The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1872-05-09
WRIGHT COUNTY.
A Thriving settlemcnt--A Plucky
Woman-Pioneering-Now Post Omce.

Bio WOODS, WRIGHT County,
May 4th, 1872.
EDITOR JouRNA1.-N would astonish
you to see the strides that have been made
in this township 12o Of Range %, in the
last five years. 1t has been twelve years
since colony Of Irishmen came into the
then trackless woods. in the north part of
the township, from Ohio, where they had
been railroading, and that part now gives
evidence Of thrift but the greater part was
net touched till about five years ago; when
Francis B. Ide found his way there from
what was then Moore's Prairie, aud open
ed up road into the wilderness. Now
very piece Of land that can DO taken al .
homestead, has been taken, and tho Rail-
road Company is selling every month";
Tho western part is now occupied by
Swedes exclusively ; tho northern by Irish
the eastern by French aud the southern
by Hoosiers. Time was when every vote
cast in the town was Democratic, but now
the parties are about evenly divided. The
first settlers there had rough time, the
same as all frontier pioneers have, ana
they have not yet got entirely through
with them. One day last summer, as Mrs.
Ide was sitting by her door, singing to her
babe, her husband away from home and
the nearest neighbor half mile of, huge
bear came out Of the woods, and taking
one Of nice pair Of pigs started off on q
gallop. Mrs. 1de preferred to have the
pig for their own eating, but though she
belabored the bear with club as long as
she could keep up with him, yet ne was not
disposed to give up the pork, and got safe
ly away. Mrs. I. knowing the gun was
loaded with fine shot, shot it off and load
ed with IL buck shot, determined, if Bruin
made her another visit, to give him warm
reception. But thinking discretion the bet
ter part Of valor, he staid away. Mrs.
lde is the daughter Of Mr.. Lawson, who
shot Little Grow in the summer of 1868.
This is the only settlement I ever hap
pened to be in where the Hiberno- celtic Ian
guage was spoken habi.ually by the inhab-
itauts-that is the older portion Of them !;
the younger ones do not even understand
it, as it is used only when in conversation
with those Of the same generation. 1t
bothered me for while t" get the run Of
the Mike O'Laughliu's, Is there are so
many CT them. There is "Ould Nike"
and "Black Nike" "Mike Oge," and
mike Rhus," "Little," and "Fst Mike"
and many more, too numerous to mention.
One man with seven sons, moved in there
in December, 1870, and went to work clear.
ing. He had no team and his oldest boy
was 30, so that he could not count more
than three to be much help, yet they clear.
ed fifteen acres in the heavy timber, rolling
the logs BY hand, and carrying the rails or
their shoulders to build mile of fence
and put in a crop of corn, without any
! blowing, hacking tho sod with i hoe
mind you, they had first to build los
house AMI stable for their cow Ate,
the crop was fairly a-growlng the TIRE,
oldest boys and their father went out t
work on the Brainerd Branch Of the Rail
road, while the four little chaps took car,
Of the crop and harvested it. Owing t
a defect in the government survey, vhe1
the section was sutdivided, he lost hi.
buildings and two-thirds of his clearing
but he cheer'ully submitted to the inevita
BILE, and said, "Sure, it wasn't half as bad
as the ager, that he'd shuk wid many 6
day." If Uncle Sam could see tho ridicu
lous mistakes made by his surveyors in the
subdivision Of the townships in this range
he would DO little more careful how hi
let contracts to men who either did moi
know their business or else were exceed.
ingly drunk while on tho work.
The maple sugar season has been excel
lent and number Of families have each
supplied themselves with barrel of tho
"sweets Of existence with very little la.
Dor. The soil here is very rich, with a
clay sub-soil, and good crops are next tt
certain every year under all circumstances
Two Post Offices have been established
in the township of French Lake, one 10
the north, and the other in the south part
which are supplied by tho new contract or
tho route from Fair Haven to Cokato.
! LOGOS.