Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-05-02
Editors Note: This is the
third in u series of articles by Mr..
Wihshfp on his :, experiences In
North Dakota In the pioncer
days. The fourth and conclud-
ing article will appear in the
Herald for next Sunday.
{ ny Geo. b. -Wihship.)

In my former letter I should have
introduced the vel who lived at our
turtle River. Tavern. lanes Robb and
lanes Hastings were u first borders.
Ihey were floaters, drifting aimlessly.
apparently. from place to place. What
their antecedents were we knew not.
Robb was a handsome young fellow of
athletic build, with curly brown hair
and AN eXquisitelN trained mustache.
ne was the first physical CULTURE fad
dist I ever met. HIS mission in life.
apparently, was to create and pre-
serve an Apollo-like figure. and while
his creed called for regular exercise,
1t must never be carried to the point
of fatigue. He worked for us awhile.
and this principle came in handy, for
when III" fatigue bug began to bore in.
and his muscles to contract. he woulf
~knock-off. NJ c that sweet re:
pose SO enjoyable to the tired worker.
iim Hastings was Il different type.
more on the phlesmatic order. He
hadn't much use for hard work, but
once warmed UP he would do a fair
days. work. ~Lfc handled an axe very
we'll, and rendered III good service,
but IN The whole jim WAS prolific Of
plans &c minimize the ~strcnuosity of
labor: Al one time in his life he had
'baen All ;Ator, and his mode Of enter
tanning Us occasionally was to as
ouIHe Iuc !Olf OIL INC popular IF6SC-
dians OF the period. He possessed
some talent as Il mimic and inperson-
ator. and as a Fireplace. entertainer
he was appreciated by our clientele.
Eoth these men were well-meaning.
hut devoi1 OF progressive ideals and
distinctive character. They disappear
cd from the scene years ago.
Scar-Face Charley and Cal Young
were the first stage drivers that made
Il homo with US. They were veterans
in their line. having driven stage on
the frontier all their lives. Jim Nc
Mahon, Three-Fngcred7M Mike and
Bugler John were often with us, and
later Joe Colosky and Old Man Har-
mon run in quite frequently. The sup
known as "Old Cid" Subsequently
Gidley was transferred to the Black
Hills district. where he closed his
career several years ago. When these
men could get together. as they did
frequently at Turtle River. there was
a social session. on that did not lack
Cor unique and forceful expression. '
Life at the Tavern.
Our station was not an exceptional
one. The social atmosphere was just
as wholesome as at any of the other
stations: no better, no worse. Stage
drivers, transfers, Adventures. and
an OCcdSlOndl SeltlcT, COuSllluIcu tlu
source from which we drew inspira-
ton, good or bad. But most every
body knows what kind of an atmoss
phere stage drivers and teamsters Gre
ate when it Is not leavened to some
extent by the influence Of educated
men and women and people of re
fined tendencies. 1t simply becomes
coarse and demoralizing. When u
station became popular because of the
drawing power Of tBudge's baked
beans Inc dried-apple sauce, we en-
%tertained a lot of the boys at various
times: n when a lay-Over was neces-
stated by storms or a roads, these
gatherings were not characterized by
any semblance to Sunday schools or
drawing room Soriees. There were
several of the stage drivers II team
sters who had regulations as enter
tanners, either as story tellers or sing
ars Of popular ballads, and many even
ings were spent in listening to their
ribaldry. In almost every instance the
stories and songs reeked with sal
acious suggestions, andathe n who
could hold out the longest and dip
deeper into the muddy pool of OBJ
Sccnity was the lionized entertainer
of the OCCASION.
Because of the distinctive atmos-
phere created by the class of men
assigned to do the work of the day,
there was little opportunity for whole
some diversion along Intellectual lines
They were q generous n good-nat-
ured lot, and theirs was a purely
physical kind of enjoyment. The. Joys
which a cultivated mind derives from
contact with educated people and the
reading of high-class literature, they
knew nothing about, n cared less.
Occasionally a stage passenger or
government official, would spend a
49,. .,:AI> ,- 1- rp0 rry~NNN1 Ion rn
something about the outside world
about politics, railroad building, or
something concerning the settlement
Of the country. I had 4 few books
that I persued quite often. One was a
history Of the world, which I read
4 through several times; and had two
or three of Dickens novels, among
them David 'Copperfield and Oliver
Twist; besides several of Beadle's
Dime Novels, the popular cheap liter
ature of the times. I took the weekly
New York Sun, edited by Chas, A.
Dana, one Of the strong writer's of the
period; and also the St. Pau Pioneer,
then under the management of Chas.
w. Nash, brother of w. c. Nash Of
East Grand Forks. 1 had kept up in
,erest in political affairs in the United
States. II wa more or less con-
versant with Canadian politics, so I
rcad these papers with deep interest.
and the red letter days of the week
were the mes when the mail brought
these papers to our station.
MY natural inclination. together
with my experience in newspapeH Of
fees, where, my early ideals were
formed. tended to make me dissatis-
fled with my course of life. BY con-
:tnui1s j. only one object was tho in
centive, and that was h acquiring of
money enough to enable US to estab-
fish myself in the line Of business
best suited to my taste and ambition.
II %roughing it On through frontier
and running a stage station were not
lucrative %vocations. and l was not
travelling toward h goal of accom-
plishment that I had marked out for
myself in my boyhood .dreamings, then
there was nothing in it ;for me, and
] should steer my course in another
The station made a. little money
~