Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1911-08-30
new news OF YESTERDAY
Forty-Niner's Story About Col. E.
D. Baker.
Dudley Jones Tells How He Met the
Mexican War Hero in Nicaragua
on the Way to the Gold
Fields.
BY E. j. EDWARDS.


When Col E. D. Baker, a hero In
the Mexican war, in which he COM
manded brigade at Cerro Gofdo;
one of Lincoln's warmest personal
friends, and United States senator
from Oregon, was killed in the autumn
of 1861 at the battle of Balls Bluff,
history inscribed his name in large
letters on her tablets.
In the spring of 1853, Mr.. Dudley
Jones, now prominent resident of
Little Rock, Ark, and large manu-
facturer in the southwest, undertook
his second trip to the California gold
fields, going by the way of Commo-
dore Vanderbilt's Atlantic and Pacific
steamship lines and his short cut
route across Nicaragua. This cross
country route consisted of trip by
boat from Greytown On the Atlantic,
up the San Juan river to Lake
Managua, across the lake by steamer
to Virgin Bay, and thence across the
twelve-mile mountainous stretch of
land separating the lake and the Pa
cific port of San Juan del Sur by
beast of burden and shank's mare
over what was known as the Wander
bilt road-six miles of graded dirt
road and six miles of creek bed trails.
1--WE reached Greytown late one
afternoon in June" said Mr.. Jones,
"and the next evening went aboard
the small boats that Commodore Van
derbilt had placed on the San Juan
and started up the river for the lake
steamer. The river was quite low,
although the spring rains had begun;
in short time great flood of water
would be booming seaward be .ween
the banks.
Cali went we'll until we had gone
twenty or thirty miles up the river
when, suddenly, we ran on to one of
the numerous sand bars that lay in
wait for the boats. All the efforts of
the officers and crew to dislodge our
craft were without await, and what
made the situation worse from the
standpoint Of those of us who were
aboard was the fact that all the other
probably because they were of
lighter draught-had succeeded in
passing over the bar.
Il was standing on the upper deck,
which was swarming with passengers,
among them being quite number of
women, when, suddenly, heard some
one calling for volunteers to go to the
assistance of the crew. l turned
around and saw man of command
ing appearance, by his dress evidently
westerner, standing in the water,
holding to the boat, and calling for
help to carry the boat over the bar.
1t was only minute or two till both
sides of the bow were lined with men
shoulder to shoulder as far back as
they could stand III the water Then
the westerner sang out: Captain, are
you ready?' Yes came the answer.
Hard ahead, now, men, let us go to
California; Then, as the paddles be-
gan TO turn, the leader of the volun-
teers shouted: Now, men, all togeth-
er. Heave-oh-heave! Now she moves
etc.
"She did move, and we crossed that
bar and, in similar manner the next,
and the next, as long as the obstruc-
tion was sand. But as we assembled
the river the mountains came in view,
the jungle Of the bottom lands ended
in higher ground, the forests. became
less dense, and in place of sand we
encountered stone reefs, which proved
too much for even Col E. D. Baker,
for it was he who had taken the lead
and carried us over the sand bars
"The colonel had been a passenger
with us from New York, but had not
seen him before or even heard of him.
He had left Illinois to seek his fortune
In California. He was with us in all
our trials up that river, making
portage after portage around the shall
low places, and passing one night in
the woods in a tropical rain with only
a few umbrellas for protection. And
he also was with us when we took
passage on the steamer Pacific, but
whether he was one Of the hundred Of
sick that filled both decks of the
steamer, or whether he was one of
the many that were dropped over
board or were buried at Acapulco,
never knew until | saw his name in
the California papers months later.
From that time on until he returned
east as senator from Oregon and was
killed at Balls Bluff, I kept tab on
him. He was born leader, and
would have made brilliant record
had he lived longer"
Copyright, 1870 by E. j. Edwards. All
Rights Reserved)
a Wise ludne