The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1898-03-24
A TOWN OF TWO PEOPLE.

" -@Cest W. WIZ AAAses>.>A
phia Bulletin, has been looking up
some interior Pennsylvania towns,
and writes an entertaining article
concerning them. After telling of
the saleofthe entire village ofUhler-
town, Bucks county, to one man,
some time ago, he tells OF a town
not SO far from Middleburg which
will be of interest to our people.
He says:
pennsylvania can boast of even
smaller twn, and one with only
two inhabitants. Its name is Neko-
da, and it is on every map of the
United States. NekOda is in Perry
county, five miles from Millersburg,
on the Pennsylvania railroad, be-
tween Altoona and Harrisburg, and
seven miles from Liverpool on the
Northern Central railroad. The
town has two mail deliveries daily
and daily stage line connecting it
with Millerstown, Liverpool and
Mckee's Half Falls.
"rhe population consists of Mr..
and Mrs. s. II. Baker, and never
before in the history of the country
has one man had to perform more
officers than this solitary male. lie
is thejustice ofthe peace, postmaster,
burgess, towncouncil, chiefof police,
election inspector, president of the
board Of health, blacksmith, drug
gist, general storekeeper and the
holder of many other offices. Mrs.
Baker is the president of the Ladies'
Guild, Health Protective Society
and numerous other organizations,
which she has created and promoted
during herlong residencein Nekoda.
She is now in her scventy-third year
while Mr.. Baker is in his seventy
sixth. They are both hale and
hearty, and carry the burden of
their many duties with a cheerful
ness and strict attention to business
that incomparison puts to shame the
officials of some other towns who
have only one Office to fill, and even
neglect that.
"Mr. Baker was born in Nekoda.
he Knows every stone in that iuter-
esting place, where he has spent his
useful life. There is not tree or
shrub, aye, even a blade of grass,
that is not familiar to his eye. The
politics Of Neloda are strictly Re-
publican. The Squire, as Mr.. Ba-
ker is affectionately termed by the
other citizens, meaning his wife,
always votes to please the commun-
ity.
"The Squire did his courting
from Nekoda. The blushing dam
sci whom he ask to share his many
honors over fifty years ago was Miss
Eliza Rickabaug, of Millerstown.
Her father was the jolly host Of the
Cross Keys Hotel, which hourished
in the old stagedays. Many anight
young Baker footed it home by the
light of the silvermoon from Millers-
town to Nekoda with the firm de-
termination in his mind that the
next time he saw Lizzie he would
just out and say it. She had many
suitors. That winter was "a hard
one for Sammy. His determination
always weakened when he found
himself in Lizzie's fathers cosy
parlor, and it was not until they
were both capsized out of a sleigh
into snow bank that Sammy found
courage to speak. Then, at they
frantically clutched at each other,
Sammy cried: "Now Pve got you,
and I'll keep you forever" This
was how he proposed, and the mar
riage followed shortly after, when
the chief of police, burgess, town
council and all the other officials
carried off his bride in triumph to
reign unmolested for fifty years as
the first lady Of Nekoda.
"The statistics of Nekoda, for the
last half century show that there
have only been one marriage and
two births. The latter blessed the
union of Sammy and Lizzie, over
forty years ago, since which time the
offspring became tull-Aedged, and
flew the nest. One became Mrs.
Valeria Hopple, the wife of the