Adams County, Ohio - Chapter 6: The Pioneers, 1900

Chapter 6: The Pioneers

I walk across the meadow in the balmy breath of spring; The earliest flowers are blooming and the birds are all awing. I see a little hillside where two humble stones arise. And mark the spot where sleep the dead whose memories we prise.

Beneath their axes fell the trees, their rifles sought the deer, They struggled with that fortitude known to the pioneer; They met the red-man face to face, as eagles they were free. And owned allegiance to no king who ruled across the sea.

At liberty's immortal shrine they worshipped day by day. For empire's occidental course they bravely cleared the way; With hearts of oak and nerves of steel and healthy brains, I know, They made the forests blossom like a garden long ago.

No gilded cradles held the babes the mother loved to kiss. Where howled the famished wolf at night, or rose the serpent's hiss, And where she led them unto God with calm and tender brow We follow, with no thought of her, the ever busy plow.

No longer on the hillock's side rings out the settler's steel, No longer in the cabins old sings low the spinning wheel; The pioneers have anished like the billows of the tide. With here and there a stone or two to tell us where they died.

Sk>, when I cross the meadow in the balmy breeze of spring. With flowers blooming round me and the merry birds awing. It is to part the grass blades, each a tiny emerald spear. And read upon a leaning stone: "Here sleeps a pioneer.'

Then comes to me a vision of the brave, the true, the bold, An era grander, greater than the fabled age of gold - When the misty azure mountains 'twixt us and the eastern sea Heard in the settlers' march the tread of nations yet to be.

From beyond the Alleghanies came that small, heroic band, I see them cross the border of the death-Invested land; No obstacles retard their march and dangers lurk in vain; They build within the forest and they rear upon the plain.

They carve a way for progress in the dark and lonely wood. They hold the savage foe at bay, they triumph o'er the flood; And commerce follows in their wake, as day succeeds the night, And fairer beam the stars that shine upon our banner bright

All honor to the pioneers whose race has passed away! Their deeds have won a fame that lasts forever and a day; And when I part the tender grass upon the hillside fair I do it gently for I know the brave hearts resting there.

The homes they wrested from the wilds they left to you and me. We drew from those heroic souls our love of liberty; The rights that we enjoy today they battled to maintain. And Gk)d, for them, has blessed us upon every hill and plain.

Gkn. Nathaniel Massih

The present generation has but Kttle conception of the environments of the pioneers of Adams county, and of the hardships and dangers endured by them. When the first settlement was formed at the "Three Islands/' what is now Adams County, as in fact with two exceptions, all of the present State of Ohio, was a vast wilderness, inhabited by tribes of hostile savages, and filled with ferocious beasts and venomous serpents. There was not a white man's domicile in all the Virginia Reservation, and there was not a fort nor a single company of scridiers in all that vast region to shelter the pioneer who ventured within its limits, or to stay the course of the bands of murderous savages that roamed the forests. For the most part the entire region was an unbroken forest, and the stately monarchs of the woods, the oak leviathans, whose lofty tops towered the heavens, formed a canopy of green that was but dimly penetrated by the summer's sim, and the creeks and streams were overhung with foliage that shut out the sunlight and cast deep shadows over the surface of the waters. There was not a road nor a path through this wilderness except those made b}' the herds of buffaloes in their travels from one feeding place to another. There were no means of travel through this vast wilderness except on foot or on horseback and these were fraught with the greatest dangers to life and limb. With such surroundings and under such conditions was the first white settlement begun in the Virginia Reservation.

In the year 1790, Nathaniel Massie, a young land surveyor, who was interested in locating land warrants in the Virginia Reservation northwest of the Ohio River, as an inducement to found a colony there, offered to each of the first twenty-five persons who would join him in making a settlement, one inlot and one outlot in a town he proposed to lay off, and one hundred acres of land in the vicinity of the new town. In accordance with this propdsal the following written agreement was drawn up and signed by the parties interested:

Articles of agreement between Nathaniel Massie, of the one part, and the several persons that have hereunto subscribed, of the other part, witnesseth ; that the subscribers hereof doth oblige themselves to settle in the town laid off, on the northwest side of the Ohio, opposite the lower part of the three islands ; and make said town or the neighborhood, on the northwest side of the Ohio, their permanent seat of residence for two years from the daje hereof; no subscriber shall be absent for more than two months at a time, and during such absence, he shall furnish a strong able-bodied man sufficient to i)ear arms at least equal to himself; no subscriber shall absent himself the time above mentioned, in case of actual danger, nor shall such absence be but once a year; no subscriber shall absent himself in case of actual danger, or if absent, he shall return immediately. Each of the subscribers doth oblige himself to comply with the rules and regulations that shall be agreed on by a majority thereof for the support of the settlement.

In consideration whereof, Nathaniel Massie doth bind and oblige himself, his heirs, etc., to make over and convey to such of the subscribers, that comply with the above conditions, at the expiration of two years, a good and sufficient title unto one inlot in said town, containing five poles in front and eleven back, one outlet of four acres convenient to said town, in the bottom, which the said Massie is to put them in immediate possession of; also one hundred acres erf land, which the said Massie has shown to a part of the subscribers; the conveyance to be made to each of the subscribers, their heirs or assigns.

It has been said that this agreement was drafted and subscribed at Kenton's Station near the town of Washington, Kentucky. It is probable that it was drafted at Limestone and subscribed there. However, the settlement was begun immediately, the town was laid out into lots and named Manchester, after Manchester in England, the home of the ancestors of its founder. The new settlement was known for years as Massie's Station.

**This little confederacy, with Massie at the helm (who was the whole soul of it)," says McDonald, "went to work \vith spirit. Cabins were raised, and by the middle of March, 1791, the whole town was enclosed with strong pickets, firmly fixed in the ground, with block-houses at each angle for defense. [The situation of the stockade was opposite the lower end of the large island and extended to the river bank.] Although this settlement was commenced in the hottest Indian war, it suffered less from depredations and even interruption from the Indians, than any settlement previously made on the Ohio River. This was no doubt owing to the watchful band of brave spirits who guarded the place, men who weie reared in the midst of danger and inured to perils, and as watchful as hawks. Here were the Beasleys, the Stouts, the'Washbums, the Leedoms, the Edgingtons, the Dinnings, the Ellisons, the Utts, the McKenzies, the \Vades and others who were equal to the Indians in all the arts and stratagems of border war.

"As soon as Massie had completely prepared his station for defense, the whole population went to work, and cleared the lower of the three islands, and planted it in com. The island was very rich and produced heavy crops. The woods.

with a little industry, supplied a variety of game. Deer, elk, buffalo, bears and turkeys were abundant, while the river furnished a variety of excellent fish. Tlie wants of the inhabitants were few and easily gratified. Luxuries were unknown except old Monone^ahela double distilled. This article was in great demand in those days, and when obtained was freely used. Coffee and tea were rare articles, not much prized nor sought after, and were only used to celebrate the birth of a newcomer. The inhabitants of the Station were as playful as kittens, and as happy in their way as their hearts could wish. The men spent most of their time in hunting and fishing, and almost every evening the boys and girls footed merrily to the tune of the fiddle. Thus was their time spent in that happy state of indolence and ease, which none but the hunter or herdsman state can enjoy. They had no civil officers to settle their disputes, nor priests to direct their morals ; yet amongst them crimes were of rare occurrence. Should any one who chanced to be amongst them, prove troublesome, or disturb the harmony of the community his expulsion forthwith would be the consequence ; and woe be to him if he again attempted to intrude himself upon them."

The pioneers of Adams County as a class were honorable and moral men and women. They represented some of the best families of Virginia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Maryland. New Jersey and the Carolinas. They were a hardy, industrious, and frugal people, who had come determined to make a home for themselves and their generations in the great Northwest. They were the daring, spirited and brave element of the older settlements east of the AHeghenies. It is true there were in the early settlements as there is in every community today, a rough, immoral, indolent element ; but look into the history of any of the earlv settlements in the county, and it will be seen that each was dominated by moral, industrious, and intelligent families. The pioneers were not, as is the popular opinion, giants in stature and of herculean strength, but they were hardy and vigorous as a result of plain living and an active outdoor life. As a matter of necessity every man and boy devoted a portion of his time to the chase. It afforded the principal subsistence of the early settlers, and "wild meat without salt or bread was often their only food for weeks." They were a generous-hearted and hospitable people, whose welcome was plain and outspoken. There was none of the deceit veiled in hollow formalities that prevails in society today. "Our latch-string is always out" meant a genuine hearty welcome to the humble home of the pioneer.

"The first settlers could not have sustained themselves, had it not been for the wild game that was in the countr>'. This was their principal subsistence ; and this thev took at the peril of their Mves, and often many of them came near starving to death. Wild meat without bread or salt, was often their food for weeks together. If they obtained bread, the ineal was pounded in a mortar or ground in a handmill. Hominy was a good substitute for bread, or parched com pounded and sifted, then mixed with a little maple sugar and eaten dry ; or, mixed with water was a good beverage. On this coarse fare the people were remarkably healthy and cheerful. No complaints were heard of dyspepsia ; I never heard of this fashionable complaint till I was more than thirty years old ; and if the emigrants had come to these backwoods with dyspepsia, they would not have been troubled long with it ; for a few months living on buffalo meat, venison, and good fat bear meat, with the oil of the raccoon and opossum mixed with plenty of hominy, would socm have effected a cure.

**Their children were fat and hearty, not having been fed with plumpudding, sweetmeats and pound-cake. A more hardy race of men and women grew up in this wilderness than has ever been produced since ; with more common sense and enterprise than is common to those who sleep on beds of down, and feast on jellies and preserves ; and although they had not the same advantages of obtaining learning that the present generation have, yet they had this advantage; they were sooner thrown upon the world, became acquainted with men and things, and entirely dependent on their own resources for a living. A boy at the age of sixteen was counted a man in labor and hunting, and was ready to go to war; now, one of that age hardly knows the road to mill or market.

"Their attire was in perfect keeping with their fare. The men's apparel was mostly made of the deer's skin. This, well dressed, was made into hunting shirts, pantaloons, coats, waistcoats, leggins, and moccasins. The women sometimes wore petticoats of this most common and useful article ; and it supplied almost universally the place of shoes and boots. If a man was blessed with a linsey hunting-shirt, and the ladies with Knsey dresses, and the children with the same, it was counted of the first order, even if the linsey was made from the wool of the buffalo. On some occasions the men could purchase a calico shirt ; this was thought to be extra, for which they paid one dollar and fifty cents or two dollars in skins or furs. And if a woman had one calico dress to go abroad in, she was considered a finelv dressed ladv. Deer's hair or oak leaves was generally put into the moccasins and worn in place of stockings or socks. The household furniture consisted of stools, and bedsteads made with forks driven into the ground and poles laid on these with the bark of the trees, and on this beds made of oak leaves, or cattail stripped off and dried in the sun. They rocked their children in a sugar trough or pack-saddle. The cooking utensils consisted of a pot, dutch . oven, skillet, frying pan. wooden trays and trenchers, and boards made smooth and clean. The table was made of a broad slab. And with these fixtures there never was a heartier, happier, more hospitable or cheerful people. Their interest were one, and their dependence on each other was indispensable, and all things were common. Thus united they lived as one familv.

"They generally married early in life, the men from eighteen to twenty-one, and the ^irb from sixteen to twenty. The difficulties of commencing the world were not so great; and as both parties were contented to begin wHth nothing, there was no looking out for fortunes, or the expectations of living without labor. Their * affections were personal and sincere, which constituted a chief part of their domestic happiness, and endeared them to home. The sparkling log fire in the backwoods cabin, the g^ambols of half a dozen cheerful, healthy children, and the smiles of the happy wife and mother, made an earthly paradise.

"Nothing could produce more hilarity than a backwoods wedding. Most generally all the neighborhood, for miles around were invited ; and if it was in the winter, there would be a log-heap or two somewhere near the cabin. Around these fires the men assembled with their rifles; the women in the cabin ; and if there was a fiddler in the neighborhood he must be present at an hour stated. The parson, if one could be had, if not, the Justice of the Peace, called the assembly together, then the couple to be married. After the ceremony was over, and all had wished the happy pair much joy, then, if it could be had, the bottle passed 'round ; the men then went, some to shooting at a mark, some to throwing the tomahawk, others to hopping and jumping, throwing the rail or shoulder stone, others to running foot races ; the women were employed in cooking. When dinner was ready, the guests all partook of the very best bear meat, venison, turkey, etc. This being over the dance commences, and if there is no room in the cabin, the company repair to or near one of the log fires ; there they dance till night, and then they mostly return home ; yet many of the young people stay and perhaps dance all night on a rough puncheon floor, till their moccasins are worn through. ,The next day is the infare; the same scenes are again enacted, when the newly married pair single off to a cabin built for themselves, without twenty dollars' worth of property to begin the world with, and live more happily than those who roll in wealth and fortune.

"I recollect when a boy to have seen a pair of those backwoods folks come to my father's to get married. The groom and bride had a bell on each of their horses' necks, and a horse-collar made of cornhusks on each horse to pay the marriage fee. The groom had a bottle of whiskey in his hunting shirt bosom. When they had entered the house, he asked if the parson was at home. My father replied that he was the parson. '*Then" said the groom, "may it please you, Mary Mc- Lain and I have come to get married. W^ill you do it for us?" "Yes, replied my father. "Well, then," said the groom, "we are in a hurry. So the knot was tied, and the groom pulled out his bottle to treat the company. He then went out, and took the collars off the horses' necks and brought them in as the marriage fee ; and soon after they started for home in Indian file, with the bells on their horses open, to keep the younger colts which had followed them together.

"The chimneys of the cabins were built on the inside by throwing on an extra log, three feet and a half from the wall. From this it was carried up with sticks and clay to the roof and some two feet above it. The whole width of the cabin was occupied for a fire-place, and wood

early records of Adams County contain but few divorce cases. In commenting on this fact a Judge in this judicial district once remarked that there is not a case of divorce on the records where the courting was done in a flax-patch or sugar camp; at a quilting or apple cutting. And we might add or "while bladln' cane," according to the observation of Judge Mason.

"I lmtt«hir t hrar the rcjwlcr saying this was hard living and hard tOMP«» Ho ihry WJHilcl have been to the present race of men, but those wlio llvril Ml ihr lime en joyed life with a greater zest, and were more hpf*llhv fttid httppy than the present race. We had not then sickly -lV«»frf li rtl wlvri». with poor. puny, sickly dying children, and no dyspeptic mrn nmoftthtlv «wallowhig the nostrnnis of quacks. When we became hit It nnfo drttfh, we ilicd at once, and did not keep the neighborhood in H tttrttr of alann for several weeks, bv dailv bulletins of our dying. Our young women were beautiful without rouge or cosmetics, and blithesome without wine. There was then no curvature of the spine, but the lassies were straight and fine-looking, without corsets. They were neat in their appearance, and fresh as the morning in their homespun.

"We spun and wove our own fabrics for clothing ; the law ot kmaness governed our social walks ; and if such a disastrous thing as a quarrel broke out, the difficulty was settled by a strong dish of fisticuffs. No man was permitted to insult another without resentment ; and if an insult was permitted to pass unrevenged, the insulted party lost his standing and cast in society. It was seldom we had any preaching, but if a traveling minister came along and made an appointment, all would attend, the men in their hunting shirts with their guns."

Section 2. Provided that any of the Judges of the General Court or Common Pleas or ministers of any religious society within the district in which they resided, might solemnize marriages.

Section 3. Provided that before being joined in marriage, the parties should give notice of their intentions by having them proclaimed the preceding Sabbath in their congregation ; or notices in writing under the hand and seal of one of the Judges before mentioned, or a Justice of the Peace of the county, and posted in some public place in the town where the parties respectively resided: or a license might be obtained from the Governor, under his hand and seal, authorizing the marriage without the publication aforesaid.

A supplementary act was passed August i, 1792, empowering every Justice of the Peace to solemnize marriages in their respective counties, after publication aforesaid, or upon license.

The following list embraces all the marriages that took place in Adams County down to January r, t8oo. The records are missing from that date down to May. 1803. We give a partial list of the marriages for the subsequent ten years :

Jan. 5 - Thomas Mullen and Ann Megonigle, l)y Philip Lewis. Jan. 26 - William McCormick and Mar)' Charlton, by John Ellison. Jan. 16 - ^John Shelton and Sarah Middleton, by Jas. Parker.

Jan. 15 - ^Thomas Lewis and Irene Smith, by Rev. T. W. Levimey. Feb. 23 - ^James McComas and Esther Smith, by Noble Grimes. Feb. 23 - James Horn and Elizabeth Miller, by Rev. John Dunlavy. Feb. 15 - Gilbert Hiett and Polly Gunnings, by William Leedom. March i - ^John Abbott and Hannah Reynolds, by Jos. Newman. Feb. 29 - ^Jonathan Wamsley and Sarah Odell, by Rev. Thomas Odell. May 6 - ^Jo9ej)h Rgrnolds and Jane Abbott, by Joseph Newman. May 23 - George Fisher and Hannah Haden, by Joseph Newman. May 17 - Solomon Shoemaker and Agnes Kerr, by Paul Kerr. June 26 - Aquilla Denham and Harriet Thompson, by Hiram Currey. June 30 - George Roebuck and Ann Bealfes, by Jas. Parker. May 23 - Adam Morrow and Frankie Barley, by Mills Stephenson. April ip-^Samuel Smith and Mary Peyton, by Philip Lewis. Feb. 12 - Levi Sparks and Mildred Anderson, by Noble Grimes. July 12 - ^Joseph Lovejoy and Priscilla Anderson, by Noble Grimes. July 12 - Stephen Clark and Rebecca Ogle, by Noble Grimes. Aug. 9 - Lewis Coleman and Elizabeth Stalcup, by John Russell. July 15 - Cornelius Cain and Elizabeth Newman, by Jas. Moore. Aug. 14 - William King and Peggy Wright, by Samuel Wright. Dec. 26 - Mathew Thompson and Mary Simral, by John Baldwin. Dec. 29 - ^John Copas and Betsey Grooms, by James Carson. Oct. 13 - William Dunbar and Rebecca Delaplane, by John Ellison.

May 27 - Dr. Joseph Keith and Sarah Beasley (relict Major John Beasley), by Rev. Wm. Williamson. Oct. 22 - ^John West and Barbara Platter, by Curliss Cannon. Dec. 1 1 - Samuel Laremore and Catherine McGate, by Jas. Moore.

Jan. 14 - Hamilton Dunbar and Delilah Sparks, by James Scott. Jan. I - William McClanahan and Nancy Paull. by Adam Kirkpatrick. Feb. 18 - Samuel Finley and Polly Glasgow, by James Scott. Dec. 9 - Thomas Lockhart and Marry Grimes, by P. Lewis, Jr. Nov. 10 - Davis Reymrfds and Milley Dunn, by John Lindsey.

March ^ - Mark Pennwitt and Nancy Naylor,by Wm.W^illiamson.V.D.M. March 14 - Thomas Dawson and Druzilla Palmer, by James Parker. March 14 - Damascus Brooks and Priscilla Palmer, by James Parker. April 3 - Angus McCoy and Agnes Horn, by Rev. James Gilliland. April 26 - Thomas McGovney and Jenny Graham, by Samuel Young. June 28 - Stout Pettit and Martha McDcrmott, by Jos. Westbrook.

The first settlers were attacked with a skin disease which produced a itching. All newcomers to the settlement became afflicted with this disease. It was attributed to the water. Sore eyes prevailed to a very great extent, and influenza was a frequent scourge in the early spring of each year. It was then believed to be caused by the melting of the snow in* the mountains. Fevers prevailed along the river bottom and the valleys of the larger streams due to the use of creek and river water, there being no wells, and to the decay of vegetable matter in the newly cleared lands. For this reason the highlands were occupied by the pioneers in preference to the rich bottoms which could be purchased at the same price per acre, as the uplands. The bloody flux prevailed at frequent periods in the early settlement of the country, produced by bad water and excessive use pi green vegetables, and unripe fruit, especially wild plums which grew in great abundance in the bottoms of all the streams. The poorer classes of women went barefooted most of the year to which was attributed cases of obstruction of calamenia and hysteria.

There were few, if any physicians in the early settlement. In cases of fractures some one in the neighborhood more skilled than others did the setting" and bandaging. Cuts and bruises were simply bound up, and nature did the rest. Cases of childbirth were attended by the elderly women of the vicinity. The ills of children were colds, bowel complaint and worms, and horehound, catnip and the worm-wood were the remedial agencies. Among the other standard roots and herbs were senna serpentaria Virginia, tormentilla, stellae, valerian, podophillum peltatum (may apple), percoon. sarsaparilla, yellow root, hydrastis canadensis, rattleweed. gentian, ginseng, magnolia (wild cucumber), prickley ash, spikenand, calamint, spearmint, pennyroyal, dogwood, wild ginger (coltsfoot), sufnach and beech drop.

In the early days of the country all classes used whiskey as a medicine and a beverage. "Old Monongahela double distilled" was a staple article. Old and young, men and women drank it, and there was but little drunkenness. After the settlements were made in the interior there were hundreds of little copper stills set up along the spring branches, and much of the grain gro^n was consumed in making "Old Monongahela" or sometHing "just as good." The whiskey and brandy in those days had one recommendation - they were not adulterated. But even then ''the appetite" of some overcame their discretion, and they became sots, and eyesores to the community. An early Methodist preacher gave as his reason for not becoming a member of a Seceder congr^;ation, was that he had seen one of the elders carried home dnmk and the next Sabbath he again saw him at the communion table. The preachers in those days expected the black bottle with spikenard, dogwood buds, and snakeroot, in the whiskey to be passed as an "appetizer" before meals. Many were not averse to taking it "straight." Of the early prominent J families, nearly all got a start in the world in the whiskey business, in ^ either its distillation, or by keeping "tavern" or "grocery" \diere the

The first great flood in the Ohio, over thirty miles of which borders Adams County, is that of 1765 which swept the Shawnee village "Lower Old Town" from the high bottoms near the old site of Alexandria below the mouth of the Scioto. In 1808 the Ohio in this region again became higher than ever was known before, and the great flood in 1832 was thought to be the limit. In 1847 there was a December flood that almost equaUed that of 1832. In 1867 there was a June freshet that caused great damage to crops, and swelled the Ohio to the "great flood" mark. In the winter of 1883 the record was broken in the "great floods" of the Ohio, 66 feet and 4 inches above low water mark at Cincinnati ; which is 2 feet and 6 inches above bed of the channel. The flood of 1832 reached 64 feet and 3 inches at Cincinnati. But the greatest flood came February 14, 1884 when the Ohio reached the height of 71 feet and three- fourths of an inch above low water mark at Cincinnati. At Manchester the waters reached the Hotel Brit, from which skiffs took and returned guests. Backwater came up Brush Creek to the vicinity of the Sproull bridge. In 1832 the backwater came up Brush Creek to forge dam.

The first great gathering of the people, and one of the largest considering population and means of travel at that period was at the hanging of Beckett at West Union in 1808, an account of which is recorded in this volume. It had been a noted trial in many respects and the crime committed by Beckett had been discussed throughout southern Ohio, northern Kentucky and western Virginia, from which regions people came in great numbers to witness the execution. Among those from a distance was Capt. William Wells, a noted frontiersman and the founder of the town of Wellsville, Ohio.

The next great meeting of the people was at the great Vallandigham rally at I^ocust Grove September 4, 1867. Political excitement was at highest pitch and people from Brown, Highland, Pike and Scioto counties, came in wagons, on horseback and some on foot to attend this great rally. The roads leading to Lucus Grove were lined with campers the night before, who had come from a distance to be at the meeting the next day. It is said that fifteen thousand people, men, women and children, attended this meeting.

The third and last, and greatest outpouring of the whole people of Adams County, practically, was at the Centennial meeting at West Union, July 4, 1876. The crowd has been conservatively estimated at twenty fiiousand people, while others put it much higher. It took one line two hours and forty-five minutes to pass the old toll-gate on the Manchester pike. There were present Maj. Joseph McKee, aged 87; William Jackson, aged 85 ; William Brooks, aged 79 ; James Umble, aged 85 ; James Little, aged 83 ; and Andrew B. Ellison, aged 81 ; survivors of the War of 1812.

In 1808 the crops of corn were greatly injured and in many places destroyed by myriads of gray squirrels. They seemed to be migrating from the north to the south. Hundreds could be seen crossing the Ohio River where it was nearly a mile wide. In this attempt thousands were drowned. They were greatly emaciated and most of them were covered with running ulcers made by worms of the grub kind. By the first of January they had mostly disappeared. Afterwards woodmen in cutting into hollow trees would find them filled with the bones and skins of squirrels, some trees containing as many a<; forty or fifty. From this it would seem that they died of disease and not of famine. This was the season that fever and influenza ravaged the country. The Legislature passed an act requiring each male over twenty-one years of age to produce to the County Clerk 100 squirrel scalps or pay three dollars cash.

In the early history of the county and as recently as 1865, great flocks of wild pigeons came into the county in the seasons when there was much mast. These would fly in such numbers as to darken the sky overhead, and in lighting in the timber would crash the branches and linjbs like the force of a hurricane.

After the Civil War, a class of "refugees** came into the eastern portion of Adams County and the western border of Scioto, and committed many petty crimes. Some of them were accused of horsestealing. A number of promment citizen formed a kind of league, known at the "Regulators" who pimished and drove out the most offensive of the "refugees." The "Regulators" held annual public re-unions for years.

Many of the steep hillsides bordering the streams are covered with dense thickets of "red brush" which in the early springtime when the buds are fully blown, appear like clusters of lilacs, or huge bouquets of violets. They have a charm that never tires. On the headwaters of Beasley's Fork, near West Union, is a glen noted for the beauty of its redbud coves and the number of its redbird inhabitants. Years ago

Judge Mason, noting the particular charms of the locality and the number of its scarlet plumed dwellers, named it Redbird, which others (mistaking the name to refer to the thickets of *'red brush") called Redbud. Noting this fact, the writer spent a pleasant afternoon in the month of May, in company with the Judge along this charming glen, to determine which name should go down in history. The decision favored both. And so it shall be "Redbud,*' "Redbird/* and its charms shall be perpetuated in the following lines by an unknown author whose name deserves to be enrolled among the immortals :

The redbnd thicket by yonder stream. Shines forth with a roseate purple gleam ; As if from the sky at even, A sunset cloud had deserted the blue To join with the green its brigher hue, Brought down from the azure heaven.

And out and in, on his crimson wing, With a note of love that he only can sing. The redbird gaily is flitting; As if a cluster of bloom from the tree Had started to life and minstrelsy - Its beauty to melody fitting.

Sweet tree - sweet bird ! Such a pair I ween. In the month of beauty was never seen Nor heard in so sweet a duetto ; Where blossom and bird have e(jual part. And where each raptured, listening heart May furnish its own libretto.

One sings in color, one blooms in song. Both making sweet harmony all day long In the pleasant vernal weather - A charming music, or seen or heard For the redbud and the redbird Ever blossom and sing together.