance of 1787. The first state school law, which provided for state
taxation for public schools, was enacted in 1825. The section providing
for taxation, however, was repealed, but free schools supported by the
sale of land reserved for education and by local taxation were
established as early as 1834. In 1855 a second school law providing for
a state school tax was enacted, and this is the foundation of the
existing public school system; the constitution of 1870 also requires
the legislature to provide a thorough and efficient system of public
schools. In 1907-1908 the total school revenue, nine-tenths of which was
derived from local taxation and the remainder chiefly from a state
appropriation (for the year in question, $1,057,000) including the
proceeds derived from permanent school funds secured by the gift and
sale of public lands on the part of the United States Government, was
$39,989,510.22. The attendance in some school of all children from 7 to
16 years of age is compulsory, and of the population of school age
(1,500,066) 988,078 were enrolled in public schools. The average length
of the school term in 1908 was 7.8 months, and the average monthly
salary of teachers was $82.12 for men and $60.76 for women.
The state provides for higher education in the University of Illinois,
situated in the cities of Champaign and Urbana. It was founded in 1867,
through the United States land grant of 1862, as the Illinois Industrial
University, and received its present name in 1885; since 1870 it has
been co-educational. Associated with the University are the State
Laboratory of Natural History, the State Water Survey, the State
Geological Survey, the State Entomologist's Office, and Agricultural and
Engineering Experiment Stations. The University confers degrees in arts,
science, engineering, agriculture, law, medicine, pharmacy, dentistry,
music, and library science; besides the usual subjects, it has a course
in ceramics. The University publishes _Bulletins_ of the Agricultural
and Engineering Experiment Stations; _Reports_ of the State Water
Survey, of the State Natural History Survey, of the State Geological
Survey, and of the State Entomologist's Office; _University Studies_;
and _The Journal of English and Germanic Philology_. The schools of
medicine, pharmacy and dentistry are in Chicago. The faculty in 1907
numbered 408, and the total enrolment of students in 1907-1908 was 4743
(of whom 991 were women), distributed (with 13 duplicates in the
classification) as follows: Graduate School, 203; Undergraduate
Colleges, 2812; Summer Session, 367; College of Law, 186; College of
Medicine, 476; College of Dentistry, 76; School of Pharmacy, 259;
Academy, 377. In 1908 the University had a library of 103,000 volumes.
The trustees of the institution, who have legislative power only, are
the governor, the President of the Board of Agriculture, the State
Superintendent of Public Instruction, and nine others elected by the
people. There were in 1907 more than forty other universities and
colleges in the state, the most important being the University of
Chicago, North-western University at Evanston, Illinois Wesleyan
University at Bloomington, Knox College, Galesburg, and Illinois College
at Jacksonville. There were also six normal colleges, five of them
public: the Southern Illinois State Normal College at Carbondale, the
Eastern Illinois State Normal School at Charleston, the Western Illinois
State Normal School at Macomb, the Chicago Normal School at Chicago, the
Northern Illinois State Normal School at DeKalb, and the Illinois State
Normal University at Normal.
_Finance._--The total receipts for the biennial period ending the 30th
of September 1908 were $19,588,842.06, and the disbursements were
$21,278,805.27; and on the 1st of October 1908 there was a balance in
the treasury of $3,859,263.44. The bonded debt on the same date was
$17,500; these bonds ceased to bear interest in 1882, but although
called in by the governor they have never been presented for payment.
The system of revenue is based upon the general property tax; the
local assessment of all real and personal property is required, with
the aim of recording all kinds of property upon the assessment rolls.
Boards of Revision and Boards of Supervision then equalize the
assessments in the counties and townships, while a State Board of
Equalization seeks to equalize the total valuation of the various
counties. The tendency is for property valuations to decline, the
estimated valuation from 1873 to 1893 decreasing 27% in Cook county
and 39% in the other counties, while the assessments from 1888 to 1898
were in inverse ratio to the increase of wealth. There has also been
great inequality in valuations, the increase of valuation in Cook
county made in compliance with the revenue law of 1898 being
$200,000,000, while that for the rest of the state was only
$4,000,000. Among other sources of revenue are an inheritance tax,
which yields approximately $1,000,000 a year, and 7% of the annual
gross earnings of the Illinois Central railway, given in return for
the state aid in the construction of the road. The constitution
prohibits the state from lending its credit or making appropriations
in aid of any corporation, association or individual, and from
constructing internal improvements, and the counties, townships, and
other political units cannot incur indebtedness in excess of 5% of
their assessed property valuation. The legislature may not contract a
debt of more than $250,000 except to suppress treason, war or
invasion, and no legislative appropriation may extend longer than the
succeeding legislature. General banking laws must be submitted to the
people for ratification.
_History._--Illinois is the French form of Iliniwek, the name of a
confederacy of Algonquian tribes. The first exploration by Europeans was
that of the French. In 1659 Pierre Radisson and Medard Chouart des
Groseilliers seem to have reached the upper Mississippi. It is certain
that in 1673 part of the region known as the Illinois country was
explored to some extent by two Frenchmen, Louis Joliet and Jacques
Marquette, a Jesuit father. Marquette, under orders to begin a mission
to the Indians, who were known to the French by their visits to the
French settlements in the Lake Superior region, and Joliet, who acted
under orders of Jean Talon, Intendant of Canada, ascended the Fox river,
crossed the portage between it and the Wisconsin river, and followed
that stream to the Mississippi, which they descended to a point below
the mouth of the Arkansas. On their return journey they ascended the
Illinois river as far as Lake Peoria; they then crossed the portage to
Lake Michigan, and in 1675 Marquette founded a mission at the Indian
town of Kaskaskia, near the present Utica, Ill. In 1679 the explorer La
Salle, desiring to find the mouth of the Mississippi and to extend the
domain of France in America, ascended the St Joseph river, crossed the
portage separating it from the Kankakee, which he descended to the
Illinois, and built in the neighbourhood of Lake Peoria a fort which he
called Fort Crevecoeur. The vicissitudes of the expedition, the
necessity for him to return to Canada for tools to construct a large
river-boat, and opposition in Canada to his plans, prevented him from
reaching the mouth of the Illinois until the 6th of February 1682. After
such preliminary explorations, the French made permanent settlements,
which had their origin in the missions of the Jesuits and the bartering
posts of the French traders. Chief of these were Kaskaskia, established
near the mouth of the Kaskaskia river, about 1720; Cahokia, a little
below the mouth of the Missouri river, founded at about the same time;
and Fort Chartres, on the Mississippi between Cahokia and Kaskaskia,
founded in 1720 to be a link in a chain of fortifications intended to
extend from the St Lawrence to the Gulf of Mexico. A monument of the
labours of the missionaries is a manuscript dictionary (c. 1720) of the
language of the Illinois, with catechism and prayers, probably the work
of Father Le Boulanger.
In 1712 the Illinois river was made the N. boundary of the French
province of Louisiana, which was granted to Antoine Crozat (1655-1738),
and in 1721 the seventh civil and military district of that province was
named Illinois, which included more than one-half of the present state,
the country between the Arkansas river and the line 43° N. lat., as well
as the country between the Rocky Mountains and the Mississippi; but in
1723 the region around the Wabash river was formed into a separate
district. The trade of the Illinois country was now diverted to the
settlements in the lower Mississippi river, but the French, although
they were successful in gaining the confidence and friendship of the
Indians, failed to develop the resources of the country. By the treaty
of Paris, 1763, France ceded to Great Britain her claims to the country
between the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, but on account of the
resistance of Pontiac, a chief of the Ottawas who drew into conspiracy
most of the tribes between the Ottawa river and the lower Mississippi,
the English were not able to take possession of the country until 1765,
when the French flag was finally lowered at Fort Chartres.
The policy of the British government was not favourable to the economic
development of the newly-acquired country, since it was feared that its
prosperity might react against the trade and industry of Great Britain.
But in 1769 and the succeeding years of English control, this policy was
relaxed, and immigration from the seaboard colonies, especially from
Virginia, began. In 1771 the people of the Illinois country, through a
meeting at Kaskaskia, demanded a form of self-government similar to that
of Connecticut. The petition was rejected by General Thomas Gage; and
Thomas Legge, earl of Dartmouth (1731-1801), Secretary of State for
Plantations and President of the Board of Trade, drew up a plan of
government for Illinois in which all officials were appointed by the
crown. This, however, was never operative, for in 1774, by the famous
Quebec Act, the Illinois country was annexed to the province of Quebec,
and at the same time the jurisdiction of the French civil law was
recognized. These facts explain the considerable sympathy in Illinois
for the colonial cause in the War of Independence. Most of the
inhabitants, however, were French, and these were Loyalists.
Consequently, the British government withdrew their troops from the
Illinois country. The English authorities instigated the Indians to make
attacks upon the frontiers of the American colonies, and this led to one
of the most important events in the history of the Illinois country, the
capture of the British posts of Cahokia and Kaskaskia in 1778, and in
the following year of Vincennes (Indiana), by George Rogers Clark
(q.v.), who acted under orders of Patrick Henry, Governor of Virginia.
These conquests had much to do with the securing by the United States of
the country W. of the Alleghanies and N. of the Ohio in the treaty of
Paris, 1783.
The Virginia House of Delegates, in 1778, extended the civil
jurisdiction of Virginia to the north-west, and appointed Captain John
Todd (1750-1782), of Kentucky, governor of the entire territory north of
the Ohio, organized as "The County of Illinois"; the judges of the
courts at Cahokia, Kaskaskia, and Vincennes, who had been appointed
under the British administration, were now chosen by election; but this
government was confined to the old French settlements and was entirely
inefficient. In 1787, Virginia and the other states having relinquished
their claims to the country west of the Alleghanies, the North-West
Territory was organized by Congress by the famous Ordinance of 1787. Two
years later St Clair county was formed out of the S.W. part of the
Illinois country, while the E. portion and the settlements around
Vincennes (Indiana) were united into the county of Knox, and in 1795 the
S. part of St Clair county was organized into Randolph county, with
Kaskaskia as the seat of administration. In 1800 the Illinois country
was included in the Territory of Indiana, and in 1809 the W. part of
Indiana from Vincennes N. to Canada was organized as the Territory of
Illinois; it included, besides the present territory of the state, all
of Wisconsin except the N. part of the Green Bay peninsula, a
considerable part of Michigan, and all of Minnesota E. of the
Mississippi. In 1812, by permission of Congress, a representative
assembly was chosen, a Territorial constitution was adopted, and the
Territorial delegate in Congress was elected directly by the people.
In 1818 Illinois became a state of the American Union, the Enabling Act
fixing the line 42° 30' as the N. boundary, instead of that provided by
the Ordinance of 1787, which passed through the S. bend of Lake
Michigan. The reason given for this change was that if the Mississippi
and Ohio rivers were the only outlets of Illinois trade, the interests
of the state would become identified with those of the southern states;
but if an outlet by Lake Michigan were provided, closer relations would
be established with the northern and middle states, and so "additional
security for the perpetuity of the Union" would be afforded.
Among the first problems of the new state were those relating to lands
and Indians. Throughout the Territorial period there was conflict
between French and English land claims. In 1804 Congress established
land offices at Kaskaskia and Vincennes to examine existing claims and
to eliminate conflict with future grants; in 1812 new offices were
established at Shawneetown and Edwardsville for the sale of public
lands; and in 1816 more than 500,000 acres were sold. In 1818, however,
many citizens were in debt for their lands, and "squatters" invaded the
rights of settlers. Congress therefore reduced the price of land from $2
to $1.25 per acre, and adopted the policy of pre-emption, preference
being given to the claims of existing settlers. The Indians, however,
resisted measures looking toward the extinguishment of their claims to
the country. Their dissatisfaction with the treaties signed in 1795 and
1804 caused them to espouse the British cause in the War of 1812, and in
1812 they overpowered a body of soldiers and settlers who had abandoned
Fort Dearborn (See CHICAGO). For a number of years after the end of the
conflict, the Indians were comparatively peaceful; but in 1831 the delay
of the Sauk and Foxes in withdrawing from the lands in northern
Illinois, caused Governor John Reynolds (1788-1865) to call out the
militia. The following year Black Hawk, a Sauk leader, opened an
unsuccessful war in northern Illinois and Wisconsin (the Black Hawk
War); and by 1833 all Indians in Illinois had been removed from the
state.
The financial and industrial policy of the state was unfortunate. Money
being scarce, the legislature in 1819 chartered a state bank which was
authorized to do business on the credit of the state. In a few years the
bank failed, and the state in 1831 borrowed money to redeem the
depreciated notes issued by the bank. A second state bank was chartered
in 1835; two years later it suspended payment, and in 1843 the
legislature provided for its liquidation. The state also undertook to
establish a system of internal improvements, granting a loan for the
construction of the Illinois and Michigan canal in 1836, and in 1837
appropriating $10,000,000 for the building of railroads and other
improvements. The experiment proved unsuccessful; the state's credit
declined and a heavy debt was incurred, and in 1840 the policy of aiding
public improvements was abandoned. Through the efforts of Governor
Thomas Ford (1800-1850) a movement to repudiate the state debt was
defeated, and a plan was adopted by which the entire debt could be
reduced without excessive taxation, and by 1880 practically the entire
debt was extinguished.
A notable incident in the history of the state was the immigration of
the Mormons from Missouri, about 1840. Their principal settlements were
in Hancock county. They succeeded in securing favours from the
legislature, and their city of Nauvoo had courts and a military
organization that was independent of state control. Political intrigue,
claims of independence from the state, as well as charges of polygamy
and lawless conduct, aroused such intense opposition to the sect that in
1844 a civil war broke out in Hancock county which resulted in the
murder of Joseph Smith and the removal of the Mormons from Illinois in
1846.
The slavery question, however, was the problem of lasting political
importance. Slaves had been brought into the Illinois country by the
French, and Governor Arthur St Clair (1734-1818) interpreted the article
of the Ordinance of 1787, which forbade slavery in the North-West
Territory, as a prohibition of the introduction of slaves into the
Territory, not an interference with existing conditions. The idea also
arose that while negroes could not become slaves, they could be held as
indentured servants, and such servitude was recognized in the Indiana
Code of 1803, the Illinois constitution of 1818, and Statutes of 1819;
indeed there would probably have been a recognition of slavery in the
constitution of 1818 had it not been feared that such recognition would
have prevented the admission of the state to the Union. In 1823 the
legislature referred to the people a resolution for a constitutional
convention to amend the constitution. The aim, not expressed, was the
legalization of slavery. Although a majority of the public men of the
state, indeed probably a majority of the entire population, was either
born in the Southern states or descended from Southern people, the
resolution of the legislature was rejected, the leader of the opposition
being Governor Edward Coles (1786-1868), a Virginia slave-holder, who
had freed his slaves on coming to Illinois, and at least one half the
votes against the proposed amendment of the constitution were cast by
men of Southern birth. The opposition to slavery, however, was at first
economic, not philanthropic. In 1837 there was only one abolition
society in the state, but chiefly through the agitation of Elijah P.
Lovejoy (see ALTON), the abolition sentiment grew. In 1842 the moral
issue had become political, and the Liberty Party was organized, which
in 1848 united with the Free Soil Party; but as the Whig Party approved
the policy of non-extension of slavery, these parties did not succeed so
well united as under separate existence. In 1854, however, the Liberty
and Free Soil parties, the Democrats opposed to the Kansas-Nebraska
Bill, and some Whigs united, secured a majority in the legislature, and
elected Lyman Trumbull United States senator. Two years later these
elements formally organized as the Republican Party, though that name
had been used locally in 1854, and elected their candidates for state
offices. This was the first time that the Democratic Party had been
defeated, its organization having been in control since the admission of
Illinois to the Union. An important influence in this political
revolution was a change in the character of the population. Until 1848
the Southern element predominated in the population, but after that year
the immigration from the Northern states was greater than that from the
South, and the foreign element also increased.[5] The opposition to
slavery continued to be political and economic rather than
philanthropic. The constitution of 1848, which abolished slavery, also
forbade the immigration of slaves into the state.[6] In 1858 occurred
the famous contest for the office of United States senator between
Stephen A. Douglas (Democrat) and Abraham Lincoln (Republican). Douglas
was elected, but the vote showed that Illinois was becoming more
Northern in sympathy, and two years later Lincoln, then candidate for
the presidency, carried the state.
The policy of Illinois in the early period of secession was one of
marked loyalty to the Union; even in the S. part of the state, where
there was a strong feeling against national interference with slavery,
the majority of the people had no sympathy with the pro-slavery men in
their efforts to dissolve the Union. The legislature of 1861 provided
for a war fund of $2,000,000; and Capt. James H. Stokes (1814-1890) of
Chicago transferred a large amount of munitions of war from St Louis,
where the secession sentiment was strong, to Alton. The state
contributed 255,092 men to the Federal armies. From 1862-1864, however,
there was considerable opposition to a continuance of the war. This was
at first political; the legislature of 1862 was Democratic, and for
political purposes that body adopted resolutions against further
conflict, and recommended an armistice, and a national convention to
conclude peace. The same year a convention, whose duty was to revise the
constitution, met. It declared that the law which called it into being
was no longer binding, and that it was supreme in all matters incident
to amending the constitution. Among its acts was the assumption of the
right of ratifying a proposed amendment to the constitution of the
United States which prohibited Congress from interfering with the
institution of slavery within a state, although the right of
ratification belonged to the legislature. The convention also inserted
clauses preventing negroes and mulattoes from immigrating into the state
and from voting and holding office; and although the constitution as a
whole was rejected by the people, these clauses were ratified. In 1863
more pronounced opposition to the policy of the National Government
developed. A mass meeting, which met at Springfield in July, at the
instance of the Democratic Party, adopted resolutions that condemned
the suspension of the writ of Habeas Corpus, endorsed the doctrine of
state sovereignty, demanded a national assembly to determine terms of
peace, and asked President Lincoln to withdraw the proclamation that
emancipated the slaves, and so to permit the people of Illinois to fight
only for "Union, the Constitution and the enforcement of the laws." The
Knights of the Golden Circle, and other secret societies, whose aims
were the promulgation of state sovereignty and the extension of aid to
the Confederate states, began to flourish, and it is said that in 1864
there were 50,000 members of the Sons of Liberty in the state. Captain
T. Henry Hines, of the Confederate army, was appointed by Jefferson
Davis to co-operate with these societies. For a time his headquarters
were in Chicago, and an elaborate attempt to liberate Confederate
prisoners in Chicago (known as the Camp Douglas Conspiracy) was thwarted
by a discovery of the plans. In the elections of 1864 the Republicans
and Union Democrats united, and after an exciting campaign they were
successful. The new legislature was the first among the legislatures of
the states to ratify (on the 1st of February 1865) the Thirteenth
Amendment.
From the close of the Civil War until the end of the 19th century the
Republican Party was generally dominant, but the trend of political
development was not without interest. In 1872 many prominent men of the
state joined the Liberal Republican Party, among them Governor John M.
Palmer, Senator Lyman Trumbull and Gustavus Koerner (1809-1896), one of
the most prominent representatives of the German element in Illinois.
The organization united locally, as in national politics, with the
Democratic Party, with equally ineffective results. Economic depression
gave the Granger Movement considerable popularity, and an outgrowth of
the Granger organization was the Independent Reform Party, of 1874,
which advocated retrenchment of expenses, the state regulation of
railways and a tariff for revenue only. A Democratic Liberal Party was
organized in the same year, one of its leaders being Governor Palmer;
consequently no party had a majority in the legislature elected in 1874.
In 1876 the Greenback Party, the successor in Illinois of the
Independent Reform Party, secured a strong following; although its
candidate for governor was endorsed by the Democrats, the Republicans
regained control of the state administration.
The relations between capital and labour have resulted in serious
conditions, the number of strikes from 1880-1901 having been 2640, and
the number of lock-outs 95. In 1885 the governor found it necessary to
use the state militia to suppress riots in Will and Cook counties
occasioned by the strikes of quarrymen, and the following year the
militia was again called out to suppress riots in St Clair and Cook
counties caused by the widespread strike of railway employees. The most
noted instance of military interference was in 1894, when President
Grover Cleveland sent United States troops to Chicago to prevent
strikers and rioters from interfering with the transmission of the
United States mails.
Municipal problems have also reacted upon state politics. From 1897 to
1903 the efforts of the Street Railway Companies of Chicago to extend
their franchise, and of the city of Chicago to secure municipal control
of its street railway system, resulted in the statute of 1903, which
provided for municipal ownership. But the proposed issue under this law
of bonds with which Chicago was to purchase or construct railways would
have increased the city's bonded indebtedness beyond its constitutional
limit, and was therefore declared unconstitutional in April 1907 by the
supreme court of the state.
A law of 1901 provided for a system of initiative whereby any question
of public policy might be submitted to popular vote upon the signature
of a written petition therefor by one-tenth of the registered voters of
the state; such a petition must be filed at least 60 days before the
election day when it is to be voted upon, and not more than three
questions by initiative may be voted on at the same election; to become
operative a measure must receive a majority of all votes cast in the
election. Under this act, in 1902, there was a favourable vote (451,319
to 76,975) for the adoption of measures requisite to securing the
election of United States senators by popular and direct vote, and in
1903 the legislature of the state (which in 1891 had asked Congress to
submit such an amendment) adopted a joint resolution asking Congress to
call a convention to propose such an amendment to the Federal
Constitution; in 1904 there was a majority of all the votes cast in the
election for an amendment to the primary laws providing that voters may
vote at state primaries under the Australian ballot. The direct primary
law, however, which was passed immediately afterwards by the
legislature, was declared unconstitutional by the supreme court of the
state, as were a second law of the same sort passed soon afterwards and
a third law of 1908, which provided for direct nominations of all
officers and an "advisory" nomination of United States senators.