MEMO

Mercantile Bancorporation Inc., has declared a quarterly cash dividend of 28 cents per share of common stock, payable July 1 to shareholders of record June 10.

Mercantile Bancorporation owns 41 banks in Missouri, Northern Iowa, Eastern Kansas and Southern Illinois.

Tip of Illinois Health Services, Inc. recently opened a branch office in Olive Branch, Ill.

The new office serves homebound residents in Alexander and Pulaski counties who are not served by the Cairo branch office which covers Cairo, Mounds, Mound City and Villa Ridge.

Additional information is available by calling the office, (618)-776-5072.

Boatmen's Bancshares Inc., headquartered in St. Louis, has announced an agreement in principle to acquire National Mortgage Co., headquartered in Memphis, Tenn.

National Mortgage is a privately owned, full-service mortgage banking company that originates home loans through 10 company-operated offices as well as through a network of more than 300 correspondents located in the Southern and Midwestern United States.

The firm's 1993 originations totaled $1.7 billion and its loan servicing portfolio was approximately $13.1 billion, as of May 1, 1994. Total revenue was about $75 million in 1993.

The terms of the transaction provide that Boatmen's will exchange not more than 5 million of its common shares for all the stock of National Mortgage and related entities.

Boatmen's Bancshares, with assets of $27 billion, is one of the largest U.S. bank holding companies, operating more than 400 locations in nine states, including Cape Girardeau.

Missouri Delta Foot and Ankle Center, 717 Tanner in Sikeston, has received full accreditation as a "Modality Oriented" pain program from the American Academy of Pain Management.

The clinic is operated by Hugh R. Protzel. He is a graduate of University of Osteopathic Medicine and Health Sciences, College of Podiatric Medicine and Surgery in Des Moines, Iowa. He is a Fellow of the American Council of Certified Podiatric Physicians and Surgeons, and is a member of the Missouri Podiatric Medical Association, the American Podiatric Medical Association, and the American Podiatric Arthoscopy Association.

State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. raised its estimated payout for Northridge, Calif., earthquake claims to $1.27 billion from $1 billion.

The company, based in Bloomington, Ill., on Tuesday said it has received more than 105,000 claims and paid out nearly $890 million in connection with the Jan. 17 quake.

State Farm Vice President Roger Lehman said further revisions are possible, but "we should be getting close to the final figure."

POPLAR BLUFF -- The Briggs & Stratton Corp. plant here will expand in the next few months because of corporate restructuring, but officials aren't sure how many jobs will be added.

"We do have the money approved to go ahead with expansion of the plant," said plant manager Mike Thompson. "I can't disclose more details at this time, but basically the board approved expansion of the Poplar Bluff plant."

Briggs & Stratton now employs about 875 people in Poplar Bluff.

About 2,000 jobs in the Milwaukee, Wis., area are scheduled to be cut by mid-1995. The company said the restructuring is for economic reasons.