Buffalo County, Wisconsin - The whole text, 1888 (part 8 of 13)

In 1877 the eastern descent of the Alma and Waumandee road was planned and built, and the crossroad from the upper part of Little Waumandee Valley to Montana. Numerous other graded roads have since been built, but it is to be hoped, that many more will yet be planned and finished. The introduction of the railroad necessitated the dislocation of some roads along of it, which in cases led to decided alterations. So for instance, was the road from Rieck's house in Section 24, Township 20 North of Range 12 West, changed towards the east, to avoid the Sand Prairie. There had been a road in that direction for a long time, but on account of some difficulties in the proper construction, it was only occasionly used. A similar dislocation took place between Alma and Beef River bridge. Something ought to be said of the way the immigrants arrived in the northern parts of the county, in most cases transporting all the necessary furniture for kitchen and house. Some of them came by way of Mississippi and landed at Fountain City or Alma, and moved to their respective locations as the roads were beginning to be marked out. Others came directly by land by the old road, from La Crosse to Black River Falls and then, keeping together in groups. for mutual assistance, not against Indians, but on account of difficult roads, wending their ways to their several destinations. One of the earliest pioneers of that region, Mr. S. S. Cooke, moved in 1856 in the month of June to his place in Section 27, Township 23 North of Range lO West, in the southern part of the Town of Dover, where his oldest son Chauncey C. Cooke, Esq., still resides. It took the family two days to reach their destination, but they already found an intermediate stopping place at Patrick Mulcare's house in Glencoe. Of prominent people at or near Mondovi I know from accidental mention in my presence, that they came by the landway, as indicated, and it stands to reason that they did not always have a roof to go under when night arrived, being obliged to camp out. One who has never seen the " Prairie Schooner " creeping thiough the valleys and over the hills, followed by the passengers who might also be called its crew, and by the few domestic animals that could be driven, or followed voluntarily, would not realize this once most prominent mode of travel and transportation. It was seen by myself as late as 1886, when out surveying a few miles from Mr." Cooke's place. The disadvantages of this way of traveling through an unimproved country, destitute of roads and bridges, and of places of shelter, present themselve , so vividly to the mind of every reader, as not to require particular description; but the advantages, at least those who adopted it, were almost equal to the inconvenience, They could live on what they had along with them, or what they were able to purchase cheaply at some cultivated station; they therefore needed but little or no money. Against rain they were in some measure protected by the cover of the wagon, and fuel to start and maintain the necessary fires was in most places in this county abundant, and had not to be carried along, and this life in the wilderness was, after all, not so very different from that which many of the travelers had been leading in the frontier settlements from which they came, and which they would probably have to live for a time in those they intended to plant. It must especially be remembered and considered that most of this kind of travel was performed during the later spring or during summer and early fall. This was necessary especially on account of cattle and horses, for which even steamboats, as far as they might be employed, had but very unsatisfactory arrangements. But on land grass cost no more than the cutting, while water of the purest kind was to be found everywhere along the roads or trails across the country.

The ranks of old settlers who came to their homes in this primitive manner, are now sadly thinned, and soon no one will remain to tell the tale of the mingled hardship and enjoyment ofthese expeditions, but all of them that I had the pleasure to get acquainted with, looked back upon their adventures with much more satisfaction than regret.

We have mentioned all kinds of transportation but one, which I know from personal observation, sometimes was executed. This is the transportation of flour, and very likely of other things, occasionally, upon the backs or shoulders of early pioneers. Even as late as 18.59, most of the provisions were brought into the county by steamboat from Galena, although a mill had been started at Fountain City and one at Eagle Mills, possibly also the one at Gilmanton, then Mann's Mill. There were still some settlers who had either no wagons, or no passable roads to their cabins, but bread was needed, and flour must be brought, so the most natural, though at the same time most primitive, tedious and exhaustive, way of transportation had to be resorted to. It is well to mention this, if for no other purpose than to show our posterity to what toilsome expedients their predecessors were sometimes reduced for the maintenance of themselves and their families.

My friend Chas. F. Eager, now a banker at Volga, Dak., among the remarks in the report on his own early settlement says: When we first settled near Mondovi our postofnce was Eau Galla, and I remember of father carrying groceries in a basket from Alma (24 miles) to our place, one mile south of Mondovi.

Mail Service

Civilized communities require the opportunity of regular intercourse, not so much in person, as by letters, or by commissions sent orally. We find this exemplified in the history of the great Roman Empire, in which regular posts were organized, originally for gubernatorial, administrative or military purposes, but by degrees extended to the transmission of messages in general, and of letters in particular, and, perhaps by private enterprise, and under special privileges granted by the government, the transportation of passengers and of merchandise. The destruction of the Empire, and the insecurity of the roads during the turmoil of the Dark Ages from the fifth to the fifteenth and sixteenth century made it too hazardous to keep up regular commnnications of any kind, and a postal service such as had been established in the Roman Empire, and as we have now developed in modern states or governments could not be thought of. Concealment afforded the almost single chance for security, and a messenger, once suspected to be such, was deprived of his best protection. Hence all transmission of important intelligence had to be effected by special messengers, who had to be armed themselves, and frequently also accompanied by armed companions. At about the same time in which America was discovered, a regular postal service began to be instituted in the " Roman Empire of German Nationality," as it was styled, by the granting of a monopoly to a nobleman, Francis von Taxis by name. He organized a mounted mail between Vienna and Brussels in 15 16, and having exclusive privileges for establishing similar lines throughout the Empire, probably extended his connections, as he might find it profitable. It is a matter of history that this monopoly continued until about 1870 in most of the German states, and although much modified, and controlled by legislation, must still have been considered valuable, since it was bought out by the governments for a considerable sum. I have mentioned this as the model, on which postal service was organized in most modern states, and to show how it had to ac- commodate itself to circumstances wherever it was introduced, until from the solitary postillion, mounted on a stout horse, and armed to the teeth, it gradually metamorphosized into the stages, still sometimes accompanied by guards, lumbering along slowly and heavily on poor roads, finally on carefully constructed_ ones, until to-day it comes along at railroad speed in comfortable quarters. It is one of the most interesting phases in modern development, how out of such a small and unsatisfactory arrangement in the course of time the gigantic service was developed, which now is ramified into the farthest corners of the world and by which a letter is brought across an ocean for the insignificant sum of five cents, and for two cents is carried through thousands of miles in the United States. It is impossible to follow the march of improvement in all the details connected with this important factor of modern public life but I imagine it must have been about thus:

2. Speed, requiring great improvements of roady and bridges more and extensive relays, hence a greater number of stations, horses and vehicles.

3. Cheapness. Establishments having to be kept up, they could only be remunerative, if used by the public in general, and the public could only use it, if prices were reasonable, and would use it the more in proportion to cheapness.

Of course this does not apply to our own country and present time, as far as development is concerned, yet it may not be amiss to call attention to it, since to a certain extent this development must occur in about the same successive steps in every country and may be traced from colonial times to the present.

Experience has demonstrated the necessity of retaining the mail or postal service as a government monopoly, though in this country it is modified by the contract system. The extension of mail routes is concommitant to the extension of population, and the means of transportation used are determined by circumstances. Below I shall give a table showing the successive establishment of post-offices in this county. As every one knows, we received the mail at first by steamboat at the regular landings, and from these It was distributed to the interior ofiices as soon as such were estab- lished. In the intermission between the seasons of navigation the mail was carried by stage coaches or wagons, frequently sleighs, from some places already reached by railroads, to every intermediate point, a mode of conveyance still necessary and practiced for the interior offices not on*railroads. In these cases the passenger transportation is independent of the mail service, and has never been connected with it here, except as the arrangements for mail services would furnish regular opportunities of conveyance.

The following table shows the names and most other things of interest concerning the post offices of Buffalo County. Names of consecutive incumbents of these offices will be found in the description of the several towns.

Transportation. 35 1

The following postoffir.es that once existed in this county have been discontinued: Maxville, formerly situated at the store on Maxville Prairie; Burnside, situated in Sect. 3 T. 23 R. 13, at the house of J. L. Hallock; Eagle Creek, situated in Section 7, T. 21 R. 11, near the crossing of Little Waumandee Creek; Urban, situated at the house of Henry Hauenschild in the upper part of Little Waumandee Valley, Eagle Branch Sect. 36 T. 21 R. 11, kept by Fred Morgan.

The mail is carried by the C. B. & N. R. R. along its line and delivered once a day in each direction, north and south. From Waumandee and Montana to Fountain City and the reverse, mail is carried three times a week, also from Alma to Modena, Gilmanton and Mondovi, and return. Some connection seems to exist between Waumandee and Montana on one side and Gilmanton on the other. The mail for Buffalo City P. 0. is carried by team from Alma, three times a week. A tri-weekly line is still in existence between Nelson and Durand, although there is but one postoffice, Misha Mokwa now situated on this route. How Urne and Cross are supplied I do not know. There must be a mail route between Gilmanton in our, and Independence in Trempealeau County, on which Lookout P. 0. is situated in the town of Dover, but precise accounts are wanting.

Along the Chippewa River and its numerous tributaries there was an|almost inexhaustible supply of Pine Timber that had grown up from times immemorial. Settlements began to encroach upon the margin of this immense tract of land, but they only made it evident, that the timber would not be needed, nor could it be profitably utilized upon the spot. It had long been wanted somewhere else. The question was how to transport it. Easy enough one should think. But although logs would float, and rafting had been practiced long ago, much had to be learned, contrived and arranged to make the wood in the log a profitable piece of merchandise, an object of wholesale traffic. The most natural idea was to reduce the pine to lumber. Waterpower was not wanting in places to which logs could at the annual freshets be floated and after th« subsidence of these, could be conveniently manufactured into lumber, which would sell along the Mississippi River like hot cakes. As early as 1828 the first attempts at carrying out this idea were made. The' permissioa of the Indians being necessary for settlement and establishment of any factories or posts, Judge Lockwood of Prairie du Chien obtained that permission of Wabasha, the chief of the Sioux, to build a saw mill on the Red Cedar, now Menomonie River. Gen, Street, Indian Agent at Fort Crawford was his partner in the business. It would be tedious to follow up the development of the trade thus begun, but after the experiences of almost forty years after the first beginning, during which time the valleys of the Chippewa and the most important of its tributaries had become settled and were finally inhabited almost exclusively with white men, the Indians being expelled, cities like Chippewa Falls and Eau Claire founded, it became ap- - parent that the transportation of the pine timber had become not only necessary for the wants of the people dwelling below along the Mississippi, but that it would no longer be profitable to have all the lumber manufactured upon the spot, thus submitting this immense interest to the exclusive control of a comparatively narrow strip of country and the few men it, who had the means to build and run saw mills, and who virtually had the monopoly of the pine lands. It is true, that the establishment of mills had been attended with risks and dangers, with losses and disasters, but it is just as true that many of these losses and disasters could and would have been avoided if the experience of the past could have been made available in the beginning. The owners of pine land had an indisputable right to dispose of their timber as it suited themselves, and navigation upon the Chippewa for their logs could not be prevented nor prohibited. The question was to find some safe reservoir for the reception, storage and manipulation of these logs. This reservoir was found in the Beef Slough and its connections and ramifications. There are rumors of quiet explorations of the slough by several men even in the earliest times of the settlements. Victor Probst, one of the earliest settlers at Alma, used to relate that a stranger, whom he met somewhere on Beef Slough, almost directly told him, that this would in no very distant days be used for the very purpose for which it now serves. I have under the head of Topography given a description of Beef Slough and its relations to the Chippewa, the Beef River and the Mississippi so that it will not be necessary to say more about that. The obvious connection of the Slough with the Chippewa

Riyer was known to pilots and if they also knew the difficulties and intricacies of it, they were quite excusable, if they preferred the main channel, though it did look smaller. at the parting from the slough. This circumstance was illustrated in the following anecdote: In the year 1835, Jefferson Davis, then a young lieutenant in the United States service, stationed at Fort Crawford, was sent up to the mills on the Menomonee to get lumber to rebuild the fort or make some addition to it. The order had been filled, and Davis and the soldiers were coming down the Chippewa under the command of an old voyageur who acted as pilot. At the critical point where Beef Slough sets off to the left, or rather seems to go on straight, while the main river turns to the right, the Frenchman, well aware of the situation, called out: "To de right, hard." "What's that," said .the West Pointer, "you're going to run this raft right to hell ? I tell you to pull to the le"ft where the main river is." It was done and the lumber lost in Beef Slough. The crew of the raft returned to the mills for more lumber, and the officers to the fort in a canoe to report the raft broken. Though we cannot vouch for the truth of the anecdote, it still illustrates the relative situation of the parts concerned. As times wore on, and about thirty-two years after Jeff Davis' adventures on Beef Slough and two years after the explosion of his confederacy, the initial steps were taken to put the idea of creating Beef Slough a log harbor into operation. On the 27th day of April 1867, in the village of Alma the Beef Slough Manufacturing, Boomdng, Log-driving and Transportation

Company was organized by the following persons: M. M. Davis, M. D. of Appleton (now of Baraboo,) Wis.; Jas. H.' Bacon of Ypsilanti, Mich.; Elijah Swift of Falmouth, Mass.; C. Moser, Jr., Jno. Hunner, Jr., and Fred Lane of Alma, Wis.

At a meeting held the same day, the directors chose M. M. Davis, President; C. Moser, Jr., Secretary; Elijah Swift, Treasurer; and T. E. Crane, Superintendent.

Chippewa River and its tributaries by the lumbermeii of the region, who had until then enjoyed a virtual monopoly of the lumbering business, not only by being the only ones in the business, but by dictating their own price in the purchase of logs cut upon land not their own. Most determined in this combin'ed opposition was the firm of Knapp, Stout & Company, whose mills were on the Menomonee, but who were also largely interested in the village of Read's Landing, Minn., where at that time the coupling and combining of lumber and lografts from the Chippewa was carried on, and which on account of the large number of men employed in that business and other items connected with lumbering was a very thriving place, but has since dwindled down to insignificance. This opposition did not manifest itself in idle words only but went to work to create obstacles, which, if not removed, would render it impossible to get logs into the Slough. A dam was thrown in at the head of the slough, where Knapp, Stout & Co. owned the land on both sides. The Beef Slough Co. secured an entrance to the place by having a road laid out from a place on the Durand road close to the ChippeAva, along the river and the slough, which road was an open higway as soon as recorded. The people from Alma and along Beef Slough were all in favor of the new enterprise, and when called upon to assist in the removal of the obstructions put in by the Menomonee firm, assembled in large numbers, armed and equipped in various ways. I never attended any of these gatherings, but I had laid out the above mentioned road, and so was acquainted with the locality, and as excitements "are never silent, I learned much of what happened from acquaintances, and on one of these occasions Mr. Thomas B. Wilson was brought before me in my office of Justice of the Peace, then residing in the town of Belvidere, about nine miles below Alma. He had come down in company with Mr. A. Tainter, who with Wilson was the Co. attached to Knapp and Stout, and with a force of their men to prevent the removal of the obstructions they had placed into Beef Slough at the head of it. In course of lively debates carried on in the choicest PJnglish of river-men, with appropriate retorts from the other side, Mr. Wilson, according to complaint, seized an axe and cut a cable, and threatened summary vengeance upon all who dared to oppose his sovereign will, whereupon he was arrested by a constable of Buffalo County,

Capt. Beely, and sent down tq be put under bonds to keep the peace, which was done and bonds furnished b}'- parties in Alma. I don't remember that any harm was done, nor that anything was demolished, with the exception of some melons, in whch beneficial work Mr. Wilson was faithfully assisted by his attorney, Mr. Campbell of Wabasha.

At this juncture it will not be amiss to introduce some testimony from the opposite side. This I find in the work of T. E. Randall, called the " Early History of the Chippewa Valley " page 143 and following. " At first all the mills on the river joined in the opposition to this gigantic rival as against a common enemy. Two of the ablest men on the river were chosen to represent the two districts in the Assembly ; in Chippewa and Dunn, T. C. Pound, and for Pepin and Eau Claire, Horace W. Barnes, who, aided by a strong lobb}', defeated the bill (for granting the Beef Slough Co. a charter) on a direct vote in the Assembly; but another bill was subsequently introduced, a copy of an old Portage Citj^ charter, changing the names of persons and localities - mere,ly a workiijg charter - it was claimed, embodying no specific privileges except corporate powers, but which was afterwards found to contain nearly everything asked for; and the work went on in spite of opposition.

Disastrous as the success of this new organization was considered by the mill men, a considerable class of our citizens favored the innovation. They were the class known as loggers, who, while the mills on the Chippewa were the only purchasers of logs, saw themselves completely at the mercy of a dozen or twenty monopolists. What cared they, whether cities grew up at Davenport, Clinton and Muscatine, by the manufacture of our pine into lumber, if they could only get fifty cents more per thousand for logs with the promise of cash in the place of trade for pay.

But most of the mills were illy prepared for the new order of things. Subjected to annual losses by floods and short supply of logs for want of storage, few of them were able to erect sorting works and keep sufficient force to sort out and pass the logs below going to other parties, and secure their own, and therefore had recourse to exchanging marks, as the practice was called. About fifty million feet of logs were contracted by the agent for the Slough Co., this year, 1868, and on opening of spring a driving force of 125 men was placed on the river, and a watchman at every boom and mill to guard the interest of the new company. A moderate freshet favored the drivers this spring, and it was well into June before the main force of the Beef Slough Company reached the Slough, who on their way down had cut or opened almost every boom on the river, and taken out, indiscriminately, whatever logs they contained. It seemed as though the agent of the new company aggravated every hardship by ruthless, unnecessary and arbitrary destruction of property, and loud and bitter were the denunciations against him. It had been a doubtful problem even among the friends of the measure, whether logs could be successfully driven over the broad sand bars of the lower Chippewa, and cost what it would, its feasibility must be demonstrated now, or the stockholders, already assessed for the last dollar on their stock would abandon the undertaking; the drive was therefore continued after the water got so low, that the cost of driving was more than the logs were worth. But the drive was a fixed fact, and henceforth the Chippewa pinery must furnish its quota of logs, for the mills, and build up the cities on the shores of that great river, whose tributaries span two-thirds of a continent. The next session of the Legislature, 1869, witnessed a renewal of the struggle for charters, but it was a tri-party fight, with a leaning of Chippewa Falls interests towards Beet Slough, and a final coalition of the two to defeat the Dell's bill. It was not until the season of 1870 that the final charter for the Beef Slough Company became a law."

I omit some remarks of Mr. Randall, which, though perhaps not entirely without foundation, are stated in his book with the zest of partisan spirt, excusable with him, who could not but be prejudiced against the Beef Slough Company. But he was fairminded enough to add the following:

" Although stoutly opposed, and the establishment of those works much deprecated by a large share of our people as derogatory to our manufacturing interests, their existence has not been without its benefit, even to its most strenuous opposers. For in 1869 the Company at the Falls having planted some immense piers directly in the channel in the big eddy just below Paint Creek Rapids, a jam of logs of vast proportions was formed against them during the spring drive, filling up the entire river for several miles with logs, piled by the force of the current twenty or thirty feet high, totally obstructing the passage of logs and rafts, - and presenting a grand, almost- sublime spectacle to the beholder - which jam, when broken in the July following, by the aid of two steam engines and a great force of men, filled the river for miles in extent with floating logs, pouring down in such rapid profusion, that any force the mills below could command was powerless to arrest their onward course, or to secure a hundreth part that belonged to them. Millions on millions of feet of logs would have gone into the great river, and been lost in its thousand lagoons and bayous, whicR were saved to their owners by the Beef Slough boom."

In connection with this we must relate the history of the first drive, as far as our county and especially the village of Alma were concerned. The drive came down, under the command of Mr. Bacon, almost down to Alma, the Jam-Boom in Nelson not being established, or else not capable of holding the logs. The crew having been told, that they were to be paid off at Alma, they came there, and waited in vain for their money. That they grew impatient, was quite natural. It had been asserted before, that the most desperate characters had been engaged in the dangerous work to force the drive through. At first they were patient enough,- but when the means for gratifiying their sharpened appetites failed to come forth, they grew riotous, and committed acts, which finally led to the arrest of six of the most desperate characters and lodging them in the jail at La Crosse. Sheriff Turnbull, residing in Fountain City had but little inclination to keep order anywhere else. A company of militia was organized and armed, and the crew being at length paid off, the danger passed and has not returned. Even I, not a resident of Alma at the time, was stopped and insulted in comiflg through the street, and it was only owing to the interference of Mr. Thomas Kennedy, whose acquaintance I had made at the survey of the above mentioned road, that my surveying staff was returned to me and worse was prevented. Cleaning out this " one horse town " was a favorite phrase among the " boys." I do not mention it as a grudge against anyone, not even the said "boys" for I think the whole trouble and disturbance would have been prevented, if the money, which, I understood to have been provided for the purpose, had been properly applied, and not, as was said afterwards, used for speculating in logs, in which, as rumor had it, it was lost. The company had the morti- fication to have its own agejit after a while turning against it, try^ ing to run a lumber raft through the slough to the manifest annoyance of its legitimate operations. The attempt was, however made only once, and was unprofitable. Secretary Irvine of the Mississippi Logging Company says as follows:

" The first effort was not altogether successful or satisfactory to the stockholders; there were only 5,785,000 feet rafted the first season." In fact the old Beef Slough Company had become bankrupt.

At a meeting of the Mississippi River Logging Company held at Winona in September 1872, a proposition was made to them by t'h^ Beef Slough Company to sell them a controlling interest in the Beef Slop.gh Go.'s stock. The proposition was accepted, and a new organization was formed with P. Weyerhaeuser of Rock Island, 111., as President; Artemus Lamb, Clinton, Iowa, Vice President; and Thos. Irvine of Muscatine, Iowa, Secretary and Manager, which persons have continued in their respective offices to the present time.

Elijah Swift, James Jenkins and M. M. Davis of the old Beef . Slough Company still hold some stock and are directors in the new coinpa,ny. The M. R. L. Co. is a corporation organized under the laws of the State of Iowa, having its headquarters at the City of Clinton, Iowa, with a branch office at Chippewa Falls, and one at Beef Slough, Wisconsin, run in conjunction with the office of the Beef Slough Boom Company, and having the same staff of officers.

To hai^monize the conflict of interests between the Chippewa mill, men at Eau Claire and the Mississippi mill owners, operating the Beef Slough Boom, a third organization was formed in the year 1881, .whiqh united the two parties under the corporate name of the Chippewa Logging Company, commonly called the "Pool." Under this arrangement the logs are all bought in common, and the, Eau Claire parties take out of the promiscuous lot a sufficient amount to, supply their mills, and let the balance pass on to Beef Slough. T,he Chippewa Logging Company has its principal qfiice at Beef Slough. , As a matter of course there are many arrangements necessary to catch and manage the logs that are coming dpwn on 'the drive and are to be rafted. The first arrangenaents are the shear-booms at Round Hill, one of them directing the logs to the Buffalo Count}' side, the other compelling them to enter Beef Slou'gh. There is also one at the head of Little Beef Slough, for directing stragglers that escaped the upper booms into the little and main slough. Two new ones will be added this year. The logs are stopped at the Jam Boom located between lots 4 and 5 of Section 24, Township 23 Range 14. They are let out at an opening in it according to the demand of the working force below, pass by old Farmer's Home, down the Devil's Elbow, by Flat Bar, Perrin Slough, Wabasha Bridge and o'ther stations until they come out of the swampy precincts to the open deep water along the bluffs in Section 16 Township 22 Range 13, where they are assorted, passed down the pockets arranged into a compact mass, the joints overlapped like those in the front of mason work. Formerly the fogs were rafted, that is each log was fastened at least in two different places to poles b}' lock-downs and plugs. The poles extended across the - 10 feet strings. The strings again were coupled by similar poles to each other, to the number of from 2 to 14 or more according to requirement. But before that they had to be dropped down to some convenient place for this coupling. This has still to be done, but actual rafting is almost dispensed with. The logs are now brailed. A brail is a combination of logs in the same way as a raft, but these logs are not separately connected or secured. There is a boom around the whole mass, the logs of this boom being fastened by iron links, and prevented from spreading by galvanized wire lines at a distance of 50 feet from each other. A brail is 550 feet long by 46 feet wide. Six of these brails coupled together constitute a full Mississippi raft. Rafts constructed after the old method had as many oars in bow and stern as there were strings in the raft. They floated down the riverguided by these oars. At present these oars have become unnecessarj ; a steamboat hitched to the stern of the raft manages the same by making use of the currents, and sometimes suspends the forward motion until the proper channel has been reached by the bow swinging round.

Formerly it took as many men as there were oars to manage a raft, each working his oar. It was necessary to have a cook with his utensils and materials upon the raft, and the whole was commanded by a pilot, who sometimes had an assistant. All the crew now required is that of the steamboat, re-enforced by a few hands to help in landing the raft and in securing stray logs in case of an accident. To carry on the operations on the Beef Slough there are about six hundred men engaged during the rafting season, but during the remainder of the season about one hundred are retained for different kinds of work. For the accommodation of these men there are several camps:

Camp No. 1 on SB i of NE i of Section 27, T. 22, R. 13. At this camp or near it the office of the company is located, there are also different other buildings, amo'ng them a storehouse for cables and other things required in the operations of rafts and boats.

Camps No. 2, No. 3 and No. 3} are strung out along the bank in Sections 21 and 16. Camp No. 4 was out in the swamp west of the main Slough. Camp 5 is a short distance above in Sect. 16, all in Township 22, Range 13.

Camp No. 6 is in Sect. 12, T. 22, R. 14 at the head of Perrin Skugh, Flat Bar Camp is in Sect. 36, T. 28, R. 14. A small crew camps at the Jam Boom, some are also at the Shear Booms, and occasional camps are formed at other places, especially by the Rear Drive Crews.' All these camps are furnished with victuals and cooks, with beds and blankets by the company. The permanent camps are large and well ventilated, houses, affording such comfort as may be or is usually afforded under similar circumstances. Meat and vegetables are usually supplied fresh, of good quality and - sufficient quantity, procured from the butcher at Alma, and from people on farms in the neighborhood of the slough.

Something is yet to be said about the amount of logs handled by the Beef Slough Company and the other companies working with it as above explained. It is neither necessary nor particularly entertaining to make a table of every year's. output.

The necessity of inspecting the logs and lumber passing through the Beef Slough led to the organization of the 9th Lumber Inspection District. This was done by Chapter 90, Laws of

1870, and the first inspector appointed was Maj. J. F. Hauser from March 19, 1870, until May 20, 1871 when he resigned, John A. Mc Rae being May 31, 1871 appointed to fill the vacancy. He was succeeded by Geo. W. Gilkey who held the office from March 19, 1872 until April 27, 1874. Martin W. McDonnell held the office from April 27, 1874 to the same date 1878. Mr. D. J. McKenzie has held the office, ever since.

For some of the information regarding the lumber inspectors of this district I am obliged to Mr. Henry Casson, Private Secretary of Gov. Rusk. Those who are specially curious regarding the extent of the 9th inspection district are referred to the chapter of the laws of 1870 above mentioned.

The office of the Lumber Inspector has nothing to do with the Beef Slough Company or the Mississippi River Logging Co., the latter in fact scaling their own logs. Lumber Inspector M. W. McDonnell says in his report for 1875, that less than one-fourth of the output of that year had been scaled by him, the balance by the M. L. C. Lumber Inspector D. J. McKenzie reports that in 1885 he scaled 148 of the 535 millions and in 1886, 168 of 463 millions.

The operations at the Slough, as well as the necessary offices and other arrangements are under the direct superintendence of Mr. Irvine, the Secretary and Manager of the Mississippi River Logging Co. But, it being manifestly impossible for any man to supervise these extensive works, some points of which are so far apart, and the operations so multifarious, there are superintendents or bosses appointed, who are in their places and for certain purposes the temporary authorities. At Round Hill, the northern picket of the grand encampment, Mr. A. B. Gilmore is in command, at the Jam Boom Mr. Mike Hawley, and over the Rafting Works, and the operations connected with them, Mr. Edw. Douglas has the superintendency. As a matter of course there must be some discipline among so many people of all sorts and so many new ones every season, and as there never was any serious disiturbance or interruption on account of refractory men, the discipline appears to be satisfactory. To this the regulation, that no liquor of any kind is to be brought and drank upon the premises belonging to the company, has assisted in a great measure.

many minor arrangements would take too much room and could hardly be understood without plats and drawings. The same might be said in regard to the construction of a large reservoir for logs adjacent to the lower end of the Slough or rather the junction of Beef River and Slough. In this the causeway across the swamp built by the village of Alma with some aid and assistance of the Town of Nelson and the county, has been utilized as a dam and the course of Beef River changed by putting locks into it at the eastern bridge.

The above naturally calls to mind the times and per ons of. the pioneers of this enterprise. They are mentioned in the course of the narrative, but those who at that time lived in, or had to come to and remain at Alma will especially remember Dr. M. M. Davis and his son, Mr. James H. Bacon, who for the time was the leadei and motor of the whole; with him we saw his son, and hisnephew Edgar Warner, who built a little cottage near Camp No. 1. Elijah Swift was at that time frequently at Alma, also T. Crane. The American House then kept by J. A. (Squire) Hunner and afterwards by S. S. Cooke was the headquarters of the Beef Slough folks in general, though the office was kept, together with the lawoffice of Moser and Hunner, in the building now occupied by Jacob Burkhard as a saloon and residence.

After the management of the rafting works had been in different hands, the company engaged Mr. Charles Hewitt, under whose vigorous administration the extensive rafting works at and near Camp No.' 2 were commenced, which were altered and enlarged as experience required. Mr. Hewitt, 'or, as he liked to be called among friends, Charley, lives now on his farm in the town of Onalaska, in La Crosse County.

His successor was Mr. George Stiles, who did not stay very long. He is now in Minnesota. Mr. Stiles' successors were succeeding each other so rapidly, that we could not keep up the record, though we caught the last of them.

At first it was customary to employ 071^2/ old hands, that is such, who had been on the Slough from the start. Very soon this was impossible, as the supply gave out, and it was no longer necessary, since the work had become greatlj' changed and simplified. In course of time, therefore, the number of original hands dwindled down to about one dozen, all of them put into positions re-

attention rather than exertion. The supply of men for the preparatory work was drawn largely from the adjacent country and gradually from a larger area, extending occasionally to Mondovi and Glencoe, with a more or less considerable contingent from Alma. Many of the young men who had grown up along the slough earned good wages at odd times or at steady work.

Like every enterprise of such a magnitude as that connected with Beef Slough and the different companies or combinations concerned, this establishment conferred upon the people of the adjacent country some considerable advantages, which are perhaps not always fully appreciated, but which may also at times have [been exaggerated in the minds of some people. The company is : utilizing a natural privilege which otherwise could not have afforded any benefit to anyone. To do so there had large sums of money to be expended in procuring shore rights, buying real estate and for work in fitting the slough and its different parts and 'positions for the purpose of the business intended to be carried on. Most of this money went to parties living in the neighborhood. Then, with the recurrent season of activity there was the regular outlay for carrying on the general work. Of the amoun, so paid out to the hands of all kinds a part went directly and a other, and at times a more considerable part, went indirectly into the pockets of the people of the neighborhood. It is also to be acknowledged that roads and bridges along the parts of the shore most often passed by teams in the employ of the company were better taken care of and improved than in other parts in the neighborhood. Some of these improvements were effected by the order of the company through their employees, others were paid for by taxes assessed upon the company. There are certainly two sides to every thing and some disadvantages may have resulted from the establishment of this enterprise. Some private damages were claimed to have been inflicted upon some of the property adjacent to the log-channel by the deposition of logs, sand and rubbish upon lands previously useful. Where any institution of this magnitude is concerned, and so many people's land has to be passed by workmen and exposed to extra overflow on account of logs obstructing to a certain extent the passage of the water, it is to be expected that some grumbling, with and without sufficient cause, win occur. But these are private grievances. Public dis- advantages we had but few to apprehend. The first experiences with the %oys" as most of common employees of the company were called, could hardly encourage any hope of favorable relations between the new company and the citizens of the neighborhood. During the nineteen years which have since elapsed, matters have gradually improved, especially under the administration of the resident officers and managers of the Mississippi Logging Company, and it is a fact that a good understanding exists between the company and its regular employees on one hand and the authorities and the citizens on the other, which goes to the credit of either party.

That there are exceptions to this, and occasional acts of violence and disturbance occur, can not be denied, nor that it is sometimes necessary to apply the law to refractory individuals. Yet, considering all the circumstances, I think there is but little cause for actual complaint.

The company owns very much real estate and numerous shore rights along the Slough. These parcels of land have been carefully mapped, first in a book in separate sections eight inches square, then in a continuous map about seven and one-half feet long, containing all the land from Sect. 35, Tshp. 22, Rge. 13 up to Sect. 31, Tshp. 25, Rge. 13, in which Round Hill is situated, or from Alma to within two miles of Durand, in which the company or some individual members of the same have any claim or property.

Incident to the subject of rafting, the old style of which I have above described among the earlier operations of the Beef Slough Co., we ought to remember the time, when more than 30 years ago, till a much later time, until after the establishment of this institution, not a few of our citizens earned money by the hard work connected with the management of an oar and other mannual labor incident to rafting after the old method. For a time there was quite an amount of trading done with crews of rafts that were landed at Twelve Mile Blufi, or at Holmes' Landing. All this was quite desirable during a time when the resources of the country were yet entirely undeveloped. It is many years since shipping as a hand upon a raft was a habitual summer employment with any of our lellow citizens, and but few of the younger generation know anything about it. Usually the shipping wae done at Read's Landing, that place being a sort of rendezvous for pilots. The rafts went sometimes as far as St. Louis, and the voyage down and return consumed a considerable part of a summer. The work was hard, the treatment rough, the wages often small, payment not always secure, so that he who managed to save a few dollars out of a trip, might consider himself fortunate. But at home there was nothing to do and nothing to earn, so that any prospect for improving the situation, was eagerly accepted. For many the rough work and life had its charms and they followed rafting during the summer and went into the logging camps, or the pineries, as it was usually called, in the winter. The rafters, - as a class, were rather dreaded along shore, and if now they have -almost disappeared, it is not to be deplored. Itw"as but too often the character of the regular rafthands, those who followed rafting for a business that made the existence of the accidental hands upon the rafts disagreeable and even perilous.

Long as the chapter on "Transportation" has grown, it can not be supposed, that the incidents and accidents still stored in tli memories of the earlier settlers have been exhaustively related, but it is believed that the main points have been carefully enough collected, so as to give a picture of how things once were, how thej' gradually changed and how they now appear.

Agriculture

The varied surface of Buffalo County, for the description of which I refer the reader to the chapter on "Topography" destined it for an agricultural community. The changes of hill and dale, of highland and lowland, combine many advantages and disadvantages, which are to be taken into general consideration before entering into particulars. The great advantage of this configuration is that it affords chances for manifold uses in an agricultural sense, that is, the country is as well adapted to the cultivation of the different cereals usually cultivated in corresponding latitudes, as to the successful propogation and development of those domestic animals found with all civilized nations, and forming one of the great staples-of life in the shape of meat and dairy products and the uses to which wool and hides are devoted for articles of clothing and other subordinate appliances. There can be no question that a hilly country affords to live stock of any kind a natural protection, which is not to be found in a country essentially level for many miles, open and subject to sweeping winds, and apt to experience periods of long continued droughts. The hills are the natural reservoirs from which springs derive their water, and the rills and creeks affording moisture for plants and drink for man and animals are certainly a most desirable provision for the cultivator of the soil. It is true that in a hilly country there must be some land which can not be brought under cultivation, but as wood is one of the necessaries of life, and naturally grows upon those places where the plow can not be employed with advantage, this seeming disadvantage is no detraction from the general usefulness of the land.

Of disadvantages we must mention the difiiculties of intercourse or travel, which are occasioned by ascents and descents, and by Swampy places which are the results o imperfect natural drainage, and compel the inhabitants to spend much time and labor, or their equivalent - money-^in the building of roads, and in keeping them in proper condition. Another disadvantage is the liability of slopes which admit of cultivation, to be torn up and denuded of the most valuable soil.

We must leave it to the judgment of every person to form their own estimate on the balance of these advantages and disadvantages, whether they are about equal, or which of them preponderates. But we may, or must, admit that we know of no country in which everything is endowed with only favorable properties and conditions, and if there is one, in which no favorable conditions whatever exist, there is little or no danger, that it will become and remain the dwelling place of civilized people.

One advantage, not, of course, to agriculturists alone, is afforded by our hills, which is not yet properly appreciated, that is the building material, which we can get out of them in most parts of the county, not entirely without exertion, but comparatively easily, and without being compelled to transport it a great distance. I am aware of the fact that buildings of stone are yet quite rare especially on farms, but we must not forget that we have not yet reached our highest development, which, especially in an agricultural community consists in the application of all natural resources to the exclusion of artificial ones, which in this case also means the substitution of the most durable material for the more perishable, and of permanent and enduring constructions for temporary arrangements. In spite of the fact that our beginnings date back over more than thirty j'ears, and that fevery one of us has brought with him at least some of the results of a more mature civilization, we can not pretend to have worked our ways to perfection. Our roads, our buildings, our mode of management of our farms testify against us. The excuse of being in a hurry, of being compelled to use every expedient for assuring existence, does no longer hold good. It seems to an attentive and unimpassioned observer, that we have forgotten too much, and learned too easily, or at least that we have adopted certain ways and customs, which we considered improvements upon older ways and means, that were really more consistent with true economy, upon the recommendation of the moment, and cling to them without much discrimination. I do not mean to descry improvements, and to counsel a return to the customs of our forefathers, but I think that now, when we begin to gain some leisure, we might well undertake to look into many matters with a more critical eye, than we were, and still are, in the habit of doing. But we now have to look to the development of agriculture and its present status in our county. As in the above I have alleged that it is more than thirty years since agriculture began to be practiced in this county, and began those improvements, which were necessary for its success, in the way of building roads and bridges, we must not suppose, nor permit ourselves to be led by our imagination into the error, that all the population with all the present appliances began to work. As a matter of fact we must lay down the maxim, that agriculture can not be developed any faster than the population increases, but that, as every public improvement increases facilities, and decreases difficulties, we might blot out the first five or ten years of the settlements beforfe we begin comparison with the present circumstances.

Yet even then we would hardly do justice to the matter. The truth seems to be that up to a certain time the efforts in cultivation are apparently so slow as to be hardly perceptible, though this is almost solely due to their being scattered and disconnected. The connection then, between the number of inhabitants and the progress of agricultural operations is obvious. From the census of population of 185.5 we learn, that in that year there were 832 inhabitants. For the year 1850 official accounts are missing, but the most enthusiastic will not put the number of inhabitants present in that year above 50. Thomas Holmes and Major Hatch had left long before, and but few had assembled at the place vacated by them. In the chapter on " Settlement," we see how few there were known, and.it is a fact that then everybody knew everybody else, not only because there were so few, that to know them was certainly easy enough, but every one was in some measure in need of such assistance, as had to be given personally, and found himself obliged to give as well as take in this matter. The first attempt at settlement was not in the agricultural line, and very little could be undertaken in that way before the land was surveyed and in market. The table inserted in Topography shows when the land was surveyed, the following table shows when it came into market.

Date When The Land Came Into Market

The differences in the time of offering the land may have been occasioned by delays in the reports of surveyors. The withdrawal of the land from market was for the purpose of giving the West Wisconsin Railroad a chance to select the land granted in aid of its construction, or rather to give it time to establish a permanent survey, for the selection was not exactly a matter of choice, the odd numbered sections being the ones subject to its claims, the distinction being between a fifteen mile limit and a six mile limit, the land in the former being simply withdrawn, in the latter all land being rated at double government price. The . fifteen mile limit ran through townships 22 and 23, the six mile limit through 23 and 24, nine miles north of the former. The even numbered sections were restored to market in about two years, the odd numbered ones in abourt ten years after withdrawal. Next to the possibility of buy- ing the land, it was desirable to have the United States Land Office conveniently near and accessible. The first entries had to be made at Mineral Point, now in Iowa County. The abstract of entries in the office of the Register of Deeds shows that but very few entries were made previous to 1854 and none of them for agricultural purposes. These purchases having a nearer relation to settlement in general than to agriculture, they are quoted under that head.

This condition of afi'airs could not endure. The destiny of the country was not for large towns, but for rural communities. The bulk of purchases in 1854 and '55 was of agricultural situations.

The La Crosse United States Land Office was opened July 30. 1852. This was a great convenience, as the place could be reached by steamboat in summer, and on foot, or with a horse or wagon, at any time of the year. Nevertheless there were but few entries, in 1852 all in March, hence before removal of the office. In 1853 there was but one purchase, the prospective site of the countyseat, not for agricultural purposes.

In making purchases the newcomers usually preferred valleys to bluffs, open or but slightly wooded land to heavy timber; exceptions to that we find in the neighborhood of trading centres already established. Some of these selections remain puzzles to the subsequent settlers. Aside from the settlements on sand prairies, thai could not support any population for more than two or three years, we find that some people retired, voluntarily and at once, into inconvenient ravines, when they had the very best and first selection. It may have been taste, but it was certainly perverted ttbSte. The want of ready money was a great obstacle to the extension of agricultural settlement. After the opportunity for purchasing had been provided, it was not proposed to "squat" on the land. Hope, always the strongest in adventurers, led so many to pre-empt, and forced' them to borrow money at any rate of interest, 40 per cent, being the highest Ilearned of, but the possibility of more or higher is not to be disputed, . perhaps not even the fact. And for security, the certificate or patent of the land ! Think of that, you young men! Think of it, you, who have fought the battle and lost it, as well as you, who came off victorious. Remember who became rich and who remained poor, who drew

At that time a man was well off, who owned a wagon, a plow, a yoke of oxen, the most necessary kitchfen and household articles, and an axe. A few more tools, say a couple of planes, augers, a hatchet and a square, made him a carpenter, a mechanic who took rank with the blacksmith, or next below him. Other mechanics had to abandon their trades and stick to the plow handle; at least I know many who did, either from choice or compulsion. Shoes and clothing were bought ready made, sometimes fit or no fit. Once bought, they were often worn to rags, frequently much sooner than expected. Mending was practiced to' some extent by the housewives, but that would have been a dandy sort of a bachelor, who would or could perform such an operation. In fact there was so much rough work to do, that a rough appearance seemed to be a piece of the eternal fitness of things. I do not mean to say that anybody sat down and philosophized about the matter. After six days hard work with the body and mind they all enjoyed a Sunday's rest, provided they would get it; for in a case of necessity the Sunday lost its privilege, and the hay or the grain was saved to the imminent danger of the soul. I even know, that at a pinch, when some poor fellow happened to be minus a roof to the house, his neighbors congregated at his place, regardless of the congregations to which they otherwise belonged, and helped him to a roof. By and by things improved, the fences and the houses were up, and crops and cattle, and their owners, had the necessary protection. Of course, it could only be called comfort, if the abience of such was not felt or regretted. The extension of operations made machinery desirable. The first machine was, of course, a threshing machine. Then the reaper followed; not the self-binder of to-day, but the machine by which the raking off was done by hand, and where the rakeman was glad enough to take his seat somewhere on the machine, as long as he could from his perch rake off in decent heaps, or rake off at all. The grape-vine cradle, which had by the time harvests were raised in this county superseded the reaping hook or sickle, at least in the West, was still much in use, for not every one was as yet able to procure a reaping machine. Four or five binders followed such a machine each expected to bind up his station by the return of the machine.

Oxen, at that time considered indispensable for breaking up the new land, to which the name of prairie was given more bycompliment, as we may call a model the machine it resembles. Mowing grass was done by hand much longer than harvesting, and the mowing machine was usually at first but a partially dismantled reaper. All these machines had been invented ten, or even twenty years, before our own first attempts at agriculture, but the. manufacture of it had not yet assumed the gigantic proportions of today's output, and the intrepid agent had not yet taken the name odegion. He and his brother, the locust, were yet unknown to the Far West, in which our Western Wisconsin was quite naturally included. The introduction of horses as draught animals, at first scarcely desirable, became so by the improvement of the roads, and the introduction of harvesting, mowing, and especially threshing machines. I suppose that the parties, who started up the first of these machines, - m the Waumandee, I think it was the brothers Theodore and Nick Meuli, and they brought their machine from Sauk Co., and took it down there again after finishing here - had to furnish most of the horses, five or six spans, or the few spans then present had to make the circuit through a whole extensive neighborhood. The introduction of this machinery stimulated the production of the only staple article considered worthy of cultivation, wheat, almost to exclusiveness. The war and war prices had the same efiect. No regard was paid to improvement or even partial rest of any land; it was, or ought to be inexhaustible. For years after years the mad race continued, crop after crop was taken and sold, nothing was returned to the land, and - it came, as every sane person had known it must come; crops began to be light, prices were reduced by poor quality and increased western and foreign competition, debts had accumulated and failures were iminent. Farmers as a class are probably as intelligent as any other class of citizens, but there is one failing which they seem to possess in excess of most other classes ot industrials; they do not know of whom to take advice. Philosophic, scientific and philanthropic men,men too,who could not possibly have any selfish motives, had long sounded the alarm against that system of plundering and exhaustion, which was practiced by most farmers, but the farmers preferred the advice of the reaper agent, the man that had machinery to sell, whose very business and interest demanded that the old method of uninterrupted croppings should continue ad infinitum. That the agent, or rather the firm or factory should at length in self-defence be compelled to open the eyes of the blind, to seize upon the securities forfeited by neglect or inability to pay, may not have been to their own taste, but was as naturally the result of the system .as the impending or actual banktruptcy of a great many farmers. May be somebody thinks that I have colored this picture too darkly, but let him try and find many pictures of the same subject of brighter colors, and he will soon be convinced, as I have been for some time already, that his task is much more diiiicult than mine would be, should I try in reality to find still darker pictures. The last ten years have worked a considerable change, not perhaps yet radical enough, while in some cases too abrupt and too radical. Agriculture, begins to occupy that position of conservative prudence or wisdom, which not only never risks all on one throw of the dice, as we might say, nor wants" the courage to make reasonable risks. Finally there is some venture in every enterprise, courage and calculation are required in any business, failures are possible and not always avoidable, but for agriculture it is safe to say that its permanent success- lies in a variation of pursuits, without stubborn devotion to one crop or one mode of operation, or blind exclusiveness of any kind.

At the beginning of this chapter I have counted up the possibility of diverse pursuits in the agricultural line as one of our decided advantages. I still think the same way, but this diversification can only be brought about by making live stock, that is, thfe useful domestic animals, the foundation of our farming. Breeding, feeding .and fattening, dairying, all may be practiced more or less extensively side by side, or one or the other predominating. Crops of grain need not therefore be excluded, and will certainly be none the worse, if the attention is concentrated upon a smaller space, i'or which assistance can easily be provided in the way of manuring, or a change of crops, using the one for a support of another and so forth. I will not write of " What I know about Farming," as Greeley did, for the above is merely a train of reflections, which I give for what they may be worth to each reader. In the following tables I shall give the statistical collections on the agriculture of Buffalo County contained in the compendium or the collections of the Census of 1885, the one taken by the authority of the state. I call attention to the fact that agriculture is in these tables considered in the extended sense in which I in the above have suggested that it should be carried on. On a farm everything should be carried on for which the situation, the soil, other peculiarities, for instance the accidental training acquired by the owner or some member of his family in some particular pursuit for which there are materials on hand, may afford an opportunity. A farm can not be a factory, but much may be done on it, which differs from sonje factory work merely in the amount and in the preparation for it. These tables will each in its turn be presented, and remarks and criticism will follow directly after each.

In this I am following the sound pedagogical maxim, that the presentation of the object should be the first step in teaching. Before venturing upon the presentation of the tables I consider a few general remarks appropriate.

1. These statistics were collected in each town by the Town Clerk, who had to report to the Clerk of the County Board of Supervisors, who in turn had to report to the Secretary of State.

2. The accuracy of each report depended therefore on the proper understanding of the printed instructions, and the necessary diligence and attention bestowed upon the work by each clerk, and in the transmission through all the different hands until it had passed through the hands of the printer.

3. The reliability of the reports is therefore not absolute, nor can they be unconditionally condemned as useless. One objection to the collection of them in the book is the ridiculous arrangement, not by subjects or near relation of such, but simply to accommodate matter to the page, as for instance-Zionei/ is not at all in connection with bees and wax, but on an entirely isolated place, because there was just room for that and no more on that page. I have corrected this]|as much as possible.

Value

Fractions were omitted. There are a great many apparent contradictions in this table, that is, the table does not, perhapsi contradict itself, but is plainly incompatible with facts. The most glaring mistake, or perhaps misprint, is of the town of Dover. This town consists of a regular government township containing 36 sections or 23,040 acres, exclusive of township fractions on the northside and range line fractions on the west side. The tirst named fractions amount to about 36 acres for each of six sections - 216 acres, the last named are insignificant in this case. We may then set down the area of Dover as 23,260 acres. Of these the report says that 6,9l4 acres are improved, 3,115 acres are woodland and 43,618 acres unimproved. It is hardly probable that this mistake originated in the town, but where it did originate I cannot tell. Even after a deduction of 30,000 acres the farmland in the report exceeds the surface of the whole town by about four hundred acres. If we. cut off the last figure, reducing the number of acres of unimproved land to 4,361, we find the farmland to amount to 14,390 leaving 8,870 acres to be atjcounted, more than one-third of the whole surface, which is to my certain knowledge impossible. Of the town of Nelson no " Wood 'Land " is reported, yet every one acquainted with that town must admit, that there is as much woodland in it, proportionately, as can be found in any town of the county. It being now the largest town, it certainly ought to report most wood land. Other criticisms might be given but as this would make the chapter tedious, I will stop here, hoping, however, that these remarks are studied by townclerks, and aspirants for this important office, before another state census is to be taken.

The county containing 690 square miles or 441,600 acres, there are 64,490 acres, or adding the 30,000 acres of an error in the town of Dover to it 94,490 acres, or more than one-fifth of the whole surface still to be accounted for. These must be distributed into three classes: 1. The swamplands along the Mississippi and Chippewa Rivers, that could not figure very extensively as farmlands, but might have been booked to some extent as woodlands, at least as far as they are owned and held by farmers or others for that purpose. This class covers a very considerable part of the above amount. 2. United States or government land, to which might be added railroad indemnity land not yet sold or taken possession of by farmei's- This class I consider the smallest of the three classes. 3. Accidental errors, or actual misstatements made by farmers, not often purposely, but unconsciously. Some, who know, or at least pietend to know, every square inch of their land, will sometimes make guesses at the proportions or the amount that would astonish themselves, if they ever would takei the trouble to practice a little addition and subtraction in the matter.

After having given the table of acreage, I think it most natural to let the tables of crops follow immediately, as ci'ops are estimated by the number of acres devoted to each. The number of acres of cultivated or improved land is 128,585, of which 88,245 are reported to have been devoted to crops of all kinds, leaving 40,340 acres unaccounted for. This number, not much less than one-third of the whole amount, must be credited to meadows, cultivated grasses, pastures and clover fields. It is not a bad proposition, nor do the crop reports present such very great variations and contradictions as I had to criticize in the reports on the general acreage. Incongruencies, of course, there are, but not of sufficient importance to affect general results. The next preceding tables treat of the grain crops. The number of acres of grain of all kinds is 86,526, while the other crops occupied not more than 1,719 acres. Of the grains wheat occupied 43,247 acres, only 16 acres less than one-half of the whole area. Next to it comes oats 28,622 acres, or 1,999, in round numbers 2,000, acres more than one-half of the wheat area. Corn figures with 13,687 acres, or 729 ares less than one-third of the wheat area, which seems to me somewhat exaggerated, but may nevertheless be true. Corn, as everybody knows, must be reckoned among the risky crops in our climate requiring, as it does, a warm summer and exemption from late, frosts in spring, and early ones in fall, to be successful. It is certainly interesting to know, how much was realized, on the average from each acre of the different grains. The following is a statement according to the Tables; (Fractions of cents are omitted.) Wheat $9.70; Corn $9.82; Oats$6.50; Barley $10.22; Rye $6.51; Buckwheat $5.34. ' '

Thus it appears that barley was the best paying crop, while corn was 12 cents per acre ahead of wheat, oats and rye nearly equal, and buckwheat least. But in the emuneration of the last named there is one item', which diflers so much from the others as to-suggest a mistake somewhere. 44 acres -in the town of Glencoe are reported to have yielded only 193 bushels valued at $166.00. The yield in all other towns shows over 10 bushels to the acre, while in Glencoe it is less than 5 bushels. On the other side the valuation per bushel runs all the way from about one-third of a (lollar to about two thirds, in Glencoe it reaches 85 cents. Where the mistake is, I can not say, but the enumeration of the value must be nearer right than that of the bushels. Both, however maybe wrong. I have already expressed my opinion, that these tables, and consequently the averages derived from them, are not absolutely reliable, yet they are the latest to be had, and must answer our purpose for want of better ones.

And Cities

This concludes the enumeration of field crops, or such as are estimated by the acre. A careful examination will show that the tables on Beans and Peas, on Roots and on Potatoes are capriciously contradictory, so that a digest of them is not worth while. Something similar we must say of the table on Sorghum, -when we find that 5J acres in one town yield 787 gallons, while 12 acres in another yield only 706 gallons. Differences there are and must be in the yield per acre, of this or any other crop, but for such glaring ones we can not account by anything reasonable, hence we refuse to believe them. Taking, however, the reports as they are and for what they may be worth, we find that the greatest amount for any town in the different crops is distributed as follow: its fiber, as well as for its seed, and that there is not in our neighborhood any establishment, in which they are utilized as raw material for manufacturing purposes.

Before I could believe the report in this table as to the amount of bushels of apples, I would insist on accurate measurement, although I wish that the actual amount might be a hundred times as large as the one reported. It is one of the well founded objections to our section of country, that the larger fruits are not to be depended upon, no matter what care is taken with the trees. Some few localities seem to be almost created purposely for fruit trees and and apple_ trees do for a while grow finely, but all at once they wilt and wither, and nobody seems to be any wiser for the experience. The report on grapes is more reliable but seems to be incomplete, as some towns report nothing, that to my certain knowledge produce a creditable amount. So for instance, there seem to be neither apples, nor grapes, nor other berries, in the City of Alma, which is not true espeaially with regard to grapes.

After the study of Buffalo County statistics I suppose a man should not be surprised at anything not even if the town of Waumandee produces 4,435 pounds of honey without keeping any bees, or five towns containing together 159 colonies, do not produce an ounce of honey. But statistics say so! Must be true, then,

Among other things I have omitted the table on Tobacco, seeing that there was only one item in it hi 2 acres, estimated crop 2,000 pounds, valued at $200. This crop, I understand, is on the increase, and may become profitable in certain situations, and in seasons long enough to permit of its maturing properly. It is, however, an exhausting crop, which requires heavy manuring and a strong soil.

I find a tabulation of the "Value of all other products not hereinbefore enumerated." I can't imagine what these products might be, unless pumpkins, squashes, cabbages and other garden truck is meant, which, I regret to say have been inadvertently omitted on the list. Whatever may be the material, the amount of ^ch products is $4,515 for the whole county, reported from only three towns. Whether there were not " some pumpkins" in the other towns, who knows?

The list of men employed in agricultural pursuits will be found as the last of the tables and its remarkable statements and other merits duly considered. The census, of course, in its brilliant arrangement, put it close to the table of implements, probably because " men " are only live implements.

The most important branch of civilized husbandry, after the cultivation of cereals, is the care of the domestic animals, be the same for the ultimate use of the flesh as meat for food, or for the purpose of assistance in the necessary work of tillage, or any other work required on a farm, for transportation or other purposes. Neat Cattle including the bull and cow and their offspring, are most important domestic animals, inasmuch as they afford a more various utilization than any other class. Oxen are a very useful class of draught-animals, which, especially during the earlier years of the settlement of this region, were deservedly esteemed. At the present time working oxen are scairce, and steers are only kept three or four years, that is, ae long as they grow, and their flesh accumulates and matures rapidly. Cows are but exceptionally used as draft animals in this country, but in many others it is different. Cows we keep fcr their milk, of which, as far as is not used fresh, we manufacture cheese and butter, and for breeding, converting their carcasses into beef, whenever they do not, or no longer, prove profitable alive. 'Calves are not very frequently sold to the butcher for veal so that even the local demand for that kind of meat is seldom sufficiently supplied. The subjoined table would be more interesting if it would present specific columns instead of the gross aggregation of cattle under one name, all the distinction being between those living and those killed.

Butter

The inconsistencies in the tables of " Cattle and Calves " are not so apparent as in some of the preceding tables, although the critic acquainted with the situation of the different towns might find some reasonable objections to make, or questions to ask. With regard to the tables of Dairy Products I think that that of Butter is more accurate than that of Cheese but that both are not accurate enough. That in the City of Alma neither butter nor cheese should be produced, may cause the impression that it is a factory town, with nothing rural about it, while in fact we have several farms within our corporation, and we know that on at least one of them not only butter but also cheese is produced for sale in town. A glaring error in the printed tables giving 60,825 pounds of cheese for Gilmanton, I corrected by striking out the 0, as I found that then the amount of value would give about 14 cents per pound, which would not be an unreasonable average, or about as much as a fair quality of cheese should bring in market.

The tables on Sheep and Lambs were entirely separated from the table on Wool, but I thought proper to unite them, since there can be no sheep without producing some wool, nor any wool without sheep to grow upon. The table, of these animals "on hand" rather surprised me, as I had no idea that there were so many sheep, nor can I yet imagine that not more than 1467 of these animals were slaughtered during the year, since this number would afford only four heads per day for the whole county. I do not, however, pretend to be very accurately posted on the point.

The tables on "Hogs" "on hand," and "slaughtered" do not present any contradictions beyond those common to similar tables with the exception of the fact, that no hog should have been slaughtered in the City of Alma, when it must be clear to any one acquainted there, that about as many hogs must have been slaughtered as there w«re on hand, as probably none were ever except for the purpose of being slaughtered within the year. My nose disputes this assertion, but although it always leads, it still is not supposed to possess much judgment.

I know as weU as anybody else that in no kind of domestic animals there is such a difference in value as in horses, but such a difference as we find between the valuations of some towns and others can not, and do not exist among horses in our county. The greater number of our horses are common stock, kept for common purposes, and only very few animals can be rated at fancy prices, stallions for breeding always excepted. The average price per head for the whole county is, according to my estimation, rather low, but I find that just where we might expect a high price in the schedule, we find a rather low one, and the reverse. My remarks in the table point to some surprises, rather than actual errors, which, however, are not only possible but highly probable. A most astonishing revelation, I think, is the statement that there are but 13 horses in the city of Alma. I am not quite sure, but there are more than that in the first ward, and were in 1885.

The following] table is given at the ^end of all the others} as relating to the " hired help " required in all the different bra,nches enumerated in the preceding ones.lljThe calculation per head during the whole year I have made myself from the statements given on the left side. This is the most astonishing of all the tables relating to the agricultural statistics of Buffalo County, and it seems impossible to explain the statements.

It is impossible to reconcile the statements upon any principle whatever, nor is it possible to explain how such differences as the above could be reported. As I can not here quote the instructions under which these statistics, or any of the preceding ones, were supposed to be collected, I do not want to throw the blame, on any one in particular, but know from experience ' that the in- structions sent to town clerks were liable to misinterpretation. Though I had nothing to do with them, and had neither time nor inclination to study them, I was asked more than once, what I to be the meaning and import of certain points in them. Having for many years handled the '- Educational Statistics" of this county, I know how difficult it is, to make some people comprehend distinctions that seem to us unmistakable.

Having already apologized for the short-comings of the statistics given, I will only add my general opinion of statistics of all kinds. That they are necessary and useful no one will deny, always provided that they are correct. This proviso is, however, seldom regarded. Not that those collecting them are necessarily wanting in intelligence or honesty, but the means for obtaining facts are usually, and more especially, if the collection has to be made among all kinds of people, not adequate to the requirements. Take for instance a farmer, required to state, how many acres of improved land he possesses, and you will find that in nine out of ten cases he will exceed the fact. I know that almost every farmer whose cultivated land I had to survey, was astonished to find that he had less than he supposed. Then again as to woodland, unless it is a'forty or a definite fraction of it, there is a notorious uncertainty. These are only instances.

Accounts of produce are also very loofeely kept, if at all. Sums are 'estimated on the spur of the moment, and the town clerk can not wait for the reflection, that might greatly modify statements, which for him it is almost impossible to contradict or to correct. .

Another inherent fault of statistics is that they are frequently collected for one purpose and finally used for another, or that the purpose for which they are wanted is misuiiderstood and inquiries directed the wrong way.

I will say nothing of the possibility of using statistics to prove the very opposite assertions, but that they are sometimes so used, or attempted to be used, should of itself render everybody cautious in the handling of them.

But it is most certaiin that a critical study of even imperfect statistics would lead to a better understanding of principles on which they are collected, and the purposes for which they may and shonld be used. Any well settled and duly organized county would feel it as a disgrace, should anybody write about its agriculture and forget to mention its fair, that annual show of pumpkins, squashes, cabbages and other greens, besides stock of blood and grade, not to say much of horses and races, the latter always being made sufl&cient noise about, so as not to be overlooked. The Agricultural Society of Buffalo County was organized during the summer of 1872 with Robert Henry as President, John Hunner, jr., as Secretary, and J. W. DeGroff as Treasurer. It held its first annual fair on the 9th, 10th and 11th of October of that year, on the fair grounds at the town of Lincoln, on Sec. 12 T. 21 R. 12, southwest of the bridge crossing Little Waumandee Creek in front of the Lincoln House. The first three fairs were moderate successes, but the next showed very strong decline. The site of the fair grounds had been selected for its central location, and its accessibility from all points of the compass. But there were, nevertheless some considerable objections to them. They were situated rather low, and on rich loamy land, on which the slightest rain was sure to make walking diragreeable and racing impossible. But the loudest complaint was on account of a want of accpmmoda-. tion for the visitors. There was at that time only one tavern within six or eight miles of the grounds, and although this was closely adjacent, it could accommodate but very few persons at best. It is true the farmers in the neighborhood extended their hospitality on the occasions very generously but there was still much dissatisfaction. After the fiith fair it was concluded to remove the exhibition, buildings and appurtenances, to Alma, where accommodations for visitors were certainly sufficient, but those for the fair were not very easily found. After some disputes the buildings were located on John Hemrich's meadow close- to the northern line of Section 13 of T. 21, R. 13. The buildings were on the slope between the Alma and Fountain City road and the level part, on which the race-track was laid out. The site chosen was about one mile below the center of the village. It was rat/her damp at any time, but once it was submerged and the horse^aciflg was converted into A logrolling match. The hall usually presented a very fine exhibition, but the stalls for cattle, horses and other animals were often empty, or filled with very indiffereint animals. Unpropitious circumstances diminished the att;endance very much the ipetitvitipn did not pay, subsidies from private pereons were collected almost every year, and the people, of whom some had cherished the most sanguine expectations, became disgusted, and when in 1884 the people of Mondovi proposed to transfer the exhibition to their village, there was no regret at Alma for losing it.

The next exhibition, being the first one in Mondovi, was actually a greater success than any of the preceding ones, perhaps in everything, but more especially in cattle and horses. There may be some inclination to inquire into the reasons why the county-fair did not succeed any better in the lower part of the county . An almost sufincient answer may be found in looking at the shape of our county, and by remembering that the narrow part of it is also the hilly part, while the wider northern part, although not entirely level, is rather rolling than hilly, transportation being more easy and not so circuitous. The northern part is also contiguous to parts of Trempealeau, Eau Claire and Pepin Counties of similar formation, and from which Mondovi can draw stock of all kinds. Mondovi, however, does not occupy a central position with regard to this county, and in fairness is not the place to hold any assembly consisting of the people of the whole county. We concede the fact that the most ambitious, or most of the ambitious people do live in its vicinit}', and that this gives it a perfect right and title to the county-fair. If we wish that our immediate neighbors should be more ambitious, and not qdite so jealous of the merits of their neighbors, we hope it is no sin, but fear that our honest wish will not be verified.

Public assemblages in this country will not be allowed to pass without considerable noise. Some of this noise is made by a band, and sometimes is music, but always called such by the crowd, not for courtesy so much, but because of the similarity with the sounds proper to the crowd. - The other specific noise is made by public speakers. What applies to assemblages in general, must, of course, apply to county -/airs. At our fairs we had different speakers almost every year, of whom I remember Elder Morse, Hon. Ed. Lees, Hon. Conrad Moser jr., Auren Rockwell, Esq., Hon S. D. Hubbard, Hon. E. W. Keyes, Hon. Wm. T. Price, Hon. A.' Finkelnburg, all of this state and Major Doughty of Lake City, Minnesota. During the time the fair remained in thelowerpart of the county, where the people of German nationality form the majority of the inhabitants, addresses were on most fairs delivered

It would hardly be of sufficient interest to the readers to insert premium lists, or award of prizes especially as we could not give all of them. So we may content ourselves with the notice that the fair for 1887 will be held at Mondovi on the 26, 27, and 28th day of September, an.d that the officers of the Buffalo County Agricultural Society for the present year are: J'. W. Whelan, Mondovi, President; Alexander Lees, Gilmanton, Secretary, and Ryland Southworth, Mondovi, Treasurer.

In the preceding chapter on " Agriculture " I have already expressed my conviction that, ours is an agricultural community and that in fact almost every part of manufacture practiced in the county is directly connected with agriculture, be it for depending on the raw material on agricultural products, or finding in agriculturists the bulk of costumers for its own products. In general we find the conditions for manufacturing enterprises in this county not very favorable, and new industries will hardly spring up in our midst. We do not possess any surplus' quantity of raw material, which would want to be an object of manufacture, nor do we have a great abundance of natural mechanical force. Our water powers are almost all occupied by the existing rnills, wood is no longer superabundant, coal we have none at all, and if the discovery of Iron is in any degree satisfactory, it will have to be shipped abroad for smelting, to points where fuel is abundant; though, of course, it is simply a question, which of the two, the ore or the fuel, will cost least in transportation.

Some explanations may be useful in the distinction between manufacturing and common mechanic's operations. In former times "manufacture" meant what the word expresses, 'Something made by hand." In later and in modern times it means something produced by the aid of machinery, and by a minute division of operations. The work of a mechanic, or artisan, a man working at his trade, might embrace all the operations necessary to turn out a certain piece of work, but it very seldom does. Then again two mechanics, as we often see in the familiar example of blacksmiths and wagon makers, might unite, and by their joint work produce a wagon, a plow, etc., each doing the work of his trade. This would not usually be regarded as manufacturing unless nothing but wagons, etc., would be made. But it would give a similar establishment the character of a factory as soon as there would be a greater number of men, who would either by hand alone or by the assistance of machines, work together for the construction of wagons, plows, and other agricultural implements requiring the same materials and much the same mechanical operations. That such combinations of men and machines and of materials and means of applications to specifical purposes is also called a factory, although the peculiar character of the work is not at all mechanical, and why such a combination of processes should be called manufacturing, is probably understood by all.

Something ought to be said as an introduction to the statistical tables on the " Manufacturing Interests of Buffalo County '' from the census of 1885. - Manufacturing of any kind can not be carried on without room and housing, hence there is real estate connected with it. There must be raw material, or stock, and there must be tools and machines, or fixtures. All this can not be specified, but possesses a monej' value, and this money yalue is, at least to a certain extent, if correctly stated, an indicator of the extent of the business carried on. Then there are assistants needed and must be paid, which is another indication of the extent of the business. In introducing these tables I would be glad, if I could recant the remarks made with regard to the reliability, or rather unreliability, of such tables in the chapter on agriculture. I can not conscientiously do it, but I will defer special criticisms until after the production of the tables themselves.

to the second table, as there are two mills at Mondovi, and, if I am not mistaken, there was also a cigar factory there two years ago. In regard to " Milling " there is a woeful incompleteness in the second table, since there are mills in the following towns, besides those named : Alma, Maxville, Lincoln, Glencoe, Mondovi and Milton. There were more mills omitted than entered. A defect common to both tables is the mixing up of different enterprises in the columns of real estate and machinery, and of stock and fixtures. If the reader can learn anything from those tables, even if he should have the patience and fortitude to study them, I not only wish him joy of it, but would be obliged to him for communicating results. The only apology I can offer for the introducduction of said tables is that I could not find any better near at hand, and that this introduction may strengthen the suspicion of thinking men as to the value of statistics.