The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-02-16
TABOR'S MAINE WIFE.
Though Discarded Her Loyalty Ceased
Only With Death.

A Romance of One of the Mushroom Mil
most Penniless. and the Wife Died a
millionaire,
When Mrs. Augusta L. Tabor died in Cali
forDia the other day, frivolous fate put an
end to pathetic life all too soon.
Once upon a time. when Senator Horace
A. W. Tabor, rolling in his millions, put
away by divorce this devoted companion
of his early struggles, she made prophecy.
She said then, " sile her place was being
taken by another woman. that the time
would come when H. A. W. Tabor. his own
millions having fed. would come to her beg
ging assistance. And she said she would
give it to him.
The time for a WORT had almost come.
Senator Tabor is in tn . last throes of finan-
cial ruin, and Mrs. Augusta, Tabor died
worth nearly S2,00U.00O and expectaht to
the last. The pathos of such life-there
is no need to go to the story tellers for it.
1t was in Augusta. Maine, that these two
met. She was, the daughter os IL stone con-
tractor, Franklin n. Pienre. He was n
stone cutter seeking work. This was y
1858.
Two years from ,LnaG time J1OfaCe Adbur
asked the girl Augusta to be his wife. She
consented and the young man went west to
find home for her. He located farm of
100 acres in Riley county. Kansas. and in
year went back for Lbs bride. They were
married at Augusta in January, 1857, in the
room where they first met.
On the 25th of February they started
for their new home in the untried west. ST.
% 4.l1a oi1ua
From there they went to Kansas City fy
five-day boat, says an article in the Boston
Globe. At the mouth of the haw they pur-
chased a yoke of oxen, wagon. a few farm
ing tools, and with their trunks struck out
for the dreary plains. where the winds blew
raw and the Indians united with the rattle
snakes in contesting in vain the encioach-
ments of the newcomers.
stWe arrived at our destination" said Mrs.
Tabor, not long ago, ION the 10Th of April
at Ii a. m. l shall never forget that morn
ing. To add to the desolation of the place
the wind took new turn. The cabin stood
solitary upon an open prairie. It was
built of black walnut logs, IL by 1e feet.
Not building, stone or a stick was in
sight. We had brought two men with MS.
and how we could have lived in that place
q
times. The only furniture was No.
stove, dilapidated trunk. and rough
bedstead made OF poles. on which was an
old tick flied with prairie grass.
And this TO be faced by young bride
not out OF her teens | sat down upon the
old trunk and cried.''
But she took heart and soon was at work
papering the walls with old copies of the
Vop fTrih
them SO that she could read them at her
leisure. for she was to have somewhat more
leisure than newspapers.
Having made her little home as attractive
as possible. she took cheer and went to
work. she even helped Ler husband in the
fields, along with the neighbors, who came
from long distances to exchange labor. so
that all the farms in the vicinity might be
planted in seed without the aid of day
labor. which was scarce.
No 1ain fell that simmer. SO that one
seasons work was wasted The young
farmer went to fort Riley and worked at
his trade while the girl wife stayed in her
lonely cabin with her baby and her chick
ems in constant dread of snakes and In
dams, and of the dreadful silence of the
plains, which was at times worse than any
thing else.
The next year they raised good crop.
but there was no market for If. But they
MANAGED to get along frugally until the
spring of 1853. when Tabor got the gold
fever, having heard of the news from Pixies
Peak, from member of Green Russell's
party. who was returning home with his
pockets full of gold dust.
lie offered TO send his wife and baby
home. but she. plucky then as to the end,
declined to desert him. In April they start
ed with an OK team and wagon full of
supplies. intending then to remain but a
few months, long enough to get gold
sufficient to pay for their little farm.
They did not dream of the luck that was
in store for them y, California Gulch.
'tWhat 1 endured on this journey Mrs. |
Tabor was won't to say reminiscently. ION |
" the woman who crossed the plains in SO
can realize. There was no station until we
arrived within so miles, of Denver. no road,
and a good part of the way no fuel.
View obliged to gather buffalo chips. |
often having to travel miles to get enough
to cook a meal with. This weary work fell
to the women always, for the men had all
they could do taking care of the teams and
making and breaking camp. The Indians
followed lis all the time. and though APP
parently friendly, were persistently begging
and stealing.
Ever Sunday we rested. if lest it could
be called. The men went hunting while |
stayed to guard the camp, wash the soiled
linen and cook for the following week.
quite frequently the ILdiaEs gathered
about the camp SO that l could do nothing |
all day. They wallowed in the water
sources from which our supply was OBJ |
tanned. so that the water was generally |
very filthy. Ally babe was teething and
suffering from fever and ague, so that he
required attention day and night. l was
weak and feeble. having suffered much
from ague in Kansas. and my weight was
only 80 pounds
They reached Denver in June and stayed
IN the little frontier town monthto rest. |
Then they went up Clear creek to where |
the town of Golden was being established.
There the poor, sick wife and babe were
left alone in the little tent while the men
with few days provisions and picks and
shovels started up the canon for Gregory's |
diggiEgs.
It was not glorious Fourth of July Toe
:. 4