Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1896-09-24

His familiar talk was a mystery to
me, a kind of frame work of a picture
unknown.
I asked, Who is Grant? Not our
/ Congressman?
Yes, yes, Congressman Grant. He
] was elected. He himself set the story
agoing that killed poor Placide, though
no one knows that but l, and now you.
l want you to study him at the funeral
today, and see if you discover anything
peculiarsome about him. l fancy some
thing. | can see, There is cloud
his memory. l can see that Grant
/ a Providence man; he is coming down
to the funeral, l hear; he and his wife.
Mrs. Grant was particular friend OF
Placide. Grant started the story that
caused his own election, and withered
poor Placide. A wounded heart poi
sons the blood, don't it, doctor?"
What story? That is what l am be-
coming impatient to hear"
We'll, this is how it was: There has
been heavy weather in politics in this
state ever since the Dorr times: light
ming, thunder and rain, Lying is the
last weapon of the candidate who
sees, or thinks he sees that he is about
to be defeated, resorts to here. and if
ever black lies were invented to smutch
the white character of a candidate thew
were those that Grant caused to be cir
culated about Placide. The meanest
and most cowardly of all falsehoods
and the hardest to refute, are those that
have some small grain of truth in
them.
Louis Placide came of an old HUI
guenot family, of good stock. who set
tied IN Bristol, in the days when ships
traded at sea. His father died at st.
Malo, France and he and his mother
lived in an old house on the borders
OF the Mt. Hope Lands for many years.
Everybody loved Louis PIacide When
mere lad he used to visit the Bristol
poor house, and sometimes spent his
Thanksgivings and Christmases there.
He was born with a heart He was
elected one of the overseers of the
poor as soon as he came of age. Was
anyone in trouble he went to Louis
Placide. Was anyone sick and needed
watcher he sent for Louis Placide.
Was anyone il danger of a suit for
debt he appea.ed to the heart of Louis
Placide.
The old leather HuguenOt purse was
opened to the needs of all who came
to hin. He was placed on committees
OF education and public improvements
by the electors at their town meetings.
and once when a complaint was made
that he was using the public money
too freely, he was so sensitive to his
honor and reputation that he paid the
whole debt himself and made no crit
icisms. That was Placide. The Incl
dent that started the story was this:
When Placide was a school boy, he
was popular with his fellows, and on
one Fourth of July he went off with a
company of boys on a frolic. They
used to be gay birds, those old ourth
of July roysterers-if ever a boy
thought he was free and independent it
was then. 1t was snapp, fizz and bang
from the ringing of the bell in the
red light of the early morning until
hiIuuISuI, anu the yOunSSter VINO
could waste most powder was held to
be the rising patriot, and the one who
had the greatest amount of liberty in
his soul
Placide was pretty generous that
day; he supplied himself and his COM
panions with fire crackers without
stint, and they had an abundance of
liberty. Towards evening their indie
pendence came to be celebrated in an
unexpected manner An old last years
straw stack where they had been rest
ing after their patriotic labOrs. sudden
ly shot up into flame, and the wind
from the bay blew the fire to the
barn which was soon in blaze There
was plenty of excitement IN the neigh
borhood that day; people ran two and
fro, and shouted, and drew water, and
waited for the engine to come that
they might pour the water into it so
that things might be done in the reg
ulation way. Well, amid the running
and the shouting and the Juggling at
the engine from the town, the dry old
barn vanished into the air and left
but white heap of ashes.
To be Continued.