Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1888-02-15
For the YOrkyille Enquirer.
"REMINISCENCES OF WESTERN YORK.


Mr.. Shurley drilled the girls in mil
itary tactics. He only marched them
to the drill ground where he kept
vigil over their conduct during play
time. Jumping the rope was their
chief amusement Some of them
could jump as often as 600 or 700
times without stopping. / never
knew a teacher to take so much inter-
est in the hygienic welfare of his pu-
pills as he did. In fact he would not
allow them to lie idly about during
play time. They had to take exer-
else, and as a consequence very few
consumptive looking children could
be found in his school, and many of
the boys grew up to. be "much of
men," physically. Though an old
man, tottering over his staff, he
was always active in laying off the
playground, and ever ready to settle
disputes among the scholars. For
this worthy old man we have always
entertained the highest regard, and
will have occasion to refer to him
again.
One the most remarkable men we
ever knew in Western York was
uncle Joe Leech, commonly known
as "Governor." He by no means
appreciated this soubriquet, but he
got it all the same. Truly he was
remarkable man. Though unedu-
Gated, he could compute with Won
derful accuracy, and tell the value of
a note regardless of the number and
amount of payments and time it
had been running-a task many COL
legians can't perform correctly. AS
a trader he had no superior. He
could tell the value of property at a
glance. No horse-jockey could tell
the age of a horse better than he
could. He based his Judgment in
this uncertain art upon an examina-
ton of the eye-lashes and sides Of
the neck, and seldom if ever looked
into the mouth. Many laughable in
cidents might be related of him to
show his shrewdness. He was also
a good Judge of a man, and despised
a hypocrite. His wife was an excel
lent woman; kind to all, rich and
poor. No better lady ever lived or
died in Western. York than aunt
"Polly" Leech, is the honest opinion
of the writer. She was member Of
the Baptist Church. Rev. Madison
Mullinax was at one time the preach
er at Unity, where aunt Polly held
her membership. Mr.. MullinaX was
a poor man, and aunt Polly conclud-
ed to give him a milch cow. One
day she told Uncle Joe that he must
give Mr.. M. a cow. He said: II
will, Polly. It's right, of course"
Uncle Joe told Mr.. Mullinax to 60
to his pen and pick him out a cow, as
his old woman had concluded to give
him one. The minister at first re-
fused, but Uncle Joe insisted and he
went and picked out one. Uncle
Joe told him he had chosen a very
good cow, but not the best in the lot
by any means, and showed him
another, and after telling what good
qualities she had, proposed that if
he would give him $500 to boot he
would swap with him. The preach
er accepted and the trade was made.
DR.. j. F. McLuney tells another
good joke on Uncle Joe. In time
of the war, it was common for i'm
pressing agents to canvass the county
in the interest of the Confederacy
and gather in such supplies as the
army needed, such as horses, saddles,
corn, bacon, flour, &c. Mr.. Garland
Smith was an officer whose duty was
to perform this kind Of work. In the
discharge of this duty he made trip
through Western York. When he
got into the Bullocks' Creek neigh
borhoOd, almost every man he met
with wanted to know if he had yet
been to Joe Leech's. Hearing this
inquiry so often, his curiosity was
aroused to find out what kind of a
man Joe Leech was. At Mr.. Luke
Smiths he met DR.. McLuney and
asked him about Mr.. Leech-what
kind of man he was-and told the
Doctor why he had asked him. The
Doctor told him he was very plain
man, both in words and manners,
but was all right if properly ap-
preached. He told Smith that he
must call him Uncle Joe, and let him
have his own way and he would get
on all right enough. So they parted,
the Doctor going one way and Smith
the other. The next day the Doctor
called at Uncle Joe's, and the old
man told him he had chad another
pressing officer around" The Doc
tor said, "Ah! you have" Eyes,
and he's the cleverest one l ever saw
in my life. 1t was Uncle Joe,'
uncle Joe,' all the time"
"Did you give. him anything?"
asked the Doctor.
"Yes; 1 paid him all my tax in
kind, for I didn't know whether the
next one would be as much of a gen.
tleman as he was or not"
Uncle Joe was man of powerful
lung, and could be heard in common
conversation for a considerable dis
tance. In the latter years of his life
he never left home, and turned his
business over to his sons Morgan and
Joe. In warm weather he would sit
in his piazza, and any one passing
he would hail with, "Who are you,
and where are you going?" Some
times he would get reply and some
times not.
It was during the war, while the
Confederates had recruiting camp
for their horses near Thomson's mill,
in Union district (nOW county, that
Gillian Thomas, who was in the
same cavalry company with Morgan
and Joe, called to see Uncle Joe.
Some of the pressing officers had, a
few days before, taken fine saddle
from Uncle Joe. When Thomas
rode up, Uncle Joe called out "And
who are you?" "Gilliam Thomas"
was the answer. "Do you want
another saddle?" he asked Thomas.
"No," replied Thomas. "What do
YOU want then ?" II wanttosee you,"
said Thomas. AS soon as he found
out who Thomas was, and that he
had been requested by the boys in
camp to call on the old man, nothing
he could do to treat him we'll was
left undone. And so Gillian spent a
while very pleasantly with his new
acquaintance, and left him with the
consolation that he had struck an
unpretending plain man.
Mr.. Leech was a close observer OF
men as we'll as the rules of health.
In his diethe was very prudent. He
had his homemade beer all the year
round, and for a friend to call on him
without taking a drink was not treat
;,,or %bo old mo n rirht He common