The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1875-02-04
Our BenefactOr.

In lonely, secluded corner of the
cemetery near the village of Richmond,
Mich, is grave over which we fain
would weep. We don't know why fain
we would, but we would, the faintest
kind. A white marble slab, nearly con-
cealed from view, bears the simple in
scription: Benjamin Cummins; born,
A d. 1772; died, A. D. 184S" And who
was Benz amin Cummins! CUMMINGS
see.
He was a great benefactor. A man
whose grave should be the Mecca of local
editors all over this broad land. A man
who lived for them and for the coroner
A man without whose genius and in
dustry our lives, ours and the coroner's,
would have lost many days of glad sun
shine and radiant hopes. Benjamin
Cammins was the inventor of the buzz
saw. Nearly sixty years ago this man
hammered out at his own anvil, at Bur
louisville, near Amsterdam, N Y, the
first circular saw known to mankind.
And to this day, a man who has pointed
at a buzz-saw to show friend how fast
it is going will mention the saw in con-
nection with Amsterdam while he scrapes
around in the saw dust for his fingers al.
though, singularly enough, he never
thinks of Burtonsville, or BENJAMIN
Cummins, both of which and whom are
more intimately connected with the Cir
cular saw than is Amsterdam.
As might be expected of a man who
would invent circular saw the late Cum
minis was fighting man; in the war of
1872 he was Captain; he had three
horses shot under him, but history is
silent on the question as to whether he
ever had any-and if so how many-shot
over him. 1t is strange, but history gen.
orally is silent on this point. Capt.
Cummings, having been insulted by his
Colonel, smOte him to the ground with
his broadsword, for which act of lnsub-
ordination he was court-martialed, but
the trial brought out 80 many good
things about him that, instead of being
shot, he was promoted to a Colonelcy
Nearly seventy years ago Cummins went
into the house-moving business, and
moved bodily large block of brick
buildings in Albany, n. Y, something
unheard of before. He was always doing,
something smart. He aided in the CON
struction OF the first ten miles of railway
in the United States. He was a leading
man in the Morgan days and owned a
Hudson River steamboat. There is no
doubt had he lived a year longer he
would have gone on. to California and
been Forty miner. He was the founder
of the villages of Burtonsvlle and Es-
perance, on the Schohaire As if there
was any Hope for the man who invented
the buZZ-saw
When we reflect how much this man
has done for the press of the country, we
wonder that the local editors haven't
canonized him, and yet his body lies all
moldy in the ground with never so
much as a monument above it. The
busy reporter is ungrateful to neglect
this lonely grave and forget this wonder
full man. They should remember him in
their Cummins in and COINS out. And
we cordially indOrse the proposition that
has been made, that the reporters and
locals should erect monument to his
memory. We want to he on the monu-
ment committee. We have never had
chance at monument fund yet, and that
is why we keep so poor. But if we can
get good show at a Cummins monu-
ment fund, we think we could afford to
go out West and grow up with the coun-
try; and so we urge our brethren to be
grateful; to remember how much they
owe to the late B. Cummins, deceased,
and send in their remittance Money by
mail Will be sent at the sender's risk;
money orders or drafts will be preferred.
Persons sending money for this object
Will please write their name and address
very plainly; we want to know where to
borrow more when the "fund" gives out.
Positively no money will be received
from corners under any circumstances.
We would prefer to take their contribu-
lions in trade.-Burlington Hasok-Eye.