Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1895-10-10
WILLIAM ROBINSON
A Contribution to his Msno,,,

/ 49,
No. Norwich ), e. England, in ls25. At a 2
age q 4 ne married Miss Mary N% ~
VINO was then eighteen. IT, 1'i'ls
mediately emigrated to AIN in-
ana lived for short time near y ea
omanie, Wis, afterwards a sha.. siaa-
at Mineral Point, and then e ,a
bought the farm on which h. ,neg
he was thus pioneer of fifh, s'eo'
In southern Wisconsin. The n.y., ~,
ness and wildness ef the oa. "eS'
when Mr.. Robinson settled II , .
county may well be imagined VIA
Is known that bands of md
roamed the country freely. and ~
Milwaukee was the nearest grsll
market, and deer Were so plentsg a
they would eat whole fields ~ s. 1a'
ing green corn if not driven ava
The bear was common game. W.
MIR. Robinson settled on his f,r,
ten acres of it had been used a.
kiilo Oh slaughter pen by the Indian,
and the deer bones lay tbictlr
scattered over the ground. whi.r
ing IN the sun. This campin,
ground must have long been used n, |
the Indians, for when Mr.. Rohinsa
broke 1t up, over twenty wears an
very large numbers of flint arron
heads were found.
Very early in life Mr.. Robinson
was financially crippled by a disas
trous fire, and subsequently by two
more destructive fires. In the lata
civil war he always lent his yoico
and vote for individual liberty IA,
advocation of the black mans rights
be received the name of "black aha.
litionist.n He did not volunteer I'M,
said he would wait until the govern.
ment called for his services. His
reason for this was the need of his
whole. attention to his six small
children. He was finally drafted
and entered the army. For his rep.
utation for honesty and integrity
though drafted man, he was made
a commissary sergeant, in which
service he renamed until mustered
out when the war ended and the
slave had lost his shackles. Mr.
Robinson always took an active part
in local politics. He served as chair
man of the board of supervisors in
his town for nearly ten years. He
served two terms in the Wisconsin
legislature. where his service is on
record.
He was a self-made man, that is
he started with no money, and never
went to school after he was nine
years old, but he acquired reputa-
ton for honesty, and gained vast
stores of information from books aud
nature. He was a man of marked
individuality. He never finished his
education, for he studied natures
fields. In memory he was won-
drous man, and of large conceptions.
He was in love with nature and en-
raptured by its charms. He loved
the warbling birds, and admired the
eagle in its eyrie. He knew them
by their scientific names as he list
ened to their songs. Though a wide
traveller, he was not charmed by the
artificial city with its noise and
strife, but he loved the fields Of yell
low, waving grain, he loved the
straw-stack CLEAN of gold and the
sumac's flame of red. He loved to
see fat, sleek cattle wandering over
rich, green pastures, and by the BAD
bling waters that coursed f.s farm.
His old farm was his first and LAST
love. He said he wished TO live ana
die on it. 1t was his Eden his sun
shine of content, where his wife ana
sons had prospered under his KIND
and honest hand. He was IN loNe
with science. He studied geology
and knew the minerals names ana
worth. He called the hosts OF now.
ers by their names, and could tet
what power man had attributed Y
their properties. He had many
sided mind, and studied astronomy
He knew the consultations, KEEP
track of the evening and morning
stars, and discussed the lonely ilAeu
stars that move not. He closely ou-
served the laws of winds and fros'S'
and mentally recorded them ~
forty years. His chief persistent
teachings to his children were, hon-
esty, industry and educa ion.
Mr.. Robinson was gifted with Us
power Of speech. He could MAKE "
short off-hand speech and strike ~,
core Of a current subject. He ilau
read widely for fifty years pefiou''
Gals, popular books and many V'as
sizes. 1t was difficult to present wv