The Press., 1897-06-10
HE WAS A POOH BAH.
HOW YOUNG FOX RAN A WHOLE
 COUNTY IN DAKOTA.

He Held All the Offices For One Winter
 and Rather Enjoyed the Experience,
 Though 1t Is Presumed That He Was
 Sometimes a Little Lonesome.
 There is a man in this town who was the supreme ruler of the whole county for almost six months. He was Pooh Bah with a vengeance. His name is E. J. Fox, and he is fond of telling how he ran Cavalier county in the first win ter of it's existence. It came about in this way:
 Cavalier county had been named, but unorganized, for several years up tc 1884 It consisted of las, strip of land, all owned by the government, ly ing west of the western boundary line of Pembina county. About that time P. McHugh of Bathgatc was elected as representative of Pcmbina county in the legislature, and it occurred to him and to Attorney W. J. Mooney of the same village that it would be well to organize Cavalier county and add to it the three ranges in the western part of Pembina county. This western part of Pembina county was very much higher than the rest of the county, and was situated, the people said, and say yet, lon the mountain. So McHugh got bill through the legislature defining Cavalier county as it is today.
 That was in the winter of 18S4-5. A courthouse was built at Langdon, which was designated as the county seat, and at the election in November various county officers were elected But none of the county officers came to Langdon to live. It was already bad winter, and they could see no reason why they should come if there was some one there to take charge of the records So they united ill asking E. J. Fox, 8 young man just from Canada, to take charge of the offices until sum- mer. Fox accepted the position, or posi- tions and in December took charge of the affairs of the county. The court house was then a large building-in fact, too large for use. Fox decided that it would be better to leave it va cant until spring, and he took up his abode in a one room "claim shack, k," the only other building in town. This was about 15 by 90 feet in dimensions, and there he lived and did business that winter. He was deputy clerk of the
 
 county auditor and register of deeds The sheriff lived ill the country and the superintendent of schools lived just | across the Manitoba line. The sheriff did not serve out his term, for he was put in jail for shooting man in a fight There was not another living soul with ill two miles.
 Fox lived entirely alone, and did his | own cooking, except the bread baking, which was done by neighbor three miles away. Langdon, though the coun- ty seas was not yet postoffice. The postmaster of Olga, in the eastern part of the county, used to send over large | package of letters and papers about 1 twice a week to the people whom he | knew lived near Langdon, and Fox | would give to these people their mail when they called for it. There was not one settler 40 miles to the west, but | about 40 and 50 miles northwest, near | the Manitoba line, there were several settlers, and some of these used to drive | that great distance to "file'' on a home stead or tree claim. When they did that, Fox had to give them their meals and lodgings, and, in fact, he had often | to keep sort of hotel
 | The winter of 18S4-5 was very cold, and at night Fox used often to lie | awake and listen to the blizzards howl around his little shack. He was kept busy, however, for there were many | filings, registerings of mortgages and 8 | few deeds An average of two or three | men would come to see him daily on | business but he seldom saw woman. l Nearly all the settlers near him at that time were bachelors who afterward went back to Canada to get married; and indeed Fox did the same. Every body was poor, and yet they all seemed to enjoy themselves, though they had to haul their wheat from 50 to 75 miles l to market.
 | The winter passed very swiftly, and in the summer Mooney and McHugh came with their families Then other settlers began to pour in. Buildings went up, as if by magic, and in a few months there were postoft1ce and @ dozen dwellings. Talk of railroad be- gan to be heard, and in a few months it came. Then indeed Pooh-Bah Fox had to surrender his glory. He chose to take up the humble position of superin- tendent of the schools of the county and he still retains the place. He is dis posed to think that, in spite of the com forts and conveniences of the present mode of life here, he enjoyed himself more that winter when he was monarch of all the government offices of Cavalier county. (N. D. Cor. Chicago | Record