Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1936-12-31

remain behind and cast his lot with
the whites Many of the settlers
were kindly disposed toward him for
the service he had rendered them.
They felt sorry for his lone and for
saken condition. He was an expert
fisherman and built his hut on the
river bank at a ripple a short dis
tance below the present town OF
Stockport, and today it is known as
"Silverheels' Rifle This is only a
little way from where, on the oppo-
site side of the river, only few
years before, was the scene OF the
Big Bottom massacre. He was also
a noted deer hunter and, of course,
he had no difficulty in obtaining
living.
1t is difficult for us to get it into
our mind that Silverheels was given
| to strong drink to the extent he has
been charged. Yet, living the life
he did, it would be little wonder.
We can only imagine him a man
who would take a drink, il he want
ed it. and that might be somewhat
frequent, but you couldn't force him
to drinl. There is a type of men
who, it is said. can be lied by
hair, but to drive them, it would
take a regiment. We think Silver
heels Just that kind of an individ-
ual. 'Firewater'' (rum), which the
British supplied the Indians, was
try advanced in civilization, CD we
supplied them with applejack, peach
brandy, corn-whisky, etc.
One day last August found us
| rambling around on Big Olive Green.
a short distance above where It
mingles it's waters with the blue
| Muskingum. Fishing? No. Hunting?
Yes-hunting for one John Roberts.
| who. back in the early 70's, worked
| for my father at the time he had the
| largest peach orchard in this part Of
| the country, and when the ripening
| season came, a forty-bushel wagon
| load was taken out every day, be-
sides a great numbe of bushels that
were sold for drying and canning.
These big loads of peaches were
| taken to building where they were
reduced to a pulpy mass and subse-
quently made into nectar, fit for
| the gods, commonly known as peach
| brandy But just to renew our ac-
quaintance with John Roberts, and
| talk about peach brandy, was not
| the sole object of our visit. He
| knew some history that Henry Howe
| might have been glad to have added
| to his Ohio collection, but at that
| time it hadn't leaked out. It was
history which, at the time it was
| made, was policy to keep hidden.
4 r 7 nI, of &c
| home on the bank of Olive Green
creek. ''No fishing without permis-
sion" was the first thing that met
| our gaze, and then a more startling
| announcement "Cross Dog" on the
we'll curb near the house This
| caused us some hesitancy until its
owner came from somewhere around
| the house and assured us that We
wouldn't be entirely eaten, which
relieved the situation. Upon telling
| him of the relationship that existed
| between the lank specimen which
was standing before him, and the
| Thorla he worked for, more than
| sixty years ago, his hospitality en-
| larged amazingly, and we were in
vited within. but we had noticed q
seat across the road in the cool
| shade at the waters edge, and it
| was so inviting that we proposed to
go down there and have a talk.
| John O. Roberts is splendid eX-
| ample of rugged pioneer stock, and
he evidently prefers the ways of his
| forbears. Overalls suit him bet
ter than broadcloth: prefers an ak,
or gun to gold-headed cane. A
good horse, or COW, looks better
to him than an automobile. Rugged
and robust for a man of his years,
1885, Quick, full of vim, we'll posted
retaining all his faculties, living
close to nature and seemingly we'll
fitted and partaking of the primi-
tive surroundings hemmed in to the
waters edge by the eternal hills.
On the day that we were there,
just back hundred and forty-two
years, there was intense excitement
in this meek of the woods" Truly
then it was woods. In the near vi
cinity of Fort Frye one of the set
tiers, by the name of Abel Sherman,
had incautiously gone on hunt OF
stray COW and was killed by In
dians, and Mr.. Roberts knew the de-
tails of the tragic story A vivid ac-
count of this story was written by
Alice Reitter more than a year ago
and published in the Columbus Dis.
patch, and later in the Morgan
County Democrat. But your scribe
had a desire to see Mr. Roberts and
go over the ground and see the place
with his own eyes. Mr.. Roberts
father had told him how Matte.
Chapman and Jesse Scott, close com
panions, had helped Eli Sherman
avenge the death of his father It
is recorded in history that man by
the name of Abel Sherman, former
ly connected with Fort Frye, but at
this time living some little distance
away, was out looking for a lost
cow and was in the vicinity of the
fort when night overlook him. The
more cautious settlers advised him
to give up the search until morning,
as the disappearance of the COW in
dicated that there might be a
marauding band of Indians in the vi
cinity; but Sherman was concerned
about the cow and failed to heed
the warning and took the trail for
home.
only short time elapsed, when
the sentinels at the fort heard two
shots ring out on the night air Ez-
ra Sherman, son of Abel Sherman,
who was at the fort, recognized one
of the shots as from his fathers
gun. This youth. full of the spirit
of frontier 1ife,-to match his Prov
ess with the keen intuition of the
red-man, took down his gun and
started in the direction where the