Hanover Township (part 8 of 29)

With his ardent and inquiring disposition it could not be expected that he should remain quiet in political matters. He was heart and soul a Whig. He fought thenbattles on the stump and in the press, and was cue of the pillars of that party in this county. His treatment of opponents, however, was much kinder than is usually the rule, and he never lost or impaired the friendship of any worthy man on that account. He was present at all assemblages of the party, and generally drew up the resolutions, either alone or in conjunction with some one else. In 1848 he was named as an associate judsre of the county, and was elected to that position in March by the General Assembly. This office was one of the survivals from nu earlier age. but uot because of fitness. The associate judge sat on the- bench, but was not expected to take any part in the trial of cases, and to leave the management of affairs entirely in the hands of the president judge. Yo law compelled it, but only the custom of the incumbents. This position did not suit Mr. Smith, and he speedily asserted his right to an equal share of the. business of the court. When occasion required, he manifested his dissent, and was sustained by the Supreme Court on appeal. The office, as it had been conducted, was useless, and was abolished b\ the constitution of 1851. His position was for seven years, but he resigned it at the end of a year to accept an office from General Taylor, whose warm friend lie was, ami whose election he had striven with all his miirht to accomplish. L iider the limitation of the new constitution his tenure would have expired iu another vear. The abolition of this office was a change he was iu favor of, and was one of many which he had pressed upon the attention of the Constitutional Convention. He had repeatedly addressed popular audiences upon the no- cssity of a revision of our organic law.

tioii would, within, a half-century, overleap that great versity, located at the city of St. Anthony. He -was river at the Northwest, and begin a commonwealth. , present at the first meeting, and introduced the first ordiwhich should last as long as the English race. Those of nance for the government of the university. Congress uue. Before we shall reach our threescore years and ten j organization of the Territory the university was in suctluit State will embrace more inhabitants than Greece in eesst'ul operation. Mr. Smith was on active advocate of her palmiest days, or as many as the united colonies had schools, and made himself very useful in furthering all cdia 177G, when they shook off the yoke of Great Britain. : ucational enterprises and means of instruction in the early We have no age of cloud and doubt in our history, such years of the Territory. The Churches also received his as" had the Greeks. Our annals mount to the fountain- assistance. In 3849 there was not a church-building in head, and are not lost in legends of Theseus, Hercules, j St. Paul, except one small log house belonging to the' and the interference of the gods. Our adventurers are : Catholics. In the absence of church-buildings Mr. Smith known, and their names will be preserved for centuries. ! prepared the room? uswl for the first territorial Legisla- Whcn tins act creating the Territory of Minnesota was lure, and permitted the different denominations to* hold passed, Charles I\. Smith was made its secretary. This ' religious meetings in them.

office is equivalent to that of lieutenant-governor and " Mr. Smith was president of the hoard of commissecretary of state in older communities, and is charged ! sioners of the public buildings of the Territory, and durwith responsibility. Mr. Smith went to his new field of ! ing his services as such all the preliminaries were arranged duty in May, 1849. There were no settlements, except- for the erection of the. capitol buildings and the territorial iug one at St, Paul, begun a month or two previous, and j prison.

oue or two military garrisons. The whole engine of gov- j ".The early territorial history of Minnesota is closely ernment was to be set in motion. In addition ' to the connected with the name of C. K. Smith, and we may duties of his office, he, for some six months, discharged well say that he had the honor of being one of the most, those of the governor, who was absent, and whose place prominent founders of a new empire of the Northwest, he took. He was also superintendent of Indian affairs, from which has sprung the young and vigorous Stale of He discharged these various obligations with ability and : Minnesota."

success, receiving, in addition, the approval of the in- ; He was an indefatigable worker. He had a love for habitants, of the Territory. He found no schools when public employment, and did an immense amount of grahc went there, but did not rest until public provision tuitoos labor. He received an excellent training with had been made for their establishment, as well as carry- Mr. Roily, and his subsequent life increased and accenting them through the Winter. He was the founder of uated his thoroughness and love of detail. It has already the Minnesota. Historical Society. We are indebted to a - been remarked that he aided In's father as paymaster in friendly pen for a description of* his exertions in its the war of 1812. This was with Colonel Richard M. behalf: ~ ; Johnson's mounted Kentuckians, while lying at Fort

" 1 he history of the act incorporating tins society and the published proceedings show that Mr. Smith was ; the life and moving spirit of it while he remained in the ! Territory. The pamphlet, containing upward? of two hundred pages, embracing the transactions of the first two annual meetings of the society, was published and circuited throughout the United: Stares at the sole expense ot Mr. Smith. The organization of the society was « »rough t- about, by him, and through his exertions it was incorporated by the first territorial Legislature. Its proceedings were highly spoken of by the press at the time, Plough it was thought by some to be anomalous to have a historical society in a country without a history, as was Mtp|Mised, the Territory being but just organized. But bn* Minnesota Historical Society was a success; and since its organization it has published upwards of one thousand ! Wes <>f valuable information, and it may he added that publications of that society did as much, if not more, attract emigration to Minnesota than an\ other means.

Defiance. He was the recording secretary of the first Bible Society organized in this county, which was in the year 1822. He was an attendant at the services of the United Presbyterian Church, of which his wife was a member, and contributed liberally to its funds. Ho gave the lot on which the First Presbyterian Church now stands, and assisted the Catholics with money and advice when they first sought to erect a building in Hamilton. Other Churches also knew his generous baud. In the. hard years in which labor nearly ceased and the crops were deficient, no one gave more largely to the poor than he, nor with less pretense.

Among the labors that lie performed, and performed well, were sketches of deceased pioneers iu the count' newspapers. He had a wide acquaintance with them, coming, as lie did, to the county just at the close of the tir-d decade of settlement, and never neglected anv opportunity that might he olKivd to ieani ah ur their hardsnips and trials and the growth and development of their communities. He gave many of the papers at his disposal to the Cincinnati Pioneer Society, and gathered newspapers and books from which the future annalist could draw largely for facts relating to The Northwest. He at one time entertained the. idea of writing a history of Butler County, and made numberless memoranda with that aim in view. Some of these were published in the Intelligencer forty years ago, under the title of " Notes on Butler County.'' They comprise the first systematic attempt to reduce the unwritten memories of the early settler's to form, and to place them in print. And the present writer must acknowledge his obligations to this source, and the uniform courtesy he has met with from the surviving members of the family in the use of these materials. They are both rare and valuable. Mr. Smith also wrote largely on other subjects. Few years passed in which he did not contribute to the local journals, many of these articles producing a marked effect upon the public mind. He never wrote from a love of display, but only from a desire to inform and preserve. In both these aims he was successful. His style was clear and compact, never descending to personality. Among other subjects, he made a report on Irish Repeal ; Report of the Debate on Slavery in 1842 between Dr. Junkin and the Rev. Thomas II. Thomas; Biographical Sketches of the Rev. Arthur W. Elliott, Dr. Daniel Millikin,' John P. Reynolds, Esq., and historical articles for the Minnesota Historical Society.

Mr. Smith was a popular, man in his community. Although sometimes the victim of a pasquinade in the opposition papers, from which he could not well escape, being so prominent a man on his own side, he never was attacked with that envenomed bitterness which other men felt. He loved his friends warmly, but hated bis enemies with equal warmth. He would not injure the latter, but he despised them. Those who knew him longest liked him best, and when once he became a friend he was so always. He bad a warm affection for fraternal societies. He was admitted into the ancient and honorable order of Free Masons as soon as he arrived at age, and remained with them all his life-time, beingadvanced to the highest degrees of the order. When in Minnesota he opened a Masonic lodge. In 1841 he J united as a charter member in organizing a lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, advancing in this through the higher degrees : aud in Minnesota he assisted iu establishing a lodge of Odd Fellows there. He was a Knight Templar as a Mason and an encampment member iu Odd Fellowship.

Upon his- return from Minnesota Mr. Smith came to Hamilton, and bought his father's old homestead, upon which he settled, giving little attention to public affairs, but much to his books and the duties of his farm. He was active and energetic in the prosecution of the war for the Union, and did all that- he could ro arouse aud inform, the public mind upon the real merits of the contest. Four of his sons went out to the nrmv, one dying soon alter peaee was assured. Mr. Smith remained at

On the 21st of November, 1827, he married Miss ; Eleanor A. McMechau, daughter of the Rev. James i MeMechnn, an early Presbyterian minister of this region, and a native of Ireland. Mrs. Smith survived him,

| dying March 6t£, 1879. He had by this marriage five ! sons and four daughters, of whom but one died before the I father. They are as follows : Mrs. Marcella S. Webb ; j .1. William G. was captain of the Butler Pioneers in the -j Twenty-sixth Regiment 0. V. I., in the late Rebellion,

! died in 1870 ; Edward Hudson, Ellen A., Jesse C\, Mary ' Florence, and Park W. Mary Florence Smith was mar- | ried to Edward W. Schenck, and had four children, Ginevra Eleanor, Zenaide C. , Jessie L., and Charles K. Jessie L. died in August, 1871, and Charles K. in April, 1875, in the tbiid year of his age.

William Davidsox

; have esteemed itself fortunate in its pastors. The Word ! of Life has rarely been anywhere set forth with more j clearness, or its conclusions urged with more thorough- | ness, than by its first pastor, or by the one who succeeded I him, and whose name is at the head of this biographical

The Rev. William Davidson was born on the 2d of October, 1817, in Brooke County, West Virginia'. He received little education at schools during Ids early boyhood, but bad the assiduous care and watchfulness of his parents, who grounded him in the most necessary portions of learning. When he had arrived at the age of thirteen he was sent away from home to Liberty, Pennsylvania, where he stayed two years. He then went to Franklin College, New Athens, Ohio, where he completed a regular collegiate course. As he was designed for the ministry he received in addition instruction from the Rev. J. C. Neal, pastor of a Church at Short Creek, Virginia. Here he spent his days and nights over the Bible, acquiring a wonderful knowledge of it, and ever after being able to quote from any portion with telling | effect. The Bible aud a few other explanatory works | constituted the whole of his text-books.

The denomination to which Mr. Davidson belonged | t\as the Reformed Dissenting Church, and to that body he applied for reception, being licensed by the presbytery [ iu 1840, at a meeting hold in the old ''Tent Church," near the place of his nativity. To this whole denomination there had never heeu more than four ministers at one time, and they w -ve scattered lar apart. Few iu>tauc< ~ j of societies of this sise have lwtu met with, but they arc not altogether unknown, The Old Dissenters, in Scot- j land, were without a preacher from 1090 to 1706, although they had a number of congregations. Mr. Davidson took earnestly hold of the work which he i found to do, and at once began preaching in' southwestern Ohio and south-eastern Indiana. His labors were not confined to churches, but he discoursed in school-houses, barns, dwellings, and in the open air, meeting with much success.

some time after lived near the State line between Ohio and Indiana. He had congregations at Vienna, Indiana; j at College Corner, which is in both States, and at Car- : thage and Piqua, Ohio. To these places be rode on horseback, the farthest being fifty miles, and two of the ! others not less thafi thirty. He counted no labor too severe to reach them, and to expound the Scriptures to | those who might he gathered. Tie frequently stopped hv ! the way and held services in addition to those at his four , regular places.' .j

In May, 1843, he found that he was weakened by his I inability to administer the sacraments of baptism and the 1 Lord's-supper, and he returned to West Virginia so that ! he might he ordained. This was done by the presbytery, and he soon returned to lus Churches, where he 1 labored until the close of the year 1847. His health had not beou good all of this time, and his physical strength seemed at times overtasked, but he did not desist on that account. He was a man of eloquence, and his burning, fiery words will long lie remembered in these \ places, as well as Iris shining example.

> In 1848 Dr. MneDill had grown weak, and deter- i mined to remove to Illinois from Hamilton. Mr. David- - son was chosen his successor, and came to this city to live ! in March of that year. He joined the Associate Reformed Church, leaving the Reformed Dissenting, and j ever after was a preacher in the Associate Reformed and Tinted Presbvteriun Churches, the latter bein'* the sue- : lessor of the former. Dr. MacDiil had served this con- ' gregation since 1810, and it was no light task to attempt ! to fill his place. In this, however. Mr. Davidson was !

successful, and the Church was never more prosperous, i Hi; toiled assiduously to strengthen the cause. Vo labor was too great to he undertaken for his divine Master, j He did not content himself alone with his pastoral labor, lie went wherever he was called. He did not refuse to j V|'it those in sickness who when well had never listened to him, and he pronounced the solemn words of the Oosl"'t at the grave of those who, when alive, attended no \ * hurch. The seed was sown everywhere.

sums was of more importance than the promulgation '*1 civet is. Yet, on the other hand, he never uttered ot those phrases which are now so common - phrases j which admit every act and every person. The kingdom of heaven was not to be attained without striving for, and its laws were firm and immutable. He compromised with no form of sin, nor did ho withhold statements of his own belief because it might be unpopular. Slavery was properly characterized, even in those days before the war, when the truth could hardly be endured in proslavery Butler; intemperance and the use of intoxicating drinks were denounced, although this was common ; nor did his tongue fail to reprove and condemn the other vices of that day and this. He gave an ardent and thorough support to the war, believing it to he the cause of Christianity He addressed the volunteers as they were going, preaching discourses replete with the soundest patriotism, but saying nothing that was not also tinged by a deep religious feeling. It must not he disguised that the war was not popular here, but was looked upon with disfavor. He fought this tendency, and lost no opportunity of showing the monstrous ingratitude and injustice of those who supported the rebel cause.

Mr. Davidson was well equipped for such a struggle, or for the work of the ministry generally. His mind ranged its knowledge systematically, and when he desired to call up any fact or to pursue a chain of reasoning founded upon that fact, it could he found at once. He spoke well extemporaneously. His arguments, although usually prepared beforehand, did not necessarily require this. The stream never ran turbidly. He had an excellent knowledge of the Scriptures; he had read and studied much besides; he was familiar with the statements of those who sought to overturn Christianity, as well as with those who explain and gloss the whole away. He was familiar with their whole armory, and feared no weapon they could draw from it. It is the modern phase of infidelity that is dreaded bv the truly devout clergyman, not the ancient. Voltaire and Paine do not undermine so insidiously as Strauss, Renan, or Huxley.

He was attacked, on the 14tl of February, 1873, by paralysis, recovering somewhat from it, and preaching a few times afterwards ; hut his bodily powers were so much lessened that he knew it was time for him to set his house in order. In February, 1874. he gave up his charge, and the pastoral relation was dissolved hv the presbytery in April of that year. After that, he prepared for the final hour. In June of 1875 he was confined in-doors, dying on the 21st of July. He had been patient and considerate even in this, his last sickness.

A volume of his sermons was published in 1876 hv the Western Tract Society, under the title of "Sermons on the Parables." It contained, in addition, an cssuv on Mr. Davidson as ail orator, preacher, and pastor, by the Rev. Dr. John Y. S oulier, and an excellent biographical sketch by David W. Met 'lung, who was for manv years an attendant upon his ministrations.

Among the earlier merchants of Hamilton Joseph Hough is, perhaps, best known. He carried on the largest establishment, and his operations were conducted with a vigor unusual at that day: He did not inherit this trait from his parents, who were Quakers, but it seemed entirely the offspring of his own genius. He was born on a farm near Brownsville, Fayette County, Pennsylvania, on the 26th of February, 1763. In 1788 the family removed to Washington County, at the extreme south-west part of the State, where Mr. Hough died, in 1798, and his wife eighteen months later. Joseph Hough then resolved to learn the watchmakers' trade from his brother-in-law, Israel Gregg, who afterwards also became a resident of Hamilton, and stayed with him till he was twenty-one. Immediately upon completing his majority he engaged with I another watchmaker and silversmith in - Brownstown, and wrought as a journeyman for two years, saving in the course of that period over one thousand dollars. At this time his brother Thomas, who had acquired some capital, proposed to Joseph that they should unite their capital, buy a stock of goods, and go West. The suggestion seemed good to him, and the two young men joined their forces and came out to the Miami country, intending to settle at Lebanon, Warren Comity. They bought their goods in Philadelphia, wagoned them over the mountains, and on the 1st of June, 1806, committed them to the Monongahcla River. The water in that stream was very low, as was also the ! Ohio, and the journey was slow and tedious. Cincinnati ' was reached in twenty-five days, and from that place j they hired wagons to take on their goods to Lebanon, j Saddle-horses were scarce, and from the river they fol- ; lowed their wagons on foot. These had started first, and | the Hough brothers expected to overtake them near j Reading, but missed their way, being obliged to stop over j night at j the house of a friendly miller, Jacob White, j about nine miles from their starting-place. Mr. White j questioned them as to their intentions, and on learning j that they meant to go to Lebanon advised against it. j There was, he said, no good building to be obtained there; but in Hamilton there was. John Wi agate had just given up business in the latter place, and the Houghs could, no doubt, obtain his house. They thanked him for his friendly advice, and determined to follow it. Early in the morning they started out and overtook the wagons, which they turned in the new direction.

They had been just one mouth on their journey when they reached this town, on the 1st of July. No difficulty j was experienced in obtaining the house which Mr. Win- ! gate lmd used, and they immediately commenced selling j goods. Their stand, was on Front Street, near the corner of Bjmu, on the ground now covered by the Catholic i church. It was of logs. There was then no other store ; here, except John Sutherland's, on the east side of Front, I between Stable and Dayton Streets. Business want well < with them ; but in September Thomas was attacked with bilious fever, which was thc-n epidemic, and died on -the 17th of that month. Four days after his death the surviving brother was taken with the same disease, and for some days his life was despaired of. On his final recovery he settled up the estate, giving to his younger sisters his share of his brother's estate, and still continuing the trade.

The next Spring he entered into partnership with Thomas Blair, Robert Clark, and Neil Gillespie, of Brownsville, Pennsylvania, under the firm name of Hough, Blair & Co. After a time he erected a frame building on the other side of the street; to which lie removed. His partnership with Blair, Clark, and Gillespie lasted until 1811. He then, in partnership with James McBride, who was a little younger, bat had come to Hamilton the same year, began to buy wheat, which was ground into flour, and then taken to New Orleans to be sold. He understood thoroughly the method of doing this, and he and Mr. McBride each reaped handsome returns. These journeys were long, and attended with considerable danger. Often when a young man left this neighborhood to go down the Mississippi, he called on all his friends, shook hands, and bade them goccl-bye, as he now would to go to Australia. Mr. Hough gave, in 1852, an account of the obstacles he met with:

44 The difficulties connected with the mercantile business of that early period can not be realized by the merchants of this day. We had to travel on horseback from Hamilton to Philadelphia, a distance of six hundred miles, to purchase our goods. We were exposed to all kinds of weather, and were compelled to pass over the worst possible roads. When our goods were purchased, we had to engage wagons to haul them to Pittsburg, a distance by the then roads of three hundred miles. Their transportation over the mountains occupied from twenty to twenty-five days, and cost from six to ten dollars per hundred. Our goods being landed at Pittsburg, we usually bought flat-boats or k 'el-boats, and hired hands to take our goods to Cincinnati, and we were able to. have them hauled to Hamilton at from fifty to seventyfive cents per hundred. M e were generally e imaged three mouths in going East, in purchasing our stock of goods and getting them safely delivered at Hamilton. These three mouths were mouths of toil and privation, and of expense of every kind.

"In illustration of the truth of the above remark, I may state that, in one of my trips from Pittsburg to Cincinnati, I was thirty-nine days on a keel-boat, with six men besides myself to man the boat. The river was then as low as has ever been known on many of the ripples in the deep, st < haunch it channel it could be called vlnto there was sou reel v a tout of water. M\ boat drew one foot and a halt', after taking out all su< ii articles as we could carry o\v» the ripple in a large canoe, which was the only kind of lighter wo could procure. Const-- fluently, we had to scrape out channels at the low ripples of sufficient width and depth to flout our bout. We usually found out the deepest water on the ripple, and all hands would engage in making tire channel. When we passed such a ripple we reloaded oar goods and pro- j ceeded to the next, where the same labor hud to be per- | formed and the same exposure endured. The extent of the labor wbicli had to be performed in order to pass our boat can be best understood when I state that we were frequently detained three days at some of the worst | ripples.

"At that early day the road from Philadelphia to . Pittsburg was exceedingly bad. It was only graded and turupiked to Lancaster. The residue of the road in : many places was very steep and exceedingly rough. From ; thirty to thirty-five hundred pounds was considered a ; good load for a good five-horse team. There was only a j weekly line of stages from Philadelphia to Pittsburg, I and the time occupied in going from one place to the J other was six days.

" After the receipt of our goods at Hamilton, our j difficulties were by no means all overcome. In order to sell them we were compelled not only to do the ordinary duties of merchants and to incur its ordinary responsibilities and risks, but bad to become the produce merchants of the country. We were compelled to take the farmers' produce, and send or take it to New Orleans, the only market we could reach. It was necessary for the merchant to buy pork and to pack it, to buy wheat, have barrels made, and contract for the manufacture of wheat j into flour, and then to build flat-bottomed boats, and with i great expense and risk of property commit the whole to j the dangers of the navigation of the Miami, Ohio, and i Mississippi rivers. The difficulties of the trip were not overcome when we had safely arrived in In ew Orleans, j In returning home we had either to travel eleven hundred miles bv land, five hundred of which was through the Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Cherokee nations of Indians, or else go by sea either to Philadelphia or Baltimore, ! and thence home by land, I have -descended the Ohio and Mississippi rivers to New Orleans, before steamboat, navigation could be relied on to bring one to Louisville', fourteen times. Thirteen trips were made on flat-boats 1 and one on a barge. I .traveled home by laud eight times, and we were usually about thirty davs iu making the trip. The first two trips I made by laud ; there j were neither ferries nor bridges over any water-course ; from the Bayou Pierre, at Port Gibson, iu the Mississippi : territory, to George Colbert's ferry over the Tennessee | t bver. When we came in our route to a water-course j which would swim our horses, we would throw our sad- ; 1 lie-bags and provisions over our shoulders, and -wim our : i"'r<es over. - We were compelled to vamp without tents, regardless of rain or any other unfavorable weather, and these trips, our spirits never flagged. The excitement, incident to the trips sustained us, and we were always ready to enjoy a hearty laugh whenever the occasion provoked it.

"The first time I descended the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, I left Cincinnati in December, 1808, with five flat-boats, all loaded with produce. At that time there were but few settlers on the Ohio River below the present city of Louisville. The cabins were few and far between, and there were only two small villages between Louisville and the mouth of the Ohio. One was Henderson, known then by the name of Red Banks ; the other was Shawneetown. The latter was a village of a few cabins, and was used as a landing-place for the saltworks on the Saline River, back of the village. The banks of the Mississippi, from the mouth of the Ohio to Natchez, were still more sparsely settled. New Madrid, a very small village, was the first settlement below the month of the Ohio. There were a few cabins at Little Prairie, a cabin opposite to where Memphis now is, and on the lower end of the bluff on which that city is built there was a stockade fort, called Fort Pickering, garrisoned by a. company of rangers. Cabins were to be seen at the mouth of White River, at Point Chico, and at W alnnt Hills, two miles above where the city of Vicksburg now is. From this place to Natchez there were cabins at. distances from ten to twenty miles apart. The whole country bordering on the Mississippi, from the mouth of the Ohio to iSatchez, might be regarded as an almost unbroken wilderness. The Indians seldom visited the banks, except at a few points where the river approached the high lands.

"The bands of robbers, who had infested the lower part of the Ohio and the Mississippi rivers had not been entirely dispersed, and were yet much dreaded bv the merchant navigators of those rivers, so that the men on the boats were well armed, and during the night, when lying at the shore in the wilderness country, a sentinel was kept on deck to prevent surprise."

Mr. Hough descended these rivers shortly after the earthquake which, so violently convulsed a great portion of the Mississippi Valley, in the Winter of 1811-12. Many boatmen who had lost, ov in their fright abandoned, their boats, were returning home iu despair, giving frightful accounts of the dangers they had encountered. Mr. Hough, however, persevered in his trip. On entering 'the Mississippi and approaching New Madrid, the effects of the earthquake became apparent.' Or. the west side of the river, for a long distance, the cottonwood and willows that lined tin shore were bent or prostrated up-stream, showing that the current had rushed violently in that direct. ..n, contrary to its natural course. The town of bow Madrid suffered severely. At Little Prairie, about thirty miles below New Madrid, where had been a small settlement, a large portion of the bank bad sunk into the river, including the bury iug-ground. Not a house was left standing, and the inhabitants had all fled. The surface of the ground was fractured in many places, leaving deep and wide chasms. In other places circular holes, or depressions, resembling sink-holes, remained, from which had issued water and sand, the sand forming an elevation round the margin of the holes. Where these had occurred under large trees they were often riven and split up for tea or twenty feet, and so remained standing. Other trees in the forest were shivered and broken off as by the effects of a great tornado. Large masses of the banks, sometimes many acres in extent, had sunk so as to leave only the tops of the high trees above the surface of the water. Occasionally shocks were still felt, preceded by a rumbling sound like distant thunder, agitating and convulsing the' shores and waters of the river, and jarring the boats as though they had grounded on the bottom. An island below Little Prairie had totally disappeared. In some places the bottom of the river had been elevated, and numerous boats were wrecked on the snags and old trees brought near the surface. So numerous were they in some places that they presented the appearance of an overflowed field covered with old deadened timber. On several occasions the boats had to he tied up while Mr. Hough went forward with a skiff to explore for a passage. The earthquake was also felt in Butler County.

"1 was at X? w Orleans, in the Spring of 1816, when Captain Henry Shrew.:, of Brownsville, Pennsylvania, was at the wharf of that city with the steamboat inrjton, a new boat of one hundred and fifty tons burden. Site was preparing for her trip to Louisville. The price asked for a cabin passage was one hundred and fifty dollars, and for freight five dollars per hundred pounds. I regarded the charge most exorbitant, and, in preference, bought a horse, and went home by land. Captain Shreve made his trip at that time in. twenty-five flays, and on his arrival at Louisville the citizens gave him a public dinner for laving made the trip in so short a time. In a few remarks he made on the occasion, he told them he belie\ ed that the time would come when the trip would be made in fifteen days. He was regarded as being insane on the subject; the evens was regarded as impossible.

"Those engaged in steamboat navigation of the great rivers at the present day know but little, if anv thing, of the difficulties that were encountered by Captain Shreve and other pioneers in steamboat navigation. Wood could nof be obtained as now ; no wood-yards had been established. The officers were often compelled to take their crews into the woods, and cut and haul a sufficient quantity to last the usual time of running. The wood thus obtained was necessarily green, and but little suited tor making steam. The officers had even thing, to learn in relation to their business. Engineers had no science, and but little experience in operating an engine. Pilots were generally tiat-boutmeu, who know the channels of the

| river imperfectly and nothing about the management of | a steamboat,. In fact, Captain Shreve labored under > j many difficulties that it was not to be wondered' at that ' he should have occupied twenty-five days in making the j trip.

" My first trip on a stcamb >at from New Orleans was | made in the Spring of 1819, with Captain Israel Gregg j (the person to whom I bound myself as an apprentice),

In March, 1815, Air. Hough made a partnership with I Samuel Aliliikin, and afterwards with Lewis A Test, and j continued' in the Orleans trade until 1825, when ho ! removed to Vicksburg, where he conducted a store until | 1828. His landed property in Hamilton- was not disposed of, and he used to come up to this place in the ; Spring of the year, returning in the Fall. He owned a | valuable farm in the southern part of the county, where,

| for many years, he raised choice fruit. In 1858 he was j attacked with typhoid fever in Vicksburg, which ended j his life on the 23d of April, being then seventy years old. His remains were brought to Hamilton by his sonin-law, Alajor John AI. Aliliikin, and were interred in Greenwood Cemetery, on the 3d of May, 1853.

Air. Hough had but one child, Alary Greenlee Hough, j now the wife of Alajor Aliliikin. She was the daughter I of Jane Hunter, whose father was Joseph Hunter, a i well-known farmer in this county. Air. and Aim. Hough I were married on die 27th of December, 1810, the wife 1 dying in 1849. She was an excellent Christian woman,

Fergus Anderson'

Fergus Anderson died early in April, 1880, at his ! residence in A'enice, from general debility, aged Cighty- I three years. His death had bceu expected for some ; time, as lie had gradually become very weak. The life of Fergu> Anderson stands out prominently in Butler County history. His period of greatest activity in political afiiiirs extended from 1828 to 1840. Those tine s are heyond the recollection of men now approaching mid- | tile fife, but are not forgotten by hundreds of our old. 'a citizens, who are more identified with the past than tLe present.

Lead Ees Of The Half Century

Fergus Anderson came of good stock. His father j was Isaac Anderson, mentioned elsewhere in this book. ! Fergus was the second oldest son, and was born in Cin- | cinnati -June 14, 1797. He was married to Miss Mary - Dick, daughter of Samuel Dick, an old associate pioneer of Isaac Anderson, June. 28, 1821. Fergus was brought up to the business of farming, and after he was married settled on a farm on Indian Creek, near the residence of his father. In 1828 he was sent to the Legislature. He served ..two years, and was then elected to the senate, where he stayed the same length of time. In 1835 he was chosen a justice of the peace in Ross Township, in which office he served until he was elected associate judge of Butler County by the Legislature. This office he retained seven years. For many years he was also j president of the board of trustees of Miami University, and a member of the comity agricultural board. In all 1 these varied capacities he served the public faithfully [ and well.

Iu middle life Mr. Anderson was a wealthy man, but I he gave much money to his married sons, and two of ! them dying, many thousands of dollars went out of the 1 home estate, and he finally found himself in embarrassed j circumstances - principally through these means.

In disposition his principal characteristics were his kindness of heart and gentleness. Enemies he had none, while his friends, especially among the older generation now living, could be numbered by hundreds.

James McBride, the historian, was of Scotch descent. His grandfathers, on both the paternal and maternal j side, were born in North Britain, not long after the j incorporation of Scotland with England, aud emigrated j to Pennsylvania about the time of the French and Iu- ! dian war. His father was also James McBride. While j still a young man he went to Kentucky, then the scene ! of perpetual Indian warfare, and fell a victim to the j attacks of the red men. There was a trace leadii g from j tne mouth of the Licking to the sice of the present city ! of Lexington, and while on this path he was cut olT by | the Indians in 1789, on ciie Dry Ridge. His wife, ! w hose maiden name was Mi. Roberta, . had been left at | koine, while he was out, on the frontier, and there she [ lived until her death, which occurred in September, j U'!8. Her residence was on the farm, near Conoco- j Creek, where she had been born. She had but j one child, the subject of this sketch.

James McBride, the sou, was horn November 2, 1788, j "!1 Ike nirm above mentioned, a short distance from | ? 'reem-astle, Franklin County, Pennsylvania. He re- ! " twit no set education, hut improved what opportunities | *'- ' for reading, and, on coming to this .county, in : b-r eighteenth ycat of Ids age, was discovered to possess si s, r>' kirgo amount, of useful knowledge. Ho had been well i ,lwl runted iu penmanship, and his neat and painstaking 1 chirography can be traced in the public records of the county almost from the time of his coming until his death. His first employment, it is believed, was as clerk for John Reilv, but he soon found other openings. Every one had the utmost confidence in him, and he was constantly in request. His patrimony was not large, but it enabled him sometimes to try new7 plans for bettering his fortune. Just before the war with Great Britain, in the early part of this century, he engaged with Joseph Hough in a venture to Newy Orleans. Flour was bought and shipped to that port with a large profit, and thenceforth Mr. McBride was easy in bis circumstances. He never attained riches.

In 1813 he was elected sheriff, and was again chosen in 1815. This office was then considered as being the chief one in the county, aud it shows the confidence his fellowcitizens must have had in him, as lie was but twenty-five when elected. While holding this office he was married to Hannah, daughter of Judge Robert, Lytle, who dwelt a few miles from town, and with her he lived forty-five years, having three sons and two daughters.

Mr. McBride had scarcely removed to this county when he begun his researches in the early history of this region. He foresaw its progress, and knew that where there was then only a wooded plain would soon be villages and cities. The pioneers were still alive who could recount the tale of the defeat of St. Clair, the triumphal march of W ayne, the building of the first houses, and the birth of the first children. Some of the older ones had been in the Revolutionary struggle, and yet older ones remembered the last long and tedious war we waged with France, ending with glorious victories in 17G3. These stories were not wasted upon an inattentive ear. He listened to the narrations, and put down upon paper the material portions relating to the early settlement of the Miami country.- He verified the relations by comparison with others, and then wrote out a rough draft for publication. This again was changed and altered until, in some cases, three drafts of the same narrative were extant at once. It is impossible to say how much he wrote, hut there are probably now in existence, iu his handwriting, not less than three thousand pages of manuscript bearing upon Butler County and the country adjacent. Amou" the most valuable of these is the work issued iu ] SG9 by Robert Clarke & Co., of Cincinnati, under the title of "'Pioneer Biography of Butler County." T his is in two handsome octavo volumes, and contains sketches of nearly thirty pioneers, besides incidental allusions to more than a. hundred others. By the indulgence of Mrs. Stembel, his daughter, and ot Mr. Robert, Clarke, wo have used much of the matter in those pages, without indicating from what source it has hoc i taken. It is safe to say that with these, and what we have boon able since1 to vl' an, there wili be no county iu the State better informed of its beginning than Butlc. Our "shepherd kings" are uoc mythical.

Besides these, Mr. McBride wrote a history of Hamilton, and one of Oxford, together with a sketch of the ' Miami University. These have never previously been printed; but their substance will appear in these pages. No one can read what he has done 'without being struck with the thoroughness and solidity with which he did his work. He read many volumes to make his annotations, and each page of his writing must represent a day of labor. There are blanks left here ami there to be filled up, and in some cases where chapter headings were placed the text had not been written. He hoped to be able to do this, but time was lacking. To the triennial catalogue of the Miami University there are copious additions, and there is included in his papers on the Miami University a list of the graduates, with their subsequent history. This must have taken a great deal of correspondence. He wrote an account of the Hamilton bridge, which was published by the stockholders ; he furnished the mean?, and wrote the book, describing Symmes's theory of concentric spheres; and he occasionally contributed points of Ohio history both to C'ld's Miscellany and the Hamilton papers. Howe's History of Ohio was largely indebted to him.

But while he was writing what had happened, he was also attentive to gathering up those books and. odds and ends of knowledge that would make the preparation of historical works easier to the future annalist. His library was in many branches of knowledge, embracing probably five thousand volumes, at a day when neither incomes nor libraries were so large as at present. He retained files of the Hamilton papers from the beginning, a? well as of Nice Register and the National Intelligencer. A few of these went to the State library, but the remainder are destroyed. He kept every pamphlet that reached him ; and it is not too much to say that, in this respect, the loss that was suffered- by his death and their destruction is incalculable to the student of Western history. Beginning1 his researches in 1806, and continuing them for mot e than a half century, it is certain that the historical societies of the future, in Chicago, Cincinnati, and Cleveland, would be willing to pay their weight in silver for what is now lost. It should be remembered that, seventysix years ago, Cincinnati, Pittsburg, and Louisville were inconsiderable villages, ami St. Louis a hamlet. Mr. McBride's collection was probably the richest iu the incunabula of the West, if v.c may borrow a term generally restricted to the fifteenth century, of any made or gathered in the United States. He had the same advantages that Jefferson had when he collected his library of works relating to America, with the exception that our pioueer retained only those which were locally valuable.

Mr. McBride was never happier than wheu in his library. lie had :: sincere love for (ruth, and wished himself to know what k was. even wheu lie had no desire to write or otherwise express it. His books were iiis fountains of knowledge. lie kept continually adding to them, and was equally assiduous in extracting their contents. He was always ready to lend his aid to other investigators, and to place, them upon sound ground. H,. Lad a strong intellect and a love for letters, and lie never seemed to grow tired of these investigations. The result | was that, in the end, he had accumulated a vast stock of I knowledge, and this without pretense or exciting remark.

As wili be seen by our chapter on the mound -builders, kindly furnished by J. P. MacLeau, the whole region hereabouts is dotted with the remains of a race who built earthworks and threw up barrows, and of whom no other relics now remain. Mr. McBride was the first observer in this county who gave these tumuli more than cursory attention. He opened some of them, and others he surveyed and described. The one on sections 4, 5, 8, and 9, St. Clair Township, was described in the transactions of the Ohio Historical and Philosophical Society by him. He spent much time in this pursuit, and. by patience and the use of money, finally succeeded in getting together the finest collection of prehistoric relics ever in this neighborhood- Many of these curiosities were the gifts of his neighbors, who knew his tastes. This cabinet is now in the possession of George W. Vaux, of Philadelphia. Forty years ago Squier and Davis were in this vicinity, making surveys, drawings, and collections for a volume soon to be issued by the Smithsonian b Institute, in Washington, and enlisted his aid and that J of Mr. John W. Erwin in their behalf. Yet, although the "Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley" owe largely to the assistance of these two gentlemen, who furnished near a hundred pages, they received no public acknowledgment, aud the community at large believes these drawings, plans of survey, and notes were from the pen of the two editors.

We are apt to forget, in these days of easy locomotion and advanced education, what great benefits were reaped from our early colleges. They deserved all the i encomiums lavished upou them by the early historians,

| although their staff of professors was small, their range I of studies limited, and their teachers knew little hut the j classics. They kept the lamp of knowledge aflame j throughout the country, and here and there trained up i men who carried the advance of knowledge still further.

| Iu this task Miami University had a great share, and, of its board of governors, none took a greater or more in- I telligent interest than Mr. McBride. From the origin | of the institution he was connected with it, and at the j time of his death he was the president of its board of trustees. Without himself having attained a collegiate education, he appreciated its advantages. He was seuui lous in attendance at the meetings of the trustees ; he : was treasurer for a long time; lie aided on the building ! committees and elsewhere, and be invariably gave flic ! faculty a full support. That institution acquired an j early and great fame, and to no one scarcely can move j credit be given than to Mr. McBride.

Wa should not omit to mention the map drawn by him in 1636. This was published bv himself and James B. Cameron, and engraved by Doolittle and Munson. It is a large copper-plate, five feet by four, and of the. utmost accuracy. Every little stream is laid down upon it, and every farm, road, church, and school-house, and the meandering? of the Miami can by this he compared with its bed in the present day. No more truthful county map, we have authority for saying, was ever published in Ohio. Some of his manuscript maps are also in existence in the public offices. They are both handsome and accurate, and of marvelous perfection in the lettering.

After ceasing to be sheriff he was in repose several years, until he was urged by his fellow-citizens to become mayor of Hamilton. Tie showed in this office the same punctual diligence he displayed elsewhere, as is attested i>y his docket, still preserved, in which he recorded the cases brought before him. While in this position he aided in a codification of the municipal ordinances. After the election of John 'Woods as auditor of state he went thither to assist him, rendering most valuable co-operation, and in 1846 was chosen clerk of the courts of Butler County, a position he held until 1852.

He was a taciturn and modest man, never frequenting public gatherings, and rarely conversing at any length except with those intimately connected with him. He was averse to display. He was very quiet and unobtrusive, and of sterling integrity. He could not push himself forward. He was charitable almost to a fault, and never let a person leave his door unaided. His probity was of the highest. He never sought to escape the consequences of an action in which he had been unfortunate, through misjudgment or misplaced confidence, but dealt as he would be done by. He was active in every thing that helped to benefit or improve his county or State, and took an interest in every thing that promised these results. He was a stockholder in the bridge, the hydraulic, and the railroad, because lie thought they would benefit the town , and not because he thought they would put money in his pocket.

When he had attained the patriarchal age of threescore and ten his wife died. This was on the 23d of September, 1859. He seemed instantly to lose all interest in life, and prepared himself to depart. Ten days after lie died, on the 3d of October, aged seventy years and eleven mouths, and leaving two sons and two daughters. Homer, Ids oldest son, had died long before, and louse who survived were Horace, James, Laura, and Marietta. The last married William Sanders, and on '"-r death left two daughters. Laura married Roger *'*'- ^remhel, a graduate of Miami University, who en- ,J'r< d afterwards the reive, and was badly wounded at 1-land No. 10 ou the Mississippi, where he was the cap- 1:11,1 °f a gun-honi. He is now a commodore. Both '4 Mr. McBride's sous are dead

John Cloves Symmes, the junior, commonly known j as captain, to distinguish him from his uncle, Judge ! John Cieves Symmes, the leading patentee of the Miami | lands, was born in Sussex County, New Jersey, ou die ! 5th of November, 1780. He was tire son of Timothy Symmes, a Revolutionary soldier, who was afterwards a judge in New Jersey, and who came out to this regiou soon after his brother. He was twice married, - once to Abigail Tutbill, and once to Mary ITarker. By the first marriage he had three children, and by the second six. John Cieves Symmes, the subject of this sketch, was the eldest of the. latter. He received a good elementary edj neat-ion, and early developed a great taste, for reading, i This was indulged as far as possible, and lie also carefully ! studied mathematics and the natural sciences.

Ou attaining the age of twenty-two, or on the 2d of I April, 1802, he entered the American army as ensign, i the lowest rank of commissioned officer. On the Or of | May, 1804, he was promoted to the rank of second Heu- | tenant; on July 29, 1807, to that of first lieutenant; and on the 20th of January, 1812, he received a commission as captain. He continued to serve in that capacity during the war, and until the disbanding of the army in 1818.

Soon after he entered the army he was ordered to the South-west, and was stationed successively at Fort Coupee, Louisiana; Fort Adams, fifty miles below Natchez, on the Mississippi, and at New Orleans.

"I sit down to emit from the point of my pen such I ideas as may chance to rise, iu my mind while I imagi ine myself narrating to you the pleasures and pains I have experienced since I last wrote. The proportion of the latter has far exceeded that of the former, although the six months I spent at Fort Coupee glided away like a pleasing dream, where happiness appeared within my reach ; and just as I was possessing it, I was aroused and hurried away to Orleans, where a viperlike enemy had i been before me and made several others, who were aetu- ! ated bv hope of promotion and love of mischief.

" This subtle, designing enemy was my lace surgeou mate. Dr. John Fowles, who insinuated that I had acted dishonorably in giving him a furlough with prospect of pay, and that I had insisted on his giving me his paywhile absent, ou account of having to take care of the j sick for him; on hearing which 1 immediately declared i his allegation false, and that he should give me a eertifij cate satisfactory or meet me in the field of honor.

" After I had stated the truth that lie had buiii his j storv nut of, declaring 1 had done n ulling but what 1 wus willing the world should know nr that. 1 could t> . me myself tor, and pointed out the precedent 1 was guided i bv. I obtained with ease a furlough to go to Point Coupee. ' to adjust some unsettled business i ore tended. >o have there. I went ami humbled his (mean) soul as much as mine (but too generous then), and dictated a certificate, which he copied and signed. I then returned in triumph to Orleans, where those juniors, disappointed in the hope they at first had entertained of obtaining promotion by my resigning in a fright, or getting killed by the doctor, continued their nefarious cabals under the rose. But I smelt a rat, felt provoked, and strutted with more confidence than was usual to me at other times. On one of these lowering days I began a. letter which I never finished. I here give you a paragraph of it : 'I lately read a French proverb indicating that a man without enemies was no great thing. I then wished for some. I now have my wish, and believe I shall profit thereby. They are a necessary stimulus, calculated to promote energy and perseverance. If 1 do not take pains to nourish them, I shall not to do them away, unless some one should be so bold as to emerge from under the rose, and refuse to apologize and return.'

"A week or two after my return from Point Coupee. I was told by an old acquaintance, under cover of friendship, that my juniors in rank did not admit my character to be fairly cleared up, and bad persuaded several to think with them. I made light of it to him, but advised with a field officer, who happened not to be characterized by decision. His response was evasive. I, therefore, of my own accord, made an official application to the general for a court of inquiry, to examine whether or not iny conduct had been correct.

" The general, being much hurried with business at that time, neglected to order the court for several days, during which time I, in the course of duty, had occasion to see the standing order relative to police, which I had not yet seen. I, therefore, went, as I ought, to Lieutenant Marshall, who was adjutant, and, in his office, asked him to see the orderly book. He answered that it was more proper that I should examine the books of the company to which I was attached, and that I should not se ; them there. I then observed that I did not suppose but that he was a man of his word, and reminded him that he had formerly given a like answer am 1 refusal on the same occasion, with a promise that, in case the sergeant had not recorded the orders (as I suggested), I might see them in his office; upon which he blustered toward me, and demanded what I meant; while I returned him that I meant as I said. He then declared that, since he had promised them, I might see them, and handed me the book, observing, at the same time, that I was not generally considered as a gentleman. At this time our passions were both raised. I quelled mine, and spoke deliberately to this effect, that I should not consult his opinion relative to what other people thought of me, but wished, to know if lie did not himself say l was not a gentleman, llu answered yes, and that he did uot consider me one. 1 continued that 1 had long observed the ill offices that he was inclined to do me, and that he j wanted promotion ('Yes,' said he, 'I do'), and would be disappointed in the way he looked for it, but that I was still willing he should have a chance for it: 'Let us go out and take a shot.' (By this time, besides two officers sitting in the room, five or six had collected in front of the door, which stood open.) lie declined, alleging that he did not consider me on a gentlemanly footing with him, alluding to what Dr. Fowles had said of me. I urged that, until I was arrested or officially charged with some misdemeanor, I stood on the same footing of every other officer, and that I was not subject to be insulted 'with impunity. About this time he began to come down, and endeavored to make out that he had j not disputed my gentility, but still refused a. second invi- I tation I gave him, alleging the same reason, but said that he would fight me after the court of inquiry (I expected) should acquit me. I consented to the proposition, provided it could not take place sooner, and then proceeded to read the orders I wanted to see, and he sat' down to his breakfast. That day i mounted guard, and the next, when relieved, took a sleep after dinner, and went early to parade (I then quartered in town) without consulting any person. T had determined what to do, which was to fall in with Mr. Marshall when he had his sword on, and wring his nose. I did not get an opportunity until after parade was dismissed, when, walking to the barracks, I overtook him and requested to speak to him. He turned toward me; I accomplished my intention, and bringing my hand on the hilt of my sword, and taking one step backward, I involuntarily said,

' Draw and defend yourself.' He did not draw, but stepped toward me - to grapple, as I expected ; for he is a large man. I then held my sword horizontally before me, and told him not to advance, but draw and defend himself. lie then, after an exclamation of surprise, made for his quarters, beckoning and calling me to follow, which I did to the front of his door, where I passed fore and aft, i then went to a group of officers near, and related what I had done, observing that I expected that he would uot now hesitate to take the field. Presently ho came toward us, calling on me. I advanced to him. He then said that I he would meet me, and proposed that our seconds should convene on the gallery as soon as possible. I consented, and glided to my quarters (if possible) like a man intoxicated with pleasurable passion. One of my messmates said I had been drinking wine. Lieutenant Clymer, a |_ messmate, who had at that moment returned, alter an I absence of two weeks, immediately became my secoud ; j met Mr. Marshall, and they agreed that we shouid meet I on the commons at daylight next morning. Mr. Clymer 1 prepared me excellent pistols and a surgeon to attend.

We met at the appointed time, and, at the distance of i ten [ru es, standing sideways, fired at the word. The | one appointed to give it first asked, 'Are you rcad\ '! We : at the same instant answered, 'Yes.' He then skid, 'Fire!' and we raised our arms together deliiierateiy.

from a hanging position. My intention was to aim at his hip: 6 is (I learn) at my breast. Consequently, i got the first fire, which drew his sh'-t somewhat at random, though it must have passed within a line of the lower part of my belly, as it pierced' through my pantaloons, shirt-tail, and the bone of my careless hanging wrist, close to the joint. He received my ball in his thigh, but where it glanced to the doctors can not find. It is said he is now walking about. I wanted to know if he desired another shot, and being informed in the negative, left my second and surgeon attending to him, and, with my handkerchief wrapped around my wound, went home and ate a hearty breakfast, not expecting to be confined or much afflicted with what appeared to the doctor, as well as myself, little more than a scratch. But many a long day and night I suffered for the error of not losing blood and dieting, as I ought to have done; 'twas near two months before it healed, and two weeks of that time it was dangerously inflamed, and disjointed of itself, which is the cause of its looking or being somewhat awry and not working freely in the joint like the other. The pain produced fever, and that debility, which exposed me to a multitude of infirmities. The most obstinate and afflicting was a dysentery, which began with a dropsy, and continued with violence for six or seven weeks. I have now got shut of it; but my feet and legs continue to bloat to a troublesome degree.. The court of inquiry I applied for was ordered, agreeable to my request, and as soon as rnv wound began to mend I wrote an official notice to the recorder that -I was ready to come before the court, if they would appoint a place to sit and give me notice ; and I repeatedly stated verbally the same to Captain Lockwood, who was president thereof, who alleged that he was under marching orders, and it was intimated to me by numbers that the proceedings would be a needless piece of precaution in me, as every one was convinced of my integrity and gentility. I, therefore, made no further application to be heard, especially as the members of the court were immediately scattered to different posts."

Captain -Symmes never fully recovered the use of his wrist; it was always stiff and a little awry. The wound which Lieutenant Marshall received disabled him so that he carried the effects of it through life. He was afterward befriended by Captain Symmes, who always spoke of this duel with .regret. '

At the time of the commencement of the war with Great Britain, in 1812, the first regiment of United States infantry, of which lie was senior captain, was stationed at flie mouth of the Missouri River, in the Territory of Miss"uri. Here they remained until 1814, when they were ordered to join the armv of General Brown, on the north- ' rn frontier. After a Lug and fatiguing journey by land u.a water, they reached < anada on the 25th of July, die very day uu which the battle of Bridgewater, or Candy's Lane, was fought.

1 ho battle commenced near sunset. The First Regiment, winch was commanded by Lieutenant-colonel Robert C. Nicholas, bad not joined the army at the time of the opening of the battle, but were about two miles in the rear. When the firing commenced, without waiting for or receiving orders from General Brown, the regiment was put in motion by Colonel Nicholas, and marched with all possible expedition to the scene of the conflict. When they arrived at the American camp they found General Ripley, to whom they had been ordered to report, had advanced with his brigade, and, without halting, they continued to press forward.

It was twilight when they reached the field; they formed themselves within a short distance of the enemy's batteries, without meeting with any general officer or aidde-camp to instruct them how they should join in the conflict. Ignorant of the situation of either army, except from the observations made in coming up, and unapprized of the position of General Ripley's brigade, Colonel Nicholas, when he found himself so near a British battery, which had opened fire upon his regiment, ordered the men to retire a short distance. While the attention of the battery was thus directed to the First Regiment, Colonel James Miller, leading his battalion, partly under the cover of the fence of a church- card moved swiftly up the hill and attacked the artillerists almost before they were aware of their presence, and after a short but desperate hand-to-hand fight, in which he lost a number of his gallant men, he captured the whole park, consisting of seven brass cannon, ammunition-wagons, etc.

After the capture of this position, Colonel Nicholas was enabled to report to General Ripley, and was ordered to assume a position on the left of Colonel Miller's regiment. This order was promptly obeyed, and the position held till the close of the action.

On a partial recovery from bis wounds, General Brown took command at Fort Erie, which was eloselv invested by the British, who were actively employed in surrounding it with batteries. On the 17th of 'September he resolved to make a sortie, which was accomplished with spirit and success; the British were completely surprised, and, after a severe conflict of two hours, the three batteries, the whole line of intrenchments, and their block-houses were in the possession of the Americans. In this action Captain Symmes and his command captured one of the batteries. He led his men over the intrenchments, and spiked the first cannon with his own hand.

In 1S1G Captain Symmes retired from the army, and took up his residence at St. I. -mis, where he engaged in furnishing supplies for the troops stationed on the Upper Mississippi, and in trading with the Fox Indians, tor which he had a special license from Governor Clark, of Missouri Territory.

On Christmas clay, 1808, Mr. Symmes married Mrs. j Mary Anne Lockwood, widow of Captain Benjamin j Lockwood, at Fort Adams. She had at that time a fam- [ ily of five daughters and one son. They were brought up and educated by Captain Symmes as his own family; they were sincerely attached to him, and grew up to maturity with his own children in perfect harmony. They were all married from his house but two, who remained single.

Captain Lockwood at the time of his death owned a section of land in Brown County, Ohio, on which Captain Symmes regularly paid the taxes, even to the neglect of his own. One of his own tracts, four thousand acres, in Licking County, which would have been a fortune to his children, was forfeited by this neglect. When these children arrived at maturity, he turned over this land, free and unincumbered, neither charging them for the money expended on it nor the care he had token of it.

Captain Symmes's trading experience did not result in a pecuniary benefit to him ; so, in 1819, he removed from St. Louis, and settled at Newport, Kentucky, where he resided till 1824, when he removed to his farm, a section of land presented to him by his uncle and namesake, which had been previously improved, near Hamilton, Ohio.

While at St. Louis Captain Symmes promulgated his eccentric "Theory of Concentric Spheres, Polar Voids, and Open Poles." To these investigations relative to the figure of the earth he had devoted many years, and had wrought himself up to a firm and conscientious belief j that he had made the great discovery of the age, viz. :

" That the earth as well as all the celestial orbicular bodies existing in the universe, visible and invisible, which partake in any degree of a planetary nature, from the greatest to the smallest, from the sun down to the most minute blazing meteor or falling star, are all constituted, in a greater or teas degree, of a collection of j spheres, more or less solid, concentric with each other, j and more or less open at the poles ; each sphere being j separated from its adjoining compeers by space replete I with aerial fluids ; that every portion of infinite space, except what is occupied by spheres, is filled with an aerial elastic fluid, more subtile than common atmospheric air, and constituted of innumerable small concentrie spheres, too minute to be visible to the organ of sight assisted by the most perfect microscope, and so elastic that they continually press on each other and chauge their relative situations as often as any piece of matter in space may change its position, thus causing a universal pressure, which is weakened by the intervention of other bodies in proportion to the subtended angle of distance and dimension, .necessarily causing the body I to move toward the points of decreased pressure." | (Symmes's Theory of Concentric Spheres, p. 2'>.)

I declare the earth is hollow and habitable within ; containing a number of solid eoncentrick spheres, one within the other, and that it is open at the poles twelve or sixteen degrees. I pledge my life in support of this truth, and am ready to explore the hollow, if the world will support and aid me in the undertaking. Jno. Cleves Symmes,

N. B. - I have ready for the press a Treatise on the Principles of Matter, wherein I show proofs of the above positions, account for various phenomena, and disclose Dr. Darwin's " Golden Secret."

I ask one hundred brave companions, weil equipped, to start from Siberia, in the Fall season, with reindeer and sleighs, on the icc of the frozen sea ; I engage we find a warm and rich land, stocked with thrifty vegetables and animals, if not men, on reaching one degree northward of latitude 82. We will return in the succeeding Spring.

Captain Symmes addressed a copy of this circular to every learned institution and to every considerable town and village, as well as to numerous distinguished individuals, throughout the United States, aud sent copies to several of the learned societies of Europe.

Its reception by the public cau easily be imagined ; it was overwhelmed with ridicule as the production of a distempered imagination, or the result of partial insanity. It was for many years a fruitful source of jest with- the newspapers.

The Academy of Science, of Paris, before which the circular was laid by Count Volney, decided that it was not worthy of consideration Tiie scientific papers of Europe generally treated it as a hoax, rather than believe that any sane man could issue such a circular or uphold such a theory.

Circulars and newspaper articles soon followed circular No. 1, aud were kept up for years, despite of the ridicule which was poured on the unfortunate author from ail sides. In 1820 Captain Symmes commenced lecturing on his theory; first at Cincinnati, then at other large towns in the West. The novelty of the subject attracted large audiences; hut he failed to make converts who possessed wealth or inlluenee enough to secure the means to test by exploration the truth of his theory. The KUfern Courier of November 27, 1822, indulges in a dream of what would happen two hundred and twenty-eight years from that time:

" Cincinnati, December 7, 2150. - The marble monument at Newport, which, in 1838, was erected by our ancestors to the memory of that great philanthropist and philosopher, John Cieves Symmes, fell to the ground on the 5th ; its base having been undermined and destroyed by the late unprecedented flood of Licking River.

"Thus the records of lame, wheti committed solely to such perishable materials, live but a few transitory ages, and ultimately fall in with the general decay ; but the memory of Symmes shall be as unfading and lasting as time itself. We need no frail stones to remind us of his name, who first separated truth from error, and banished ignorance from the world.

"Washington, December 11. - Two members of Congress from the State of California arrived yesterday in this city by the inland route. They inform us that the other (twTenty-one) members from that State had proceeded through the canal at the Isthmus of Darien, to Mexico, where it was thei? intention to join the Mexican members, and charter a vessel for their conveyance to this city.

"The members from Chu-san, in the interior regions, via the North Polar opening, arrived on the 9th inst. ; those from Ptdehce-le, via the South Pole, reached the United States on the 30th ult.

" New York, December 2. - By the late return of the marshal, it is ascertained that this city, which, for the last two centuries, lias been termed mistress of the world, now contains tw'o millions of inhabitants, exclusive of foreigners. Philadelphia, her only rival, is found to contain but one million, live hundred thousand."

In May, 1824, Mr. Symmes explained his theory at Hamilton, to a large audience with such convincing effect that, after the lecture, they " Resolved , That we esteem Symmes's Theory of the Earth deserving of serious examination, and worthy of the attention of the American people."

So much did the theory attract popular attention in the West, that the "Polar Expedition" was thought a ht object for a benefit at the Cincinnati Theater, which was given on March 29, 1824. Mr. Collins then recited an address, written for the occasion by Moses Brooks, in | which, after recounting the great discoveries to be made, he wound up with -

Iu 1822 he petitioned the Congress of the United States, setting forth his belief of the existence of a habitable aud accessible concave to this globe, his desire to embark on a voyage of discovery to one or other of the polar regions, his belief in the great protit and honor his country would derive from such discovery, and praying that Congress would equip and tit out for the expedition two vessels of two hundred and fifty or three hundred tons burden, and grant, such other aid as government might deem necessary to promote the object. This petition was presented in the Senate by Colonel Richard M. Johnson, a member from Kentucky, on the seventh day of March, 1822, When, after a few remarks, it was laid on the table.

In January, 1824, he petitioned the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, praying that tedy to pass a resolution approbatory of his theory, and to recommend him to Congress for an outfit suitable to the enterprise. This memorial was presented by Micajah T. Williams, and, on motion, the further consideration thereof was indefinitely postponed.

In 1825 he applied through the American minister at the court of St. Petersburg for permission to accompany the polar expedition then fitting out by the Russian Government, which was readily granted by the chancellor, Count Romauzoff; but the want of means to procure a proper outfit hindered him from accepting the offer.

In one of the copies of the book which was issued to defend his theory, Captain Symmes left notes on the margin, which give as good an account of his theory as we have seen:

"I hoped, ere this, to have been supported in ray new theory of the earth by many pupils, but find that most of those who have written are inclined to oppose me. I would prefer having an advocate to state my views, because, in proportion to their extent, I may sul>- ject myself to the imputation of extravagauce or ostentation, especially as, while I write, I naturally feel elated with my discovery. I am, perhaps, better fitted fi-r thinking than writing. Reared at the plow, I seldom used a pen, except in a commonplace book, until I changed my plowshare for a sword, at the age of twentytwo, not wherewith to earn a fortune (having already an ample farm by the liberality of my revered uncle, after whom I am named), but to merit and obtain distinction, and accumulate knowledge, which I had seldom tasted I but in borrowed books. With respect to the latter, the world is now to judge of my success; and iu relation to the former, I at least may say I satisfied myself and fellow-soldiers, if not my country, not only at Bridgewater on our left and the sortie at Fort Erie iu the van, but throughout my thirteen years' service, ending the war. I presume few have inquired more devotedly than myself into the reason and origin of all that occurred to view. I remember when at the age of eleven, in Jersey, while reading a large edition of 'Cook's Voyages,' my father, though himself a lover of learning, reproved me for spending so much of my time from work, and said 1 was a book-worm. About the same age I used to harangue my playmates iu the street, aud describe how the earth turned round ; but '.hen, as now, however correct ray positions, I got few or. no advocates. I muse not, however, say I get no advocates; for 1 have several.

I particularly boast of two ladies of bright anti wellinformed minds, on the banks of the Missouri, who are able and earnest advocates and devoted pupils. To them is due the credit of being tiie first to adopt what the world is so tardy in admitting. But Colonel Dixon, who has traded on Lake Winnepeg with the Indians, is, 1 presume, the most important pupil I have obtained ; for he has long been actively engaged in the Xorth-west Company and fur-trade. He declared, in our first inter, views, that I was certainly correct, and stated to me many important, otherwise inexplicable circumstances occurring high in the north, chat were completely solved by my principle. He is regarded by such as have long known him at St. Louis as a gentleman of a very strong and well-informed mind. In addition to the passive concurrence of several men of thinking minds, among them a venerable member of the American Philosophical Society, in this neighborhood, I have been honored with the offers of several more enterprising spirits to accompany me on the expedition I propose;- bat as the conditions with regard to my outfit by the world are not yet complied with, I have not positively accepted of their services. I still hold my life pledged, however, for the general truth of my position and devotion to the exploration.

I calculate on the good offices of Great Britain and France; for they nurse and patronize the- sciences with ardor. My wife boasts her descent from the latter, and I, through five ancestors since the first landing at Plymouth, trace miue from the former. From the emperor of Russia, so well known as a patron of scientific enterprise, I {latter myself with much support. I challenge any opposers of my doctrine to show as sound reasons j why my theory is not correct as I can show it is. I refer those who seek, for truth to Rees's Cyclopedia, and ! any other books wherein the quadrupeds, fish, and phe- I nomena of high latitudes are treated of; lik wise those books that treat of Venus, Mars, and Saturn, where they will find many tests that, if duly considered, must go to prove my position. In the Cyclopedia, under the beads of ' Fisherv ' 'Arctic;,' 'Herring,'' - Seal,' and all other migrating fishes, it is shown that most, or all of them, retire annually beyond the icy circle during the "Winter, and return, increased in fat and numbers, in the Spring; and under the head 1 Reindeer" it is stated that this animal passes annually near Hudson's Bay in columns of eight or ten thousand, from north to south, in the mouths of March and April, and return north in Oc her, as stated under the head of 'Hudson's Bay.' ! propose to follow the route taken by tiie reindeer northward m Siberia, where they depart every Aulumn from the river Lena (as Professor Adams, of St. Petersburg, stater), because it is probable these deer choose the best .-ea<on and nearest route to fertile and habitable lands, and because !

j we can there obtain domestic reindeer and civilized guides | or assistants. I propose returning either in the course of S thirty or forty days, or when the deer return in the ! Spring. It is presumable that man can live where de r thrive. I do not think. there are no dangers attendant on I such a trip, but believe the object will justify risk in ;d!

| probable ones. In plate 17, Vol. XXXIII, Part II, of ! the Cyclopedia, the figure of Mars, with his equator | toward us, exhibits his pole surrounded with single light | circles, whose farther sides extend beyond the periphery j of his disc. I hence conclude that his poles are open, j and that the light reflected by the farther sides of the j verges of the opening is refracted so as to appear rxj tended beyond bis disc by means of its coming to us j through the atmosphere of the nearest verges. It is a. j well-known fact that refraction is greatest toward the i poles of the earth, owing, probably to the dense atmo- I sphere there. The apparent continuation of the margin | of his true disc through these rings (if not an imaginary ! line dotted there), must be the farther verge of the sec- | ond sphere within rising by refraction, apparently, a? far l out of the true periphery of his disc. I contend that the i -space within the circumference of the arctic icy circles, if | not hollow or greatly concave, could scarcely afford space ! cr surface to maintain alive and in health all the fish known to come from thence annually, in the Spring, even if, without resorting to feeding upon each other, this food was inexhaustible and the whole circle water. But floating trees being often found far north of where we see any grow is an impressive circumstance to show it can not be all water, and the fact that those trees are generally such as abound in the tropics, together with several unknown species, shows that- there is a hot climate beyond ; - and the migration of the reindeer, too, shows that moss or other vegetables abound there, and, consequently, land. Pinkerton states that the Dutch, who, at different times, got detained by the ice in high latitudes, could find but few fish to eat in the season of Winter, which proves that the migrating fish do not Winter amongst or on this side the ice. I also refer to Dr. Darwiu'3 notes on winds in Lis 'Botanic Garden' - which I never ' read until after I adopted my theory - where that great, i although often extravagant, philosopher declared his belief j that there was a great secret, yet to be explained, at the | poles, and anticipated that the light of the present age | would disclose it. The stone spheroid he found hollow,

| and somewhat disposed iu concentric strata, and the coni centric iron nodules he describes deserve to be considered, j He states that the seeds of several tropical plants are i often found in the seas high north, in a state so recent as | to vegetate. I recommend the perusal of Mayor's and ; Pinkerton's Voyages, Pennant and Goldsmith on A ni muted. "Nature, and Ileame'.s and Mackenzie's Travels, where m many tests of my position exist.

there tails, for several weeks, almost continued rain; and j chat vegetables and game are more abundant at 80° than at 70°. When my chain of reasoning, drawn from the j nature of matter, first led me to the conclusion of hollow \ spheres and open poles, I merely intended broaching it as a question ; but when I found the planets of the j heavens and the phenomena and natural history of the j polar regions afforded proofs incontestable, I then declared | the fact without reserve, and have been considered by I many as a madman for my pains. Were I, however, in j any degree to feel disconcerted by the playful though ; ill-timed witticisms of others, I should comfort myself in > the reflection that, as soon as I shall succeed in the es- j tablishment of my theory, the more it has been decried the more I shall feel honored in the event. Innovations in science or art most commonly excite opposition. If | additional reasons are required, I have an ample fund ! yet in store for the world."

Among his converts was a young lawyer, Mr. J. X. I Reynolds, a graduate of Ohio University. With him Captain Symrnes entered into an agreement for a leetur- j ing tour through the Eastern States. They set out in ! September, 1825, accompanied by Anthony W. Lockwood, a stepson of Captain Symmes, and lectured in va- i rious towns in Ohio. In about a month Captain Symmes ; was forced to return home in consequence of ill-health, i In January, 1S2G, he rejoined them at Pittsburg, and i they proceeded eastward. Some difficulty soon occurred, i

Symmes, undaunted by this desertion, or the constant ridicule with which be was met, continued his tour to Philadelphia, New 5 oik, Boston, as far as Maine, and even into Canada, lecturing at the various towns through ; which he passed.

His health was by this time greatly impaired by his constant labors and excitement, and he was reluctantly obliged to give up lecturing. Ho retired for a time to his native place in New Jersey, where he remained the 1 guc ;t of an old friend of his father, until his health was sufficiently restored to enable him to travel homeward. M hen he reached Cincinnati, in February, 1829, he was so feeble that he had to be conveyed on a bed placed in a spring-wagon, to his home near Ilamiltou. He continued gradually to sink, until released by death on the 29 th of May 1829.

His remains were committed to the grave the next ; day, in the old burying-grouud at Hamilton, with mill- j tary honors. They were covered with a monument, ! erected by his son, Americas Symmes, a solid structure ! of freestone, surmounted with a hollow globe, opc-n at 1 die poles, bearing the following inscriptions:

On the south side - "Captain John Cle-'es Symmes entered the army of the United States, as an ensign, in the year 1802. He afterward arose to the rank of captain, and performed daring feats of bravery in the battles of Lundy's Lane and sortie from Fort Erie."

On the abandonment of the burying-grouud this monument was left standing, and is nowr the only one there. The globe has been broken off, and is now to be found in one of the neighboring door-yards.

Captain Symmes was a man of great simplicity and earnestness of character - a high-minded, honorable, honest, and exemplary man in every walk of life, and was beloved, trusted, and respected by' ail who knew him.

So fixed in his mind was the belief of the truth cf his theory' that for ten years, although laboring under greatpecuniary embarrassments and buffeted by the ridicule and sarcasm of an opposing world , he persevered in his endeavors to interest others in it, so as to enable him to test its truth by' a polar expedition ; but without success.

It should noAV be remembered to his credit that many of the facts and fancies (as they then appeared) which he brought forward in proof of his theory of open polar voids have since been fully corroborated byr the observations of His. Kane and Hayes and Captain Hall, but applied by them to the more plausible theory of open polar seas.

Captain Symmes's widow survived him, and made her home most of the time with her oldest son, Americas, though she spent much of her time visiting other members of the family. She died August 5, 1864, at Mattoou, Illinois, while on a visit to her son, Dr. Wm. H. H. Symmes. who was at that time residing there.

Aruericus Symmes is a strong believer iu his father's theory', and has spent much time in elucidating it. A few years ago he published a book giving the additional facts which had been discovered since the death of his father.

Pierson Sayre

The last of the soldiers of the Revolution who died in Butler County' was Pierson Sayre. His lamp had burned to the very last, and had finally gone out from mere exhaustion. He was the sou of Ezekiel Sayre, and was born at a place now known as Providence, New Jersey, on the 12th of September, 1761. lie was too young to enter the service of his country' at the beginning of her struggle Avitii Great Britain, but before be had attained his grow th as a man entered the army of heroes who had determined to defend their homes and firesides He v us but seventeen when he joined Lord Su-rliugs division as a private soldier. Iu no State did the soldiers have more hardships to endure than in Now Jersey and of these Sayre had 19s part for two years and a half. He was in most of the buttles fought during that time, and in particular was in the battle of Springfield. General Greene vas his commander, and the troops bore themselves nobly. He frequently had an opportunity of seeing Washington, and half a century after the general's death loved to recount what he knew of him. Often he would paint from his recollection to those around him that majestic figure, that serene countenance, that power of command that seemed inseparable to him, and would describe his action under trying circumstances.

After Mr. Sayre left the army he went to Mew York City, where Ire learned the trade of a carpenter and joiner, as there was tiien a great demand in that city for persons of that calling. Four years before, the place had been set on fire by either British incendiaries or American patriots, it was never clearly known which, and a tliird part of the town was burned. With the return of peace in 1783, Mew York became again a center of trade and speculation, and many new houses were built, giving full employment to all. Of this Mr. Say re had his part ; and in 1786, on the 29th of June, ho married Miss Catherine Lewis, with whom he lived happily for fifty-two years, until her death in Hamilton on the 25th of December, 1838, at the age of seventy-five. He remained in Mew York until 1790, when he removed to the western part of Pennsylvania, and settled in Union town, Fayette County, where he remained until 1809, when he came to this State. He was an important man in that community, and was sheriff for three years. He also took an active interest in the militia, and was at different times commissioned as lieutenant, captain, and major. The date of issuing the last was August 2, 1800, and it was signed by Governor McKean.