Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1932-02-18
Renrock

We are glad that our friend over at
Meigs, G.. B. Ray, has time, pa
tience, ability and pencils to give us
some history of Bristol township.
Back little past the knee pant age
we made some acquaintances over
around Bristol that have remained
intact and dear throughout all these
fleeting years. To our way of think
ing Mary Ellen Mcdonald was one
of the best school teachers that
Morgan county ever produced.
When not very far in the twenties,
she braved the perils condescended,
/ will say, to come away over here to
teach what was then the notorious
Smith school, and we were one OF
her pupils. She told us much about
her home and persuaded my parents
to let me accompany her home to
remain over Sunday. At a later
time we were invited over there to
attend a Christmas tree at Bristol
church., which was the first, and al
so the biggest affair of the kind we
ever attended. Rev. Helfrick was
the pastor. With these visits we
made the acquaintance with other
families, the Pedicords, Hendersons,
CARROTS, Rexs and others. This
Mcdonald family, John and Sarah
Fordyce Mcdonald was undoubt-
edly one of the most prominent,
leading, well-to-do families in that
whole country at that time. The
home was mecca for visitors who
would never grow weary of the
kind-hearted hospitality. School
teachers in adjoining districts, who
were from a distance, and couldn't
get home every Sunday, would
spend the week end at the McDOn-
aid home. To dine at the long table
laden with all the luxuries that a
thrifty farm could produce, with
that stately, motherly Mrs. McDon
aid as hostess, was better than any
first class hotel. And that stone
wall and spring house, the clear,
sparkling water brought long dis
tancer through stone conduit
must have cost lot of money
While this was all before Byron's
time, we hope he will not over
look this, one Of BristoPs most in
f1uential families We have been
talking about good people and good
things to eat, noW we want to
change the subject slightly and talk
about fights.
Fights are not wholly confined
to the animal kingdom, between
man and the lower animals. We
see conflicts in the vegetable king
dom. The strife and contention
that nature, in the form of the tree,
puts up for supremacy, and to hold
its own, is something wonderful.
If the tree wants more room 10
spread itself it takes it. If it wants !.
to hooye UP the sidewalks of New
York, it does it. If il wants to
cleave the rock that's in its way, It
does it. If it gets an object in its
jaws. it hold It there. Recently,
''Belieye it or Not Ripley pictured
a tree swallowing mill-wheel.
Down in Florida a rubber tree sends
its sinuous roots out through q
wagon wheel and then grapples the
earth as though it was preparing
to brace itself aainst the onslaught
of hurricane. Back in the days of
log cabins, a man might use the
fork of tree for a boot jack, but it
wouldn't do for him to be too slow
about it, Out the Caldwell-Sharon |
road about a mile there once lived !
man by the name of Boggs. He |
was moving a steep bank near the
road side with a scythe. When he |
quit he hung his scythe in the work |
of a small elm tree. For some rea-
son the man never got back on the |
job. He sickened and died and the /
scythe remained undisturbed until |
the tree closed its jaws around I
the slender blade of steel and held
it like a wise. The tree has grown
until today it is perhaps two feet
in diameter and high up, but some
distance below the present fork, a
few inches of that scythe is still
visible. The tree stands near a ce
ment culvert not far from the Fer
guson dairy barn. Sometimes we
see a fight between the tree and
the vine. The one tries to choke
the life out of the other. The vine
clings so tenaciously that in time it
finds itself inbedded in spiral
around the tree Our old friend
Easton Foster of Olive Green used
to search the thickets for those
freaks with which to make canes.
Sometimes the fight is between the
vegetable and mineral kingdom. A
tiny stray seed finds itself in the
crevice of a rock. 1t gets a drop Of
moisture and enough particles of
earth to start the germ Of life and
.hen the fight begins. No matter
how hard the rock, if the elements
,an supply this embargo tree with
he necessary nourishment in time
he rock will be sent asunder. Then
here is the fight at the timber