Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1910-02-24
an INTERESTING RELIC.
a Resident OF Linton has an Account
Book One Hundred and Six Wears
Old That Was owned BY His
Great t-Grandfather

Great reat.Grandfatter
Don Tracy, the young Linton pho
tographer. has an ancient relic that
ne wouldn I part with for any sort
OF consideration 1t is an account
book which was once the property a
the father of the father Il his
father 5 mother in other words {
his greatgreat -grandfather.
The book was recently eiNcn Ia
him by his grandmother. Mrs We
toria Tracy, of Dale. this county.
Although the first writing in the
book was put there on the 9th Of
September, 1903, and it was there
fore one hundred and six years old
last September, practically all Of
the entries in the book are legibe.
Some pages are palmer than Others
owing to the fact of ink Of more
lasting quality being used. Some Of
the entries more than q hundred
years old are as black and clear as
though written yesterday, while
others have a faded appearance Tie
book is In good condition. the bind
ing being we'll preserved. The
covers bear figures that resemble
those used on paper for decorating
walls. The entries in the book cover
a period of thirty years from ls0S
to 1888, both of those years In
/ cluded.
Inside of the cover of the book
Grandma Tracy has written a
short biographical sketch of her
grandfather, and from that Sketch
we take the following extract:
This book was the property of
my grandfather, Major Jared
Phelps, who served in the army of
Washington. The reader of history
will not need to be told of the bat
ties in which he bore his part. or of
the hardships endured by him, in
Guiding the terrible winter at Valley
Forge. In the fall of 1871 he went
to Smithfield, Bradford county,
Pennsylvania, being one of the early
settlers of the town. He was born
in Hebron, Connecticut, Oct. Is,
1850, and died in Smithfeld, Aug.
l3, 1922. He was married to Rowena
Fuller. Sept. %, 1854, who died in
Smithtield May IA. 1912. This ac-
count book was begun in Beckett,
Massachusetts. where they lived for
seven years before migrating to
Pennsylvania. The oldest date in it
is Sept. II, 1903, which makes it
more than one hundred and six years
old at the time of the present writ
ing, Dec. IL. 1909. The biograph-
ical sketch is signed by Victoria
Phelps Tracy, daughter of Henry
Phelps. youngest child of Major
Jared Phelps"
On the first page, among other en-
tries. are, Three quarts oats 9
cents, Two meals victuals - cents,
Keeping horse over night l2c. As
there is an item for oats and none
for hay, it is probable that the cost
of hay was included in the item of 8
cents.
Among other entries in the book
are
Two thousand shingles $500
Half dozen pigeons 8 cents.
There are many entries of pigeons
in the book all at about cent apiece.
II must be remembered that there
were immense fiocks of wild or pas
senger pigeons in those days As
| late as 1863 the writer has seen flocki
of them that flew for hours with
| scarcely an lnlermisslon. In parts of
1 Pennsylvania. Ohio and other state,
they had their breeding grounds
where they congregated in such i'm
mense numbers that limbs of the
trees were broken off by the weight
of old birds squads and nests. People
4 killed them by the thousand The
passenger pigeon which was larger
than the turtle dove and somewhat
resembled it in buld and color is
now practically extinct In fact, We
4 do not know that a single bird Of
that kind now exists. They have
gone with the buffalo.
As modern machinery for corn anc
wheat raising was not then invented
4 and hard labor and slow methods il
their culture and harvesting ther
prevailed. the price for these grain:
was about the same as nov There
are several entries at from 50 10 4
cents per bushel for corn and a dol
lar or Whereabouts for wheat Elias
seed 81 90 to 81 30. Potatoes we're ..
to loc per busheI rye Zoo oats .,c
turnips pc, cheese about Zoe tns
pound, tobacco l5 10 roe the pound
honey 2oc. cider a dollar barre
Several items show that the price
Of a sucking calf was about s. 800
Eggs were 70 II c per dozen I
fat sheen sold for 5000 Butter " a;