Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1913-07-04
CHAPTER II.
whan 4 Was a Kid.

In September, looking from the
court house square of Rome, one sees
the ripening corn like bronze snleid
on the hills which close every street
end beyond the arching sugar trees.
The bottoms, too, are choked py the
lust of the corn, and the church spires
and the ragged sycamores along the
roadsides rise out Of this opulent sea
from the river to the bluffs as II
drowning in the perfume of the tas-
sells. These west bluffs alone seem
to eyade the conquest; one sees
road winding up a red gap among
groves of oak, hickory, walnut; with
the crimson sumac and alders snow
ing a lighter, SOIL the upland crop
pings of shale, clay and stony ridges.
Here one has glimpses Of clover and
oat stubble, rounded stacks, parns'
windmills, white farm homes and wire
fences about shaded pastures. But
beyond, the triumphant sea OF the
corn stretches north and west across
the Iowa midlands, for there Is no
trace of the virgin soil, the snort
grass as the Indian rode it when the
settlers Of the forests came.
II is a land fat to bursting with
numberless rich and complacant
cities. The county annals show you
that the people never have hungereo'
fought or suffered. From the very
first every man had his bag OF silver
under the puncheon floor Of his CABIN
and went forth to buy the acres as
the Sacs and Foxes moved away.
The second year they ate their own
corn with the venison and prairie
chicken; their schools and churches
were built before the oak in their
own cabin homes was dry; and the
first grand jury of this Iowa county
sat in the untrodden grass OF what
Is now Rome's main street and indlct-
ed a territorial commissioner for NAL
feasance. 1t was significant; the first
Midlanders were insurgents Of con-
science and not hunger-rebellious, for
never had they felt want or known
sacrifice.
The Indians called it 1.-THE Land OF
Beautiful Rivers" and few towns
there are which have not stream
lettering near over clear pebbly bars
and long blue-stem margins where
the wild grapes and crabapples lure
the children autumn long. Through
Rome, therefore, flows Sinsinawa
creek, sleeping the summer in leaf
lined, sweet smelling pools along the
shady streets where the boys fish for
sinners with their hats; and where, In
October, the water having dried, the
oak and maple leaves drift deep so
that, by Halloween all the town Is
filled with the pungent smell Of the
smoke.
Rome is in a continual grandmoth-
erly quarrel with Sinsinawa creek;
never has it been able to reason sober
ly into the laughing jade which tum-
bles it's June freshets down from the
bluffs, fills every hollow Of the wander
ing streets and vacant lots, plays
mischief with fences and walks and
goes its way to the Mississippi across
the bottoms, leaving its mirrored
pools to taunt the ancient dame OF
town with it's wiifulness. Yet Rome
so loves the wanton that when Earl
VILE wanted to divert its waters in the
uplands to run a factory for the ag-
gressive metropolis of the county, the
protest that went up echoed for years
in local politics. Earlvillians called II
"Sin Creek" or skunk Creek" but
what could one expect Of Earlville?
In Rome when a tree interferes
with a sidewalk the walk is not built.
in Earlville the tree is cut down and
the cement laid. That is why Earl
willie has the railroad, the furniture
factory and the Elk's club, while
Rome has only its memories, Its rusty
fences and it's best families. And the
county court house. The court house
offices and the best families were
tradition as venerably intertwined as
the ivy and bricks of the walls. Rome
knows its position. 1t would have sal
with dignity on it's hills only SkunB
creek-I beg pardon, Sinsinawa
kept pushing it off.
Yet none in Rome more than mild
ly censured Sinsinawa. Not ever
Wiley T. Curran of the Rome News
who was always bothering the towr
board about street Improvements. Ht
ought to have known better. Ever!
one having county business had tt
come to Rome. If one didn't like tht
streets one could go to-Earlville.
Wiley T. Curran used to retort tina
a good many had. Rome contained
not nearly so many people as it dit
when the war closed. Earlville, then
was merely one of Thaddeus Tan
ner's cow pastures. Earlville wei
coined anyone who would hustle a.
the Boosters club put it. Rome dit
not care to have people, about who's
families nothing was known. Ever!
one there had lived in Rome since
1860 at least Even the obnoxiou
Mr.. Curran's progenitors; and some
the old families tolerated the New
solely because Pat Curran founded /
before the court house was built
But those families were few, for Pa
Curran had been one Of the fghtini
abolitionists, and southern Iowa wa
noticeably in the stream Of Kentuck,
and Virginia migrations during tn
secession prelude. To this day thes
lower counties are known as 9TH
Reserve" and have ever stood aloa
from the rampant republicanism o
the militant north and west. In Rom
still exist dim traditions Of Tully'
Raid and the copperheadism that wa
smothered in triumph Of the north