McHenry County, Illinois - Chapter 8: The Public Schools. - the Press, 1885

Chapter 8: The Public Schools. - the Press

The Cause of Education in MoHenry County. - The Pioneer Schools. - Growth and Development of the Present School System. - The Present Condition of the Schools of the CouNrY. - Statistics .

The Local Press. - The First Paper, the " Illinois Republican," established in 1846. - The Woodstock "Democrat." - Woodstock "Argus." - The "Sentinel." - The "New Era." - The " Mc Henry County Democrat." - Marengo Papers. - The Marengo "Republican." - The Harvard " Indepen.

The pe>ple of McEenry County, have always looked vigilantly after educational interests. Even in pioneer times, when everybody was pior and struggling against adverse conditions to make and pay for a home, they sought to give their children what opportunities they could for school training. A number of schoolhouses were erected in the county prior to 1840, and at least two terms of school are known to have been taught in the county in the summer of 1838, only a year after the formal organization of the county. With such commendable enterprise thus early evinced, it would have been strange if the cause of education had not prospered here.

According to the reliable testimony of an old teacher, the first school in the county was taught in the summer of 1838, in what is now the town of Coral. Miss Caroline Cobb, afterward Mrs. Flanders, was the teacher. Helen Diggins, in the northern part of the county, also taught a short term during the same summer. The first males who taught in the county were Wm. M. Jackson and 0. P. Rogers; the former taught in Coral, and the latter in Marengo Village in the winter of 1838-'9. We have no means of ascertaining where and when the first school-house was built. The (295) first of which there is official mention was built on section 1, township 45, range 9 (Dunham), prior to June, 1839. Doubtless others were built at or near the same time. The reader will find in the chapters devoted to the several towns an account of the early schools in each.

The first official mention of the subject of public schools appears upon the county records under the date of June, 1841. Carlisle Hastings was then appointed "School Land Commissioner," and boards of school trustees were appointed for each township in the county. These boards and the townships, as they are now named, are given below:

From that time onward, school-houses were built and schools supported wherever the population was sufficiently dense to bear the expenditure. As the county became more thickly populated,

The greatest difficulty in the way of the successful working of the schools was found to be the lack of good teachers. All the diligence of the school officers was not sufficient to remedy this defect - there were not enough competent teachers whose services could be had. Many, it is true, were well qualified for the vocation, and labored earnestly, performing their duty nobly; others, however, were employed in the absence of better materia], who were sadly deficient both in education and aptitude.

The teachers, too, labored under disadvantages. There was nothing like uniformity of text-books, and systematic classification was impossible. Only the elementary branches were taught, and these often very imperfectly.

An insight into the state of the public schools thirty years ago is obtained from the record of the Board of Supervisors. Tuesday, Sept. 11, 1855, Mr. Jewett, of the committee on education, presented resolutions declaring,

"2d. That there is a lack of interest and zeal on the part of said teachers to discharge those weighty responsibilities incumbent upon them in a becoming manner.

" 4th. That there have been considerable sums of money expended for the purpose of maintaining and supporting teachers' institutes, the object of said institutes being to remedy the difficulties above named.

To improve the existing state of the public schools, Mr. Jewett proposed the establishment, at the county seat, of an institute to be called the McHenry County Normal School ; but his suggestion was never acted upon.

The early settlers were men who were fully awake to the importance of fostering education. Not only did they give vigilant attention to the work of maintaining district schools, but they also put private schools in operation which were productive of great good. The chief institutes of this character were located at Law-

Lawrence Academy, situated in the northwestern part of the county, was one of the earliest and most flourishing schools in this section. It was presided over by able instructors, and many afterward prominent men were among its students. Its prosperity gradually waned, and eventually it ceased to exist, its place being supplied in a great measure by the improved privileges of the common schools.

Marengo Collegiate Institute was the name of an academy, started under very promising auspices at Marengo in 1857. A building five stories high, designed to accommodate 150 students with rooms, was erected, and the school started with 115 pupils enrolled during the first year. Among the instructors were Rev. Geo. T. Goodhue, Rev. R. H. Richardson, and C. C. Miller, A. M.

A flourishing seminary was maintained for some years at Crystal Lake Village under the name of Nunda College. The above mentioned were among the most prominent private schools ever established in the county. They were instrumental, in a great degree, in the improvement of the common schools, inasmuch as they sent forth many well-qualified teachers to labor in them.

Rapid progress in educational work has constantly been made during the last quarter of a century. To-day the people of Illinois justly pride themselves upon the excellence of their schools. Constant and well-directed efforts have wrought their result, and now the people of McHenry County may justly be proud of their public schools. It is doubtful if there can be found anywhere in the country a county no older than this which has better school privileges. While the schools are not yet perfect, yet in excellence of school buildings, convenience of arrangement, competent supervision and thorough instruction, the county will compare favorably with any of like age and population. The county superintendents, the teachers, the tax-payers and the pupils are all interested in their work, and the results are everywhere apparent. The city, village and country schools are all well equipped and performing good work. The county institutes are well attended and play an important part in keeping alive the interest in education.

In 1860 the number of schools in the county was 142; number of school-houses, 139; number of teachers, 218; number of male scholars, 4,036; number of female scholars, 3,778.

In 1870 the number of pupils in the county was 11,890, of whom about 7,000 were enrolled. In 1875 the number of school-houses was 150. In 1881 there are but 138 school-houses in the county, though there are 175 needed to supply all the districts. In 1882 and 1883, 276 teachers were employed in the county, and only 270 employed during the years 1883 and 1884. Present number of children of school age in the county, 8,077. Total amount of salary paid teachers annually is $41,105.01. Present value of school property in the county, $186,285.

After the public schools, the most potent factor in modern civilization is the newspaper press. The pulpit and the bar each have their allotted spheres in which to protect and benefit society, but their influence is by no means commensurate with that of the press. The talented lawyer or the learned divine may be able to impress some important truth on the minds of the few hundreds composing his audience; the newspaper every day or every week speaks to thousands, and its words are more likely to leave a lasting impression than those of the orator. Then, too, the newspaper is the receptacle of all the best thoughts that are uttered at the bar, in the pnlpit or on the platform; and but for its agency, discourses of wisdom and eloquence would never reach but a limited portion of the public to which they are addressed. The best newspapers, aside from performing their important mission of keeping the people informed of the contemporary history of the country, also reflect the popular sentiment upon religious, social and economical questions. They are also, in some degree, the leaders and molders of public opinion. The wants of the public are often foreseen, and important reforms brought about through the agency of the newspapers. The better class of papers - and with this class only we have to deal - are the friends of religion, education, temperance and morality. They are the defenders, and often the safeguards, of our liberties, exposing corruption in office, and defeating the wiles of scheming politicians. In county, state and nation, the ever vigilant, free and independent press is the friend of good government and the guardian of the best interests of the people.

In McHenry County the first newspaper was started at a time when the weekly press of the country did not hold the important and influential position which it has to-day. When the first newspaper made its appearance here in 1846. country weeklies were generally but feeble imitators of their larger city contemporaries. Since that day the province of the local newspaper has been firmly established, and it has been found that it is entirely distinct from the field covered by the general newspaper of the metropolis. To give home news, to protect home interests, to foster home industries and to encourage needed reforms in the community - these are to-day the well understood functions of the local newspaper. Since this fact came to be generally understood, the once despised " country weekly " has become a power in the land, having an influence upon civilization such as it never could have secured under the old system of management. The record of events at home is prized by the former citizen of the county now HviDg in a distant State, and eagerly he scans the pages of the familiar sheet to glean intelligence of his old friends, neighbors and asso ciates, while to the people living within the territory from which the news is gathered, the contents of the local journal are scarcely less important. Preserved volumes of the paper in coming years will be examined with interest by the antiquarian and the statistician, who will find in them an authentic record of every important event in the history of his city and county. Every true citizen of a city, town or village in which a good newspaper is published, takes pride in giving his support, and justly considers the local press to be among the most important institutions of his neighborhood.

The newspapers of McHenry County have kept pace in the march of improvement with the growth of population and the development of material resources, and are to-day worthy exponents of the best interests of the county.

The first paper ever published in the county was issued at "Woodstock in 1846. Its editor and publisher was Josiah Dwight, a graceful and ready writer. The paper bore the name of the Illinois Republican. After several suspensions and changes of name, through all of which Mr. Dwight was chiefly interested in its management, it was finally succeeded in 1856 by the new Republican organ, the Woodstock Sentinel. In 1854 Mr.

Dwight's paper was called the Republican 1'ree Press. It is believed that it had another name at one time, which is now forgotten. As no copies ot' the earliest county papers are now to be found, many interesting facts in their history are irretrievably lost.

The Woodstock Democrat -was established in 1849 and published until 1856 in the interest of the Democratic party, which then held sway in McHenry County. It was a well-conducted paper, and was moderately well patronized. It was edited and published by F. D. Austin, an accomplished and able writer. As an editor he has had few superiors in the county.

The Woodstock Argus, a Democratic sheet, was started in the spring of 1856 as the rival of the Woodstock Democrat. Its editors and proprietors were M. L. Joslyn and E. W. Smith. The Democrat died soon after the Argus took the field, and its stock was bought by the latter. Then the Free Press, the only Republican paper in the county, fell into the rapacious claws of the Argus, and disappeared from mortal sight orever. The Argus did not live long to rejoice in its victory. The Sentinel came and conquered, and in July, 1857, the Argus ceased to be. Some time before this event Smith and Joslyn had retired from the management, leaving a Mr. Edson in charge.

After the Argus became extinct Mr. Austin revived the Woodstock Democrat and published it from August, 1858, to July, 1859. It had just begun a libel suit against the Sentinel, of which nothing ever came. The death of the Democrat left but one paper in the county.

A few months later the Democrat was revived and for a while longer led a precarious existence. James L. Martin, the last owner, became its editor in October, 1860. The paper seems to have died in 1862 never to come to life again.

The Woodstock Sentinel, the oldest paper published in the county, has had an exceptionally prosperous career. The first number was issued July 17,1856, as the organ in McHenry County of the newly born Republican party. G. L. Webb and T. F. Johnson were the editors. The paper was founded by an association. This initial issue contains no local news and only four columns of advertisements. The paper has the name of John C. Fremont at the head of its editorial page and its tone is intensely partisan. Oct. 9, 1856, Webb .having disposed of his interest in the paper, Thomas F. Johnson became the proprietor. Josiah Dwight took editorial charge and conducted his department with vigor. In April, 1857, the Sentinel passed into the hands of J. W. Franks & Son, Josiah Dwight continuing as editor. In November, 1858, Abraham E. and William E. Smith became the editors and proprietors. At that time the paper boasted a circulation of 1,200 copies. With the advent of the Messrs. Smith local news began to be a feature of the paper. The Sentinel progressed and prospered under the joint management of the Smith brothers until the fall of 1862 when Win. E. Smith went into the army, leaving his brother in charge of the paper.

Dec. 1, 1862, the Mo Henry County Union was sold to the Sentinel. It had been running for a year, and at its decease was owned by J. H. Hodder.

With the first number in January, 1866, A. E. Smith was succeeded by Frank M. Sapp and George B. Richardson, editors and proprietors. Hitherto the Sentinel had been a seven-column folio. In February, 1866, it was enlarged to eight columns, and in June, 1867, the size was increased to nine columns. Sapp & Richardson made a good paper and conducted it in an enterprising manner. Their advertising patronage was large and their circulation reached nearly 1,700 copies. They devoted the paper mainly to county news and to the discussion of local affairs. Oct. 1, 1869, Sapp & Richardson sold out to William E. Smith, a former editor.

April 1, 1872, G. S. Southworth purchased the Sentinel. In October following he enlarged it to a seven-column quarto with "patent insides." In May, 1873, the paper was changed to its present form, a six-column quarto, and for sometime was all printed at home. Jay Yan Slyke was an associate editor upon the Sentinel for about five years, severing his connection with the paper in 1875.

June 5, 1879, E. T. Glennon, who for several years had been foreman in the Sentinel office, purchased a half interest in the paper, which has since been published by Southworth and Glennon. The prosperity of the paper under its present management has been steady and constant. When Mr. Southworth took charge in 1872, the Sentinel had about 900 subscribers, and there were but three papers published in the county. In August, 1884, the number of bona fide subscribers was 1,550, while the number of papers published in the county was eight. No other evidence is necessary to prove that the paper is well managed. It has never swerved from its fidelity to the Republican party. c j ' - - - - - - ' t

In October, 1873, the Franklin Printing and Publishing Company of Chicago started a Grange paper at Woodstock bearing the name the Anti- Monopolist. Nov. 6, 1873, the Sentinel published its obituary.

On Thanksgiving day of the same year, the New Era, another Grange organ, first appeared under the management cf Ringland & Price. Rev. Mr. Price, of Woodstock, was the chief originator of the enterprise, but he soon left the concern, and in February following W. D. Ringland (who had been business manager of the Anti-Monopolist) became the sole proprietor. The New Era had a checkered career, but it was always a live, enterprising paper. Started as the organ of the Grange movement, it afterward embraced the Greenback doctrine, and near the close of its career became tinctured with Republican ideas. Mr. Ringland published the paper at Woodstock and Nunda until 1876 when it suspended for a time. In the same year it reappeared at Woodstock. In October, 1878, the establishment was moved to Elgin, where the paper was published for a time, then suspended. Shortly afterward Mr. Ringland resumed its publication at Woodstock. In March, 1880, the office was destroyed by fire, involviug a heavy loss to its owner. His friends were numerous, however, and by private subscriptions soon raised enough money to re-establish the office. The publication was discontinued in June, 1880, and the subscription list sold to Southworth & Glennon, of the Sentinel. The New Era at one time attained a circulation of 1,700 copies. During the campaign of 1880 a daily edition was issued for four months.

The McHenry County Democrat was begun in April, 1877, by A. R. Bradbury, who issued a few numbers, but failed to secure a living support for the paper. In October following the paper was really established. John A. and M. C. Dufield became the proprietors, and in their hands the paper grew steadily. M. C. Dufield retired Aug. 12, 1882, leaving John A. Dufield sole proprietor and editor. The Democrat is now on a paying basis, with a circulation of about 1,200. It is earnestly devoted to the interests of the party whose name it bears, to the dissemination of local news and the forwarding of home interests. Mr. Dufield, the editor, .is a practical printer, and familiar with all departments of newspaper work, having followed the printer's calling from

About 1852 the Marengo Journal made, its appearance. It was published by Edward Burnside for five years, and was well conducted. It was not a financial success, however, and it suspended in 1857. Its successor was the Marengo Weekly Press, which likewise gave up the ghost after a few years' existence.

The Marengo Republican was started in 1867- It was not printed at home at first, but at Belvidere. In May, 1868, it appeared as a seven-column folio in a new dress and in new type. D. C. Potter was then the editor. From 1868 to the present time the Republican has been conducted almost continuously by J. B. Babcock, its present editor and proprietor. The paper is Republican in politics, though the general and local news are not neglected, even in the most exciting campaigns. At a subscription price of $1.50 per annum it has a circulation of over 800 copies. The paper is liberally patronized by home advertising, and job printing is quite a paying business in this office. But few county papers are more ably edited.

The Harvard Independent was started in the spring of 1865 by Thomas G. Newman, and edited by H. V. Reed as an independent newspaper till the spring of 1866, when H. V. Reed became the owner, and soon after took a Mr. Tuttle in as partner. They ran it till 1868, and sold out to Horniday & Blake. In the following September Blake withdrew from the firm by selling his interests to Smith Hooker, who, after a few months, sold to A. McLaughlin, and it was run for a few months under the firm name McLaughlin & Horniday, when McLaughlin became sole proprietor and ran it till 1872, when he took in A. Leland as an equal partner. This firm ran the paper till 1877, when Gardner & Knox bought it, and after owning it a short time, sold to George "White, who, after running it about one year sold it to G. W. Hanna & Son, who also ran it about one year, when James White (father of George White, a former owner) bought the paper, and was afterward sold out at sheriff's sale, when the property was bought by the present proprietor, N. B. Burtch, who, since January, 1881, has been successfully managing the paper. When

Mr. Burtch became the owner of this paper it was practically dead, and through his exertions and ability as an editor, he has not only resurrected and brought it back to life, but has made it one of the leading papers in McHenry County. Its circulation is second to none in the county, and it is running on a good paying basis.

Nathaniel B. Burtch, editor of the Harvard Independent, was born in Leyden, Lewis Co., N. Y., April 6, 1842. In the spring of 1844 his parents moved to Fonda, the couuty seat of Montgomery County. "When he was but ten years of age his father died, and at that early age he began learning the printer's trade with T. K. Horton, of Fultonville, Montgomery County, and remained with him till October, 1857. He then, with an older brother, John H, who was also a printer, came West, arriving in Chicago the day the Crystal Palace of New York burned. He worked in the job-room of the Evening Journal two months, and then went, with his brother, to Joliet, 111. Failing to get work at their trade, his brother took charge of a restaurant, and he went to work on the farm of William Hadsell, two miles east of Joliet, till April, 1858. From April till August, 1858, he was news agent on the Chicago & Alton Railroad, running from Bloomington to Chicago, headquarters at Bloomington. He then went to Cairo, 111., and, with his brother John, took charge of the Cairo Times and Delta, a semi-weekly paper, L. G. Faxon, editor, and Burtch Brothers, publishers. In 1858 the levee broke through, and for a time they worked in water to their knees, and Nathaniel contracted the ague. He sold his interest in the paper and returned to Chicago, and worked on the Journal a month. He then determined to go to Pike's Peak, and went East to see his mother before starting. She persuaded him to remain in New York, and he worked on the Cableskill Jeffersonian till the] following spring, when he went to New York City, and worked on the morning and evening Express till the spring of 1861. He assisted in setting up the dispatch that "Fort Sumter was fired on," and then, with ten other printers, went to the Journal of Commerce office, on Wall Street, where they were joined by thirteen other printers. From there they went the rounds of the printing offices, and by 3 p. m. 147 printers marched to the City Assembly rooms, enrolled their names as recruits, and joined the old Scott Life Guards. The next day they were sworn into the service, and three days later embarked on the steamer Alabama for Baltimore, and thence to Fortress Monroe, Va. The next week they participated in the battle of Big

Bethel, the first battle of the war. Subsequently participated in the battles of Yorktowu and Richmond, and from there went to Fort McHenry, Baltimore, where Mr. Burtch had charge of the city patrol five months. He was then in several skirmishes and the battles of South Mountain and Antietam; at the latter he was shot through the thigh with two balls and six buckshot, and was left on the field for dead. He lay on the battle-field nine days, and was then taken to the hospital at Washington. A week before the battle of Chancellorsville he reported for duty, on crutches, and was assigned to a position on the signal corps, at the Lacy House, before Fredericksburg. After the battle of Chancellorsville the regiment was mustered out and returned to New York City, where they received a grand reception. Mr. Burtch went to Poughkeepsie, and while at work on the Potighke&psian set up the first MSS. Josh Billings ever gave a daily paper. In September, 1863,, he returned to New York and enlisted in the secret service, but was discharged a month later at St. Louis, Mo., for disability, and went to Fond du Lac, Wis. The next January he began work on the Fond du Lac Democrat. He subsequently ran the Oconto, Wis., Lumberman three months, and then went to St. Paul, Minn., and worked on the Press two years. He then, with four others, went to Minneapolis and started the Chronicle; subsequently changed to Tribune. While in Minneapolis he was taken sick, and told by the doctors that he had consumption. He sold out his interest in the paper and went to New York City, and as soon as able began to work on the New York Express. A year later he returned to Wisconsin, and worked on the Watertown Republican till the next spring, when he went to Scranton, Pa., and, in partnership with his brother John, published the Scranton News thirteen months. He then worked another year on the New York City Express, and then returned to Wisconsin, and was foreman of the Whitewater Register seven years. He then bought a half-interest in the Richland Observer, at Richland Center, and a year later sold out and bought the office of the Harvard Independent, which he has made the best paper in the county. Mr. Burtch was married March 22, 1864, to Sarah B. Douglas, a native of St. Lawrence County, N. Y., and a daughter of Benjamin and Ruby (Bishop) Douglas, her father a cousin of Stephen A. Douglas. To them have been born three children - Nellie M., born at St. Paul, Minn., May 16, 1866; Jennie E., in Jersey City, N. J., May 11, 1868, and Charles E., in Jersey City, Nov. 21, 1872. Mr. Burtch is a mem- ber of Harvard Lodge, No. 147, A. 0. U. W.; Harvard Legion, No. 24, A. O. U. W., and J. B. Manzer Post, No. 215, G. A. K. He is Recorder of the legion, and Adjutant of the post. He and his wife are members of the Congregational church.

Mo Henry

The McHenry Plaindealer has had a remarkably successful career, and is in all respects a well-conducted local newspaper. Though young in years it has attained a large circulation, and exercises a potent influence in the field of politics. The first number of the Plaindealer was issued Aug. 4, 1875, by J. Van Slyke, who still continues its editor and proprietor. Mr. Van Slyke is an able and ready writer, as every department of his paper bears witness. The journal now circulates about 1,600 copies in McHenry and adjoining counties. It receives a generous share of advertising patronage, and turns out a large amount of job work. Mr. Van Slyke has recently improved the facilities of his office by the addition of a new press, and is now better prepared than ever before to give his patrons a good paper. The Plaindealer is a seven-column quarto, Republican in politics, and zealously devoted to home .interests.

J. Van Slyke, editor of the McHenry Plaindealer, was born in Ogdensburg, N. Y., Aug. 21, 1837, a son of Jesse M. and Frances Van Slyke, his father a native of Germany, and his mother of Irish descent. His father died June 7, 1858, aged sixty-seven years. His mother is living in Antwerp, N. T., aged about eighty years. Our subject attended school till eleven years of age, and then went into a printing office and served an apprenticeship of three years. He worked a year and a half in the office after his term as apprentice was over, and then went to Sackett's Harbor and remained a year. When seventeen years of age he was employed as Captain's clerk on the steamer Black Hawk, and went to China, California, round Cape Horn, and thence home. Then went to Boston and was employed on the Daily Traveler as printer and reporter three years and a half, when he went to Watertown, N. Y., and from there, in 1858, to Canton, N. Y., and was foreman in the Canton Plaindealer office till 1861, when he bought the paper and published it eight years. In 1869 he sold his paper and bought the Gloversville, N. Y ., Standard. A year later he came to Illinois and bought a halfinterest in the Clinton Public, which he sold in 1870, and came to McHenry County, and for five years was associate editor and business manager of the Woodstock Sentinel. In 1875 he came to McHenry and established his office and began the publication of the Plaindealer, one of the best local papers in the State. Mr. Van Slyke enlisted in September, 1862, in Company K, Eleventh New York Cavalry, and was commissioned Captain of his company. He was married Nov. 27, 1858, to Rachel, daughter of William Mills, of New York. They have had four children - Fred C. (deceased), Ida, Jesse and Maud. Politically Mr. Yan Slyke is a Eepublican. He is a member of McHenry Lodge, No. 158, F. & A. M.

The Eichmond Gazette was established May 1, 1876, by B. B. Begun, who had it in full charge only a few months when he took in George S. Utter, of Geneva, as an equal partner. They edited and published the paper till July, 1876, when Mr. Begun died. After this event the paper was managed by Mr. Utter till October, 1879, when John E. Nethercut, of Rockford, purchased it, and has since been its editor. It started with a moderate circulation, but has grown to 700. It is Republican in sentiment, though it deals more in the general news of the community and State than in politics. It is an eight-column four-page paper, and is furnished to subscribers at $2.00 per year, with a reduction of 50 cents if paid in advance. Its columns are filled with paying advertisements, and a good job printing business is done by the editor in connection with the paper. Mr. Nethercut was born in New York City, March 29, 1854:. When young he learned the shoemaker's trade with his father, and received a common-school education. When a boy he came with his father to Geneva, Wis., and was reared there. At the age of eighteen he entered the Herald office of that place to learn the trade. There he remained about one year, when he went to Milwaukee and remained two years working in a printing ^office. He spent a few months in Elkhorn, Wis., and then went to Rockford, 111., where he entered the office of the Golden Censer as "foreman, and remained about six years.

The Nunda Herald is a sprightly little paper, full of local news and interesting matter, and is wholly printed at home. Its size is sixteen pages, the pages containing but three columns each, a feature which might be advantageously copied by other country papers, as it enables the publisher, when the press of advertising or abundance of news matter demands it, to extend his columns indefinitely by the addition of extra pages. This can be done at much less expense than usually attends the issue of " extras" when the paper is a folio or a quarto. The Herald was established in July, 1880, by its present publisher, I. M. Mallory. It is neutral in politics and devoted to the interests of the people. The editor is Secretary of the Seventeenth Illinois Cavalry Reunion Organization, and publishes much matter that is of interest to those who served in the late war. The letters of absent comrades and others is made an attractive feature. The Herald also has a good corps of local correspondents. It has a good advertising patronage, and receives a large amount of job printing.

The Weekly Advocate, published at Nunda, was established in November, 1883, by M. C. Dufield, the present publisher. It was designed to be neutral in politics, and so continued until June, 1884, when it became a Prohibition organ, with Eev. George K. Hoover, of Woodstock, as editor. It is a seven-column folio; price, $1 per year. Its circulation is now over 700 copies, and the list of subscribers is still growing. Besides devoting much Bpace to temperance interests and local news, it has seven columns of advertisements. The paper has already attained a circulation of between 700 and 800 copies. It is published weekly, at the remarkably low price of 75 cents per year in advance.