The Republican journal., 1886-02-04
The GenealOgy of the q. o. Johnson,

1t has become the style within the past few
years to hold family reunions in various parts of
the State have fine celebration and some one to
write up the genealogy of the family, for publ ca
ton in the local papers. Usually Il long line Of
ancestors are given, extending back to King Henry
the ". at least Most of their ancestors, at some
time away back in the dim past were members of
the Royal Household, and all of them had a coat
of arms emblazoncd all over them, and were spligs
of nobility in some form. This sort of thing las
created in me a desire to know the history of my
ancestors, for to my shame be it known up to This
time knew nothing of my pedigree farther back
than my paternal grandparent. | said to myncf
perhaps too may be descendant of some lord,
duke, or mugWump. Perhaps | may be Il cousin,
hundred times removed, To Oliver Cromwell. or
some other political star that hone in the polit cal
ornament 'ln days of old when knights were
bold, and Baron's held their sway" With his
sudden and insane thirst for knowledge in r.la-
ton to my paternal progenitors, | plunged into
the sea of investigation buoyed up with the hope
that there We're unclaimed million, in the hanl Of
England waiting for me. The result of my ines
tigation is as follows; In all the scncalogics |
have read heard of there are three brothers
tnat came to this country. In ours there were
in this country the result of an accidents
shall relate. They were Welsh fishermen, ilil tbI-
tants of Il little fishing village ON the cuas Of
Wales. One peculiarly of the people of that vii
iagc was thi~-all of the male population were
called John, and their proper u:mc was dceiglat-
ed by their vocation, or in other words, by u cir
mode of catching fish, and the kind of fish they
caught. Thus there were John Cod, John II; ke
Johnnie Herring Johnnie Dorey, John 81, op.
John Schooner, Johnnie Hook Johnnie Tlawl
John Diinet John Gatl, etc.. and a, my l,atel nal
progcnitrr the only one that fshed witt a
seine, he was dubbed Johnnie seine, which IN
time became Johu>cinc aud at last johnson. A.
long as he stuck To his legitimate business Ne vas
a success; but an attempt to catch other kinds Of
fish, and in different manner. prov e his ruin as
the sequel will show. 1t was not the habit of
Johnnie seine to fish at night. He had alwtys
had his seine hung up 10 dry and his boat
turned over before sunset until this fatal III. ht
when he vcntured farther from home and lid
not return till after night, 1t was q still c ar
night The fun moon shonc brightly and as
mirrored i'll the Water Seeing the shadow of he
moon in the water he mietook it for Il strange k nd
OF a fish he haG nererSecn before, and Il strong e-
sire came over him ta ptrc it. lie and his til ce
boys ran their seine around it, but the strange fish
always cluGcd their grasp. And s. The moon
higher and higher the shadow went more and more
seaward until at last fearing they should lose he
strange fish which they were sure had never been
Seen by mortal man, and becoming desperate, Il cy
stole schooner and put out to sea, determined to
harpoon the monster. With all their efforts they
did not succeed in getting the fish but their courage
was good and they continued to harpoon the
moons shadow by night ana heaYe to by day
until at the end of sixty days they driftsd
ashore ON Great Boal's Head, New Hampshire il
few miles to the westward Of Portsmouth, The
Welsh authorities tracked them across the Dee; u,
took the old man and two -ols back and had ,btnn
tried convicted and hung for stealing the rllo, -.
er. The youngest son escaping to the woods III 3,
We're unable to get him and he subsequently, lr.
rane great hunter ana indian tighter. lie ad
his descendants have participated in every war ,u
the American continent from DcWolfc 1T Qucl ,c
to Grant in the Wilderness, including all the i'm
dian wars, and we feel that We have atoned in 80
measure for the sins of our ancestors in stealing
tn, schooner,
p. :. | do not know what branch of this family
tree certain Judge who lives in Belfast belong e
to, but he appear, to have about the same LUX
with gun that our ancestors had with the h; l..
p0on. There ar" various ways of cha sing sha /
"ws, and as the peculiar traits If uu. rogruito
will crop out from generation to generation. th-
leads me to believe that he t. one of u,. Butve
have particular II, sire to humlliatc him and c
hndrlnec to lis high ~ptlatio> hy pI"cIa.uil :
that one Of his grandparents though hundred
times removed, was hung and 81 VIII ma,e1o
further rtempt to prove This connection.
Later. This gcncalogl is not just what we e.
II