River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1875-07-16
MISCELLANY.
THE GREAT PUMPKIN FRESHET.

dhh UNA C1iI hLN FhEDHE T.
''The worst freshet that ever took place
along this old ditch was in the dead of win
ter in 1889" said Joe Leggett, Of Port
Jervis, some days ago, when we were dis
cussing the ice-gorge at that point.
"You see it was in the month of Janu-
airy. when the weather come on as mild as
summers day. 1t didn't stop rainin'
fur two days and nights. Everything
hereabouts was under water, andftheres
no cac'lating how many people lost their
lives and how much property went to de.
struction. That was the time that the
three families on the island below Port
Jarvis was swept of afore you could say
Jack Robinson. Every one of 'em was
drowned, too, afore they fairly knowed
what the matter was-eyery one except
Jerry Patterson, who lived in shanty by
HIMSELF and when he found that every.
thing was going by the board, he just made
for the biggest birch tree on the island,
Skinned up among the limbs like mon.
key, and stayed there two days, till VIC
could git boat to him. That was the
time that the freshet sliced out about half
an acre from the Pennsylvania bank, five
miles below here, and let out the biggest
den of rattlesnakes / ever sot eyes on.
You see they was all in their winter sleep
and arter they had been cleaned out, and
the river fell, the weather turned so cold
as Greenland, and every one of them var
mints was frozen as stiff as an icicle.
Well, there! you ought to have seen 'em.
They was scattered along the shore for
miles, and there wasn't one of 'em that
stretched out fair and square so as to
make a decent corpse but they were
twisted up into all sorts of knots and cork
screws, such as would have made you hurt
yourself laughing to see. picked up one
that looked exactly like fancy necktie,
and if hadn't been afeared Of its thawin'
out, I'd worn it home to see how Betsy
liked it.
'Howsomever, | started out to tell you
about the big pumpkin freshet, which is
the name it is knowed by from one end of
the river to t'other. 1t was in the fall OF
l845, just when the pumpkins we're ripe,
and ready to be hauled in. Anybody go
ing down the river bout that time would
have seen several hundred million bushels
of that fruit in the fields. You see the
practice is to plant it among the corn, and
WucH blldJ Cub vi bHCiO = tnC phinS
ready to be hauled in. The coarse kind
are used to feed to the critters on the
farm, while the best are slapped into pies
by the women. That fall was to work
for Squire Goodrich, who was a deacon
in the church, and a mighty good kind of
a man. The weather had been cloudy and
mild for several days, but there hadn't
been any any rain, though it came down
like young deluge up near the head-wa.
tiers. That give the freshet sort of body
as you may say, and when it overlook us
we was all taken unawares. / was eating
dinner, and the squire had gone out On
the porch to take a look at the weather,
when he came rushin' in. all OF a-tremble,
with starin' eyes and white face, and he
says to his wife, 'Godlemighty, Polly, all
our pumpkin pies are gone to the devil
"You see that wasn't very lucid re.
mark, and Polly asked him to be little
more clear, when he pitched out Of the
house; we followed him, and there was
sight worth seeing. 1t couldn't have
been more than two hours since we had
seen the river at its usual height, ard
here it was ragin' and roarin' and tearin'
along, and risin' every minute like cider
does when you let it run into pitcher.
II was full of trees, logs, and the boards
Of shanties that had been standing along
shore. On the roof Of one Of these resi-.
dences stood a rooster that looked as
proud and pert.like as you yourself; and
two or three times every minute he threw
out his head and let out a crow that ]
s'pose was to call the attention Of all the
chickens along the river to himself. But
the greatest sight was the pumpkins.
The river was full Of 'em. There they
was, from the size Of your fist to that Of
bushel basket, bobbing up and down
like the cork to flsh.line, and all Of 'em
running q race down stream. The dea-
cons pumpkins was all in the corner lot
down yonder by the river, on the slope,
and he had two pet ones that was about
as big as a cart.wheel, and he had nussed
'em with the greatest love, going out
quite frequent on moonlight nights to sit
down by 'em ana figure up in his mind
how many pies they would make through
the winter. So you can understand his
sorrow when he seen 'em just rise up and
ine the procession that was going TO the
blazes. The oeacon's wife was one Of the
kindest women ever d, and when she
understood their terrible loss, she called
me aside and asked me il couldn't catch
one Of them big pumpkins, only one, for
the deacon's sake. lie had dotted on 'e'a
for weeks and weeks had petted 'em, and
when he wanted to be special lovin' to
her he called her his pumpkin. She
wanted me to try for the deacon's sake.
I've oilers had tender side for the fe.
males Of the other sex, and when she ak.
ed me so sad.hke, answered unto her
that I'd do il or break trace. There
wasn't any time for to lose, and l slap.
ped on my hat and started on a run
down the bank, so as to keep the pump
kins In sight.
swell, there !" exclaimed Joe, with a
sigh, as he scratched his head in puzzled
sort Of way. "There was one unexpected