The Weiser signal. [volume] (Weiser, Idaho) 1890-1904, 1894-02-08
THE OLD TIMER.
"reminiscences of Washington County
Pioneer Who Game With the Valiant
Little Band of Quarter of Century
Ago.

Ohe Oh tneu was Il Iall, easy gOlns
fellow, and apparently had nothing
on his mind but the dissemination O
the neighborhood news. He always
walked his route, commencing at tn,
Dead Fall, 80 Mr. Sol Jeffrey LIVED
there then, and visited every hous,
up to the Jim Gray place, now owned
By the Messrs. Durbin. There the
canyon stopped Him, as there were nc
settlers on Lower Crane creek then.
He would come whistling up the road,
come in, take the rocking chair, sill
and whistle awhile, and then would,
little by little, give us the local and
domestic news of the past few days,
and, Yankeelike, getting fresh items
for his next place. 1t took him
about a week to make the round trip,
but he never missed The other filled
what you would call the funny col
umn. His appearance was rather
cratic, but he always came dashing
up on his fiery steed, and his ha, ha,
bal could be heard a long way off. as
he gave us the latest joke, and of
course it reminded us of something
equally as funny which helped him
out for the next place, too You see
while it wasn't exactly the SIGNAL, we
got all the news with full particulars.
/ What we would have done but for
them | don't know; so here is good
luck and goodbye to our Bachelor
News But what a lot of bachelors
there were in those days, old and
young Indeed, they were so plen-
tiful they were at discount, while
girls brought a premium Every girl
then had three or four beaux to her
string, as they used to say, and it was
a common thing on Sunday morn
ing, any time after nine o'clock, to
see row of cayuses tied up wherever
n girl, or, what was better, two or
three girls, dweit, while indoors their
owners were sitting around, watching
the girls help the cold woman" get
dinner. Now, | know that title was
not given with any disrespect, but all
the same | know of several good
looking middle-aged ladies who re-
sented being called old woman and
did not like old lady any better; but
the mother of a family was always so
designated. All visiting in those
times meant the whole day and a
square meal. l don't see how the old
folks stood it, as it was regular
thing, but they did, and good ma
turedly, too. Only one old timer, |
remember, told me years ago, 81
don't mind the grub, you know, but
by gosh | told Molly she had to put
away what was left of the napkins, as
the boys think she is giving them as
chromos with the grub. That fam
lily had not been here long and did
not intend to put on style, but the
boys took them down that way. After
dinner the girls, and those of the
boys who happened to have the inside
track for that day, would go for a
ride, horseback riding being another
favorite pastime of early days; and
many were the canyons explored and
hills ridden over (then covered with
luxuriant bunch grass by these hap
Ply, light hearted people. | remem-
Der the "funny column" telling me
once about a ride he, with several
others, took up Monroe creek to visit
an Indian camp. Before the Indian
wars there were good many Indians
roaming through the Weiser valleys.
They used to put fish traps in the
rivers and catch and dry their win
ter's supply of fish. They used to
cure immense quantities of them
without salt, and men who have eaten
of them told me they were good
They wouldn't have to be extra good
to suit the Indian stomach. This
camp on Monroe creek was busy dry
ing fish; that is, the squaws were
doing the work, part of it, and the
pappooses, big and little, were busily
engaged in eating crickets; not the
cute little cricket on the hearth. Of
Dickens story, but the big fellows
that have been bothering around here
for the past two years. They would
dig Il pit, drive, scare or catch as
many crickets as it would hold, when
they would roast them, and when
done to turn, snap of the legs, and
the rest would go where all good
things of the lnjun goes. Now, l
am not putting this here for you to
take rs a fish story; not much, it's
fact. No small American boy ever
munched peanuts with greater enjoy
ment than did those dirty little iinps
of the forest their crickets. The In
dams used to be great at visiting
themselves, and they would come in
bands of fifteen or twenty. Now,
another idea | had about the Indians
was, that they were arrayed in buck
skin garments, befringed and beaded
Well, the reality was anything but
what my fancy had painted them
The squaws We're nearly all dressed |
in kind of garment made of bed |
ticking, generally reaching to the
knees, and the costume completed by |
buckskin leggings and moccasins. |
The bucks sported greater variety !
Fair.
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