Pine Township (part 3 of 5)

"Large herds (report of 1881) of cattle are less frequently met than in earlier days. I do not mean that fewer cattle are bred and fed here, but they are scattered around more generally, not kept together in large bunches, as in the days before the county was so thickly inhabited, and before so much of the land was inclosed by fences. The breed has been greatly improved by separation, better care, better feed, and the introduction of improved blood. The improvement has, however, been altogether in the direction of beef-making. There are few, if any, good milkers or butter producers to be found in our pastures.

''In no former year was there so much good hay, both cultivated and wild, put into stock. Tons by the thousand were not even moistened by dew. It has commanded satisfactory prices. Next to corn and not much behind, either, is the hay in importance with us. Much of it is fed on the ground, but there is also an important industry in baling and shipping it, which has sprung up within a few years.

" After cattle, hay and corn, come hogs in point of importance. Our breeds are Berkshire, Poland-China and Jersey Red, with a decided preference for the first named, either pure breed, crossed or common grade.

"Sheep hold a modest position. No large flocks are kept, but many farmers own from a dozen to thirty or fifty. The long-wool breeds and their crosses with the natives are the favorites. There are occasional thoroughbred animals, but the object seems to be to grow mutton rather than wool.

" Our horses are ehietly what may be called general-purpose animals. The introduction of the Norman and the Clydesdale breeds has m;ide the stock on many farms much more serviceable and marketable than previous to their advent. The quarter crosses of tliese large breeds upon scrubs are excellent horses for general purposes. There are, however, a few flyers owned in the county, some of which are known to the race courses of three or four States, and boast genealogies recorded in the stud book, but no breeding is done for the special object of speed.

" A decided change for the better is perceivable eacli succeedini; voar in the method which farmers employ for the tilling of the soil and the cultivation of crops. The land is better and more svstematically worked than formerly. There is a manifest desire to learn and adopt improvements. There is a growing taste for literature treating upon farm topics. In brief, there seems to be more mind-work combined with hand-work. Several tile factories are finding employment in the solution of the problem of systematic draining. A butter factory or creamery of the capacity of 1,000 pounds of butter daily has lately been built at the county seat, which is doing a good paying business, while opening up a new field to the vision of stock breeders. Orchards and vineyards are being planted, and what is more to the purpose, are being cared for with a thought to their ultimate value as a source of revenue."

Agricultural Societies

The history of the Central Agricultural Society of this county has been a checkered one, and owes so much of success as it has had to the persevering energy of a few devoted friends of the cause. The enterprise has labored under various hindering influences, some of which are still operative. At first, the county was largely engaged in stock grazing for market purposes, a pursuit which did not furnish material out of which to build a fair, but since the growth of population and change of circumstances have largely removed this obstacle, two district fairs, the one infringing upon the eastern border and the other on the southern border, so divide and distract the agricultural interests of the county that the oldest and central society finds its efforts to maintain an annual agricultural display greatly hampered.

Jasper County Agricultural Society. - The first attempt at an agricultural show was made in 1854, but under what auspices it is difficult to determine. There was no regular organization, and exhibitions were held upon a plat of two and a half acres, which is now the site of Mr. Kannal's I'esidence. Under this arrangement, four annual fairs were held. An ordinary fence inclosed the grounds, and a premium fund was made up by subscription, which was distributed in premiums of from 50 cents to $5, the latter being offered for the best farm, and the latter for sundry articles of home manufacture, including "the best made vest," pants, dress, etc., making a total of some $50 or $75. In December, 1858, a joint-stock company was formed with a capital of $500, under the style and name of " Jasper County Agricultural and Mechanical Association." At a subsequent meeting, the following officers were elected : Robert Parker, President ; J. C. Post, Vice President ; Alfred McCoy, Treasurer ; S. Donaldson, Secretary. The first fair was held by this society on the 27th, 28th and 29th days of September, 1859. The occasion was somewhat marred by the wet weather, but the exhibition was generally voted a success. "Floral Hall" was well-filled, and the ladies' department was well-represented. The show of agricultural products was good, but the show of stock was not so good. There were some fine blooded animals, however, shown in the ring, cattle, and horses and hogs were represented, and for the first exhibition the display was encouraging. The society had purchased ground and fenced it, and considerable revenue was derived from the admissions. These grounds consisted of seven acres about a mile down the river from the county seat and on the north side. The ultimate fate of this society is told in the Secretary's report for 1879 :

-' The Jasper County Agricultural Society was organized July 18, 1879, to supersede the County Agricultural and Mechanical Association, which had become hopelessly entangled in debt. On the 18th day of August, it was determined to hold the first fair of the society on the 7th to the 10th days of October inclusive. Although late in the year, the display of articles in some departments was large and good, and the attendance was highly gratifying to those who were interested in the welfare of the society. The show of horses, cattle and hogs was excellent ; that of sheep and poultry, passable ; of apples, remarkably fine ; of corn and other cereals, Irish potatoes and produce of the garden was probably never surpassed for excellence in the county. Except harness, the exhibition of manufactured articles was nothing to be proud of; still many useful things were exhibited, in needle-work especially, that gave evidence of taste and skill. A high degree of excellence was attained in the butter, cheese, fruit preparations, pickles, bread, cakes, and kindred articles shown. It was too late in the season for an attractive showing of flowers, and people are loath to expose house-plants to the vicissitudes of fill weather and rural fairs. However, taken all in all, the fair was a good and successful one. The public was satisfied with what was to be seen : exhibitors received in cash the full amount of the premiums, and the society realized enough to pay its expenses, and leave a small surplus in the treasury. It is proper to say that in a large degree the successful issue of this hastily arranged exposition is to be credited to the excellent management of Hon. William K. Parkinson, President; to the ener^jv of Marion L. Spitler, Vice President; David H. Yeomans, Superintendent; and the excellent board of directors, together with the zeal of Messrs. H. A. Barkley and James Welsh, of the Committee on AdvertisiniT. All were industriims to perform the duty assigned to them.

The Jasper County Agricultural Society owns twentv acres of ground within the incorporated limits of Rensselaer, modestly improved, worth probably $3,000, and is entirely out of debt."

Swamp Lands

A very important feature in any agricultural survey of Jasper County is the vast body of swamp lands found here. In the early history of the county, the river margins were impassable marshes, save at one or two points where a limited passage could be found. Cultivation and such improvements as enterprising settlements bring about have changed the natural features of the county in this respect, and Congress made a liberal provision by which these lands might have been largely converted into fine, arable soil, had not these provisions been converted into plunder for the enriching of a comparatively few unscrupulous men. The Legislature of the State took cognizance of these misdemeanors at last, and appointed a committee to investigate the frauds which had been perpetrated, but unfortunately not until they were substantially beyond remedy. Jasper County suffered in this respect severely. Two or three fairly effective ditches were dug in Kankakee and Wheatfield Townships, but these are but a moiety of the work that should have been done for the expenditure of land which was made. The report of the Legislative Committee of Investigation, in 1859, gives asummary of the whole question, as follows :

Bv the act of Congress of September 20, 1850, the swamp or overflowed lands in the State, belonging to the United States, were granted to the State of Indiana, upon condition that the same should be drained and reclaimed, and rendered fit for agricultural purposes. By the provisions of the second section of that act, it was made the dut}' of the Secretary of the Interior to transmit to the Governor of the State, upon his request, a list and plats of the swamp lands previously ascertained, together with patents therefor, vesting the title in the State, subject to the disposal" of the Legislature, with the express ^jroi-iso that the proceeds of said lands, whether from sale or direct appropriation in kind, shall be applied exclusively, as necessary, to the reclaiming of said lands.

As near as can be ascertained bj' your committee, the amount of lands patented bj' the General Government to the State, under the act aforesaid, and under the act of Congress of jNIarch 3, 185o, granting lands to the State for swamp lands, which had been located upon by militar}' land warrants, amount to 1.302, 638. 65 acres. It has been decided by the Commissioner of the General Land Office that the title to all unsold lands in the State, that belonged to the United States on the 28th of September, 18.50, were swamp lands vested in the State bj' the passage of said act.

The law of 1853 provided for the sale of swamp lauds in the several counties by the county officers. Under this act, all of these lands, in some of the counties, were disposed of, whilst in others large bodies remained unsold at the passage of the act of 1857, which act made " direct appropriation in kind " for the purpose of reclaiming for agricultural purposes such lands.

By the law of 1853, it was made tlie dutj- of the Governor to appoint Swamp Land Commissioners in every county owning swamp lands. In many instances, these appointments were singularly unfortunate, possessing neither qualifications nor honesty of such a character as to fit them for their responsibilities.

AVe have had our attention called to the official misconduct of these officers in several counties, but have found it utterly impossible to give the subject that investigation which the interests of the State and justice demand. In the county of Ja.sper, our investigations have satisfied us that the officers of that county have not only aided others in the commission of great frauds upon the Swamp Land Funds, but have also been participants in the profits arising therefrom. In this charge we make no reference to the present Treasurer and Auditor of this count}'.

The Commissioner, at a letting of a large amount of ditching under a law of 1852, let almost the entire work to one man, for the sum of 20 cents the cubic yard, although at this letting there were other good and responsible bids for the same work at 14 cents the cubic yard, and one as low as 10 cents. The ditching contracted for at this letting has never been finished according to the plans and specifications, and some of the ditches are worthless. The entire estimate of this work, amounting to $39,451.59, has been paid to the contractor. According to the testimony before us, this one transaction has resulted in great loss to the Swamp Land Fund, and loss to the value of real estate in the vicinity of the work.

In the year 1856, without the color of law, and in violation of all right, the then Auditor of State, Hiram E. Talbot, directed tlie Auditor of .Jasper County to withhold from sale a large amount of swamp lands designated by him. The committee are compelled to conclude that this order was prompted with a view to personal and private .speculation. This, no doubt, was the commencement of a system of frauds unheard of before. A spirit of speculating in these lauds was engendered, and in a short time there were formed four separate companies, who selected as they termed it, and actually obtained, by the complicity of Swamp Land Commissioners, deeds for about one hundred and twenty-four thousand acres of the best of the lands vacant in the county. (For the names of the parties in this scheme we refer you to the evidence herewith filed. ) The deeds to these lands were procured without the shadow of law from the officers of State.

The Swamp Land Act, approved March 5, 1857, required that these fraudulent conveyances should lie returned and canceled when the work was not completed, but provided that the loose contracts upon which they had been obtained, might be ratified and confirnu'd by the Swamp Land Commissioner, and provided that the contractors niiglit file with the County Auditor lists of the lands selected by them to l)e taken in payment tor ditching, and the sale of these selected lands was then prohibited by the county officers till the completion or perfcctini: of the contract for the paynienl of which they were filed, and that 75 per cent upon the estimates of the work done should be issued lo tlic contractor until all was done, when certificates for the whole should hr isMied; and provided further that the contractor might at any time, bv depositing !?1.25 per acre with the County Treasurer, for the whole or any part of the lands in his list, take out certificates "and procure patents for the same, and that tlie money so paid into the county lrcas\u-y should be then retained, to be rei>aid lo the contractor at the rate of 75 per cent upon estimates of work done, until the contract was completed, when all should lie repaid. Under this law. the Swamp Land Conuuissioner of Jasper County confirmed all tlie old contracts at 2(1 cents jier (aibie yard, which had been originally let at from 12 to l,S eeiits jier cubic yard, and (lie contractors were permitted to file lists o( hands to any amount tliey desired, and the amounts of their respective con' tracts were swelled u)i to cover the amount filed for, and in a short time after the taking elleel of this law. all the unsold swamplands in Jasper Countv, amouulin.'- lo about 175.0(10 acres, were then absorbed, and nearly all the contrai'tors without the then Treasurer of Jasper County, obtained from him certificates of purchase, and upon these obtained the greater part of their patents for these hinds. In a few instances, the contracts have been, in whole or in part, completed, but probably not one-half the ditching is yet completed. From estimates of the whole amount of these contracts, and of the amount of work done upon the same at the expiration of office at least $100,000 of money deposited with him by contractors for lands obtained by them, but not one cent was so paid over by him. The lands being gone and there being no money for the same on deposit in the county treasury, and consequently no incentive to the completion of the contracts, and tliere being no law to enforce their completion, your committee vs'ould recommend that some law be passed to remedy this defect.

of authoritjr or law, issued to , in the name of his brother and others, certificates of purchase for a large amount of these lands, previously filed for by that the contractor, whose lands he had thus stolen, in order to avoid troublesome and expensive litigation, compromised with him, permitting him to retain 3, .500 acres of these lands thus obtained, of which M got a portion.

of Swamp Land Commissioner of .Jasper County, soon after the expiration of his term of office as Treasurer of said county, notwithstanding it was known to His the Swamp Land Fund, in 18.j5, which suit he had compromised by giving his notes with surety for the sum of $33,460.30, thus acknowledging liis defalcation, and that the greater part of those notes, though due, were still outstanding and unpaid; and sued in 1856, upon his official bond as Swamp Land Treasurer, for the further defalcation of $14,000 to the Swamp Land Fund, as certified by the Auditor of State; and that in his official bond as County Treasurer to the amount of $1,000 for State revenue, and that was then and still is pending against him upon his official bond for defalcation of county revenue, and had not at the date of his appointment as said Commissioner, and still has not, settled with the Auditor and Treasurer of State, or County Commissioners, for either State, swamp land or county revenues; and notwithstanding it was known to His Excellency that bj^ Section 10, Article II, of the profit," and that by an act of the Legislature, approved March 1, 1855, he was guilty of felonjf - still, with a full view of all these disqualifications and disabilities, he, M , was appointed and invested by His Excellency with the duties of this important and responsible otfice, for the performance of which he is not recjuired to give any bond. In view of all these facts, your committee would recommend that His Excellency be respectfully requested to remove Mr. M from said office.

Traces of the former inhabitants of this county are found, but not in great abundance. A mound on the east side of the Iroquois River, about four miles northeast of the county seat, is the only relic of the Mound- Builders to be found here. It is nearly ten feet high, about forty feet in diameter, and contained ashes, bones and shells. Spear and arrow heads of an unusual form, and of a gloss chert, seen naturally only in Tennes- see, are discovered here. A number of highly polished stone axes and scrapers have also been found. Besides these more enduring relics of the Builders, there are found in Jasper County the more curious but less substantial evidences of their domination, in vestiges of corn-fields and trails left here and there untouched, bearing the evident marks of their presence here.

The first discoverers of the territory covered by the present State of Indiana found it in possession of the Delaware, Miami and Pottawatomie nations. The great family to which these tribes were allied by language, physical and mental peculiarities, was the Algonquin. Before the encroachment of the whites, the numerous tribes of this family occupied most of the territory now embraced in the United States, between the 35th and 60th parallels of latitude, and the 60th and 105th meridians of longitude. The starting point in the wanderings of the Algonquin tribes on the continent as determined by tradition and the cultivation of maize, their fiivorite cereal, was in the Southwest. Passing up the western sideof the Mississippi Valley, they turned eastward across that river, the southern maxgin of their broad tract reaching about to the 35th parallel, while the center probably covered the present territory of Illinois. On reaching the Atlantic coast, they seem to have moved northeasterly along the sea-board to the mouth of the St. Lawrence : thence, ascending this river and the shores of the great lakes, they spread northward and westward to Hudson Bay. the basin of Lake Winnepeg and the valley of the LTpper Mississippi; and thence the head of the migratory column circling around the source of the great river, recrossed it in a southeasterlv direction above the Falls of St. Anthony, and passing by way of Green Bay and Lake Michigan came into the present limits of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. Thus, after revolving in an irregular ellipse of some 3,000 miles in diameter, they fell into the original tract eastward. This extended course of misjration, induced by a variety of causes and circumstances, continued through a long period, the original stock probably receiving considerable accessions from the nomadic tribes of the Pacific Slope, and leavincr behind large numbers at each remove, until the head of the column came to rest from sheer lack of momentum, or other moving influences. Thus scattered over a large expanse of country, and broken into numerous tribal organizations, they lost much of their family affiliations and characteristics, and the early lutes found them distinct nations, evervwhere possessing the border lands, and waged with tliem their first and bloodiest wars. Situated witliin tlie ellipse above described were the nation of the Iroquois iiimily, who, Indd together by circumstances, and posted advanta^-eouslv on the inner sides of the circle, able at any time to mass their forces upon a single point of the circumference, early proved a devastating scourge to the Indian world, and especially so to the Algonquins.

Of the tribes of this latter family, this history has to do only with the Pottawatomie nation, the tribes of which to the number of 4,000 occupied the northern part of the State. Their chief village was early at Chitchakos, near the Tippecanoe River, where the earliest French explorers found them, and where a mission was established nearly 300 years ago. The nation originally occupied a part of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, whence they were driven by the irresistible Iroquois. They subsequently found a place of refuge in Wisconsin, but when the power of Iroquois was broken, they returned and found an abiding place near their old haunts. They were a bold, war-like people, and were generally found allied against the whites. Among them were found some of the most prominent warriors and chiefs of the Western tribes, the record of whose eloquence and feats of daring is found in all the history of the Western wars. They were allied with the French against the Iroquois and English, with the English against the Americans, and took prominent part in Pontiac's conspiracy, yielding only to the inevitable in the general pacification which closed the war of 1812. Notwithstandino' their bitter hostility to the whites, arising from their conviction that the pale face, if unresisted, would drive them to the Western ocean, when once they had plighted their faith, they were less vacillating than many of the tribes. During the Winnebago outbreak in 1827, they resisted the entreaty of the hostile tribes, and again, in 1832, when Black Hawk strove to unite the savage nations in a combined attack upon the whites, he met a fatal obstacle in the faithful attitude of the Pottawatomie nation. Shabbona, who shares with Shakespeare the distinction of having his name spelled in an endless number of ways, was a prominent civil chief of the nation in Eastern Illinois. He was known as the "white man's friend " among the natives, and when Black Hawk was betrayed into hostilities-, at the news of the Indians' first blow and success, he sent his son and nephew in diiferent directions, when he went in still another, to warn the settlers of Iheir impending danger, thus saving the lives of many in the isolated settlements. In the military operations which followed, with Waubonsie, " Billy Caldwell," and a considerable number of Pottawatomie warriors, he enlisted with the army under Gen. Atkinson, who at once placed him in command of the Indian contingent

The French priests were remarkably successful in their missionary labors among this nation. At first the eflForts to convert them were almost universally at the expense of the lives of the priests. But when the Pottawatomies yielded to conviction, they were scarcely less firm and devoted than the primitive Christians. When the priests left them, and they were without spiritual instruction for years, they taught each other, and attempted to preserve the religious influences they had enjoyed. It is said, when a priest met one of their chiefs on one occasion, he entreated him if he would not visit them, at least to pass through their woods, for the very thought of the " man of prayer " having been through their country would, he said, be sufficient to remind them of their duties, and make them better. Even those who remained unconverted, retained a profound reverence for the " black gown." Until 1834, they were only visited occasionally by priests from Vincennes or Detroit. At this date, Vincenneswas made the See of a bishop, who early provided the Indian mission with a regular priest. M. Desseilles was the appointee, and labored among the natives with wonderful results. The fatigue to which his labors exposed him brought on sickness that left him almost at the point of death, and feeling that his last moments were approaching, he roused himself, repaired to the altar, and while attending to his duties, surrounded by his dusky followers, expired on its very steps. The Indians who had watched him with anxiety, and had followed him to the church, unwilling to believe that he was dead, remained about in prayer for four days, when another clergyman who had been previously written to, arrived and performed the funeral obsequies. The new priest had been with the tribe but a short time, when the general removal took place. The Government, aware of their repugnance to remove, had determined to use force if necessary, and accordingly, while one of the chiefs was discussing the removal, at the village of Chichipy - Outipy - the village was surrounded by troops, who summoned him to surrender. His savage instinct got the better of his judgment for the instant, and, seizing his rifle and tomahawk, he placed himself in a posture of defense ; but observing the troops were accompanied by a " black go svn," he yielded, saying, "the Son of God submitted to be bound."

The Rapids of the Rockwise. as the Iroquois was early called, was a favorite resort of the Pottawatomie Indians, and every spring and fall during their stay in this State found large numbers gathered here to fish and hunt. She river swarmed with the largest fish, the prairie supplied innumerable deer and grouse, and the swamps of the Iroquois and Kankakee afforded some of the best trapping grounds in the whole State. Two or three tribes of this nation made their homes in Jasper County, whose principal viHages were located near the line of Sections 17 and 20 in Newton Township, and just east of the spring on the Phegley farm. Their principal chiefs here were Job, whose following numbered about three hundred persons ; Jim, with a tribe of about a hundred and ten, and Wapakonatta, with a smaller band. Their corn-fields were scattered all over the county. What is now known as tlie Indian Garden, on the Kankakee River in Wheatfield Township, was one of the largest of their corn-fields. Others were on the site of the Beniamin farm, some five miles west of the county seat, on the Mallatt place, a few miles further west, and on the site of Rensselaer. The corn was quite different from anything now in cultivation. It was universally of a blue and white color, similar to our sweet-corn in texture, never acquiring that flinty hardness which is characteristic of the grain now in general cultivation. The sites chosen for corn-fields were such as could he the easiest tilled; with the rude implements at command, and where the rank prairie grass could be best held in control. The squaws performed the labor with the " sanghoe," chopping off the sod and piling it up at one side. On the spot thus cleared the corn was planted and left to grow as it might. On the following year, the spot on which the sod had been piled was found bare of grass, and here another hill of corn was planted ; thus, in the second year, double the number of hills were planted. The ground thus brought under cultivation was worked each successive year, the corn being planted each time in the same spot, and the earth successively hoed up to the same spot formed little mounds to mark the site of each hill of corn. The stalk grew about four and a half or five feet high, from which the corn was stripped in the fall and hung up by the iusks in the rude sheds provided for the purpose. Cured fish was an important part of the Indians' winter supplies. On the Rhodes farm, about three-quarters of a mile southeast of Rensselaer, they had their pits for this purpose. These were rectangular pits about two by four feet, sunk into the ground about three feet. These were filled with wood, which was set afire, and when the whole was reduced to a body of live coals, short sticks were placed upon these, on which a fish was placed just as drawn from the water ; when sufficiently cooked, the fish was taken off the fire, the skin removed, and the flesh stripped entirely from the bones ; the shred flesh was then placed on pieces of sheet iron and again placed over the coals, the meat being turned from time to time and rubbed between the palms of the hands until the (vhole was reduced to a rather fine, dry powder. When the fire was exhausted, this fish powder was removed, packed closely in a deer skin sewed up to receive it, and laid aside for the winter. A few handfuls of this powdered fish with pounded corn made a very acceptable dish to the Indian.

Although the tribes which made their homes in Jasper exhibited no indication of having imbibed the religion of the priests, they were not less friendly to the early whites that found their way here on trading or hunting expeditions, and even when the whites came to take possession of the land after the Logansport treaty, they still maintained the friendliest relations with them. The larger part of the Pottowatomie nation was removed in 1838, under the direction of Gen. Tipton, to a reservation in Kansas. Of these the larger portion has abandoned the tribal re- lation, and become citizens. Of the otliers, some are in Kansas, upward of 300 are in Indian Territory, a few are yet on reservations in this State, and the remainder are wanderers.

The First White Settlements. - Until the treaty of 1832, this county was not open to white settlers, nor was there any considerable immigration in this direction. The whole "Northwest Territory" had been thrown open, and the tide of in-coming population being principally from the south, at this time the southern parts of Illinois and Indiana and the whole of Ohio aiforded abundant opportunities for the selection of choice farms considerably in excess of the demand. Besides being some distance removed from the natural source of supplies and general lines of communication at that time, the character of the country operated to discourao^e immigration. The general rumor described the country here as alternate swamps, sterile sand ridges and flat, wet prairies. Its reputation as a paradise for game, however, induced the more adventurous to seek this region in quest of sport and the profit arising from the sale of peltries, and eventually brought the first actual settlers.

The first actual settler within the present limits of Jasper County was William Donahue. Attracted by the fur-bearing game to be found here in great abundance, and the prospect of ti-ading with the Indians that possessed the land here in considerable numbers, he came to what is now Gillam Township as early as 1832. He stayed here a number of years, improved a good farm and died here; his descendants, however, have all left this vicinity. The next settlement was made at the Falls of the Iroquois, by Joseph Yeoman, John and David Nowels, in the fall of 1831. There is some confusion in the date of this settlement, some putting the date of their coming a year later. The Nowels were natives of Kentucky and early moved to Ohio. From thence the fiimily moved to Fountain County, Ind., where the wife of John Nowels died, and his daughter was married to Joseph Yeoman. Anxious to better his prospects in life, Mr. Yeoman proposed to move into the new country opened up by the recent treaties, and went to a place on the Iroquois River, in Illinois ne;;ir the Indiana line, known as Bunkum. Here the familv all moved and soon learned of the Falls of Iroquois. The site was noted for its fine fishing, and rumor doubtless exaggerated the beauty of its surroundings so that Yeoman determined to explore the situation for himself Accordingly in this year, Nowels having nothing to prevent his enga^'ing in such an expedition, with his son David, accompanied Mr. Yeoman. ^Attaching a yoke of oxen to the forward wlieels of a wacon and fixinn' un a cart to carry what the party would need while gone, the little partv set out on their journey. Their road was up the course of the river "until they reached the rapids. Here, pleased with the prospect, Yeomau left

Mr. Nowels and returned to arrange matters for the removal to the new site. In the meanwhile the latter prepared logs for a cabin and drew them to the site chosen for the new home. This done, David returned to Bunkum with the oxen, and as soon as practicable, the family came, arriving here in the fall of 1835. There were no neighbors to assist in the "raising," and the three meji, assisted by Mrs. Yeoman and the team, soon had a home erected. The first addition to the settlement here was in the person of Charles G. Wright; he was a native of North Carolina and came to Indiana when a Territory, in 1807. After several removals within the present limits of the State, he found himself in White County, and soon after the Yeoman settlement, came here to trade with the Indians. He did not bring his family, but boarded with Mr. Yeoman for some time, subsequently, however, building a hewed-log house near the site of the Baptist Church.

In the latter part of 1834, Thomas Randle and George Culp, recently from Virginia, started for the " new purchase," which had just been surveyed, and on their way hither met Mr. Morris returning from his work of surveying the ceded territory. He suggested a fine location directing them to follow up the Monon River to a point named, from thence to strike due west over the prairie until they reached a grove of trees, which appeared to hang down. They had no trouble in following . these directions, and proceeding northward made a selection of land at the forks of the rivers Pinkamink and Iroquois, but not until they had examined the famed "falls" of the latter river. In the following May, they returned with their families and made the settlement of the Forks. In the following year, this settlement was re-enforced by Royal Hazleton, John G. Parkinson and Henry Barkley, Jr., and soon afterward by the Shannahans, Reeds, Casads, Gutheridges, Burgets and other families.

The settlement near the sight of the old Indian village in Newton Township, now locally known as Blue Grass, was an early one. William Mallatt was among the earliest of the families gathered here. He came to the Falls of the Iroquois m 1835 or 1836, and made a claim on the southwest side of the river near Yeoman's house, but this improvement being " floated " by a W. M. Kenton, he removed to the former place, where he lived until his death in 1859. Another settlement here was that of Mrs.

Jared, Jr., Samuel and Phoebe. The Benjamins were natives of Ohio and the first-named son having married and determined to try his fortune in the new West, the whole family came in 1838. Previous to their coming, a brother of Mrs. Benjamin, Gilbert Yeoman came out to examine the country, bought a claim which had been made here by Mr. Nowels, and on which he had erected a cabin of quaking-ash poles.

Not being pleased with the outlook, Mr. Yeoman decided to stay in Ohio, and sold his claim to Mrs. Benjamin, who came with her family in a single wagon to this place. Others in this vicinity, were Erastus Smith, the "springs," east of Rensselaer, on the Iroquois River, and John Jordan, who came from Tipton County, about 1836, and made a claim in " Carpenter's Grove," were among the pioneers of the county.*

The Game

The country which these earlier pioneers had thus chosen was a hunter's paradise. The prairie, timber and water-ways were crowded with game of all kinds, and without this it is doubtful if this region could have been settled until a score of years later. The early thoroughfares, obliged to deviate from a true course to avoid marshes and impassable rivers, left this region isolated, and the tide of population following these lines of travel, naturally avoided this section. Thus cut oif from the natural sources of supply, the pioneer was forced to depend upon the resources of the country alone, which, even with abundance of game, proved but a meager support for the family. Deer were found in unlimited numbers, and the first settlers found no trouble in killing more than the needs of the family required, right at his own door. Droves, reaching to the number of a hundred, were often seen, and settlers were in the habit of carrying their guns on almost all occasions, and seldom returned from any expedition without an evidence of the abundance of these animals in the shape of a haunch or ham of venison. Wild hogs served also to vary the frontier fare. These were animals that liad escaped from the older settlements, and subsisting upon the nuts and roots of the woodland, had gone wild in the course of nature. They were of a long-legged, gaunt species, and kept the timber pretty closely. They were no particular damage or annoyance to the settlers, but furnished capital hunting sport, and gave a relief to the monotonous recurrence of venison upon the table of the settler. Wolves were of the coyote species, and were found in tlie open prairie. These were of more annoyance to the settlements, attackintT sheep, vounf pigs and sometimes cattle. They were miserable cowards, never attacking a person, and were hunted and killed as a nuisance. They were small and undersized, making the night dismal with their howling, and when overtaken by the dogs, would fall on their backs and fight much like a cat. On frozen ground, and when filled with a recent meal, they were run down with little difficulty on horseback, as they seemed to avoid the timber, and would risk capture rather than go into it. Pinnated and ruffed grouse, better known as prairie chickens and partridges, were everywhere found in inexhaustible numbers, and furnished a touch of delicacy to the early fare. Wild geese, cranes, herons, ducks of the mallard, pintail, blue-winged teal, wood and ring-necked varieties, were found by thousands, and are still found here in hardly diminished profusion, to the delight of hunters, who are attracted in large numbers to enjoy the hunting. The Iroquois River has sustained its reputation as one of the best stocked rivers in the State, from the earliest knowledge of the whites to the present. Long before any settlements were made here, rumors of its profusion of fine edible fish came to the frontiers through the Indians, to whom this was a favorite place of resort each fall and spring. Here bass, bream, pike, salmon, mullet, suckers and other varieties are found, some of these varieties having been found over twenty-five pounds in w^eight. "With this abundance of what are even now considered luxuries, it would seem at a casual glance that the pioneer life was a life of ease rather than hardship ; but when it is considered that these were the sum of their early luxuries, that what we deem the common necessities and find so cheap as to pass almost unnoticed in our estimate of family supplies and expenses, were to the early settlers almost inaccessible and the most expensive, a great change is wrought in our estimate. Salt was more expensive than sugar, and more difficult to procure'. Flour could not for a time be procured at any price, and even meal, such as is provided to-day, was unknown on the frontier. And even the variety of game provided, soon failed to answer the purposes of beef and pork. The system exposed to ravages of disease, and subject to the trying experience of early farm labor, demanded somethins more substantial than this. Nor could all aive their attention to hunting. The prime reason for the presence of most of the pioneers in this country was to build up a home and lay the foundations for a future competence, and to accomplish this the larger part of the community centered here had only their hands with which to accomplish their mission. It was no uncommon occurrence to find men surrounded by this profusion of game who never shot a deer, and occasionally one who never owned a gun.

Life On The Prairie

The pioneers who formed the early settlements in this county were generally familiar with the isolation, and inured to the hardships and privations, of frontier life, but with all this the open prairie presented diiEculties to which they had hitherto been a stranger. From the standpoint of this later day, when the adaptability of the prairie has been so abundantly proven, it seems unfortunate that the early experiences of these pioneers led them to cling to the timbered portions of the country, where foul water and miasma accravated the inevitable discomforts of frontier existence. Life in a new country is everywhere subjected to the misery of malarious diseases. The clearing-off of timber or the breaking-up of prairie sod, involving the rapid decay of large quantities of vegetable matter, gave rise to the inevitable miasma, which wrought its sure work upon the system. Such sickness was generally confined to the last of the summer and fall. There was but little sickness in winter, except a few lingering fall cases that had become chronic ; there were but few cases after severe frosts, and the spring and early summer were perfectly healthy. It was commonly remarked that when the bloom of the resin weed and other yellow flowers appeared, it was time to look for the ague. The first spring flowers on the prairie were mostly pink and white, then followed purple and blue, and about the middle of August yellow predominated. High water in spring, flooding the bottoms and filling the lagoons and low places along the streams, and then drying off' with the hot sun of July and August, was a fruitful cause of disease, and in such localities it was often quite sickly, while the higher prairie was comparatively exempt. With these evils, the pioneer was generally forced to struggle alone. Physicians were very few and often §o far situated from the scattered settlements that it took a day's ride to reach them. But where thev were found within practical distance, the urgent necessity for the practice of every economy led the settlers to depend upon their own skill. Boneset, Culver's physic (root), and a long list of teas and herb decoctions were to be found in every cabin, and most of the ailments incident to a frontier were generally made to yield to them. To have a severe case of malarial fever or several seasons' run of the ague, was expected bv each new-comer, and none were considered as having been fullv inducted into all the mysteries of citizenship until they had had the regular malarial experience. Yor years, people who had liitherto possessed a fresh complexion and buoyant spirit, after coming here, wore the pale, sallow complexion of semi-invalids, and often the wliole community would be so Generally attacked with the prevailing distemper as to leave none to attend upon those who were ill. It got to be very much the custom for each family to prepare for the inevitable attack, arranging matters so that they

The Cabin. - The early settlers brought with them nothing but what the necessities of the situation demanded. One wagon generally sufiiced to bring the family; household furniture, farming implements, and frequently two or three months' supplies. It requires no great amount of consideration to conclude that luxuries, or even comforts, could find no place in such an outfit, and so the pioneer, after constructing a shelter for his family, found his skill and ingenuity taxed to their utmost to supply this deficiency. It was necessary to manufacture tables, chairs and bedsteads before they could be used, and some of the most striking incidents of frontier life are founded upon this universal dearth of ordinary comforts. Hand tools were always a part of the load when possessed by the emigrant, but when in the absence of these the ax accomplished all that was necessary. A section of a good sized log, smoothed with an ax and furnished with a rough back, or often without a back of any sort, and legs, took the place of chairs. A rude bedstead was often constructed in the corner of the cabin with a single leg, the two sides of the structure supporting the rest of the bedstead which was framed in the logs. Upon this the bed cord, which could be easily brought, was arranged, or in its absence, deer hide thongs. This or simply a pile of brush supported the " tick," which was brought with the family, and filled with leaves and dried grass until the first crop supplied a better substitute in the husks.

The cabin itself displayed the ingenuity of the pioneer and the poverty of his resources. A log pen, with a single door and window, the latter closed with greased paper, and the door provided with a simple blanket, the fire-place constructed of such loose stones as could be found, and the chimney built up of sticks protected with a covering of mud; the roof of "shakes " split from a straight-grained tree, and held in place by weight poles, completed the tout ensemble of the early homes. At first there was often no floor but the ground, but generally slabs split out from the unseasoned timber were smoothed with the ax and made to do good service as a protection from the bare earih. When the door was constructed, these "puncheons" served as the material from which it was constructed, wooden pins taking the place of nails, and wooden hinges, latch and bars serving the purposes of the modern builder's hardware.

The Farm. - These preliminaries accomplished, the most urgent necessity was to secure a crop. The plows were crude afiairs, strong and serviceable, but requiring great team power and considerable mechanical skill in the plowman. The sod was found tough, not easily " tamed," and very uncertain in producing a first crop. So tenacious was the turf, that the furrow turned out one unbroken strip of earth, and occasionally when not especially careful, the plowman had the disappointment of seeing yards of this leathery soil turn back to its natural position, necessitating the tedious operation of turning it all back again by hand. The expenditure of all this labor was generally well repaid the first year, if the sod became thoroughly rotted, even though it produced but a small crop. Oftentimes the second and third plowing showed the soil stubborn and unkind. Few, even among farmers, know much of the labor involved in "breaking prairie," unless they have experienced its obstacles and overcome them. Corn was the only crop planted at first, and this furnished food for man and beast. A few years later, it was a mark of unusual prosperity to be able to furnish wheat bread to especial guests. The first crop was generally planted by cutting a gash in the inverted sod with an ax, dropping in the corn and closing it by another blow beside the first ; or it was dropped in every third furrow, and the sod turned on it ; if the corn was so placed as to find the space between the furrows, it would find daylight; if not, the result of the planting was extremely doubtful. Of course cultivation in this case was impossible, and if the squirrels and crows gave the crop an opportunity to mature, it generally proved a satisfactory return. Later, the culture of wheat was begun, and with the increase of markets has grown to larger proportions.

Most of the settlers brought in horses and cows, but the former pretty generally gave way to oxen for working purposes. Hogs were bought in the older settlements, and a little later sheep were introduced. All these animals were supported with little cost. The wide range of wild grass afforded excellent pasture and hay. With the range the early settlers had, their cattle would put on more flesh and in less time than on any other pasture. The sedge which grew along the sloughs was the first to start in the spring, and furnished the earliest pasture. The bent or blue-joint, which was principally found along the sides of the sloughs, or, in the vernacular of the pioneer, "between the dry and wet land." was preferred by stock to all other varieties, especially when mixed with the wild pea-vine. This made the best hay, and as its yield was verv large, was generally selected for this purpose. But the combined rava>-Tes of stock and scythe rapidly exterminated it, so that in many cases the ground where it grew became almost bare of vegetation. The stock and the firmer then resorted to upland grasses, but before the settlers multiplied so as to limit the range of the stock, the older and more experienced of the herd would go long distances to find their favorite pasture, often necessitating on the part of the pioneer a hunt of several days to recover them.

The native grasses were scarcely less marked for their medicinal qualities. Cattle and horses seemed to be remarkably free from disease so lonof as they could find plenty of wild grass and hay to feed upon. Horses raised upon the prairie were said never to be aiBicted with the heaves, while horses brought here, suffering with this malady, were speedily cured by simply feeding on the native grasses. This advantage, however, was somewhat offset by the colic which this rank grass frequently produced in horses with fatal effect. The introduction of tame grasses has largely remedied this evil, and most farmers are now able to supply their stock with a mixture of the two kinds. But the wild grass of the present is not found in all its original purity, and the pea-vine is almost if not entirely extinct.

Mills and Markets. - There is a beatitude not found in the usual list " Blessed be nothing, for ye shall want nothing," which finds abundant confirmation in every day's logic. Its converse, " The more we have, the more we want," is only another way of putting the same truth, and is suggested by the experience of the pioneers. No sooner was a crop secured than the lack of any proper means to reduce it to the necessities of the household was made painfully apparent. So long as the corn was soft, it was grated on rude graters, made by punching holes through a piece of tin. After it became hard, it was sometimes parched and ground in a coffee mill, and at other times pounded in a rudely constructed mortar. A stump was hollowed out by burning and scraping to serve as a mortar. Over this was suspended from a " sweep " a pestle, to the end of which was fixed an iron wedge, and with this rude machinery bushels of corn were broken sufficiently fine to use in the various ways common to pioneer days. The finest was used in " corn-pones " and dodgers, while the coarser part was used as hominy, the separation being effected by means of a sieve made of a perforated deer skin stretched tightly over a frame. " Corn-crackers " were put up in the various settlements at an early date, but these did but little better work than the mortar. They did the work quicker, and such a mill was kept running night and day, while the patrons coming from distances of fifteen or twenty miles would wait patiently for a day or two to get their '- grist." But for flour, the only resort was to La Fayette, where an older settlement had secured the advantages of a " flouring mill." The demand for groceries was limited to the means of purchasing, which were generally of the most slender sort. There was but little to sell, and then the only market was at Chicago, where the settlers hauled hundreds of bushels of shelled corn to sell at 30 cents per bushel. Coon skins, however, were almost " landoffice " money. Fur buyers were an institution of the early times here, and many a quarter section was purchased with the price of these skins.

numbers, and no piece of timber was entirely devoid of them. It sometimes required an expert to find them, and some united pleasure and profit in this sort of hunting. An experienced hunter would go out in a bright, warm day in winter or late fall and burn some honey comb, which seldom failed to attract the game to the honey, which was provided for them. Loading up with this, the bee would rise, circling in the air, and then fiy straight to its tree. It was then the hunter's business to follow the fleet-winged insect closely, and thus discover its secret. To do this required an expert, and there were few who were marked for their success. Sometimes, a number of bees from a single tree, at no great distance, were attracted. These do not rise in circles, but darting to and fro in a straight line, make the course plain enough to be easily followed, but this is rare. In other cases, the best that can be done is to discover the direction of the bee's flight, and taking this - against the sun if possible - to stumble along with upturned gaze, scanning every tree for the tell-tale hole or crack. But when the tree was found, the battle was but half won. This must be felled, and the occupants dispossessed of their stores. When the hollow extended down to the point where the ax must penetrate it, the hunter was often obliged to decamp in hot haste as soon as the blows had aroused the swarm.

The bee was easily domesticated, and many of the settlers captured swarms; placed them in sections of hollow logs, and in a little while possessed a constant source of supply for the table and the market. In some cases, this was the principal source for the sweetening used in the culinary work of the cabin, and was the basis of a favorite drink. " Metheglin " was made of steeped honeycomb, and honey fermented. It was counted an excellent drink, and much preferred to cider, and when strengthened by age became a powerful intoxicant. This, however, has passed away with many other of the homely joys of pioneer davs.

The ready tact of the pioneer housewives, and the unpampered tastes of that early day, found a good substitute for fruit in the pumpkin. When frozen, they were prepareil and stewed down to a sirup, which furnished a very acceptable substitute for sugar or molasses in the absence of honey, and mixed with fresh, stewed pumpkin formed a desirable sweetmeat. They were planted in considerable numbers, and stored in a vault constructed underneath the hay stacks to be fed to the cattle durinc the winter. Well may this "fruit loved of boyhood " be apostrophized by the poet, and be honorably placed in a State's coat of arms.

Prairii'. yradc/. - Neighborhoods extended over a wide area of countrv, and a journey of fifteen miles was not considered a great undertaking fVir an afternoon's visit. Roads were few, and the prairie, easily cut up, often presented, at points where lines of travel were obliged bv the conformation of the land to unite, bog holes, that proved almost impassable. So long as the paucity of settlement allowed a pretty free selection of route, mud holes could be generally evaded, and a worn track avoided. But this practice had its disadvantages. In a country without continuous fences, and few landmarks, save the groves, it requires some skill and an intimate knowledge of the country to successfully cross even a small prairie in daylight. Crossing the uncultivated prairie at night was a very uncertain venture even to the most expert. If the night was clear, the stars were a reliable guide, and the pioneers became quite proficient in the simpler rudiments of astronomy. In a cloudy night, and a snowy or foggy day, their resources were less sure. A steady wind often proved the only guide. The traveler, getting his bearings, would note how the wind struck his nose - the right or left ear - and then, keenly alive to these sensations, would so maintain his course as to keep the bearing of the wind always the same, and regardless of all other guides would generally reach his destination without diflBculty. To do this required no little skill, and a steady wind. If the latter changed gradually, the better the skill, the wider the traveler diverged from his true course. Without these guides, it was a mere accident if a person succeeded in crossing even a small prairie. The tendency is to move in a circle, and when this is once began and observed by the traveler, the only resource is to camp in the most convenient place and manner, and wait for morning. Each family had its signal light, which served to mark the place of the cabin. It was a frequent practice to erect a pole by the chimney, upon which a lighted lantern was placed. Others had a light in the window, which often saved a dreary night's experience on the open prairie.

Such experiences, unpleasant in mild weather, were too often fatal in the winter season. The trackless prairie, covered with a deceptive expanse of snow, and swept by a fierce blast, which pierced the most ample clothing and the hardiest frame, made the stoutest heart waver. Journeys were seldom undertaken in such circumstances, save under stress of the most urgent necessity. But nearly every early settler can remember some experience in winter-season traveling, while some never reached the home they sought, or the end of the journey reluctantly begun.

An incident of this sort is related which resulted in the first adult death in the county. John M. Piper, who had come in 1837 to select land, made his choice in the Barkley settlement, and started on the 18th of December on foot for La Porte to make the proper entry. Soon after starting on his journey, a snow storm set in, and he was never again seen alive. For thirty miles his route lay through the untracked prairie with no guide but a faint Indian trail, and it was thought that he must have succumbed to the fierceness of the storm the first night. His body was found on the 4th of the March following, oa the farm of Mr. Henry Barkley, Sr. Attention was attracted to the spot by the collection of buzzards, and on examination the remains were found and identified, though horribly mutilated by wolves and birds. His shoes were found nearly cut to pieces by the snow, his mittens in his pocket, and his cane in his hand. His money, consisting of some §200 in gold and silver, was undisturbed, and it was supposed that becoming bewildered, he had traveled in a circle until, overcome with fatigue and cold, he laid down and died.

With the settlement of the prairie, and the regular laying-out of roads, traveling became less dangerous, though scarcely less diflicult. The amount of labor which could be devoted by the few people in the scattered settlements, made but little effect upon the roads of a country, which seemed particularly exposed, by the character of the soil and the conformation of its surface, to the unfavorable action of rain, and even now the farming community pays a heavy annual tribute to muddy, impassable roads.

Political Organization

It will be observed that the county of Jasper, while projected in 1835, had no independent organization until some time later. As originally erected, it occupied the territory now known as Benton County, and a part only of its present area. Until 1838, it remained attached to Warren County when it was organized by the Commissioners of that county. The principal settlements at that time were on the Big Pine Creek, some thirty miles south of the present site of Rensselaer, and the Kenoyer settlement west of the present location of Brook, in Newton County. The county seat was fixed at Pine Township, and the first Board of Commissioners elected in 1837 met at the house of Robert Alexander in Parish Grove in January, 1838. The members of this board were Amos White, Joseph Smith and Frederick Kenoyer, and at their first session it was ordered " that the Circuit Court, Probate Court and Commissioners' Court be held hereafter at the house oi' George W. Spitler, provided a majority of Pine Township be in favor of it, which is to be known, by Amos AVhite taking a petition through said Pine Township and getting everv voter to sign the petition for or against the removal." The result was that sixteen signed in favor and eight against the proposed removal. This was a remarkable vote when it is considered that it moved the seat of justice to a smaller settlement in the northern edge of the county. It is explained, however, by the fact that George W. Spitler had been elected as Clerk, and refused to act unless the place of business was broui'ht nearer to his residence. The Commissioners would be better accommodated bv this change, and as the duties of these offices were a thankless task, this concession was made, and in March, 1839, the Commissioners met at the house of Mr. Spitler, which was located about half of a mile south of Lyon's mill, in Iroquois Township, ia Newton County. In the meanwhile, the act of the Legislature providing for the consolidation of the counties of Newton and Jasper had been passed and the whole political geography of this section changed.

In 183.5, the Commissioners of White County ordered that all of Indiana west of White County, and north of Township 28 north, to the Illinois line, and north of White Oouaty to the line dividing Townships 33 and 34 north, which territory had been attached to White County, should be organized as Marion Township, and an election was ordered to be held at the house of William Donahue on the "26th of September, 1835. ^ At this election, the following votes were polled : Thomas Randle, John Stump, David Phegley, George Culp, George Phillips and William Donahue. Of these six votes, Thomas Randle received three votes and John Stump three. This was undoubtedly the first election held within the limits of this county, and in consequence of the tie a second one was ordered to be held at the same place in the following May. On this occasion, the following persons voted : Herbert Owens, David Phegley, Harry Owens, Eli Haskins, John Nowels, .John Price, Thomas Randle, George Culp, Alexander Crockett, J. D. Yeoman, .John L. Stump, Silas Phillips, George Phillips, William Donahue and Michael Stump, Randle receiving ten votes and George Stump receiving five votes for the Justice of the Peace, and Alexander Crockett being elected Constable by the same vote. Some time during the early summer of 1836, the few settlers of Marion Township petitioned the County Commissioners of White County to change the place of election to a more central point, and the house of John Price was accordingly designated. The names appended to this petition exhibit, in addition to the names recorded above, that of Samuel Shannahan. In the meanwhile, Porter County had been organized, and in addition to absorbing that part; of Newton County north of the Kankakee River, its jurisdiction was temporarily extended over all or part of the remaining territory of the original county of Newton. At their September session in 1837, the County Commissioners of Porter ordered, " that all the territory attached to Porter County that it called Newton County shall form and constitute a township to be known by the name of Marion, and that there shall be an election held at the house of John Price on October 21, 1837, to elect one Justice of the Peace, and William Donahue is appointed Inspector." In accordance with this action of the Commissioners, an election was held on Saturday, October 21, 1837, at the house of Mr. Price, when the following persons voted : Thomas Randle, Robert Mallatt, William Overton, Stephen Nowels,

Alfred Marvin, George Gulp, George G. Williams, J. D. Yeoman, Robert Parker, Herbert Owen, Solomon Davidson, Edward Dyer, Hiram Mallatt, John Nowels, Samuel Shannahan, William GiUam, John M. Gillam, Erastus Smith, John Price and George Burgett. At this election, William Donahue received the unanimous vote for the position of the Justice of the Peace. In the following spring (1838), Donahue, ex officio Coroner, held an inquest on the body of John M. Piper, who was lost in the snow as noted in the preceding pages. The jury summoned on this occasion shows the names of J. G. Parkinson, James Reed, S. Sherwood, John Burcrett, George B. McCulloch and S. H. Benjamin in addition to others already named. In the August election of this year, 1838, the list of voters include, in addition, names of Robert and Henry Barkley, Enos Marshall and John Lewis.

On the organization of Jasper County in 1838, the old county of Newton seems to have been re-attached to White County, and on the 3d day of September in that year, this territory, which had been named Marion Township by the White County authorities, and subsequently confirmed in the same title by the Porter County officials, was divided by the former authorities under whose jurisdiction the territory had come again. According to this action, " all of Newton County lying in the forks of the Pinkamink, and all lying east from the bridge across the east branch of that creek, and by a line due east from that bridge : all on the north of that line," was erected into the township of Barkley in honor of Mr. Henry Barkley, Sr. This territory was subsequently attached to Jasper County as originally formed, and the Commissioners of the latter county, at their March meeting in 1839, divided this territory into Newton and Pinkamink Townships, the latter containing all territory south and east of the Iroquois River. The voting precincts were established at the house of Joseph D. Yeoman, and at the house of William Donahue, and an election ordered for the April following. Owing to the destruction of the early records in the burning of the courthouse, it is difficult to ascertain the result of these early measures, but it is probable that the action of the Legislature in January of this year rendered their action of no effect. The name of Pinkamink did not cling to any civil division, and Newton was established later.

In June, 1839, the Legislative Commissioners met, consolidated the territory of Jasper and Newton, and restricted the latter name to a township which probably included the present townships of Newton and that part of Marion north of the Iroquois. What was the subsequent action of the County Commissioners elected under the new dispensation is simply a matter of conjecture. The records previous to 1849 were destroyed, but at this date there were five townships, Jordan, Marion,

Newton, Barkley and Gillam, which covered the present territory of Jasper County. Jordan and Marion occupied the territory south of the Iroquois River, the latter including the village of Rensselaer and some little adjoining territory. The rest of the county was covered by the other townships, each of which had the Kankakee River as its northern boundary. The next township organized was Walker, the original boundaries of which were doubtless plain and accurate enough for the purposes of that time, but rather obscure now. It was erected at the March session of the Commissioners in 1851, with the following boundaries : Commencing at the bridge over Copperas Creek ; thence east to Moses Davidson's mill-dam ; thence to the mouth of Stump's slough ; thence to the east line of the county ; along said line to the Kankakee River ; thence westwardly along the river to a line of Beaver Township (now Newton County line), thence to place of beginning." This was probably intended to include all the present territory of Jasper north of the Copperas Creek. In 1853, there was a general revision of township lines, and the boundaries of Walker were changed to the following: " Commencing at the southeast corner of Section 17, Township 31 north, Range 5 west ; thence east to the county line ; thence north on that line to the Kankakee River ; thence along said river to the line dividing Ranges 7 and 8 ; thence south on said line to the southwest corner of Section 18, Township 30 ; thence east to the line of Gillam Township ; ttience north to place of beginning." This includes nearly one-half of the whole area of the present county.

The lines of Gillam Township were arranged as now found on the map, save the northwest corner was square, the corner being established at the southeast corner of Section 17, Township 31 north. Range 5 west. The southwest corner of the township also followed the section line between Sections 4 and 5 instead of the line of the river.

Barkley Township was defined as follows : " Commencing at the southwest corner of Section 18, Township 30, on range line between Ranges 6 and 7, thence south to the Iroquois River ; following the river thence to the forks, and thence northeastly, following the line of the Pinkamink to the line of Gillam Township ; thence north to the southeast corner of Walker Township ; thence west to the place of beginning."

Marion Township was comprised within the following boundaries : Commencing at a point one and a half miles west of the northwest corner of Barkley Township ; thence south twelve miles ; thence east to range line between Ranges 5 and 6 ; thence north to the Pinkamink River ; thence along said river to the forks of the Pinkamink and Iroquois River; thence northwest along the river to the line between Ranges 6 and 7 ; thence north to the line of Walker Township ; thence west to the place of beginning.

The lines of Newton Township began at the point where the Iroquois River crosses the line between Ranges 7 and 8, follows up the stream to the west line of Marion, thence with this line to Walker Township, and thence with that line to the line dividing Ranges 7 and 8, and thence south to the place of beginning.

At this session, Hanging Grove Township was erected substantially as it is at present. The first boundaries made the line between Townships 28 and 29 to the southern limit, but subsequently at the same session the following boundaries were established, which remain to the present writing : " Commencing at a point where the dividing line between Ranges 6 and 6 crosses the Pinkamink River ; thence east following the river to the center line dividing Section 9, 10, 11, and 12 ; thence due east to the county line ; thence south to the White County line ; thence west three miles; thence south one mile; thence west to the line between Ranges 5 and 6, thence north to the place of beginning." This township was struck off from the original territory of Marion Township which was not included in the revised boundaries of that township given above.

In the March session of 1856, the Commissioners erected the township of Kankakee, which included all that territoi-y north of Township 31, Ranges 5 and 6 ; i. e., the present townships of Kankakee and Wheatfield. In March of 1858, Keener Township was erected out of " Townships 31 and 32, in Range 7, and so much of Township 30, Range 7, as lies north of Newton." In the following June Wheatfield Township was erected with its present boundaries; i. e., so much of Range 6 as lies between Township 31 and the Kankakee River. In March, 1862, Jordan Township was divided, the following boundaries defining the new township, which was called Carpenter: " Commencing at the northeast corner of Section 4, Township 27, Range 6, and running west on the township line to the west line of the county ; thence south on said line to the Benton County line ; thence east on said line to the southeast corner of Section 33, Township 27, Range 5 ; thence north on the White Coiintv line to place of beginning." In December, 1867, Milroy Township was erected as follows : " Commencing at the southeast corner of Section 4, Township 28, Range 5 ; thence west to the southwest corner of Section 3, Township 28, Range 6 ; thence south to the southwest corner of Section 27, Township 28, Range 6 ; thence east on the southern boundary of the county to the southeast corner of Section 28, Township 28, Range 5 ; thence north on the east boundary of thecounty to place of beginnin.i-." In December, 1868, tlio last townsliip organized. Union, was erected as follows : " Commencing at the northeast corner of Section 20, Township

31, Range 6, thence west to the northwest corner of Section 19, Township 31, Range 7 ; thence running south to the southwest corner of Section 31, Township 30, Range 7 ; thence east to the southeast corner of Section 32, Township 30, Range 6 ; thence north to the northeast corner of Section 20, Township 31, Range 6, to place of beginning." These lines were changed in June, 1861, so as to restrict the new township within its present limits. The minor changes in the boundaries of the various townships have been numerous and in many cases trivial, and very often necessitated by oversight in the original lines. These have not been stated, nor will the present map of the county exactly agree with these boundaries, as some minor changes have since been made.

Public Buildings

Official dignity of the early day was of a homespun character, and required no great expense to provide appropriate surroundings. When it was decided to remove the place of county business to the Brook settlement, Mr. George W. Spitler, who was the first Clerk, and subsequently discharged the clerical duties of all the offices save that of Sheriff and Treasurer, erected a log building about sixteen feet square for the uses of the Commissioners and Circuit Court at his place of residence. This served in the double capacity of court room and boarding house until the removal of the seat of justice, in 1839, to the Rapids of the Iroquois. In this year, Rensselaer was laid out, and in accordance with the custom of that day, the proprietor donated, in addition to the public square, four blocks for the erection of public buildings. The first building to serve as a court house in the new county seat, was a small building erected on Cornelia street between Front and Van Rensselaer streets, near where the Barton residence was subsequently built. In 1845, Van Rensselaer also erected, at his own expense, a two-story frame building, 31x36 feet, on the lot nearly east of the square, on Cullen street, for a court house. This was arranged with the court room below and offices above.

The offices were not used, however, by the county officials as they preferred their own residences as more convenient, and as the records were not then voluminous, this served the county just as well and required no extra expense for fuel. This served until 1857, when a brick structure was erected on the public square. The first steps toward securing this building were taken by the Board of Commissioners in the September session of 1853. It was then ordered by the board that the Auditor contract for a hundred thousand brick and for the delivery of material for a foundation. The specifications required the walls of the foundation to be of stone, to be begun two feet below the surface, to be two feet wide and four feet high, and to be of faced work above the ground. The specifica- tions were so far changed as to make the foundation three feet wide below the surface, and the work to be finished by December 15, 1853. The outside dimensions were to be 70x40 feet, court room abo^e and six office rooms below, three on each side of a hall, ten feet wide, extending through the length of tlie building. The plans seem to have been devised by the Commissioners, and the specifications drawn by George Brown, architect, of La Fayette. On May 6, 1854, a contract was awarded to Benjamin Henkle for the erection of the superstructure, he to take the brick purchased by the county, at a stipulated price, and to complete the building within two years. For this he was to receive §10,000, and an allowance for anticipating the time set for the completion of the contract at the rate of fSOO per annum. The finances of the county were not in the most flourishing condition, and the records show that Henkle finally begged to be relieved from finishing the building, reciting the fact that he had been put to great inconvenience and loss by the failure of the county to pay according to contract, and that if final payment was delayed until the completed building should be accepted, there would be no money in the treasury. The contractor was, however, put off with expressions of satisfaction as to the work so far as finished, but still held to his contract. The building was finally accepted in September, 1856. The original specifications called for vaults for the records of the county, but these were subsequently modified in this respect to the eventual cost of the county: In 1864, the court house caught fire and was partially destroyed. The fire was first discovered about 11 o'clock at night, and at that time the flames had got beyond the control of the facilities which the town afforded for checking it. It was generally supposed that the fire was the work of an incendiary, who was interested in the destruction of the records, and suspicion pointed generally to one man who left the county about that time, though no evidence was obtained to fasten the guilt upon any one. The whole interior and roof of the structure was burned and all the papers and records of the county were destroyed save such as were rescued an<l thrown out of the burning building. The cheap vaults proved no protection, and the loss thus incurred cannot be fully estimated. The walls of the building wore found generallv in f,iod condition and were left untouched, save the removal of about three hundred brick and the straightening of the west wall which was warped a little out of line. J. A. Silver was the contractor for the repairs, to which were added tlie construction of sufficient vaults for tlie protection of valuable papers and records, at a cost of $054.

The first jail was built in 1847, the erection of which was constructed by George W. Spitler, the actual work being done by Willis J. Wrio;ht, who was then a carpenter by trade. It was built of hewed logs, twelve inches square, and was constructed about 20x26 feet in size, with two rooms. Its architectural plan was simply that of a tight box with one small window and door to each room. One room led off from the other. The former was the stronghold and was constructed of double timbers, the door of heavy timbers and the window guarded by strong iron bars. For this building Spitler received four blocks of the village plat, containing forty-eight lots, which had been donated for the purpose of providing public buildings. The first prisoner incarcerated was the famous Shaffer, who was subsequently killed in Newton County. The lock of the door had been put on in such a way as to expose the bolt where it entered the socket, and Shaffer, who was extraordinarily strong in his fingers, managed to shoot back the bolt, and before the Sheriff was out of sight was standing on the outside of the building to the no small amusement of lookers-on. The Sheriff replaced him and that night the prisoner repeated the performance, but seems to have become bewildered and found himself in the morning near the dam at the head of the rapids. He then concluded he would go to the Sheriff's house for breakfast, where he appeared before he was missed, and subsequently was lodged in the penitentiary for a five years' term. This structure served the purpose of a jail until 1856, when it was torn down and removed. It had been condemned by the grand jury before, but the inability of the county to supply its place with another caused it to be used for some time. Until 1883, the county obtained accommodations for their prisoners at La Fayette, Monticello and Fowler. At the December session of the Commissioners in 1881, the county entered into contract with P. J. Pauley & Brother, of St. Louis, to erect the present brick building on the corner of Cullen and Harrison streets, Lots 1 and 5 in Block 10 of the original plat. The contract price was §11,655, to which was added $1,087 for the " Haxtem patent" steam heating apparatus, with which the jail is warmed. The specifications of the latter require the interior to be raised to the temperature of seventy degrees when the mercury outside stands at twenty degrees below zero. George M. Robinson was the superintendent of construction on the part of the county, receiving for his services two and onehalf per cent of the contract price.

A "Poor Farm" was established in 1870. Up to this time, the paupers of the county were farmed out to the lowest bidder, and the records bear the frequent and somewhat startling statement of various persons being " sold " at various prices. On March 10, 1870, 240 acres on Section 23, Township 29 north. Range 7 west, were purchased for $4,659, subject also to a mortgage of $341. On this stood a brick residence, which served the purposes of the county until a year or two later, when a frame building was erected at a cost of $475.45. The former building is used to accom- modate such of the inmates as do not need close attention, while the superintendent and other inmates occupy the newer building. For the incurable insane, the county has provided apartments especially adapted for the confinement of the more dangerous of this class, while others are cared for at the farm. The last report of the farm, dated March 31, 1882, gives the value of personal property remaining on the farm at §1,- 353.70, consisting of corn, oats and wheat in the bin and crib, cows, hogs and poultry, and household and kitchen furniture. There were at this date fourteen inmates, four pronounced incurably insane, three badly crippled, two epileptics, one blind, and four old and almost helpless. The report adds : " The farm is in tolerably good condition, and the inmates have comfortable rooms and are well cared for by the Superintendent, Simon Phillips."

County Officials

Owing to the unfortunate destruction of the records, it is impossible to give a full list of those who have occupied official positions in the county. George W. Spitler was Clerk from 1838 to 18.56 ; Charles M. Watson, from 1856 to 1860 ; David I. Jackson, from 1860 to 1868 ; Marion L. Spitler, from 1868 to 1876 ; Charles H. Price, from 1876 to the present.

George W. Spitler was Auditor until 1852 : Lawson Bruce was elected his successor, but served only a few months, when he was taken sick and died. John D. Nork was appointed to fill the vacancy thus occasioned, and served until the next general election in 1855. Turner Knox was then elected, and served until 1859 ; David T. Halstead served from 1859 to 1867 ; Ira W. Yeoman, from 1867 to 1871 : Frank W. Babcock, from 1871 to 1875; Henry Barkley. from 1875 to 1879 ; Ezra C.Nowels, from 1879, and is the present incumbent.

The first Recorder was George AV. Spitler, who served until 1856 ; Cyrus W. Ilenkle, from 1S56 to 1864; Ezra L. Clark, from 1864 to 1872 ; Flarvey W. Wood, from 1872 to 1881 : James T. Abbott, from 18b;l, and is the present incumbent.

Tlie Slieriils have been : Dunn, Barklev, William Stewart, John I'liillips. Wdliara Henderson, Willis J. Wright, to 1858 Simon I'hillip.s from 1858 to 1862 ; Daniel F. Davies, elected in 1862, and died in oiEce; John M. Austin, Coroner, serving the unexpired term ; Charles Piatt, from 186-t to 1868 : Allen J. Yeoman, from I808 to 1872 ; Lewis L. Daugherty, from 1872 to 1876 ; George M. Robinson, from 1876 to 1880; John W. Powell, from 1880, and is the present officer.

The Surveyors have been : Welch, Wesley Spitler, James Ballard, Frederick Schraack, J. D. Hopkins, John Miller, R. B. James, Joseph M. Hopkins, Charles P. Mayhew, Daniel B. Miller, Lewis S. Alter, from 1880, and is the present incumbent.

The Coroners have been : John M. Austin, Norman Warner, F. J. Sears, from 1881, and is the present incumbent. There were others preceding this list, but there are no data at hand to complete the statement.

School Examiners have been: David Snyder, R. S. Pierce, L. A. Cole, Alfred Thomson, H. A. Mayhew, S. P." Thompson, G. M. Johnson, J. H. Snoddy, David B. Nowels, since 1879, and is the present official.

The list of County Commissioners is quite imperfect. The first board consisted of Joseph Smith, Frederick Kenoyer and Amos White ; since then, among those who have served in recent years, G. H. Brown, W. K. Parkinson, C. M. Watson, Samuel McCallough, George Major, Jared Benjamin, George Kessler, Frederick Hoover, E. Rockwood, Isaac D. Dunn, George W. Burk, Asa C. Prevo and John Waymire.

The Early Courts

The first session of the Circuit Court was held in 1839, at the Clerk's residence in the Brook settlement, and was attended by Isaac Naylor as Judge, with Matthew Terwilliger and James T. Timraons as Associates. The Prosecuting Attorney was Joseph A. Wright, who has subsequently represented a district in Congress ; been twice elected Governor of the State, and later appointed as United States Minister to the court at Berlin. Rufus A. Lockwood was in the suite of the court, though it does not appear that he had any case before the court here at this time. Mr. Lockwood subsequently became a distinguished lawyer, and will especially be remembered for his successful prosecution of Gen. Fremont's claim to the Mariposa tract, for which he received the fee of §100,000, an exceptional amount for that time. The court room was the building referred to as the first court house, where, after the daily session, judicial and social distinctions were forgotten, and Judges, opposino' counsel, and " discreet, good and lawful jurors," lay down together with millennium peacefulness of the lion and the lamb. The first cause on the civil docket was " Hepsey Montgomery, administrator, vs. Ed Boon, administrator." On the criminal docket, the first case was the State against I. T. Timmons. This was promptly nolleied by the court, and it may be reasonably questioned whether it was not a "practical joke" against one of the Judges of the Court or some of his relations. At all events, it does not appear again in any subsequent proceedings. A second case was against Jonathan Hunt for " assault and battery," but it seems to have been brought to an untimely end by the absence of the defendant. Writs for his apprehension were issued from several counties, but he seems to have been of such a retiring nature that even all this show of official consideration entirely failed to attract him to the sessions of this first court. The evidence seems to show that he persisted in this conduct to the end, and never graced the court with his presence. The proceedings were further varied by a petition for divorce - Louisa Barr against Andrew Barr.

The first session of the Circuit Court at Rensselaer was held in the "old half-demolished cabin near the residence of Mr. Merkle," in April, 1840. The grand jury, consisting of fifteen men, was made up of the following citizens of the county : W. Donahue, Hannaniah Hewitt, Wesley Spitler, Robert Mallatt, Lewis Elijah, William Gillam, William Doran, Joseph Woolsey, George Culp, Thomas Timmons, James Reed, James Brown, Andrew Richey, Joseph D. Yeoman and Samuel Benjamin. The fall term of this year was attended here by Judge J. W. Wright, of Logansport. The court house in the interim had been unused, and effectually occupied by a vigorous colony of bed-bugs. The court learned that the temple of justice had been occupied bv a number of "red-skinned warriors," who seemed disposed to dispute its possession with the constituted authorities ; but nothing daunted, the Judge had confidence in the awe-inspiring influence of the law, even on a savage, and proceeded to the disputed point. A single glance revealed the inequality of tlie contest, and the session was opened in an unfinished building designed for a blacksmith shop.

The Probate Court was first opened in lSo9, at the court house in the "Brook settlement," the whole proceedings of the term being summed up in the following entry : " There being no business before the court, it adjourned. David McConnel. Judge." At a subsequent session, the business consisted of granting letters of administration to Elias Clifton, on the estate of John Wolf; setting oft' a dower to Mrs. Julia Lewis, widow of Benjamin Lewis, deceased, and the granting of a marriage license to James Lacy and ALitilda Blue, the marriage ceremony being performed by John Lyons, Esq.

Crime

Li its early history, Jasper County bore an unsavory reputation. The unpenetrable character of the swamp lands along the Kankakee River aftorded a safe retreat for a class of criminals who were early known as the " Bandits of the Prairie," and while their depredations were not committed so much upon the people here, they made this region a resort to evade the pursuit from other quarters, and gained for the county the reputation of being a community of those-thieves. This class infested the Northwest as early as 1837, and while they scrupled at the commission of no form of crime, they were especially annoying in their principal business of horse-stealing and counterfeiting. Their plan of operations was to take the lighter horses of Illinois to Indiana and sell them, making their return trip with heavy draft horses which were disposed of in Iowa and Michigan. For a time these depredations were carried on with impunity. The population, scattered at considerable distances apart, was principally confined to the edge of the timber, leaving the prairie a broad highway for these bandits to pass from one end of the country to the other undiscovered. The early settlers did not submit to this state of affairs without some efforts to bring these persons to justice and to recover their property, but singly the pioneers proved poor trappers of this game. The bandits were known to be desperate characters, adepts in the use of weapons and in traveling the open prairie, and it often happened that when a party got close upon the thieves, discretion seemed the better part of valor, and the chase was given up. Their success emboldened these robbers, and the early land and stock buyers learned to seldom travel alone, and never unarmed.

A good horse caused many persons to be waylaid and killed, and a large amount of money in the possession of an unprotected person, almost inevitably brought him into trouble. Burglary soon followed success on the road. Farmers became more cautious and evaded these footpads. In this case the cabin was entered, and the money taken, while the family was kept discreetly quiet by a threatening pistol. The open-handed hospitality of a new country made the settlers an easy prey to those who lacked even the traditional respect of the Bedouin freebooter. It was impossible to discriminate between the worthy stranger and the bandit, and the stranger taken in was more likely to prove a robber than an angel in disguise. Civil authority seemed hopelessly incapable of remedying the evil. Occasionally a desperado would be apprehended. Legal quibbles would follow and the rascals get free, or justice would be delayed until a jail-delivery would set him loose to prey upon the public again. This occurred with such monotonous regularity and unvarying success, that the scattered pioneers began to lose confidence in each other, and anarchy seemed about to be ushered in.