Missouri, How Kept in the Union.—Everyone, even only slightly acquainted with the history of the Civil War, knows that the question of first and greatest importance which arose and demanded solution was that of the position in the struggle of the border slave states, namely, Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri, writes Prof. John W.Burgess. Mr.Lincoln’s administration gave its attention most seriously and anxiously to the work of holding these slave states back from passing secession ordinances, and preventing them from being occupied by the armies of the Southern Confederacy.

The most important among these states was Missouri. It was the largest; it reached away up into the very heart of the North; it commanded the left bank of the Mississippi for some 500miles, and the great United States arsenal of the west, containing the arms and munitions for that whole section of our country, was located in St.Louis. It had been stocked to its utmost capacity by the Secretary of War of the preceding administration, Mr.Floyd of Virginia, in the expectation that it would certainly fall into the hands of the South. The Governor of the State, C.F. Jackson, manifested the stand he would take in his reply to President Lincoln’s requisition for Missouri’s quota of the first call for troops. He defied the President in the words: “Your requisition, in my judgment, is illegal, unconstitutional and revolutionary in its object; inhuman and diabolical and cannot be complied with.”

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 May10, 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 10o’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 of1848, soon got the better of the enemy. A battle took place August10 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.