Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1883-06-21
NUMBER Io.

I
here without knowing the language
but after had been here awhile was
taken in by a good old Virginian.
whose kindness will be always remem.
bered by me. In 1857, a brother Odd
Fellow was reported killed by Indians
out west, and / and another were ap.
! pointed to 60 and see if we could find
our brother. 1t was then, on that trip,
that | felt. for the first time that was
on the borders of civilization. We went
, up across Blake's Prairie towards Patch
Grove, and stopped with MIR. Henry
fatch, and then across to Prairie du
Chlen, and from there to Black River
Fails. We were in Black River Falls
! when the first church service was held
, there. After that began to think. /
started to go to school. was twenty
nine years old, and big scholar.
When | began to study geography be-
: gan TO see what great country this
was; and it has been increasing each
year. And now, since we have got
Alaska, the sun doesn't set on Ameri-
can possessions. Long before the sun
sets in Alaska, light is tinging the east
here. Very few are aware of that fact,
but it is so. The population has in
creased in Grant county but very little
during the past two decades. But the
cause is the great emigration it is pour
ing into other portions of the country.
Go east and you find Grant county
man on the bench. go west and you find
Grant county people there, go ev-
erywhere and you find them. In
Iowa, in Nebraska, in Kansas, and
go into Dakota and you can find Grant
county men as thick as grasshoppers
In Montana, in Idaho, in Colorado, it's
just as bad. Now, sir, | think Grant
county has more of its population scat
tered through the country than any
other county. But | think, Mr.. Presi-
dent, you and | will stick to our first
love and cling to the old ship so long as
we lind plank to stick to. Mr.. Presi-
dent, you find Grant county people ev-
erywhere, although Grant county's pop
ulation has not increased for few
years we have furnished settlers for
every part of the country.
Mr.. I. Nj. Barber said he couldn't
agree with some of the old settlers. He
thought coming here in old times was
a picnic, thought there was more social
feeling then than there is at the present
time. Judge Mills had spoken about
temperance and wanted the old settlers
to unite against the evils of intemper-
ance, but the speaker was of the opinion
that they were out of danger, the
trouble was with the younger genera
ton.
Mr.. Frank Bonham could tell of
number of adventures which had oc-
Cured in the early times if time had
permitted. Speaking of Pigeon Dig
gings, MIR. Bonham said: 1.-The Pigeon
diggings were discovered by my brother
second older than myself, Joseph-by
him and another man commonly known
as General Brown. 1t caused great
flow of miners into this section. That
was in the spring of SO believe, two
years previous tony bringing my family
to this county in the spring of 40.
1t occurred to my mind continued the
speaker, ''while hearing those incidents
related, to suggest the idea of appointing
committee to select scraps of history
to be read at our annual meetings.
| think there can be found, many Incl
dents full of worth. Further, in regard
to our association | think we committed
a mistake in the start. Two years ago
they organized an old settlers associa-
ton in Pike county, Missouri, for the
express purpose of collecting scraps of
history from the pioneer settlers of that
county, After referring to the con-
tributions Mr.. Bonham said Il think
the blunder we made in the commence
ment was in not beginning just as they
began, and collecting scraps of history
for the purpose of getting correct
| history of early events Mr.. Bonham
then branched off to matters relating
to Missouri history before taking his
seat.
Mr.. James F. Blain said he was al
most afraid to get up and say anything.
Itseemed strange that the old settlers
dld not know one another better, had
not got each others names and know
more where they lived and what they
are doing. This was something they
ought to know. The gentlemen had
spoken about early days, the speaker
could not forget the early days; he had
come to Grant county at an early per-
iod, when it was part of the territory
of Wisconsin; but we had advanced and
the speaker was glad to see it. But
there was another thing. Mr. Blain
was almost sorry to stand up and see
how few young ladies and young gen
tleman were here to-day. Last year
there had been many more. Now let
us get the young ones. Let us make
it pleasant for them. They don't want
to 90 and hear old tales of what hap
pened to different ones. But let's get
our sons and daughters together and
get them acquainted with one another
| The speaker loved to have the young
ones more than the old ones. He liked
the young ladies; in the language of
| Burns:
There's wan fau't they lay TO me.
dearly lac the lassie.'
Let US get the young people together
and they and ourselves get acquainted,
for we soon must go and they will have
to take our places.
Mr.. Kellogg Taylor said he bad come
to this county in 1887, driving an OK
team Afterwards his father and him.
self came up into what's now called
the Hurricane, and put up cabin,
then went down to New Diggings and
brought up the family, and there they
made their home and had lived there
up to the present time. Was poor then
and was still poor, but never saw the
time when they didn't have bread and
potatoes, and would not in the future.
All lived in log cabins in those early
days and enjoyed themselves first rate.
In those days they had to pay from
twenty to forty dollars for pork and
thirty dollars for flour. And another
thing, the speaker had raised oats and
| hauled them to Galena and sold them
for ten cents bushel, while farmers
grumble now if they don't get forty
cents. Mr.. Taylor then related an in
cident of early days where he and his
father killed bear and three cubs, one
of which the speaker killed with a
sheath knife which he happened to
have, after his gun was unloaded.
This concluded the speaking and
Major Rountree invited all present,
who had not done so, to come up and
have their names enrolled on the books
of the society, The Major stated that
all who were residents of the county in
June 1913 when the state was organized
were entitled to membership. The
Major invited all of these TO come for