Monday the laying of the corner stone of Adair County’s new court house was celebrated. At an early hour people began to arrive from the country and excursion trains were loaded with people. The last train to arrive was from Moberly, Bucklin and Macon, and had on board 500 persons. By 10 o’clock the city was crowded but the different committees had done their work with such care that the great crowd was easily handled. All the towns on the Wabash from Moberly to Glenwood, and on the Port Arthur from LaBelle to Milan furnished large visiting delegations. It had been arranged with hotels, restaurants and eating halls to furnish dinner at 11 o’clock so all could be ready for the parade at 12.

THE PARADE

Formed on High street at 12 o’clock under the direction of Col. H.A. Butler, chief marshal, in the following order:

Kirksville Cornet band, Knight Templars, Masonic Lodges, Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias, Woodmen, Lincoln Legion of Honor, G.A.R., American school of Osteopathy, Columbian school of Osteopathy, Medicine and Surgery; State Normal school, Adair county volunteers.

The parade moved promptly at 12 o’clock west on McPherson to Franklin, south to Jefferson to Harrison, east to Franklin, south to grand stand on Washington.

AT THE GRAND STAND

Mayor Dockery delivered the address of welcome, and Rev. Briggs of Fayette, pronounced the invocation.
Andrew Fisher, of LaBelle, Grand Deputy, assisted by G.M. McGuire, Dr. Nortin and Rev. Briggs then laid the corner stone with Masonic rites. After music Rev. C.H. Briggs delivered the oration of the day.
The toast, “Adair County, Its Past, Its Present and Its Future,” was eloquently responded to by Hon. S.M. Pickler. We regret that we have space for only a couple of short extracts from his address.
In referring to patrotism [sic] in Adair county, he said:

“The county has been baptized in blood. An Indian fight had occured [sic] in 1829 northeast of Nineveh near Noah Motter’s farm between a band of 60 or 70 Indians led by Big Neck and a company of whites from Randolph county joined by five or six men from the Cabins. Three white men were killed and the same number of Indians and the whites retreated, some of them without firing a gun. An Indian fort was built in Polk township in 1932 consisting of a block house, surrounded by a palisade. It was located on what is know known as the Moses Furnish farm and named Fort Matison. Another fort was built on the site of the King Collet farm where the cabins were located in 1828.
The battle of Kirksville on August 6th, 1862, was a fierce one for the number engaged; about 150 were killed and 400 wounded. In the Centralia massacre over half a hundred Adair county men in one company, Capt. Smith’s, gave up their lives without a murmur. A thousand gray haired veterans of the late war now residents of the county are living witnesses of the patriotism of our people. And more recently Capt. J.R. Musick’s clarion voice has been repeatedly raised in behalf of war and Lieutenants Reiger and Carothers have told Adair county boys what a glorious thing it is to fight for liberty and Cuban independence. A full company of 100 men has been organized and their services tendered to the president. And as they bid adieu to friends and kindred and start on the journey to the sunny south, preparatory to invading the gem of the Antilles, we can hear in imagination their battle chant something like this:

Remember the Maine when the big guns rear,
And the cannons belch on a hostile shore.
Remember the dead in the sunken ship,
And pass the cry from lip to lip.
Forget the shriek of shot and shell,
Forget for an hour that war is hell;
For over yonder, beneath the bay
Two hundred sailors lie to-day.
It’s odds on our good war ships

Against the guns of Spain;
It’s two to one we win the forts,
In memory of the Maine.
And Sampson and his sailors
Will yet place high in pride,
Old Glory’s folds above the spot,
Where the Maine’s brave sailors died.
Com. Dewey and his gallant fleet,
Fought the shops and forts of Spain,
And he knocked them into smithereens
In memory of the Maine.
He gave them a grave in the salt, salt sea,
While the guns with their sullen roar,
Made a funeral dirge for Spain’s lost fleet,
And Dons five hundred or more.

Referring to the future of Adair county, he said: “No one could portray it. Could we draw aside the veil of the ‘is to be,’ and take a peep no doubt the view would be one of dazzling splendor and magnificence. Very likely the counties of Schuyler, Sullivan, Macon and Knox would all show annexation to Adair in order to give our people room in which to spread themselves. Brashear would be within the corporate limits of a Greater Kirksville, as also would be Millard, Sublette, Novinger, Camp Collett and the surrounding country. The pleasure yachts and beautiful gondolas repassing swan like on the placid waters of a reconstructed Chariton and a beautiful Salt River, would glide responsive to the gentle Zephyrs ladened with the perfume of rare exotics, fruits and flowers. The bountiful fields with their ripening harvests and the grassy picturesque landscape with its herds and flocks of fat, sleek kine will out rival the land of the Pharoahs in its palmiest days. But language fails, prophecy is at fault and speculation drifts on an unknown sea in attempting to depict our county’s future development.

O Adair, proud, bright Adair
With a future so bright and so fair!
We hail thee, most favored land!
Thy rapid growth, they progress grand!
With schools and churches strong,
With right supplanting wrong,
With enterprise for man’s best good,
And pure exalted womanhood.
Within they confess noble deeds
From noble hearts—the good succeeds,
And on and up the race we run,
And virtue wins with good works done.
Now Kirksville grows to larger state,
It’s people swift to emulate
The greatest good, wherever found,
Rejoices with the country round.
It hails Salt River, Wilson, Clay,
With words of warmest cheer to-day.
Nineveh and Morrow, north and west,
Liberty, Walnut, Benton, with the rest,
Greets Pettis, Oklahoma, Polk
And blessings on them all invoke.
Thus all, together, hand in hand,
Town and country let us stand
And forward march to greater fame
And make Adair’s the proudest name
That’s written in this imperial state,
Missouri, matchless, peerless, great!

The toast, “The State Normal School” was ably responded to by Dr. Norton, as was also the toast, “The Public Schools,” by Prof. Holloway.
The toast “Osteopathy” American school, was responded to by Dr. Smith; Columbian school, was responded to by Dr. U.M. Browder.
“The Old Settlers of Adair County” called out many amusing reminiscences. This toast was responded to by Rev. W.L. Fletcher, one of the pioneer settlers of Adair.
“Churches and Sunday Schools” by Rev. G.W. Sharp closed the exercises.
The crowd was large and well behaved. The procession the finest every seen in Kirksville, and the entertainment of visiting delegations was all that could have been desired. Everything considered it was a great day for our prosperous, progressive city.

The Kirksville Weekly Graphic
May 6, 1898