"1683-1920" / The Fourteen Points and What Became of Them—Foreign Propaganda in the Public Schools—Rewriting the History of the United States—The Espionage Act and How It Worked—"Illegal and Indefensible Blockade" of the Central Powers—1,000,000 Victims of Starvation—Our Debt to France and to Germany—The War Vote in Congress—Truth About the Belgian Atrocities—Our Treaty with Germany and How Observed—The Alien Property Custodianship—Secret Will of Cecil Rhodes—Racial Strains in American Life—Germantown Settlement of 1683 and a Thousand Other Topics

by Frederick Franklin Schrader

It happened most fortunately, however, that the Commandant of the arsenal was a staunch Unionist, Nathaniel Lyon. He immediately recognized the peril of the situation. He had only three men to guard the arsenal and there was in the city a full company of secessionist militia calling themselves Minute Men. Moreover, two companies of the State Militia composed of Germans had shortly before been disarmed by the general of the state militia. Under these conditions Lyon turned to F. P. Blair for advice. Blair was acquainted with the views and sympathies of the inhabitants perfectly, and knew that he could rely only upon the Germans to save the arsenal and then the city and the State for the Union.

Thus far Prof. Burgess. The first step toward secession was the establishment of Camp Jackson, at St. Louis, with a view to taking the State out of the Union. General Lyon, who had been recently transferred from Fort Riley, resolved to leave nothing undone to thwart the Confederate plot, and soon had his plans ready. The officers in command of the first four regiments loyal to the Union were Frank P. Blair, Heinrich Baernstein, then publisher of “Der Anzeiger des Westens;” Franz Sigel, of the revolutionary army of Baden, who had distinguished himself at Heppenheim, in Hessia, and at Waghausel and Kuppenheim, and Col. Schuttner. The Turn Verein, located on Tenth, between Market and Walnut streets, was animated by a fighting spirit. Four companies of Turners had assembled early in the night at the St. Louis Arsenal and placed themselves at the disposition of General Lyon. A constant stream of German volunteers added to the regiment, who were provided with arms by the commander. There were approximately 800 men, of whom nine-tenths were of direct German blood.

This was the situation on May 10, 1861. A council of war was held by General Lyon, Blair, Sigel and their associates, and General Lyon decided to strike a blow before the rebels were ready to act. The volunteers were assigned to their posts during the night. By 10 o’clock the next morning Camp Jackson found itself surrounded and General Lyon demanded its surrender. There was no way out, but the full wrath of the defeated rebels turned upon the Germans. As the prisoners were being marched to the arsenal, street riots broke out at many places along the line, and the Germans were assailed on every hand with cries of “dirty Dutch” and other insulting epithets. Almost at the first movement on Camp Jackson, Constantin Standanski, the master-at-arms of the St. Louis Turn Verein, was wounded from ambush, and died several days later.

After the capture of Camp Jackson, Lyon took his troops to Jefferson City, capital of the State, and forced the Governor to fly. Jackson never returned. Lyon took Boonville, where he was reinforced by the First Iowa, and two weeks later moved on Sedalia by way of Tipton. He was there joined by two regiments from Kansas, and went into camp at Springfield.

Meanwhile, General Sigel, with the Second and Third Missouri, took a course toward the southwestern part of the State, coming up with the rebels at Carthage. His artillery, largely composed of the Baden artillerists of 1848, soon got the better of the enemy. A battle took place August 10 at Wilson’s Creek, where the heroic Lyon, recklessly exposing himself, was killed. An imposing monument marks his memory in St. Louis.

This is in brief the story of how Missouri was saved to the Union.

Muhlenberg, Frederick August.

Muhlenberg, Frederick August.—German-American patriot, brother of General Peter Muhlenberg. Elected to the Continental Congress by the Assembly of Pennsylvania 1779 and 1780; Speaker of the Assembly 1781 and 1782; Chairman Pennsylvania Convention to ratify the Constitution of the United States 1787. Member of Congress for four terms, and the first Speaker of the American House of Representatives; also Speaker in the third Congress.

Muhlenberg, Heinrich Melchior.

Muhlenberg, Heinrich Melchior.—Founder of the Lutheran Church in America. Born Sept. 6, 1711, at Eimbeck, Hanover. Sailed 1742, and after paying a visit to the Salzburg Protestants near Savannah, Georgia, settled in Pennsylvania. Erected what is known as the oldest Lutheran Church of brick in America at Trappe, where it is still preserved. He built the Zions Church, dedicated 1769, in which by order of Congress the memorial services to George Washington were held, attended by the Senate, House and Supreme Court and many generals, and where Light Horse Harry Lee first used the phrases “First in peace, first in war and first in the hearts of his countrymen.” Muhlenberg’s three sons, all German Lutheran pastors, became famous in war, politics and natural science.