The Mena weekly star., 1922-02-02

Uncle Johnson McDanicl lived when father moved on the public road in
 1857. Uncle Johnson McDaniel re, signed and father took the ofiice ana it was moved down Buffalo, where it remained until about 1861 and the war
 broke out and it was discontinued nntil after the war when it was re, established. The mail was carried from Dallas to Ultamathule nrse'
 Then it was changed to Pasaciitta al'
 ter few years. My old friend, fsiley
 Perry, carried the mail just peIore
 the war. It took four days to make
 the trip. The first stop was at Hiram
 l,ehow's. near Grannis, then to fasa-
 clifta. then back to Lebows, then to
 Dallas. All letters that were written
 then were sent to the distributing
 nostof1ice at Little Rock. General Churchill was distributing postmaster then. | was under Churchill when was in the army. It made no differ, ence where your letter was addressed to. if it was addressed to Fulton
 down on Red river only DO or 0u miles from Pasaclifta it went to Llt- tle Rock to the distributing postotiice, then sent from there to Fulton. It took about three weeks to secure an answer. So you see business was no. rushing then, but we did about as well then as we do now. Two or three years after the Civil war Ike Jones put in stock of goods at Old Cove, then the Cove postoffice was moved there and remained there until the Kansas City Southern railway was built. then moved to New Cove where it now is. The strip of land between Red river and Little River was taken from Sevier county and nude Little River county a few years after the war. A man by the name of William Jerrigan was first or second repre- sentative of the county and 1t was told on him that when he got to Lit tie Rock he gave a little negro p cents to show him the state house. A man by the name of Calvin Cochran represented the county one term. While there he introduced bill pro- hibiting carrying pistols and to take effect immediately. On the way home he stopped at Dallas. Cal loved his drinks. The officers found that he had a pistol so they arrested him and fined him S10 and costs have heard Cal laugh about that himself.
 Now back to my boyhood days. Three miles west of Cove was once the fastest place in the county. Where Mr. Wise now lives there was about three stores, two blacksmith shops, a shop where bells were made, forged out of slab iron, hammered till 1t was almost steel. As that used to be the way steel was made by hammering. The man that made the bells was named Woods. He charged 30 cents for bell if you could hear it one-half mile, $1 for one mile, $2 for two miles, $3 for three miles, that is, if you could hear the bell 3 miles you paid him $3 for it. And he made bells that could be heard that far, but the woods were all open then There was very little small timber and no underbrush. The Pirtles, John and Ali, used to come from Dallas to this place on the ter ritory line to play the fiddle for them. People didn't work half the time. When anyone wanted new house, a log rolling, a rail splitting or clear ing was given. They invited their neighbors to do the work and gave a dance at night But this little burg didn't last long. One of the leaders of this place killed himself with a Christmas gun by boring large hole in a pine, filling the hole with powder and driving wooden pin in, stood be- hind the tree and touched it off, kill ing him. And another leader killed an Indian and he had to leave so in two or three years there was no one living there but one family.
 People were happier then than than they are now and there was less lawlessness. 1 knew a man by the name of Chiles that came down here from Independence, Mo. to buy 30 yoke of oxen. He had S3000 in gold in trunk and only had two men with him. They stopped in an old vacant house, now where Mr Wise lives on the Oklahoma line. Mr. Chiles was out of the house most of the day when he bought a yoke of oxen. He would go to his trunk and get the gold and pay for them. It was gen erally known that he would pay the gold for them. How long would it last now for man to take $3000 out on the Oklahoma line and let it be known? This man bought 50 yoke of oxen with their yokes on, drove them to Independence, Mo, bought wagons, loaded them with supplies for the Mormons at Salt Lake City. Utah, and drove thru. 1t took 6 months to make the trip. remem- Der when there was not a cemetery in the country, so when anyone died, which was seldom the case, the rela- tives would select q place near their home and bury them I can name the first persons buried in every ceme- tery between Hatfield and Hatton.
 When the first public road was be- Ing worked an oyerseer was appoint ed. He would warn the hands to work or rather he would excuse one or two men for them to warn the olh- CTS. They would meet near Cove and divide. The overseer would appoint 2 sub-overseer and he would go up to the Dill Lane place, within 4 miles of Mena, to begin work and the ap- pointed oyerseer would take his men and go down to the county line. where Mineral now k, and begin work. They would all ride, take feed. and stake ropes and grub for themselves and camp for one night. They would match trees and throw out a few rocks and meet the second day. They had no spades or shovels for there was none in the country. They would take an axe, weeding hoe and mat Was all they had to work with. They worked twice year.
 l remember but little about the first county officials. l think that Judge James Steel, our present judges Father, was first district judge. Soon aftnr tha A-n.. li....... - ----l |