The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1878-03-12

The Progenitof Of Five Hundred
and Fly Persons.

V0O 3tO8OO1VOx VI 6AVO 0OR01OO
and Tifty Persons.
From he n. Y. Herald.
Pennsylvania county, Va. has for Q
great number of years enjoyed con-
notoriety % being the native
place of some most remarkable charac.
ters, but BY far the most Interestingly
remarkable man that or any Other
has ever produced in "Old
Man Owen Adkins, of Turkey Cock
Mountain" whose peculiar moral
views, embracing and taking in a
they do Mormonism and free love
whose almost Incredible physical abil'
tiles and remarkable powers Of endur.
ance /; whose oddities and queer hab'
its, and whose unprecedentedly great
number Of offspring all combine ia
make him an object of interest in the
limited circle Of his acquaintances.
HIS BIRTH AND EARLY LIFE.
Owen Adkins was born on the 18th
Of December, 1882. and Is conse.
quently now in his ninety-sixth year.
His parents were very poor and litter
ate people of the lower stratum Of 90
ciety, who made a scanty living by
hunting and fishing on and around the
two beautiful little mountains between
which they resided. They had seven
children-ive boys and two girls
Owen being the third son. Unletter'
I'd and ignorant themselves. the par
ents neither knew nor cared to appre
ciate the advantages of education,
and therefore their children were also
raised in blissfal ignorance.
Young Owen in early life showed
signs of some very decided traits Of
character, aHording evidence of the
fact that in point of hard common
sense he was not only greatly the
superior OF his brothers and sisters
but also Of his parents. Though
small in stature he was the ''stroDgest
boy on the mountains" and very 6ee,
of foot, displaying at the same time
remarkable powers Of endurance and
inexhaustable "wind." having The ca
pacity in long distance over hill and
dale to compete in q race with an or
binary horse. His father, noticing
these peculiarties, turned them t.
good account, and always carried
young Owen with him to public gather
ings and there made him wrestIe with
larger boys, run foot races, and otter
compete with slow horses for such
wagers as the old man could raise.
In this way the father won much
money, taking in at one time the sum
Of $50. the amount Of bet on q foo,
race Of five miles against time. thu
boy making the distance in twenty
six minutes. He was at that time
only twelve years Of age. The boy,
as q matter Of course. took great pride
in these wonderful powers and success
full exploits. and enjoyed the notoriety
which they gave him as only . wild
mountain boy could.
In the spring of 1905. when Over
was in his twenty-third year, he mar
ried and built q house to himself with.
in 100 feet of the house in which be
was born. and where he still lives.
His life with his FIRST wife was. fol-
five years or more, . very happy one,
and might have continued 20 to the
end but for peculiar ideas on the sub
jeet of marriage which, by some mean,
worked themselves into his brain and
caused him to publicly proclaim hi.
moral right to have as many wives q.
he wished.
WITHOUT THE CHURCH.
Now this man never heard of Brig.
ham Young and Mormonism, and
long before the Mormon doctrine wa
proclaimed by Joseph Smith and hi.
followers, Owen Adkins had views
and opinions which coincide exactly
with the po!ygamy portion cot Joseph
Smiths and Brigham Young's creed.
He believes that while the laws of the
land allow him to have only one wife
at a time there is no moral law which
prohibits his having as many q he
may wish, provided the property sup
ports them and the offspring. In
accordance with this then peculiar
idea of his he, about Eve years after hi.
marriage, took unto himself three
concubines, for each or whom he built
comfortable houses. all within one
mile of his own residence.
His first wife did not agree With her
husband on the: subject Of polygamy,
and from that tins until her death
there was no peace in that family.
The concubines could agree among
themselves, but the wife hated the
concubines As only q spirited woman
who believes her rights to have been
invaded can hate.
The wife died on 1880, after havinp
borne her husband nineteen children,
all of whom are living. Within four
months after her death the old man
married q second time. His second
wife had no objection to polygamy
and lived in peace and apparent hap
pineS with husband and concubines.
A few years after the second mar.
riage the old man took one more con.
cubine. His second wife only lived q
few years. dying in 1889 after bearing
five children, four of whom still sur.
vive. Mr.. Adkins never married
after the death of his second wife, bot
lived with his four concubines until
the last one died. about TWENTY-FIVE
years ago, when he took another WON.
IN to be q concubine. but has never
married her. She still lives with him,
and is as kind, obedient and attentive
to him as though she were wife in.
stead of concubine.