The Baraboo news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1884-1911, 1905-08-09

| pooAS W 4OtS dill over the
country, often mentioned by the
Oldest living who never forgot the
pinch OF business that year anG
many following.
Should the citizens of Baraboo be
ever moved to pay tribute of re-
spect to the memory of the found
er of this city beautiful, to one of the
choicest natures that ever graced
this green earth in the person of a
young and aspiring man of affairs.
they could scarcely do a more fit
ting or graceful thing than to place
some memorial in stone or bronze
on the public square, as a silent
witness to the coming generations
OF the worth of being true and good
and useful among men.
But we cannot long sit at the
rear of the chariot with backs to
the horses and looking sorrowfully
at the past. Life and it's duties are
ever before us and SO it was with
that little handful of pioneers that
had wept beside the grave of their
hero fallen so tragically. Gradual
ly they plucked up courage, and
went on with the unfinished work
he had begun. Prominent among
these was Philorman Pratt who
operated on the south side of the
river and for many years had a saw
mill il operation which was much
needed to help supply the demand
for lumber in building the city. His
power was from what is called a
turbine wheel running under water
and so not forced to idleness by
freezing during the winter like al
overshot wheel. At the top of the
verticle shaft was large cast
skeleton gear or bevel wheel called
a pinion to drive the machinery.
Having obtained these parts, he
was put to his wits end to get the
wooden cogs for the larger or core
wheel. Days and weeks went by,
and all seemed hopeless, for great
accuracy in fitting the wooden cogs
was indispensable, else the gears
would not run together and devel-
op power sufficient to drive the
saws. By merest accident he heard
of farmer in Greenfield who had
learned all mechanical trades as it
were back east, but being weary of
the prison house or machine shop,
had sought the freedom of the
country. StraightwaY Mr.. Pratt
besought him to come to his as
sistance. It was done, and to his
dying day he never forgot or ceased
to mention how fortunate he was
to find such a useful man at a time
when as We would now say, he was
up against it.
AS most of the people of Baraboo
we'll know, PhiIorman Pratt lived
past eightY-four years and left a
reputation untarnished. He pass
ed through the fires Of trials in
Vulnerable common to those days,
but there was no smell of smoke lett
on his garments. He was absolute
ly a man ofintegrity, very exaC ting
it is true of others, but first set a
good example. That he was of
great benefit in giving a young and
growing community the right bias.
forever upward instead of in the
wrong direction, goes without say
ing. Would there were more such
in these days TO stem the tide of
overreaching greed that seems so
widespread and at times threaten
ing to engulf US all.
On the North Side and later on,
came P. A. Bassett who well sus
tanned the reputation for enter
prise of his predecessors. But his
lot was cast in a more civilized time.
The early roughness had in a meas
ure worn eff. He was in every sense
a typical gentleman in manner,
habit and dress, a Southerner by
birth, he had the gentility and ways
of that section of the country in
grained. He was a great Demo
crat and not one bit hesitaut over
exploiting i. o. course there were
then and ALWAYS have been in Bara-