Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1907-07-23
RICH IN INDIAN HISTORY.
Few People of the City of Wausau
Know Anything About the Rice
Lake Country.

lIshed stories regarding lndlah hislorJ
of Rice lake, which is situated In the
town of Day. The country surround
ing that body of water was once the
habitat of numerous bands OF Indians,
who found in that country plenty OF
game. fish, etc whereby they could fill
their larders without much effort
Several burying grounds are situated
there and the relics and other signs OF
indian life are quite numerous. If one
| were to write the aboriginal history OF
this county, the country surrounding
Rice lake would furnish many an inter
esting chapter The Indian is there no
more. He has been driven out by his
white brother, but he has left a history
which will live as long as the country is
inhabitated. The stories connected
with the lake and with Smoky hill,
which rises hack of It, are many. The
hill is supposed to be the home of q
Legendary spirit-a departed chieftain
whose misty form is seen only by the
Indians of his tribe. Smoky hill was
the scene of many hard battle between
the Chippewas and Winnebagos. That
it was great settlement one time is
Witnessed by the numerous trails lead
ing from that section in all directions,
many of which can still be traced for
miles. The Indian trail was the only
highway through the unbroken forests
and followed where the least resistance
offered. These primitive paths were
not the product OF one man, but rather
resulted from the Judgment of genera
tons of lllen ana were the product of
centuries of travel. AS a romantic
place there is not one in Marathon
county, or Northern Wisconsin for that
matter, which can equal it. For the
following write-np of the lake and
country surrounding, we are indebted
to John White, of Marshfield
Beyond the Alps lies Italy Beyond
Marshfeld, over in Marathon county,
lies Rice lake Hundreds of people
from here go there every summer TO
catch fish and get taste of nature 1t
is natural resort for sportsmen, and
the Indians, many, many years ago,
had village there. made pottery, buried
their dead aud fought battles 1t was
our good fortune last Saturday, through
the kindness of Geo Reynolds, To pay
this historical spot visit, and on Smoky
hill we dreamed of painted savages
making spear heads and arrow ends,
The white man now owns the thousands
of acres that lie at the bottom of Rice
lake with its great tributary marshes
Mr. Reynolds, with other capitalists, is
soon to redeem these lands by system
OF drainage, and if their plans carry,
the sight from Smoky hill will soon be
changed from muskrat houses and the
home of the mud hen and bull heads to
fields of rich tillable lands. Mr.
Reynolds, by system of dyking, al
ready has 80 acres fenced in from the
lake, and this year is experimenting on
several different crops, among them
peppermint, flax and NORWOOD, from
WhtSn dOStutuC 10 ltd0C III CdCu III
stance the crop shows well and proves
beyond doubt that in the rich soil
bumper crops can be raised. On former
occasions we have pictured the
immense task of draining this basin in
which miles of canals will be cut, with
many more miles of laterals feeding
into it. It's great work and means the
outlay of thousands of dollars. The
undertaking will be watched with much
interest.
The road from Marshfield to Rice
lake passes through fine farming
country, and, if we are a judge of grow
ing crops, there is every evidence of
good harvest. just what ails some of
the oat fields is more than we can say,
but many patches will amount to moth
ing 1t may be the work of the green
bug, but many think this theory hum
bug and that their ailment is rust or
blight. At all events, the mischief al
tatoes, rye and barley, are getting
along towards the harvest in much
better shape than was expected earlier
in the season, and there is no reason
why the hay crop will not be equal to
that of last year. Anyway, we hope so,
for when the granary is full it hurts
everybody pretty good. Before we for
get, we would like to mention, in an
off hand way, TO the woman with the
faded sunbonnet and old calico wrap
per, that the woods are full of wild ber-
ries. They are not ripe yet and won't
be for week. The bushes are already
bent with the green fruit, but around
every stalk is frame work of trans
parent mosquitoes with bills sharper
than cambria needles. Before leaving
Marshfield we were told that these pests
were thicker at Rice lake than grains
of sand in & gravel pit, but whether it
was the sight of our party OF the wealth
er conditions, we, all of us, came back
with as much blood as we left with.
It's an i'll wind that blows nobody
good, and when you go to Rice lake
ask in your prayers that the wind blow.
Arriving there Saturday we went 70
camp in club house owned by some
Marshtield parties and fixed up with all
the comforts of home except bath
room and piano. After a dinner
cooked in the old fashioned way and
relished with an old fashioned appetite,
the boats that were found at the bank
were made use of and the balance of
the day devoted to rescuing fish
from the water 1t beats all how easily
bull head will get stuck on hook on
which a slim WASTED angle worn is
used as s decoy. They fight for a
chance to get it down their homely
face, and even after they find that the
morsel they craved has string TO it
they refuse TO give up the hook and
come ashore as easy as a bride to the al