Meigs County telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy [Ohio]) 1848-1859, 1851-07-24
MIR, Lob NGIER's ADDRESS.

r Mr.. Lob. NGlER'S ADDRESS.
rise 10 give you my recollec.ions of Il
Western, or'what iS called ;he Whlskey Ii
surrec,ion, in The year 1894. In doing s.
shall have TO depend ALMOST ef'Irely upo
my own mrmory, having no documents
which to REFER have, howel' 'er, lately ia
a conference with Casper Tarr and PHIL
Reagan, (both Of this neghborhoot') who's
recollGclions aided me considerably IN III
occurrences. Before proceed win m
narrative. | will give you a short accoun.
the first settlement Of This part o
Pennsylvania, with tho manners, custom:
and habiIs which the settlers acquired under
The peculiar circumstances in which they
were placed. The settlement commenced
abou, The year 1869. The whole country
al that lime was an entire wilderness, covered
by heavy growth Of timber. The settle
rent progressed and improved ill the year
l776, when the revolutionary war broke
out, which continued ill the year 1888. Du-
ring that period many Of The frontier inhab-
itants were driven from their dwellings by
The hostile Indians. Some lost their lives,
and some returned 10 the other side Of The
mountains from whence they had come
Others, no. willing 10 give up their settle-
Iments, erected temporary for!s and block
houses, into which they occasionally fled
when apprehensive Of danger. fhe men
wen, Out in companies 10 work their Intle
fields Of corn, with their guns OIL their shoul-
ders, placing part Of themselves Us seniinels
round The fields, while the other part were
a, work, for fear Of an attack from the In
dians. lr this perilous situation they suffer
ed many priva,ons, until peace was restored
in 1898. Alier that period many of the old
inhabitants re,urred, with increased numbers
of Immigrants, and the country improved so
rapidly as soon TO supply The inhabitants
with abundance of every kind Of provision.
Unfortunately about this time, or little
before, they brgan 10 convert their surplus
grain inlo whiskey. This was the more an
evil, as they used the whskey principally
among themselves. From The great de-
mand for il, il was the principal article of
trade, and became a kind Of standard oil
value for other arlicles;-und the man who
had plenty of whiskey in those times, was
regarded by his Iellow-clizens nearly in the
same Iigh, as man is now who has more
money than his neighbors. | am asIonished
when look back and reflect upon The guam
Ties of |. that were used |, was the medi.
cine for almost every disease, and was
conslan, beverage wherever people met 10.
gether, whether TO assist each other in labor
or amusement. Al military trainings, az e.
leclinns, funerals and weddings; at raisings.
grubb ng fro.ics, chopping fro.
lies, in harvest fields and al corn hnsklngs;
in short, wherever the people met. and what
ever they met 10 do, they must have whis-
key. Owing 10 The periluus limrs through
which they had passed, and from the very
nature Of The empnynenIs in new corn-
ry, the people had gsQl into The habit of
ioing almost all ,hGT ordinary lal'or in COM
,anies, and these were kipd of convivial
meetings that greatly fostered whiskey drink
ng; in shorl, the custom had become so
that man was considered chur-
ish or 1an, thai did moi treat his neighbors
o dram whenever an opportunity offered
The country remained in This STATE ill u
,ou, the year 1881, when Congress laid {
uly or excise Of four pence per gallon on s
II distilled spirits. The long war with ,
England had greatly exhausted the public /,
and this was thought 10 bo tax /,
hat would assist the revenue with as lille {
injury to The ciIizens as any other that could
e devised. The people, however, would {
10, submit 10 il. They considered ita great 6
and ,yrannical beyond endurance. Q
WHAT said they, shall we, who within
wenty yeOrs have successfully conlended
vhh Grea, Britain on account Of a TAX on 6
"a, now submit 10 be taxed for whiskeyl" c
When the excise officers care round 10 col. {
eel officers came round 10 collect the duty, q
hey were everywhere hissed al and insulled I
nd threatened 10 be ,arred and (ea,hered iflf
hey persisted in executing their office {
)Iher officers were sent, and were treated ,
n The same manner. Some few recommend. s
ID submission 10 the laws and that they I
hould petition Congress for redress ofgriev-
noes, but they were disregarded. The I
popular frenzy was such that The man who
aIked either of submission or moderation. {
vas in grea, danger Of getting his person a. {
fused or his house burned. Public meetings F,
v re- held in dffaren, sections Of the coun. {
ry, inAamma.ory speeches made, and liberty {
,oles raised. with such devices on hrm as
hese: "Lbery and no excise;" United
We stand, divided we fall" mo asylum
or towards or traitors II
Thus very great excitement was raised,
md II large majority were willingio 60 any ,
eng,hin opposing tho collection, Of the
ak. Willis. affairs remained1n in this silua.
ion. government sen. out three Influential
10 The ,disofecled counties, in
rider 10 persuade The cidzens 10 spbmi, 20
he law.iaeThe excitement, however. was so
,igh ,hal they would not hear the commis-
- 4 r A.