The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1871-03-03


ponies tied them to trees on the road, and the
footmen coming up mounted them and rode
past, and tied them again; and 30 they walked
and rode alternately all day, This operation
was called I" ride and tie." At Ann Arbor they
had to ford the Huron river, two Of them on
the ponies and the other two wading. The
"city" then contained five log buildings all
told; every one OF them being hotel. One OF
them kept by Mr.. Allen and his wife mentioned
in former sketch. Here we will relate little
bit Of romance which our young readers will
not find uninteresting, and the old people are
requested not to read it.
Mrs. Aliens parents lived in Virginia, and,
for some reason, very seriously objected to the
particular attention that young Allen bestowed
on their daughter Ann, but the old adage THAI
"young folks hi,sk that old folks are fools,
and old folks knoao that young folks are" was
here put to a practical test. The brave and
tender lover provided himself with two ponies,
and Ann rode one and he the other into the
wllds of the territory OF Michigan. At the
precise time or place in the programme where
the hopeful and confiding damsel was made
Mrs. Allen, we are not informed. Hr. Heath
thinks that Mrs. Aliens maiden name was Ann
Arbor, from which the name Of the place was
taken. Another rendering OF it is that the
three fast pioneers to the place had wives
named Ann hence the name, cams Arbor."
This Is not essential, though tho precise facts
would be desirable.
On his first visit to Ann Arbor, Major Heath
only staid two nights and then walked back to
Detroit in company with Dennis Waite by
somewhat circuitous route; down the Huron
river to Woodruff's Grove, distance Of twen-
ty-two miles, our travellers did not taste food
or water. Before reaching their stopping
place for the night they suffered lntolerable
thirst. They staid over night with Judge Ten
Eyck. From Detroit to Buffalo their return
passage was on a schooner The motion OF
the rough waters had wholly untitled them for
foot navigation, and they reeled and staggered
through the streets like drunken men. In
1928 Major Heath visited Ann Arbor the second
time and found some improvement. mill
was being built, and some stores and houses
the latter then Numbered about twenty. De
Witt Clinton's ''ditch" had become successful
avenue OF navigation, and in the spring OF that
year the proprietors took extraordinary meas
ures to secure patronage, and one of their pro-
jects was q greet success They advertised for
months that on a certain day IN May, full
rugged vessel with cargo of live animals
would go over the falls Of Niagara. Among
them was buffalo, a bear, goose, monkeys,
etc. Poor Bruin climbed to the top of the
mast and looked over in despair. The teat
was performed as advertised, and no part OF
the vessel or the passengers were ever after
ward seen, except the goose, which swan
ashore several miles down the river. How
strange are the uses that men sometimes make
Of their power. The great rush from AL parts
Of the east to gee the abuse which the propre-
tor of tue Enc Canal practced on those inno-
cent animals, filed their Golfers with gold.-
The poor goose that escaped the wreck ought
to have been kept as a lasting memorial Of hui
man weakness and folly, and after death her
skin should have been filed and given to Bar
nun.
The winter Of 1886 and 1887 Major Heath
spent at Lawrence, the third time he came to
Michigan. He then brought span of horses
and wagon, peddling dry goods to pay his way
through. He found the few inhabitants then
in Lawrence very poor and destitute OF COM
mon comforts Of llfe the village numbered
about dozen log buildings. He boarded at
Dexter Goble's who kept log hotel near the
ground of Mrs, Goodenoughs residence, or on
the rise Of ground, perhaps, little nearer the
,o,J 49, all In,
his board. which consisted Of meat, potatoes
and bread, the only change being bread, pota-
toes and meat
Major Heath brought a splendid rifle with
him, but says he was no hunter; always had
something else to do to get bread for his fam
lily. Though he bought some lots Of land at
Ann Arbor, he never made home there: his
purchase of land for a home was III the town
Of Arlington. on the west line OF Bangor, at the
place now owned and occupied by Charles
Southland; there he built house with only one
board In it. and that was the door; the floor
being made OF split puncheons and the roof
Of scooped out troughs. The dimensions Of
this domicil we're sixteen by twenty-four feet
without any chamber in this the family lived
four or five years. We have many thrilling
stories incident to pioneer lite. but have not
room for all. Near tho locality Of which We
are speaking, at that early ay-1S40-Daniei
Taylor had been out to Judge Monroe's aud
got lost in the woods, and being unable 10 find
his way out before dark, he climbed a grape
vine and from that walked out on fallen tree
fifteen or twenty feet from the ground and
stad over night. He did not sleep much for
the wolves and owls made the night hideous
with their noise, and the rain commenced fall
ing before dark, 30 he passed an uncomfortable
night. The next morning when his friends
rallied him on his i'll success in finding his way
home, he made merry with them by rehearsing
what the owl said TO him: 'Who-hoo-who
are your" He said that he told them ne was
Dan. Taylor Of Connecticut
In January, 1S41 Major Heath's wife died,
which was the first death in the town of Arling-
tom and in May of the same year he was mar
ned TO Miranda s. Briggs, the first marriage in
town. The first newspaper printed in Van