down, the rivalry of several interior cities and villages rendered even the removal itself impossible.

The section of the constitution before cited had provided that in the year 1847 the Legislature should locate the capital permanently. Accordingly, at the session of that year, bills were introduced, and a more earnest effort than usual to get it away from the city. The same rivalry between different towns to obtain it was still a serious obstacle in the way of definite and final action on the subject. The question was often brought up and discussed in each House, but the capital would not move. Some of the discussions were quite amusing. I was one morning in the Senate when a light snow had fallen the night before, and the Hon. J. J. Adam arose, and with much gravity moved that the bill for the removal of the capital should be taken up, urging as a reason, that as there was a new fall of snow on the ground, it would slide easy.

With all the efforts there was no getting a bill through for the removal. It was supposed and assumed that the capital must stay where it was, or must be located in some large town in the interior where accommodations could be had for the State officers who should reside at the capital, and for members of the Legislature during the session.

Finally, while the matter seemed to be in a dead lock, a member in the House one morning arose and moved the introduction of a bill in these words, "That the seat of government of this State shall be in the town of Lansing, in the county of Ingham," as such bill is printed on page seventyone of the session laws of 1847, should be passed by the House. This was regarded as a joke by the members, and not unlikely it was so regarded by the mover. The town of Lansing had but recently organized as such, it was mostly an unbroken forest. Very few remembered even where it was, although it was soon ascertained that it was situated between Jackson and some other places as yet unknown to most of mankind. There was and could be no accommodations in that town, except such as the hunter enjoys, for the use of the members of the Legislature of the State government. The motion was a huge joke, and was received by a general laugh. There was no debate, and the speaker put the question at once, apparently as a piece of fun too good to be lost, the bill was passed almost or quite unanimously, the Wayne delegates even joining in the fun and voting for it. The bill was sent to the Senate at once, apparently for their amusement. The Senate received it, and then the joke assumed the character of seriousness. Those who were interested in lands in and around Lansing saw the game, and at once prepared to pursue and capture it.

The Senate was immediately surrounded by a powerful lobby in favor of the House bill, in comparison with which the "quail supper" influence of Detroit sunk into insignificance. Whatever might be the influences brought to bear on the subject, a large number was soon found among the Senators who were in favor of the bill. All sorts of efforts were made to defeat it, or even to amend it in some, no matter how slight a particular, so as to get it back to the House, where it was hoped it might be defeated. Even representatives from some cities of the interior, wished to defeat it in order to increase the chances in favor of their own localities.

The influences in favor of Lansing increased and multiplied every day till they overshadowed all others. Ridicule was followed by argument,

and argument by entreaties, and entreaties by denunciations. What! shall we take the capital from a large and beautiful city, where there are ample accommodations, and stick it down in the woods and mud on the banks of Grand river, amid choking miasma,-where even the wood. man's ax has never awakened its echoes, where the howl of wolves, where the hissing of massasaugas and the groans of bull-frogs resound to the hammer of the woodpecker and the solitary notes of the nightingale?

Such were the efforts made and arguments used to defeat what was started as a good joke, but was now denounced not only as a great mistake, but as a great iniquity, and even a gigantic fraud and swindle. The members from Wayne county, who voted for the joke now hung their heads in sorrow and mortification, while nothing could arrest the onward march of legislation. The bill passed the Senate without amendment, it was immediately sent to the Governor, who at once signed it, and thus gave it the force of law.

So wholly unpremediatedly had the bill been introduced into the House and so hastily passed, that it provided no details whatever for the capital, and did not even fix the place of its location, except that it was to be in a named township which contained thirty squire miles. A remedy, however, was soon found for this defect, in the act on page 76 of the session laws of 1847, which provided commissioners to locate the capital at a fixed point in the town of Lansing, and provided for clearing the land that should be selected, and for the erection of buildings to accommodate the Legislature and the State government. In this act the important provision was inserted, that the capital should be located on the school section of the town named.

The commissioners on examination found the school section (16) admirably situated for the purpose on the west side of Grand river. They selected that section accordingly. A plat was procured for the proposed village, now the city of Lansing. The clearing was commenced, and the present capitol building soon erected on a beautiful swell of ground and one of the public squares of the city. This building, a plain wood structure, was ready for the Legislature of 1848. It has been occupied ever since as the State capitol, and probably will be till the new building shall be ready for occupancy.

Such is a brief account of the removal of our State capital. No doubt the removal was slightly detrimental to the city of Detroit. It took away a portion of the patronage which had been received by the hotels and store-keepers, and a few thousand dollars a year were thus diverted to another locality which had been expended in Detroit by executive officers, the members of the Legislature, and the Third House, which was not unfrequently large, and such strangers as might have business with the various departments. Further than these matters, which were of no great significance, I do not think the removal of the capital was a serious injury to the city. Detroit has increased and flourished, and will continue to do so in future, as the result of its own industry, enterprise, and natural advantages, regardless of the location of the State capital.

On the other hand there is no doubt that the removal of the capital, even into "a waste howling wilderness," was of immense advantage to the State at large, in opening that very wilderness to settlement and culture, and in promoting the foundation of villages and even cities. The value of the town of Lansing and its vicinages, traversed as they are and will be by railroads, may now be fairly stated at millions instead of thousands, to which the same property must have been limited, had it

not secured the location of the capital. I am inclined to think the removal operated "all for the best," not only for the State at large, but for the city of Detroit.

There were peculiar public advantages resulting from the removal of the capital, as it was placed on a school-section,-so called,- of the township. This school-section, one mile square, was a part of the endowment granted by the United States government to the State for common-school purposes, which endowment constituted the early foundation of our common-school system. While the country about it remained unsettled, this school-section was probably not worth the minimum price placed upon it per acre, by the State. When the capitol was placed on it, it was at once platted for a village and ultimately for a city; and instead of being sold for ten or fifteen dollars per acre, it readily brought good prices for village lots. I am informed that the 640 acres of the school-section, instead of producing perhaps from $5,000 to $10,000, produced and poured into the common school fund of the State, from $500,000 to $1,000,000.

At the time of the removal of the capital, the union system of schools had not been introduced into this State. The old single district system still prevailed, even in cities and large villages, and from fifty to one hundred scholars were placed under one teacher. The classes were necessarily small, and all branches from A B C to geometry were taught by one teacher.

The distinguishing feature of the union system is to gather several isolated district schools of one neighborhood into one building so far as possible, in which many teachers can be employed, the classes made larger, and at the same time, but few classes under the personal direction of one teacher. This system carries the division of the labor principle into one of the most important branches of industry, that of educating the youth of the country.

As yet there were no buildings constructed in which to organize and accommodate a proper union school. The old capitol building after the removal of the seat of State government remained vacant under the charge of a janitor.

[Mr. Bishop here gives quite a minute history of the way some members of the school board surreptitiously obtained the key and took possession of the building.]

He goes on to say that a few days after they had made their observation, carpenters with no apparent authority, were heard at work putting in seats, desks, and blackboards in the building for school purposes. It was soon rumored that the school board had stolen the old Capitol. I shall leave the Attorney General to determine whether it was larceny or not; if it was, I shall leave it to moralists to decide whether in this exceptional case the end did not justify the means. Be that as it may, the obtaining of this building enabled the school board of the city to organize a first-class union school; and I may add that the obtaining of that building and being thus able to present to parents and friends of the free-school system a popular and attractive union school, enabled them to overcome much of the opposition to the system then prevalent in the city.

That capitol school was our pioneer union school. It furnished an organization and excellence which many have followed. The loss of the building by the State, was, in the fruits gathered from the use of it for school purposes, of immensely greater benefit, not only to the city, but to

the State at large, than could the old building have been worth with all its appurtenances and property for any other use whatever.

Nor is this all. I had reason to know while I was President of our School Board, that members of School Boards, and Superintendents of schools in other and older States than ours, even the oldest States in the Union, came to our city and State to obtain models for union schools, and used those models as arguments among their own people in favor of discarding the old single district system and introducing the preferable system of the union school.

Such are some of the fruits of the removal of the capitol building in Detroit. Nor is this all. There is now a flourishing high school in that same old capitol building.

At the time of the removal, some of our citizens thought it a grievous matter to lose the State capital. I have no doubt that all reflecting men, if they could be placed back twenty-eight years, and should see the capital about to go, but could at the same time foresee the real benefits which, in the short space of a quarter of a century would spring from the removal, they would say, "let it go!" They might say, with considerable truth, The Legislative and Executive departments of the State have been great sinners; they deserve condign punishment. But let them go in peace, provided they leave the old capitol building behind.

I have thus, ladies and gentlemen, gone over my subject and presented recollections pertaining thereto, with such reflections as occurred to me in writing this paper. I was not a personal actor in the matters spoken of, except in connection with the educational system. I have written almost wholly from memory, and consequently may have made mistakes. If so, I hope I shall be corrected, and that "the truth of history will be asserted" by those who know the facts better. There are many living men who know all the details of the subject over which I have passed. I hope my paper will stimulate them, and even provoke them to write up for this society their knowledge and recollections, that we may have a more full, accurate, and satisfactory treatment of the subject.

WEXFORD COUNTY.

SECTION 1. The People of the State of Michigan enact, That the county of Wexford, consisting of the territory embraced by the present county. of Wexford, be and the same is hereby organized into a separate county, by the name of Wexford; and the inhabitants thereof shall be entitled to all the privileges, powers, and immunities to which, by law, the inhabitants of other organized counties in this State are entitled.

SEC. 2. The unorganized county of Missaukee shall be attached to the county of Wexford, for municipal and judicial purposes.

SEC. 12. Said county shall be in the thirteenth judicial circuit, and shall be entitled to two courts therein, in each year. Approved March 30, 1869.

The county-seat of Wexford is at Sherman, a village on the Manistee river.

WYANDOT COUNTY.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Michigan:

SEC. 26. That portion of the State embraced in towns 33, 34, 35 and 36 north, of ranges one east, and one, two and three west, shall be laid off as a separate county, to be known and designated as the county of Wyandot.

Approved April 1, 1840.

By an act of the Legislature this county now makes a part of Cheboygan county.