Page 287 - La Société canadienne d'histoire de l'Église catholique - Rapport 1961

COMMERCIAL IIISTORY OF MILWAUKEE. 283
there, a case of this kind has existed, but the guilty party or
parties have found no countenance among their brethren, but
have rather been branded and driven from their ranks. And I
am happy to state, in this connection, that our town has been
compal.atively free from that class of harpy lawyers, who are
forever putting their clients up to acts of dishonesty of the kind
of which I speak. On the contrary, it can be said inall truth,
that thc legal profession of this town has occupied, as a whole,
during all its history, a most honorable, just and helpful posi-
tion, as between debtor and creditor.
I say, then, that the merchants, as a class, have been char-
acterized by prudence, industry and probity, the three pillars
of mercantile success.
One other considcration, and I conclude this branch of my
subject. No city can have business and growth without a pop-
ulation surrounding it. It is to the number and superiority of
the population which lies behind us, that we are, after all, in-
debted for so much of our prosperity.
The wild land speculating mania of 1835, '36 and '37, did
not reach IVisconsin, since its lands were not in market. Tho
lands of the Milwaukee Land District werc brought into mar-
kct in February, 1839. But now a general collapse had ovcr-
taken all spcculations throughout the country, and especially
would nobody touch wild land on speculation. No more fortu-
nate event ever occurred for Milwaukee. As a consequence of
this forbearance of non-residents to buy the fine lands through-
out the Milwaukee Land District, they were left for the actual
settler, and he, owing to the straitness of tho times, came with
small means, and n.as obliged to put up with a comparatively
small tract of land. And, since he could not have the beau-
tiful piece of land adjoining him-covet it though he might
ever so much, tlie best he could do was to get his next friend
to purchase and settle upon it. And thus the whole region
about Milwaukee became densely and permanently settled by
an active body of farrners-the actual proprietors of the soil.