Vermillion County, Indiana - Chapter 17: Miscellaneous Topics, 1913

Chapter 17: Miscellaneous Topics

Herein are to be found \-arious items and topics not sufficient in length to form a separate chapter. 1nit which are replete with interest and: valuable facts concerning- the county's history.

The Old Indiana Ikon Furnace

Every section of the country that has been settled by ci\-ilized peop'e for a century ur more has. strewn along at various points within its territory, some interesting landmarks of enterprises once of great value and importance to the community, Init w hich have long since gone to decay and can only be traced by the traditions of men and a few material objects, such as rusted-out machinery, an old water-wheel, a spindle, a shaft or some tumble-down structiu-e in which once was heard the hum of swiftly moving machiner}-. All is now silent, save the memory of some old man or woman who perchance recalls those pioneer da^'s and delights in telling the present generation of those days when life was acti\'e and earnest to liim and his companions.

In 1839 Avhat was styled the "Indiana Eurnace'' in Clinton township, this county, was in full blast. It was the result of the discovery of paving quantities of iron ore within the community, and it grew to lie among the most extensive indu.stries in the Wabash valley. Here ])robabh- was produced the first pigiron in Indiana. Geologists inform us. however, that the principal iron ore found in this county is an impure carbonate, occurring in nodules and irregular layers or bands. These nodules once supplied the material for the furnace on Brouillet's creek, where they yielded thirty-three per cent, of iron. The ore in Vermillion county is said to range from twentv-five to fort\--fi\-e per cent, of iron. Along in the eighties there was discovered in the Norton creek bottoms, near the head of Kelt's prairie, a bed of bog iron ore, said to be three feet thick and covering an area of from six to eight acres. This, however, has never been de^'eloped.

The opening of the iron mines in Clinton townsln'p, in 1S37, was the commencement of the iron indu.stry here. The old Indiana Eurnace was in section 27; township 14, range 10. Stephen R. Uncles was the chief owner and superintendent. Associated with him were Hugh Stuart and Chester Clark, the firm being Uncles & Company. Years later the land and iron works passed into the hands of Stuart & Sprague, and still later to K. \I. Bruce & Company, the "company" being David Stinton.

In 1859 (leorge B. Sparks, of Clinton, bought a controlling interest and, under the firm name of C. P.. Sparks & Company, tlie Imsincss was continued until 1864. Quite a village of cal)ius for the use of the workmen, and large company supply store, with shops and other Ijuildings, might have greeted the eye of the traveler away back in the thirties and forties, when this was looked upon as a new country. Here the iron ore was cast into "pigs," then re-cast into many kinds of castings, such as mill machinery, and especially into stoves, which were then just coming into general use as a household necessity. From these furnaces went forth thousands of tons of castings and pig iron, into the markets of the central West. Many a boat on the Wabash was freighted with the products of this furnace and foundry. Here many found employiuent at good wages. The money thus |)ai(l out freely circulated in the neighborhood and made times quite lively. There were i./oo acres of land connected with the furnaces, and all was owned in 1887 bv George B. Sparks, who used the greater portion of it for agricultural purposes. Even at that date there was nothing to remind one of the once smoking, flaming, consuming fires of the Indiana Furnace and the little hamlet that stood near the dingy plant, save a few cabins, almost ruined by decay, and here and there a piece of machinery heavily coated with the rust of vears. The fires had long since been quenched, because of more improved methods, a better grade of iron ore, and more modern facilities, those which were ushered in with the true "Iron A.ge" that commenced at the close of the Civil war.

There are still a few persons li\ing in the countv who remember the busy 'spot known as the "Furnaces." and recall the long string of teams employed in drawing the ore from the mines and in conveying the manufactured metal, in "pigs" and in stove-plate and cooking utensils, to the waiting flat-boats on the banks of the near-by Wabash. The iron industrv was of short duration as compared to that of coal mining, which is now the great king of Vermillion county industries.

From a recent history of Indiana, by Smith, we quote the following concerning the early iron industry: "Limonite or bog-iron ores are found in many Indiana counties, including Vermillion. Experience has proven that tiiese ores are too silicious to compete witli the rich beds of hermatite of Missouri, Tennessee and Georgia. .As a proof of this it is only necessary to state that of fourteen blast-furnaces which have l)een erected in Indiana in the past, not one is now in operation and most of them have long- since l)een in ruin and decay. The hist furnace went out of Inisiness in 1893."

Political And Election Retl'Rns

While it is not the province of this work to go into the details of the political history of A'ermillion county, which has, in common wifh other counties of Indiana, been one fraught with many interesting events, it must here suffice to simply refer incidentally to the political complexion of the county, as found in the presidential election returns.

At an early day there was a good sprinkling of the Whig party element within Vermillion county and from this sprang the Republicans of a later era, which element is now very strong. In and near the \illage of Perrysville, in 1844, the \\'higs were strong as a party and to show their enthusiasm the following little instrument is introduced to the reader :

"Res])ected Sir : Owing to the political excitement of the times, and to the expected \isit of Mr. R. W. Thompson to our place on next Friday, with all creation besides, we have been induced to ask you to favor the Whigs of this place with the loan of your cannon for Friday next. We wish to put a stop to the noise of this little loco-foco pocketpiece with a few rounds from a Whig gun.

.Vt^the commencement of the Civil war, W'rmillion county was aliout evenly divided as to Democrats and Republicans, but fortunately clid not have a large number of the "stay-at-home stripe" in either party, hence the few "copperheads" did not dare make as much disturbance as in many parts of the Hoosier state. Lincoln was elected and X'ermillion county- ga\'e him about as many \-otes as the opposition party had. Tlic presidential vote

Athering Storm

The files of the Saliirday .'lr(jiis. of Clinton, published by L. O. Bishop, in June, 191 1, contained the interesting reminiscence of fifty years ago in; Clinton and Vermillion county, and, bearing on the political issues of those] days, it is here quoted as follcnvs :

"Perhaps in the minds of the younger readers of these memories will I arise the question, \Miy, in view of the fact that Clinton was so far fromj the slax'e country-, and a part of the North, was there such a powerful pro-J slavery sentiment here? .\llow me to digress from the main- line of story to answer this (|ucstioi;. It must be borne in mind that at that time in.1 which [ write of Clinton, it had l)ut one door open to the commerce of the! world, and that was south \ia the Wabash, Ohio, Mississippi rivers. NewJ Orleans was our great clearing house. It was no uncommon sight to see fleet of Hat-boats tied up along the river front in those days, unloadi: sugar, coffee, tobacco, rice, dry goods and tons of other manufactured goods and coniniodities and taking on curn and wheat and i;urk for the ^' mth. These flat boats were operated In- liand. And it required se\eral nmntlis to make a round trip. The stories of ri^-er ad\'enture and frohc and tragedy, if written, would make up some of the richest reading matter to l)e found in any Hterature. But it was commerciaHsm that reached out from tlie great slave market and sent its poison up through the natural arteries of the physical country and thus stupefied and held captive for years the mind, the heart and conscience of the people until such prophets as Owen Lo\'ejo\- and John Bro\vn and William Lloyd (jarrison. like John the Baptist, came cr_\'ing through the wilderness, 'Awake! repent, and throw off the horrid spell.'

"The only competitor this river ever had was the Wabash & lirie canal, which then extended up from Evansville, somewhat parallel with the Wabash ri\er, \-ia Terre Haute, Lafayette to Toledo. this slow and tedious route a considerable commerce was conducted until the early sixties, when the absence of labor at home practically put it out of business. But there is in this connection a fundamental fact that cannot be too strongly emphasized and applied to the problems of today, and that is this : L-nrestricted control and use of the means of communication and transportation is a source of strength that is absolutely indis])ensab]e to the welfare of the people. So when this struggle came on the people of Clinton found themselves at one end of a river which ran at the other end to the \ery heart of the slave country, and was controlled by the slave power along e\'er\' inch of its tortuous route from St. Louis to the Gulf of Mexico. Thus our commerce was bottled up and the stopper was in the South. Clinton felt this cundition. It affected all classes. The slave power had many and effective agents at work all through this part o*f the country. Among them, preachers like Parson Brownlow. The only other outlet was to the north by wagon route to Chicago, and it was far more uncertain and expensive than was the easy fiat boat ride down stream to New Orleans. When one closely understands howstrong was this commercial bond between the South and the middle West through the medium of these great rivers then it will be seen that the West made a greater sacrifice than any other part of the country, for the Eastern states had their railroads to the seaboard and then all the world beyond as a field over which to roam for trade. And then, again, population was sparse.

"The population of Clinton in i860 was not over two hundred and fiftv. As late as 1865 men used to sit in Johnny Rhyan"s little old shoe shop and take a complete census of e\'ery man, woman, cliild, horse, cow, jack, chicken, dog and cat. .\nd when they had taken the census, how thev used to swell up with pride, and exclaim, 'See how we have grown in ten wears."

"That niv estimate was correct was shown Frida}- by J. H. Bogart, who in less tlian ten minutes" time recalled and named every family, store, warehouse and shop in Clinton in 1861. Not only is this feat remarkable for niemorx-, and shows how men ])reser\e their tine mental powers, including that of memory, but it shows the rapidity with which Clinton has grown. Ju.st think of it. Here is a town of only two hundred and fifty in 1861, whereas todav (1911) the place has reached seven thousand, and instead of thirty-five blocks, today co\ers over a square mile.

"By i860 public sentiment throughout the North began to assume concrete form. Tt forced from unwilling lips defense of the truth. Tt crushed the wornout old Whig party and threw it into the political scrap-heap as a wreck. Tt split the slave-ruled ])arty and shoved into the lireach the \'irile, alert, wedge of the newly-l)orn Re|)ublican party and when the memoralile campaign of 1858 came on there was such a tremendous widespread activity as w-as never before witnessed on any continent. If it be true that 'coming events cast their shadows before." then certainly the campaigns of 1858-60 clear!)- forecast the struggle that was to burst upon the country a year later. That summer and fall were given over to politics. Nothing else was discussed.

"The demonstration that greeted IJncoln on that occasion has, so far as I recall, ne\'er been equalled in the border line of the two states of Indiana and Illinois.

"The Clinton delegation startetl with a strong cavalcade of mounted young women and men. Others went in gayly decorated wagons and others in carriages. Like an avalanche, it swept on across the township, gathering to itself large delegations all along the way. At the same time, from all the country surrounding Paris other delegations w-ere moving on toward a center and when Mr. Lincoln arose to s]ieak he was greeted bv a sea of eager faces that covered sex'eral acres, solidly standing. That procession is to this day the talk of the older men and women who remember it.

"The campaign of i860 was a furious campaign. No secret liallot then. Every voter in Clinton townshiji bad to come to town to vote and election da\- participated in it to the last hour. The young, humane Democratic Republican party took the townshiii and sent the word to Lincoln that so far as this river town was concerned it would stand for a united countrv. But our town i)aid a terrific i)rice for its rejection of the tempter. .\nd the debt is not jiaid yel. Little apparently do the |>eo])lc of today seem to realize the awful cost it ha> .taken in times ])ast to uuiintain lihertv and guarantee progress.

"So it was that under such thrills and stress my earliest days swiftly passed. And one day father came home in a great hurry from up town. His face was pale and his voice trembled. Someone asked him, "XMiy, Frank, what on earth is the matter?' "Fort Sumter has been fired on," he huskily replied, and on he went to spread the awful, ominous news. Just then another one came past and corroborated the news. It seems as though ill news of great importance spreads as if by magic. It was true in this case. All Clinton was on the streets in a few moments after tlie news of the Fort Sumter affair arrived. Excitement was at fever pitch. Church bells were rung, crowds were addressed by impromptu speakers, and the children caught the fever and could hardly be kept in school.

"The next thing we knew, President Lincoln had issued an appeal for seventy-fi\^e thousand men, and then the real seriousness of the crisis came rolling in witli a rush to e\-ery home."

Market Ouot.Ations

The question of high and low tariff has always been one of interest to the political parties of this country, and in 1910 the arguments put forth in favor of the higher tariff, and the denial that the tariff made higher cost of living, vi'as put forth in the Hoosicr State, published at Newport, this county, in the following list of articles, based on what ten bushels of wheat would have purchased in 1896, under low rates of tariff ("tariff for revenue onlv") and under the Republican rule and higher tariff of the administration of the la.st named political party. The list is as follows:

In 1896 ten bushels of wheat bought one hundred and thirt^--t\vo pounds of granulated sugar; in 1910 it bought two hundred and forty-nine pounds.

In 1896 the government was operating under the 1o\a- tariff legislation of President Cleveland's administration; in 1910 the government was administered under the Payne-Aldrich tariff list of the Republican party administration, as established by the McKinley bill, and upon which issue President McKinley had been elected to office.

In the month of December, 1912, the following were the general prices at retail for the commodities named : Flour. $3.00 per hundred ; corn, per bushel, 55 cents; wheat, 97 cents; potatoes, y$ cents; coal, per ton, $2.50; granulated sugar, per pound, 8 cents; coffee, from 2^ to 30 cents; butter, 35 cents; eggs, per dozen, 35 cents; milk, 7 cents per quart; beans, $3.75 per bushel ; apples, $2.90 per barrel ; prints, per yard, 5 to 8 cents ; sheeting, 8 to 12 cents per yard ; wool, per pound, 12 cents ; common nails, 2 1-2 cents by the keg; coal oil, 15 cents; gasoline, 20 cents; hogs were worth S7.50 and western cattle, $6.50 per hundred, live weight.

Original Village Plats

Dana, in section 26, township 16, range 10 west, by Samuel and ]. B. Aikman, Samuel B. Kaufman, and 11. B. Hammond, the date being August 18, 1874.

PerrysN'ille was platted in section 34, township 19, range 9, and in section ^ii^,, of same township and range, May 25, 1832, by James Blair.

Rileysburg was platted in the southwest quarter of section 17, township 19, range 10 west, June 4, 1904, by Sarah E. Peterson and Richard C. Peterson.

Newport was platted, or rather recorded as a \-illage, July 28. 1S28, and re-platted and corrected up for record, March 8, 1837, by S. S. Collett; located in section 26, township 17, range 9 west.

St. Bernice, platted in the northeast quarter of the southeast quarter of section 2S. township 15, range 10 west, -\ugust 18. 1905, Iw- .Vlfred \I. and Elizabeth J. Reed.

Highland was platted in section 2'/, township 16, range 9 west, and the northeast quarter of the northwest quarter of section 34, same township and range, September 20, 1835, by Michael Gohmly.

Sheperdstown, platted b}' John Villarson, in the northeast quarter of section ;, township 19. range 10 west, and in section 6, same town and range, August 10, 1836.

Toronto cemetery, bv five trustees, F. A'. Austin, \\'. F. Kerns, M. Pufifer, S. Jenks and Samuel Malone, November 26, 1893: location, section II, town.ship 15, range 10 west.

Clinton township and towns. 3,000; Helt township and towns, 3,027; Vermillion township and towns, 2,213: Eugene township and towns, 1.340; Highland township and towns, 2,433; total in county, 12.015.

Present Population

The last federal census gives \'ermiIliou county a population of 18,865. di\i<lcd among the townshii)s and towns and cities as follows, that of 1900 being also noted :

The white population was 18,740 and the negro population 121. Native white ixjpulation. 14.466; foreign-born white population included these: From Austria, 342; Germany, 178; Hungary, 230; Italy, 811: Russia, 210; Scotland, 179; Ireland, 22.

County Societies

Besides the Cuunt)- Medical Societ}- mentioned elsewhere, this county had other imiiortant societies which, witli the death and removal of their founilers. went down. These included the Western Indiana Scientific .Association, founded by the spirit and activity of that well-known man of Newl)ort, William Gibson, and later of Perrys\-ille, who, in the summer of 1875, issued a call to his friends in science with a \-iew of organizing a society. The first meeting met in August that year and such men attended and took part as Prof. B. Rhoades, William Gibson, M. L. Hall. William L. Little. Jesse Houchiu. P. Z. .\nderson and Samuel Groenendxke. At their next meeting they organized what they were pleased to style "The Western Indiana Historical and Scientific Association." They adopted a constitution and bylaws for the purpose of "promoting discovery in geology, archaeology and other kindred sciences; for our mutual improvement therein, and for the securing of a cabinet of natural history and a collection of minerals and fossils as will illustrate the resources and wealth of Vermilion county." The constitution was signed by John Collett, William L. Little, William Gibson, H. H. Conley, M. L. Hall, S. B. Davis,' ^I. G. Rhoades, Jesse Houchin, W. C. Eichelberger. Samuel Groenendyke. B. E. Rhoades and P. Z. Anderson. Mr. Collett was e'ected president; M. G. Rhoades, vice-president; William L. Little, treasurer: H. H. Conley. corresponding secretary; M. L. Hall, recording secretarv. and William Gibson, librarian and curator.

With the removal of j\Tr. Gibson the moving, active s]iirit, after he bad succeeded in seciu-ing manv items for the collection and had them carefully stored awav in a neat, small building, the association ceased to exist, as is to be regretted bv all thinking people of the county.

Countv Temperance Organization

A county temperance organization was formed as a result of the "blueribbiin" movement, Fe1>ruary 16. i8(S2, at Newport. The meeting was called to order by Capt. R. B. Sears, of Newport, a member of the state organization. Dr. E. T. Spotswood, of Perrysville, was temporary chairman, and E. H. Hayes, of Clinton, secretary. Vice-presidents Avere chosen from each of the five townships in Vermillion county. Mrs. Emma Mollov. a noted temperance lecturer, was invited to make a canvass of the countv. The constitution of the Grand Council was adopted. Resolutions called for none but out-and-out temperance men for the officers of the societv. Tbev must a'so favor adopting resolutions to ^-ote for a prohibitory liquor law in Indiana. It is tboueht. bv some, that owins: to its not being a religious or secret order, that it went down before much good was accomplished.

The facilities for receiving and sending mail matter in this countv have greatly changed for the better with the passing of the decades since one man's hat was the postofifice and mail was received "when convenient"' from Danville and Terre Haute, at two or three places within the county. The establishment of the free rural delivery of mails in the late eighties and nineties brought many changes in the location of postoffices throughout the entire country, including this county. In 1888 the offices in \'ermillion county were listed as follows:

Clinton ; St. Bernice, at Jonestown, in the northwestern portion of Clinton township; Summit Grove, on the Chicago & Eastern Illinois railroad, in Helt township; Toronto, at or near Bono, Helt township, at the crossing of the two railroads of the county; Dana, in the northwestern part of Helt township, on the railroad running east and west through the county ; Newport, the county seat; Quaker Hill, sometimes called "Quaker Point," eight miles west of Newport and in Vermillion township; Cayuga, in Eugene township, at the railroad crossings; Eugene: Perrysville; Gessie, on the railroad in the western portion of Highland township; Rileysburg. on the same road two miles to the northwest of Clessie : \\'alnut Grove, Bruwnton, Highland, Alta, Ojjeedee were all hamlets and cross-roads, but had no postoffices.

The following is a true list of tlie postoffices in the county in 1912: Cayuga, Charles Hosford, postmaster': Clinton, J. O. Stark, postmaster; Dana, Roy Turner, postmaster: Eugene: Gessie; Hillsdale, Margaret Mc- Carty, postmistress; Newport, M. B. Carter, postmaster: Perrys\il]e, Inskie : Rileysburg; St. Bernice, Ed. McCann, postmaster: New St. Bernice (a rural station) ; Universal, John Marietta, postmaster.

The postal savings department was introduced in Vermillion count\' in 1911, and in January, 1913, the parcel post system was installed in the county. All of these facilities give the persons residing distant from the towns and villages almost an equal advantage enjoyed by the town dwellers of years ago. The farmer has his daily newspaper, with latest market reports and the important news of the entire world, brought to his door each forenoon. And if in need of some small article of merchandise, instead of going to town he can simply phone to his dealer and the mail carrier brings the article on his first trip out, the charges being merely nominal. Verily, the farmer is becoming more independent each year, and has of late just awakened to the fact that he is a potent political factor that must be reckoned with.

Powder Mill Explosion

May 4, 1904, at noon, the powder mill at Dorner, two miles 'southeast of Newport, was blown up, four men being killed and man}- more injured. The scene of the disaster was in a little hollow leading off from the main hollow which runs east and west. There were at tlie time four hundred kegs of powder, of t\veiity-ti\e pounds weight eacli, amounting to ten thousand pounds of damp blasting powder. Henry Grilifin and DeSoto Biggs, two of the unlucky workmen, were blown literally to atoms. The combined weight of the two men was about three hundred pounds and only sixty pounds of scattered fragments of human remains could ever be gathered together. The other two killed were George and Berkley Mayhew, brothers. The woods caught fire from the terrible explosion and it took much hard fighting upon the part of the men present to extinguish the flames before they reached the other side of the hill, where there was stored two hundred and fifty thousand pounds of powder in the magazines of the Dupont powder works. Only two of the fourteen buildings were destroyed. They were never rebuilt. An almost endless litigation ensued for damages ujwn the part of the deceased men's friends, some of whom compromised and received small amounts from the company. The explosion was heard at Terre Haute and Clinton. John Potts, who was on his fatlier's farm a mile distant, was knocked down by the explosion. Twenty window lights were broken from the county poor asykim ; pieces of shafting of six hundred pounds weight were hurled a half mile distant and ])lanted in the earth. A spring never before observed by man was started from out the hill at the glaze ; twenty-five copperhead snakes that had not yet come forth from their winter quarters were stunned and afterward killed by the men w]in were searcliing for the liodies of the unfortunate workmen.

Destruction Bv Dynamiters

Clintun and \icinity has been the scene of terrible dynamiter's work, including the blowing up of the Catholic church and, a few months later, the partial destruction of the piers of the Chicago & Eastern Illinois railroad bridge, at Clinton. The latter explosion was on April 19, 1910, when two explosions occurred. The shock was felt at Dana, Hillsdale and Terre Haute. The guilty ones were never captured, although there were large rewards ofifered and expert detectives put into the case. The city offered one thousand dollars and the railroad company three thousand dollars. Bloodhounds were put into service, but all to no purpose.

The partial destruction of the beautiful and massive Roman Catholic church at Clinton, supposed to ha^e been the work of someone not satisfied with the rec|uirements and exactments upon the part of the priest in charge of the Clinton pari.sh at the time, occurred in November, iqog. of which the Clinton Saturday Argus had thi.'? to say. editoriallv :

"Tlie new Sacred Heart Runian Catholic church was partially wrecked at 1 1 :45 Tuesda}- night Ijy the explosion of three sticks of dynamite. The explosions were so terrific that almost the entire windows were blown out of many of the houses in that part of the city. A police force was at once sent for by 'calls' and the night officers responded, but no trace could be found that afforded any clue to the deed.

"The damage done w ill amount to over one thousand dollars, on which there is no insurance. Wednesday the city council met and voted to offer a thousand dollars reward for the arrest and conviction of the miscreants. Seventy-nine sticks of d)namile were found at the church on Wednesday morning, which had they gone off would have destro)'ed at least the southern half of the city. A call has been made for a Pinkerton detecti\-e and no pains or expense will be spared to bring the guilty parties to justice."

"The deadly effects of the recent attempt to blow up the Catholic church in this city are far more wide-reaching than the mere damage to the building, serious as it was. Owners of property in that vicinity now live in constant dread and apprehension of still further disaster. Some families have rented rooms down town where they can have the benefit of police protection, day and night : others refuse to slee]) at home at night time. Others are oft'eringtheir property for sale. The Catholic authorities have employed guards for constant night protection. Father Maher has, it is reported, from the citv and his former duties have been taken by another priest."

A Brut.Kl Outrage

During the latter part of the night of October 12, 1883, says the Hoosicr State, published at Newport, a most brutal outrage was committed by a band of robbers upon I^lias Lamb and their family at their residence, near Newport. In the house were Mr. Lamb and wife and a married daughter, from W'ayne count}-, \isiting them. Between three and four o'clock the dug made considerable noise. ^Irs. Lamb went to the window to see what was the matter and hissed the dog, wdiich would only plunge out into the darkness and then retreat. Not discovering anything, she returned to lied, Init the dog l<e]it up a howling and acted as if someone was encroaching on the premises. In a few minutes Mr. T-am1i went out to see if he could discover anvthing- ^24) wrong. Retuinmg to his room, he had scarcely lain down when the door to an adjoining room against which stood a large bureau was burst open and the bureau fell to the Hoor, with a terrible crash, breaking everything that was upon.it. Before the two could get out of bed they were seized by two burglars and a demand made for their monej-. Mr. Lamb gave them all he had. The demand being repeated to his wife, she said she had a dollar and seventyfive cents upstairs. The villians made her get it without a light, at the risk of her life. They then declared that there was more money in the house and that they would kill them if they did not give it up. Mr. Lamb answered that they might kill them, "but that they could not get any more money, for there was no more in the house. Then they assaulted him and threatened to kill them both if the\- did not pay o\-er more money. They first pummeled him awhile and then fired two shots, one of tliem grazing ^Irs. Lamia's head, splitting open her ear. Mr. Lamb, although badly bruised and one eye closed, managed to get out of doors, where lie pulled the bell rnpc, which frightened the burglars away.

The daughter referred to, \\ho was sleeping in anotlier room, crawled under the feather bed and thus escaped discovery. Their son John, who was sleeping in a house some hundred yards distant, upon hearing the bell ran over to his parents' house and, finding they were sufifering for medical treatment, jiroposed to go immediately for a physician, but thev, fearing the rascals might return and do further mischief, begged him to remain with them till daylight.

Durin."- the morni'i<r the tracks of the robbers were traced both wavs. between their house .ind to\\n. but no further clue was ever obtained.

The following will serve the pur])ose of showing how the deaths of Lincoln, Carfield and McKinley were taken by the citizens of tliis countv :

In comuKMi willi the entire nation, the news of the death at the hand of an assassin (if rrcsidcnt .\l)raham Lincoln, just at the close of the civil conflict in which he was the true i)atriot and hero, was received witli profoimd grief and sorrow by tin's people, who had faitlifully supported the great man in liis c\iM-y cffnrt in sa\c the l"ninn. The pul)lic meetings were sad ones tlu-ciiigh(inl the cmmty. Men niel on the streets, in the shops, on the farms and at cross-road postoffices, only to see depicted in one another's faces the sorrow hidden within their hearts. Stunned and silent at first, they soon gave utterance to the bitterness of their souls. A saved Union, but a lamented and assassinated President. Flags were at half-mast; emblems of mourningwere seen on every hand, and many a prayer went up to the Ruler of Nations that peace might come out of the confusion that existed on every hand. It was the first great natinnal sorrow this people had experienced. They had freely given up their brave sons, on manv a well fought field of liattle, in defense of the flag, liut ne\er liad they mourned a President in such critical davs as those of Ajiril, 1865.

Death Of President Gareield

Again, sixteen years later, in July, iS8i, the cowardly hand of an "unbalanced man," with political hatred in his heart, shot down President James Abram Garfield, at the Potomac depot in Washington, D. C, He suffered on, and was the object of a nation's sincere prayers, until death claimed him, September 20th, that year.

The Housicr Siatc. published then, as now, at Newport, \'ermillion county, had the following editorial on the death of Garfield: "Today the whole nation mourns o\'er the death of our President, which occurred at ten thirt}-fi\-e last JMonday night. Eleven weeks ago Guiteau shot him down at the Potomac depot in Washington, wliile on his way to visit his wife who was ill in an Eastern city. .Mthnugh a stout, hearty man. usuaKv weighing two hundred ])0unds, he had dwindled down to less than due hiuidred and fifteen pounds. The ]:>rayers of the whole nation went up for In'ni. l)ut a\-ailed nothing. Death was sealed upon his manly brow when he was first shot, and no mortal could stay its onward march. The iieo^jle feel sad and full\- ajipreciate the fearful calamit}' which has befallen om- country.

"Yesterday a large number of business bouses and residences were hea\-- ib- draped in mourning. Tt seemed like a pall of despair had spread over our quiet little village and the deep gloom of sadness could be plainly depicted on the countenances of everyone. He is gone. Let the old warrior rest ! Let our peo])le hope for the best.

"Memorinl Exercises - Tu JTonor of the dead President, a public meeting was called ;it the court house in Newport by Marshal E. ^\. P.ishop, on Sunda\' cxening, to |>lan for a memorial meeting there nn Monda\-. At two p. m. Monda\- tlic court house w as fub ; lousiness men all closed their jilaces up and t'ui' the tiiird time the citizens of \ erniiUion county were called upon to mourn the death uf an assassinated Tresident. Perhaps no better index to the sentiment concerning this dastardly assassination can be had than to reprint a portion of an editorial that appeared in the Democratic organ at Clinton, the Saturday Argus, published by L. O. Bishop, which reads as follows :

"This morning (September 20, 1901,) the people of this nation awoke to a great sorro\V and shame. Sorrow over the death of William jNlcKinley, who had been twice elected to occupy the chair of the highest office in the land, a kind, sincere and true gentleman and a high public official. Shame at the consciousness that, in spite of all boasted libert}- and justice and prosperit\- that were said to abound, out of all should come one whose life had been so embittered at the wrongs he saw that he dared to lift his hand against the head of the republic.

"In this hour of national ainiction. when the future rises full of potent hopes, and the hearts of all tme Americans are hea\'y with snrro\v and a])prehension, there should be no iiartisanship, no strife, nothing- but the truest comradeship, for the blow that has fallen from tlie hand n\' the barbarian and as.sassin is a blow, not at William McKinley the man. but a blow by savagery at citizenship; by chaos, at law and order. At this moment, when the destinies of the nation may be changing, there can be but one sentiment in all our hearts - profound sympathy for the one weak woman on whose frail shoulders has fallen this cnishiii"" blow."

In Clinton, memorial ser\ ices were held at the Methodist Episcopal church, at which numerous ])romiucnt citizens addressed a large audience, upon w hose e\'ery face were deiiicted the lines of grief and true sorrow, regardless of ]iart\- lines. All were AfcKinley"s friends, in a true personal sen.se, for he was of lli;U lv|ie of manhood ihat ever lias the oood will of the rommnn jicoplc. in whose interests he alwavs belie\cd he \-as \\(irkin'>- while he held jniblic office, either stale or national. The occasion of this memorial service will never be forgotten by those present, among wh-im were those who had been called upon to mourn the death of two Presidents assassinated before, Lincoln and Garfield, but to some this seemed the saddest of all, for it was in a time of supreme peace and prosperity in the countr}-.

Poverty And Happiness

in a series of interesting articles from the pen of Editor L. O. Bishojj, in the Saturday Aryiis. of Clinton, in lyii, the following should be preser\ed as a part of the history of X'ermillion county, showing as it does much of interest concerning the days back a half centur)- ago. While man}- of our readers will not cpiite agree with the political philosophy of the writer, all will be ])lease(l at the facts herein narrated:

"In one of James Whitcomb Riley"s poems, Indiana's gifted poet reflects more than superficial sentiment when he exclaims : 'Take me tack to Griggsby Station, where we used to be so happy and so poor.' That was the condition of things that prevailed in Clinton half a century ago.

"The Ci\'il war contributed to this po\'erty in that it drew out of the country for destruction not only vast supplies in way of foodstufifs, wool for clothing, live stock, horses and mules, but it also drew into this fierce maelstrcjm of destruction all the al)le-l)odied producers of wealth from town and cnuntr\-. It put a sto]) to all exchange, liecause prices of exerything went skyward and wages were reduced to a minimum, because no plans were formulated for any pubhc or private improvement, that would circulate money or employ labor.

".So we w'cre all i)Oor in Clinton in i8f 11-^13. \\'e were ])i)or in material things because there are things toda}' in common use that bad not been indented. For instance, there was the item of artificial light. No longer than fifty years back we had not e\'en coal oil lamps. Artificial lights for stores, clnnxhes and homes were made in two w ays. Candles were used in chandeliers and candlesticks. .A.nd considerable artistic taste was displayed in making the chandeliers and candlesticks. And then our mothers took great i)ride in seeing how smooth a crmdle the\- could make b\- pouring nielted talloAv down the mold frame through which the wick had been strung. Others used an open lamp, filled with .oil of any inflammable kind and the wick hung over the edge of the lamp, or it might run up a spout and he lighted. James Payne informs me that coal oil did not come into use here until about 1864. when 'Esquire Harrison invested in a coal oil lamp and took it to his country home, a few miles west of the citv. Tt was a venomous looking creature.

With no chiiiuiey, ayd double-barreled at that! it created more curiosity among the iieignDors tlian a tlynig machine does toda). People would drive miles and miles and make it a point to have business at the Squires to see that 'new fangied contraption' with which the family was going to cut some spiurge at night. But there was not one in the house who would go up close to the lamp to light it. And it w as used as an ornament until tinally someone did screw up courage to hre the tip ends of the two little wicks that seemed to run like a fuse to a mine below.

"The experiiiieilt worked ail right. At least it did nut blow up and that oil lamp soon de\eloped into a better affair and candles and grease lights, with their snuffers, smoke, grime and dirt, were soon relegated to oblivion. In the matter of producing a perfect artificial light the whole world hung on for centuries to the crudest of affairs and seemed never to think it possible to invent anything better. As a matter of fact, the world has made more progress in way of comfort, convenience and cleanliness and in labor-saving devices in the past fifty years than it did in all the centuries that had gone before.

"Even as late as 1868 the wheat crop was cut by hand. And not until the White Brothers. Orville, Ren, Florence and James, always progressive farmers, \-enture(l to invest in a \Valter A. Wood binder, and the Knowles Brothers, Charles B. and James E., tried the McCormick, that the farmers could lie induced to get away. from the back-breaking, sla\ish task of harvesting by hand. These machines were crude. hea\-y aft'airs, costing from three luindreil and thirly-fi\'e doHars to lliree hundred and seA-enty-fi\'e dollars, respectively, and reiiuired from three to four horses to draw them when in the; field, and were easily disarrange<l. Then Scott Haginbaugh, an agricultural implement dealer, took the agency and began to exploit their manv virtues. The machine used was to bind the \\heat by means of wire liands, which were cut b\- a hatchet in threshing. One day a farmer asked Scott what became of this wire. Scott, being equal to all emergencies, verv coolly andl promptly replied that Tt evaporated.' The explanation seemed to be satisfactory, as a number of machines were sold. But the la\v of evolution was * constantly at work, eliminating the old and useless and substituting the new and better ways of doing things.

"Tlie richest man in Clinton at the beginning of the Civil war was probably worth ten thousand dollars, niostlv in merchandise, a residence nnd '=omc farm land. One f.-niii'v. that of Ceor;>c :\rcCnllou<Tli. had a piano -nd^

"John Jr'ayton was a successful merchant and later on furnished his family with a piano; John \\ hitcomb, another merchant, purchased a piano. But outside of these three families, the evidences of wealth and luxury in Clinton were far between.

were all poor m Clinton in the early sixties, and that poverty was no more like the poverty that infests our cities today than German silver is like the genuine article. The poverty of 1864 was not poverty that came to men by reason of unjust laws or of vicious systems, it was the po\ert}- of a natural condition of things ; wealth was not. It was a poverty that made all men feel socially equal, and they were on good terms with each other. There was no embarrassment on the part of either if a poor washwoman went to divine ser\ice attired in calico and sat down beside a woman in all wool or silk ; all was well. I have seen the mechanic sit in his shirt sleeves by the side of the merchant in alpaca coat, and both sing the same hymns of praise and gratitude from the same book, and both kneel in the same pew and pray to the same Hea\enly Father for his guidance and mercy, and all classes would join in fraternal spirit at the same hospitable table. The poverty of 1861-65 did not inibrute men by closing against them and their children all the natural opportunities for advancement. It did not divide society into two great hostile camps that we see about us today, the fortunate on one side and the outcast on the other. The poor man was not shox'ed off the earth 1d\- simie cokl. unfeeling corporation, aided b\' political prostitutes and professional parasites. The one great universal, underlying cause of the happiness that prevailed in 1861 was the fact that every man was practically free to use the land aufl renp all proceeds of his labor. It was this that gave strength to the Xortli. It was the denial of this principle that made the South weak, and which finally led to its defeat and wiping out of its long cherished svsteni. sla\-erv."