Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1890-10-30
The Tavern in The Woods.
BY NJ. QUAD.

In the year 1882, my uncle, Silas
Wright, living in Chenango County,
New York, decided to make trip to
Michigan, with view to settling there.
He had a family, and was a man of con-
siderable means. He was a stout hearty
man, who had made his property by hard
work, and he was just the man who
would defend his means with his life if
occasion required.
He reached Detroit without adventure,
and after spending day or two in the
city to make inquiries he determined to
travel into the interior and look up
some land. He had about thousand
dollars with him, mostly in bank-notes,
and he took a friends warning and pur-
chased pair of double barreled pistols
and good knife. He learned from the
newspapers and from citizens that many
lawless characters were prowling about
the interior of the Territory, and his
preparations were only matter of pru-
dence. | have often heard him tell of
what befell him on his trip, and now
let him tell it to the reader.
81 left Detroit in company with man
named David Comstock, from Ohio, who
was in the Territory on the same mis-
sion-to locate u farm for himself.
After making due inquiries, and learn.
ing that some very choice government
land could be found by travelling north
east, we took our departure on foot 1t
was in September. The roads were in
bad condition, and we believed that we
could get along better on foot than with
saddle-horses, especially as we might
have trouble in finding provender for
the beasts, and as we would now and
then want to leave the road, which ran
northeast, and was little better than a
path. The trees had been cut down in
some places, to make a highway some
thirty feet wide, and again the path
wound among the trees so that the pas
sage of a vehicle would have been an i'm
possibility There was not bridge on
the route, and the cabins of the settlers
were sometimes miles apart. All the
goods and provisions taken in had to be
packed on horses, or carried on the backs
of the settlers.
"Comstock had about five hundred
dollars with him. The money was all in
gold, in five and ten dollar gold pieces,
and he had it tied up in handkerchief
and thrust into his bosom. He was armed
with single -barrelcd pistol only. not
having so much as a jack-knife besides.
So far as | could judge he was not the
man for an emergency, having but little
confidence in his pistol, and none at all
in himself He had heard of the horse
thieves, counterfeitcrs, and desperadoes
we should be likely to encounter, and we
had hardly lost sight of the city when he
began to express his fears that we were
unwise in making the trip.
During the forenoon we met several
hunters and quite Il number of settlers,
most of them on their way into Detroit.
Every man carried rifle, most of them
apistol and knife, and all were uncouth
and savage-looking in our eyes. We had
started out soon after seven O'clock and
despite the bad condition of the path, for
part of the way, had made distance
of thirteen miles when we sat down on a
log to eat our dinner. We had provided
ourselves with dried beef, crackers.
cheese and other articles, enough to last
for two or three days, and each of us
had stout blanket, being warned that
we might have to depend on ourselves for
provisions and lodgings.
I'VE had passed at least beyond two
miles of civilization, and Just previous
to eating had been told by traveller that
we would not find another cabin for five
miles. We had seen no land to suit us
as yet, and were determined not to end
our trip until we had seen the fine tim
bered country which was said to lie
awaiting purchasers and settlers within
two days tramp of Detroit
ga flor cotiefv;no. o,,,