The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1906-10-04
stage CUaeh DAYS.

centennial issue of the Bedford
Gazette, DR.. Charles n. Hickok,
known to many of our readers, re
lates the following incident in ref
erence to James Buchanan on one
of his visits to Bedford
One of the acquaintance ] early
made was that of James Buchanan.
President of the United States,
who, as he one time told me, new
er missed summers outing ut the
Springs, except when he was in
Europe, from the year 1916.
The following true story was re-
lated by him unCer the following
circumstances: His habit was to
walk from the Springs to town oc
casionally after breakfast to chat
with acquaintance and frequently
he remained for dinner at the Bed
ford House, after which he walked
leisurely back to the Springs. One
day he invited me Il boarded
there) to walk back with him. He
was good storyteller and delight
fully reminiscent. was much in
terested in the several things he
narrated of his recollections of
Bedford's early days.
| have never forgotten, | can
never forget how his telling 1t i'm
pressed this on my memory. !
give il, as near as | can, in his
own words:
"My first visit to Bedford was
in 1916, the year in which the turn
pike was commenced. What | am
about to tell occurred in 1919, the
year IN which the road was finish
ed. 1t was my fourth summer on
the road. | had come from Lam
caster in my gig and had stayed
for the night at Christian Beamer's
tavern, on the old road, at the foot
of Sideling Hill. | was about
starting in the morning for Bed
ford on the old road, as | had
found the day before places along
the turnpike which were yet un-
finished and hardly passabIe. As
i was starting, Mr.. Reamer sug
gested that the turnpike was near
ly fit for use and that | could get
through by going that way.
"You will remember that the old
road assembled the mountain on the
northern slope of the gorge and
that the new pike went up on the
southern side of the valley. After
little thought | concluded to try
the new way and turned my hors-
es on to the turnpike. | had driv-
en-, without any distractions, north
three miles, when | was brought
to Il stand-still by a short piece of
road that was not fully opened,
not being entirely cleared and
graded. There was bat about an
eighth of a mile of clogged road
to hinder my passage but things
necessitated my going back fully
two and one-half miles to get on
the old road again, and then trav-
cling the same distance to be as
far as | had already gone. There
were several men at work on the
road at this point and stopped
little while in conversation with
them. They seemed to be inter-
ested In my dilemma. They were
nearly all Irishmen, one an intelli-
gent, kindly yonng Irishl an seem
ed to be the head man of the rest,
as | judged from their talk.
"After some conversation, he
proposed that if ! could walk over
an eighth of a mile of unfinished
road, one of their number would
lead my horse and four would car
rY my gig, and little further on
they could put me on my way
again and save me the lost time of
the trip back again.
"You may be sure gratefully
accepted their kind offer and soon
was on my way again with warm
heart towards them all. "
After moments pause Mr.. Bu-
chanan continued: ''Now whom
do you suppose that warm-hearted
Young lrishman was!" OF course.
l could never have told and | said
so. He replied, "You have heard
of him often. He was afterward
educated and he is now Archbish-