Excerpt from William Dawson Armstrong, American Composer The progress of musical culture in the Middle West has kept pace in its development with literature, science and art. To the western wilds, in the early days, came the more progressive and enterprising citizens of New York, New England and Pennsylvania, seeking wider opportunities. There also came a strong element of immigrants from Europe who sought individual development in exchange for national efficiency. Naturally the two preceding generations were absorbed mainly with material concerns: the breaking of the prairie; the felling of the forest, the building of railroads and the founding of cities. They acquired wealth and position but had not all the time they desired to devote to the higher things of life. But this lack of opportunity for cultural development, along artistic lines, made them all the more eager that their children should enjoy the advantages denied to them. They founded and endowed schools of music, art and literature, rivaling in their advantages the older institutions of the East. They cheerfully taxed themselves to establish state normal schools and universities. No expense was spared in equipping these institutions and in providing them with instructors of superior ability. Illinois, the imperial state of the West, led in all these advances making it the center of learning and culture. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Excerpt from William Dawson Armstrong, American Composer A bright day in June, 1673, down the river come drifting with the current two canoes. In them are seated seven Frenchmen, two of them are Marquette and Joliet, the already famous explorers, who to their other laurels had just added the discovery of the Upper Mississippi. They were the first white men to view the site on which Alton now stands. That they got a start ling impression of it is shown by the record made by the gentle Father Marquette in his journal. The paint ing on the rocks which he described, was the famous Piasa Bird, since perpetuated in song and story. The good father's praise of the skill of Alton's prehistoric artist, is appreciated to this day, while his criticism of the wild and muddy ways of the Missouri is accepted. It is 243 years since he made his Observations and no reforma tion in the Missouri's mode of progress is yet apparent. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

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