Amador ledger., 1905-01-13
AUKUM.
AUKUM. j

AUKUM, January 9.
Roy Warren, who has been working
for Mr.. Potter of Plymouth, has re-
turned home. Willis Carter took his
place.
Robert Jamerson left this place last
Monday for Pacific Grove, where he
intends living with his daughter Mabel, |
SO | was informed.
have returned to Placervile to attend |
school, after two weeks vacation.
Mrs. S. Grain and son Hugh, of Shen-
andoah valley, came up to see the
formers brother, Chas. Bell, who had
the misfortune to get his right side |
hurt quite badly.
F. Huber, who is teaching Fair Play
school, was here shaking hands with |
his friends.
Mrs. L. Seeley, who has been quite |
i'll at the home of her mother, Mrs |
Geo. Krutcher, of Shenandoah valley, |
for the past three weeks, was able to |
return to her bone last Tuesday.
A. j. Grain died at his residence on
the 4th inst, of chronic Bright's |
disease. He was born in Missouri, at
Cape Gerrardeau, on the End of July, |
1882. Shortly after his birth his par
ents crossed the Missouri river into
Illinois, where he remained till early
manhood. In 1853 he came across the |
plains with an emigrant train, driving
an OK team nearly all the way. He had
some exciting experience with the
Indians. One morning just as the grey
misty light of early morn shot upwards |
from the eastern armament, Indians
stampeded their stock, sending them
in every direction. The conseq uences
were they lost several head of valuah1e
horses. Mr. Grain and several others
gave chase, and followed for two days
and nights, but without recovering the
stock. In making their way back to
the train they failed to find drinking
water, suffering greatly from thirst
| thereby. He came direct to Diamond
| Springs, working there short time,
| when he came to Amador county, and
did his first work here for S. G.
Wheeler, who was then running q small
saw mill situated on the south bank of
the south fork of the Costumes river,
and just above its junction with the
middle fork. In 1856. he married Susan
2. Bell, and settled temporarily on the
ranch now owned by George Krutcher.
He afterwards bought the squatter's
| IlS hO vi Gu0 place HOW wv uGu NY OIlNOf
| Ball from Marshal Reddick, where he
remained until '64, when he was en-
ployed by j. H. O'Brien to tend the
south fork ditch, of which he was then
owner. O'Brien disposed of the prop
erty couple of years afterwards, and
Mr.. Grain was superseded for q time
by Charles Vinegar. In 1869 the ditch
property again changed hands, this
time being bought by Sacramento men,
who placed Charles Green in as super
intendent, and who disposed of Wine
gar aud placed Grain back in his old
| place. In 1871 VIM. Hooper induced
| Alvinza Hayward to take hold of the
Empire mine, then known simply as
| the Hooper mine. The entire ditch
property was purchased by Hooper and
Hayward, consisting then of the mid
die and south fork bitches, after which
were added the ditch known as the
Simpson, and running parallel with the
south fork ditch, and one owned at
Indian Diggings by man of wealth,
and familiarly known as Old Joe Doug
las. Hayward and company placed
Grain in entire charge of all this prop
erty. He was also contractor for all
wood, coal, timbers, logs ETC., con-
nected with the mine. This he held
without interruption until they shut
down the great Plymouth Consolidated
mine in 'S6. After this he had entire
control of everything in any way be-
longing to or operated in Plymouth
and vicinity by the company, which he
held up to the time of his recent serious
illness. Mr.. Grain held the office of
constable in 1862 in Shenandoah valley.
When Robert Cosner was elected sheriff
he tended Mr.. Grain the deputyship of
Chinese tax-collector, which for reasons
best known to himself he refused. He
had his faults, as every man indeed has,
but barring this no more charitable
man ever breathed the breath of life.
No needy hand was ever stretched out
to him in vain. No man ever went
hungry from his door, for Jack Grain,
as he was familiarly known, would have
| given him bis last cent rather than see
him suffer. He was laid in his last
resting place by the Odd Fellows, the
funeral being the largest ever seen in
| Plymouth, He leaves a wife and eight
living children, together with fourteen
grandchildren, to mourn loss that
cannot be replaced.
| OF where the mind in visions have sped,
| Of mid the fathomleSs sea Of the dead
| His soul on its mission is fitting its way
To the goal of all hope in eternity's bay.
| NnNTU