Coloma Township (part 2 of 2)

Another change of scene. After the battle of Chickamauga, Sept. 19-20, 1863, Rosecrans had retired before Bragg and Longstreet to Chattanooga, and here in October Gen. Grant was appointed to the command of the Union forces. The camp of the Thirty-fourth was at Moccasin Point, made by a bend of the Tennessee. The troops who had been there before, left some log and pole cabins, whkh after some repair the boys pronounced the best quarters they had during their whole experience. Bragg was on Missionary Ridge, Grant's army in the town and valley to the north. When the camp-fires of both armies were lighted at night, gleaming like myriads of stars, from the Ridge, from Old Lookout mountain, from every hill and outpost, it was a weird panorama of almost celestial splendor, weird, awful, for beneath all that splendor of night, lurked the demons of destruction.

While on picket duty at Moccasin Point, the Thirty-fourth saw the last act of the Chattanooga drama. On the afternoon of Nov. 25, Grant ordered Thomas to advance, and take the first line of rifle pits at the foot of Missionary Ridge. Sheridan's and Wood's divisions were put in motion, and with wild enthusiasm they swept up the slope, driving Bragg into disastrous and rapid retreat, with immense loss of prisoners and munitions of war. It was no longer a fight but a footrace. For three miles our boys witnessed a battle picture of gleaming gun barrels and waving colors in the light of dying day.

The regiment had now served the term of three years, and those who re-enlisted were mustered in as Veterans, Jan. 3, 1864, and 184 new recruits were received during the return of the veterans on furlough to Illinois.

Then followed the long tramp through Rome, Atlanta to Savannah, northward up the Atlantic coast, through Columbia, Raleigh, Richmond to Alexandria, which they reached May 18. The Thirty-fourth led the Division in platoons through the streets of Richmond. At Washington occurred the most magnificent military pageant the world ever saw. On the 23d the Army of the Potomac marched in review, and on the 24th Sherman's Army from its march to the sea. Cromwell nor Napoleon never headed such troops. The men were bronzed, the flags were stained, but it was a march of heroes. For over six hours, Sherman stood by ,the President as the veterans with swinging step passed before the reviewing stand amid the cheers of the surging multitudes. Pennsylvania avenue will never again witness so patriotic a parade.

After the arrival in Washington, by enlistments, assignments and transfers, the regiment numbered 451, one hundred more than were in the ranks at Stone River. After some delay, the regiment broke camp, and by rail and boat reached Louisville on June 18. Eight months' pay and $50 bounty were paid the men, and on July 12, 1865, the Thirty-fourth Illinois Volunteer Infantry was mustered out after three years, ten months and five days of actiy.e service. From Louisville to Camp Douglas, Chicago, where the pay

Companies A and B, and a part of D, I and K were from Whiteside. Company A was enlisted at Sterling, and numbered 98 men. E. Brooks Ward was captain, but resigned on account of ill health ; Will C. Robinson went as ser- geant but became captain ; Peter Ege was first lieutenant but became colonel ; Lorenzo D. Wescott, Benjamin Gurtisen, Richard J. Heath, went as sergeants, but rose to lieutenancies. Jonathan A. Morgan resigned as first lieutenant in 1862, and in 1864 was made captain of Co. A, 140th 111. Volunteers. Company B was enlisted at Morrison, known as the Whiteside Blues, and numbered 100 men. Hiram W. Bristol was captain, afterwards lieut. colonel; Cornelius Quackenbush, first lieutenant; John A. Parrott, second lieutenant ; David Cleaveland rose from sergeant to captain ; Leland L. Johnson from sergeant to first lieutenant and acting adjutant.

Statistics Of The Thirty-Fourth Letter Of Gen. E. N. Kirk

The following letter is in the Whiteside Historical Society, and explains itself. It was written as may be seen, before Kirk entered the service, and was still at home:

Dear Friend: I am glad to know that you are well, and engaged in earnest in defense of the capital. I suppose now that WTashington is filled with troops, you are relieved of some of your labors. It is time now for men to prove what stuff they are made of, and for the government to prove, too, that it has vitality enough to maintain itself, and it will do it.

I have no fear of this administration. I believe that Lincoln and his cabinet are the men for the occasion, and equal to it. You, of course, being on the ground, must know from actual observation what is going on. Some of our restless men here are dissatisfied because they think the government moves too slowly. The people demand of the government prompt and vigorous action. They will tolerate no compromise, no patching up of this matter, nothing short of unconditional submission on part of the rebel states, and the extirpation of treason and traitors. I think Lincoln has done miracles, almost, in the short time he has been there.

We have two tip-top companies here, and one at Morrison. I am hoping every day to hear of your receiving some good office, as I have no doubt you will. Write when you can. Your letters coming right from headquarters at such a time, are of peculiar interest. With many kind wishes for your success, I am Yours truly,

Thirty-Fourth Illinois

Roster of soldiers who served in the 34th Illinois Regiment, Volunteer Infantry, during the Civil war, enrolled in Whiteside county, from the i records of Colonel Peter Ege, Albany, Illinois. /

In compliance with order of War Department, the Sterling Rifles, Capt. E. B. Ward, and the Newton Guards, Capt. Peter Ege, were consolidated Aug. 25, 1861, and designated as Co. A, Capt. Ward, as ranking captain of the regiment.' He left the regiment at Duck river, March 7, 1862, and died at Sterling. The Whiteside Blues, Capt. H. W. Bristol and the Prophetstown Rifles, Capt. John A. Parrott, were consolidated, and designated as Co. B. Capt. Bristol as second ranking .captain of the regiment. He died at S Urbana, Ohio. . yr

The regiment was mustered into U. S. service, Sept. 7, 1861, Col. E. N. Kirk in command. He was wounded at Shiloh, April 7, 1862, promoted Brig. Gen. Nov. 29, 1862, wounded at Stone River, Dec. 31, 1862, and died /at Sterling, June 29, 1863, death resulting from wounds. Total service, I/ one year ten months. David Leavitt was adjutant, resigned July 10, 1863. He died at Sterling, after a service of one year ten months. Surgeon was A. S. Hudson, who resigned March 11, 1862, and died in California. Lieut. Col. H. W. Bristol, was ranking captain with regiment when Major Levanway fell at Shiloh and took command of the regiment. He was promoted fo major and lieut. col. He commanded regiment during siege of Corinth, March to Stevenson, Ala. A long march of over 500 miles by way of Louisville and Franklin to Murfreesboro, Tenn. During this march the regiment received the name of McCook's foot cavalry. Col. Bristol resigned, Feb. 14, 1863. His time in service, two years six months. Sergeant major L. E. B. Holt, in service one year.

J Company

Vet. First Lieut. R. J. Heath. M. 0. July 12, 1865. In service three years and ten months. In command of Co. A. March to sea. Never a day off duty.

Vet. Second Lieut. E. W. Payne. Dec. muster. In service three years and eight months. Wounded at Jonesboro Sept. 1, 1864. Right arm amputated.

Sergeants Company Corporals Company

W. T. Abbey. Died Dec. 19, 1861. Camp Nevin. Typhoid. In service four months. First child born in Newton Twp. Buried in Newton, Whiteside County.

Privates Company

Hanks, Enos S. Dis. Aug. 19, 1862. Disability. In service one year. Hayes, Isaac W. Died Camp Nevins, Ky., Dec. 16, 1861. In service four months.

Vet. Wilson, Chas. B. M. 0. July 12, 1865. Prisoner six months. In service three years and ten months. Wd. Shiloh, left hip ; Kenesaw, right leg.

Averill, William. Died Jan. 11, 1865. In service three months. Averill, Volney. M. 0. July 12, 1865. In service nine months. Adams, W. H. M. 0. July 12, 1865. In service one year and six months.

Jan. 3, 1864, there were 320 of the regiment mustered as veterans, onefourth Whiteside boys. The regiment rejoined brigade at Rossville, Ga., March 7, turning over their old Enfields, and drawing new Springfield rifles. The change soon showed its importance, as hard work ahead. May 1 the whole corps was on the move, Forward the order from Pap Thomas. Skirmishing, and the Thirty-fourth Illinois on the fighting line. For four months, day and night, never out of hearing the rattling musket or cannon's boom, until Atlanta lay in ashes.

Colonel Peter Ege took command of Regt, at Kingston, Nov. 5, 1864. Staff officers from Whiteside Co., Lieut. R, Thompson, Acting Adjt. Jesse H. Clements, Mustered as Adjt. Mar. 30, 1865.

Dr. John never tired in caring for the sick and wounded. Nov. 10, 1864, the regiment started for the doomed city, and helped to tear up railroad track from Cartersville to Atlanta.

Nov. 15, 1864, at the dawn of day, the bugle sounded, Up toys, be ready for a tramp with the last army to the sea! Col. Ege was again wounded at Savannah, Ga., and returning to duty, commanded regiment from Bentonville, N. C., to Washington. He was in command at the grand review at Washington, May 24, 1865. He was assigned June 8, to command of second -brigade, second division 14 A. C. At Louisville Gen. Sherman reviewed the second division for the last time, and complimented the brigade for fine appearance and soldierly bearing and discipline. He recommended Col. Peter Ege in command of brigade for promotion.

On July 15, the last regiment of second brigade was homeward bound. Col Ege turned over the brigade flag to U. S. quartermaster, and followed his regiment to Chicago for final discharge.

His total in service as officer in Civil war was three years and eleven months. His total with regiment - never off duty a day - three years and eight months.

The Spanish-American War

When a bully has a helpless victim by the throat, it is the duty of the nearest strong man to smite the wretch, and hurl him into the gutter. This happened in 1898. Spain was the bully, Cuba the victim, and United States the strong arm. It was high time. It should have been done long before. Spain has a bad record. For four hundred years she has played the part of the villain in the world's play. Always an oppressor. She persecuted the Dutch, hindered the Reformation, threatened England, encouraged the Inquisition, drove out the Moors, massacred the Indians. Always the trail of the serpent.

Cuba, the gem of the West Indies, was the last theater of her wickedness. Never can be (written, never will be known, the crimes of the Spaniard on that isle, fair as a garden of the Lord. Visit Havana, and see the gloomy dungeons of the forts, the execution bullet marks on the castle walls. Cubans tortured and shot because they sighed for freedom. Cruelty unspeakable, outrage infinite!

But the blood of Cuban martyrs cried from the ground, and the call for vengeance arose to heaven. The explosion of the Maine and the destruction of her noble crew in the harbor of Havana, Feb. 15, 1898, was the last straw, and April 21, congress declared war. Spain must go. The dying monarchies of the old world have no business in the liberty-loving atmosphere of the new. President McKinley called for 125,000 volunteers.

The number of troops from your state under the call of the President, will be seven regiments of infantry, and one of cavalry. It is the wish of the Prsident that the regiments of the National Guard or State Militia shall be used as far as their numbers permit, because they are already armed, equipped and drilled. R A Aiger! Secretary of War.

Shortly after twelve on the morning of April 26, Captains Colebaugh and Lawrie received telegraphic instructions from Col. D. J. Foster to report with their companies at State Fair Grounds, Springfield, not later than noon of April 27. The Illinois National Guard was to mobilize at this point. Company I with three commissioned officers and eighty-five men left Morrison at ten on the night of April 26, Walter Burritt, Quarter-master Sergeant of the First Battalion accompanying. At Sterling they were joined by Company E with three commissioned officers and eighty men, also by the Sixth Regiment Band with John Prestine and Fred Forbes, chief and principal musicians. Frank Anthony, regimental surgeon ; Captain Ben Eick, Regimental Sergeant-Major; Ned Johnson and Hospital Stewards John Kline, Fred Brown, and Howard Geyer, of the Sixth Regiment, boarded the train at Sterling. A halt at Dixon to await the coming of Company M from Galena. Companies E and I headed by the Sixth Regiment Band, marched down town to Company G's armory, and were lunched by the Dixon people. At four on April 27, Cos. I and E with G of Dixon and M of Galena, started for Springfield, where they arrived soon after eleven the same day. The other state troops had arrived before. April 29 in a preliminary examination, Co. E stood the test, but Co. I had seven rejected. On Saturday the boys had a tiresome five-mile tramp over muddy roads, and on Sunday they reveled on their hard tack and pork under the curious gaze of thousands of visitors.

On Monday, May 9, the final physical examination was given Co. E in the senate chamber of the capital, by Col. Senn, Asst. Surgeon General of the U. S. army, Major Anthony, and others. Only two men were rejected, Wm. Deem and Lovier Feigley, and their places were supplied by two volunteers from Chicago. Co. I was not so fortunate, and only fifty-four boys were left of the original eighty-five. Five accepted at the re-examination brought the number to fifty-nine. Finally men were recruited to fill the vacancies, and the roll was again complete.

At last on May 11, Wednesday, the Sixth Regiment was mustered into the / U. S. service by Capt. Cyrus S. Roberts, of the Seventeenth Infantry. Co. E of V Sterling was the first, and Co. I of Morrison the last, of the twelve companies of the Sixth Regiment to be sworn in.

The manner of taking the last step in entering the service of Uncle Sam is simple and impressive. Capt. Roberts requested the men to take their caps in the left hand, and raise the right while he administered the following oath:

I do solemnly swear that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the United States of America; that I will serve them honestly and faithfully against all their enemies whomsoever; and that I will obey the orders of the

Company

Captain, William F. Lawrie; First Lieutenant, G. B. Dillon; Second Lieutenant, Frank Wahl ; First Sergeant, S. H. Feigley ; Q. M. Sergeant, E. A. Nellen; Sergeant John W. Cushman, Joshua H. Wildasin, all of Sterling, and Sergeant F. E. Wagley, of Rock Falls. Corporals, C. F. Hoobler, R. W. Baker, H. R. Grimes, L. C. Sheldon, H. L. Hankerson, all of Sterling, and M. L. Allpress, of Rock Falls. Musicians, F. Roy Eshleman and L. D. Myers, of Sterling.

Captain, Wm. F. Colebaugh; First Lieut., E. C. Lawton; Second Lieut., E. J. Weaver, all of Morrison. Q. M. Sergeant, A. F. Mathews; Sergeant, H. A. Weaver, J. L. Rockey, of Morrison, and First Sergeant D. E. Crouch, Prairieville. Corporals, H. H. Rockey, A. J. Osborne, Erie. Musicians, 0. M. Colebaugh, R. E. Davis. Soon afterwards, Ernest Weaver tendered his resignation as Lieutenant, and Capt. Eick, of Sterling, inspector of rifle practice for Sixth Illinois N. G., received the appointment.

A happy surprise for Company I on Friday after muster. They were taken to the Leland hotel in street cars, given an elegant banquet at the expense of Morrison, and addressed by L. T. Stocking, Chaplain Morgan, Judge Ramsay, and others, and encouraged to maintain the honor of the state with its sacred record of Lincoln and Grant, Oglesby and Logan. Sterling, Rock Falls, Erie, and other places sent boxes of delicacies to the boys from their section, and the good things were always generously shared with the rest of the company.

On Tuesday, May 17, the regiment left Camp Tanner in Wagner sleeping cars, Company I by chance having the "Maine." The route was by the Wabash, the Baltimore and Ohio, through Virginia to Camp Russell A. Alger, eight miles southwest of Washington. It contained six hundred acres, bordered by timber with a small stream coursing through the edge. Some complaint at first as rations were short, and the water bad, but this was soon remedied. The troops at Camp Alger were designated as the Second Army . > Corps, and the Sixth Massachusetts, Eighth Ohio, and Sixth Illinois regi- V ments formed the Second Brigade. Two events threw a gloom over the camp. Private Louis Bloodsoe of Company A from Rock Island died of typhoid fever the first night, was buried with military honors at Falls church, from which the body was afterwards removed to his home. On the follow- S ing day word was received of the death of Lieutenant Cole, of Monmouth, » assistant surgeon, who died at the hospital in Fort Wayne, of pneumonia contracted at Camp Tanner.

Mrs. Electa E. Smith, former postmistress of Sterling, now in the Treasury Department at Washington, who has given repeated instances of her sympathy with the soldiers, was a frequent visitor, and on the first Sunday in camp gave the boys of Company E a royal spread. So, too, came Senators Cullom and Mason, of Illinois, and Representatives Hitt and Marsh, to see that the Illinois troops had every needful comfort.

Major Anthony gave the boys daily thirty minutes of instruction in regard to treating wounds before medical assistance could be secured. Roy Eshleman was granted a discharge on account of failing health, and returned to Sterling in June. As the government decided to fill every regiment to its maximum, officers were detailed to visit the home stations, and recruit each company to the number of one hundred and six. First Lieut. Dillon of Company E was appointed recruiting officer of the first battalion of the Sixth regiment, and Sergeant Osborne of Company I and private Bensinger of Company E were detailed to accompany him. They left Camp Alger for / Illinois, June 7. The recruits were secured at Sterling and Morrison, and Companies E and I had their full complement.

When the companies were increased to 106 men, new appointments of non-commissioned officers were necessary. Capt. Lawrie made the following promotions on June 23: Privates Deyoe, Reese Dillon, Triggs, Burkhart, Bert Johnson, and Lineberry to be corporals; Clark, musician to supply place of Eshleman, discharged. Private Hess was appointed company artificer, and Smith for duty at the regimental hospital.' Sergeant Cushman was detailed to assist ordnance officer Eick as sergeant, and Corporal Dillon was assigned to duty in the quartermaster's department. In Company I the appointments were: Privates Burr, Hyatt, Berry, Everhart, Sherwood, and Snyder as corporals, and Willcox, lance corporal. Jenks was given special duty at post-headquaters, and Kingery was appointed acting veterinary surgeon of the Sixth regiment, and placed in charge of the officers' horses.

The old folks at home, at Lyndon, Albany, Prophetstown, Erie, Morrison, Sterling, Rock Falls, showed their affection for the absent boys by frequent consignments of cake, pie and sweetmeats. The members of Company E, to show their appreciation of Mrs. Smith's kindness, presented her a silver card receiver, which she gracefully acknowledged. On July 4, 1898, the members of Company I presented Captain Colebaugh and Lieutenant Lawton each a gold-mounted sword, which elicited a cordial response. Meanwhile our forces elsewhere on the map were driving Spain into the last ditch. Dewey on May 1st had demolished the Spanish fleet at Manila, giving us the Philippine archipelago in the Pacific, Shafter carried El Caney at Santiago, Cuba, by assault July 1st, and on the morning of July 3rd, Commodore Schley knocked Admiral Cervera's ancient squadron into a sorry wreck. It was Perry of 1813 over again : "We have met the enemy, and they are ours!"

For the front at last. July 5th the Second Brigade received orders to prepare for departure, and the next morning, the Sixth Massachusetts and the Sixth Illinois boarded day coaches and box cars for Charleston ,nhz band playing,

July 8th, Companies E, I and F were transferred at Charleston to the Cruiser Columbia, and July 11 the steamer arrived at Santiago just after the bombardment had ceased. The remaining companies of me regiment with the band, Colonel and staff, came on the steamer Rita the following Friday.

They were tired of their cramped quarters on the boat, disgusted with their rations of hash and weak coffee, and longed to have the freedom of i the shore. At noon, July 21, they steamed from Santiago, not having been / permitted to land, with an effective force of about 3,300 infantry and artillery. Porto Rico was occupied by 8,233 Spanish regulars, and 9,107 volunteers, and San Juan on the northeast coast was their destination. At ten on the morning of July 25th, Company E. landed at Guanica. The first American troops to land on Porto Hican soil were a company of marines who hoisted the stars and stripes. v

It proved to be a peaceful occupation of the island, as the Spanish troops did not act on the offensive. The regiment had only one small skirmish with the enemy. Orders were given to proceed to Ponce, and on July 30th, Gen. Henry's division, of which the Sixth was a part, broke camp. It was a trying march. The roads were wretched from rain, the beef not fit to eat, the ground alive with centipedes, half-ripe bananas fried in grease a luxury, and their outfit so heavy that even ammunition and bayonets were thrown away. Eight days in Ponce with a population of 20,000 or more. Primitive style of life. Everything is toted on the head. No milk in bottles, but cows milked at

Gen. Miles' plan was to drive the Spanish troops to the center of the island, and hemming them in, force a surrender. In pursuance of this scheme, our boys made several tiresome marches, to Arecibo, to Adjuntas, */ to Utnado, back to Ponce. They eventually looked the worse for wear. Some were barefoot, some had no trousers, all had beards, and all were halfstarved. Even at Ponce, where tons upon tons of supplies were in store, the regular ration was hardtack and sowbelly. But the campaign was at an tt end, and orders were given to turn faces homeward.

Clothing was issued that the boys might make a respectable appearance on their return, and on Sept. 7th they sailed on the Manitoba, an English transport, after a stormy experience of six weeks on the island of Porto Rico.

On Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 13, the vessel passed the statue of liberty in the harbor of New York, but the regiment did not go ashore till the next day. Our Congressman George Prince was prompt to welcome the lads, and gave each captain ten dollars towards furnishing civilized food. Wednesday night they boarded the cars for Springfield, and on Friday night were in Camp Lincoln. On the Sunday following a committee of citizen.? from Sterling and Rock Falls invited Company E to attend a banquet at the Leland. How good the steaks, omelets, and coffee, prepared by delicate cookery, tasted to famished appetites after coarse arlny rations. Cigars and toasts were in order. C. L. Sheldon as toastmaster led a succession of speeches by Col. -Foster, Chaplain Ferris, Captain Colebaugh, Major Anthony, Mayor Miller, Ex-Mayor Street, Lieutenants Dillon and Wahl, and Robert McNeill for Rock Falls. At one on the morning of Sept. 21, the train with the returning soldiers left Springfield over the Burlington, and reached Sterling at ten, and Morrison a little later. . A magnificent welcome. Bells rang, whistles blew, crowds lined the streets, a day of jubilee. It was a Roman triumph without barbaric spoils.

Four sick privates of Company E were left in hospital at Porto Rico: Fred Sneed, Ernest Kahl, Leo Bushnell, and George Rounds. Corporal Luther Allpress was placed on board a hospital ship. Of the sick members of Company I, fourteen were left on the island: Q. M. Sergeant Mathews, Sergeants Osborne and Rockey; Corporal Berry; and privates Brearton, Sweeney,. Sears, Andrews, Freek, Smith, Lepper, Lueck, AVilkins, Patterson. Ralph Humphrey of the hospital corps was detained in the mountains. Four members of Company I died on ship or in hospital: Schuyler Sweeney, Ross Wilkins, Thomas Phillips, and Ralph Humphrey.

After the sixty days' furlough expired, the boys returned to Springfield, signed payrolls, received two and a half months' pay with balance due on clothing and rations, and on Nov. 25th were again citizens instead of soldiers.

While the Sixth Illinois regiment led no forlorn hope, executed no brilliant charge, they did their duty faithfully, and nobly responded to every call for service. During their short term, they covered 3,000 miles by rail, three thousand on the sea, besides tramping over two hundred miles of mud and hill in Porto Rico. A general told Chaplain Ferris: "You. should be proud of your men. They are soldiers, every inch of them." General Miles had the same opinion: "I had two regiments of Illinois volunteers in Porto Rico, and in justice I must say they stood the fatigue better than the eastern troops. The Sixth Illinois was brigaded with the Sixth Massachusetts, and I must say the boys from the prairies stood the campaign better than the boys from the mills of New England."

A second company was organized in Sterling and Rock Falls with Walter N. Haskell as captain. W. L. Emmons, first lieutenant, and G. A. McKelvey, second lieutenant, to be part of a provisional regiment organized by Gen. Clendenin, of Moline, but the speedy close of the war rendered their services unnecessary.

Within a year or two after the war, several of the boys died of disease, doubtless, of exposure in camp. Leo H. Bushnell, Bugler Roy Eshleman, and Frank Aument, all of Company E, and Lieut. Ed Lawton and Albert Anstett, of Company "I.

A few were so enamored of the pomp and circumstance of glorious war that they joined the regulars: Leslie Sheldon, Company M, Fourth U. S. Infantry, Richard 0. Jones, Company H, Nineteenth U. S. Infantry, served in the Philippines. Wilson R. Byers, Company E, Eighth U. S. Infantry, served in Cuba. James P. Kereven, of Sterling, was at Santiago and El Caney, and afterward died of typhoid fever at Montauk Point. Frank D. Ely, an original member of Company E, subsequently graduated from West Point, and was with his regiment at San Juan Hill and El Caney. Will H. Allen, Morrison, was a lieutenant on the Oregon when that battleship made her memorable run from the Pacific to participate in Sampson's fight off Santiago. George H. Fay, Morrison, was the original captain of Company I, a veteran of the Civil war, and during the War of 1898 was in the paymaster's department with the rank of major. Henry C. Thompson, Fenton, medical student, enlisted in Company E, Second Wisconsin volunteers, and was later transferred to the ambulance corps.

Since the war, both companies have kept up their organizations, meeting for frequent drill in their armories. As to be expected, several changes in the officers by resignation or promotion. But the boys are justly proud of their patriotic experience, and grew as enthusiastic over San Juan or El Caney as the veterans of the Civil war in their camp fire memories of Chattanooga or Gettysburg.

Soldiers' Reunions

It was a happy thought of the boys in blue to start their yearly meetings soon after the war, and keep fresh the friendships of the camp and the field. The veterans of this section have formed the Northwestern Soldiers' and Sailors' Association with meetings at the different cities in the territory comprised. In 1886 it was held in Sterling, and five hundred soldiers were in attendance. August 24, 25, and 26 were the days of jubilee. H. S. Street, Mayor of Sterling, gave the address of welcome at the amphitheater, to which Hon. J. D. Crabtree, of Dixon, replied. Short speeches also by Hon. T. J. Henderson, H. D. Dement, and Chaplain Stillwell. The expenses for tents, music, printing, drayage, and lumber were $265. A free dinner was given on the last day by Will Robinson Post, of Sterling, to all comrades and their wives. Entertainments were offered at the academy of music. One evening at dress parade, two hundred soldiers were in line. It was voted that the next year's Reunion be held at Dixon, August, 1887. Time has passed on, the soldiers have kept up their annual jubilees, and before us as we write is the program for the twenty-second reunion of the soldiers and sailors at Sterling again, Sept. 11 and 12, 1906. A feast of reason and flow of soul. The first day after a parade, there was at Central Park a varied program of solos, welcome by Mayor Lewis, music by drum corps, address by Comrade McConochie of Rock Island. In the evening, music, recitations, and addresses by Gov. Van Sant, Rev. E. Lee Fleck, and others. Wednesday was occupied with regimental reunions. In the middle of September, 1907, the association gathered at Morrison, and 240 of the grizzled heroes registered. Dozens of regiments, east and west, were represented from New York to Kansas. The attendance was larger than usual.

A fine picture "was presented when on our streets marched the soldiers of the various regiments - the 34th, 140th, Army of the Potomac, and the 75th, - the old 75th. carrying the historic flag which led them during those long months of war. The veterans kept time to the stirring martial music and they straightened up and marched with almost as quick tread as on that day long ago when they bade goodbye to loved ones and went bravely forth to face the danger and horror of war.

The address by Hon. Thomas H. Gault of Chicago on Wednesday afternoon was a fine effort and was fully appreciated by the large number of people who gathered at the Auditorium to hear the exercises of the afternoon.

Chaplain Smith was called upon for an address and gave one of his characteristic lively and interesting talks .which everybody enjoyed. His recital of incidents coming under his observation during the war held the attention of the audience and received hearty applause at the close.

The 75th Illinois had a business meeting, and after thanking the ladies of the W. R. C. for dinner, the boys decided to take a short march under the comamnd of Cap. Frost, led by the old 75th flag and the drum corps. This was done after the meeting adjourned. They marched several blocks up and down Main street, stopping in front of the hotel to give the "old flag" three cheers.

In 1907, J. V. McCarty, adjutant of Will Enderton post, G. A. R., Rock Falls, received the following communication from Vespasian Warner, pen* sion commissioner:

"Thanks for your report of the death of Captain William Parker, Company A, Seventy-fifth Illinois infantry. Yes, it is a little tough on us old chaps. 32,666 died last year, which is about the harvest of death for ten years past, over 300,000 deaths having been reported to this bureau during that period.

"360,000 soldiers have applied for pensions under the act of February 6, 1907, which indicates that few are under the age of sixty-two and many are seventy-five and upward. As some compensation for their advancing age the law wisely provides a larger pension for the old men.

"As the setting sun shines in our faces as we march down the western slope of life to our bivouac in the valley, let us go forward with the same unfaltering step as when in the brave days of the sixties we bore Old Glory to the front on many a hard fought field, nor furled it until victory was won."

The easiest way to reach our public sanitarium from Sterling, is to take the morning train at half past ten, and return at half past three. This will permit a stay of four hours, enough for a satisfactory examination. You get off at Eound Grove station, and walk a mile to the west, unless an automobile awaits you at the cars.

There is a cluster of houses, about twenty, at the station, two stores, the elevator of J. A. Mathew, a pumping apparatus to furnish a tank holding 51,000 gallons to supply the numerous freight trains that take water. An extensive creamery that receives 3,000 pounds every other day in the fall, and 6,000 in summer. It is controlled by the John Newman Company, Elgin, and has been in operation for several years. R. J. Koepsell is manager. The most spacious mansion in the village is that of Mrs. Knox, which is conspicuous on the ridge, and belongs to the Simonson farm of 400 acres, left by that early family.

As iwe pass through the village and up the hill, to the east is a Union church, supplied by a minister from Morrison. To the west at the corner a handsome new schoolhouse, frame, painted white, two rooms, built in 1906 at a cost of $4,000. Two young ladies from Morrison in charge, Mary Ward and Edna Stone. Flowers in the window give a home air to the common routine of study. An excellent feature in the construction of the basement. There is a cement floor with the furnace on one side, and on the other separated by a partition, a commodious room where the children can play in the bleak days of winter.

Now we turn west for the county house. What stately buildings. Seen from the railroad by the tourist, they might be taken for the country seat of a wealthy banker. The main edifice is 72 feet front, 60 feet deep, three stories and attic, surmounted by a cupola, commanding a wide view over a rich landscape. The first story is of stone, and divided into a dining room, kitchen, vegetable and fruit cellars, men's sitting rooms. The upper stories are brick, and contain eleven sleeping rooms of various sizes, for two or four beds. An annex to the kitchen for a store room. On the second floor are apartments for the family of the superintendent.

Some years ago a brick annex was built on the east side, occupied by insane patients before the law was passed requiring their removal to state institutions. Watertown, near Moline, is now the most convenient. In front of both edifices is a large yard containing grass, flowers, evergreens, and shrubbery. Cement walks everywhere. All the necessary out-buildings in the form of ice and milk houses. Two pumps furnish water to the house and the stock tanks in the barn yard. East of the main edifice is a garden for vegetables, grapes, cherries, and strawberries. In front, across the road an old orchard with walnut and butternut trees, and also a young orchard bearing fall and winter apples.

The present population of the place comprises 24 men and seven women. In various conditions of health. Those who are able help about the kitchen, laundry, farm and garden. Wholesome food in bountiful supply. Breakfast is generally of hot cakes, butter and syrup. Dinner of meat and gravy, vegetables and tea, with turkey, pie or pudding on holidays. Supper of tea, bread and butter, fried potatoes, sauce and cake.

To keep this family in proper condition, careful housekeeping is essential, and C. L. Houck and wife are equal to the situation, who have been here three years. Huge loaves of bread, three times a week, 150 sacks of flour a year. Delmonico could not have equaled our dinner at twelve.

As there is an extensive farm of 192 acres of land, numerous buildings are necessary, and seldom will you find so complete and substantial a set of every kind of structure for all the needs of modern agriculture: a bank barn with stone basement with stalls for twelve head of horses and fourteen cows, with bins for grain and mows for hay above, a long corn crib, a hen house, a hog pen with four acres attached for exercise, a cattle shed, another corn crib, another hog house with concrete foundation and oak floor, and a commodious shed for shelter of wagons and implements. The live stock varies. At present, 12 horses and mules, 36 head of cattle, 120 hogs and 13 milk cows, which supply the wants of the institution.

These forlorn inmates would gladly endorse Shenstone's familiar stanza, for they are really enjoying more comfort than some ever had in their earlier days.

The institution dates from 1869, when the Board of Supervisors appointed James M. Pratt, L. S. Pennington and H. R. Sampson to select a site for a poor farm near a railroad, and also to erect suitable buildings. The farm of William Knox on the Morrison road was selected at $45 per acre, 108 acres, and buildings were authorized at a cost not to exceed $15,000. The main building and barn were completed in 1870. The Insane Annex was added in 1875 at a cost of over $7,000.

West of the county house along the Morrison road is the last resting place of the loved and lost of many a home of the neighborhood. At the entrance of wrought iron is the inscription, "This fence and arch donated by Mrs. C. G. Curtis, 1906." We notice the graves of several soldiers of the Civil war. Thos. Mason, Co. G, 75th Illinois Infantry. Peter Barbery, Co. H, 8th Illinois Cavalry. David Symonds, Co. B, 13th Illinois. Wm. P. Crump, Co. B, 34th Illinois. J. S. Green, Co. B, 75th Illinois. Sergeant O. A. Seeley, Co. C, 75th Illinois.

The oldest tomb is that of Thomas Mayhew, 1808-1892. In one corner are numerous monuments of. granite to members of the Knox family. There are two acres in the enclosure.

Our visit to our county infirmary was made very pleasant and instructive by the courtesy of Mr. A. D. Hill, who was in charge of the reception room, and who is thoroughly acquainted with the affairs of the institution. He began his career as a teacher, founded the Prophetetown Spike, and has had long experience in editorial work. He wields a ready pen, and much of the information in this sketch was derived from an exhaustive article which he contributed to the Prophetstown Echo.

Since the infirmary was opened five superintendents have been in charge, Hurd, King, Barnum, Ely and Willsey. Since the death of Mr. Willsey, Mrs. Willsey has shown great efficiency in the discharge of the onerous duties.

The Annual Banquet

But the crowning event of the year at the sanitarium is the feast given the supervisors after their regular inspection of the property. A red letter day for the officials and the charitable inmates. Mrs. Ira Willsey was mistress of ceremonies at the function given in December, 1907, and she acquitted herself to the admiration of her official guests. Perhaps as a specimen of Whiteside festal enjoyment at the opening of this century, the following description contributed by A. D. Hill to the Gazette, will be found curious and entertaining:

The bill of fare consisted of six turkeys with dressing, cranberry sauce, escalloped oysters, celery, olives, pickles, jellies, mince pie, cheese, coffee, bread and butter with a dessert of chocolate, cocoanut, fruit cakes, angel food, grapes and oranges. The tables was placed in T shape in the chief sitting room of the house with decorations of purple, yellow and white chrysanthemums, and the feast was presided over by the hostess assisted by her son, Dr. Frank B. Willsey of Chicago, while Mrs. E. W. Mitchell, Mrs. Bert Knox and the help in the house made themselves useful in serving the guests promptly at 1 o'clock p. m.

The supervisors were brought in carriages and other vehicles from Morrison after adjournment of the regular session. Those accompanied by their wives were: William W. Blean, Albany; H. L. Halsted, Coloma; Thomas Mclaughlin, Fenton; C. C. Snyder, Fulton; Mathias Wolber, Genesee; C. Frank Seidel, Hopkins; Henry Brown, Hume; Elmer Mensch, Jordan; Allen E. Parmenter, Lyndon; Oscar Woods, Mt. Pleasant; Theodore Frank, Montmorency; Mrs. John G. Wetzell, Sterling; Frank A. Thomas,' Tampico; Frank Moulton, Union Grove.

Those single men were: Joseph Wood, Clyde; E. Peckham, Erie; John Renner, Hahnaman; James Y. McCall, Newton; Bert Besse, Portland; Elwood Beeman, Prophetstown ; H. J. Simpson, Garden Plain ; Adam Beien, John S. Landis, Sterling; John J. Entwhistle, Ustick. After the dinner and inspection has been concluded, some of the company was taken to the station at Round Grove, and the rest returned to Morrison. And thus successfully ended the ninth annual dinner given by the Willseys at the Whiteside county poor farm.

In order that the reader may . have some idea of the operations of a county house, we clip the following statement from a report submitted to the supervisors at their meeting in March, 1908:

Receipts From Farm

A few rods west of Round Grove on the north side of the railroad has stood for years a large two-story frame dwelling, that by its ragged and worn appearance shows the storms of many a winter. It was built by Simon Fellow of New Hampshire, who came to Illinois in 1834, settling first in Lee county until he came to Whiteside in 1850. His wife was Miss Elizabeth Deyo of Jordan. Eight children gladdened the hearthstone.

Edward owns the early homestead. Albert was in the 4th Illinois cavalry and died in 1866. Charles was in the 75th Illinois infantry, and lives in. Unionville. Mrs. Fellows died in 1890 at 74. The father died in Nov., 1907 at 92. A good Methodist, reading his Bible and praying twice a day.

The Hennepin Canal

Fashions change in dress, and methods change in transportation. First ox carts and wagons. Teamsters used to haul goods in four-horse wagons from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, and emigrants made the toilsome journey across the plains to California in prairie schooners. Then came the era of steamboats on the Ohio and the Mississippi, and people pitied their ancestors in the cramped stage coach, and believed they had reached the luxury of travel. Next the iron tracks running up and down the states and across the continent to meet the demand of commerce for rapid transit. Now, the electric lines piercing every valley, and stopping at every farmer's door.

Before the railway, the canal was deemed the best method of communication where there was no natural outlet. The Erie canal from that lake to the Hudson was the first great enterprise in this country, and its opening in 1825 was signalized by a grand demonstration, and Gov. DeWitt Clinton, its projector, was carried in a triumphal barge to New York. Similar schemes were soon undertaken, and for twenty years the canal was popular for travel as well as for freight. Slow, but sure and safe. No collision or explosion, and the tourist reached his home without loss of life or limb. Passenger packets made regular trips. The writer as late as 1851 journeyed on the canal from Johnstown to Pittsburgh. No other way, as the Pennsylvania Central was not completed. An old Mitchell's map of the United States, 1835, has some tables giving the lengths of the railroads and of the canals. The two longest railroads were the Baltimore and Ohio, 250 miles, and the Boston and Albany, 200 miles. The Erie canal was 363 miles, and the Chesapeake and Ohio, 341 miles. These figures tell their own story. The canal was evidently at a premium.

The locks rotted away, and grass grew on the towpaths. Conditions, however, have rapidly changed. The increasing traffic of the world needs every avenue of communication by land and by water. Where natural arteries of transit are wanting, they must be created. Why a tedious voyage around Good Hope, when a deep ditch through the desert will convey the hugest steamers of the ocean? So thought De Lesseps, and it must have been a proud day for the French engineer when in 1869 before the crowned heads of Europe the Suez canal was opened from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea, shortening the time from London to Bombay twenty-four days, and cutting down the distance from 11,000 miles to about six thousand. The cost of construction was nearly sixty million dollars, and the receipts in 1889 were over thirteen millions. A very profitable investment from every standpoint.

This success led to the Panama Canal in 1879, a dream for centuries. Why navigate the South American coast for ten thousand miles, around the dangerous Horn, when a cut of fifty miles will pass vessels to the mild waters of the Pacific? A company was formed and bonds sold, but after two hundred millions were spent and only twelve miles completed, the concern went into bankruptcy in 1889. The good genius of De Lesseps forsook the gray-haired man. Now Uncle Samuel has secured rights from the Central American states, assumed all obligations, and is digging the muchdiscussed ditch in good earnest. No failure this time. As John Pierpont sang of the Yankee boy :

For a hundred years rivers and harbors have been a standing item in the national appropriation bills. There is a constant demand for the improvement of our large streams and the great ports of foreign trade. Our waterways, indeed, are a prominent feature, of late, in speeches, messages, and conventions. A direct connection between the Mississippi river and the« Great Lakes has long been felt to be very convenient in time of peace, and vitally important in time of war.

Illinois And Michigan Canal

Over 200 years ago, Joliet and La Salle, the early French explorers, saw the ease of constructing a passage from Lake Michigan to the Illinois river, and thus forming a continuous channel to the gulf of Mexico. In 1801 Alfred Gallatin recommended the scheme, and in 1816 a survey was made. In 1827 Congress gave to the state 300,000 acres of land for canal purposes, work was begun in 1836, and twelve years later the canal was opened for navigation at a cost of six millions. Since that time almost asmuch has been spent for improvement and repairs. This canal extends from Chicago to La Salle, connecting the Chicago and Illinois rivers. It is 96 miles long, with a depth of six feet, and a width of sixty feet at the water line.

Chicago Sanitary Canal

by which the current of Chicago river is turned into the Illinois river from the metropolis, is the most colossal work ever undertaken for the sewerage of a city. The entire length is thirty-four miles, and it was completed in eight years, 1892-1900, at the cost of $37,000,000. But it is richly worth the immense outlay in municipal health. The first eight miles from the city, the channel is nearly 200 feet wide, with a depth of twenty-two feet. For fourteen miles its course was blasted through solid rock, forming a decided contrast to the sides of the Suez canal with its banks of shifting sand.

The reader may naturally ask, What have these other two canals to do with the Hennepin? As St. Paul would say, Much every way. Without them the Hennepin would fail in its purpose. Without the old Michigan canal, boats on the Hennepin could not reach Chicago or the lakes, and without the Hennepin, boats from the lakes could not reach the upper Mississippi without making the circuit of the Illinois river, two hundred miles to the south. In other words, the Hennepin, tapping the Michigan canal near its terminus at La Salle, furnishes a direct communication with the Northern Mississippi and its tributary territory. A glance at the map will show the situation.

It is at least sixty years ago that the project of a canal along the route of the present Hennepin began to be discussed, and the claim has lately been made that the idea was born in the brain of Major James M. Allan, of Geneseo, and that L. D. Whiting, of Tiskilwa, and John H. Bryant gave the plan their hearty support. A canal convention was held in Sawyer's hall, Geneseo, and other conventions were held at Dixon, Sterling, and interested towns in the district. Public attention was aroused, the scheme was presented at Springfield and Washington, in 1871 a preliminary survey was made, and in 1890 Congress made an appropriation of $500,000 to begin the work. Thomas J. Henderson, member from this district, was the champion on the floor in pushing the claims of the new waterway.

The length of the main line of the Hennepin canal from Milan, on Rock river, near its mouth, to the town of Hennepin on the Illinois river, is seventy-five miles. Excavation was begun at Milan in July, 1892, when Capt. L. L. Wheeler, civil engineer, in charge of the work, turned the first sod with a spade which is now in the Historical Society at Davenport. The depth of water is seven feet, and the width of the cut is 52 feet at the bottom, and eighty at the water line. There are thirty-three locks, measuring thirtyfive feet by one hundred and seventy, with lifts varying from six to twelve feet. Two aqueducts carry the canal over Green river, one at the lower end of the feeder, the other at the western end of the canal near Rock river. There are fifty-two culverts that carry small brooks, drainage ditches, and other water courses under the canal-.

The Hennepin Feeder

In order to keep a suitable stage of water in the canal proper, a feeder is necessary from Rock river. Where shall it tap the crystal current of this stream? It will be a point of travel and traffic for all time to come. Dixon and Sterling both felt its importance, and put in a claim for the terminus of the feeder. (X L. Sheldon and C. C. Johnson, in an interview with Hon. Redfield Proctor, Secretary of War, at Washington, in regard to the matter, were informed that the government in its decision would be guided by the length of route and economy of construction. The necessary funds were subscribed by the citizens of Sterling and Rock Falls, and a survey made by the late Frank E. Andrews. The survey and estimates showed conclusively that the route from Rock Falls was not only over eleven miles shorter than that from Dixon, but that numerous items of large expense could be avoided. These figures were decisive, and the feeder was recommended from Rock Falls. It starts east of Rock Falls, runs almost south, joining the main canal in Bureau county, a distance of 29.3 miles. The depth of water is seven feet. When the feeder proposition was first broached, a fear was felt that so much water would be drawn from Rock river as to seriously lessen the main current of the stream, but this has proven unfounded. The feeder once full, there is little loss by evaporation.

The Feeder Dam

This leaves the Rock Falls shore just below the entrance of the feeder into Rock river and strikes the Sterling or north side between Tenth and Eleventh avenues. The length is over 1,300 feet, and with the flash boards in place will raise the water above its common level eleven and a half feet. Beginning on the south side, besides the abutment, there are eighteen huge piers, each 34 feet long, 17 feet high, and six feet wide. Each contains 120 yards of concrete in which 135 barrels of cement 'were used. Between these piers are the ponderous controlling steel gates which are raised or lowered to regulate the flow of the water. Where these piers end, the center dam, 500 feet long, begins. It consists of heavy timber cribs, bolted together, and the space inside filled with rubble obtained from blasting the bed of the river. The up-river face of the dam is sheathed with steel plates onequarter of an inch thick to protect the wood from ice, and the down-river slope is faced with three-inch oak plank. It is over this central slope that the river flows, sparkling in a long and wide crystal sheet like the old style dams of our childhood. From the end of the crib section are a series of concrete piers, similar to those on the south side, extending to the abutment on the north bank. Here will be placed the power house, fifty feet wide and 167 feet long to contain the electric generators attached to the water wheels below. In six flumes, twelve turbine wheels will be installed in pairs, each pair occupying one flume. A tail race excavated in the solid rock eleven feet below the river bed will carry the water from the wheels.

The water had been raised nine feet at the dam, and the back water extends to Dixon. The overflow has inundated 1,436 acres of land, which has cost the government $103,787. This inundation extends eight miles above the dam. The estimated cost of the feeder dam was put at $100,000, but Capt. Wheeler thinks it will not exceed $90,000. The cost of the canal and feeder will reach about $7,250,000. The yearly maintenance of the canal will take about $150,000, to be borne by the government. Considering the national value of the enterprise, these figures seem trifling. New York expended over twenty millions on her Albany capitol, and Philadelphia a similar sum on her city hall, and they are structures of local convenience.

At the entrance of the feeder to the river there is a guard lock to protect the canal from high water in the river. This is very important. As much of the canal passes through a flat country, and at places, above its level, a freshet in the river, would soon rise above the banks of the canal, and flood the lowlands, producing wide-spread destruction. This lock is 250 feet long, and 35 feet wide between the walls. As an additional protection, there are collapsible needle dams provided at each end of the lock. A neat iron bridge over the top of the guard lock offers a passage to the east from Second Avenue, Rock Falls.

The canal is spanned by seventy highway bridges and eight railway bridges. These all have concrete abutments, and the highway bridges being at a considerable elevation above the water, require a long and gradual approach. As the bridges over the feeder are not high enough to permit the passage of barges and tugs over twelve feet high, both Mr. Wheeler and Major Riche believe that to allow unrestricted traffic, these structures must be raised to the level first established by the engineers. The construction of the locks and canal walls near Milan, the western terminus, is the first case in the United States where cement was substituted for cut stone, which costs nearly twice as much as concrete. Its successful use here has resulted in its adoption by the government, railways, and great corporations everywhere for similar work. It is said the total amount of concrete material in the canal is sufficient to make a four foot cement sidewalk to Boston.

A short distance from the guard lock, fronting Second avenue, Rock Falls, and commanding a fine view of the dam from shore to shore, is the government building, a spacious square structure, very substantial with its concrete walls and red tile roof. The east half, first and second story, is devoted to public offices in connection with the business of the canal, the west section to household rooms for the use of the janitor. The large area surrounding the edifice, will, doubtless, in time become a miniature park where amid trees and shrubbery and flower beds the visitor can enjoy the waterfall and its massive handiwork.

It is too early to estimate the benefits that will accrue to Sterling, Rock Falls, Dixon, indeed, the whole adjoining valley, from this magnificent improvement. Electric power enough can be generated at the dam to run endless mills and factories on either bank, and make the combined cities the Pittsburgh of Illinois. The feeder and canal will create for this section direct communication with central Illinois, securing for us cheaper coal, and opening a market for grain and other produce. In fact, at every point along the route, warehouses will furnish a home market for farmers to send freight or receive it. Already a company has been formed to operate boats and barges for the transfer of freight and passengers between this point and Peoria, and other places on the Illinois river.

-Aside from the direct commercial advantage of the waterway, is the prospect of local travel. Navigation on Rock river is no longer a tradition, it is a coming reality. Small excursion steamers will make frequent trips between Sterling and Dixon, giving people an opportunity of admiring the picturesque scenery of our noble stream, or down the feeder through the fertile plains of our southern border, or into the Illinois with its stir of traffic or legends of La Salle. The dam formed by the government has really given the citizens of the two cities a lovely little lake, where boats and launches may safely glide as on a summer sea. A home harbor of delight.

Holiday Opening Of The Hennepix

As the feeder and the dam, the last stage in the national undertaking, approached completion, it was decided to mark the event with a suitable demonstration. Preparations began months ahead, invitations were sent far and wide, and nothing was left undone to arouse the enthusiasm of the popular heart. October 24, 1907, was the date selected, and it proved ideal. The weather was superb. The clear sky, the grass still green, temperature mild, and the foliage slightly turned to gold and crimson, bathed in the mellow sunlight, made the landscape glorious, and the occasion inspiring. Both Sterling and Rock Falls were in gala attire. Stores and public buildings were profusely and elaborately decorated, and the stars and stripes waved over the streets and floated from every flag staff. The people began to arrive from the country for miles in every direction at an early hour, while the regular and special trains came loaded with eager passengers. By ten in the morning the sidewalks on Third street were a moving mass of men, women and children, dressed in their best 'bib and tucker, patiently waiting for the promised show. No similar crowd ever gathered in the streets since the fair of 1880 when the lamented generals, Grant and Logan, were the heroic attractions. Some estimates place the multitude at 25,000. The pageant began in the morning with a parade, Abram Caughey, marshal of the day. The first section consisted of the mounted police, the Sixth Regiment band with Major Lowrie, and Cos. I, G and E of the Sixth Regiment. The second and larger section was industrial, representing the mercantile and manufacturing interests of the two cities. Every separate establishment had its float, and many of them were elegant and ingenious. It was the longest and most ambitious procession ever attempted by the cities. It was headed by the Banda

Another pageant in the afternoon. This time aquatic. Boats and launches from Sterling, Rock Falls, and Dixon, assembled on the river near the Water works, under command of Commodore Ben Eick, and after some evolutions, moved through the gates into the feeder, sailed down far as the Dixon avenue bridge, and then returning gave another parade on the river. There were fifty boats, all beautifully decorated, in line, and the display exceeded every expectation. It was the privilege of Miss Grace Wheeler, youngest daughter of Captain and Mrs. Wheeler, to swing back the big gates, and as the band discoursed a lively air, permit the young fleet to float on the smooth waters of the feeder.

Never in the annals of Whiteside were so many prominent visitors assembled. No star actor like Senator Douglas in 1855, or Abraham Lincoln in 1856, but a long array of men of distinction in every department of public life, governors, congressmen, engineers, legislators, mayors, editors, organizers. Among the worthies of the occasion may be mentioned:

Governor Charles S. Deneen of Springfield ; ex-Governor Samuel R. A7an Sant of Minnesota whose home is now at Minneapolis ; Frank 0. Lowden of Oregon, 111., our congressman, and his secretary, James R. Cowley; Congressman Joseph V. Graff of Peoria; Congressman Ben H. Caldwell of Springfield ; ex-Congressman Thomas J. Henderson of Princeton, 111. ; Colonel Clark E. Carr of Galesburg, excongressman from that district; Senator James W. Templeton of Princeton ; representative Frank Covey of Belvidere ; Edmund Jackson of Fulton, member state board of equalization; C. C. Duffy of Ottawa, clerk of the appellate court for the thirteenth district ; Fred E. Sterling, editor of the Rockford Register-Gazette and candidate for nomination for secretary of state ; Judge Emory C. Graves -of Henry county and Judge Farrand of Dixon.

Among the government engineers and waterway people present Tvere Major C. S. Riche of Rock Island, J. W. McGee of the inland waterway commission, one of President Roosevelt's advisors concerning waterway projects. Hon. Thomas Wilkinson of Burlington, who is president of the Upper Mississippi Improvement association; Hon. T. A. Murphy of Davenport, a son of the late Hon. Jerry Murphy of that city, who was one of the fathers of the Hennepin project.

Chicago was represented by John M. Glenn, secretary of the Illinois manufacturers association ; Guy Guernsey, clerk of the Cook county probate court and proprietor of Kent law college; W. H. Manns, industrial commissioner of the Chicago Association of Commerce ; Clayton E. Crafts, formerly speaker of the house of representatives; Malcolm McDowell of the Central Trust company; Walter H. Moore of E. B. Moore & Co.; George Bonnell of

After dinner the oratorical part of the program was to take place. Early in the afternoon the crowd began to gather, and the animated movements of the people on the shore, and the evolutions of the gay launches on the water, made a very pretty picture. The exercises were held on the Rock Falls side. 'The platform stood near the mouth of the feeder, the muffled roar of the raging current in the river furnishing a bass acompaniment to the words of the Websters. The seats on the stand were occupied by the honored guests of the -occasion. John S. Stager, secretary of the Sterling Industrial Association, called the meeting to order, and introduced Governor Charles S. Deneen who spoke on the value of the work in every point of view. Illinois has long ranked high in agriculture, but she has coal and other resources for unlimited development in manufacture, and needs the improvement of her waterways to send her products over the vast tributary territory in which she occupies so advantageous a position. He believed the people of the state would authorize the expenditure of twenty million dollars to make the channel of the Illinois river a great avenue of traffic.

Ex-Governor Van Sant, of Minnesota, expressed his deep interest in the success of the canal, and believed that these improved waterways would solve the transportation problem. His suggestion that the two cities by their continual co-operation would best secure their common prosperity, was received with applause.

As Col. Frank 0. Lowden was announced, the audience sent up a hearty cheer of welcome for our congressman. He hoped to see the day when he can ship grain from his farm on Rock river, and he proposed during the next session of congress to urge a lock in the dam as a desideratum in the navigation of the river. He advised the cities to secure plenty of space for terminal facilities before private interests would interfere with the freedom of public -traffic.

Congressman Benjamin Caldwell, of Springfield, followed in a similar strain, and elicited much applause when he said that he was in favor of a lock in the dam allowing boats access to the river below. Introduce the bill, and I shall not only vote for it myself, but secure the votes of other members.

When Gen. Thomas J. Henderson arose, still vigorous at eighty-two, voice little impaired by time, he was easily the most impressive and historic figure of the day. He reviewed his long struggle in the House for the Hennepin project, and maintained that the time has come when canals are imperative improvements, and that the government owes their construction and support to the people.

Hon. Clayton E. Crafts, formerly speaker of the Illinois House, represented the Chicago Association of Commerce, and declared that Chicago took great interest in the canal as it meant cheaper transportation for the metropolis as well as for the people of this section.

Col. Clark E. Carr, of Galesburg, predicted that the Hennepin will dofor the cities along its banks what the Erie canal has done for the cities of central New York, and that Sterling and Rock Falls 'are to enter upon a career of unexampled prosperity.

This was the last address, and ended the flow of eloquence. The band played a selection, and the multitude gradually dispersed to their homes. The October pageant of the Hennepin feeder had become a happy memory forever.

Hennepin In A Nutshell

1896 - Congress listens to plea of Sterling and Rock Falls citizens and location of the mouth of the feeder is changed to Rock Falls and $45,000 isappropriated.

Caution To Trespassers

Supt. L. L. Wheeler has published a set of rules and regulations to govern boats and the operation of the canal. The following contain the main points of the regulations :

Trespassing is strictly forbidden on the lands along the canal and cutting of trees or digging in the banks is prohibited. Advertisements of any sort cannot be posted on the fences, piers, bridges or abutments. No refuse

The speed of all boats is limited to six miles an hour and rules governing the passing of boats and the order of precedence through locks, etc., are given. Pleasure boats, etc., will only be put through lock in the morning and evening unless they happen to be locked through with a larger boat.

The violation of any of the rules or regulations is punishable by a fine' as high as $500 or imprisonment for six months at the discretion of the United States District court.

The Milk Industry

Man from a savage state has passed through the stone age, the iron age, the copper, now he is in the age of steel. So the farmer in the West has had his stages. First wheat, winter or spring, was the main crop. With a big yield, the land was often paid for. When goods were bought at the store, payment was to be made "after harvest," and if harvest was poor, the merchant had to carry the farmer for another year. As the ground failed to produce wheat, then came corn and hogs, oats and horses, pasture and cattle. These different features were pushed according to the market. Diversified or general farming is the only secret of successful agriculture. Corn for a long time has been king. The price is generally good, and it is necessary feed for hogs and cattle. But within a few years a rival industry has sprung up, and the farmer is now in the age of milk. The business has grown so gradually that we hardly realize its extent. The cities have always needed 'milk, but it was draWn chiefly from the surrounding country.

But now every hamlet, every town, every county, is a milk center. The pretty dairy maid of the poet or artist sitting by a solitary heifer, and singing as she carries her pail to the house, is no longer to be seen. Instead, rows of cows in white barns, and men milkers in white jackets, working for wages. A boon to the farmer's wife and daughters. No more skimming dozens of crocks in damp cellars, or tugging at the churn and waiting for the butter to come. Every morning the milk is carried away in wagons, and that burden of the old fashioned household is removed forever.

The first large concern in Sterling to deal in milk was established by John Gilbert in 1896 on the site of the old Central House. It is now the Sterling Creamery Company. The milk is gathered outside of the territory of the Gail Borden company, and the receipts are larger than before the con- densing plant began operations. A contract has been made with a dealer in Moline, and eighty-five cans are shipped daily to that city. Besides milk, the company gathers cream, and 700 pounds of butter are churned every -day. Buttermilk is furnished the Legg Poultry Company for fattening fowls, the check for this item in two months amounting to $386. In addition to the money paid for milk and cream, the farmers receive the separated milk which is given to calves and swine. The receipts in March, 1908, were from 10,000 to 12,000 pounds of milk daily, which were expected to be largely increased in the butter months of May and June.

Another milk depot started later by John Haglock, now controlled by Clement Hey, is also on East Third street. The average receipts in winter are 3,000 pounds a day, which are doubled in summer. This is retailed by wagons through the city. There are four other milk routes : William Freeby, Charles Freeby, Mason and Harting, F. Landis.

But what has given the most powerful impetus to the milk industry in the county is the erection in 1907-1908 of the Gail Borden Condensing Plant. It stands just outside the western limits of Sterling. A ten minutes' walk from the terminus of the car line brings you to the spot. On thirteen acres between the Morrison road on the north and the Northwestern on the south are placed the buildings and smoke stacks in pure, beautiful white brick. It is a feast for the eye. Easily the architectural ornament of Whiteside. The interior is a- model of neatness, solidity, convenience, combining all the results of modern science and sanitation. The flow of the artesian well is 260 gallons per minute. Copper is a prominent material in the vessels, very expensive, one huge pan alone costing $5,000. A one hundred horsepower Corliss engine furnishes power. The plant involves an outlay of $100,000, and is only one of a hundred similar institutions, east and west. At present, 25,000 to 35,000 pounds of milk are received every day, which will enlarge with the season. About 25 hands are employed. So far this is simply a condensing plant, no bottling or packages, the material being shipped to Dixon, where it is put into shape for market. A testing apparatus to detect any variation from the state standard, which requires as the lowest three per cent of butter fat.

Contracts for the milk supply for the first six months of 1908 were signed between the dairy farmers and the dealers in Sterling in March. The purchasers are the Gail Borden Company, Clement Hey and the Sterling Butter & Cream Company. The prices offered by the three concerns are very close, there being but little difference in the prices. The prices are slightly higher than last year, especially the quotations of Clement Hey and the Sterling Butter & Cream Company. The prices offered by the Gail Borden Company and the Sterling Butter & Cream Company are identical, and as follows: April, $1.25; May, ninety-five cents; June, eighty-five cents; July, ninety-five cents; August, $1.10; September, $1.20.

The only difference in the contracts of the above companies is that the Sterling Butter & Cream Company furnishes the cans and keeps them in repair, while the farmers furnishing milk to the Gail Borden Company furnish their own cans and keep them in repair.

The price paid for milk in Sterling by the Gail Borden Company is identical -with that at Dixon. The company has made the division point in hauling milk to the two factories at the Lee-Whiteside line. Those who reside west of the line will deliver milk to Sterling and those east of the line will deliver milk to Dixon.

While the company pays good prices for milk, their contract, as is generally known, insists on absolute cleanliness in stables, utensils, food, wagons, laborers, everything and everywhere, and neglect will vitiate the contract. Inspectors make regular tours of the district. From the time that the cow has been milked not a hand has touched the milk. The sterilization of every instrument used in connection with the business has reduced risk of dirt or infection of any kind to almost a practical impossibility. One has only to watch the process of cleaning the plant and preparing the bottles to realize the importance of the task and the thoroughness with which it is done.

The manager of the plant is A. B. Hicks, an energetic young man, who brings to his responsible duties an experience of fifteen years at Elgin. The average weight of milk is slightly over two pounds to a quart, and the cans vary in capacity from 68 to 80 pounds.

The prices offered by the Gail Borden people for milk during the first six months of 1908 are the highest of any ever offered by the firm and bring the price of milk to the highest point it has ever reached in this section.

Sugar is a large factor in the condensing process. A section of one floor is occupied with rows of barrels of the Havemeyer brand, weighing 600 pounds each.

His name is familiar on the immense condensing walls all over the country, and yet few know anything about the man. Who was Gail Borden? A New Yorker, born in Norwich, 1801, who after a wandering career in the south, invented pemmican or meat biscuit, used by Dr. Kane in Arctic regions. He came north, and in 1853 applied for a patent for "producing concentrated sweet milk by evaporation in vacuo," and in 1856 secured his patent. Works were soon established east and west, and during the Civil war, condensed milk was extensively used in the army. Borden deservedlyacquired wealth by his invention, was very liberal, and died in Borden, Texas, in 1874. Let his name be placed with Fulton, Morse, Howe, Goodyear, as one of the benefactors of his race.

The development of the milk industry has led to remarkable improvements in every direction. Land has rapidly advanced in value, not only near towns, but in the remoter districts, wherever the soil affords rich pasture.

Farms now within five to ten miles of Sterling or Morrison range from $100 to $150 per acre. Property in Kane county, of which Elgin is the center, has made astonishing advances.

Naturally an important consideration is the breed of cows to produce the milk. Jerseys, Guernseys, Ayrshires, Holsteins, all have their advocates, and at the agricultural meetings their qualities are discussed with enthusiasm.

A very desirable feature of the milk business is the cash receipts. The monthly payment puts money into the farmer's pocket, and he has ready funds for all his outlays at store or shop. No tedious dependence as of yore on the yearly crop, or the slow conversion of grass into cattle or corn into pork. The credit system is bad, inconvenient, and has injured many a farmer by putting him at the mercy of Shylocks and designing tradesmen. Thanks to the milk traffic for its cash. It has encouraged promptness and independence.

Cows are tested at the state experiment stations, and the results carefully watched. By keeping only high-grade cows the dairy farmers of Illinois could increase their aggregate income from $16,000,000 to $31,000,- 000 a year and make a profit of $31.23 a year from each cow instead of 77 cents a year from poor cows, according to a report just made by Prof. W. J. Fraser, of the University of Illinois. The figures are based upon a three years' test of food supplies and the results in butter fat. Thirty-six herds containing 554 cows were studied in the experiments. The 136 of the animals produced an average of 301 pounds of butter fat a year each. The poor cows averaged only 133 1/2 pounds a year each. At 23 cents a pound for biutter - the average Elgin price for the last five years - the average income from each good cow was $67.32 a year and from each poor cow $34.77 a year. Feed for each poor cow cost $30 a year and for each good cow $38 a year. On these figures Professor Fraser finds a profit of only 77 cents a year for each poor cow, but a profit of $30.77 a year on each good cow.

Here as elsewhere Jerseys are a favorite in families, or for small herds, but for beef and productive capacity combined, the short-horns still retain their popularity.

Educational Progress In Whiteside

Since the year 1877, the date when Mr. Charles Bent's history of Whiteside County was written, many radical improvements in the educational con- , ditions of the county have been made. In December, '77, Geo. C. Loomis of Fulton became County Superintendent and made an excellent record as a school official. Mr. Loomis, during his term of office, held the position of Supt. of Schools at Fulton and performed the duties of County Supt. on Saturdays and during his school vacations.

In 1882, B. F. Hendricks, at that time in charge of the Rock Falls schools, was elected to look after the schools of the county. He taught school for the remainder of the year and then by order of the Board of Supervisors he began giving his entire time to the work of County Super- vision. The action of the county board in granting the County Superintendent permission to put in his full time attending to county school matters is largely attributable to the efforts of a special committee consisting of Supt. A. Bayliss, Supt. M. R. Kelly and John Phinney, who were appointed by the Whiteside County Teacher's Association to wait upon the Board of Supervisors and ask that the County Superintendent be turned loose.

Superintendent Hendricks was re-elected in 1886 but resigned in 1889 to become city superintendent of the Savanna, 111., schools. By appointment from County Board, W. J. Johnston became County Superintendent in July, '89 and held the office until December, 1902, when the present incumbent, B. F. Hendricks, was again called upon to take charge of the schools of the county.

Superintendent Johnston was a careful and capable officer and his long term of service emphatically demonstrated that his efforts were duly appreciated by the school patrons of Whiteside. In order to make an effort to grade the rural schools, and to give greater system to supervision, the first "School Room Guide" made its appearance in 1884. This course of study supplemented by future editions and outlines and emphasized by central and final examinations has produced phenomenal results in bettering the educational conditions in Whiteside County.

New schoolhouses equipped with single desks, elaborate libraries, furnaces in basements, up-to-date apparatus, pictures on walls, etc., have taken the places of many buildings that could no longer satisfy the progressive spirit of the age.

Excepting in a very few schools, the text books now in use are uniform. This has been a practical and economical change and it has materially aided in bringing about the very satisfactory status of educational affairs.

In the near future, the sanguine prophet predicts that the qualifications of teachers will be much higher, that there will be many more school directers as deeply interested and as capable as the best that now so faithfully discharge their full duty, that the larger or centralized school -will be very common and that every dollar raised by taxation for school purposes will be made to produce a hundred cents' worth of good to the rising generation.

Whiteside Schools In Nineteen Hundred And Seven

County Superintendent B. F. Hendrick's annual report to the state department of public instructions contains the following facts and figures in regard to the schools of Whiteside county:

Whiteside School Apportionment

The following are the school funds and fines apportioned to the towns of Whiteside county, March 28, 1908, by the county superintendent: T. 19 R. 3 $ 48.29