Glass. Book. COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT Pi^ HISTORY TUCKER COUNTY, WFSl' VIRGINIA, FROM THE EARLIEST EXPLORATIONS AND SETTLE- MENTS TO THE PRESENT TIME; BIOGEAPHICAL SKETCHES OF MORE THAN TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY OF THE LEADING MEN, AND A FULL APPENDIX OF OFFICIAL AND ELECTIONAL HISTORY; ALSO, AN ACCOUNT OF THE RIVERS, FORESTS AND CAVES OF THE COUNTY. By HU MAXAVELL. ILL USTR A TE D WITH TWENTY-KIGHT PHOTOTYPES OF NOTKD I'KRSONS. K I N G WOO D, W. VA.: PRESTON PUBLISHING COMPANY. 1884. (jj^-yul^ COl'YKIGHT BY II r MA X W JJJ, L. 1884. PriE-=i OF JouRN'M Printing House K.NGAOOD. W. Va. AS A SLIGHT, BUT SINCKKK KXVKKSSION OF GKATITUDK, A8 A TOKEN OF RESPECT FOK INTEGRITY AND FUtMNKaS IN THK CAUSE OF HISTORICAL RKSKABCH, AS A MARK OF ESTEEM FOR NOBILITY OF l'URl\)SK IN ALL THE LESSEK AND LKSS-TKODDEN PATHS OF LIFB, THE AUTHOR DEDICATES THIS BOOK T(J HIS Fi:iJ^.\l). WILBUR C. BROCKITNIErt. I NTRODUCTIO N Had some things been different from what they were, I believe that I could have made the History of Tucker County better than it is. The labor required to collect and arrange the material was greater than would be supposed by one who has never undertaken a task of similar nature. No previous history, covering the period and territory, has ever been compiled, and I had to enter upon original and unexplored fields wherever I went. There was no scarcity of subject-matter; but, at times, it was not easy for me to decide what to use and what to reject. I am not certain that I have not erred seriously in one thing — that I trusted more to the whims of others than to my own judgment. The plan of the work would have been quite different had I followed my own inclination to make the whole thing one connected story instead of biographical fragments, as it is. "Yet, as it is, it will please more people than it would if cast in the mold for which it was first intended. I was not wri- ting it for myself, but for others; and, as m}' tastes and fan- cies differ from those of others, I thought it best to suit the book to those for whom it was intended. But, as I said, if some things had been otherwise, this book might have been better. The circumstances under which the work was done were not at all times pleasant or favorable. I commenced it in 1881, and devoted to it only what time was mine after devoting twelve hours a day to school work. At first it was my intention to publish it in the Tucker County Pioneer, as a serial story ; but this was abandoned when it was seen how unwise it was. The his- 6 INTRODUCTION. tory as it was then was less than half as large as now, al- though it devoted more space to the guerrilla warfare that was carried on along our county's borders during the Civil War. When the idea of publishing it in the newspaper was abandoned, it was next proposed to bring it out in book form, and the first half-dozen pages were actually set in type. But, I was not pleased with it, and concluded to re- arrange the whole work, and the printing was accordingly suspended until the Avriting should be completed. Meanwhile, I found it necessary to give some attention to other matters ; for, it has never been my fortune to be so situated that I could devote my whole time to literary work. Soon, too, I grew doubtful if it was worth while to do anythiug further with the matter. So, it was allowed to lie idle, while I found more agreeable employment in other fields of history. Thus, nothing Avas done till the winter of 1883-4. I was then in California, and had done as much on a new history ("Conquest of the Ohio Valley") as I could do v/ithout a personal visit to tlie Library at AVashington City, and, as I was not yet ready to return to the East, I began to consider whether it would not be a good opportu- nity to revise the musty manuscripts of the Tucker History. I was the more inclined to do this because I did not like the idea of having commenced a thing without finishing it. So, I sent to West Virginia for the manuscript and revised it by the time I was ready to start home, in April, 1884. Upon my arrival at home, I added the part embraced in "Brief Biographies," and sent the book to the press late in August. If I had quieted mj-self to this task, and had nothing else to lead my mind off or to disturb me, I could have done better. I could have better interwoven the stories, one with another, and made of them one continued purpose. INTRODUCTION. 7 and about them there would have been a completeness which I am conscious that they do not now possess. But it is not necessary to speculate upon siich things as might have been. The book is as it is, and those who feel troubled at the discovery of logical errors may, if they will, let charity cover what is best concealed. It is not my intention to un- dertake another task of the kind, so I cannot truthfully promise to profit by irregularities that may be pointed out. But, from this, it should not be inferred that I look upon my labor as that much thankless drudgery. Far from it. The people of Tucker County have lent their aid and en- couragement to me, and have done what they could to assist me, and, on their account, if for nothing else, the work, in spite of its many discouragements and dif- ficulties, has been to me a pleasing one. No person feels a deeper and kindlier interest in the majestic mountains, the quiet valleys, the green meadows, the blooming orchards, the sweeping streams and the crystal springs of our little county, than I do. The interests of the people are mine, and their hopes and aspirations are in unison with my sym- pathy. The whole count}', from the wind-swept crags of the Alleghanies to the sugar-bloom of the Seven Islands, is throbbing with the pulse of universal life. The past with its romance is lost in the present, and the present is newer and beautifuller than the past ever was. Who would not feel a pride in such a county ? If I have done anything for it in the present undertaking, I am glad of it ; if I have done nothing, I am sorry, for I have not done my duty. Some of the history has been Avholly neglected or only touched, because I could not utilize it all. What I have left has been principally romances that cling around old memories. I would like to fling history aside and cast my 8 INTEODUCTION. lot with tliem for a season. No mountain of Scotland Las echoed to the themes of more beautiful legends that our mountains have. The temptation to me was great as I was writing the history, fori wanted to tui-n myself loose among such landscapes and people and stories as my fancy could create or my eyes could see already created. Bat I held steadily before my mind the fact that I was writing history^ and I did all I could to weed from it what was not sober and true. I have given nothiug that I do not believe to be the truth. I am able to rid myself of all partiality when it is necessary to do so, and in this case I have done it. I feel that I have done injustice to none. If I have, it was unin- tentional on my part. It has been necessary to write of some who are anything but my personal friends ; but I have done it Avithout one shadow of desire to do them a wrong or to let them suffer by neglect. All I could ask of any man is to be treated as fairly as I have treated my characters in this History of Tucker County. I hold that no man sliould be misrepresented ; but, if misrepresentations be tolerated, it is better that they affect the dead than the living. I would rather harm the memory of a dead Washington, although he was my friend, than to take a mean advantage of a living enemy — to injure him in a manner wherein he could not de- fend himself. Whether right or wrong, thus I believe. To those who will read this book closely enough to notice errata, where they exist, I would say, bear in mind that the book was written in fragmentary parts, and did not receive the supervision that all histories should have. However, I feel confident that the serious errors are few, and Avhat they are, they are there without the knowledge of the author at this hour. Hu Maxwell. Kingwood, October 23, 1884. CONTENTS. CHAPTER 1. JAMES PARSONS. Page. The County of Tucker defined. First visited by James Par- sons. He discovers tlie Horse Shoe. Passes up Horse Shoe Run. The Pringles. Siuion Kenton. Tiie Indians. Mound- builders. Mound in the Horse Shoe. Graves, bones and ar- row points. Captain Parsons and his brother locate lands on the River. Chased by Indians 17 CHAPTER II. * JOHN MINEAR. John Minear. Early life. Leads a colony to the Horse Shoe. Builds a fort. Trouble with the Indians. A settler chased from the Suj^ar Lands. Settlement broken up. St. George founded in 1776. Fort Built. Mill. Prosperity. Reverses. New trouble with the Indians. The small-pox rages in Tuck- er. An Indian raid. Sims killed. St. George besieged. Am- buscade. Jonathan Minear killed. Washburn taken priso- ner. Pursuit of the Indians. Skirmish. Indians defeated. Washburn rescued. A rash Indian. Boy taken prisoner near St. George. Killing of John Minear, Cooper and Came- ron. Escape of the Millers and Goffe. The Indians pass into Randolph. Routed by Jesse Hughes. Burial of Minear, Cooper and Cameron • 34 CHAPTER III. MISCELLANIES. The manners and customs of the pioneers. Moving. Pack- horses. Plunder. Household articles. Bread and meat. Building houses. The style of houses. Clothing. Mill at St. George, 1776. Intoxicating liquors. Guns. Tomahawks. Religious worship. The customs of the times. Schools. Teachers. Modes of imparting instruction. Singing schools. Romance of Manassa Minear and Lyda Holbert 69 10 TABLE OF CONTENTS. Clix\PTKR IV. MI.SCKLLANIES. Silent History. James Groff. His peculiarities. The land agent. The Slipper. The Parsons family. The Bonnifields. Settle- ment of Clover ])istrict. First school-house. The Dumire familj'. The Losh family, William Losh and two friends go to Ohio. John Losh, the hunter. Canada : the bed of a lake. Lost in the woods. Captures cub-bears. Crosses the river on a raft. Old settlers. Greneology. Nimrod Haddix breaks his neck. Ambrose Lipscomb. Adam Harper 87 CHAPTER V. FORMATION OF TUCKER COUNTY. Efforts to obtain a new county. Meeting in St. Ge.orge. Com- mittee select site for court-house. William Ewin sent to the Legislature. Judge John Brannon. Name of the county and county-seat 121 CHAPTER VL SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES. The influence of schools and churches. Should be co-workers. Growth slow but permanent. Common schools the greatness of the country. Home supply of teachers 125 CHAPTER VII. MOUNTAINS AND CAVES. Mountains of Tucker. Limestone mountains. Falling Spring. Jordan's Cave. Blooming Cave. Subterranean wonders 130 CHAPTER VIII. LUMBER INTERESTS OF TUCKER COUNTY. Primeval forests. Description of trees. Sugar making. Saw mills. Cheat River. _ Springs. Wells. The blackness of the water of Cheat. To what due. History and description of the river. Alum Hill. Job's Ford. Slip Hill. Turn Eddy. Willow Point. St. George Eddy. Miller Hill. Murder Hole. Turtle Rocks. Seven Islands. Rafts and raftsmen. Shin- gle mills. Lumber interests opposed to farming 139 TABLE OF CONTENTS. 11 CHAPTER IX. WEST VIRGINIA CKNTRAIi AND PITTSBURGH RAILWAY. General view of the subject. Coal. Railroad plans of 1856- 1881. Reports. Wealth of the company's lands 167 CHAPTER X. MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. The value of statistics. Various lists and tables. Reports of County Superintendents 173 CHAPTER XI. NEWSPAPERS OF THE COUNTY. First paper in Tucker County. Founding of the Pioneer. The Democrat comes into existence. The progress of the two papers 190 CHAPTER XII. THE ST. GEORGE BAR. Sketches of William Ewin. Rufus Maxwell. A. B. Parsons. Lloyd Hansford. L. S. Auvil. W. B. Maxwell. Philetus Lipscomb 198 CHAPTER XIII. TRAVELERS. Abe Bonnifield. Starts to Missouri. Joins a .show. Leaves it. Joins another. Rumpus with Indians. Goes to Canada, The old black scalawag. Returns home. Joins the Confed- erate army. Fights to the last. A. T. Bonnifield. Goes to California. Returns. Chased by a tiger at Nicaragua. Visits W. Va. Returns to California 206 CHAPTER XIV. TRAVELERS.— (CONTINUED.) Captain Ezekiel Harper. Early life. Vokiliteers to go to the Mexican war. Starts overland to California. The jour- ney. The Humboldt desert. Harper leaves the company. Proceeds on foot. Crosses stupendous mountains. Arrives at the gold fields. Digs gold to buy his breakfast. Various reverses and successes. Indian war. Harper leader of 12 TABLE OF CONTENTS. the miners. Skirmishes with the Indians. Rescue of priso- ners. Tiie Indians driven from the country. Harper revis- its W. Va. Returns across the plains to California. Drives 4000 sheep. Jacob Harper dies on the Rocky Mountains. Fortunes and reverses. Harper comes back to \V. Va. Re- turns to California. Terrible storm at sea. The "Central America" ^oes down. Letcer from Aspinwall. Jerome Har- per goes to Chili. Insurrexion there. Prisoners sent to Patagonia. Captain Harper starts to hunt his brother. Meets him at Pataluma. Returns to the mines. Comes back to W. Va. and joins the Confederate army. Various skirm- ishes. Taken prisoner. Carried to Camp Chase and Rock Island. Suffering. Escape. After history 220 CHAPTER XV. TRAVELERS. -(CONTINUED.) Henry Bonnifield. Early life. Adventures. Goes to Cali- fornia. Rides wild horses. Dassperate ride over Miilerton Mountain. Dragged by a wild horse. A wicked mule. In- vited to ride at the Centennial at Philadelphia. Goes to Ar- izona. Haunted house of Tulare. A lying emigrant. Mo- jave Desert. In Arizona. Sick. Lost in the desert. Falls into the hands of the Indians. Passes down the Colorado River. Trouble with the Indians. Reaches home 250 CHAPTER XVI. TRAVELERS.— (CONTINUED.) The Minears. Farm work. School. St. George Inn. A. P. Minear. Works on the B. & O. R. R. Starts to California. Adventures on the Isthmus of Panama. Reaches California. Taken sick. Kindness of E. Harper and Mr. Buckelew. Goes into the lumber business. Fails. Goes to Oregon. Suc- cesses and reverses. John W. Minear goes to California. To Oregon. A. C. Minear follows. Letters on the way. Sol- omon Minear killed. The Minears goto Idaho. Mining. Fam- ine. Snow. Storms. Attempt to murder A. P. Minear. Struck by sixteen bullets. Escapes. Joins a railroad enter- rpsie in Florida. Fails. Goes to New York. Returns to the Pacific coast and engages in mining. A. C. Minear in Idaho. Fights Indians. Letters. Returns to W. Va. David S. Minear 278 TABLE OF CONTENTS. 13 CHAPTER XVII. THE WAR. The commencement of the struggle in Tucker County. Cap- ture of a Confederate flag at Saint George. Death of Lieut. Robert McChesney. Letters bearing on the subject. Ad- vance of Garnett. Battle of Corrick's Ford. Confederates retreat. Capt. E. Harper pilots the flying army. Destruc- tion and ruin marked the way. The army deserted by the cavalry. Retreat of the Union forces from the Red House. E. Harper leads the scouts up Backbone Mountain. Escape of the army. The raids of Imboden. Surrender of Hall. Faris. Battle of St. George. Close of the war 316 BRIEF BIOGRAPHIES. In this department the subjects are tx-eated alphabetically 438 APPENDIX. Biographical sketch of the author 511 APPENDIX. POLITICAL STATISTICS. Election returns of the county 533 Index. 573 ILLUSTRATION S. Capt. Ezekiel Harper, . Frontisj )lece. Page W. B. Maxwell, . 202 A. P. Minear, 272 A. T. Bonnifield, 482 John G. Moore, . 512 The Maxwell Brothers — a group , 176 Lieut. Eobert McChesney, 320 Dr. B. Baker, . 368 Abraham Bonnifield, 512 Rufus Maxwell, . 450 Capt. Joseph A. Faris, . 320 Mrs. Anna Minear, 96 Mrs. Sarah J. Maxwell, . 176 Mrs. Elizabeth Bonnifield, 96 Mrs. Mary J. Minear, 320 Mrs. Mary A. Spesert, . 196 Mrs. D. A. Lowther, 196 George A. Mayer, 368 David S. Minear, . 320 Jeff. Lipscomb, . 482 Hu Maxwell, . 512 Enoch Minear, . . 96 Job Parsons, . 482 Dr. A. E. Calvert, . 368 Nelson D. Adams, . 320 PhiletuH Lipscomb, . 482 Cyrus H. Maxwell, . 512 J)]-. T. M. Austin, . 368 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY J CHAPTER I. J A M E S P A R S ^^ ^S. Tucker County, West Virginia, is bounded on tlie north by Preston, on tlie east b}' Maryland and Grant County ; on the south it is bounded by Randolph, and on the west by Barbour. It lies along the valle}^ of Cheat River, and includes the tributaries of that stream for about thirty -live miles north and south, and twenty east and west. The area of the county would, therefore, be about seven hun- dred square miles ; but, if an actual measurement were made, tlie area would probabl}- fall a little short of these figures. The county is not mentioned in history prior to the French and Indian War, about 1762. Of course, it is un- derstood that when the county is spoken of in this manner, reference is had only to the territory now included in the county of Tucker. The territory so considered appears to have been unknoM'u to civilized man till about the year 1762 or 1763. The accounts of the earliest explorations 18 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. are vague and conflicting, and very few positive statements can be made on the subject. However, it is certain that both Preston and Randolph were visited by white men be- fore Tucker was. Probably the first white man in the count}' was Captain James Parsons, who then lived on the South Branch of the Potomac, near Moorefield, in the present county of Hardy. During the French and Indian War, the Indians often passed from beyond the Ohio, across the Alleghany Mount- ains, into the settlements on the Potomac River, and partic- ularly on the South Branch. They killed or carried away as prisoners everybody they could catch. On one of these raids they captured Capt. James Parsons.-' They carried him with them all the wa}^ to Ohio, and kept him a prisoner for some time. At length, however, he managed to escape from them and set out for home. He knew that the South Branch was in the east, and he traveled in that direction. He guided his course b}^ the sun by day and the moon by night. But, as it was often cloudy, he wandered at times from his way. In this manner he proceeded many days, and from the length of time that he had been on the road, he thought that he must be near the South Branch. He struck a small river, which he thought to be the South Branch, because it flowed in an easterly direction. He foUoAved it until it emptied into a larger river, which flowed north. This stream he followed, thinking it might be a branch of the Potomac, floAving in this direction to pass around a mountain, and that it would turn east and south again in the course of a few miles. With this impression he followed it. But it did not turn east, and showed no * It Is now a question wlietlier It was Parsons or another man. Tlie best authorities say Parsons. JAMES PAKSONS. 19 « sign of turning. He became convince d that lie %vas on the wrong river, as indeed be was. Tlie first river followed by liim Avas the Buckliannon. At its mouth he came to the Valley Eiver, and down it he had traveled in hopes that it would conduct him to Moorefield. As soon as he was satisfied that he was on the wrong river, he left it and turned eastward across the mountains. He passed Laurel Eidge somewhere near the head of Clover Run, and came to Cheat above the Holly Meadows, proba- bl}^ near the farm of Ward Parsons, Esq. He concluded that this must certainly be the South Branch, and followed down it. When he reached the Horse Shoe Bottom he was struck with the beauty of the country, and noticed in par- ticular the great forest of white oak trees that covered the whole bottom land of the river from the Holly Meadows to the mouth of Horse Shoe Run. The trees were nearly all of the same size, and there was little underbrush. Up to this time he had thought that the river must be the South Branch ; but, now he began to doubt it. It was too large. Already it was larger than the Branch was at Moorefield ; and, he knew that he must still be far above that town ; because no country like that in which he then was could be found near his home. He knew that, if it Avas the South Branch at all, he was above the mouth of both the North and South Forks, or upon one of those rivers. Neither Avas half as large as Cheat at the Horse Shoe. Therefore, he Avas certain that he Avas not on a tributary of the Potomac. He was confirmed in this conviction Avhen he had passed round the high point of land, Avhere Judge S. E. Parsons noAv resides, and saAV that the river, instead of continuing toAvard the north-east, broke aAvay toAvard the Avest, and flowed in that direction as far as he could see. 20 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. He could not divine where lie was. He knew of no river of tliis kind anywhere in the west. For the first time, in all his wanderings, he became confused, and knew not where to go next. He would have followed down the river, in the hope that it would lead him to some settlement ; but, he felt sure that it must empty into the Ohio. After pondering over the matter for some time, he re- solved to continue his eastward course. He saw a long valley extending east ; and, crossing the river, he was at the mouth of Horse Shoe Run. As far as is known, he was the first Avhite man ever in Tucker County. However, there is a tradition that a band of Indians, with a prisoner, once halted at the mouth of Horse Shoe Run ; and, leaving their prisoner tied on the bank of the river, they went up the run after the lead. In a few hours they returned with some. Whether this event, if it happened at all, was before or after Captain Parsons was there, cannot now be determined. One account says that the prisoner was Captain Parsons' brother Thomas. But, all accounts of the subject are vague and conflicting. If the Indians got lead in that manner, it was probably some that they had hidden on a previous expedi- tion. There are not known to be any lead mines in that vi- cinity ; although some people think there are. It was a custom among the Indians, when they went upon an expe- dition, to hide lead along the road so that, upon their return, they might have a supply without carrying it with them during the whole journej'. This is likely why they went up the run to get that article, at the time mentioned. This probability is strengthened by the fact that an old Indian war path crossed Cheat River at the mouth of Horse Shoe Run ; and, if lead were left anywhere, it would likelj- be along a path. JAMES PAKSONS. 21 When C(iptain Parsons crossed the river at the mouth of Horse Shoe Run, it was with the intention of continuing toward the east. This he did. He pursued his way up the stream a little distance, when he came upon a large, old path. It was perhaps an old Indian trail ; or it might have been made by animals. Parsons would have followed this ; but, it turned to the north, and he left it. At the mouth of Lead Mine, he left Horse Shoe Run ; and, by going up Lead Mine, he crossed the Backbone Mountain near Fairfax. This path across the mountain was the route by which nearly all of the first settlers of Tucker found their way into the count}-. After crossing the mountain. Parsons struck the North Branch of the Potomac, and finally reached home. Of the Horse Shoe Bottom he gave an account that filled the settlers about Moorefield with long- ings to see it. But, it was several years before any of the people from the South Branch again visited the Cheat River lands. At that time there was a large fort at the mouth of the Monongahela River, where Pittsburgh now stands. In 1761, four of the soldiers who garrisoned the fort became dissatisfied and deserted. They passed up the Monon- gahela, and at the place where Geneva, Penn., now stands, they made them a camp. But, they did not like the place, and moved into Preston County, and made them another camp not far from Aurora. No one then lived anywhere near them, and for a year they saw no trace of human, ex- cept themselves. But, at length, one of them found a path leading south-east. He thought that it must go to Virginia, and he hurried back to camp and told his companions that they ought to follow the path and see where it would lead. They were all willing for this, and at once set out to trace 22 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. tlie path. It is not now known who made the path or where it led to and from. But, the deserters followed it until it conducted them to Luney's Creek, in Grant County. Here they stumbled upon a frontier settlement ; for, the whites were just then colonizing the upper part of the South Branch, and the adjacent valle3's. This was near where Seymoursville now stands, and was not more than fifteen miles from where Captain Parsons lived, near Moore- lield. This was in the vicinity of Fort Pleasant, where Dr. Eckarly, from Preston County, had been arrested on sus- picion, some six or eight years before. They suspected that he was a spy from the Indians. The South Branch was evidently a bad place for suspected characters. At any rate, the four deserters from Pittsburgh had been there but a short time when they were arrested as desei^ters. How- ever, two of them, brothers named Pringle, made their es- cape, and ran back to their camp in the glades of Preston. In the course of a few months, a straggler named Simp- son found his way to their camp, and remained with them. By this time, hunters from the South Branch began to hunt frequently in the glades of Preston ; and the deserters felt insecure. They determined to move further west. Simp- son agreed to accompany them. The three men broke up their camp near Aurora, and took their way down Horse Shoe Run. At its mouth, they crossed into the Horse Shoe. After they had crossed the river, they fell to quarreling. The two Pringles took sides against Simpson, and drubbed him off to himself. He crossed to the Valley River. Not liking the country, he passed on to Harrison Count}-, and, not far from Clarksburg, built him a camp. He made that locality his permanent home until the country about him JAMES PAKSONS. 23 began to be settled, five or six years later. Tlie Pringles likewise crossed to tlie Valley Eiver, and ascending it to the moutli of tlie Buckliannon, passed np that river to the month of Tnrkey Eun, in Upshnr County, rrhere they made a camp in a hollow sj'camore tree. We have no account of an}^ other persons visiting Tucker for some 3^ears. The only occupants were wild animals that filled the woods, or wild Indians who occasionally roamed up and down the valleys. It is possible that Simon Kenton was on the river at the Horse Shoe in the summer of 1771. He had had a fight with a man in Virginia, and thought he had killed him. He fled westward and reached Cheat River. It may have been at the Horse Shoe ; but, more probably it was in Preston County. At that time, Kenton was only sixteen years old. He after- wards went to Kentucky and became one of the most illus- trious characters in all border history. When first visited by white men, there were no Indians who made the territory of Tucker their permanent home. If they came within it at all, it was only to pass through, or to hunt for game. Many people hold quite erroneous ideas concerning the Indians who used to kill people and do all manner of Avickedness in West Virginia. Some sup- pose that they lived all over the valleys and mountains like bears and panthers, and in an unguarded moment Avould run into a settlement, murder all the people the}- could catch, and then retreat to the woods, and skulk about through the brush like wild animals until a chance came of killing somebody else. This was not the case. No Indians have made Tucker County their home, so far as is known, since before Columbus. Undoubtedly, they once lived here ; but they had long been gone when first the white man 24 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. came; and nothing but graves, remnants of arrows and other implements, found scattered about the ground, told that they had ever made tliis part of the valley of Cheat their home. Nor was the land between the Ohio River and the Alleghany Mountains, now "West Virginia, the coimtry of Indians at the coming of tli<} whites. A few scattered huts and two or three little towns were all that our state contained of the living Indian race. But, in earlier times, they had lived here, as their remains now prove ; and there is reason for believing that the country was tolerably thickly inhabited. Why the}' deserted the land, or what became of them, is a question that none now can answer. It is useless to put out theories on the subject. Of all specimens of human weakness, a mere theory, unsupported by evidence, deserves most to be pitied. We know that there was a time when West Virginia and Tucker County had inhabitants, and we know that those inhabitants were Indians ; but further than this, nothing is certain. What became of the tribes — whether they departed for a better conntr}-, or whether they were exterminated by some stronger nation, or whether some plague carried them ofi' — we do not pre- tend to sa}-. Any o]-)iniou on the subject is onl}- guesswork, because no man knows. It is not theory, however, to say that before West Virginia was inhabited by the Indians, .there was another race of people living here. They are called JMoundlxrUders, because they usuall}* built mounds in countries where they lived. There ma}' have been Indians here before the Monndbnikler came, and there certainly Avere after he de- parted, l)ut, there is no evidence that the two races occu- pied the same country at the same time. A thousand the- ories are extant concerning; the origin and fate of that nivs- JAMES PAKSONS. 25 terious race, wliicli built the ten tliousancl moiinds and for- tifications in the Ohio and Mississippi valleys ; but, no man knows whence they came, when they came, how long they remained or when or why they left, or whether they were white or black, or what was their religion or their laws, or ■who they were. However, it is tolerably well established that they ceased to be a people in the United States at least nine hundred years ago. Indeed, from all the evidence in the case, one is nearly obliged to believe that the mounds of the Avest are as old as the Tower of Babel. It is not certain that the Moundbuilders ever lived in Tucker ; but, there is a little ground for attributing to them the small mound in the Horse Shoe, on the farm of S. B. "Wamsley, Esq. The mound in question is about forty feet in circumference and four or live high. It is on the first terrace above the river. It may be the work of Indians ; but, it is more probably the remains of the Moundbuilders, who had their center of empire in Ohio, and extended their frontiers over nearly all the land of the Mississippi Valley, east of Texas and Kansas. Nobody knows what the mounds were built for. They were constructed of earth and loose stones, sometimes of sand, and occasionally fragments of wood were found in them. Some of the structures seem to have been used for fortifications, some as cliurclies, or rather temples, and some may have been built as tombs for great men. But, this is not a settled point. In some of them, altars with charred human bones among ashes have been found. This suggests that the Moundbuilders ofi'ered hu- man sacrifice to their idols, as the Mayas and people of Mexico did. Some think it probable that the Mound- builders were originally a colony from Mexico. Skeletons in the mounds have led some persons to conclude that the 26 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. mounds were built for tombs. It woukl be as reasonable to conclude that a stack of hay was built for a rat because a rat's nest was found in it. Yet, doubtless, some mounds are only the huge graves of kings. But, no doubt, very many of the bones and relics found in mounds and hastily attributed to the Moundbuilders, are onl}'- the old carcasses of Indians, n,nd Indian whimwhams. It is a known fact that the Indians often buried their dead in the mounds. Although many of the relics taken from the mounds are counterfeit, yet some are surely genuine. From these we learn that the Moundbuilders were not much larger or much smaller than the average Indians. The accounts of skele- tons of giants thirty feet long, dug out of the ground, are not to be believed. It is doubtful if a race of people, much larger than able-bodied Englishmen of to-day, has ever been in existence. The mound in the Horse Shoe is known to have been the burial place of human beings ; but, it is not known that it was built for that purpose. Ground-hogs that dig their holes in it, used to throw out pieces of human bones. But, this is no evidence that the bones were from the skeletons of Moundbuilders. In fact, there are many reasons for be- lieving that they were Indian bones. An old Indian village stood on the bank of the river, less than a mile above the mound. Indian skeletons have been founcl in other places about the river, and there is no reason why they may not have buried some in this mound, as ihej did in other mounds whenever they had an opportunity of doing so. In early days, the river used to wash bones from its bank, where stood the village. Captain Parsons and Samuel Bonnifield once found a jaw bone so large that it could be placed in position on the outside of their faces. A thigh JAMES PARSONS. 27 bone, also enormous, is reported to have been pulled out of the river bank at the same place. The bone was said to have been so long that when stood on the ground beside a man it reached up under his arms. This magnitude was probably due to excited fancy, like that possessed by the Indian, who returned from traveling and reported that he had seen a race of men whose ears hung down to their hips. The Moundbuilders must have been an agricultural peo- X)le ; because, a population as dense as theirs could not have lived in any other manner. Then, it is probable that the Horse Shoe was, long years ago, farmed something after the manner that it is now. But, the ancient people have left no trace that they had horses, oxen, any iron or steel tools or any kind of machinery, except such as they could make of wood, shells, stone and copper. But, whether or not the river bottom, from the Holly Meadows to St. George, was once a thriving settlement, and corn lields covered it from one end to the other, yet when the first white men vis- ited it, it showed no sign of ever having been tilled. Noth- ing but the little mound, above referred to, is left to tell that the Moundbuilders ever lived ; and, this mound is not conclusive evidence of the presence of that ancient race. But, one thing is certain : Tucker County was once the home of Indians. The Indians of America seem to have belonged to one general race, the same as the people of Eu- rope belong to one. The Indians are divided into numerous tribes, nations, families and confederations. These differ in language and ciistoms. How the Indians got to America is unknown ; and it is only wasting time to offer theories upon the subject. There is about as much reason for believing that the old . world was peopled from the new as that the new was colonized from the old. Each continent may have 28 HISTORY OP TUCKER COUNTY. had a people indigenous to itself. The Esquimaux of Alaska and the Siberians are known to cross and re-cross Behring Strait, and America may have received its inhabitants from Asia in that manner. The islands of Polynesia are known to be sinking. Some of them are believed to have sunken ten thousand feet, so that the islands now above water are only the mountains and table lands of a submerged conti- nent extending from the coast of Asia nearly or quite to that of America. Indians may have come from that continent to America. The Telegraph Plateau, from New Foundland to Ireland, has the appearance of an isthmus that once con- nected Europe and America. It is now under water, but so near the surface that icebergs lodge on it. This may have been the Island of Atlantis that some of the old heathen writers say was swallowed up in an earthquake. If so, the tribes of America may have come fi*om Europe. It is useless to speculate on this. It can be proven with equal conclusiveness that the Indians are mixed with Welsh, Japanese, Norwegians, Jews and Carthagenians. It is un- known where they came from or who they were before they came. We take them as we find them. What tribe inhabited Tucker County is not known. Jef- ferson says that it was the Massawomee. It may have been ; and for all the difference, we may consider that it was. They were gone when first the white man came, and nothing but graves and other relics told that they were ever here. We cannot tell why they departed from this part of the State ; but, they all, except a few little towns, left for some country unknown to us. We cannot tell why they aban- doned the country. War may have exterminated them, or they may have gone to occupy a better land. Cusick, an JAMES PARSONS. 29 educated Indian, Avrote a book about the Indians, and said that many tribes wanted the Monongahela valle}^, and not being able to agree, they held a council aad decided that all should leave it. But, this story is not to be credited. Cu- sick did not know any more about it than he had read in books or had fabricated himself. The Indians knew no more of their history than the white people knew — not as much, for that matter. The Indians who killed people in West Virginia generally came from Ohio; but, some came from Pennsylvania and Indiana. Ohio was full of Indians. They had towns on the Muskingum, Tuscarawas, Hockhocking, Scioto, San- dusky, Maumee, Miami and all through the intervening country. The meanest Indians Avere those on the Sandusky and Scioto. During the winter they did not often bother the settlements; because they were too lazy to provide themselves clothes to keep them from freezing in cold weather, and had to lie in their huts by the tire. But, as soon as the spring came and the weather began to get warm, they crawled from their dens, and fixed up their guns, knives and tomahawks for a raid upon the settlements. They traveled about twenty miles a day, unless in a hurry. If they set out from the Scioto River on the first of May, they would reach the Ohio somewhere between Point Pleasant and Wheeling in from four to seven days. They would cross that river on a raft of logs, and if they were aiming for Cheat River they would reach it in from four to seven days longer, provided they did not stop on the way. When they came into a settlement they M'ould hide in fence corners and in brier thickets until they saw a chance of killing somebod}'. Then they would lea]3 out and sieze their victim. They sometimes killed and sometimes carried so HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. away as prisoners tliose whom tliey could catcli. If tliey carried a prisoner off, tliey would tie liis liands and make liim walk between two warriors. If they had plenty to eat, they gave the prisoner plenty ; but if their provisions were scarce, they gave him very little. When they got him to Ohio they sometimes turned him loose in a field, and all the Indians got after him with clubs and rocks and pounded him to death. Sometimes they tied him to a tree and burnt him ; and sometimes they adopted him into their tribe and treated him Avell. A prisoner never knew what fate awaited him, and alvrays tried to escape. But, the Indians always watched so close that a prisoner seldom got awaj'. It was an unlucky thing for a prisoner to try to escape and fail. It made the Indians mad, and they would show little mercy afterwards. Indeed, it was a perilous thing to fall into the hands of the Indians at any- time ; and many people Avould bo killed before taken cap- tive by them. If they got a grudge against a prisoner, he had a poor show of ever getting away. Simon Kenton, who was on Cheat Eiver in 1771, five years before the founding St. George, was once captured by the Indians. He' had stolen seventeen of their horses, and when they caught him they put him in a field and three hundred of them tried to pound him to death ; but, he whipped them out eight times and got away. They tied him up three times to roast him ; but he still got away and escaped to Kentuck}'. But, he was more fortunate than the most of prisoners ; and, besides, he was such a terrible fighter that they were afraid of him. The Indians in Tucker had a town in the Horse Shoe, opposite the lower end of Sycamore Island. The traces of the village may still be seen in summer on account of the JAMES PAKSONS. 31 weeds tliat grow larger tliere tliau on the adjacent lands. This is the place that the bones are washed out of the bank. On the other side of the river, one mile above St. George, are numerous Indian graves. It used to be reported that there were five hundred graves within half a mile ; but the writer took the pains to count them, and could not find more than forty-six. They are rude heaps of stone, and extend along the side of the hill in an irregular manner. Some of them have been opened. Nothing was ever found in them. They are probably very old. An old account says that a battle was fought there between two tribes of Indi- ans; but there is not a shadow of foundation for the story, except the graves. Why so many Indians should have been buried so near together is hard to account for, unless they were killed in battle, or by some other violent means. But this does not prove that a battle was fought. Probably there was a tovrn near, and this was the gravej'ard. The Indians used arroAvs tipped with flint. Many of these flints are found scattered about the country. Where the Indians got the inaterial from which the}' made them is now unknown. The making of the arrow points was a pro- fession among the Indians. They had men who made it a business. One of these factories is believed to have been situated on Horse Shoe Kun, where K. Maxwell's barn now stands. "When the ground was first plowed it was covered with bits of flint and broken points, and everything indi- cated that a shop for manufacturing flint points had form- erly been tliere. The French and Indian AVar closed in 1764. After that, came a wonderful immigration to the West. West Virginia and Kentucky were the main points to which settlers flocked. West Virginia was soon spotted all over with col- 32 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. onies. Witliin six years, settlements were ou all tlie prin- cipal rivers. But none were yet in Tucker. Capt. James Parsons knew of the Horse Shoe Bottom, and was only waiting for a suitable time to lay patents on tlie lands. Sometime before 1774, probably about 1772, lie and liis brother Thomas came over to Cheat from Moorefield, to look at the lands and select them favorable places. James chose the Horse Shoe, and Thomas all the land from the' mouth of Horse Shoe Run to the Holly Meadows, exclusive of the Horse Shoe. They afterward obtained patents for these lands ; and James bought some other tracts, among vvhicli Avas the farm since owned by the Bonnifields, on Horse Shoe Run. This was originally a " corn right." These lands were marked out at the time of their selec- tion, but, in 1774, as shall be seen in the next chapter, a colony from the South Branch built a fort in the Horse Shoe, and cleared some of the land. But, in two years, John Minear, leader of the colony, removed to St. George, on land of his own. When the Parsons lirothers were passing back and forth between Moorefield and the Horse Shoe, there was not any particular war between the white people and the Indians. But, the Indians were always ready to kill a man when they could find him by himself in the woods. They would be still more likely to do this if he had a good gun and a horse. These were articles which the Indians alwa^'s wanted, and they woidd plunder a man of these whenever they got a good chance. James and Thomas Parsons always rode splendid horses, and the straggling bands of Indians who roamed along Cheat were very anxious to steal them. They would have killed the riders to get the horses. In this state of afi'airs it was danuerous for two men to JOHN MINEAE. 33 come alone so far into the wilderness. But, in spite of danger, Captain Parsons and his brother came often while they were surveying and locating their land. Thej- crossed the Backbone and Alleghany mountains near the Fairfax Stone. In order that they might the more successfully elude the Indians, they were accustomed to put the shoes on their horses, toes behind, so that the Indians would be deceived in the direction in which the horses had gone. On one occasion Captain Parsons had come alone from Moorefield. He had visited his land, and had just crossed the river at the mouth of Horse Shoe Run, when an Indian, hidden in the weeds near by, gobbled like a turkey. The savage probably thought that he could decoy his man within gunshot; but in this he was mistaken. Captain Parsons was too well posted in Indian tricks to be trapped in such a manner. Instead of going to kill the turkej^ he put spurs to his horse and reached Moorefield that night, a distance of near seventy miles. Tlie path was through the woods, and crossed the Alleghany Mountains. These were the first locations of lauds in Tucker County. The next chapter will relate to the settlement of these lands, and of others taken up near the same time by John Minear, Robert Cun- ningham, Henr}^ Fink and John GofFe. The first explorers and settlers of tlie county were the Parsons and Minear families. The main part of the county's history has been enacted by the representatives of one or the other of these. CHAPTER II. JOHN MINEAB. As XEAiiLY as cau uow be ascertained, John Minear first Tisitecl Tucker County in the year 1773. He was a native of Germany, where he was born about 1730. It has been said that he was a soldier under Frederick the Great ; but the truth of this is not well authenticated. In 1767, he came to America. He was already married, and brought with him a small family, among whom was David Minear, then twelve years of age. John Minear bought land on the Potomac Eiver, and lived there until 1774. He had heard the reports brought back by Capt. James Parsons, and he determined to visit the new countr}- and see it for himself. Whether any one accompanied him or not, is not stated ; but, probably, he was not alone in his series of explorations, which he made in 1773. He visited the country along Cheat River, from the Holly Meadows to Licking Falls ; and, having selected a suitable farm in the Horse Shoe, he returned to the Poto- mac for his family. So great was his influence, and so general .was the desire for emigration, that he found little difficulty in gathering about him quite a company of farmers, willing to risk their fortunes in the new land. He was the leader of the colony, and all placed confidence in his judgment and trust in his bravery. His education was in advance of the farmers of his time ; and, those who came with him looked upon him, not only as a military leader in expected wars with the In- dians, but also as a counselor in civil aftairs, in the settle- JOHN MINEAE. 35 ment of lands and the deeds and riglits appertaining^ thereto. How many came with him is not known. The names of a few survive, and we know that there were others. They did not come merely to explore the country and speculate in lands ; but, they brought with them their fami- lies, their household goods, and what movable property they could, and had no other intention than that of making the valley of Cheat their permanent home. They reached their destination early in 1774, probably in March. They spent the first night in the woods, not far from the crossing at Willow Point. The men at once com- menced work on a fort, which they built as a defense against the Indians. The fort was nothing more than a large log house, with holes left between the logs through which the inmates could shoot at Indians. The building- stood on or near the spot where now stands the residence of S. E. Parsons. It was used as a fort and also as a dwell- ing house for all the families. It was made large enough to give room for all. In the daytime, the men went to the woods to clear corn fields, and left the woman and children in the fort. If any alarm was given of Indians, the men would run to the fort, and bar the doors, and watch through the cracks in the walls for the coming of the enemy. They never lay down to sleep without locking the doors to keep the Indians out. For awhile everything went well in their new home. As the spring came on, the weather got warm and delightful, and the huge oaks and gigantic chestnut trees came out in leaf. The men worked hard, and soon had cleared the logs and trees from several small corn fields, which they planted as soon as the frost was all out of the ground. The settlers sometimes were out of bread and had to live on meat ; but, 36 HISTORY OF TUCItEE COUNTY. venison and bear meat were plentiful, and there was no danger of starving. TVliat corn and wlieat they had was carried on pack horses from the Potomac River. Early in the summer, new danger from the Indians began to be feared. Up to this time, there had been no actual hostility, except an occasional murder of an Indian by a white man or of a white man by an Indian. Even this had not disturbed the settlement in the Horse Shoe. But, with the return of the spring, in 1774, a war seemed certain. Along the Ohio, above and below Wheeling, several murders were committed, both by Avhite men and by Indians. Greathouse, a white man, fell upon a camp of Indians a few miles above Wheeling, and killed men and women. This so enraged the Indians that they at once commenced war upon all the settlements west of the Alleghany Mountains. The principal settlements in West Virginia then were on the Monongahela, the Valley River, the West Eovk and on the Greenbrier, Kanawha and the Ohio. The small' fort in the Horse Shoe cannot be reckoned as a settlement. But the Indians soon found it out. In fact, it was on n fnrnous war path that crossed the river at the mouth of Ho.oc oLoe Run, and the Indians who would walk to and fro along this path must necessarily find the fields. Early in the summer of 1774, Colonel McDonald, with a few hundred men, marched into Ohio and burnt some In- dian towns on the Muskingum River. Nobody Init Indians lived in Ohio then, and they were furious when the %vliite men burnt the towns and cut down all their corn. As soon as McDonald left the country, the Indians hurried across the river, and commenced killing people and burning houses and barns in revenge for the treatment received at his hand. The settlers who lived nearest tfce Ohio were in the greatest JOHN MINEAK. 37 danger, but all west of the Alleghany Mountains were un- safe. Minear's colony in the Horse Shoe soon found occa- sion for alarm. Indian tracks were discovered not far from the fort, and the people were in constant fear of being mas- sacred. Nobody went beyond the reach of the guns of the fort, except with the greatest caution. But, they had to hunt through the woods for venison and other meat ; for, the corn was not yet ripe enough for bread. Sometimes the hunters were chased by the savages, as was the case with one of the men who went to the Sugar Lands, on the Back- bone Mountain, some four miles east from the fort. He was hunting, and looking at the country, v/hen he heard strange noises on the hill above him, and immediately heard an- swers from the valley below. He knew at once that it was Indians trying to trap him, having nearly surrounded him already. He affected not to notice the noises; but, he started off at a rapid rate down a cove that led into Cobui'n Eun. When he passed over the bluff in his descent to the run, the noise of the Indians, who were whistling to each other and gobbling like turkeys, died away in the distance, and for some time he heard nothing more of it. However, he did not slacken his speed, but hurried down the rocky bed of the run, and had gone nearly two miles when he was suddenly startled by a hooting like that of an owl, on the hill near above him. The imitation was not so perfect but that he could detect that it was not an owl. He knew that it was an Indian. He was yet three miles from the fort, and only by flight could he hope to escape. The channel of the stream was rocky, full of cataracts and falls, and trees that had lopped into the ravine from both sides. Over and through these blockades and obstacles he ran as fast as he could, and with as little noise as possible. From this point, 38 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. there are two accounts of tlie aftair. One says tliat, as lie was climbing down over a fall, an Indian came sliding down the hill within a few steps of him. The Indian was snatching and grabbing at brush, and seemed to be doing his best to stop himself. It is thought that he had tried to run along the side of the hill, which was very steep, and, missing his footing, could not regain it until he slid nearly to the run, and was almost under the hunter's feet. But the hunter saw his enemy just in time to escape. He wheeled and ran under the falls of the creek into a dry cav- ern beyond. Then, turning, he discharged his gun at the Indian ; but, there is no evidence that the shot took effect. The Indian seemed to think that the white man was shoot- ing at him from under the water ; and, s^vambling and claw- ing back up the hill, he disappeared hunter made use of the opportunity anc The summer of 1774 was passing aw the Indians did not lessen. It is not the settlers Avere killed; but, all mus peril of the colony was great ; for, late in the summer it be- gan to be considered whether it would not be better to abandon the fort and retreat to the Potomac. This was about the time that Lord Dunmore and General Lewis were organizing their army for a general campaign against the Indians in Ohio. Probably the settlers in the Horse Shoe heard of the gathering strife, and knowing that hard fighting was at hand, thought it best to retire beyond the Allegha- nies till the storm should pass away. Be this as it may, early in the fall of that year, 1774, the people of the Horse Shoe collected together what they could of their property, and fled to the Potomac. The fort, the small fields and all the improvements were thus abandoned; and, during the JOHN MINEAK. 39 winter of 1774-5, there was not a white man in Tucker County, so far as is now known. John Minear and his colony remained on the Potomac about eighteen months. Whether they all remained to- gether, as they had lived in the Horse Shoe, can not uoav be stated. Nor is it known who composed the colony, fur- ther than a few names. But, they could not content them- selves to give up the valley of Cheat forever. They were only waiting for a more auspicious season for founding a permanent settlement. The next we hear of John Minear, he was again on Cheat, and was building up a colony on the site of the present town of St. George. For some reason, he did not return to the Horse Shoe, but chose St. George in its stead. What influenced him to this choice is unknown. But, it is probable that Capt. James Parsons had by that time se- cured the pre-emption of the Horse Shoe lands; and Minear, desirous of having the colony on his OAvn lands, moved three miles further down the river, and located at the mouth of Mill Run, where the county seat of Tucker has since been built. It cannot be ascertained in what year Parsons secured his grant of the lands above St. George ; but, it is well known that they were for a long time in dispute between him and Minear, and the final set- tlement at the land office gave the Horse Shoe lands to Parsons. The greater part of this land is still in the Par- sons family, having descended in an unbroken line of suc- cession from Captain Parsons to its present owners, Joseph and S. E. Parsons. The emigrants which Minear led to St. George were not identical with those whom he conducted to the county in 1774. Some who had come in that year did not return in 40 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. 177() ; wliile some came in 177G for the first time. Kor do we know tlie number of those who came in 1776. In addi- tion to John Minear and his two sons, David and Jonathan, and several daughters, and other women, tliere were men named Miller, Cooper, Goffe'"' and Cameron. John Minear's land claim was along the north side of the river, from St. George down the river two miles. On the other side, but not extending as far east as St. George, was the claim of Jonathan Minear, John's son. Cooper's land was two miles further down the river, at the foot of Miller Hill. Cameron located on the opposite side of the river from Millei l.iji. John Minear's land, like that of James Parsons, Imti coa tinned in the Minear family to this da}'. It is^av tl; property of D. S. Minear, Esq. During the early years of the colony a^ St. Geo: is on record nothing that hindered its prosper ■ first step of the settlers was to build a fort as against the Indians. This fort stood on the grov now stands the Court-house. It was a better foi one in the Horse Shoe, and was also four tii. :^- - ■■. It was composed of a large log house, surrounded b^y palisades. The logs, of which the house was built, were no^^^cht " fitted close, one upon another; and, so well placed that there was left not a crevice through which In- dians could shoot. But, in the upper story, openings were made between the logs, so that those in the house could shoot at approaching Indians. The chimney ran up on the inside. This was to prevent the Indians from getting to the roof by climbing up the cliimne}'. There were no windows • TWs name must not be confounded -vvltli that of James Goff, who settled on the river near the Preston County line. JOHN MINEAR. 41 in the I'ort. Light was admitted tlirough the port-holes, as the openings between the logs were called. In cold weather, or when no light was wanted, blocks of wood were fitted in the port-holes. The door was made of split boards, so thick that bullets would not go through. The fort was surrounded by palisades, or a line of stout posts planted firmly in the ground side by side and fitted closely together. These posts were about twelve feet high. They resembled a huge paling fence, and enclosed over one fourth of an acre of ground. The fort stood in the center of the enclos- ure, which was higher ground, and gave the inmates com- -• -lo^ovlijg fields. No Indian could approach ijise uiv\ it running great risk of being shot. Among UK 1 -^ provements in the colony was a mill at freoiLre, neai ■■■-■ivsve the school-house now stands. The and soir:' of the old timbers of the dam, are yet to Tlie mill /as intended only for grinding corn. At no wIk t, rye or buckwheat was grown in the til' V . D-'Tvinfc tti" four years the settlement prospered ;rants came into the country, and brought iomestic animals with them. But, there .,-. ociiifitaia uiixioty lest the Indians should break into the ttlement. In the winter there was not so much fear, be- iisc tiTe-half clad savages did not travel through the snow when It cuuiu oo avoided. They would be in danger of freezing to death ; and they preferred to remain in their huts on the other side of the Ohio River. But, when spring- came, all the wigwams and Shawanese dens poured out their warriors ; and West Virginia, Kentucky and western Pennsylvania were overrun by warlike savages. It was thus at the commencement of the year 1780. That year 42 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. will ever be memorable in border liistory on account of the raids aud murders by the Indians upon the white people. But, it is not so famous in that respect as 1777 and 1782. But, so far as Tucker County is concerned, the years 1780 aud 1781 were the most disastrous in the Indian Wars. St. George was then the most flourishing settlement on Cheat River, and they soon learned the paths that led to the new country. It may be borne in mind that Tucker was natur- ally one of the most secluded localities in the State, being even less exposed to Indian attacks than Preston was. Randolph, and the more southern counties along the western base of the Alleghanies, were well known to the Indians, who, in the French and Indian War, had passed to and fro through them while making raids into Virginia. But, there was no occasion for passing through Tucker; and, if occasional bands of Indians did so, as in the case of the capture of James Parsons, they did it for the purpose of hunting or making explorations. Not so with the counties along the Ohio, and on the Monongahela and Kanawha. The Indians from Ohio could cross over at an}' time, and within a short distance find a thriving settlement to plun- der. Before they could reach Tucker or Preston, they would have to pass through several inhabited counties, which the Indians did not like to do, because the settlers might track them. But, Tucker's isolated position and its high mountain defenses did not exempt it from its full share of Indian outrages. The first of these was in the spring of 1780. The band of Indians who made this incursion into Tucker, were remarkably persevering in their pursuit of wickedness. Yery early in the spring of 1780 they crossed the Ohio in the vicinity of Parkersburg, and made their way unobserved JOHN MINEAR. 43 into Lewis County, wliere they suddenly appeared before a fort on Hacker's Creek, known in early times as AVest's Fort. There were only a few men in the fort, and they were afraid to go out to fight the eneni}'. The Indians did not make an attack on the house, but lay hid near about in the woods, ready to shoot any one who should come out. The people thus penned in, were on the point of starving, and knew not Avhence deliverance was to come. Buckhan- non was the nearest place wliere assistance could be ob- tained, and that was sixteen miles. One in going there would be exposed to almost certain death, for the Indians were entirely round the fort. One of the inmates, Jesse Hughes, was a man who shrunk from no duty and quailed at no danger. He was the most siiccessful Indian fighter in "West Virginia, except the Zanes ri„^fj,,-jj ]3i-ady and Lewis Wetzel. He had . of hair-breadth escapes, and had eleven years and knew their nature explored the country westward from iscovered and gave name to the West i^orx a.* ^ , the first white man who stood on the site of AVeston. This was in 1769. From that time till the close of the Indian wars, in 1795, he was ever wliere brave men were most needed, in the front. To him Clarksburg almost owed its existence. There was scarcely a settlement ill the central part of the State that did not profit by the bravery and courage of Jesse Hughes. Even St. George, sixty miles distant, had occasion to thank him, although his assistance did not overt the disasters which are now to be recorded. He was in W^est's Fort when the Indians besieged it. His farm was almost within sight of the fort, and he had U HISTOKY OP TUCKER COUNTY. songlit shelter there in common -witli liis neighbors. After the place had been invested for some time, and the inmates were getting short of provisions, while the enemy showed no disposition to raise the siege, it began to grow manifest that something must be done to procure help in driving the Indians off, or the place nmst fall. The plan most practi- cable seemed that of sending some one to Buckhannon with intelligence of the distress, and bring help from thence. Hughes volunteered to go ; and, on a dark night, he slipped fi'om the fort, broke by the Indians, and ran to Buckhan- non. He collected a company of men and at once started back. He arrived about dajdight, and it was thought best to abandon the fort. This was done. The inmates, men, women and children, proceeded to Buckhannon. On the way the Indians tried to separate the company so as to at- tack it, but, in this they failed, and the settlers all reached Buckhannon in safety. The Indians followed on to Buckhannon and prowled about the settlement a few days. They waylaid some men who were going to the fort, and one of them named Curl was shot in the chin. All the other men, five in number, started to run ; but Curl called to them to stand their ground, for they could whip the Indians. But, the men were some distance away, and a powerful Indian warrior drew a tomahawk and started at Curl, who was now alone and wounded. Nothing daunted, he raised his gun to shoot the Indian. But, the blood from his wound had dampened the powder, and the gun missed fire. Instantly picking up another gun, which had been dropped in the excitement, he shot the savage and brought him to the ground. The Indians then retreated. One of the whites ran after them alone, and being a re- JOHN MINEAE. 45 markable runner, lie quickly overtook tliem and sliot an- other Indian. The other Indians got behind trees ; and, in a few minutes, the rest of the whites came up and renewed the fight. One of the whites was shot through the arm ; and, a third Indian, who was hiding behind a log, received a bullet which caused him to go howling away. In a few minutes the whole band of savages took to flight, and night coming on put a stop to the pursuit. Early next morning fifteen men took the trail of the In- dians and followed them several miles, and finally found where they were hidden in a laurel thicket. As they ap- proached, one of the whites was shot ; but, the Indians got away. However, the settlers found several Indian horses with their legs tied together. The Indians had left their animals in this fix to keep them from running ofl*. The set- tlers took them back to Buckhannon. For several days nothing more was seen of the Indians ; and, in the hope that the savages had left the country, some of the people returned to their farms. But, the enemy were not gone. They killed a man and took a young lady prisoner. The people fled back to the fort, and the Indians found no fur- ther opportunity for doing mischief at that time. Thus far, the savages had raided through Lewis and Up- shur counties. They now passed into Randolph, where they continued to murder the people and burn property. They first made their appearance in the upper end of Ty- gart's Valley. This was in March. A man in passing along the path saw moccasin tracks in the mud. He stopped to look at them, and while doing so heard some one in the brush whisper: "Let him alone; he will go and bring more." Ho at once suspected Indians; and, without fur- ther examination, he hurried to Hadden's fort and reported 46 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. what he had seen and heard. But, he was not believed. There was a party of men from Greenbrier spending the night at the fort, and they intended to start home in the morning. Their road home led by this place where the tracks had been seen. When they got ready to go, a party of citizens volunteered to accompany them to this place, and ascertain whether there really were tracks in the mud. The men proceeded carelessly, and when near the sus- pected hiding place of the enemy, they were fired upon by Indians in ambuscade. The horsemen sprang into a gallop and escaped ; but the men on foot were surrounded by In- dians. The only means of escape was by crossing the river and climbing a steep hill on the opposite side. In doing this they wei'e exposed to the fire of the enemy, and several were killed. John McLaiu Avas almost to the summit of the hill when he was shot. James Eolston, who was still fur- ther, was also killed at the same instant. James Crouch was likewise ascending the hill, and was nearly to the top when he was shot. But he was only wounded, and the next day made his wa}^ to the fort. John Nelson, another of the part}', was killed at the water's edge. He had crossed the river with the rest, and would have ascended the hill with them ; but, they were a little in advance of him, and Avhen they fell, he turned back, and tried to escape by running down the bank of the river. But tliis was a fatal policy; A fierce Indian leaped upon him, and a desperate fight en- sued. No white man saw it to tell how it went. It is only known from circumstances that it was a hand-to-hand fight, and a terrible one. The breech of Nelson's gun was split and shattered, and from appearances he had pounded the Indian with it. His hands, still clinched although he was dead, contained tufts of Indian hair, and gave evidence that JOHN MINEAK. 47 it was a prolonged fight. But the savage got off victorious, and Nelson was killed. When the whites visited the scene of the battle, they found the dead man where he fell. The ground around him was torn up, as though a long struggle had taken place. It undoubtedly was a dear victory for the savage. In a few days the Indians fell upon the family of John Gibson, on a branch of Tygart's Valley Elver. The family were at the sugar camp, when the Indians surprised them and took them prisoners. Mrs. Gibson was killed. With this, the Indians left Randolph County and pro- ceeded into Tucker. Of course, it is understood that these counties — Lewis, Upshur, Randolph and Tucker — are called by their present names, and not by the names by which they were known at that time. Nor is it absolutely certain that all the mischief, narrated and to be yet narrated, was done by this band of Indians. It requires some little arbi- trary chronology to arrange into this order the fragments and scraps of history and legends gathered from various sources, but principally from Withers' Border Warfare. But, at this point, Withers' narrative ceases to furnish ma- terial for the account, except the mere mention of the killing of Sims above St. George ; and, for the rest of the raid, and the murder of Jonathan Minear below St. George, and the captivity and rescue of Washburn, this account rests upon the authority of private papers and the tradi- tions that have come down from generation to generation. Unwritten tradition is one of the most unreliable sources from which to gather history. Yet in the absence of all other means, it must be resorted to. However, the follow- ing account of the Indian raid through Tucker has records for authority, and tradition furnishes little more than the minutia. 48 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. There is queston concerning the date of the incursion ; but contemporary facts ought to settle the question, and phice it in the spring of 1780. Some maintain that John Minear was killed before Jonathan was, and that the mur- der of the latter took place as late as 1795. But this is so plainly a gross mistake that it is not deemed necessary to refute it. It was in March, 1780 ; and the Indians, after their am- buscade on the Tygart Eiver, moved over Laurel Hill and down Cheat River toward St. George. That had been a severe winter for Minear's colony. In addition to the suf- fering from want, the small-pox broke out among the people, and the affliction fell heavily upon the destitute settlers, who had spent the greater part of the winter without bread or salt. One thing was to their advantage, and that was that there was little to be feared from Indians during the winter months. The Indians seldom broke into settlements in cold weather when the snow was on the ground. So, the colony at St. George pulled through the winter the best they could. They did not occupy the fort ; but each man lived on his own farm, and worked to clear fields in which to plant grain the coming summer. It was customary at that time to go east once a year to lay in a suppl}^ of such things as must be had. For the cen- tral part of West Virginia, the eastern market was Win- chester. The people of the frontier counties carried such produce as they had to that place and bartered it for salt, iron, ammunition and a feAv blacksmith and cooper tools. With the first appearance of spring, the colonists at St. George prej^ared to send their plunder to market. It was the plan to go and return before the warm weather would brir^g Indians into the settlements. The principal article JOHN MINEAK. 49 of export was tlie skins of bear and other fiu'-bearing ani- mals. Witli a load of these strapped on pack horses, the settlers filed away through the woods toward Winchester. It was then early in March, and they expected to make the trip within two weeks. Intelligence of the Indian murders in Lewis and Upshur counties had reached St. George, and the people, not know- ing whither the enemy had gone, thought it best to leave their farms and move into the fort. This they did. But some who had the small-pox were excluded from the fort. This was a harsh course to pursue ; but it was rendered necessary. It was deemed better for a few to run the risk of falling a prey to Indians than for the wh)le colony to be stricken down with the small-pox. Accord ingl}-, those who had that disease Avere not allowed to come near the fort. Among those thus excluded was the family of John Sims, who lived about five miles above St. George at a place ever since known as Sims! Bottom. Sims' Knob, a high moun- tam overlooking the Horse Shoe, is also named from this man.^^ When the Indians left Tygart's Valley, they aimed for St. George ; and, by passing along the west bank of Cheat Kiver from the mouth of Pheasant Run, they had arrived within five miles of the fort, when they came into the clear- ing of Sims. The house stood on the bank of a swamp full of brush and weeds. The Indians made their way unob- served into this thicket, and were cautiously crawling toward the house when they were seen by a negro wench, • Sims was brought to Cheat by Captain Parsons, and was only a tenant on Parsons' land. lie had been placed on the farm where he was killed, to oversee the upper part of James Parsons' land, and to keep Thomas Parsons' cattle from crossing over into the Horse Shoe. The sycamore tree behind which the Indian lay was still to be seen. a few years ago. 1 50 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. Avlio ran to the door and gave the alarm. Bernard Sims caught up his gun and ran to the door. He was just recov- ering from the small-pox. As he stepped out at the door, he was shot by the Indians and fell forward in the yard. The savages leaped out from the brush and rushed into the yard ready to tomahawk and scalp the dead man. But as they came up they observed that he had a disease, to them most terrible ; and, instead of scalping him, and killing those in the house, they took to flight, yelling as they ran : "Small- pox ! Small-pox ! " They kept clear of that cabin after that, although they remained in the neighborhood several days. They moved on toward St. George. The people there discovered that the enemy was in the vicinity, and the strictest guard was kept night and day. Nobody left the fort under any cir- cimistances. The fort stood where the Court-house now stands, about two hundred yards from the river, on. a rising ground. The Indians remained on the opposite side of the river, and concealed themselves on a bluff overlooking the fort and surroundings. Here they remained several days. There were not many men in the fort. Some had been kept away on account of small-pox ; and those who had gone to Win- chester had not yet returned. The garrison well knew of the presence of the enemy, and knew just where the Indians were hidden ; yet, the}' affected not to suspicion that an enemy was near. But, the greatest anxiety was felt, lest the Indians should make an attack while the place was so defenseless. The concealed foe could be descried crouch- ing under the thicket of laurel on the bluff' beyond the river ; and their number was probably overestimated, al- though the actual number could not have been much less JOHN MINEAE. 51 than fifty. Tlie whites expected an attack any hour. If the attack had been made, it is doubtful if the place could have held out ; because the hill near by would have given the assailing party a great advantage. The garrison were desirous of impressing the Indians with the idea that the fort contained a strong force of men. To this end, they dressed first in one kind of clothes and then in another, at each change walking about the yard in full view of the foe. The Indians, who were all the time looking on, and not more than a quarter of a mile away, must have been led to believe that the fort was stronger than they could attack with safety. At any rate, they made no assault ; and, in a day or two they disappeared from the hill, and the people hoped that the foe so much dreaded had indeed left the country. However, it was deemed best to remain in the fort till the return of those who had gone east. This was not long. The men returned the next evening, and for the present little fear of danger was entertained. The people did not remain so constantly on the lookout. When they began to visit their cabins near about the fort, it was found that the Indians had rummaged them, and had carried off what they could, and had destroyed much that they could not take. Still, nothing was seen to indicate that the enemy was yet in the country. Some of the men took their families to their cabins, de- termined to do a little more work before the season for In- dian incursions — for it was still earlier in the spring than the Indians were in the habit of making raids into the set- tlements. Among those who left the fort under the im- pression that the red men were gone and danger for the present at an end, was Daniel Cameron, who lived opposite 52 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. Miller Hill, on the farm since known as the Bowman Plan- tation, by the nearest road some three miles from St. George. He removed his family to his farm, and that night they locked the door, as was usual at that time. Awhile after dark, a noise was heard like the rattle of a charger against a powder-horn. If no danger had been feared, this slight incident would scarcely have been noticed. But, at a time of such intense anxiety, it at once aroused suspicions. Presently other disturbances were heard, and it became nearly certain that Indians were prowling about. The light in the house was extinguished, and the family crawled out at the back door, and hid in a brush heap until everything became quiet, when they made their way to the fort, and reported what had taken place. But the people were not disposed to credit the story, and little attention was paid to it. A day or two more passed, and nothing further was seen or heard of the Indians. But, all this time the treacherous savages were lying hid on the hill above the mouth of Clover Run, in a field near the present residence of Hon. William Ewin. They were about a mile from the fort ; but still in sight of it. They had abandoned the laurel thicket opposite the fort, because they suspected that the garrison had discovered them. They selected their new hiding place, and remained in it during the day, and at night they prowled about the settlement. From where they were they could see all that went on in and about St. George, and they were ready to fall upon any stray party who should go out. An opportunity for this soon came. Jonathan Minear's farm was two miles below St. George, on the south side of the river, just below where John Auvil, Esq., now lives. Jonathan Run is named from him. He JOHN MINEAE. 53 selected this site at tlie same time that his father selected the one where St. George stands, and he made it his home, except when danger compelled him to remove to the fort for safety. When the Indians first came into the neighbor- hood, he abandoned his farm and retired to St. George, where he remained until he considered all danger at an end. But, when nothing more could be seen of the enemy, and nothing heard, except vague rumors, of which there always was sufficient, he determined to visit his farm and look after his cattle. His brother-in-law, Washburn, volunteered to go with him, and, at daylight, the two left the fort together and proceeded to the ford, about half mile below* Here they were joined by Cameron, who was afoot, and was on his way to his own farm. His way was along the northern bank of the river, while Minear and Washburn's was along the southern bank. They talked a few minutes, and separated, Minear and Washburn, on horseback, cross- ing the river and Cameron proceeding down the northern bank on foot. The morning was clear and cold, for it was in March or early in April. The men on horseback passed very near where the Indians lay concealed, but not so near as to be shot. However, the savages probably learned from their conversation where they were going, and running on ahead, hid in the tall dry weeds that stood thick along the bank of the river in the field where the cattle were. The men rode leisurely on, thinking little of danger. When they got to the cabin they tied their horses. Washburn proceeded to the field to feed the cattle fodder, while Minear went to get corn for the hogs. With a shock of fodder on his back, Washburn was passing through the bars when some Indians sprang out of the fence corner and seized him. Immediately 54 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. there was a discliarge of gnns, and Washburn saw Minear running toward the river, and a dozen Indians after him. Minear ran as though wounded, and the savages gained fast upon him, and overtook him on the bank of the river. He had been shot in the thigh, and was so disabled that he could not escape. AVhen he reached the bank, he saw that the Indians would strike him with their tomahawks ; and, to avoid the blows, for him the last resort, he ran round a beech tree, bracing himself against the tree with one hand and fighting the Indians off with the other. It is a characteristic of the Indians that, when they chase a man, as they did Minear, they always run one behind another, and do not try to head oif the object of their pur- suit. Thus, when they came up with Minear at the beech tree and he ran round it, instead of some of them turning back in the opposite direction to head him ofif, they all ran round the same way, round and round and round. They were striking at him with their tomahawks, and he was try- ing to ward oft' the blows. Several times they missed him and struck the tree, and the marks of their tomahawks are to be seen on the tree to this day. Three of his fingers were cut oft' while thus defending himself. But the odds were too great against him, and he fell, his head cleft by a tomahawk. All this, from the first attack on Washburn till Minear fell dead, was done in a few seconds ; and, while Washburn was standing with the fodder still on his back, and looking at the Indians who were murdering Minear, Cameron was also an eye witness from the other side of the river. Wash- burn, in his anxiety for his companion, forgot that himself was a prisoner ; and, not until ordered to do so by the In- dians, did he throw down his fodder. But Cameron realized JOHN MINEAE. 55 it all at a glance, although he did not know the whole truth. He saw Minear overtaken and tomahawked, and supposed that "Washburn was likewise killed. He had heard the dis- charge of guns, and concluded that by them Washburn was killed. Without waiting for further investigation — in fact, further hivestigation was not possible — he wheeled and ran with all his speed up the river toward the fort. But the discharge of guns had been heard at St. George, and the wildest excitement prevailed. The men mounted their horses in hot haste and galloped off down the river. They did not cross at the ford, but continued down tlio northern bank. This probably saved them from a l)loody ambuscade ; for the Indians were ready for them, and would have cut them oft" almost to a man, had they gone down the same path that Washburn and Minear had taken. But fortune favored them, and they continued down the northern shore. They had not proceeded more than half-way when they met Cameron, who was out of breath from running and could scarcely speak for excitement. He told them that Minear and Washburn were killed. The party halted, and a hasty consultation took place. If the men were already dead, it could avail them little to be avenged; The strength of the Indians was not known ; and it was feared that they would immediatel}^ bear down upon the fort. Under the circumstances it was thought best to hurry back and put the place in the best possible condition for defense. This wise resolution was immediately carried into effect. The men rode back, carrying Cameron with them, and brought the sad intelligence to the fort. All was hurry and activity. There was no time for lamentations. A supply of water was provided, so that the inmates might not suffer from thirst 56 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. in case of a siege. Ammunition Avas gotten ready. Large quantities of bullets were molded, and all tlie guns "were loaded ready for an attack anj moment. The day passed, and no attack was made. The enemy had not appeared in sight. But the anxiet}^ and dread Avere not lessened ; for it then Ijegan to be believed that the In- dians were probably keeping out of sight in order to throw the garrison off their guard, and that an attack would be made that night. No one thought of sleep. Every man was up and in arms. The fort was not defended b}'- regular soldiers, but depended for defense upon those who took shelter within its walls. When night came, and the addi- tional suspense and fear, that always accompany darkness and silence, fell upon the people, they determined to put on a bold front, hoping that, by doing so, they could strike terror into the hearts of the Indians and keep them at bay. There was in the fort a gigantic negro named Moats. Him they dressed as a soldier, and had him march round and round the fort, within the palisades, beating a drum. This was to cause a belief among the Indians, should they be skulking near, that a large force was under arms in the fort-yard, and that this martial display was a legitimate manifestation of power. This was kept iip all night, and scarcely an e^'e was closed in slumber. No enemy appeared. Whether the display of force had alarmed the Indians, they did not then know. But, Avhen the morning broke, and no enemy, or sign of any, was in sight, the men prepared to A'isit the scene of the tragedy of the previous day. It is not now known how many men were in St. George at that time ; but, judging from what is known on the subject, there must liave been between twenty and thirty. They Avere JOHN MINEAE. 57 gathered in from all the settlements for miles around, both above and below St. George. It had been a cold, frosty night. Early in the morning the men formed in a body and marched down the river, on the the north side. When they reached a point opposite where Minear was killed, the men ranged themselves in line of battle along the side of the hill, and sent Moats, the negro, across the river to see if the Indians were any- where about. The men stood ready to fire, in case the enemy should put in an appearance. Moats rode over, searched the thickets up and down the shore, and saw nothing to indicate that the foe was hidden anywhere around. Then the men crossed over, using the greatest caution lest they should fall into an ambuscade. They feared that the Indians were hidden in the weeds, and would wait till an advantage was presented, and then run out and attack the party. When the}' got over the river they found Minear lying dead where he fell. The Indians had killed him by the beech tree, and had chopped the upper part of his head off with their tomahawks. They then broke his skull into fi'agments and drove the pieces into a stump hard by. A dog that had always followed him was found guarding the dead man. Search was then made for Washburn. It was not known what had become of him. Cameron had not seen him; but he supposed that it was at him that the guns had been fired. The whites explored the woods and the corn field, but could find no trace of him. Nor was anything seen of Indians. But, finally a trail was found leading up a ridge, since known as Indian Point, and by following it a short distance it was found that the Indians had retreated by 58 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. that way on the day before. It was also cliseoverecl that Washbiiru was carried oft* a prisoner. His track was dis- tinguished from those of the Indians. The Indians did not always kill every one whom they caught. Often they car- ried their prisoners into captivity, and sometimes they would take a captive with them hundreds of miles into their country, and then burn him or pound him to death. At times, prisoners were well treated ; but, it was generally considered that to fall a captive to the Indians was a fate little less to be dreaded than death. So, when it was found that Washburn was taken prisoner it was considered that he was little more fortunate than Minear, who was killed. It was resolved to follow the Indians as soon as Minear should be buried. His dead body was taken up, bound on a horse and carried to the fort. He had stifiened and fro- zen as he fell. His arms were extended wide, and he was covered with coagulated blood. Thus he was carried to St. George and was buried. No one now knows where his grave is ; but it is believed to be under a chestnut tree about one half-mile east of the town. The next morning as many men as could be spared from the fort went in pursuit of the Indians. They trailed them a night and two days. Had the Indians immediately shaped their course for the Ohio River they must have es- caped before the whites could have overtaken them. But they did not do this. They seemed to be hunting for set- tlements about the Valley River, and by spending their time in this manner they allowed the pursuing ]3arty to come up. The Indian camp was discovered awhile after dark on the second night. David Minear, brother to Jona- than, crawled up near enough to spy out the position of the enemy, and to see that Washburn was indeed a prisoner JOHN MINEAR. 59 with them. It was resolved to fall on the Indians at once. The whole party of whites cautiously approached and let the Indians have it. A tumultuous uproar followed. The savages caught up what plunder they could snatch, and bounded away into the woods, while the whites rushed into the camp to take the wounded savages prisoner. Wash- burn was found unhurt. Two or three of the enemy were shot. While the whites stood round the fire in the excite- ment of the victory, an Indian came ramping into their midst, snatched up a pouch of something from the ground, and was off before the whites recovered enough from their surprise to capture or shoot the scoundrel. It was thought that the pouch contained some superstitious concoction of medicine. After this skirmish, when it was certain that the Indians were gone and no more punishment could be inflicted upon them, the company returned to St. George. The Indians made their way back across the Ohio River into their own country. About the colony of St. George, affairs went on well enough for some time. The people were very careful not to expose themselves to the Indians. Some returned to their farms and underwent all risks ; while others would go to their plantations during the day and repair to the fort at night. Another visit was made by the Indians about this time. The date is not certain, but it is believed to have been in 1780. A small band of Indians carried away a boy who was at work in a field at the mouth of Clover Run, nearly a mile from the fort. Not much is known of this event ; but it is said that when the Indians took the boy prisoner he had with him a pet crow, and it followed him nearly to the Ohio River, where the Indians killed it, be- 60 HISTOEY OP TUCKER COUNTY. cause they tliouglit it possessed of an evil spirit. It is not IcnoAvn wliat became of tlie bo}-. The year 1781 records the greatest calamity that ever be- fell the St. George colony. It was the murder by Indians of Daniel Cameron, Mr. Cooper and John Minear. They were the three foremost men of the settlement. John Mi- near had planned and founded the colony ; and to him more than to any one else was its prosperity due. He was killed in April, 1781. The band of Indians, by whom the murder was commit- ted, made a raid very similar to that of the gang that killed Jonathan Minear. Nearly the same territory was overrun and nearly the extent of wickedness done. The savages first appeared in Lewis County, on the head of Stone Coal Creek, where they waylaid three men named Schoolcraft, wdio had gone there from Buckhannon for the purpose of hunting pigeons. The Indian shot at them and killed one. The two others were taken prisoner, and it is not certain that they were ever again heard of. But it was believed that they joined the Indians, and afterwards guided parties of the savages through the settlements and helped them kill white people. These were the last of the Schoolcraft fam- ily. Fifteen of them had been killed or carried into cap- tivity within the space of seven years. Their fate and that of the Minears seemed connected. It is thought that the party that killed Jonathan Minear also killed Austin School- craft and took prisoner his niece. Then, the band by which John Minear was killed, the next year, kiUed and captured three Schoolcrafts, making five in all that fell by the hands that slew the Minears. After this depredation in Lewis County, the Indians passed over to the Valley River, in Barbour County ; and a JOHN MINEAK. 61 few miles below Pliilippi tliey set themselves in ambusli at a narrow place in tlie road. About tliis time commissioners had been appointed to adjust land claims in this part of the State, and to execute the necessary legal papers to those who had complied with the law in pre-empting the public lands. The commissioners met at Clarksburg. Land claimants went there from all neighboring parts to present claims for consideration. The people of St. George, in common with those of other settle- ments, sent their agents to Clarksburg to attend to the business and to obtain deeds for the various tracts of land claimed by the different settlers. Those whom St. George sent were John Minear, Daniel Cameron, two men named Miller, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Goffe. They had proceeded to Clarksburg, attended to their business, and were on their way home at the time the Indians were lying in their am- buscade below Philippi. It seems from the circumstances that the Indians were looking for them. The Indians placed themselves in a position commanding the road, and hung a leather gun-case by a string over the path. This was to attract attention, cause a halt and give the savages an opportunity to take deliberate aim. The trap was well set, and the men came riding along the path, thinking nothing of danger. The path was so narrow that they could ride only in single file. They were almost under the leather decoy before they saw it. They instantly brought their horses to a halt. The truth flashed into Minear's mind, and quickly wheeling his horse, he exclaimed "Indians!" The whole party would have wheeled; but, instantly a discharge of guns from the hidden foe threw them into the wildest confusion. Horses and men fell together. Minear, Cameron and Cooper Avere killed on tlie 62 HISTOKY OF TUCKEK COUNTY. spot. Goffe and one of tlie Millers sprang from their horses and took to the woods. The other Miller was not unhorsed. He wheeled back, and fled toward Clarksburg. The savages tried hard to catch him ; but his horse was fleeter than they, and he made good his flight to Clarksburg. Miller sought to escape by ascending the hill. He was on foot, and tAvo or three Indians started in pursuit, armed only with knives and tomahawks. He had the start of them by less than twenty yards, and they seemed confident of overhauling him. Indeed, he had little hope of escaping ; but he considered it better to make an efi"ort for his life. His pursuers, close upon his heels, called continually to him to stop, and told him if he did not, they would most cer- tainly kill him. They accompanied their threats by tlie most violent gesticulations. Had they exerted all their en- ergy in the pursuit and done less yelling, they might have sooner terminated the chase. As it was, Miller did not stop in compliance with their demand, although he almost de- spaired of being able to get away. The hill was steep, and his strength was nearly gone; but he struggled upward, reached the summit, turned down the other side, and was out of sight of the savages. But the chase was not done. The Indians followed fast after him, and he ran through the tangled brush, dodged to left and right, and finally avoided them. He knew not but that he was the only one who had escaped. He had seen the others fall, and thought them killed. But it was not entirely so. While Miller was thus getting away from his pursuers by a long and desperate race, Gofl'e was making a still more wonderful escape. "When he leaped from his horse, instead of going up the hill, as Miller had done, he broke through the line of foes and ran for the river. A score of the sav- JOHN MINEAR. 63 ages started in pursuit, as confident of a si)eedy capture as those had been who followed Miller. But, in spite of their efibrts to catch him, Gofte kept his distance. He looked back as he reached the river bank, and no Indians were in sight. He threw off his coat to swim, and leaped down the bank. But at that instant he heard his pursuers tearing through the brush almost immediately above him. He saw that it was impossible to escape by swimming ; and, on the impulse of the moment, he pitched his coat in the water, and crept for concealment into an otter den which liaj)pened to be at hand. By this time the Indians had reached the bank above him. He could hear them talking ', and he learned from their conversation that they thought he had dived. They expected to see him rise from the water. He could see their images mirrored from the water of the river under him. He could see the glittering and glistening of their tomahawks and knives in the sunlight. His den was barely large enough to conceal him ; and his tracks in the mud would lead to his hiding place. He prepared to plunge into the water and take his chances of escape by diving. But the Indians had caught sight of the coat as it Avas floating down the river ; and they began to move off to keep pace with it. They supposed that Goffe was either drowned or had made his escape. They abandoned the man for the moment and turned their attention to saving the coat. How they suc- ceeded in this is not known ; for Goffe did not wait to see the termination of the affair. He crawled from his den and made off", leaving them a hundred yards beloAV. He started directly for St. George, which he reached that night. Severe as this blow was to the Cheat River settlement, it was probably lighter than it would have been, had not the 64 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. attack been made on tlie party of land claimants. Tliis band of Indians were heading for St. George ; but, wlien Goffe and the Millers escaped, it was not deemed advisable to proceed, since the place could not be taken by surprise. Therefore, the Indians turned back up the VaUey River to Tygart's Valley, where they fell upon settlements unpre- pared for them. Leading Creek, in Randolph County, was then a flourish- ing colony. The people had heard of the presence of Indians in the more western counties, and were busily mov- ing into the fort. While thus engaged, the savages feU upon them and nearly destroyed the whole settlement. Among those killed were Alexander Roney, two women, Mrs. Daugherty and Mrs. Hornbeck, and a family of chil- dren. They also took several prisoners, among whom were Mrs. Roney and Daniel Daugherty. Others of the settle- ment made their escape, arid carried the news to Friend's fort. A company of men at once collected to hunt down the Indians and kill them. Col. "Wilson led the pursuing party. When they reached Leading Creek they found the settlement broken up, the people gone and nearly all the houses and barns burned to thfe ground. The trail of the Indians was soon found, and a swift pursuit was made. The savages turned Avestward, and seemed to be aiming for the West Fork River. Colonel Wilson's part}^ continued upon their track for some time, and until the men began to grow fearful that other Indians might fall upon the Tygart's Yalley settlements, Avhile thus deprived of so many of its men. Some wanted to go back, and only a few were very anxious to continue the pursuit of the Indians. A vote was taken to decide whether ar not the party should proceed. Only four, Colonel Wilson, Richard Kittle, Alexander West JOHN MINEAR. 65 and Joseph Friend, voted to go on. Consequently, the whole party turned back. But, the savages were not to escape thus. The settle- ments on the West Fork, about and above Clarksburg, were on the lookout for the marauders. Miller, who escaped when Minear, Cooper and Cameron were killed, had fled to Clarksburg, and had alarmed the country so that a close lookout was kept. Spies and scouts traversed the country looking for the enemy. At length, one of the spies discov- ered the Indians on West Fork, and Colonel William Lowther- collected a party of men and hurried to attack them. When he got to the place where the Indians had been seen, near the mouth of Isaac's Creek, the}- were gone. He followed after them, and overtook them on Indian Creek, a branch of Hughes' River, in Doddridge County. He came in sight of them awhile before night. It was thought best to wait till morning before making the attack. Accordingly, Elias and Jesse Hughes were left to watch the enemy, while Colonel Lowther led his men back a short distance to rest and get ready to fall upon the Indians at da3^break in .the morning. Nothing of note occurred that niglit. The In- dians did not discover their pursuers. When the twittering of the birds announced that day was at hand, the whites began to prepare for the fight. They crawled forward as noiselessly as panthers, and lay close around the camp of the enem3^ As soon as it was light enough to take aim, a general fire was poured into the midst of the savage encampment. Five fell dead. The others leaped up and yelled and darted off into the woods, leaving all their ammunition, plunder and all their guns, but one, in the camp. The whites rushed forward to beat down * Colonel William Lowther was a relative of Rev. O. Lowther, well known in Tucker County. G6 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. those who were trying to get away. It was then found that one of the whites, who had been taken prisoner in Tj'gart's Valley and was in the Indian camp, was killed. He had been shot by the whites who made the attack. They had been very careful to guard against such an occurrence. From the prisoners who were retaken, it was learned that a large band of Indians were near, and were expected to come up soon. On account of this, Colonel Lowther thought it best not to follow the fugitive Indians. He buried the prisoner whom his men had accidentally killed, and, with the guns and plunder of the enemy, he returned to the settlements, well satisfied that the Indians had not got- ten off without something of merited punishment. The fol- lowing account of the affair is from Withers' Border War- fare : As soon as the fire was opened upon the Indians, Mrs. Roney (one of the prisoners) ran toward the whites rejoicing at the pros- pect of dehverance, and exclaiming : "I am Ellick Roney's wife, of the Valley, I am Ellick Roney's wife, of the Valley, and a pretty little woman, too, if I Avas well dressed." The poor woman, igno- iantH)f the fact that her son was weltering in his gore, and forget- ting for an instant that her husband had been so recently killed, seemed intent only on her own deliverance from the savage captors. Another of the captives, Daniel Daugherty, being tied down and unable to move, was discovered by the whites as they rushed towards the camp. Fearing that he might be one of the enemy and do them some injury if they advanced, one of the men, stop- ping, demanded who he was. Benumbed by the cold and discomposed by the sudden firing of the whites, he could not render his Irish dialect iiatelligible to them. The white man raised his gun and directed it toAvard him, calling aloud, that if he did not make known who he was, he should blow a ball through him, let him be white man or Indian. Fear supplying hun with en ergy, Daugherty exclaimed : "Lord Jasus ! and am I to be killed by Avhite paple at last ?" He was heard by Colonel Wilson and his life saved. JOHN MINEAE. 67 When the news of the massacre of Minear and his com- panions reached St. George, the excitement was little less than it had been when Jonathan Minear had been killed. The danger in the former case was more imminent than in the latter. But, the blow was heavier, and was more sen- sibly felt. The loss of John Minear, in particular, was irreparable. He was the central mind of the colony, and to him all looked for advice. It was on account of his su- perior business qualifications that he was sent to Clarks- burg to attend to securing deeds for the lands. As soon as it was known at St. George that he was killed, the settlers from the surrounding country collected and proceeded to the Valley River to bury the dead. The way thither was not free from danger. It was not then known where the Indians had gone, or whether they had gone. The settlers moved with the extremest caution, lest they should fall into an ambuscade. But, of course, there was no real danger of this, because the Indians were by that time on Leading Creek, in Randolph County. When the scene of the tragedy was reached, Minear, Cooper and Cameron were found dead where they fell. It was not a time for unnecessary display at the funeral. It was not known at what moment the Indians would be down upon them, and the funeral was as hasty and noiseless as possible. A shallow grave was dug on the spot, and the three men were consigned to it. We carved not a line and we raised not a stone, But we left him alone in his glory. Not many years ago a party of road-workers accidentally exhumed the bones of the men. A very old man was pres- ent. He had been personally acquainted with them and identified them by their teeth. Two of Minear's front teeth 68 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. were missing at the time of his death. So were they in one of the skulls. Cameron used tobacco, and his teeth being worn, it was easy to tell which skull belonged to him. A peculiarity of teeth also distinguished Cooper. The bones were re-interred near by in a better grave.* This was the last time the Indians ever invaded Tucker County, so far as is now known. The war against the In- dians in this part lasted only about seven years, from 1774 to 1781. It raged nearly fifteen years longer about Clarks- burg, Wheeling, and along the Ohio. But St. George was too far removed from the frontier to be open to attacks from the Indians. * Conquest of the Olilo Valley, by Hu Maxwell. CHAPTER III. 31 IS CEL L A Nl ES. The dwelling-liouses of the first settlers of Tucker County differed somewliat from those of the present day. The hardy pioneers pushed into the -wilderness -with little of this world's goods. But, they possessed that greatest of fortunes, health, strength and honesty. They were poor; but the Czars of Eussia or the Chains of Tartary, in their crystal palaces, were not richer. In that time, manners were not as they are now. Necessities were plentiful and luxuries were unknown, except such luxuries as nature bestowed gratuitously upon them. To better their conditions, the people who came to Tucker had sold or left what possessions they may have had in the more thickly settled communities, and had plunged boldly into the wilderness to claim the rich gifts which an all-bountiful nature was offering to those who would reach forth their hands and take. Besides, there was something in the wild, free, unfettered life of the forest that was allur- ing to the restless spirits that breathed liberty from the air about them. The ties of society and the comforts of opulence were willingly exchanged for it. The appearance and condition of the county when first visited by white men has been told in the first chapter. It was an unbroken forest. When those back-woodsmen left their homes in the more eastern settlements for Tucker, they did not have any roads over which to travel, nor any carts and wagons to haul their things on. They loaded 70 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. tlieir plunder on pack-horses. They had not a great variety of wares to move. A few wooden or pewter utensils, a kettle, a jug or two, and a bottle, a scanty outfit of car- penter and cooper tools, and a little homespun clothing formed about all that the emigrant of that day carried with him, as he followed the star of empire westward. If he had a cow or two, and a calf, the}'^ were driven along before the pack-horses, and cropped w'eeds and leaves from the woods for a living during the journey. Indeed, the cattle lived upon this kind of feed principally for twenty-five years after reaching Cheat River. If the emigrant had children, and there usually were six or eight, tlie}^ were got- ten along in the best available manner. If one was quite small, its mother carried it in her arms ; if a size larger, it with its older brother was placed on a pack-horse. Some- times two baskets, tied together like saddle-pockets, were slung across the horse's bony back. Then a child was stowed away in each basket, so they would balance. Bed- clothes, iron-kettles, dough-trays and other household articles were stuffed around the edges to hold the little urchins steady. Thus loaded with packs and plunder, the procession moved on, the larger children taking it afoot to drive the cattle, lead the horses and make themselves useful generally. The road, if any at all, was narrow and rough ; and the horses frequently scraped their loads off against overhanging trees; or perchance they lost their footing among the steep rocks, and fell floundering to the ground. In either case their loads of plunder, kettles, children and all went rolling, tumbling, rattling and laughing into the woods, creating a scene of ludicrous merriment. At night, when it was necessary to halt, the horses were unloaded and turned loose to crop a supper in the woods, MISCELLANIES. 71 first having had bells put on them by which they might be found should they stroll away. Then with flint and steel a fire was kindled, and the movers fell to cooking their evening meal, consisting of bear's meat, venison and corn bread, if any bread at all. The meat was roasted on coals, or on a stick held to the fire. The bread was usually baked in an oven or skillet, which invariably had a piece broken out of it. " The wheaten bread was often baked in the ashes, and is said to have been excellent. The beds of that tiine, while traveling, were blankets and bear skins spread on the ground. They slept without a shelter, unless it threatened to rain. In that case, a rude shed was built of bark. lu the morning bright and early they were up and on their way rejoicing, singing, laughing, joking and making their pilgrimage glad and merry as they went. When they arrived at their place of destination, their first care was to build a house. This was done with the material at hand. The head of the family with two or three of his oldest boys, some of the neighbors, if any, with sharp axes and willing hands, went into the work. Logs were cut from twelve to twenty-five feet long. Some- times the logs were hewn, but generally not. The ends were notched to fit one upon another; and the house was commonly one story high, but sometimes two, with a regular upstairs. The roof was of shingles four or five feet long, split from oak or chestnut, and unshaved. They were called clapboards. They Avere laid upon the lath and rafters so as to be water tight, and were held to their place by logs thrown across them. No nails Avere used. It was the custom at that time to build the chimneys on the inside of the house. While the house was building, an * Flnley. 72 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. extra log was thrown across some six feet from the ground, and three feet from the end of the house. From this log to the roof, the flue was of sticks and mortar. The fire was directly beneath, and the smoke and sparks thus escaped through the wide opening of the chimney. "Wood ten feet long could be thrown on the fire, and, when burnt ojBf in the middle, the pieces were shoved together. The floors were of thick, rough wooden slabs; or often the ground was the floor. James Goff, although one of the richest men in the county, had a house with a ground floor. There were no windows. Small apertures through the wall served the double purpose of letting in the light and furnishing means of shooting at Indians when they should come near. There was seldom more than one door. It was made of heavy upright slabs, held together by transverse pieces. The whole was so thick that it was bullet-proof, or nearly so. In times of danger, it was secured by stout bars, fastened to the wall by iron staples on either side. The furniture of these normal dwellings was simple and sufiicient. The beds were made of skins from forest animals, or of ticks filled with grass or straw. The bedsteads were rude frames, con- sisting of forks driven into the groimd and poles laid across ; or the bedding was on the ground or floor. An iron pot, the broken oven, a few wooden or pewter plates and cups, half dozen stools, a rough slab on pegs for a table, a shelf in the corner for a cupboard and pantry, and the furuitrne Avas complete. When tlie first people came to Tucker, they had not the means of procuring fine clothes, and in consequence, their raiment was just such as they could get the easiest. Boots were not to be had, and they wore moccasins. Their under- clothing was of linen, at times of calico. Their outer gar- MISCELLANIES. 73 ments were of liusey or of leather. The men nearly always wore leather breeches, and coats called hunting shirts. These coats were in fashion like the blue overcoats worn by the Union soldiers during the war. The edges and facing were decorated with a fringe, made by cutting the border into fine strings, leaving them hanging fast to the coat. They were frequently stained red, blue or some other color. A row of similar fringes extended from the top to the bot- tom of each leggin. The fastenings were either leather strings or big leaden buttons of home manufacture. The moccasins were like those worn by the Indians, cut in one piece and closed by a seam on top. They had long flaps to the top, which were wound about the upper foot and ankle to keep out the briers of summer and the snow of winter. Those moccasins were a poor protection to the feet in wet weather. They were made of deer skin, and were flimsy and porous. In wet weather the feet of the wearer were constantly soaked. From that cause, the early settlers were subject to rheumatism, which was about their only disease. To dry their feet at night was their first care. Their moccasins were often decorated with fringes to match their other clothing. Stockings were sel- dom worn in the earliest times. Frequently, as a substi- tute for stockings, leaves were stuffed in the moccasins. In winter, the people wore gloves, made of dressed deer skin, and decorated with a fringe of mink or weasel fur. In summer, no gloves were worn. The head-gear was a fur cap, made from the skin of a raccoon, otter or fox, with the hair-side out. The tail of a fox hung behind like a tassel. The women dressed then as now, with the exception of a few bales of ribbon, a dozen hanks of superfluous lace, a yard of bonnet, and some other paraphernalia, best left un- 74 HISTORY OP TUCKER COUNTY. mentioned. But, instead of alpaca and the finer cloths, the texture of their dresses was deer skin. Their other raiment was also deer skin, but sometimes rough woolen cloth, or tow linen, or at rare times cotton, was made a sub- stitute. The children dressed as their parents. The men cropped their hair and shaved their beard about three times a year. It might be asked what the early settlers in Tucker could find to eat before anything was raised. They were not here long before they raised enough corn for bread, and some potatoes, cabbage and other vegetables. They had an easier time than many of the other colonies in West Virginia. A mill was built at St. George in 1776.* This provided a means of getting the corn ground, and was an advantage not enjoyed by many early settlers. Often at that time the people had to go thirty or forty miles through the woods to mill; and, as this was such a hard imder- taking, many preferred to do without bread, and eat hominy. Hominy was made by pounding corn just enough to mash the hulls off. Or, it was soaked in lye for the same purpose. Then it was cooked and eaten. The settlers frequently ran short of bread. In that case they lived on meat. Fortunately, meat was always plenti- * Tliere was long a question as to where the mill stood. An old work, having the appearance of a mill-race, passes through the school-house lot in the town, and it was said that the mill was just below where the school-house stands. But this was disputed, and what was said by some to he an old mill-race, was claimed by others to 1)0 only an ancient channel of the creek. Thus the matter was unsettled for seventy- flve years, and was well nigh forgotten. But, in 1875, a tremendous flood came down Mill Run and cleaned out a great bar of gravel that had accumulated in the creek ford. When the water had subsided, the timbers of the old dam were laid open to view. The gravel had been washed off of them. This settled the question that the trench through the school-house lot was indeed the mill-race. The old timbers of the dam are still to be seen protruding from the gravel on the east side of the creek. One hundi'ed and eight years have had but little Influence in causing them to decay, and they seem as solid, and the ax-marks are as plainly to be seen as when they had been there only a year or two. They are white oak, hewn square, and may be seen where the road leaves the water and passes up the eastern bank of Mill Run. MISCELLANIES. 75 fill, and miglit be liad for the trouble of killing. Bear meat and venison were the chief dependence. It is a common saying among old people that the flesh of the bear was the bread, and venison was the • meat. The venison was often cut into slices and dried. It would then keep well several months. Buffaloes were found in the earliest years of the St. George colony. But, they never were as plentiful as they were along the Ohio River, and about Charleston, Clarksburg and Buckhannon. Smaller game, such as raccoons, rabbits, pheasants and turkeys were, of course, plentiful. Salt was not often to be had, and it Avas thought no hardship to do without it. It cost a dollar a peck, and had to be carried seventy-five or one hundred miles. Besides, the dollar was not always at hand. Coffee and tea were unknown. AVhiskey and brandy were in nearly every house. Much is said of the quantities of intoxicating liquors that were drunk in early times, and of the scarcity of drunkards. This is a good subject for theories and speculations that would be out of place in a county history. Besides, Tucker County is not and never was a land of drunkards. Many of the people, let it be said to their praise and honor, have little idea of what a whiskey saloon is. The climate, habits and surroundings of the people are not such as pro- duce drunkards. They work too hard, there are too few places for idle men to associate together. It is hard to point out any particular harm in whiskej'- as long as it is used in its right place ; although it is equally hard to teU what good there is in it. In early days, when whiskey and brandy were in every house, men seldom got drunk, because they always had their liquor at hand, and 76 HISTOKY OF TUCKEK COUNTY. there was no excitement or novelty to lead tliem to excess, in which alone there is harm. If half the creeks and springs of the connty flowed apple brandy instead of water, they could not do the harm of twenty grog shops scattered over the county. It is not the taste of the liquor that so much intices men as it is the debauched pleasure which they feel in co-mingling with idlers. A man hardly ever gets drunk at home. The most effectual means of redeeming drunkards is to induce them to stay at home, and away from the places where men associate only with men. But, of this there is little need in Tucker County. Although it is one of the smallest in West Yirginia, it is yet the most temperate. No county can claim pre-eminence in that respect over Tucker County. It may not be amiss to say something of the arms used by the early colonists on Cheat River. The main depend- ence was the rifle. It was the surest means of defense and the most useful weapon. It furnished the settler with game and was a guard against the Indians. The rifle was a flint- lock, muzzle-loader. In addition to the rifle, a tomahawk and a knife were usually carried. These were about all the implements of war used in the early settlement of the country. Pistols were seldom used. The Indians used the same kind of arms that the white people used. But an In- dian could not shoot as well, because Indians can not do anything as well as a white man can. They could not keep their guns in order, and they did not even have skill enough to take their guns apart and clean them properly. During the first years of the county, there were no churches. Religious meetings were held in private houses. Once in a while, a minister visited the settlements and held a meeting; but, such meetings were not frequent. The MISCELLANIES. 77 usual order was for some pious man to be chosen as class- leader ; and all the other people who pretended to be religious would join in the exercise and help. Such meet- ings were generally held in each settlement once a month. The settlers, for ten miles on every side, would come together with devotional zeal, and sing and pray and exhort each other to live and work faithfully in the cause of the church, and against wickedness and sin. No wagons or carriages were used. The people, who went to church, either rode on horseback or walked. They oftenest walked. Early on Sunday morning, especially in the spring and summer, the people from the forest cabins might be seen wending their way along the narrow roads toward the place appointed for the service. If the weather was fine, they went on foot. If they went on foot, they generally walked barefooted, carrying their moccasins in their hands. This was because they did not want to wear their shoes out with so much walking, A few ten-mile trips would put through a pair of moccasins ; while the barefeet were not at all injured by the walk. No doubt, the pioneers enjoyed their Sunday pilgrimage to church. Young men and young lasses, who Avent the same road, found each other's company as agreeable then as young folks do now. They passed the time talking and singing until they came in sight of the meeting-house, when they stopped to put on their shoes. The religious exercises of that day would look ridiculous to a city church member of the present time. But, " the gi'oves were God's first temples," as it is said ; and, before all temples, He doth "prefer the upright heart and pure," as Milton believed. So we must not judge others, nor pre- scribe forms and bounds for the manifestation of sacred 78 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. devotion ; yet we may believe that, before Him who know- eth the secrets of all hearts, and who rewarded not him who prayed aloud in the synagogue for form's sake, the rude pioneers, in their sincerity and simplicity, were as ac- ceptable as those are who kneel on velvet cushions and read prayers from Latin books. At any rate, we are not to rid- icule the unlettered pioneers of the last century. They worshiped as they thought best, and as best they could. The rude log hut, where a dozen were met together to wor- ship God according to the dictates of their conscience, was as sacred before Him as is St. Paul's or St. Peter's. If not, then religion is a fraud. 'There were no schools in the earliest years of Tucker County. But as soon as the people were firmly settled, and could take their minds, for a moment, from the struggle for existence, the subject of education began to be agitated. At that time and in the remote frontiers, there was no pub- lic money for school purposes. Such schools as could be Lad were paid for from private pockets. The teachers, as might be supposed, were qualified to teach only the easiest branches. Arithmetic to decimal fractions, the spelling- book, the Testament for a reader, and the course of study was complete. No grammar, geography, or history was thought of. The teachers could not instruct in such diffi- cult branches. The majority of the schoolmasters of that time did not believe that the earth was round. They usu- ally taught writing. They set copies for the pupils to follow. They had no system of penmanship. When an apt scholar learned to write as well as the teacher, he was regarded perfect. However, this was seldom the case. The people held a schoolmaster in such esteem that they con- MISCELI^NIES. 79 sidered it next to impossible for pupils to learn to write as well as lie ; and there was always room for a little more im- provement. This manner of learning to write would be regarded somewhat antediluvian were it to be revived now ; but the truth cannot be denied that those who were in- structed in penmanship by following written copies wrote as well as those do now, who spend five years on Spencer's, Scribner's and the Eclectic printed plates. Educational science has made wonderful strides forward during the last hunderd years ; and it is probable that no department of it will ever go back to what it was then. But, in a few particulars, the systems of the present day fail where those of earlier times succeeded. If the school children of to-day should attend school no more months than they did one hundred years ago, and receive the man- ner of instruction that they now get, at the end of their school life they would not be as well prepared for business as those of that time were. Of course, in a general sense, the educational systems of to-day are in advance of those one hundred years ago ; but, in the particular subjects of writing, reading and spelling, the old plan accomplished the most in a limited time. The child of the present time goes to school nearly ten times as much as those did of a century ago ; yet, is the child of to-day ten times as well educated ? The great contention among modern educators is to find the natural method of imparting instruction. When one looks at the A. B. C. charts, costing ten or twenty dollars, over which the child pores for four or five months, varying the exercise by drawing pictures of boxes, flower-pots, bugs and birds, and similar tomfoolery, it is almost time to stop to ask if it is not possible to lose sight altogether of the so- called natural method of imparting instruction, aiid wander 80 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. off with those who speucl their time and talents in telling or listening to something new. The child probably learns as much by the time it is three years old — that is, learns as many things — as it does during any ten years of its after life. It has learned everything that it knows at three. It has learned to talk one language, and knows by sight several thousand things, and by name several hundred. All this was taught it by natural methods ; because it was too young for artificial plans to be employed. But, from that time on, its education is more and more ar- tificial, and is less and less rapidly acquired. Old theories, customs and plans must give way to the new, and it is right that it should be so ; but it is meet that the new should be so constructed as to include all the good that there was in the old and something beside. In early times, above and below St. George, the young people were accustomed to meet together on Sundays and have singing-school. The exercise had something of a re- ligious nature, inasmuch as none but sacred songs were sung. It might be compared to a Sunday-school, except that no instruction in the Testament or catechism was given. The young folks met for the purpose of having a moral and social time, injurious to none, and pleasant to all. Much of these societies is remembered by the oldest inhab- itants of the county ; and, from all accounts, the exercises must have exerted a good influence over the community. Indeed, the singing-school is not jet a thing of the past, although it has changed some, probably for the better. Incidentally connected with the singing-schools, about the commencement of the present centiuy, there w^as a ro- mance that at the time was the subject of much talk along the river, and in all parts of the county, It also gives us MISCELLANIES. 81 an idea of tlie sjiirit of the time, and how the peo])le then compare with those of the present time. It seems that Manassa Miuear, son of David Minear, and brother to Enoch Minear, of St. George, and to Mrs. Dr. Bonnifield, of Horse Shoe Run, had formed an attachment for Miss Lyda Holbert, a beautiful girl, who lived on the bank of Holbert Run, four miles east of St. George. A match between the young people was in no manner objec- tionable to the Minears, onl}' that Manassa Avas so young. He was but eighteen ; and Miss Holbert was sixteen. Manassa fell into the habit of visiting his affianced rather oftener than his father thought necessary ; and, the result was a rumpus in the Minear family, and Manassa was told to go a little less frequently. This did not discourage the 3"oung man in the least. The next Sunday there was sing- ing-school in the Horse Shoe, and all the youngsters for miles around went as usual. Manassa and L^'da were there, and between them they made it up that he was to accom- pau}^ her home. His brothers and sisters tried hard to persuade him not to go, as the old gentleman would cer- tainly grumble. But, Manassa said, let him gruml)le, and went ahead. Lyda also said, let him grund)le, and they two went off together, in company with the other 3-oung people who went that way. But, the rest of the Minears returned to St. George and reported what had taken place. Mr. Minear was much put out of humor, and after studying over the matter two or three hours, he decided to go in ! person and settle the matter. Manassa and Lyda enjoyed the tine walk from the Horse Shoe to Holbert Run, about two miles. They had crossed ; the river at the WilloAV Point in a canoe ; and, thence home, ' the path was a pleasant one. It lay across the Vt'ide bottom 82 HISTOKY OF TUCKEK COUNTY, I from tlie river to Low Gap, then all woods ; and from tlie Low Gap lionie was about a mile, and tliis, too, was nearlj all woods. No doubt, the walk of two miles on that tine June morning was a short one to them. Tradition does not inform us hoAv the day, from noon till evening" was passed at the Holbert cabin ; but circumstan- ces justify us in supposing that all Avent merry and well. It could not have been otherwise ; for, Manassa and Lyda, could not quarrel, and the old folks were glad to have Ma- nassa visit their daughter, for he belonged to one of the first families of the county and was, indeed, a promising 3'oung man. Be this as it ma}', he was there yet when the sun was just sinking behind Jonathan Point. He and Lyda were sitting alone in the 3'ard, under a young walnut tree. The dead frame of this tree still stands, although it is a big one now, It might still be living but for a slight accident that happened it some seventeen years ago. Two boys, Henry Bonnifield, now of California, and "Wilson Maxwell, of St. George, both little fellows then, tried to catch a red squir- rel that was on the fence by the tree. Wilson had a hoe liandle (they had been hoeing corn in a field hard by) and was trying his best to knock the squirrel as high as the Pyrandds of Egypt. But; while going through gestures, and swinging the hoe-handle to give it all the force possi- ble, he skinned his knuckles on the old walnut tree. This made him mad, and with an ax, which lay near, he dead- ened the tree, and it died. The squirrel, in the meantime, got awa}'. The sun was just setting; and, no doubt, the world looked Leautifid to Manassa and Lyda as they sat under that lit- tle walnut tree,^witli none near enough to hear what they might say. The whole day had been pleasant; and, now "so f r MISCELLANIES. 83 fair an evening to terminate all, was truly deliglitful. But, it was not to be so. The evening wliicli uoav looked so beautiful to tlie _young couple, soon appeared to tliem tlie ugliest tliey had ever seen. For, presently foot steps were heard approaching, and when Manassa and Lyda looked up they saw the massive frame of David Minear coming up. Manassa's heart sank within him ; for, he knew what was at hand. Lyda also looked scared. But, they said not a word, and the old gentleman walked boldly up and com- menced flourishing a hickory withe, and uttered words to the effect that he wanted the young man home early enough Monday morning to go to hoeing potatoes when the other boys did. Manassa making no movement toward starting, the old gentleman with still more emphasis ordered him to "skedaddle for home." He realized his situation ; and casting toward Lyda one look, which seemed to say, good- bye, for the present, and receiving one of sj-mpathy from her, he bounded oft" down the hill, with the old gentleman at his heels wo]lo])ing him with the withe ever}' jump. Poor L^'da felt for Manassa, but she could not reach him. She saw him dodging this waj' and that way to escape the thrashing, and saw him bound witli extra buoyancy when- ever an extra swoop fell upon his shoulders. She also heard some of the words which the old gentleman spoke, and they fell heavily upon her ; for, he was telling Manassa that just as many jumps as it took him to get home, that many weeks it would be before he should come back. The 3"oung man apparently realized the force of the argument, and was trying to get to St. George with as few jumps as possible. Indeed, it looked to Lyda that he was going ten rods at a bound. All the while, the hickory was falling across his back with amazing rapidity. The scene was of short dura- 84 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. tion ; for, while she was still silently sitting under the tree and looking toward them, they disappeared in the thicket, and, after a little ripping and tearing through the Ijrush, all was still. The scenes and conversations that followed at the Hol- bert cabin, as well as at Minear's, we can only imagine. But, the result of the whole affair might plainly have been foreseen. Thrashing the young man is not the proper way to break him from waiting upon the girl of his choice. So it proved in this case. Manassa resolved to marry the fair young Lyda, no matter Avho should oppose. She was as fully resolved to brave all opposition in her attachment for him. When two young people arrive at this conclusion, it is useless for relatives or any one else to interfere. Such opposition may delay but cannot prevent the final consum- mation of the lovers' plans. In this case, however, the Holbert family did all they could to assist the young couple, so the opposition was all on one side. Manassa and Lyda laid ]3lans to elope and get married. But David Minear knew nothing of it. He supposed that the thrashing had broken up the affair, and that Manassa would pursue his foolish course no further. It was again on Sunday, and the young people of St. George started to the singing-school in the Horse Shoe. Manassa Minear started with the others ; but he had no intention of the singing. It v/as now in the fall of the year. His course of love, since it had been interrupted on that summer evening, had not run as smoothly as a poetical river. However, he had managed to see Lyda in the mean- ihrfe., and had arranged it with her and the rest of the fam- ily that she should elope with him at any time he should call for her. MISCELLANIES. 85 On that morning, instead of crossing the river at the Horse Shoe Ford, as he should have done to have gone to the singing, he continued up the north bank, unobserved by his companions, who were some distance ahead of him. He was on horseback this time. He went directly to Holbert's and told Lyda to get on the horse behind him, and not to loose much time. He explained the nature of the case. She was a brave girl, and did not waste a moment in getting ready. Her brother caught the only horse belonging to the family, and was ready to accompany them. Lyda got on behind Manassa, and they were off for Maryland. It Avas not yet noon, but they did not wait for dinner. They knew that the Minears would follow them ; and the success of the undertaking depended upon speed. They followed the lit- tle path leading up Horse Shoe Kun. This they traveled seven miles, and then turned up Lead Mine, by the old trail marked out by Capt. James Parsons. Thus they reached Maryland, and were formally married. When the young people who went to the singing returned to St. George, they reported that Manassa had not been there, nor Lyda either. It was at once suspected that he had gone to Holbert's, and David Minear followed again, determined to bring matters to a crisis. He went to Hol- bert's house, and not seeing Manassa, asked if he had been there. They answered him that he called a few minutes, but must be twenty miles away by that time. Holberts expected to see him fly into a passion at this disclosure ; but they were disappointed. He questioned them closely about the matter, and when the 3'oung couple was expected back. When they had answered him, he said that if they were married, it was all right, as it was no use to make a fuss about it. He left an invitation for them to come down 86 HISTOEY OF TUCKEE COUNTY. as soon as tlie_y returned, and with tliis lie went home. They were entirely' successful, and got safely home the third day. If the memories of old people are to be credited in the matter, the young couple did not find the course of married life as poetical as the}- had expected. For, though Lyda was young, she had a great deal of industry about her, and she made Manassa Avork harder than he wanted to, and he got tired of it, and, to keep from hoeing in the truck-patch, he dug a hole under the fence in a weedy corner and toled the hogs in. This did not mend matters much, for Lyda found it out, and made him build new fences around every lot on the place ; and, besides, made him build a pen for the hogs, and then pull weeds all summer to feed them. CHAPTER IV. JflS CEL L A XI ES. The material for a cliapter on the liistory of Tucker County for two score years next following the close of the Indian troubles, in 1781, is meager in the extreme. Almost nothing at all, of an exciting nature, is left on record. The Indian wars were at an end, and no massacres or exploits or adventures are to be narrated. It was a silent epoch in our liistory. But, as Carljde teaches, these silent periods in the liistory of a people are the most prolific of great things. It is a time when everj'tliing is building. Every man is attending to his own work. No great interference disturbs the welfare of all. The whole country is thriving together, and there is no jar or collision to attract attention. It is not the building up but the tearing down that constitutes the violent crashes in a people's annals. It has been rep- resented similar to a tree that grows noiselessly for a thou- sand years ; but, when the whirlwind overthrows it, it falls with a crash. Thus a nation grows and grows for ages, and if everything is prosperous, not a discord tells of exist- ence. But, when commotions or rebellions overthrow it, the fall is heard To Maeedou and Artaxerxes' throne. But, this digression is out of place in a count}^ history. However, this book is not meant to be a history of Tucker County. It is designed only as a series of annals, and is not intended to be a complete history. But, while this is the case, nothing on the subject, deemed worthy to be remem- 88 HISTORY OF TUCKEli COUNTY. bereJ, will be left viiitokl. There is little iiuiteiial, of tlie nature of Acts of the Legislature and railroad and turn- pike meetings and resolutions, from which to fill a book. Jjwt, if tliere were tons of such, tliej would l)e given very little attention b}' the writer of these pages. Tucker County lias never had an}- great movements on these subjects. All of importance that the Legislature has ever done for Tucker can be told in ten lines. The reports of road surveys, and the meetings consequent thereon, can be dismissed with still less attention. Therefore, another class of material must be had. The people of our county do not care about the proceedings of Congress and the Legislature in matters noAv forgotten, that never were of much importance and are now of none. This is, at best, a dry subject to all, except a very few, who, for some special reason, are interested therein. But Tucker Count}- possesses exhaustless stores of mat- ter that is of interest to her people. It is the biography of lier people ; an account of what the people have done. Each man has done something, or said something, or tried to do something that his friends and neighbors Avould like to know. Of course, ever}' man cannot be represented in a book of this size. Many who deserve a history must be left out, because there is not room for all. It is a hard thing to decide who shall be made the leading spirits for the hundred years after the close of the Indian wars to the present time. Before that, Capt. James Parsons and John Minear were clearly the most prominent men. But, since then, there are a few individuals around whom the history of the county seenjs to cluster. Those wlio have fought the most battles are not necessa- rily the greatest men. The laborers Avho dug out the grubs MISCELLANIES. 89 from our valleys and hills ; wlio planted our oreliards ; ^vlio bnilt our cLurclies and scliool-liouses ; who made our roads ; who improved the morals and intelligence of the country by their examples of honesty and industry ; who were ever ready to lend a helping hand to the unfortunate ; who never hung back Avhen a good cause needed friends ; who did to others as they wished others to do to them — these are our great men. Such are always great; and Tucker, though hemmed in by mountains and nearly excluded from other parts of the world, has now, and has had from the first, just such men. They are found everywhere upon her hills and in her valleys. They are not all rich in this world's goods ; but none of them are too poor to be honest. They have not all held office ; they have not all fought battles ; they have not all seen distant countries ; but they have all been upright citizens, and have done well what they have done. Tucker County likewise has had and still has men who have taken an active part in our wars, and in our times of danger, were ever in the front. The history of James Par- sons and John Minear has been given. Since their dnj there have been others none the less worthy to be remem- bered. During the civil war the struggle was intense and bitter in this count3\ The two parties, north and south, were nearly equal. The mountains and fastnesses were the rendezvous for scouts and sharpshooters. The history of the war, as it influenced this section of the county, will be given at some length further on. No sides will be taken in writing on that subject. Some of our best citizens took the side of the South, and others equally good espoused the cause of the North. The men who thus arrayed tliemselves against each other in that deadly strife, were honest and 90 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. eonscientious in what tliej tlid. They upheld and foiiglit for what they beKved to be right. "When a man risks his life for a cause, he believes that the cause is right. This must not be questioned. Some of our brave men joined the Fed- eral armies, and some the Confederate. Honor to the blue and gray. The storm is now passed be^'ond the horizon ; and, there is no occasion to recall those dark and bloody times except to show that we had men then who did not shrink from dut}'. Such men as Dr. Solomon Parsons stood lip for the Union ; and such as Dr. E. Harper cast the fortunes into the cause of Confederacy. Both, and all like them, deserve a place in our county's history, no matter whether they loved the stars and stripes or stars and bars. But, this will come in at the proper time and place. "When the Indian trouble ended, about 1781, our county had only a few people. The settlement did not extend far from the river. The people worked hard, and took few holidays. The}^ had to earn their bread hj the sweat of their brows, and no time was allowed for idleness. The heavy timber was removed from it onl}^ l)y excessive labor. The farmers Avorked in their clearings during the late fall, the winter and the early spring. When summer came they were employed in raising their crop of corn. The people generally ate corn bread. Wheat was uearl}' unknown in the early years. A portion of the autumn Avas often spent by the men in hunting deer and bear. It is difficult to give ]5articulars of individuals avIio lived in the county in the latter part of the last century and the first of this. Some are remembered ; but little more than their names come doAvn to us. James Gofif seems to have been one of the leading men in early times. He lived on Cheat River, near the Preston County line, and at one time MISCELLANIES. 91 owned tlie greater portion of tlie laud from tlie Minear claim to Rowlesburg. He Avorked incessantly on liis farms, and always liad corn to sell. His price was fifty cents a bushel ; and, no matter wliat other people sold at, he would take nothing more or less than his price. His house had no floor, except the ground. The}'' ate bread and meat at his house. This diet was uuA'aried, except when a pot of "greens" — a dish of some plant cooked — was substituted for meat ; or a kettle of corn meal mush took the place of bread. All were welcome to the hospitalities of his cabin, although a stranger might have thought the family rough in manners. They did not mean to be rude. They were open in their actions. Indeed, the eastern land agent, who stopped there over night, must have thought so. He sat by the fire talking and wondering where supper was coming from. He could see no preparations for the evening meal, except a big pot at one end of the fireplace, where Mrs. Goff sat stirring the kettle's contents. At length it was carried to the central part of the floor, and a gourd of milk was emptied into it, and a dozen wooden spoons were provided. While the hungry stranger was watching these proceed- ings, and wondering what the sequence would be, Mrs. Goff announced that supper was ready. Mr. Goff sat a moment and then dragged his stool up to the mush-pot, saying to the visitor: "Well, if you don't want any supper, you can sit there." The children were already around the kettle, scooping out the mush and milk with the large wooden spoons, and seeming to enter with gusto into the repast. Mr. and Mrs. Goft* joined the circle ; and all fell to eating with such voracity that no time was left for asking or an- swering questions. No cups or dishes were used. All ate 92 HISTOEY OF TUCKEK COUNTY. directly from tlie pot, unci tliere was no little crowding from those who feared that they might not get their full share. M The stranger got no other invitation to eat ; but, by this time, he had come to see that he would get no supper un- less he should go boldly forward, seize a spoon and take his chances with the rest. This he did. He pulled his stool forward and commenced eating. Mr. Goff crowded a little to one side, remarking with an oath: "B}^ — , I thought you'd come to it." The meal passed without further inci- dent, and the next morning the land agent fled back to Winchester with a story that no one there believed. That same year there Avas a scarcity in the country. Goff had corn, but hardly anybody else had. People came fi'om all parts to buy from him. Two young men came down from the Glades in Maryland. One had been there before ; but the other had not. The one who had been there entertained the other, while on the road, by picturing to him what a grand residence Goff's was, and admonished him not to show himself ill-bred by undue staring about the pictured walls and carpeted floors. By the time they drew near the plantation, the young man, who had believed all that his companion had told him, was looking for a splendid residence, and picturesque surroundings. Mark his surprise when he came suddenly' up to the front, and only, door of the log cabin. He was immediately ushered in at the opening. He was looking so wildly about him that he did not notice the log that formed the door-sill; and, stumbling over it, he fell headlong into the house. Instead of landing upon Brussels carpet, as he might have expected, he found himself sprawling in the dust and ashes of the earth-floor. Not till then did he realize that he had been made the siibject of a practical joke. MISCELLANIES. 93 The land wliicli Goff settled upon had previously been occupied by a man named Jorden. It is not known when Jorden left it or when Goff purchased it. But, Goff was there in 1786. He was an untiring worker; and, old men still remember how he made his boys work. In the long days of June, when daylight comes at four, he would be in the corn-field before the first 'gleam of dawn. He never called his boys to work, nor even waked them ; but, if any one was not in the field as soon as it was light enough to distinguish weeds from corn, that one got a sound thrashing. Of course, by working so hard he made money. What he made he saved. He would not spend a cent for any- thing, unless it was absolutely necessary. He kept his cash in a buck-skin sack, and buried it in one corner of the dirt floor. In the course of time, he came to be a considerable money-lender. Those who came to borrow often marked with surprise that he picked up a handspike which was used as a poker, and dug deep into the ground-floor, and turned out the foul sack, filled with silver and gold. When James Parsons had obtained deeds for his lands in the Horse Shoe, he divided them among his three sons — Isaac, Solomon and Jonathan. Isaac lived Avhere Joseph Parsons, Esq., now resides. The farm now owned by Mr. S. B. Wamsley, was given to Jonathan ; and Hon. S. E. Parsons now owns the farm that was allotted to Solomon. Thomas Parsons, brother of James Parsons, and partner with him when they first purchased their lands, divided his lands among his four sons — William, James, Isaac and George. The descendants of these, as well as those of James Parsons, still reside on these farms. Nicholas and George Parsons, still living, are the sons of Isaac, and grandsons of Thomas. The late W. R. Parsons, and An- 94 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. drew and Abraham Parsons, now of California, are sons of ■ James Parsons. Job Parsons, and Solomon Parsons were ^ sons of AVilliam Parsons. ' » The lands along the river, above St. George, have ever . since their first settlement been in the Parsons familv. This is the finest agricultural land in the county; and those who have owned it have alwa3'S belonged to the wealthy class of our citizens. Tlic}^ have held nearly half the offices in the county. They are not and never were all of one political party. They have usually been nearly equally divided. Generally speaking, James Parsons' descendants have leant toward 'the Whig and Republican parties; while those of Thomas voted the opposite ticket. At present, altogether, there are more Democrats than Republicans. Judge S. E. Parsons first voted in 1859, and cast his ballot for the Whigs. Since then he has voted with the Democrats, and has always been a strong Union man. The others of his immediate relatives have not supported the Democratic ticket ; but nearly all the others of the name, including Jo- seph, A\ ard and Jesse Parsons, are Democrats. The Bonnifield family came into notice very earl}- in the history of Tucker, though not so early as those of Parsons and Minear. The first of that name in the county was Samuel Bonnifield. He came to the Horse Shoe from Eastern Virginia sometime before the commencement of the present century. Not much is known of his ancestr}', ex- cept that they were of French extraction. The name in that countr}' Avas Bonnifant ; but, being Anglicized, it was as it now is. There are still different spellings for it. Rep- resentatives of the family spell it Bonafield, as those in Preston County. 'Others drop an "n" from it. Where Washington City now stands was the old Bonni- MISCELLANIES. 05 liekl homestead. Whether they owned the hind or not is unknown. At any rate, ihej were engaged in cultivating tobacco there ; and, tliere in 1752, Samuel Bonnifield was born. His father's name was Gregory, and his grandfather's Avas Luke."" Nothing of note occurred in Samuel's life until he was moved to ramble, and left his paternal roof. The next heard of him was in the summer of 1774. He was then in Fauquier County, Virginia. It was in that year that there broke out a trouble with the Indians, called Dunmore's War. The Indians com- menced killing people along the frontiers. The onl}- set- tlement in Tucker, that in the Horse Shoe, was broken up. The Governor of Yirginia, Lord Dunmore, decided to raise an army, march into the Indian country of Ohio, and burn all the Indian towns, so that these hives from which the savages swarmed, might l)o destroyed. Gen. Andrew Lewis and Governor Dunmore each was to raise an army and ' While searclilng: for other historical matter, at Brownsville, Ohio, In the spring of 1SS4, 1 happened upon an old legend of the Bonnifield family, a little different from that of the Tucker County family. It is certain that the Bonnitields there and those in Tucker, Preston and in the West, all belong- to the same stock, and I am inclined to credit the Ohio legend, wliich narrates the lirst coming of the Bonnitields to America. The story runneth thus : Very early in the liistory of America, probably about the close of the 17th century, three brothers named Bonnifield became desirous of leaving England for America. They belonged to the poor class, although Intelligent, and had not money to pay their passage to our shores. At that time, it was a custom among those who had no money and who wanted to emigrate to the New World, to sell them- selves or mortgage themselves to the master of some vessel. He would then bring them over, and sell his claim upon them for enough cash in hand to pay him for their passage. The emigrants were then bound In servitude to the purcliaser until their vrages amount ed to the sum paid the master of the vessel. After that they were free. The three Bonnifield brothers came to America in that manner, and were sold in Baltimore. One was carried to Virginia, one to Maryland and the third was purcliased by a speculator and was taken to Florida. Those in Maryland and Virginia each had a family, and the families are still distinguished apart, and are nearly equal In the number of representatives ; but of him who went to Florida no tidings has ever been lieard. Whether he died a victim to the fevers of that sultry land, or whether in the wars of the Spanish, French and Indians he was killed, or, whether his family is now blended with the population of Florida, is unknown. All the Bonniflelds In America, so far as is known, are the descendants of the two brothers who settled in Virginia and Maryland. Samuel Bonnifield belonged to the Maryland family, and those iu Ohio about Zanesville and Brownsville to the Virginia family. OG HISTOllY OF TUCKER COUNTY. proceed to tlie moiitli of the Great Kanawlia, -where they Avoukl unite and invade the Indian conntry. Dunmore col- lected his troops in the northern part of Virginia, Avliile Lewis enlisted his from counties further soiith. When Samuel Bonnifield reached Fauquier County, he found the most ambitious 3^oung men enlisting in Lewis' Army. Although 3'oung Bonnifield was not a citizen of Vir- ginia and had never seen war, yet he was no less ambitious and no less adventurous than the young soldiers of Virginia; and, he applied and obtained a place in the ranks as a common soldier. The army marched to Camp Union, now Lewisburg, Greenbrier County, Avhere it was joined by fift}- men, under Even Shelby, who had come all the Avay from North Caro- lina to fight in the war. General Isaac Shelb}-, the Gov- ernor of Kentiicky and Secretary of AVar, was also in the army, and with him Bonnifield formed an intimate acquaint- ance."" From Lewisburg, the arni}^ proceeded to Point Pleasant. Some went on foot, and some made canoes at the mouth of the Gauley Kiver and floated down the Ka- nawha to the Ohio. Bonnifield was among the latter. On the evening of October 9, eleven hundred men were encamped at Point Pleasant. That evening a large Indian army crossed the Ohio not far above, and lay hid in the woods, while some of the Indians gobbled like turkeys to decoy the soldiers from camp. The plan succeeded ; and, before day the next morning, some men went out to shoot the turkeys. But, instead of turkeys, they found Indians, and only one man got away. He ran back to camp and * Evan Shelby was the father of Isaac Shelhy, and was a great fighter. In General Forhes' campaign against Fort Diiquesne, he found an Indian spy sneaking around the camp, and Immediately gave chase to the rascal. Tlie Indian ran for his life, but Shelby caught and killed him. Dr a, Bonnipield. Mrs Enoch Minear Enoch Minear MISCELLANIES. 97 said that lie liad seen three Imndred thousand Indians ; but it is now thought tliat liis estimate was three hundred times too large. In a few minutes the battle commenced, and was fought hard all da}'. Bonnifield and Isaac Shelby fought side by side, and at least one Indian, who kept l)obbing his head up from behind a log, got his eternal quietus from their litles. The Indians and Avhite men fought behind trees and logs, and it was the hardest and longest contested battle ever fought with the Indians in America. But about sunset the Indians found themselves grievoush' set upon by three hundred soldiers who had crept through the weeds and got in their rear. The whole Indian army fled, yelling and screaming. Bonnifield and some others ran after them and saw them crossing the Ohio on logs and rafts. In this they were not succeeding well ; for the logs kept rolling so tliat they all fell oft' into the water and had to swim oiit. The Virginian army crossed into Ohio and hurried on to help kill the Indians and burn the towns on the Scioto where Dunmore, who had crossed the Ohio at Parkersbur^' then was. The Indians Avere so badly Avhijiped that they made peace without any more fighting. The Virginians lost one-fifth of their men in killed and wounded. The dead were buried, and the wounded were left in care of a com- pany of soldiers. Bonnifield was among those who took care of the wounded. He staid there all Mdnter; and when he was discharged in the spring, he and a companion started i home alone. They failed to kill any game, and came near I starving to death. While wandering about in Greenbrier I County, they came to a house where lived a man named I McClung, and whose descendants still live there. He gave I the famished soldiers all they Avanted, but stood by them to j keep them from eating themselves to death. 98 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. Bonnifield had scarcely reached Virginia when the lievo- Intionary War came on, and he at once joined the American ami}", and fonght through the whole war. At the battle of Germantown he was with his old comrade of Point Pleas- ant, Gen. George Matthews. He was at the battle of Bran- dywine, and was near by when Lafaj^ette was wonnded. He was at Y'^orktown, and saw General O'Hara snrrender the sword of Cornwallis. This ended his histor}' as a soldier. When the Pevolntion came to an end, in 1781, Samnel Bonnifield was twenty-nine years old. He now turned his attention to farming, having first married Dorcas James, a young lad}' of a respectable family in Virginia, and a rela- tion of the James family now in Tucker. Soon after his marriage, but in what year is unknown, he came to Cheat Hiver, and settled in the Horse Shoe. This was before the commencement of the present century. He farmed with success for some years, and while in the Horse Shoe, in 1799, his son. Dr. Arnold Bonnifield was born. About this time, tlie Horse Shoe was legally survey- ed, and it was then found that the land whereon Bonnifield resided was not his, but belonged to James Parsons. With this discover}', Bonnifield commenced looking for another farm, and found one suitable at Limestone, and moved to it. From this time on, he lived the life of a farmer, and raised a large famih', whose descendants may noAv be found in half the states of the Union. He always manifested a disposition to roam the woods and be alone ; and, in his old age, he became more and more attached to a hunter's life. He sjient a large part of the fall and winter in the woods ; and, though eight}' years of age, he thought it no hardship to sleep by his camp fire, when snow was a foot deep, and MISCELLANIES. 99 Lis clothing "was drenched from having waded creeks and runs all day. He was small in stature ; but his strength seemed exhaustless. He died at the age of ninety-tive, and was buried on Graveyard Hill, near the present residence of Dr, Bonnifield, on Horse Shoe Run. The descendants of some of his relations subsequently found their way into Tucker County ; but none are there now, all having emigrated to the West. Dr. Arnold Bonnifield, a son of Samuel Bonnifield, has always been a citizen of the county, and is now its oldest resident, with the exception of C^eorge Long, of Dry Fork. He Avas concerned in all the earl}- liistor}- of the coTinty, after he became a man, until of late j^ears. He was the first clerk of the circuit and county courts of Tucker County. But his greatest influence has not been as a politician or soldier, but as a social reformer. From his earliest years, he showed a strong desire to become a scholar ; but, during his early years, hard work and few advantages made it a hard thing for him to pursue his studies. Mathematics was his favorite science ; and he became master of all the branches of it, except the higher departments of the calcu- lus. The greater part of this was attained without the use of books ; for a rude edition of arithmetic, and a few leaves of algebra and geometry, were about all the instruction he had until his twentA'-fourth year, when he attended a few sessions of school at Clarksburg. ^ While a boy, he was accustomed to solve his problems and demonstrate his theorems on a smooth stone, using a gravel for a i:)eneil. In this manner he gained the greater part of his mathematical education. His early life was spent on his father's farm at Limestone, where lie worked 100 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. and studied uutil liis twenty-fourth yeaw After liis return from school at Clarksburg, he again devoted himself to farm work. At the age of twenty-six he married Elizabeth Mi- near, granddaughter of John Minear. Shortly'' afterwards, he moved from Limestone to his jiresent home on Horse Shoe Run. He took a course in medicine, and practiced that profession until old age forced him to retire from it. While he practiced, he stood pre-eminently above all other physicians in the county. He has been an extensive traveler, having visited the eastern and western states. He was in Missouri at an early day, and returned home on horseback, the journey from there home occupying a month of time. His influence on the destiny of the county has been exerted in a quiet way ; biit that it has been material is to be seen in the fact that none are more favorably known, and none are held in greater esteem than he. As late as 1840, there were ver}- few settlements in the county, except along the river, and in the narrow bottoms of the larger creeks. The mountains "were mostly unbroken "wildernesses. Here and there might be seen the cabin of a settler wdio was opening np a farm among the hills. About this time, or more exactl}', in the fall of 1836, the region about the head waters of Clover Run began to be settled. This is noAV Clover District. The first house, except imme- diately on the bottom land of Clover, was that built by Isaac Phillips, father of Moses Phillips, Esq. This was in 1836, when Moses Phillips was six years of age. Tlie cabin was without " door, floor or chimney," as he has expressed it. But it was the commencement of a settlement that no"W contains a fair portion of our county's people. For as soon as it became known that Phillips' cabin had been built MISCELLANIES. 101 other settlers came into tlie ueighborliood and took up lauds and went to work. Thus, by 1810, some five families, and probably thirty children, were in the neighborhood ; and the dense forests as Avell as the dens of panthers and bears, began to be broken up. It was now felt that there ought to be some provision made for educating the children of the new settlement ; for, although cut off from man}' of the conveniences of life, and destined to unceasing hard work, the pioneers of Tucker have never neglected the education of their children. Sometimes the advantages were few and far between ; but, such as they were, they were made tlie most of. The children often got no more than ten months of schooling in their lives. Moses Phillips got only nine, and that was at the new school-house, which the five families built on Clover Run in 1840. One who attended there has thus spoken of it: "It was built of round poles, chunked and daubed. The earth inside, which composed the floor, was completely leveled ofi'. A few rocks, thrown up at one end, on the inside, formed the chimney. A small hole was cut in one side, and paper was fastened over it. This was the window. The door was made of clapboards Some of the scholars went to this school barefooted with- out missing a da3\" This short quotation is inserted because it is a faithful description of the country school-houses of that day. They were rude and would be laughed at now ; but they an- swered their purpose, and have passed away only because they so enlightened the country that better buildings were demanded. Those who have aided in the settlement and progress of the Clover District, can now see that they have not labored in vain. From 1840, this region became an 102 HlSTOllY OF TUCKER COUNTY. important part of the comit}', and its histor}', and tlie biography of its people Avill be given in the succeeding chapters. Even before the settlements in the mountains west of St. George "were commenced, cabins were built in the eastern part of the county. The Dumires seem to have taken the lead in this quarter ; and, ever since, they have been in the front, in the work of building up and improving the district about the upper tributaries of Horse Shoe Eun. The family is now numerous, and exercises much influence on the county afi'airs. The name is spelled in several ways ; but all are traced to the same source. Dumire and Domire are both now used. Germany Avas the native country of this family, as well as«of the Minears. Rinehart Dumire""' spent his early years at sea. He was born in 1765. He went to China three times, and then joined a v/lialing ship and sailed for the Arctic Ocean. Such a voyage is now laborious and fraught with danger; but it was far more so then, and none but the stoutest constitutions could stand it. Dumire spent three years among the frozen islands and drifting icebergs, before he turned toward home. When he reached his countr}', after such a trip, one would suppose that he Avould not repeat the undertaking. But he again sailed for the North, and was absent three years in the dark oceans of eternal winter. A third time lie went upon his danger- ous voyage to the North, and a third time was gone three years. All in all, lie had now spent twenty-three jears on the ocean. He had coasted along the shores of Europe, Asia and Africa ; six times had lie doubled the Cape of Good • The name Rlnehart Is spelled In two ways. One as above and the other Rhlnehart. Being a proper name, the authority for Its spelling rests upon those who use It most. MISCELLANIES. 103 Hope, crossed the wide expanse of the Indian Ocean, and visited the spice ishinds of the South seas. He was yet a young man, only thirty-four years of age. This was in 1799. He resolved to eniiiijrate to America. AVith his family, he reached his destination and selected him a home on Stemple Eidge, in Tucker County. This may not have been the first cabin built in that section ; but it was surely among the first. His sous, among whom were John, Daniel, Rinehart and Frederic, soon became men, and each commenced a settlement of his own. Meanwhile, the progress of the county was going steadily forward. The paths began to be widened into road.s, and the people built better houses. The cornfielils were enlarged, were better fenced and better tilled. Schools were growing more nu- merous. Tlie teachers were paid from private subscriptions and the wages were from five to ten dollars a month. Churches were given some attention, and the people were not unlearned in good behavior and morality. Heligious services were still held in private houses or in school- houses. 'Old and young alike attended the meetings, and the good inriuence of these associations had its efiect everywhere, in training the 3-oung to refined ideas of hu- man existence. The meetings were conducted by pious men, called " class leaders," and regularly ordained minis- ters were few. But the people then were probably as good as they are now. Very earl}- in this century, Stephen Losli came to Horse Shoe Run, and settled where Rufus Maxwell now lives. A native of Germany, born in 1781, he livetl a short time in Maryland, and then moved to Tucker. He found Holbert's house deserted and in ruins. Near about were a few little fields, that Holbert had cleared. In one of these lie found 101 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. an npplo tree, aiul Iniilt liis shanty nnder its l)ranehes. The hut "svhich he erected was made of bnckej-e logs. He improved the hind around his cabin and phinted a crop of corn. Before long, he found that he was on the land of Cai)tain Parsons, and accordingly began looking about for another place. The nearest neighbor he had, lived at the mouth of Raccoon, about a mile distant, and Losh would Lave selected a site just above him ; but, a quarrel having meanwhile arisen between them, Losh thought it best to get farther from his troublesome neighbor. Accordingl}", he se- lected him a site three miles further up Horse Shoe Run ; and in a short time, Michael Hansford took up the land on Hansford Run, where Losh had thought of settling. This land has ever since been known as the Hansford Place, and the run as Hansford or Mike's Run. He had a blacksmith shop there, the remains of which may still be seen, on the farm of Arnold Bonnifieid. Stephen Losh was connected with the War of 1812, al- though he was not a regiilar soldier. He had something to do with the wagon trains ; and, in that capacity, he was in Houth Carolina, and visited Charleston. When he turned his attention to farming on Horse Shoe Run, he built a grist mill, and did a good business until his mill washed away. A))out this time occurred the "rainy summer," so called by the oldest citizens. It rained almost constantly from the first of June till late in August. Crops were drowned and chilled so that the folloAving year was one of great scarcity. Potatoes were n)ade to answer for bread. Steplien Losh died on Horse Shoe Run, in 1874, at the age of ninety- three. He left several children, notably among whom was William Losh, Sr. He is still living, and lias been a re- markable man. Fond of travel, he has gratified this pas- MISCELLANIES. 105 sioii. He has yisited the Western States several times, tlie last time after he was seventy-five years of age. He is minutely acquainted with Ohio from Lake Erie to the Ohio Eiver on the South. He first went there in 1825, in com- pany with Nicholas and Georoe Parsons. They went on foot, and explored thoroughly the country as they went. It was in the spring of the year and the young men felt that farmers ought to be at work. So, while passing through Gilmer County, when they saw a lazy young granger lying on the fence sunning himself, Avhile his plow team stood idle in the furrow, they yelled at him : " Get up there, you infernal fool, and go to work; lounge around all spring, and next winter you will trot over the country with a sack iinder your arm, hunting something to eat." The young man lit off the fence in the twinkling of an eye, and grabbing \xp a hand full of rocks, commenced pelting the strangers, and neglected not to lieap upon them various vile epithets, and called them all the ugly names lie could think of. But they jiassed on, and were presently overtaken by a man on horseback, wiio wanted to know what they had done to the young granger to put him in such a terrible rage. They related what they had seen, and what they had said to him. The man asked if they were strangers in the country, and they told him they were. "Well," said the man, "you hit it exactly. That lazy scamp won't work in the summer, and buys bread on credit in the winter." William Losh re- mained in Ohio a long time, and hauled freight from Lake Erie to the Muskingum Eiver. ' But Nicholas and George Parsons soon came back, and ever after remained where they still live. William Losh has always been a hard-working man. But, after the fall work was done, it was always his delight 106 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. I to spend a inontli or ssix Aveeks in the woods hunting. He has been, beyond a doubt, the best and most successful woodsman of Tucker County. The countiy beyond Back- bone Mountain, Canada, as it is called, has been his hunt- ing ground for years. No nook or corner of that uninhabi- ted wilderness is unknown to him ; and deer and bear innumerable have fallen before the deadly aim of his rilie. In his younger days, no man was a better marksman than he ; and, even now, though eight \'-f our years of age, very few can equal him. He has alwaj'S been a peaceable man ; but no man ever imposed upon him with impunity. If Tucker County has produced a man, that with training could have pounded Slade or Sullivan, William Losh must be the man. The peculiarities and characteristics of all his ancestors seem to have concentered in John Losh, son of William Losh, born in Ohio about 1831. He was the eldest child, and was a genius from his infancy. '^When he was a small child his parents moved to Horse Shoe Run, where William Losh, Jr., now lives. This Avas John Losh's home as long as he remained in Tucker. He spent his idle hours con- structing to3's, curious traps and automatic flj'ing machines, and wooden rats that would run across the floor, and leather bumble bees that would buzz and hum. He was of a light complexion, and had blue eyes. When he became a man, he was as miich of a rambler as his father and grandfather. His time was spent in roaming over the hills ; and Canada, be^'ond the mountains, was his domain. Very few but him and liis father had ever ven- tured into that wilderness. It is a wild country now ; but, at that time, it was unexplored, and the country along Black Fork, over one hundred square miles, Inid not the MISCELLANIES. 107 home of a liunian being on it. From the head of Bhick Fork to the Fairfax Stone was an iinl^roken forest. The timber was primeval. No ax had scarred the trees that stood so thick that their branches interlocked for miles, and some of the soil beneath had not been touched by a snn- Iteam for ages. Vast beds of laurel, in places, were so matted with the summers and storms of centuries that a hunter, who would pass that way, must walk on the tops, I where the branches, that heavy snows had bent and pressed together, formed a rough gnarly floor, several feet above the ground. Beneath the laurel, there were lairs and dens of wild beasts. Bears and panthers had broken tunnels through the thickets in all directions; and what deadly battles and mortal combats were fought there, Avhen these savage kings and tyrants of the wilderness crossed each other's paths, no human eye was there to witness. At intervals, deep down under tlie laurel, streams of water wandered through eternal shadows. But, the hunter might pass and repass that way and never know that he had crossed a stream, unless some accidental opening through the net-work on which he trode should reveal to him the flowing water. In the summer, the ground be- neath the laurel never got dry or Avarm. The country is nearly as high as the Alleghany Mountains. June comes before the ice and packed snow, that the winter has stored away in the deep crevices of the rocks, and all over the dank ground, begins to yield, in any considerable degree, to the summer sunshine. The liidden brooks and rivulets are nearly as cold as ice all summer. The ground is damp and chill. The huge, coFd rocks are constantly beaded with drops of dew. During the summer, the more open parts of the woods, where there is no laurel, become green with 108 HISTORY OF TUCKEE COUNTY. plants, and weeds ; but Tinder the laurel tliere is little differeiice bet"\veeu summer and "winter, except that in winter the snow hides the desolation and in summer it does not. The "\\inters in Canada are longer and colder than along the river. Snow lies on the ground from October till May. It is often two or three and has been six feet deep. Such snoM's bury the laurel thickets so that one cannot well dis- cern where they are. At such times, the wild beasts lie hidden under snow, laurel and all, until hunger compels them to prey upon one another or come out to kill deer and small animals. The snoAV soon packs hard enough for them to walk upon it. The deer get ver}' poor during a hard winter. There is a large kind of rabbits that live in Canada^ and no place else in the country round about. They are said to be so swift that dogs can't catch them. They can also climb a leaning tree. In early times there were wolves and elks in Canada. The country was then all covered with trees and impenetrable thickets. Not all, for, in a few pla- ces, there were open patches, called glades or meadows. These were small, and why they were not covered with tim- ber is unaccounted for, unless it be because the soil will not nourish trees, or because the glades were recently lakes, from which the water has been drained. Be this as it may, the glades are treeless ; but the grass that grows on them during the brief summer is immense in quantity. It is well suited for hay ; and, within recent years, it has been har- vested for that purpose. No well directed efforts have so far been made to cultivate the glades, or, for that matter, to cultivate any part of Canada. But it is the opinion of those best qualified to judge, that corn, wlieat and oats would not flourish there. In tlie upper Canaan Valley, farming has been tried with success, but everywhere grass does the best. MISCELLANIES. 109 The forests of Canada, except the ghxdes, were unbroken when first the white man went there. The trees stood thick, and seemed as grim and unchangeable as the very rocks among which they stood. They seemed no okler or no younger than they had always been. Trees six inches in di- ameter looked as old as the giants five and six feet. All the difference of appearance was in the size. All Canada and Canaan are essentially the same expanse of country. The whole region is a basin, the rim of which is the Alleghany and Backbone mountains. The Alleghany is on the east, and the Backbone on the west. The two mountains thus surround the whole of Canada and Canaan, except the narrow gap through Avliich Black Fork flows and makes its escape from the valley. The length of this basin, from its northern boundary to the upper end of Canaan, is about twenty miles, and its breadth five or six miles. It is evident that this whole region was once a mountain lake, with the Alleghany for its eastern and the Backbone for its western and northern shore. There was then no river flowing out of it ; for the gap which Black Fork has cut through the mountain was then not there. It must have been a beautiful lake, extending twenty miles one way and five the other. High up, among the ver}^ summits of the Alleghauies, the cool, bracing breezes of the mountains blew softl}^ along the tranquil waters ; and the waves, pure as crys- tal, washed the sandy shores for ages and ages, and no hu- man being was there to behold it. In the winter, when the winds were wild and cold, fearful storms must have swept over the lake; and then, the waves rolled upon the beach, freezing into huge drifts, and extending from the shore inward, until the whole lake was frozen over. This was thousands of ases n^o. The rains of summer 110 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. aiul the snows of Aviiiter, in tlie course of time, filled the lake to overflowing-. The water began to flow out over the lowest place in the mountain. That was at the nortli- western corner, where Black Fork breaks through Backbone Mountain. Year by year, for centuries and millenials, the channel wore deeper and deeper, and at last the water of the lake was all drained oft", and Canaan and Canada were left dry land. Then trees began to grow; and, in due time, for- ests covered the whole country, as they did when first the white man found his way into that region. This was John Losh's hunting ground. The story of his adventiires is known beyond Tucker County. Before he was fully a man, he commenced making expeditions to Canada, and seldom returned spoilless. He had two dogs almost as famous as himself. He trained them himself, and they were his companions in many a bear hunt. If they once came up with a bear, it had little show of getting away. They fought it in such a manner that they wore it down. One dog would bay it from the front while the other knal)bed it by the ham. It Avould turn to lay hold of the rear dog, Avhen the other would seize it by the other ham. Again it would wheel and give chase to the dog that bit it last. Tliis would give the first dog a chance to come up and take another nip from behind. Thus, up and down through the woods, the fight went on. The dogs would not join in ]iitelied battle with the bear; nor Avould they allow it to escape, or to climb a tree. If it attempted to climb, they would pull it down. In this manner, they ■worried it and kept it at bay till their master could come u]) and end the encounter by shooting bruin. Such a scene was common ; but it w^as varied when, as on an occasion, the bear caught one of the dogs. The other MISCELLANIES. Ill dog fleAV upon the beast and fought it, and both dogs fought, but it could not be forced to shicken its hold upon the dog, which must soon have been killed had not Losh come up at that moment. He saw the situation and would have shot the bear, but was afraid of hitting his dogs. But he would not see them killed ; so, he drew his butcher knife, and run- ning up, leaped upon the bear and stabbed it to death. That winter was very cold. The snow fell nearly con- stantly for several weeks, till it w^as six feet deep in Canada. All the rocks, logs and laurel were so entirely covered that the whole country seemed one vast, unbroken plain of snow, Avitli the bare, bhick trees rising sheer out of it. After the snow fell it packed hard enough to bear the Aveight of a man. John Losh Avas soon in Canada. He took as a compan- ion his brother-in-law, James Evans, and they roamed over the ]5lains and hills, and passed above the vast laurel thick- ets, and had a smooth floor to walk on all the while. The top of the snow was frozen into a crust, resembling ice ; and, on this the}' must walk with care, where the ground was not level, lest they should fall. But on level ground, they could skate if they liked. As they came into camp the third evening, Losh was walking in front of Evans, and they talked as they pro- ceeded till at length Evans quit talking. Losh looked back, and his companion was no where to be seen. He had sud- denly disappeared ; and Losh knew not but that he had been taken off after the manner of Elijah the Tishbite. However, he turned back to look for him, and shortly found a hole through the snow and heard Evans yelling to be helped out. He had broken through and had fallen into the cave under a laurel thicket, where the snow could not 112 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. reach the groimd by reason of the matted hiurel Iminches. Losh helped hiiii out, and they proceeded to their camp. They canght more deer than they knew what to do with, The animals, in attempting to rnn, wonld stick fast in the snow, and the men conld walk np and kill them. After they had killed as many as they wanted, they let the rest go, having first marked them by cntting their ears. Thus em- ployed, they spent several days, and were on the point of starting home when they became bewildered, and lost their way. It is a singular thing that a lost person is so entirely devoid of reason. Familiar objects are as strange to him as those are which he never saw or heard of. North of the ecpiator, a lost person goes round a circle, always bearing to the left, Avhile south of the equator it is said to be just the reverse in direction— whirlwinds north of the equator move to the left, and south of it the}' move to the right. 'Chere seems to be some common law of nature that controls both a lost man and a whirlwind. When Losh and Evans first became bewildered, they were carrying a deer Avhicli they had killed; but after they had described two or three circles they threw the deer down, and ran on without it. When night came on, their situation became worse. It was cold, and the woods were very dark. They might have built a fire had they not been lost ; but a lost man builds no fires. They ran as fast as they could all night, and Aveut round and round a circle without knowing it. When morning came they were still running, although nearl}- starved, and scarcely able to keej> on their feet. If left alone, they never could have gotten out. But the}' had already overstaid their time from home, and their families had become uneasy. A company of men from Horse Shoe Run went in search of them. ft MISCELLANIES. 113 Their tracks were found, and then the deer, and liuallj the men themselves. They were in the last stage of despair. They had eaten nothing for several days, and were badly frozen. They were walking round and round a tree, and there they would probably have died, had not the relief party come up. They were taken home, and they hunted no more in Canada that winter. But no sooner had the summer sun taken the snow off, than John Losh was again in Canada. This time he was looking more for bear than deer, for baar Avere his chief ob- jects of hunting. As he passed through the woods, he saw three cub-bears pla3'ing. They were quite small, and had not sense enough to run. He kept a sharp lookout for the old bear, and cornered the cubs between two logs and caught them. It would have been an easy matter to have killed them ; but he was like Wetzel, who dragged an Indian a hundred miles to show the ])eople in the settlement what a live, wild Indian was like. Losh preferred to carry the bear-pups home alive. So he pulled off his drawers, tied up the legs and put his three black prisoners into them. They fought some, and sometimes the}' bit him; but he slung them over his shoulder and toted them liome. He kept them about the house until they grew so large that they bit the children and were continual!}^ doing acts of violence. Then he made a stout cage and kept them in it. This cage is still to be seen in "William Losh, Jr.'s barn. The bears were kept there awhile, and, finall}" they lu'oke out and ran off; but, one was shot. This experience did not satisfy the romantic hunter. He again went to Canada and built bear-pens. Soon he cap- tured a bear, half-grown. He resolved to take it home, ten miles through the woods and over mountains. It was too 114 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. heavy and fought too much for him to carry it. He tied it by a short rope to the end of a long i^ole, and led and pushed and coaxed and drove it till he got it home. When it would get mad and try to bite him, he would hold it off •with the pole. Thus, he got it home and put it in his cage ; hut, it was so wild and incorrigible that it could not be tamed. Losh next made a new departure. He made him a com- plete snit of clothes from dressed bear skins, the fur outside. Thus dressed, he went to Baltimore. From his own ac- count he must have attracted as mucli attention as the President would have done. As an adventurer, he was fearless and rash. A consid- eration of danger never entered into his plans. That he escaped unscathed from so many and so perilous under- takings, is marvelous. Indeed, sometimes his salvation seemed miraculous, as when he Avas Avashed over a Avater- fall in the KanaAAdia, and a\ as held doAvn and AA'liirled over and over b}- the Avater that fell upon liim, and only got out by seizing the rocks in the l)ottom and clinging to them as he dragged himself from under the fall, Avhence he came to the surface just in time to save his life. This time, he had not voluntarily placed himself in the almost fatal danger; l)ut, it Avould only have been in ac- cordance Avith his nature to have done so. For, once Avlien Cheat Pviver Avas overHoAving its banks, and nearly all the bottom lands from hill to hill Avere under Avater, he Avas in the Horse Shoe and Avanted to go home. To do so he must cross the river. With a good canoe, the crossing of the river Avould have been exceedingly dangerous, and proba- bly not another man in the county, except in a case of life and death, Avould have undertaken it. But Losh was de- MISCELLANIES. 115 termined to cross. The oiil}- cauoe at hand was AVm. E. Parsons' and the owner AvoukI not let Losh have it, because, by so doing, it wonkl seem that he was only hurrying the rash man to his doom. But the want of a canoe did not serve to clianc;e Losh's determination to cross the river. He proceeded to the river, at Neville's Ford, and pulled three or four rails and slabs from a drift, and tying them together, made of them a raft on which he proposed to cross the river. It would scarcely bear his weight in still water. But, nothing daunted, he pushed his fragile craft from the shore and was instantly borne off down the foam- ing torrent of the river. A piece of board was all he had . for an oar; and with it he rowed the best he could for the opposite side of the stream. The river was some three or four hundred feet Avide exclusive of the overfloAved lands on either side. The raft was so nearly sunken that those who saw Losh could see him only from his waist upward, and could not discern that he was riding on an3^thing but water. But, all the time, he was rowing and made some progress toward the desired bank. When he reached the Turn Hole, where, at the mouth of Coburn Run, the river turns to flow northward and then westward, the current beat strong to the eastern shore ; and, taking advantage of this, he was able to come to shore. There is recorded only one instance Avherein the river has ever been crossed when so high. That was during the war, and was done in a canoe by William Harper, brother to Dr. E. Harper, to escape from a band of guerrillas that were after him. Daring as this feat of John Losh's was, he equaled it on other occasions. He was a capital swimmer and relied on his skill in many dangerous adventures. When he AVas coming up from St, George, he found that Horse Shoe Piun 110 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. Avas over its banks. This stream is more dangerous than the river. It is SAvifter, and the numerous drifts and un- dermined banks make it a formidable flood when deep. He took off his outer clothing, hid it in a waste house and plunged into the stream that ran with a velocity of more than fifteen miles an hotir. He crossed it safely, although the chances were ten to one against him. The run when so high, has been swum twice since. Once by James Hebb, in 1876, to win a bet of fifty cents. He swam it twice for good measure, and was satisfied with the money thus won. After the stormy adventures and romantic wanderings of his earlier life had spent their novelty, John Losh settled down to married life in Marion County, and was living there when the Civil War came on. He was a Union man, which was different from the majority of his relations. As a scout and a guerrilla leader, he would probably have be- come noted, had not his death ended the whole matter. He died of the small-pox at Parkersburg early in the war. His Avidow and children still live at Urbana, Ohio. Among the old residents who helped to shape the desti- nies of the count}', may be mentioned Job Parsons, Sr., Nathan, Enoch and Adam Minear, Thomas and D. C. Adams, and the Gofts and Fauslers of Black Fork. All these, and others, have lent their influence on the past and present of our county. Job Parsons was a soldier of the War of 1812, through which he served with honor. He held the office of Magistrate for many years, and was always a citizen of the county. He died in 1883 at the age of ninety-four. We shall find him prominently forward again during the Civil War, in which he sympathized with the South, and was never slow in expressing his sympathy. The Minears, during the early part of the present century. I MISCELLANIES. 117 were principally noted as leaders in internal improvements. None were more forAvard than tliey in settling up the coun- try and finding means to develop intrinsic wealth, and of bringing outside wealth to our county. A mere outline of the sub-divisions of John Minear's family will show to what extent they pushed their farming interests ; and wherever they went they were always respected citizens. David Minear, son of John Minear, died at St. George in 1834, in the seventy-ninth year of his age. He left nine children, Avho, some later and some earlier, began to emi- gi'ate to dilierent parts of West Virginia and to other states. Manassa, as alread}' narrated, created a romance in his earlier days by eloping with Lyda Holbert. His son, William, went to Ohio when a young man, and his descend- ants are still living there. David Minear's daughter Nancy married Kodham Bonnifield, a brotlier to Dr. Arnold Bon- nifield. They went to Illinois, and raised a family that has exerted and still exerts a wide influence for good. One of their sons, McKensie, is now a brilliant lawyer in Nevada ; while William, another son, is a resident of Colorado, and has held many offices of trust and honor. Allen, Gregory, Ellis and W. B. Bonnifield are other sons of Eodham Bon- nifield. Three of them made Iowa their home ; but Ellis is a farmer at Beloit, Kansas. Gregory is also a farmer. Allen is dead, but was Sheriff, and Clerk of the circuit court. W. B. Bonnifield, an educated man, possessing fine literary abilities, is connected with the First National Bank of Ottumwa, Iowa. Samuel, a seventh son, is a cattle king in the far West, and one of his sons is a lawyer and another is a judge. Nathan Minear, second son of David Minear, married the widow of Gregory Bonnifield. Their children, for the most 118 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. part, dill not go fur from 8t. Oeorge. Emily married Dr. Call, Sirena married Theodore Lipscomb and Elizabeth married S. W. Bowman, late Sherift* of Tucker County. Another, Mary, married Frank Tolbott, and lives in Iowa, while Katie married Samnel AVoodring. '^Villiam, one of David Minear's sons, lived in Harrison County, West Virginia. Adam Minear, Sr., Ijrother to David Miner, Sr., made his home on the A^alley River, in Barbour County; and, his family became connected with the "Woodfords of that county, through the marriage of a daughter of his with John Woodford. The Woodfords are well known throughout West Virginia as cattle dealers. Harvey, Isaac and Adam live in Barbour Countj', and Asa in Lewis County, of which he was recentl}^ Sheriff. Hon. Reuben Davisson, for many years Sheriff of Ta^dor County and often its representative in the Legislature, is also a de- scendant of the Minears. One of David Minear's sons was drowned in the Hock Hocking River, in Ohio. Enoch and Nelson Marsh, now of Florida, are grandsons of Sarah Minear, David Minear's daughter. Of his other children, Mary married William Miller and Elizabeth, Dr. Arnold Bonnifield. David Minear had a sister Avho married Nimrod Haddix. He took delight in jumping into the mill-pond to scare his wife, who never failed to become alarmed and to try to pull him out. But, he carried his sport too far, inasmuch as he came down head first, and striking the bottom with great violence, he broke his neck. The innnediate family of Enoch Minear, son of David Minear, might have done much for Tucker County, had they staid in it. But, they were dissatisfied, and one by one departed for the West, until David was the only one, MISCELLANIES. 119 of a family of ten, left in tlie county. He cliose the occu- pation of a merchant, and, for a few years, was the leadiui^ store-keeper of St. George. But he abandoned this busi- ness, and devoted himself wholly to farming and stock- raising. His farm is the one taken up b}^ his great grand- father, John Minear, in 1776, and lies immediately below St. George, on the north side of the river.. It is a fine, valuable and highly improved piece of property. Of Enoch jSIiuear's ten children, seven went to California. Adam C. Minear, the youngest, subsequently returned, and is now Sheriff of Tucker County. He traveled extensively through the West, and was for a long time in Idaho. John, Pool and Mary are still in Idaho, Mary having married C. W. Moore, a banker of Boise City. John's wife vras an educa- ted lad}' who had been a missionary in Japan. Pool has been in the mininc; and railroad business in California and Idaho for man 3^ 3'ears. He was once president of a Florida railroad. He is now in Idaho. Some of the members of this family shall be mentioned more at length in other parts of this book. As said, if they had staid in Tucker Count}', tliey might have exerted a very controlling influence u]30u its affairs ; for, they are men of energy ; and, wherever they have been, they have been in the front of advancement. Enoch Minear still resides in St. George and is its oldest citizen. He has been twice married. About 1816, Ambrose Lipscomb, an old soldier of the Pievolution, settled on the river, near the Preston County line. His descendants are now numerous in the county, and are all noted for great j^hysical strength. Adam Harper, father of Dr. E. Harper, came to Clover Piun, from Pemlleton Coimtj', in an early da}'. He lived to 120 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. an old age, and his family, tliongli scattered far and wide, have always possessed wonderful energy. Difficulties and obstacles liave been forced to yield before tliem in ■whatever direction they turned their hands. His sons have been great travelers. One died on the Eocky Mountains, another at Santa Barbara, California, one still lives on the Pacific Coast, and another, Dr. Harper, now lives in Tucker. Of all of them, and particular!}- of the last, fuller mention "will be made in this book. CHAPTER V. FORMATIOJs^ OF TCCKEIl COV^^TY. Tucker County, West Yirginia, was formed from Kan- dolph Count}', Marcli 6, 1856. The people had long felt the inconvenience of eroinG; so far to court, as Beverlv was then the seat of justice. From the " Biography of Abe Bonnifield """" the following is taken : Tucker County was, a few years ago, the northern end of Ran- dolph County; and Randolph was origmally a part of Harrison, and Harrison was a part of the great county of Augusta, which when first organized, included nearly all of West Virginia. It has been divided and sub-divided. County after county was struck off, till thirty or more counties have been formed out of the orig- inal territory. Randolph County was organized in 1810. It was a large county, some seventy-five miles long, and the settlements were separated by large tracts of woods, and the roads connecting them were none too good. Thus it came to pass that, for many years, the people of the northern part, now Tucker County, grew dissatisfied that they had to go so far to atteiid court, which Avas held at Beverly, then the countj'-seat. The subject of a new county, to be taken from the northern end of Randolph, was re- peatedly agitated ; but no decisive step was taken, till in the win- ter of 1854, Avheu a general meeting was called at the residence of Enoch Minear, in the old Stone House at St. Gfeorge.t A conniiittee of some fifteen or twenty persons was chosen to select a site for a court-house for the contemplated new county. The committee selected a sjiot on Enoch Minear's farm, where the court-house was afterwards built. Petitions with numerous signa- tures, praying for a new county were sent to the Legislature at *Tlie iDlography of Abe Bonnifield, from whlcli the above Is taken, lias never been published. It was written by Prof. G. B. Selby, near thirty years ago. It will prob- ably be published shortly, as preparations are making- for that purpose. t St. George was then called Westernford. 122 HISTOKY OF TUCKEE COUNTY. Kichiiioiul. In the Aviuter of 1855-6 33r. Bosworth was the Dele- j^ate from Randolph; and, in addition to his influence, the inhabi- tants of the intended new county, chose Mr. William Evvin as a Lobby Member to the Legislature. He labored with perseverence and skill, and succeeded in obtaining an Act of the Legislature for organizing the new county, with the Seat of Justice on the site selected by the committee above referred to. The court was or- ganized in the following July, but, owing to several deficiencies, it was attended with much difficulty. The new county was christ- ened Tuclcet\ and the Seat of Justice St. George. Both names are, I believe, in honor of the Clerk of the Senate of Virginia.* ***** Tucker County chose its officers in May, I80G. At this election my fathert was elected Clerk of the circuit and county courts; Daniel C. Adams was elected county commissioner,! Rufus Max- Avell, commonwealth's attorney, Jesse Parsons, sheriff, and Solo- mon Boner, county surveyor. Thus Tucker County was faii'ly set on foot; and, with becoming dignity as well as becoming mod- esty, she took her stand as one among the one hundred and fifty similar divisions of the Old Dominion. In tlie session of tlie Yirginia Legislature of 1855-1856, Major A. G. Reger was our Senator and Dr. Boswortli was our Delegate. There were some fears entertained of failure in getting an act for tlie new county, as there were at that time two other new counties pressing their claims for for- mation.;:^ Dr. Bosworth was a friend to the new county of Tucker, l)ut he was not a wire-worker and a driving man at such Avork, and remained too much silent when our county's interests Avere at stake. It Avas with a knoAvled^-e of this that William Ewin had been sent l)y our people to look after our interests ; for it Avas knoAvn tliat he Avould leave nothing undone to secure success. There Avas also another man in the Yirginia Legislature " This Is Incorrect, as to tlie county's name. t Arnold Bonnlfleld. \ Assessor. § Calhoun ami Koane. FORMATION OF THE COUNTY. 123 at that time to whom we owe miicli of our success. This man was Judge John Brannon, of Lewis County. He was then a member of the Legislature, and entered with enthu- siasm into our cause. He was a young man of rare ability and ambition, and his labors were not confined to the interests of his own county. Possessed of the soundest political views, his object was the building up of his State, and his ambition was ever to be foremost in the work of ad- vancement and improvement, no matter whether in his own county or in some other county. In the Legislature, he was respected by all, and was looked upon as a more scien- tific statesman than many of his colleagues, although they were older in years than he. His opinion had weight, because all knew that his opinion was not a mere collection of ideas. So, when the subject of the formation of a new county, now Tucker, came before the Legislature, none were more prompt to look into the merits of the case, and see that there was reason and justice in what was asked. This was enough to secure his aid; and, from that hour, he worked unceasingly, in common with Mr. Ewin, for the county. Senator Ewin, in speaking of Judge Brannon, in this con- nection, says that the bill for the new county " was success- full}^ carried through upon his motion at every stage of its progress."" Major Eeger, on account of sickness, was forced to be absent from the Legislature while the bill for the new county was before it ; but, he did all he could for us. Of him Senator Ewin speaks : It is but just to say that Major Reger, although prostrate on a sick bed at the time the bill was sent to the Senate, was a wann * See Tuvker County Pioneer, May 28, 1880. 124 HISTOEY OF TUCKEE COUNTY. friend to the bill, and expressed great regret at his forced absence. He did all he could under the circumstances, by dictating notes to a number of the most influential Senators, requesting their favor- able attention to the bill, which were kindly responded to as the sequel proved. Upon the motion of Judge Brannon tlie new count}' "was named Tucker in honor of Judge Tucker, and the county- seat St. George in honor of St. George Tucker, the Clerk, at that time, of the Virginia House of Delegates. Thus, in brief, is a history of the county of Tucker. It is now larger than it then was, having been increased in size by a strip from Barbour." * In this, as well as otlier subjects of our county's early liistory, I am indebted to William Ewin, Jacob Dumire, D. K. Dumire, Moses Phillips, E. HariDer, S. E. Parsons and others. CHAPTER VI. SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES. That system of training and developing tlie mind of tlie young, wliicli calls out tlie hidden force of tlie intellect, has not been neglected in Tucker County, although the unfavor- able circumstances under which we have been placed have tended to keep us from advancing in the most rapid man- ner. A few years ago, the influence of the public schools could hardly be felt among our mountains. The few and feeble efforts that were made were done in the purest pur- pose, and were in all things sincere ; but so few and so in- effectual were they, that they passed out upon the -wide, wild country, and when the work was done and the whole sum was placed together, the result for good was hardly to be seen. " Eome was not built in a day," as has been truthfully said. Sometimes it seems that tremendous results are ac- complished almost instantly ; but, in reality, it has required time. So it is and must be with the work of education and of the Churches. They act slowly, and ofttimes it is hard to see wherein they advance at all ; but still they go forward and do well what is done, and it is never to be done again. The giant oak that endures for centuries, grows so slowly that almost the lifetime of a man is required to notice that it has grown at all. But, it has groAvn, and its growth has been durable. No suddenness of expansion has left flaws that storms can find. Solid from centre to circumference, it stands a monument of strength and endural^ility, not to 12G HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. be overthrown by opposing force, altliougli at times to be shaken by the winds and storms. But such opposition only makes it take deeper root, and stand more firmly than ever. So, in a figurative sense, it has been with the religious and educational development of our county. Surely there lias been no sudden or abnormal greatness taken place. Passion and excitement have not done a work ; or, if they have, the work has passed away and ceased to exist, as it should do, and as it could not but do. The growth has been permanent in every particular; and, though slow enough to discourage the impatient, yet it has been sure enough to satisfy the hopeful and far-seeing. The common schools and the churches should not be classed as institutions of the same kind ; nor, can it be maintained that they stand upon the same or similar foun- dations ; yet, so intimately are they related, and so broadly does each rest upon the wideness of public enlightenment and national and social excellence that both may be con- sidered resting upon the same basis. Or, exactly the oppo- site ground in logic, but in reality the same, may be taken, and it may be held that the aforesaid wideness of public enlightenment and social excellence depend upon religion and education. Certain is it that both exist together and cannot thrive apart. At least, all efibrts to establish one without the other has, in the past, been a signal failure. Individual knowledge and even Avisdom may be gained by powerful minds, groping in the darkness of infidelity ; but the force thus acquired cannot be transmitted to others. It lives brilliantly enough while vitality lasts, but vitality is mortal and must perish. When it dies, the power dies too. It is not like the greatness of "Washington or Luther or Da- vid ov Abraham, which, upon tlie dissolution of the mortal SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES. 127 part, went out into elements beyond to live on. Nations, uneducated and grossly superstitious, cannot be what those are which are thrilled, filled and animated by that higher, nobler and purer doctrine, which we know to be good, as we know that light is beautiful. Africa and England are not the same. England is better than Africa. "We know such to be so. The mysteries of philosophy and chemistry are not more recondite than is that of the change which knowledge causes to take place in the individual man, and more so in the col- lective man or the community. It is undefinable, but is needing no definition. It acts and permeates through na- ture and characteristics until all are changed into conformity with a new order. Public education in Tucker County has never reached as high a standard as should be. Circumstances have been against it. The wild and undeveloped state of the country has been a powerful drawback; but the time is now coming when this difficult}^ will be overcome. The people are thor- oughly in sympathy with the common school system, and it must enter upon a better career than its past has been. There is, in the count}", no means of gaining a better education than may be gained in the common schools. No institutions of a higher order have been established ; and, there would not, at this time, be sufficient support for any- thing of the kind. But the time cannot be far distant when our youths, who have completed the narrow bounds of our common school education, will not be forced to go bej'oud our borders in order to proceed further with their course of studies. The higher departments of learning must ever be the channel through which the great shall reach their great- 128 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. ness ; but, the common scliools, bringinj^ education for the masses, is the broad foundation upon which rests the national power of America. A great individual is a power- ful factor in a country's greatness ; but, a Nation's solidity and power is built upon those whose common worth only has been developed. The leaders of such a people as the United States are leaders only by the consent of the gov- erned ; and, for the governed to, know whom to appoint to this position, and to rectify mistakes when made, is all that there is in national greatness. Ninety-nine per cent, of those who receive high school educations have not the mental stability to profit by it or to lend profit to others ; but, of those whose training has been in the common schools, not one per cent, fail to fulfill their calling. They do not aim at the stars. Tlie}^ seek only that which the}^ need and can find, and thus do not seek in vain, as man 3' do whose learning so exalts them that, in their infatuation, they leave the object and grasp at the shadow. The higher departments of learning are exercising a pow- erful influence upon science, but the education of the masses is building the Avorld. Aside from the Churches and their associations, there is nothing better or greater than the schools where the poor man's boy can gain that knowledge which will give him control over the hardest problems of life. The rich can command the means of acquiring this, but the poor cannot, unaided by the public. In Tucker County the improvement from year to year has l)een marked ; and now it is so that our schools, or at least, our county, is able to provide teachers at home for the schools. The custom of employing teachers from other counties is not without objection. Sometimes it is SCHOOLS AND CHUKCHES. 129 necessary to do so, when the home supply falls short of the demand. But it is best to have the schools of the county conducted by those who take a deeper interest in them than merely to get the salary. A teacher who comes from an- other county is usually one that is unable to get employment at home, and is, consequently, unfit for employment abroad. Of course, there are exceptions, and many exceptions ; but still it is generally tlie case that a teacher Avorth anything, settles down to work where he is known. If a county is much overrun by outside teachers, it is a sign that it either has not home. talent sufficient to conduct its own schools, or that it pays a higher salary than its neighbors and that the teachers are gathered in to share in the advanced prosperity. From the rude log huts, wherein the people one hundred years ago congregated to worship, we have advanced stead- ily until our churches present a favorable contrast with the rest of our improvements. They are sufficient for the ac- commodation of all who come together to worship. The religious doctrine of the mass of oiir people has undergone no material change in the last one hundred years. The creed of the Methodist Church is the prevailing one here. The Presbyterians, Dunkards, Baptists, Lutherans, Catho- lics and Campbellites have a few representatives. The Methodists are pretty evenly divided into three classes. North and South and Protestant Methodists. The Presby- terians are of the Southern branch of that Church. The Dunkards are identical with the German Baptists. Their members are tolerably numerous, but they have no church in the county. They preach in the hoiises of other denom- inations. Neither have the Baptists, Lutherans, Camp- bellites or Catholics any church. There are, at this time, only two Catholics in the county. 9 CHAPTER VIL IIOUyTAIXS A^^D CATES. The mountains of Tncker possess an interest for the people of Tucker, although nothing special to the people of the outside world. On our south-eastern border the great comb of the Appalachian range extends like a barrier. This, the Alleghany ridge, is the highest mountain in our county, and the highest point is eastward from the upper end of the Canaan Yalley, about the meeting of the drain- age of New Creek and Red Creek. The rain that falls on the summits of these ridges finds its way to the ocean, either the Atlantic, through the Potomac, or the Gulf of Mexico, through the Mississippi and its tributaries. The Backbone is a spur of the AUeghanies, and is nearly as high. It diverges from the AUeghanies at Fairfax and trends to the north and west of Canaan. This mountain is almost as rough as the main Alleghany. No farming of much importance is done on it. The rest of the mountains are broken up, and extend in any and every direction without system. Shafer's Mountain, Green Mountain and others have some regularity in exten- sion ; and on the west Laurel Hill extends unbroken. It divides the waters of Cheat Elver from those of the East Fork. No streams break through it, as through the Back- bone. It is not so high as the Alleghany or the Backbone Mountain. Among the mountains of Tucker, the most interesting is Limestone, standing a solitary remnant of an earlier geolog- MOUNTAINS AND CAVES. 131 ical age, when the flowing waters had not carried away the high plains that then extended, rugged no doubt, from the top of Limestone to the Backbone. Ages, centuries and millennials of storms and floods have, wrought their work of ruin, and the torrents of winter, together with the cleaving frosts and the dashing rains, have carried away the moun- tains, and the high plain exists only in its north and south edges — the Backbone and Limestone. All the intervening plateau has been washed away, and probably now goes to make up the plains of Mississippi and Louisiana, whither the rivers have carried the debris. The following is condensed from the Clarl'slnirg Jtegister, where it was piiblished some thirty years ago : lilMESTONE MOUNTAIN.* This mountain is an isolated hill, rising abrupt!}' f roni the western bank of Cheat River, in Tucker County, and extends in a course nearly north and soutli. The length of the mountain at its base is about three miles, that of its summit less than. two. Its width at its base is something more than two miles, at its top from one- fourth to three fourths of a mile. Its greatest height is about two thousand seven hundred feet above the river.t It receives its name from the abundance of blue limestone that protrudes from the surface of the ground. The western declivity is exceedingly steep and rough, abounding in rocks as large as houses, while the eastern slope is gentle and gradual, and, for the most part, is covered with beautiful gi-azing farms. The grass of the mountain is of a superior qu-ality, and is not surpassed by any in the country. The soil around the slope, and even to the summit, is exceedingly fertile, and produces vegetation in the greatest luxurience ; and, every part that has not been Cleared abounds in forests of excellent timber. The different kinds of oak, ash, chestnut, black and white walnut, sugar, white uiaj^le and hickory abound in almost every part. Nearly the whole *It Is supposed tliat this article was written by Professor Seiby, a school teacher who lived at Limestone many years ago. tThis is an overestlmation. 132 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. iiiountain, together with a large tract on the eastern side, is owned by Wilhani Ewin, Esq., an intelUgent, wealthy and enterprising gentleman living in Tucker County, who is now converting the whole into an extensive grazing farm.* A considerable number of cattle and sheep have for several years been kept on it. When the whole is put under improvement, a more beautiful prospect of rural scenery will probably nowhere exist. The summit of the mountain extends in a direct line, except that it falls about two himdred feet not far from the northern end, form- ing a most romantic plateau of level land. Then rising again, it continues one unbroken course to its southern extremity. At the northern end there are several high and rocky peaks that overlook the surrounding country to a vast extent. The prospect from these points, especially in the summer season, is grand and beau- tiful in the extreme. The spectator appears to be elevated in the blue firmament, far above the tops of ten thousand beautiful hills, that seem to roll in undulations as far as the eye can reach ; while the meandering river shimmers with its bright waters far down below. On this prospect the eye dwells with a rapture that must be enjoyed and wondered at before it can be understood. Then passing southward along the brow of the mountain, you soon descend to the table land, above alluded to. This delightful tract of level land on the top of the mountain would at once arrest the attention of the observer. The soil is a darkish loam, in some places mingled with gravel, well adapted to the production of grain. It is shaded with groves of chestnut, hickory and sugar maple, and covers ahnost seventy acres. Leaving this, in a southern course, you climb a steep ascent, which leads to the principal summit of the mountain. As you pass along this part of the mountain you will observe trees deeply scathed by lightning, affording unmistakable proof that the god of thunder has rolled his flery car over the mountain. From this ridge, far on the left, beyond a thousand rolling hills, you behold the principal ridge of the AUeghanies looming up as if to gaze on the surrounding world. The eye may trace the course of this ridge, broken by deep chasms and rounding summits, near ' Senator Ewln still owns tills land, as lie clld thirty years ago. MOUNTAINS AND CAVES. 133 one hundred miles.* Toward the extremity of the vision the mountains appear as if rolling in the distant waves of the blue ether, and farther off they entirely disappear. Sometimes, of course, from this elevation may be seen the black clouds of storms hovering over the distant mountains. The loud rumbling of thun- der may be heard, and the vivid flashes of lightning, darting from cloud to cloud, may be seen. On such an occasion, the view is awfully sublime. What a scene for contemplation ! The mind of the spectator, oppressed with a load of insupportable glory, invol- untarily falls back upon its own insignificance and shrinks into nothingness before the astounding display of Almighty Power, Approaching the southern part of the mountain and turning some distance to the right, there is a beautiful plateau of level land, perhaps one hundred acres or more. Here Nature appears to have reveled in the gratification of her own fancy, and formed a little detached world, purely her own. The soil exhibits great fertility, and is shaded by delightful groves of sugar, thinly mingled with hickory and black walnut. Here are excellent springs of pure water, gurgling from the rocks, and rolling over beds of white gravel, or flowing beneath the shade of giant rocks which overhang the course. Here are detached masses of rounded, gray rocks, peering above the surface, and looking, from a distance, like enormous elephants sleeping in the green shade. About half mile from this place, in a south-western course, is a large pile of huge rocks that entirely cover the surface of the earth for a number of acres. This rocky pile exhibits all the wildness that the imagination could desire. It is bounded on the south by a stupendous pile of massive bowlders, some of which are as large as temples, a nd form frightful precipices. This pile of enormous rocks forms the south-western bend of the mountain, and to a contemplative eye is equal in interest to any other part. A scene of greater wildness, grandeur and sublimity is not easily found. Here is everything to arouse the deep feelings of the soul and drive it to profound meditation. The spectator, seated upon these enormous rocks, while the rays of the burning sun are reflected from their flinty sides, in mind involuntarily runs * This, again, 13 an overestlmatlon. The day must be exceedingly clear, In Tucker County, 1£ a mountain can be seen forty miles. 134 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. into a channel of serious andnielanelioly conteniplationt*, while far around, the glory of Nature's works crowd themselves upon the astonished vision. These huge, eternal rocks, covered with moss, and grown gray with the flood of years, still repose in silence. Though the stormy winds of heaven have battled against them for thousands and thousands of years, yet they sleep on. Torna- does have rushed with ruin round, hut these everlasting hills of nature, secure in their own immutable strength, regarded theiu not. Seasons have rolled and time has fled, but they remain lui- moved, and seem to mock at the perishing glory of the world. Monarchies have shaken the earth with the footsteps of their power, and deluged it with blood, and, sunk away in their own M'eekness and expired. Nations have arisen to greatness and glory and then relapsed into eternal silence. But, these mighty monuments of power, as if conscious of their own iunnutability, regarded not the changing world around them. But, though they sleep in silence, yet they are not ineloquent. Though they speak not audibly, yet they have a language that cannot be misunder- stood. Their own eternal silence is eloquent, and their everlasting stillness i)roclaims the truth. They carry the observer far back throiigh tlie dim vista of time to the period when they were thrown from the hands of their Creator. They speak eloquently of all the changes of succeeding ages since the beginning when God ci'eated the heavens and the earth. They remind us of the mighty cities and nations of the earth, once full of the schemes of hinnan life, now sunk to rise no more. They speak mockingly of kings and conquerors, long since forgotten in the silence of the tomb. With speechless language they seem to say: "Where now are the mighty pei'sonages that once figured upon the stage of life, and in-oduced such wonderful commotions in the world ? Whose hand grasped the sword of power, and the nations trembled before them ? Every tongue Avas eloquent in their praise, and every hand ministered unto them. Yet they are gone with the swift revolving years, and their places are filled by others perishable, or vacant forever. Time has spread his dark pavilion over them. Their monuments are broken down and their very tombs have decayed. Where now is all the greatness, the pride and the glory of by-gone generations? They once lived, they flourished, and the pleasures MOUNTAINS AND CAVES. 135 of life were sweet to them. But, all is fjoue ! Death has seized upon them, and their greatness has vanished aw'ay, their pride has fallen, and their glory has departed forever." So speak the dead rocks, dead but eternal in their works, and while they are eloquent in their allusions to the faded glories of the pasr, they also deliver us a solenni lecture on the shortness of our own earthly existence. They remind us that, in a few more days, the sun that shines so brightly upon the graves of past gen- erations, will shine with equal brightness upon ours. They ad- monish us that, in a few more years, the present generations, Avith all their boasted wisdom, will sink into the silence of the tomb; and, wath all who have gone before them, they, too, will be foi*- gotton. And with the same noiseless, solenni eloquence we are re- minded of the time when the ''ancient of days shall appear, whose throne is like the fiery flame and his wheels are burning fire." "When the heavens shall pass awa.y with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat." "AVhen the earth and all the w^orks that are therein shall be burned up." They seem to say: "Proud man, thy tabernacle is built of clay I thy body is flesh; therefore, thou shalt not endure. Thy days on earth are a hand's breadth, and thy life but a span. Though the fondness of life be great, and the love of pleasure deeply fixed in thy soul, yet thy stay on earth is transient as the morning cloud, evanescent as the early dew that continueth not." They, likewise, point to the time wdien they themselves, after they have stood in the majesty of their strength for thousands of years, shall be dissolved by tlie burning flame, and into smoke shall they vanish away. Scores of mountains of Tucker liave names given tliem l>y local occurrences, or in way of distinction. Among these are Old Andra, named, it is said, from a man of tliat name wlio used to follow Avagoning along the road that passes over it. One very cold night, while traveling the road, he missed some article from his load, and went back to hunt it, leaving his son, a small boy, in the wagon. He had fur- ther to go than he anticipated, and upon his return, found his boy frozen to death. The circumstance was applied in 136 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. clesigiiatiiig the place, and finally the mountain came to be known as Old Andra, a name ever since retained by it. The mountain is about seven miles from St. George, on the road to Aurora. Sims' Ktioh was named from Bernard Sims, who used to live at its base, and who was killed by the Indians. lAps- coml>i< Ikhhje receives its name from the Lipscomb famil}', who settled there in an early day. Closs Mountain was named from David Closs, a Scotchman who bought the mountain many years ago, and still lives there. Shafer's Mountain was named from Shafer's Fork, and Green Moun- tain from its verdure in summer. Pifer Mo^intain was named from Andrew Pifer. Hog Bad', on the waters of Horse Shoe Run, is so named from its resemblance to a hog's back. Location lihlfje is so called because the loca- tion for a turnpike is there. Miller Hill, four miles below St. George, on the road to Rowlesburg, is named from Wil- liam Miller. If the subterranean wonders of Tucker County were bet- ter known, it would rank among the first counties of the state in that respect. No caves as extensive as Mammoth, of Kentucky, or Luray, of Virginia, have been discovered. But there are natural wonders of this kind, some exjilored and others almost unknown. They are found in the lime- stone formation. Falling Sj)ri/ig. — On the Dry Fork road, some fifteen miles from St. George, is a natural curiosity, called Falling Spring. Just above the road, where a little mountain stream falls over a cataract, is an opening in the limestone rock, in an oblong shape, about thirty feet deep, into which the water falls as spray. There is no account that the pit has ever been descended into. Viewing it from the top, it looks MOUNTAINS AND CAVES. 137 as though from its bottom a cave may extend back into the mountain. Probably it will some time be explored, and then its true nature and extent can be known. JonliiHis Cave. — On the other side of the river, almost opposite Falling Spring, is a large cavern called Jordan's Cave. "We quote the following from the Biography of Abe IBonnifield : On the west side of Dry Fork there is a cave, frequently called Jordan's Cave. This name is given on account of an ignorant fellow of that nauae who discovered it, and who pretended to have remained there a considerable time and to have made many dis- coveries in it. He wrote a book descriptive of it,* and claimed to make known to the world many wonderful things. Jordan's book is as destitute of elegance and correct composition as the narrative which it contains is of truth. It would be but justice to his pam- phlet to say that for falsehood, nonsense and absurdity it has few equals and no superiors. Reports say that Jordan has since gone crazy Mr. Penn, who was with Jordan, says that the cave is, indeed, a wonderful place, and thinks that they must have traveled several miles under ground. t He says that there appeared to be many different apartments. Probably there is room here for much further research, which would richly repay the geological visitor for his pains. The more recent explorations of Jordan's cave have more and more confirmed Jordan's account of it, as it is remem- bered by those who have read his book. The cave is a suc- cession of halls and rooms, one beyond the other, through all of which flows a stream of clear, cold water. Blowing Cave, at the head of Elk Creek, is more of a cu- riosity than Jordan's Cave is, although not so extensive. It is called Blowing Cave, because in warm weather a strong * Tills book cannot now be found. t The cave has since been explored by Rufus Maxwell, Dr. William Ewln, David and A. T. Bonnlfleld, and they found it less than half a mile In extent. 138 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. current of cold air flows from it, and is sufficiently cool to chill one wlio remains in it a few minutes. This cave has been explored to the distance of nine hundred feet, and is, also, a succession of chambers and rooms, some of which are fantastic and beautiful. There are numerous other caves and caverns in the county, some of which have been only partly explored. On Limestone Mountain there is a cave said to be very exten- sive. CHAPTER VIII. B LUMBER INTERESTS OF TUCKER COUNTY. Nature bestowed upon Tucker County a splendid growth of timber. When the okl pioneers first visited the bottom lands along the river, they found there the most gigantic oaks, hickories, walnuts and other timbers. No woodsman's ax had ever broken in on the solemn reign of these primeval kings. Perhaps, near some beautiful spring, or oh the shaded bank of some mountain stream, the roaming Indian had paused long enough in his pursuit of game to hack, with his flinty hatchet, a few trees, or he may have stripped them of their bark, with which to erect him a shelter against the rains of the verdant summer or the snows that come in the winter time. Or, some savage, in the desire of his heart to lift himself out of the dark deptlis of wildness and bru- tality, may have cleared away, with hatchet and fire, the trees and rubbish from some fertile acre, and there built for himself a better wigwam than that of his more savage neighbor ; and, on the little plantation of his own clearing, there may have grown by his rude cultivation a few square rods of grain or vegetables. But such an Indian, if he ex- isted, had more than mere forest or sultry summers or icy winters against which to contend in his struggle to grow better and to foster the germ of civil^ation which he felt rising in his soul. Nature and nature's obstacles were hard enough to be removed or triumphed over, and the inani- mate enemies to his advancement, that were all about him, were enemies enough ; but, they were not the worst. His 140 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. own people, the tribes of his fellow-beings, would not rise to a higher grade of existence, and they would not suffer him to rise. The little field that he had cleared and tilled until it was yielding him a sustenance, was the object of his kindred's hatred. They raided upon it, and carried away or destroyed what was growing, and the owner, in his dis- couragement and anger, flung down his wooden hoe and his flinty hatchet, and declared that he would no more labor where no profits would ever be gained. Thus, the little plantation was abandoned to its original wilderness, and soon the brambles covered it. The brambles grcAV into trees, and again the land was an imbroken forest, and thus it was when the white man's foot first pressed the soil. There seems to have been as much timber in Tucker when first visited by whites, as there ever was afterwards. The amount that the trees grew in one hundred years, making large trees of small ones, was counteracted by the number of large ones that died and fell down in that time, so that the amount of marketable timber in the county did not in- crease, and probably never would have increased, had it remained untouched by man forever. It is maintained by some that at a period not very remote, the region west of the Alleghanies, and among them, was treeless, as the west- ern prairies are. Such may have been the case, but there is nothing in Tucker to warrant such a conclusion. As far back as any account is had, the trees were as large and stood as thick as they do in the unmolested forests of to-day. Our history extends back only about one hundred and twenty years ; and in that time nothing has transj^ired to lead one to sup]DOse that the general condition of our for- ests are undergoing a change. The age of some of our trees, as indicated by their an- LUMBER INTERESTS. 141 nual rings, show that they were here before Cohimbus saw San Salvador. The size of a tree is little by which to judge its age. A sycamore one foot in diameter may be less than ten years old ; while another tree of the same kind and size may be one hundred. It depends ui)on where they stand, whether in a place suitable for growing or not. A pine tree on the Fork Ridge of Pine Run was thirty-nine inches in diameter and one hundred and nineteen years old. An oak tree three inches larger, cut by George Sypolt on Holbert Run, was five hundred and six years old. A sycamore that formerly stood on John H. Swisher's farm, on Horse Shoe Run, was over six feet across the hollow within. Of course, its age could not be known, but hollow trees are of slow growth. A hollow sycamore in the Horse Shoe was said to have been ten feet across the hollow ; but, its exact size is not agreed upon by those who have seen it. A red oak that formerly stood on Horse Shoe Run below Bon- nifield's, was sawed down. It was solid and over five feet across. Its annual rings were so thin that they could not be counted. There were, however, hundreds of them, and the tree must have been among the oldest in the county. It was many years after the first settlements of the county before its timber had any marketable value. There was no place where it could be sold, and it was counted as so much rubbish — worse than nothing where the ground must be cleared. The first settlers along the river were almost dis- couraged when they contemplated the time and labor that would be required to remove the gigantic oaks that stood thick all over the bottom lands. Some few of them were made into rails ; but, further than this, they could be put to no use ; and it became neccessary to destroy them with ax and fire. The work required years and jxars, and was 142 HISTOEY OF TUCKEE COUNTY. | completed witliin the memory of those still living. The amount of timber thus destroyed must have been immense, as we can judge by taking into account the extent of terri- tory so timbered, and the number and size of the trees. But, it was all destroyed before timber here had any value. But, gradually, as the country began to develop, rude saw-mills were built, and a few plank houses took the place of the primitive log cabins. This was the first use, aside from rail fences, to which lumber was put in this county. The demand was small, and the manufactories were few. The first call for lumber to go out of the county was that to build the bridge across Cheat, where the North-western Pike crosses, five miles above Rowlesburg. A large part of this lumber was sawed by Arnold Bonnifield, and after being hauled to the river, was built into rude rafts, and driven with the current to its destination. The kinds of timber found in Tucker, having a marketa- ble value, are several : pine, including several kinds, white, yellow, pitch, spruce and hemlock. The spruce and hem- lock are often confounded with each other, and what one calls spruce another calls hemlock. Properly, the hemlock does not really grow* here ; but a species much like it is found along deep hollows, and is noticeable for its small leaves, from one-fourth to three-fourth of an inch long, and the sixteenth of an inch wide, and for tlie S3'mmetrical form of the tree, which grows iir the form of a huge cone, taper- ing regularly from the first limbs to the top of the tree. The knots of this tree are very hard, brittle as glass, and will break an ax that is not tempered in the best manner. The wood has firmness and strength, but is not susceptible of a neat finish. It is less valuable than white pine. The LUMBER INTERESTS. 143 grain of its wood is coarse, and breaks in a zigzag manner. White pine, all in all, represents and lias represented the greater portion of Tucker County's wealth of timber. It is not a fine wood ; but, is durable, neat and substantial. It is soft, thus being easy to work, and light, making it con- venient for hauling. It will receive a finish better than hemlock, and next to that of poplar. It is the tallest tim- ber in the Alleghany Mountains. Spruce pine, formerly called hemlock, grows on the sum- mits of our highest mountains, and has never yet been put in market to any considerable extent. Its greatest abund- ance is on and beyond the Backbone Mountain, in the Canada couutr}'. Its lowest limit of natural growth is not less than fifteen hundred feet above the sea, although a few trees may be found any altitude. The bark of the tree is smoother than white pine, and the trunks are very round and regular. The wood is harder than that of white pine. In value next after white pine is that of poplar. It grov/s in any locality and in any soil ; although it flourishes best in rich laud and toward a northern exposure. The trees are tall, aud generally carry a size nearly uniform from the ground to the limbs, which are usually crooked and clumsy, and the first ones are about two-thirds of the distance from the ground to the top of the tree ; and from that to the top the}' are scattered at hap-hazzards. The wood is of a yellow color, and is used in cheap furniture, and for building pur- poses. But, it is not suitable for either, when sawed into thin boards, because it curls and warps when it becomes dry. It can be dressed smoother than any pine, and pre- sents a harder surface, and is freer from knots. Cherr}' and walnut are the two kinds of wood best suited to furniture and highly finished carpenter work. They are 144 HISTOEY OF TUCKEK COUNTY. next to mahogany for this purpose. Wahiut is the prefer- able of the two, because it warps less than cherry ; but cherry is much used, and when properly worked and handled is excellent for tables, stands, and the finishing of doors, windows and rooms. The tendency of cherry to warp is partly compensated for in its harder quality and tough grain. But walnut is the better in all cabinet work that is meant for climates that change. No cherry should ever be used in organs, bureaus or geared machinery. The supply of either of these timbers in Tucker is limited. Walnut is found thinly scattered over the whole country, and there is no particular place where it is- not found ; and the same is partly true of cherry ; but, in Canaan, it is found most abundantly. We have in Tucker two kinds of maple. One we call sugar, and the other maple. They are, quite different. The latter is often called silver maple. Both are hard wood, and make good wood-work of machinery. The maple is used for furniture, and is really nicer than either walnut or cherry, when properly dressed and varnished. Its wood is waved in the most beautiful manner, and surpasses the finest imitations that art can make. Knots, that in other woods are blemishes, are in maple desirable, because they produce the finest curves and undulations, that seem to ex- tend like waves over water, further and further until lost by the gradual blending into the general surface of the wood. Often the curves meet, coming from two knots, and, instead of crossing each other, as they do on water, they seem to check each other, and pile up, one on another, as though trying to pass, but unable to do so. Curved lines and curved motions are the most pleasing to the human eye ; and in nature almost everything is LUMBER INTERESTS. 145 found to be in accordance with this principle. Water moves in curves, trees grow in curves, sound and light and heat, wdtli few modifications, move in curves, and in the atoms about us, we have reason to believe th;it all motion is in other than straight lines, Avliile we know that the planets move about a center. This truth of nature, that l)ea\ity of form is due to the uniform variation of lines, is seen to perfection in the for- mation of the wood of the maple. An industrj^ of Tucker County, not of much financial value, but still of value to the people, is the making of sugar from the maple and sugar trees. All trees of this kind, in the north, are called maple; but here there is a local dif- ference. Tlie siigar is understood to be one thing and the maple another ; and the difference is as clearl}' defined as it is between an_y kinds of wood. Sugar is made alike from both. In February, March and April the trees are "tapped," as it is called, and the water that flows from them, after Ijeing retained in a trough set for the purpose, is boiled in kettles, and thus the sugar is made. The water from the maple tree is scarcely sweet to the taste ; but that from the sugar tree is quite sweet. Strange as it ma}" seem, the wa- ter from the maple tree will pan out nearly as much sugar as that from the sugar tree. There is a slight difference in the taste of the sugar ; and that made from the maple is In'owner than that from the sugar tree. The sugar season lasts from the middle of February to the middle of April. P' Ash, hickory and locust are the three hardest woods in common use. Ash is the most like iron in durability and strength. It is unyielding, and in the frame-work of ma- chinery it is not surpassed. Hickory is tougher than ash, and will bend into all shapes before it will break. Its most 10 14() HISTOEY OF TUCKEK COUNTY. uyual use is for handles. Locust is not often employed in ■vvood-work. It is very luird, but its liardness is not its best quality. As posts for fences it lasts longer than any other ■wood. Posts of it haye been knoAvn to last nearl}' three- fourths of a century. On Horse Shoe Eun, near its mouth, is a locust post that is believed to have been planted about 1817. It is still sound. It was ])lanted top doAvn, and has ever since been used as a bar-post. When exposed to the alternate action of dry and damp, timber decays much sooner than when kept wet or kept dry all the time. Timbers under the water, away from the air, will last inrluitely loiui;er than when the air can act upon them, and the vrater, too, at the same time. The old mill- dam timbers at tSt. George are good illustrations of this. They were put in near 1776, and a few years later were covered several feet deep with gravel, and there they re- mained until 1875, when the gravel was Avashed ofi", and the timbers were left exposed to vicAv. They Avere sound, and are still, sound, although for nine years they have been ex- posed to both Avater and air. They are of oak Avood, and still plaiidy shoAv the marks of the ax. They are in the ford of Mill Eun, on Main street, St. George. When entireh- in the dry, Avood Avill last also a long time. The interior timbers of houses seem to undero;o no change so long as they are kept entirely dry. In a cave of Grant CountA', West Virginia, is a cedar lou; that Avas carried there about 1751, and Avas used as steps (notches having been cut iri it) for getting doAvn over a precipice, Avhen the settlers fled there to escape from the Indians. The log is still sound ; and Avhere the notches Avere cut, the marks of the ax, and eA-en the paths made by dull places in the ax, are as plunly siH'u as when the log Avas placed there. The log is LUMBEK INTEEESTS. 147 cedar, of which wood Tucker County lias a very limited supply. The mountains facing the river are covered with oak timber. This has been much used for rails, in past years, and is still used to a considerable extent. Oak in the market, com- mands a good price, and is now rafted down the river in large quantities ; but there are drawbacks in the way of getting it to market. It is very heavy to haul, and, when rafted, floats so deep that it is difficult and expensive to get it to the railroad. Green red-oak will not float at all. Some years ago Mr. N. M. Parsons cut a lot of rail timber, and hauled it to the bank of the river, designing to float it down to a suitable place for splitting it. It was placed on skid- ways, sloping to the water, and when all was ready, the prop that held the first log was knocked out and the whole skidfuU of logs went rolling into the river, sank instantly to the bottom, and has not been seen from that day to this. Sycamore is also heavier than water, and will sink. It is a worthless, or almost worthless wood. It is coarse and spongy, and from this county very little of it has ever gone to market. It is twisted and will not split, and when sawed can be used for such few purposes that it is an undeveloped article in our woods. It grows almost exclusively along the river and the larger streams flowing into it, and is seldom found on lands of any altitude. One tree grows on the head of Hansford Run, at the old Gower Farm, and this is probably the most elevated tree of the kind in the coimty. On the islands in the river, and in the damp bottoms on both sides, the sj'camore flourishes to perfection. AVheu young, the tree grows tall, stately and beautiful. Its slender trunk is as straight as a beam of light, and as graceful as the fabled trees in the mythical forests of old. The color 148 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. of the bark changes with the seasons. At one time it is dark brown, at another tinged toward red, then gray, then spotted white and black and then white as snow. This is due to the fact that the tree sheds its bark. One thing might be noticed : Sycamore trees that grow tall and regular never get very large. The enormous trunks that have been seen, are ugly, crooked, twisted and seem to have been dwarfed in their younger years. They are, also, nearly always hollow, when above medium size. As the outside grows, the heart decays, and the larger the tree the thinner the shell of wood, until the gigantic sycamores are, upon examination, found to be mere shells. The seeds of the sycamore are contained in a light, yel- lowish ball, resembling cotton in texture and silk in color. The seeds attach themselves to this substance, and are blown by the wind about over the country. The seeds of the maple and sugar have a wing Avitli which they fly through the air, whirling round and so fast that they look like wheels. Pine seeds are in the cones, and fall verti- cally to the ground, as do the acrons of oaks and the nuts of the hickory. The beech timber of the county has never been much sought after. It is of value only for a few purposes, such as shoe lasts, toys and whimwhams. It grows in all parts of the county, but best in Canada. There are numerous kinds of semi-wortliless timbers in the county, such as birch, of which there are two kinds, black and white, and lynn, buckeye, elm, chestnut and laurel. Chestnut is of much use in making rails, and of some use for lumber. The largest amount of our timber that has been taken out, has gone to market m the log ; but, much of it has been LUMBER INTEEESTS. 149 sawed and shipped as plank. The improvement in mills has been gradual and steady. The first ones were hardly worth the name. Tliey were unscientific, would not do good work and would cut only a few hundred feet a day. They were run by water-power, and, of course, had vertical saws, fastened to immense sashes, to lift which required nearly enough force to do all the work of sawing, if rightly applied. The wheels were onl}- "flutter-wheels," which wasted more power than they transmitted. But, these old mills answered the purpose for which they were built, and were displaced as soon as the occasion demanded better works. They often would not make eighty strokes a minute. The sashes, much improved, are still found in the county. They are well constructed, and average one hundred and twenty strokes a minute, and do considerable work. One man may saw and stack one thousand feet a day, which is not far behind the per man average of larger mills, although much less than that of some. Dr. Bonnifield's was an im- provement on any mill in the country at the time it was built, but it was not what it should have been. ' It had three times more power than it put to a good use ; and its sash was enormously heav3^ It did good work, and during the thirty or forty years of its existence, it cut thousands of feet of lumber. Some of it was sent down the river to build the North-western Turnpike bridge, and some went other places. One hundred thousand feet was washed oft' in a freshet. It quit work about 1865. N. M. and George M. Parsons had a mill of the same kind that did a large amount of work, and sent a considerable amount of lumber down the river in rafts. Mills of this kind soon became numerous all over the county, wherever there was water power to run them. 150 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. Tlie first mill -without a sash, a "muley mill" as it was called, was built by Rufus Maxwell about 18G5. It was an improvement upon the sash mills. The saw made over three hundred strokes a minute. When steam mills were introduced into the county, the lumber business underwent a revolution. Or, rather, it suddenly sprang into life. A steam mill was erected on Black Fork, and was run by a compan}'', but it did not prosper. Taylor's mill on Shafer's Fork did good work. Howe's mill, and Steringer's, and one in Canaan, all sawed large bills of lumber. The mill brought to the county by C. R. Macomber has surpassed any of the others in the quantity of sawing done. It was brought to the county about 1874, and was set at the mouth of Wolf Run. It remained there several years and was moved to the farm of Silas R. Blackman, and Avas kept there until 1880 when it was moved to Hansford Run, and remained there four years. This lumber, and all the lumber of Tucker that ever found its way to market, passed down Cheat River, mostly in rafts. Cheat, although a small stream in comparison with others, is a noted river, and it has a history worth knowing, if it all could only be known. But much of it never can, except in part. Upon its banks and in its waters have been enacted scenes of peace and war, and its waters have flowed red with the blood of battles. Its shores have been shaded by the groves and orchards, and there tlie wild Indian has made his home. The source of Cheat River is not in Tucker Count3\ The river comes from a tliousands rivulets and rills that trickle LUMBER INTEEESTS. 151 over rocks and creep through the shade of overhangiiiir branches, and unite, and flow onward in hirger streams, over stony beds, through rocky channels, into caves and out, doAvn cataracts, where the crystal spray is gray in the sombre shadows or painted by sunlight or moonlight or the pale, soft light of stars into cascades of gorgeous rainbows that come and go in the passing phases of the brightness on, down, swifter or slower as the course is steeper or more level, until, from the ten thousand fountain-heads, all the springs and rills and brooks rush together with a murmur of gladness and a whisper that tells that they have met before. The water that bubbles from the springs, far away in the mountains, under the clifis of hills, or low down in the mar- gins of quiet valleys, comes into the air with all the ]iurity of rain, falling from the sky. No diamond in the crown of India's princes is more pure in the elements of beaut}'. AVhile in the crowded cities and market-places of the east, or the north or west or south, the summer is sul- try, and the throngs of people pass to and fro, burning with thirst, and have nothing but warm and unwholesome water with which to quench it, far up among the green mountains of Tucker are flowing and welling, free as the air and the light, and still more pure, if possible, the never-failing springs of clear, cold v>'ater, that flows forever, whether human lips are bathed by it or not. Until recentl}^ wells Avere almost unknown in Tucker County. Springs were so plentiful, and so much Ijetter than wells, as they alwaj^s are, that people had only to look around a little before building their houses, and the}- could And a place where the water Avould be at their very door. Besides, where there was a spring, there could be built a 152 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. good milk-liouse, a luxury to every family, and one that cost less tlian almost any other luxury, and one that none, who considered it in time, need be without. The spring, the milk-house, with its fresh butter and cool milk, the open fire place to purify the room b}' carrying away foul air, as well as to lend a cheerfulness by its light and heat, and the Avholesome, well-done corn bread, rendered a doctor more ornamental thc'in useful a fcAv years ago, Some changes have taken place, and others must, of ne- cessity, follow as a consequence. Every family cannot or does not now have a spring, a milk house and an open fire- place. Springs are less plentiful and families more plenti- ful than they used to be, and some dig wells and keep milk and butter in the cellar. As the land is cleared, there is a tendency on the part of the springs to dvj up when drouths come upon the country. This is due to the fact that, while the land is covered with trees and timber, the rain that falls u2:)on it is retained longer and is given time to soak into the ground. When in the ground, it finds sloping strata, and along them it fiovs until the surface of the ground is reached. Tins forms a spring. But when the timber has been re- moved and there is no rubbish to hold the rain, it flows ofi* into the creeks an(J rivers, and but little sinks into the grouml to find the surface again in the form of springs. Thus, as the land is cleared, the number and flow of springs diminish, while the actual annual discharge of the creeks and rivers may increase. This drying up of springs, so far, has had only a little effect upon Tucker County. There are still enough springs for each family to have a good one, and then be ten thousand left to flow untouched. But many do not find it convenient to live where the sping is, so they build away from it and LUMBER INTERESTS. 153 dig a well. Wells are often very good, but they are never as good as a good spring, and will become more or less im- pure in spite of all care. The rills and brooks and rivulets that flow together to form Cheat River are as innumerable as are the trees of the forest. They come from every muntain and every hill, and every valle}'^ and vale sends down a supply. Some well from the high crest of upland plains, and some from subter- ranean caves, and some from glades and some from valle3's ; but, all meet at last, and blend with the completeness of chemical affinity. 1|. Shafer's Fork and Diy Fork have their sources beyond our borders ; but we can claitn Black Fork fxom source to mouth as our own. It heads, in its numerous branches, in the Canaan Valley, around the base of the Alleghanies. It is the outlet of the rain that falls in that basin. The Alle- ghanies, the water-shed between the waters of the Atlantic and those of the Gulf of Mexico, extend along the eastern and north-eastern side of Canaan, and 'separate the fount- ains of the Ohio from those of the Potomac. The country included between the Backbone on one side and the Alle- ghany on the other, was, in geological ages, a lake, which, by the wearing away of the rim on the south-western side, tliereb}' forming a channel, was thus drained dry ; and the water that falls there as rain and snow, still finds an outlet through the same channel. This is Black Fork. It is formed by many streams. The head of the principal one is in the southern end of the valley. This is fed by Beaver, Little Blackwater, which gets its supply from Glad}' Fork, Long Run and from others, and by other streams that flow in from either side. By the time they all unite and i)ass the gap in the Backbone, they form quite a river. 154 HISTOEY OF TUCKEK COUNTY. The name Black Fork is a descriptive one. The water is of a dark red color. Not only has it this characteristic while in its mountain channels; but it retains it after breaking away and after it has joined the clear waters of Shafer's Fork and Dry Fork. The whole river then, from there to its mouth, and even, to a less extent, the Monon- galiela below, has a reddish black tinge. The rocks in the bottom of the river, and all bodies seen under its surface, put on a phantasmagorial aspect. The color of the water is transmitted to them, and they appear darkly red. Even the fish, those particularly which live in Black Fork, are colored by the water. Not only does the color attach to their scales, surface and fins, but their fiesh, if properly so called, is colored throughout. It has been to some a subject of wonder why the water is so colored. But, it ought to be feasily observed that it is due to the decaying leaves and roots of evergreens, mostly pines. One unaccvistomed to the water can taste the pine in it ; and a few minutes of experimenting will show that the hue of the water is on account of the pine. Where it rises from springs, unsurrounded by pines, or where it flows through a beech forest alone, the water is clear. If one will drop into one of these clear springs a handful of de- caying pine leaves, he may at once observe that the water is colored tllereb3^ AVitli this fact understood, it is apparent that, in the course of a few more generations, the dark tinge which now characterizes the waters of Cheat, will be seen no more, and the history of it will be in the past. When the country shall become settled, and when farms shall liave taken the place of the laurel-beds and ]:»ine forests, then the waters of LUMBEK INTERESTS. 155 tlie river will be cut oiT from their supply of decaying ever- greens, and will flow pure and clear. The influence which man wields over nature is greater than the unthinking ever think of. Not only can he, as he soon will in the case of this river, change the color of water that has flowed dark from time immemorial, but, it is also in his power to control, to some extent, the volume of water which a river sends out. If the Canada and Canaan Valley were cleared of its thickets, and all its sw amps drained by a thorough system of underground drainage, Black Fork would carry off, in the course of the 3'ear, more water than it does now. And then; when heavy rains come, it would rise to a greater height than has ever yet been known. Dry Fork and Black Fork unite before they reach Slia- fer's Fork, and after uniting take the name Black Fork, or Big Black Fork. It is about three miles from the conflu- ence of Dry Fork and Black Fork to the mouth of Shafer's Fork, or to where the two flow together to form the river proper. The battle of Corrick's Ford was fought on Sha- fer's Fork. Just below, is Alum Hill, a mineral formation of alum, from which the mountain takes its name. The alum comes to the surface, in little springs, and when at the surface, soon dries, and partly crystallizes. The alum is tolerably pure, but has never been used to any consid- erable extent. From the forks of the river, northward to the Preston County line, the river has various names at different places, or rather, certain places in it have been given names, which either describe some feature or define some locality. Job's Ford, or more recently Callihan's Ford, is a river-crossing at the Holly Meadows, and got its name first from Job Parsons who used to live on the north bank, and cjot 156 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY its second name from S. M. Callilian, wlio more re- cently lived on the south bank. The Holly Meadows was named on account of the holly trees that grew and still grow there. They are evergreen, and the leaves have a fringe of thorns on them. Formerly they stood thick about the bottom lands ; but now they are not so plentiful. At Job's Ford, during Garnett's retreat, Capt. E. Harj^er recommended that a stand be taken and battle given. The stand was taken ; but the failure of the pursu- ing enemy to put in an appearance, rendered a battle un- necessary. From just below Job's Ford, the river sweeps around the base of the mountain to Sims' Bottom, where Sims was killed by the Indians, and there turns toward the east. In this distance there are several deep eddies. After passing Neville's Ford, Avhere some of the Confederates nearly drowned during Garnett's retreat, the river reaches "Wolf Run, where there is an island, and where Macomber's steam mill was for several years. Soon after this, Slip Hill is reached. This is a precipitious mountain, so steep that the soil has slipped into the river, leaving the bare rocks exposed. A road has been dug around it, and is never entirely safe. It is at one place about two hundred feet from the river,and the blufi' below is almost jDerpendicular. A bridge, that looks more dangerous than it really is, spans a deep defile at the worst place in the road. Immediately beneath Slip Hill, a few years ago, a man named Moore was drowned, while in swimming. The water is deep and he got beyond his depth. Half mile further is the Turn Edd}-, as it is called. It gets its name from two reasons. First, because the river there tiirns from its eastern course toward the north, and second, because, at LUMBER INTERESTS. 157 that place, at the eastern shore, the water turns back and flows up stream. A log thrown into the water at that place will float up stream, turn and swim out into the middle of the river. This is one of the best places on the river for building rafts, and there have been made large numbers of log, lumber, stave and shingle rafts. One-half mile below here is Willow Point, which is a deep ford, named from a thicket of willows that grow on the bank, and extend somewhat in the shape of a wedge into the river. It was here that David Bonnifield was drowned. He and George Gower were crossing when the river was deep riding, and in the swiftest place their horses threw them. Bonnifield was an excellent swimmer, but he never reached the shore. Gower could not swim at all, and got out. One-half mile further is the mouth of Horse Shoe Run, where the Priugles and Simpson who came through that country in 1764, crossed the river. There, too, James Par- sons crossed when escaping from the Indians near the same time, and there he crossed later, when the Indians tried to allure him into an ambuscade by gobbling like a turkey. From there it is not far to the Island, which is known by that name over all the country. It is an Island near half a mile in length, densely timbered with sycamores, and has been a famous hiding j)lace for deer, pursued by dogs. On one side of it is Wild Cat Point, a sharp cliff jutting from the mountain, and on the other is the Pond, which is a pond no longer. It used to be a slough or bay extending into the land ; but, in a freshet, the lower end was washed aAvay, forming a channel through to the river a mile below, and making of the Pond an arm of the river. Opposite the Island is a small island of about one acre. On the bank by this small island, on the mainland, is the site 158 HISTOEY OF TUCKEK COUNTY. of an old Indian town, and there have been exhumed bones of human larger than those of ordinary persons. One- fourth mile below this is Horse Shoe Ford, and half mile further is the mouth of Dry Run, where the river is very swift and raftsmen must know the channel to go safely through. This passed, the St. George Eddy is reached. From Sims' Bottom to this point the river flows round the Horse Shoe, a distance of six miles. But, from river to river, across the isthmus, the distance is scarcely one-sixth that far. Could a canal be cut across this neck of land, it would give the facilities for a tremendous M'ater-power, one sufficient to drive ten times as much machinery as there is or probabl}' ever will be in the county. The Horse Shoe is named from its resemblance to the shoe of a horse. From cork to cork, so to speak, the dis- tance is scarcely more than one mile, while around, it is six. The St. George Eddy extends from the mouth of the Pond, the low^er end of the Horse Shoe, to Ewin's Ford, be- low St. George, and is about one mile in length. It is per- haps the most picturesque and beautiful portion of the river. St. George stands on its shore, thus lending an air of life and civilization to the rural scenery along its banks ; while on the south side (for the river here flows westerl}-) a steep, forest-covered mountain rises abruptly from the wa- ter's edge, as a blufi", and then, after gaining a certain height, slopes gradually back to the higher summit bej-ond. When the river is low, as it generally is in the summer time, St. George Eddj' is remarkably calm and placid. The wa- ter moves slowly and silently, and its surface is covered with white bubbles, which float lightly, and form a marked contrast with the dark, red water of the river. The Eocks, about one-half a mile above the town, are a LITMBEE INTERESTS. 159 nice lauding for skiffs; and pleasure parties often go on excursions tliere. Thick trees overshadow it, and a stream of cold water dashes down the steep mountain side, and is lost in the sombre river. At other points along the same shore, above and below, rivulets come down the hills by cataracts and cascades, until their final leap carries them into the deep water of the river. In winter these rills from the mountain freeze, and the ice piles thicker and higher, nntil the Avliole face of the hill becomes a glacier, and re- mains so until the warm winds of spring destroy the ice. But, the river and the scenery along its shores are seen in all their beauty onl}- in the summer, when the trees are in full leaf. A fringe of trees lines the northern shore, and the foliage of maples, sugars, sycamores, beeches and other woods are blended in a verdant wall of quiet freshness. Just beyond, but seen onl}' through the openings here and there in the groves, are the fields of farms, where the plan- tations' of corn, and the acres of small grains and grasses ex- tend furlongs back from the river, and separate it from the steep rise of the mountains beyond. In the summer evenings the mountains and trees cast their shadows over the river, and make it a delightful place for boat-riding. It is much frequented by persons, young and old, in the evening, and the painted skiffs, Indian ca- noes and other barks may be seen floating placidly upon the water or passing swiftly to and fro. At the lower end of the St. George Eddy is Ewin's Ford, named from Hon. AVm. Ewin who lives upon the bank of the river at that place. This is at the mouth of Clover Run, and here the road to Rowlesburg crosses the river. The next feature in the river, worthy of note, is Anvil's Mill Dam, a dam built by John Anvil across the river to 160 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. turn water into his mill race. The dam is a difficult place to be gotten over by raftsmen, and afterward it is a hard channel to keep. Rattlesnake Ford is named on account of a den of rattlesnakes that were formerly there. Jonathan Run is where Jonathan Minear was killed by the Indians, and is a considerable rafting wharf. From there to Miller Hill the river is straight, and the raftsmen steer for a rock that looks white in the summer time and black in the winter, when there is snoAV on the ground. When the river ]3asses the mouth of Bull Run, and trends off toward the east, it is washing the rugged base of Miller Hill, named from AYilliam Miller, who lives there. The Rowlesburg road passes around the hill, and from it the river, dashing over its rocky way, presents a scene of romance and beauty. When upon the river, it is found to be unusually narrow and swift, and it so bends that it is hard to keep rafts from running upon the bowlders that have rolled down from the hill and lie in the edge of the water. The waves roll high, and, some years ago, when the Rowles- burg Lumber and Iron Company run boats on the river to carry shingles to Rowlesburg, this part of the river was found to be the most difficult to pass, on account of the height and crestedness of the waves. At the lower end of Miller Hill the river strikes fairly against the mountain, and turns to the north. Where it makes the turn, is a deep hole of water, with the dreadful name of "Murder Hole." River men reme-mber it, because, upon entering it at full speed, as rafts do after passing through two miles of swift water, the oars strike dead water, and, by sluing, frequently knock the men into the river. There are difierent accounts as to how this eddy got its name. One is that wolves once killed a band of sheep on LUMBEE INTEEESTS. 161 the bank near by, and another that a man was accidently drowned there. Two small islands, named Pig and Macadonia, are soon passed, and the river is drawing near Licking Falls. This is another rough place, where the river falls several feet in a small distance. It is flowing north when it strikes Lime- stone Monntain, and by it is deflected toward the Avest. "Where it strikes the mountain, the rage of years and cen- turies of floods have torn out rocks from the earth, and the river is partly blocked up with them. As the waters are damned up, and break over, they form Licking Falls, at the mouth of Licking Creek, and near where Lieut. Eobert McChesney was killed. Turtle Eocks are soon passed. These are several large, angular rocks, rising out of the river on the northern or eastern side, where the water is deep. In the summer time large numbers of clumsy, lazy turtles may be seen basking in the sunshine, and from this the rocks take their name. The Seven Islands are well known to all rivermen ; for, if a raft can pass there, its way to Eowlesburg can be de- pended upon. The islands seem to have been seven in number when they got their name ; but the number is not constant. They are partly sand bars, and a flood in the river may build or destroy several of them. The river now passes from Tucker into Preston. From where it first enters the county to where it leaves it, follow- ing the windings of the river, is from forty to sixty miles, depending upon Avhich fork is measured. It does not flow with a uniform rapidity through the county. At times it is very swift, and again it is slow. Among the mountains it is swifter than after it reaches the Holly Meadows. Thirty miles, the distance from the Turn Edd}^ to Eowlesburg, has 11 1G2 HLSTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. been run in live Lours by boats on a good stage of water. "W^lien the Avater is low, of course, the progress is less rapid. Often it takes twelve hours to make the same trip. Eafts and boats go onl}- a verv little faster than the current of the river. The timber that is sawed into lumber in Tucker County and is taken to market, goes down the river in rafts to Howlesburg. A large number of log rafts go down annually. An average raft contains seventy logs, and twenty-five thousand feet. The logs are held together by polls fastened across the logs by staples. Oars from twenty to fift}' feet long are placed on the ends of the rafts to keep them in the channel. Among the most noted log raftsmen who have been along the river of late years, may be mentioned "William H. Lips- comb, Thomas F. Hebb, Baxter Long, S. E. Parsons, Philip Constable, Charles Parsons, Lloyd Hansford, Magarga Par- sons, L. E. Goff, Hiram Loughry and Finley Toy. Another kind of rafts is that of planks or sawed lumber. This has been an important industry in the county, and is still largely carried on. Planks are rafted by building them into platforms, usuall}' sixteen feet scpiare, and twelve inches thick, and then lashing the platforms end to end, until the raft is from sixty-four to one hundred and twenty-eight feet long. Two such rafts, side by side, are called a "double raft ;" and when they are laden with lumber until the plat- forms are entirely siinken, they contain about seventy-five thousand feet. The most extensive lumber rafter of Tucker County, is C. R. Macomber, who has thus taken to market millions of feet. Others who have rafted extensively are A. C. Minear, Finley Toy, ^S'. D. Losh, A. H. Bonnifield and others. The largest plank rafts have four oars. LUMBEK INTERESTS. 163 An industry that lias sprung up within the past few years in Tucker, and one that brings in a considerable revenue, is the shingle mills. The first was built by the Eowlesburg Lumber and Iron Company at John Fansler's on Horse Shoe Run, some eight miles above St. George, The mill was something new in the country, as its steam engine was the first one ever in the county, and people came from near and far to see it. The tram-road, which brought logs to the mill was also the first thing of that sort ever in the county, and its trucks were looked upon with a wonder sec- ond only to that excited by the steam engine. The mill was built by Balus, a mill-wright from Balti- more, and the machiner}^ was set up b}^ Frank Blanchard, who sawed the first shingle ever sawed in Tucker County. He was and is one of the best machinists in the State. When the mill was gotten ready to run, large crowds came together to see the fool thing start. Some said that it was a grand thing and others that it would be the ruination of the countr}'. However, it got to going, and worked to per- fection, cutting eight thousand shingles a day. They were eighteen inches long and four inches wide. Of course, some were wider and some not so wide ; but, this was what was required in the measurement. They were packed into bunches of two hundred and fifty each, and were hauled to the river on sleds in the winter time and on wagons in the Slimmer. Among those wlio hauled were Ward Parsons, C. L. Parsons, John Closs, B. F. Dumire, James Knotts and William Losh. The mill was kept running for several 3-ears, and until the Eowlesburg Lumber and Iron Company went into bankruptcy. After that the mill was run at intervals until all the timber in the vicinity had been cut, when it was removed. The most prosperous period of the mill's existence was about 1870. ICA HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. The next sliingle-mill in the county was that built by Rufus Maxwell, and run by water-power. In its after mod- ifications, the saw ran horizontal instead of vertical. Abraham and Daniel L. Dumire built the next one on Laurel Run, at the Lead Mine post-office. This mill was sold from one to another, until the controlling interest was in the hands of Cyrus Dumire. George Auvil built the next shingle factory. It was located on Mill Run, about two miles above St. George. David Closs built the next mill. It was on Horse Shoe Run, four miles from its mouth. This completed the list of five shingle mills in Tucker County. The first one ever in the county met an untimely end. While being taken around Horse Shoe Ford Hill, it, wagon, horses and all, rolled down the precipice into the river, near one hundred feet. None of the men or horses were seriously hurt, but the machinery and the wagons were badly wrecked. The shook business, some fifteen and twenty years ago, was an extensive industry. Joseph Davis was the principal manager of the business, and the shop was at St. George. It did more for the town than anything else of the time. It built up the houses that were going to pieces, and revived business. Although Tucker County has had and still has vast timber resources, and its thousand mountains are covered mtli valuable pines, oaks, poplars and hemlocks, and all this will bring a revenue into the county ; yet our real and perma- nent wealth is not in our timber. Men who deal in it and attend closely to their business have made money from it ; but such is the exception and not the rule. The large con- tractors may or may not make something ; but the laborer is almost sure to lose when it comes to the final reckoning. LUMBEE INTEEESTS. . 165 He ma}- have worked liarcl from Christmas to Christmas, and. his family may have lived as economically as decency and comfort wonld permit, yet at the end of the year, when all store debts and doctor bills are paid, and the wear and tear of the furniture and the farm property has been made good, all the spare money is gone, and the laborer is left no richer than Avlien he set in for the hard year of work. The reason for this is to be sought in the fact that almost every man in l\icker County is a farmer. It is a general truth the world over that it is best for an agricultural man to stick to agriculture just the same as it is best, in usual cases, for any man to stick to his trade or profession. It may pay at times for a man to carry on two, three or a dozen projects at a time ; biit those who try it fail oftener than they succeed. Especially is this true with farmers any- where, and the more so with those of Tucker County. A blacksmith or a carpenter may, if he sees fit, abandon his trade one, two or ten years, and again take it up and be none the loser, unless the time has been a loss to him. But not so mth him who digs into the fertile soil for his bread and Ms fortune. His farm needs him every day and every hour. If he leaves it, it suffers from his neglect. If he engages as a laborer in the lumber business, as so many of the Tucker farmers are doing and have done, he fails to till his land as he should. His fences go to ruin, his sheds fall to pieces and weeds, briers, thorns and brambles fill all the nooks and corners of his fields. Meanwhile, the man may be getting his wages, which are in ready money and for the time seem greater than he could make on his farm ; but, everything his family uses must be paid for, and the expenses eat up the profits, and he works on, probably for years, and keeps just about even. IGG HISTOEY OF TUCKEK COUNTY. Then tlie mill on Avliicli he Avoiks is to be moved to find a new supply of timber, and he must either follow or qnit the works. If he is a wise man, he quits the bad contract, late, but better late than never, and goes back to his neglected farm. Or, if he follows the mill to its new site, he may as well set- tle down to a permanent rough and unprofitable life, drag- ging himself and family about from place to place, and living only a little better than the Arabs of Egypt. If he goes back to his farm, he finds it grown up and di- lapidated, far worse than when he left it, and he finds him- self no richer in money than when he went astray in the lumber business. Had he staid on his farm and worked as hard as he did in the woods, he would have owned a neat, comfortable and complete home. His fences would not have been so hidden b}^ briers that they were no longer vis- ible, and the apple trees would not look like a chaos of sprouts and scions growing out of a brush-heap. Where the plantain and smartweed were taking possession of every- thing in the yard, his wife's bed of floAvers would have been in full bloom, and lilies and forget-me-nots would be blos- soming instead of the crash-leaved burr-dock. He will then learn, as others must learn and are learning, that the little farms of Tucker must be cultivated if the peo- ple expect to prosper. The farmer avIio raises something to sell in the logging camps makes more than the man who works all the year in the woods. Our real wealth is in our farming land. Let the lumber be cut by those who can af- ford to do it. The farmer cannot afford to lose his time. CHAPTER IX. THE WEST VIRGINIA CENTRAL AND PITTS- BURGH RAIL WA Y. The opening of tliis new railroad has been and promises still to be a permanent improvement to our county. Tlie object wliicli pi'ompted its building was tbe vast resource of timber, coal and iron wliicli abound in that portion of our territory which lies beyond the Backbone Mountain, on the upper tributaries of the Black Fork of Cheat Kiver. The knowledge that such resources existed is no new thing. As early as 1856, it was undertaken to build a railroad up the North Branch of the Potomac, and engineers Avere put to work on it. The following extract is from the Biography of Abe Bonnifield, and is quoted in connection with the railroad, and also as a description of the surrounding coun- try at that time : In front of my father's door, and at the distance of three or four miles, rises the princiiDal ridge of the Backbone Mountain. From tlie tops of the neighboring hills the course of the ridge can be traced to a vast extent. The summit of the mountain in this region is covered with beautiful groves of hemlock pine, sometimes called yew pine. In places their branches are so interwoven that they form a thick, dark shade, which, in the summer season, is most de- lightful, but in winter, when the sombre branches are drooping with snow, the prospect is gloomy beyond description. These hemlocks are as straight as an Indian arrow, and frequently rise to the height of one hundred and twenty feet, or more. This tiuiber is valuable for building purposes. Square timber, plank and shin- gles made from it are of the very best quality; and the quantity of this timber is surprising. From the top of a single hill, enough of it may be seen to build a city 1G8 HISTORY OF TUCKEE COUNTY Oil this side of the iiiouutain, just opposite my father's farm, lies a large body of rich land, which, on account of its being covered with sugar-maple, is called the Sugar Lands. The annual blooming of this large grove of sugar trees, appearing with the return of each successive season, afforded, for many years, a picture of sur- passing beauty. It could easily be seen from the distance of fifteen or twenty miles. Year after year for fifty long successive years, had the older inhabitants gazed upon its expanse of silvery gray, tinged with yellow and white. From the top of Stemple Ridge, a distance of some eighteen miles. It appeared to the very best ad- vantage, and gave to the extended landscape a soft and beautiful finish, on which the eye lingered Avith peculiar delight. But, alas ! the beauty, though it lasted long and gladdened many a vernal scene, has passed away and perished forever. About fifteen hundred acres of the land was purchased by Wil- liam R. Parsons, and the sugar trees have fallen beneath the axes of his slaves. But, thank kind nature, it is usually the case, when one beautiful object disappears, another takes its place. Although the sugar tijees are gone, the eye of the spectator is no-\v greeted with green pastures and charming meadows, while the ear is saluted with the tinkling of bells and the lowing of cattle, and this delightful Sugar Lands promises fair soon to be the richest grazing plantation in Tucker County. Some miles beyond the Sugar Lands, and also beyond the Back- bone, on the head branches of Cheat River, there is an eleA^ated region of rich land, from time immemorial called the land of Ca- naan. Here there is a body of some hundred thousand acres of land unoccupied. However, it has quite recently come into mar- ket. The soil of this land is of the finest quality, both for grain and pasture, and is mostly covered with extensive forests of beech, sugar and pine. There are also several other large unoccupied tracts of land in Tucker County, now coming into market. A vast field of excellent stone coal has lately been discovered on these lands, making them an object of peculiar interest to speculators. From Piedmont, on the B. & (). R. R. a raih'oad Avill soon be built, ■whose terminus will be in these coal lands. How such vast bodies of waste land, surrounded on all sides by rich settlements, could remain so long unsold, is a problem that THE W. T. C. & P. EAILWAY. 169 can be solved only by the consideration that the tide of emigration has ever rolled its waves to the far West, without stopping to ex- amine these beautiful little islands around which it flowed. The owners of these lands seem anxious to sell, and it is probable that bargains may be obtained. It is supposed that there is at this time [1857] plenty of unoccupied land in Tucker County for the accom- modation of 500 families. The coal at the Sugar Lands was discovered about 1835. It was nearly twenty years before any similar discoveries were made on the other side of the mountain. But, finally, the true wealth of the country began to be known, and cap- italists saw that there was mone}' in a railroad which would carry off this wealth. The work of surveying was well ad- vanced, when the war came on and put a stop to everything, and it Avas near twenty years before anything further was done in the matter. Then a new company took it in hand. The officers, on January 1, 1882, were : H. G. Davis, Presi- dent ; S. B. Elkins, Vice-President. Directors : Alexander Shaw, James G. Blaine, S. B. Elkins, William Keyser, Thomas B. Davis, Augustus Schell, ^Y. H. Barnum, J. N. Camden, John A. Hambleton and T. E. Sickles. A. Ebert was Secretary, C. M. Hoult, Treasurer, T. E. Sickles, Chief Engineer, and AV. E. Porter, Superintendent. The offices w^ere at Piedmont, "W. Va., and 92 Broadway, New York City. The company was organized June 25, 1881, under a char- ter of the State of West Virginia. It was authorized to construct a railroad from any point on the B. & O. R. E., along the waters of the North Branch of the Potomac River, to a connection with any other railroad in the State of W. Va. The company had power to bu}' and sell real estate without limit ; and it was authorized to manufacture lumber, mine coal and iron, and any other minerals. The following 170 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. extract is from the President's first Report to the stock- holders : The present intention of the company is to extend its railroad for a distance of from fifty to sixty miles in all, through what is knoAvn as the "Cvimberland or Piedmont Coal Basin;" and it is ultimately intended, if deemed advisable and profitable, to extend its line southerly, so as to connect the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad with the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad and the Richmond and Alleghany Railroad, and other railroads. Also, northerly to a con- nection with railroads leading to Pittsburgh. The engineers estimated that three hundred and sixty milHons of tons of coal can be mined from the company's lands. The coal fields which must be developed by this company embrace an area larger than the aggregate of all other bituminous coal fields east of the Alleghany Mount- ains,'"^ embracing an area of 170,000 acres. The capital stock of the company was $6,000,000, of which .$5,000,000 belong to and remain in the company's treasury.t The rail- road was computed to cost not more than $25,000 per mile. The average out-put of coal over the road in 1882 was es- timated to be 700 tons daily for three hundred days, sum- ming for the year 210,000 tons. The company's profit was forty-five cents per ton, for the year $94,500. Profits from other sources, $20,000. Total, $ltl,500. The interest paid on bonds was $50,000, leaving a clear profit for 1882 of $64,500. The profit for 1883 was estimated at $197,000.| The President, Yice-President, Treasurer and Secretary charged nothing for their services in the year 1882. The company at that time owned and controlled 37,752 acres of mineral and timber lands. * President Davis' first report, page four. t In 18«2. r Tills is merely an estimation, made In 1882 for the succeeding year. THE W. V. C. & P. RAILWAY. 171 Up to January 1, 1882, thirteen and one-lialf miles of road had been completed. In Owen Eiordan's Eeport of January 3, 1882 he speaks as follows :"'" I hereby submit to your consideration a report, with accompany- ing map, of the result of my opening and working of coal veins in your employment since June 1, of last year (1881). I worked on a portion of Grant, Tucker and Preston Counties, W. Va. Commencing at the Fairfax Stone, I opened on what I call the "Fairfax and Dobbin House Region"— which is about nine miles long and eight miles wide— ten different veins of coal, the thickest being eleven and the smallest four fe»t, measuring in die aggregate fifty-two feet of coal. These veins of coal are of different quality, some gas, some bitu- minous and one vein of good coking coal. They are so situated, one above the other, that any one of them, or all of them together, can be worked without interfering with any other. This is the most remarkable coal region so far discovered in this or any other country. I have neither seen nor read in the reports of any other person of a coal region having as much coal in it as this ; and the whole of it is free from slate, bone-coal, or any other impurities. This is neither exaggeration nor delusion, as all these veins are opened, so that any expert can examine them. He will find them to be just as I have stated. There is a nine-feet vein of steam coal in this region that fully equals the Cumberland coal. We opened on the second division of this West Virginia Coal Fields— which lies between the Dobbin and Kent roads and the mouth of Buffalo Creek— eleven different veins of coal, ranging in thickness from three to six feet. This coal is semi-bituminous in quality, except one vein opened at the head of Elk Run, of cannel coal, three feet thick. The coal in this region is also free from all impurities The coal area is a thick forest, ahnost covered with spruce and hemlock, the trees being of an enormous size, and good quality, making it as superior in its timber as in its coal. * See the President's and Engineer's Reports of the progress of the Railroad, of Octo- ber 17, 1882. 172 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. In the President's Annual Report, dated January 9, 1883, tlie net earnings of the road, after paying expenses, and the interest on the bonded debt, ^vere over $87,000. The op- erating expenses were 48f per cent, of the gross earnings. The interest paid was $32,600. On page 4, of the Report of January 9, 1883, the follow- ing is found : After careful sui'veys, it has been determined to make Davis the terminus of the road for the present. It promises to be the center of a great mining and lumbering interest, being near the junction of the Beaver and I^ackwater, both of which drain a fine timber country, and both are well adapted to floating logs ; besides, the site selected and vicinity are underlaid with the veins of coal of the Upper Potomac Coal Field. The completion of the line to Davis, fifty-three miles from Pied- mont, will quadruple the capacity of the Company for doing a gen- eral transportation business ; besides, it will reach and pass through the Company's coking coal and fine timber lands in the Upper Po- tomac Coal Fields from both of which the Company expects to add largely to its business." The work of the railroad in Tucker County, up to this time, 1884, has not been extensive, as the main work has been done on the east side of the mountain. The grade across the mountain does not at any point exceed eighty feet per mile, Avliich is the lightest grade of any railroad crossing the Alleghanies. The whole Canaan Valley must soon be developed. It is just opening up to the world, and in a few .years it will no longer be a wilderness. CHAPTER X. MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. I DO not deem it best to over load a County Histoiy with statistics. Enough shoukl be given to meet the wants of the general reader, and no more. In this book I have pursued, in this respect, the course just advocated. I have collected, not without care, a few tables and have inserted them. In making the selections and in the arrangements I have not followed any strict plan. In fact, I found it im- possible, had I been so inclined, to make out entire census tables, even from 1856 to the present time. Much of the data that would go to make up such tables, does not exist in any official manner ; or, at least, the search that I have made has failed to find it. I give what this chajDter contains and offer no apology for its incompleteness or for its arrangement. Had I considered it of enough importance, I should have bestowed more time and attention to it. I did not even go to Randolph to examine records that relate to the census prior to 1856. "What I have of such, is all I want ; for, I will repeat that it is not my aim or intention to make this book a series of tables and statistical figures. I am not certain but that I have given more space to the History of Elections and Officers than is demanded by the public upon whose patronage the financial success of this book depends. But, this latter subject will, more or less, interest every reader, while tlie former, that of the statistics, will be of interest to so few, except a small part of it, that those few will find occasion to examine for themselves 174 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. special books on the subject, and will there find much more satisfaction than could possibly be given in a work of this kind. As remarked, it would be difficult to reduce to a system the statistics relative to Tucker. The Census Compendium of 1860 dismissed the county with a foot-note, saying that no returns were made. Thus I had to look elsewhere for what I have given of that date. The Compendium of 1870 was fuller, but it all, so far as our count}- is concerned, is easily told, and I have given onl}' an epitome of 1860 and 1870. But I have bestowed more attention to 1880, because I consider it of more importance. I consider that our county is just starting into life. The returns of ten and twenty years ago are valuable to us only as curiosities, or as comparisons. They do not tell the world what we are, or what the resources of our county were at that time. They do not exhibit our true Avealth — undeveloped wealth. This was unknown then, and there should be no jiride, and surely is no policy, in publishing to the world, by census tables, how little we had and how weak we were onl}^ a few years ago. True, it is some satisfaction to see how we have grown ; and wliere there is an opiDortunity for exhibiting this in a proper manner, it has been done, but, in such mat- ters as promise no good, and result in no benefit, we have been silent. Such parts of the past as is history, I have given. What is not history, romance, biography or anything of that kind, I have not gone to extremes to bring prominently forward. I have endeavored to show what Ave were, so far as we were anything, and what we are. The future must tell what Ave are to be. But, Avith us, the future is more than the past. This age is using the past only to judge by it Avhat the MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. 175 future Avill be. Great minds read history oulj for tliis. The past is nothing to us, except the mere satisfaction of knowing it. There are greater changes going on in the worki to-day than ever before. Histor}- did not prophesy them. It gave no hint that they woukl come. The loco- motive, the steamship, the telegraph, the telephone, and the marvellous machineries that work, as it were, with more than human intelligence, came into the world unheralded and unexpected. Not even a star guided the Magi of the present to them. They leaped, as Pallas, armed into the world's arena, and assuming the might of Achilles, cleared the fields of a universal Troy. Still, I cannot think that history is useless or unneces- sary. There is still something to be learned from it ; al- though, I verily believe that there is more to be gained from Mathematics and Chemistry than from History. "We cannot judge, and depend upon it, from the past what the future will be. Because no nation has lived forever, is no reason why none ever will. Because no government of the people, by the people and for the people has ever stood firmly and successfully one hundred years, is no grounds from which to judge that such a thing is impossible. It may be that Goufuciiis thought it impossible for a man to travel fifty miles an hour, because his experience and his old books gave him none assurance of such a thing in the past. No doubt Columbus considered it oiit of the ques- tion to cross the Atlantic without sails in ten days ; and, he could not have found reason for thinking so had he read all the histories burnt at Alexandria, the description of Hiero's engine not excepted. Galilleo or Newton or Iveplar or Kant or Hobbs or Tycho Bralie would have disbelieved it possi- ble to send a letter two hundred and eightj'-eight thoiisand 176 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. miles a second. Arcliimedes and Copernicus gave nothing to foreshadow sucli a thing. Nor, woukl those okl philoso- phers have believed that the voice of a man could be heard over a wire forty miles. Yet, just such things as these men thought impossible, if they thought at all, are tearing the world upside down and building it anew, on a firmer basis than ever. Mathematics, called Philosophy, and Chemistry, are doing it. But they are inanimate, and work only by the directions of man. Why then could not man curb the lightning, and know and control the power of oxygen and hydrogen, expanded by heat seventeen hundred times its bulk when cold — why could not this have been done two thousand years ago ?' or five thousand, for that matter ? Water existed, as did fire, and iron and electricity and all the elements that now exist ; why then could not Tubal-cain build a steam engine, and an ocean telegraph connecting Rome and Carthage, across the sea, that they thought was iu the middle of the world? This question was hard to answer. It Avas hard be- cause the answer was unknown. Some of the abstractest problems in calculus are easy enough to understand when the answer is known ; biit, to find the answer caused many a brain to falter and ache and doubt and despair, to resolve again and finally to triumph. Thus with the subject, why the ancients, or even the moderns, except the most moderns, failed to accomplish Avhat is now being done by men with weaker minds than that of Mulciber or Minos or Diedalus or Plutarch or Quintilian or Euclid or Descartes or Benja- min Fraiddin. It seems now that things are accomplished with less effort than was formerly exerted to no good. Surely our inventors do not study more intently than he Avho stood thirty-six hours, working mentally on a sum of arithmetic. Mrs LowTHER Mrs Wm Spesert fp^[^ Q "^1 W. B. Maxwell C. H, Maxwell R. R. Maxwell L, H. Maxwell WELL T. E. Maxwell. C. J. Maxwell Hu Maxwell MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. 177 and knew nothing of the heat or the darkness or the rain that passed by ; or more intensely than he who was so ab- sorbed with his theorem that he knew not that an army with beating drums and martial music passed under his window ; or than he who, when the Koman soldier rushed into his study with drawn sword to kill him, cried, "AVait till I com- plete this demonstration," and when it was completed, died, as Socrates died, like a philosopher. Physical and mental efforts, I doubt not, were as power- ful, or as near the limit of human possibilities, thousands of years ago as they are to-day. The men tried as hard to solve the mysteries, and worked as hard on their plans, and did as much as they could, and moderns can do nothing more. But the ancients, viewed from our stand-point, made almost no advancement at all. It may have taken them a thousand years to invent the bow and arrow. It seems to us that anybody could manufacture such an engine with a few days of study. But, we must not forget ourselves in approaching this subject. The world is not, or man's mind is not, as it used to be. The oldest man in the world, at the age of nine hun- dred, if any man ever really lived that long, did not know as much as a school boy of to-day. I cannot imagine with what feelings Abraham, the Patriarch, must have looked upon the phenomena of nature, not knowing any of the reasons for what he saw. But, I need not appeal to my imagination in a case of this kind. His feelings upon see- ing the water flow down hill and the smoke rise skyward, must have been as mine when I contemplate the natui*e of force as it is manifested in magnetism, sunlight and the dis- sociation of atoms — things which are blank mysteries to me. No, the history of the past cannot be laid aside. I am 12 178 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. firmly of the belief that the human race, as a whole, im- proves from the experience of past races, just as an indi- vidual grows wiser by remembering his past successes and failures. It is a dark subject to me ; but, so far as I can understand it, I see nothing that does not confirm me in the belief that there is a universal mind, or spirit, or soul, or nature, or something not exactly expressed by any word in the world, that is composed of and includes all the minds in the world, as a great and perfect whole. It is hard to express myself on this subject. Tennyson in Locksley Hall does it for me better than I can do it : Yet I doubt not through the ages one increasing purpose runs, And the thoughts of men are widened with the process of the suns. When one generation dies from the world, the next does not have to commence in knowledge where its fathers did, but, in a measure, where its fathers quit. The " increasing purpose " does not die with the races of men. It lives from generation to generation, from age to age and from centur}- to century, ever stronger and stronger. As the old rocks from the clifls of the mountains and from the caves of the ocean are ground into powder to furnish material for new formations, so must the experience of the past be picked apart to furnish material for the rebuilding of newer and better institutions. So must history be used in the present. So must we build by the ruins of the past. But the simile is not perfect, for the intellectual world builds grander and better and finds constantly some new material to introduce into the work, while the geological world constructs from the same material over and over again, and the new Avork, although newer, is in reality not a particle better than the old. Scientists disagree, whether intellectual power is trans- MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. 179 mitted from generation to generation. On the one side is arrayed the long catalogue of illustrious families, the splen- dor of whose talents has been observed for generations, and a similitude noticed in all. On the other hand, it is claimed that a savage infant, the child of savage parents, may be trained to civilzation and enlightenment and be none the less refined and gifted than one born and reared in all the conditions of civilization. There are two sides to the ques- tion, and either is not void of argument ; but, it must be ad- mitted that parental characteristics, of mind as well as body, are transmitted from generation to generation. How else could there be an increasing purpose running through the ages, as there surely is ? Then there is occasion still for learning, and from the past, all there is to know or to be known. We cannot learn from the future. The present is only the twilight of the past. As the world stands now, there is more benefit to man- kind in the sermons of Talmage than in the histories of Gibbon. The times are turning. There is greater change in one year now than there was in a century some thousand years ago. At least, this is true so far as we can tell; but if we could see as things were seen when Virgil sang and Demosthenes raved, we might know that we are mistaken. They laughed at Pythagoras when he thought that the Avorld was round. Is no one being laughed at to-day who will be remembered when the deriders are forgotton? Is there not extant some theor}' so ridiculous that it is hardly worth laughing at ? Who knows what the philosophers two thousand jesus hence will say of it? What was the woman's name who laughed at Newton and called him a simpleton for sitting in the orchard to see the apples fall ? The circumstance alone is remembered, and that because 180 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. of its surroundings. Too many people are like the young lord, on wliose hand the king leaned, in that beleagured city, where the famine raged, and where the prophet fore- told plenty, and to whom the young lord answered that such a thing might be if the windows of heaven should be opened. In 1880, there were in Tucker 3,139 persons of American birth, and 2,053 were born in the State : 936 were born in Virginia. Of the remainder, 3 were born in Ohio, 58 in Pennsylvania, 38 in Maryland. There were 12 of foreign birth, of whom 2 were from Ireland, 2 from Scotland, 4 from Germany and 1 from France. The rest are ungiven. Of the 3,151 persons in the county in 1880, 1,625 were males and 1,526 were females. From the age of five to seventeen, inclusive of both, there were 546 males and 512 females. From eighteen to forty-four, inclusive of both, there were 580 men. There were 618 men twenty-one years of age, or over. In 1880, Tucker had 385 farms, containing 19,632 acres of improved land. The value of the farms, including all they contained, fences and buildings, was $590,782. The farm- ing implements and machinery were worth $23,661. The value of stock was placed at $102,917. The building and repairing of fences cost $18,223. This was for the year 1879. The value of fertilizers purchased was $456. The value of all farm productions, sold, consumed and on hand, was placed at $75,152. In 1880, the county produced 5,784 bushels of buckwheat ; 63,632 bushels of corn ; 15,221 bushels of oats ; 1,247 bush- els of rye ; 7,973 bushels of wheat. The value of the or- chard productions was $7,581. Of Irish potatoes, there were 7,216 bushels ; sweet potatoes, 56 bushels ; hay, 1,253 tons ; tobacco, 2,061 pounds. MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. 181 In 1880, Tucker County liad 642 horses, 57 mules, 35 working oxen, 940 cows, 1,451 otlier cattle, 3,535 slieep, 3,655 Logs. The avooI produced was 10,733 pounds, which was a fraction more than three pounds to the sheep. The production of butter was 40,592 pounds. That of cheese, 1,846 pounds. The average production of butter for each farm was a little more than 105 pounds. The average production for each cow was over 43 pounds. The average for each per- son in the county was nearly 14 pounds. There was one farm to about every eight persons. There was a milch cow to every three and a third persons. There was a fraction more than three horses to every farm, and two and two- fifths cows to every farm, and more than nine sheep and nine hogs to every farm. There was less than five pounds of cheese produced for each farm. To each farm there were 15 bushels of buckwheat, 165 bushels of corn, 39 bushels of wheat, and the orchard products averaged $19 to each farm. There were in the county in 1880, five manufacturing establishments, with a capital of $5,000, and giving employ- ment to ten men, with an aggregate yearly pay of $860. The material cost $3,660 and the manufactured goods were worth $5,608. The monthly pay of the men was $7.16 each. This was twenty-seven and a half cents a day. The manu- facturing of the raw material increased its value $1,948. This was an increase of value on the first cost, of 53 per cent. Each man earned about $9 ]3er month above what he received as wages. The clear gain of the manufactures was about $1,000 per year. This was a gain of 20 per cent, on the capital invested. The assessed value of the real estate in Tucker in 1880 was $418,703; that of the personal property was $60,999, 182 HISTOKY OF TUCKEK COUNTY. total, $479,702. The State tax was $2,035 ; county, $6,903 ; town, village and school district, $2,297 ; total, $11,235. In 1880, Tucker was in debt $118. If the tax had been equally divided among the farms, it would have been $29 for each. It was $3.56 for each man, woman and child in the county. It was $18.21 for every voter. The tax was $2.34 on the $100. It may not be amiss to give some scattered figures rela- tive to the schools of the county. In 1882, there were 96 trustees in the county, and 15 members of the board of education. There were 34 school houses, of which 8 were made of logs and 26 were framed. There were 35 rooms in all. The St. George school had two rooms. Of the 35 rooms, all had desks but four, and altogether there were 117 square yards of black-board. This was 3^ yards to each room. All the school-houses together were valued at $6,- 144, and the value of school lands was $367. The average value of the houses was $181. The school furniture was valued at $215, and the apparatus at $262. The total value of school property was $6,989. Between the ages of 6 and 16, there were 422 boys and 425 girls. Over 16 and under 21, there were 146 boys and 84 girls. Total, 1,077. Of this number, 817 attended the public schools. The average daily attendance was 489. Three-fourths of the children in the county attended school. Of tliose enrolled, 59 per cent, attended school all the time during the term. During this year (1882) there were 62 boys and 56 girls enrolled for the first time. The boys were tard}^ 75 times, and the girls 63 times. Among the boys there Avere 25 cases of truauc}^ and among the girls, 14. Tiie number whipped was 62 boys and 66 girls. One girl was suspended from school, and no boy. Of tliose nei- MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. 183 tlier absent nor tardy, there were 33 boys and 35 girls. The average age of the boys was 11 years, of the girls 10 years. There were only two cases in which teachers were absent from their schools. Not a teacher in the county had at- tended State Normal School. Of Tucker's 36 teachers, 27 were men and 9 Avere women. The men taught 82 months, the women 29 months. The average length of term was 69 days. In Geography, there were 82, Orthography^, 36, English Grammar, 80, Arithmetic, 297, History, 37. Of the teachers, three men and no woman subscribed for an educational journal. Seven men and 3 women were teaching their first term. In the First Reader, there were 93 pupils ; Second Reader, 99 ; Third Reader, 81 ; Fourth Reader, 138 ; Fifth Reader, 80; Sixth Reader, 109. In writing there were 281, and in spelling GG6. The County Superintendent made 26 A^sits to the schools. The members of the board of ed- ucation made 70 visits, and the trustees 99. Other persons visited the schools 277 times. At the close of the last school year (1881) there was in the treasury, Teachers' Fund, $691. The levy on real and personal property was $1,334. From the State School Fund $841 was received. Total receipts from all sources for Teachers' Fund, $2,868. In 1882, the teachers holding No. 1 certificates received salaries Avliich, in the aggregate, amounted to $787, of which the men got $490 and the women $297. The teachers with No. 2 certificates got $1,203, of which the men received $881 and the women $322. There were no women teaching on No. 3 certificates. The men on No. 3's were paid $162. The Sheriff received $215 for handling this money. 'Che total expenditures of the Teachers' Fund amounted to $2,252, and there was in the treasury a balance of $708. 184 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. Of the building fuiul at the commencement of 1882, there was in the treasury (from the preceeding year) a balance of $157. The levy on the total value of the property was $1,292. The total receipts from all sources were $1,450. The county paid $117 on the bonded school debt. Other expenditures were, for land, $15 ; for houses, $20 ; for fur- niture, $1.50 ; for apparatus, $35 ; total, $189. Paid |10 for rent ; $7.80 for repairs ; $185 for fuel ; $11 as interest. The Sheriff's commission was $82 ; the Secretaries received $75. The total cost, from the Building Fund was $809. The Tucker County Institute that year had an attendance of forty- two, of whom thirty-six were men and six were women. The Institute was conducted by Prof. A. L. Fike. There was in attendance one teacher who had taught ten years or more, and nine who had taught over five years. The others had taught shorter terms, 1, 2, 3 and 4 years. At the commencement of 1877, Tucker County had on hand as Teachers' Fund, $273, and received from the State, $826, from the levy, $1,560, from other sources, $48 ; total, $2,709. Of the Building Fund, there was on hand a balance of $809. From the levy for the Building Fund, $1,228 was received ; total, $2,037. There was paid, for land, $10 ; for houses, $1,004 ; for repairs, $81 ; for fuel, $84 ; for furniture, $35 ; for apparatus, $1.50 ; for interest, $1.50 ; for commis- sions, $11 ; for enrollment, $17 : the Secretaries of boards of education were paid salaries to the amount of $115 ; the contingent expenses were $59 ; total, $1,421. In 1877, Tucker had 22 school-houses, of which 18 were frame and 4 were log. Three Avere not yet completed, and two were completed that year. The value of land was $227; that of the school-houses $6,257 j of the furniture, $119; apparatus, $142 ; total, $6,745. MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. 185 In the county in 1877, there were 1005 school children, of whom there were 526 boys and 479 girls. Six of these ■were colored. In attendance at school there were 556, of whom 296 were boys, and 260 were girls. Tucker had that year 30 teachers, of whom 25 were men and 5 were women. The men taught 78 months and the women 14 months ; total, 92 months. The average length of the schools was 2.83 months. The average age of the boys at school was 10^ years, of the girls 9f years ; general average, 10| years. The number studying in each branch was as follows : Or- thography, 546 ; Beading, 385, Writing, 298 ; Arithmetic, 234 ; Geography, 43 ; English Grammar, 94 ; History, 14 ; Other branches, 44. There were 5 Secretaries in the county ; 15 Commissioners ; and 25 Trustees. The County Superintendent made 32 visits to the schools. Other per- sons visited the schoola 76 times ; total, 108. The average cost for each pupil, in 1877, was $13.50. A complete list of the teachers of the county from its first organization to the present time would prove interest- ing to so few, and is so hard to compile, that it is omitted, and in its stead is given the name and grade of each teacher of the county since 1876. The Superintendents of that time have been TV. B. Maxwell, L. S. Auvil and J. M. Shafer. LIST OF TEACHERS. 1877. NUMBER ONE. C. M. Moore Miss M. C. Purkey Miss Agnes Gilmore G. W. Day S. L. Stalnaker Miss Lizzie Parlcey L. E. Goff Lloyd Hansford L. S. Poling K. F. Harris S. N. Swisher E. C. Moore Charles Skidmore Miss Jennie Maxwell J. W. Freeman I. P. Propst Mrs. A. D. Adams J. W. Lambeit A. G. Lambert J. P. Call M. C. Feather Talbott Ferguson J. M. Shafer J. W. Moore N0MBEE TWO. D. L. Dumirs NUMBER THREE. MlSS S. C. LlStOn J. T. Mason Miss S. V. Garner G. W. Shirk number four Thomas Marsh A. Hudkins J. S. Poling J. G. Digman Miss F. L. Mason 186 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. NUMBER ONB. N. D. Adams S. N. Swisher J. II. Snyder NUMBER TWO. T. G. Danels L. E. Gainer L. E. Goff E. C. Moore .1. T. Mason .J. >I. Shafer L. S. Copper :\tiss Leiie Lynn G. y. Day 1878. J. M. Straliin .r. C. Koby A. M. Steniple NUMBER THREE. J. B. Blackman A. Moore s. P. Hayes o. L. Phillips .1. S. Poling J. S. D. Bell li. P. Harris J. F. Jewel ?>Ilss Lizzie Piirkey Miss A. G. Gllmore George W. White S. C. Baker G. W. Shaffer J. B. Lambert NUMBER FOUR. L. W. Harris P. Y. Runner J. T. Shaffer J. H. Mester Frank Asliby S. P. Hayes Taibott Fesguson G. W. Shaffer Mary James C. S. Watson NUMBER ONE. J. M. Shafer Mi ss A. E. Fansler Miss M. A. Gutherie J. A. Swisher M. L. White D. A. Hooton NUMBER TWO. Isaac Hetrie S. C. Baker G. N. Day L. E. Goff 1879. W. Bennette G. W. Shafer James Poling- J. P. Auvll J. W. Moore J. H. Snyder G. W. Stalnaker J. C. S. Bell F. C. Bradshaw J. B. Lambert G. W. Shirk Miss Lizzie Purkey IMlss Agnes Gllmore Miss A. F. Bowman Mrs. S. V. Mester NUMBER THREE. J. N. Huffman J. D. Stalnaker R. K. Philips C. L. Watson D. W. Wright Mrs. M. M. Class G. P^urguson NUMBER FOUR. S. F. Hart NUMBER ONE. J. A. Swisher M. A. Gutherie J. B. Cox ■J. M. Shafer NUMBER TWO. H. G. Daniels J. L. Plfer P. W. LipscomI) S. C. Baker 1880. H. M. Godwin Isabel Parsons C. W. Long A. C. Dumli-e L. W. James Carrie Parsons W. B. Jenkins q. S. Poling Alice Hansford S. S. Roderick S. H. Godwin J. F. Hunt G. W. Shaffer Vance Graham S. J. Posten U. G. Hartley Lewis Johnson NUMBER THREE. T. H. Goff R. R. Philips F. M. Arnett J. L. Wince A. E. Poeliug Mary James NUMBER ONE. A. G. Flke J. A. Swisher Stuart Wilworth Julia M. Evans Hu Maxwell W. C. Parsons S. Yorents NUMBER TWO. G. W. James Eliza Parsons NUMBER ONE. Hu Maxwell 1881. Ozella Hansford Alice Hansford W. B. Jenkins P. W. Lipscomb Carrie Parsons D. W. Ryan c. W. Long Mary James Kate Dumlre Isabel Parsons A. E. Poling G. A. Goff II. J. Dumire G. E. Goff 18S3. Kate Dumire H J Dumire Charles V. Adams S. C. Barker James Boner J. H. Snyder J. F. Hunt J. S. Cornwell A. S. Hough. NUMBER THREE. S. M. Adams 1). \V. Wright F. M. Arnett J. II. Cordray R. R. Philips. Carrie Parsons C. W. Long Joseph Selby MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. 187 NUMBER TWO. Ozella Hansford Eliza Parsons W. J. James P. W. LlpscomlD, L. H. Goff, G. W. James, D. W. Ryan NUMBER ONE. Jesse G. Vansooy Carrie Parsons Eliza Parsons >I. J. Fansler C. H. Streets C. W. Adams S. M. Adams Samantlia Dumlre A. C. Poling Alclnda Shafer J. L. Philips S. M. Adams J. E. Mason (iuy P. Schoonover John F. Hunt 1883. E. J. Domire R. K. Phillips J. L. Phillips J H. Moore W. R. Shaffer J. F. Hunt W. P. Jett F. M. A. Lawson C. C. Douglas G. W. Shirk G. W. Shafer Alclnda Shafer D. W. Wright Alice Hansford W. S. Godwin L. W. Nester N. C. Lambert J. B. Lamhert A. Y. Lambert W. A. Ault W. B. Ault Lizzie Purkey NUMBER THREE >L J. Harris A. J. Douglas D. B. Smith G. B. Skidmore NUMBER TWO. David Long Some may lind interest in lookinf^ over a few scraps of statistics, selected at random from old reports. In 1867, the levy for tlie Building Fund in Tucker was only $250, and tlie receipts from it readied only $25. Noth- ing was received from any otlier source. Nothing was ex- pended. The reports detail nothing, if there were any transactions in this business. Tlie County Superintendent got $108.33. No other officers got anything. At that time, 1867, Tucker had 17 districts, with two frame houses and ten log houses for schools. The average value was $92; the aggregate value $1,275. There were ten schools taught, and in attendance there were 348 boys and 340 girls, total, 688. There were ten teachers, nine of whom were men. The average salary of the men was $23 per month ; the v>-oman received $18. The general average of the wages was $22.5 per month." There were sixteen applicants examined. Two failed to get certificates. One person got a No. 1 certificate ; the rest got lower grades. From the general school fund, in 1867, Tucker got $733. As documents only, the Keports of the County Superiu- * The State Superintendent's Report places the general average at $21 ; and, for his deficiency in arithmetic, he may stand corrected. 188 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. tendents of 1867 and 1877 are given. A decided improve- ment during the intervening ten years may be noticed ; but tlie school interests of the county have gone forward more since 1877 than during the ten years next preceding. It may be of interest to some to see side by side the Re- ports of the County Superintendents of Tucker for two years. For this pui-pose the Reports of 1867 and 1877 are given as follows : TUCKER COUNTY.— 1867. The school system is not receiving as hearty a welcome as it de- serves. There are many who are bitterly complaining of its gen- eral principles ; that it is not acceptable to the rural districts. The country is very tliinly settled, and the school districts are very large. The school-houses are few. Taxation is oppressive, and many live too remote from the school-houses to receive any advantage from them. They have their proportion of the tax to pay, and their children are wholly deprived of schools. These par- ties should of right be exempt from the school tax. Of the three townships into which this county is divided, two (Hannahsville and Black Fork) levied a tax sufficient to continue the schools four months or longer. St. George township refused to make any levy for school or for building purposes. The schools that were taught last winter did well. In the winter of 1865-6 the boards of education in their resi^ective townships put in operation many more schools than the funds under their con- trol would sustain, thus incurring a heavy indebtedness on the townships. This policy was a bad one, and produced unfavorable results. I think the boards are guarding against this evil for the future. But little is said or done as yet in the way of putting schools in operation. Some districts are beginning to move in that direction, and I hope for favorable results. A. H. Bowman, County Sup't. TUCKER COUNTY.— 1877. In submitting this, my second annual report, I have the satisfac- tion of knowing that the same is substantially correct, although there appears to be some difference between the colunuis of receipts MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS. 189 and expenditures as against the balances, yet this rises from the fact that the Secretaries have counted as balances the amount in the Sheriff's hands at his settlement with the County Court at the June term, 1877 ; whereas, at that time there was a large number of orders for money outstanding, which outstanding orders were reckoned by the Secretaries as expenditures. The boards have no means of knowing what claims are outstanding, or what paid only as they can get it from the Clerk of the County Court ; the Sheriff of this county having hitherto wholly neglected to settle with the boards. However, this will be remedied by the late amendments to the school law. In my opinion, the report required of Secretaries might be made less complicated, and yet contain all the necessary matter required to give proper date, &c. Our county imports too many teachers from other counties, and even from other states. When we have more resident teachers, it will be better for us. All the boards of education, at the beginning of the school year, passed orders that they would allow nothing for sweeping and building fires. The result was a suit in which the court decided that as the boards have general supervision of school matters, that such an order may be made. While the attendance upon our schools the past year has not been as large as might have been wished for, yet it must be kept in mind that our county is thinly- inhabited, and that many of the pupils have to travel three or four miles to get to the nearest school house. But, regardless of this and other difficulties, our people have become firmly endeared to our school system. As a rule, there appears to be a steady im- provement in our teachers year by year. All of which is respectfully submitted. W. B. Maxwell, County SupH. I CHAPTER XL NEWSPAPEnS OF THE COUNTY. On November 22, 1878, appeared tlie first copy of the Tucker County Pioneer.'^ It was edited by Charles L. Bow- man, and was printed every Friday morning at St. George. The subscription rate was one dollar per year. It was the first paper published in the county, and its need was felt by the people. The paper had a " patent " side, printed in New York. In politics, the x^a^per was independent. It claimed to represent the best interests of Tucker County. The first issue was of three hundred copies. Within a "week two hundred and fifty subscribers were obtained. Since then, the subscription has ranged from three hundred and fifty to seven hundred names. During the remaining weeks of 1878, and the year 1879, the Pioneer flourished, with nothing to interrupt its success. It was supported by Democrats and Republicans alike ; and its corps of correspondents consisted of the best talent in the county. 1880 was an election year, and in Tucker County, local politics ran high. There soon became room for contention, and the Democrats split their party into two factions, one known as Independents and the other as Conventionals. *As long ago as 1869, an effort was made to start a newspaper in St. George. W. Scott Garner, of Preston County, endeavored to form a joint stock company for tliat purpose, but tlie amount subscribed was insufticlent, and Mr. Garner returned to Kingwood, where he engaged In journalism, and established a " Tucker County Department " in his paper. The name, Tucker Countij Pioneer, was first used by Mr. Garner, In connection with a manuscrtpt paper started by him in the ■v\'inter of 1874-5, while teaching the White Oak School, a short distance above St. George. This paper was read every Friday afternoon, during the regular literary exercises. NEWSPAPERS. 191 Old family fends were probably at the bottom of it all ; and this family quarrel was carried to such an extent that it became incorporated with and lost in the political issues. One wing of the Democrats favored a convention to nom- inate county officers, while the other wing opposed it as unnecessary. Contrariness was more of a faction in these issues than real policy; but, still, the Conventionals went ahead in their plans for a convention. The Pioneer was opposed to the convention from the very first, and waged an uncompromising war against it. It claimed that there was no occasion for it, and that it would excite an opposition that would divide the Democratic party, and split the political solidity of our county into fragments. But, there Avas much room for difference of opinion, and the partisans of the convention went forward in their work, and called the convention together on the twenty-first of June, 1880. They put their ticket in the field. The forebodings seemed ominous from the very first; for, a murmur of dissatisfaction went up from every part of the county. The men x^ut in nomination were evidently not the choice of the majority of the people. The convention now began to be called a clique or ring. The Pioneer opposed every man put in nomination ; and, among the conventionals, the Avant of a newspaper began to be felt. It was this occasion that called the T-tid'er Dem- ocrat into existence. On August 12, 1880, it arrived in St. George, having been removed from Taylor County, West Yirginia, where it had been in existence a year under the name of the New Era, owned by Messrs. J. P. Scott and M. J. Bartlett. The press on which it was printed was thought to be the oldest in the State, having first been used in Charleston. Soon after the arrival of the press at St. 192 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. George, Scott sold his interest to Lloyd Hansford and L. S. Auvil. The paper supported the convention and the nomi- nees, and was supposed by its supporters to be Democratic. The contention between the tAvo papers, and the two fac- tions, grew more determined each day. Never in the history of the county had a campaign been fought with such ani- mosity. A. B. Parsons was the nominee for the office of Prosecuting Attorney, and P. Lipscomb was the Independ- ent. William E. Talbott was the nominee for sheriff, opposed by A. C. Minear, Independent. The hardest fight was for these offices, but the contest for the others was bitter in the extreme. The Democrat labored under disadvantages. Its outfit of machinery and material was defective and incomplete, and it found much difficulty in its press work. However, it kept steadily at work for a cause that was plainly losing ground. The Pioneer, under the editorial management of C. L. Bowman, grew in circulation and influence. Its sub- scribers at this time amounted to over seven hundred, while that of the Democrat was considerably less than half that number. As the election drew near, the excitement rose to fever heat, and there was scarcely a voter in the county who did not feel a personal interest in the contest. Everybody seemed waiting and anxious for the final struggle, which, as they said, must decide whether the convention or the voters were to be umpire in Tucker County. We are to judge the justness of the issues by the result; for, in a republican coiintry, as long as it remains a republic, the majority must rule. The election came at last ; and the result was an over- whelming victory for the Independents, the party of the NEWSPAPEKS. 193 Pioneer. That paper, in its succeeding issue, carried its exultation "^^dtli a great manifestation of triumph, and dis- played in its columns cuts and representations of the ^'ic- tors and the vanquished. There were a number of cuts, but the following reproduction of one of them will give an idea of their character : ^ The following poem was written for the occasion bj some wag, and found its way into the columns of the Pioneer. It represents, in an allegorical manner, the campaign and the defeat of the modern Hohenlinden : 194 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY BATTLK OF ST. GEORGK. Ijxoritur clamorqne virion flangorquc tuhannn. In Tucker when the snn was low, Beside Mill Run's chub-breeding flow. There was a rather fj:hostly show, A show of dire ininiensity. For, candidates from near and far Had gathered on tlie gravel-bar ; Their faces were as black as tar With hate and animosity. "With muttering rage they seemed to choke. And wildly shrieked "amoke ! amoke !* As fierce the storm with fury broke Upon the vast menagerie. Soon they began to Avhoop and tear, And grab each other by the hair And dash them on the ground and swear In blood-emblazoned revelry. (In high above the battle plain The gravel stones flew up amain As thick as fell the iron rain Upon the hills of Gettysburg. Then Bowman t looking from his den. Beheld the awful mess of men. And wished that he had never been A Tucker County editor. He gazed about the field of gore Like Neptune gazed the ocean o'er : He fainted on the office floor Like Neptune's nephew, Mulciber. More horrid still the battle grew. They mauled each other black and blup And tore the very sky in two With yells and screams and bellowings. Some groveled on the gory ground Amid the thumping thump and pound, And some went si)inning round and round Like crippled flies and whirligigs. 'A Kaftir word ineunlus " kill." i C. L. Bowmau, editor of tlie Pioneer. NEWSPAPEKS. 195 And some, the little ones they say, Got kicked in that fantastic fray Up nearly to the Milky Way, And twice as high as Jupiter. And some, the bigger ones "tis said, (rot whacked and cracked across the head With broken rails and slugs of lead Until they wailed most balefully. The middle-sized, the story runs, Went whizzing like the powder tuns At Shipka Pass, when gattling guns Belched forth their nitro-glycerine. Yet, deeper grew the dreadful Avar, And Avoe betide the gra,vel-bar 1 It looked like Coiikling while Leuiar Was handling him at Washington. 'Twas dug and heaved in nnghty piles. Like Borneo's volcanic isles. They heard the rumpus many miles, They say 'twas heard in Beverly. But, when the evening sun was down No candidate was left to frown In Tucker Countj-'s only town ; They all had perished manfully. Their blood was hot and they were brave ; They fought their Y^ickled pork to save ; They fought for office or their grave And perished on the gravel-l)ar. Then i^eople came with faces blank And hauled them like a load of plank And dumped them o'er the river bank While Bowman sang their obsequies. Tlie election was not a surprise ; but, it set heavily upon the defeated candidates. The people thronghout the count}' seemed to feel relief that it "was past. The Pioneer came out with a "patent side," and the Democrat sus- pended publication, and got out a paper only once in sev- eral weeks, until February 14, 1881, when William M. Cay- 196 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. ton arrivetl to take charge of it. It was now owned princi- pally by a stock company, and was in a deplorable condi- tion. Its circulation was very limited, and its press and iype insufficient. W. M. Cayton was born in Upsliur Count}-, West Vir- ginia, 1862 ; moved when ver}^ jo^^iig to Parkersburg, and thence to Cincinnati, where he remained eight years. He then returned to Harrison County, West Virginia, and re- mained there four years, part of the time in the office of the Clarhslmag N'ews. February 14, 1881, he came to St. George, and has since edited the Democrat, and has built up the financial condition of the paper to some extent. The Democrat has passed through many vicissitudes of for- tune. It came to supply a need that was not extensively felt, and for that reason its support has not l)een as exten- sive and uniform as its proprietors could wish. At times, too, its editorial management has not been excellent, for, at times, it was not paying property, and a good editor would not stick to it. In politics it claims to uphold the principles of Democracy; but, its extreme views, and its uncompro- mising opposition to all who differ from it, have had a ten- dency to build up the Republican party in the county, and its work in that direction, though unintentional on its part, has been greater than it has to build up the cause of the Democrats. The party which it represented, the conventioiials, car- ried the election of 1882, and the victory had a tendency to build up the cause of the Democrat, and placed it on a firmer footing than it ever was before. The Pioneer has passed through no such vicissitudes. Since its first issue it has gone steadily forward, or, at least, has never retrograded. Its financial success has not been NEWSPAPEES. 197 immense ; but, it has always been able to keep in tlie field ■without the aid of a stock compan}' — except, at the very first, when it received some support from individuals, all of which was paid back as borrowed money. The paper's in- fluence in the county has been permanent. It is independ- ent in pontics, and has aimed principally to build up the county, socially and financially. In February, 1884, it was bought by Hu Maxwell, Cyrus H. Maxwell and Jeff Lipscomb. Within a few weeks Lips- comb sold his interest to the other members of the firm. In politics it still represented no party to the exclusion of others. The benefit that Tucker County has gained from the two papers has been considerable. Nearly every family in the county reads either one or the other of them, and the influ- ence for good must be felt. There is room for the papers to extend their influence, and they surely will within the course of a few more years. They should be co-partners with the schools and churches in guarding and advancing the public good. CHAPTER XII. THE ST. GEORGE BAIL AiiTHOUGH Ave have no forensic eloquence to rival Henry and Cicero, yet our county lias its legal ability, and as sucli it is not afraid or ashamed to place it before the State as a competitor in the courts against the lawyei-s from any part of West Virginia. Our little Court-house has been the scene of contention, argument and debate, in which not only our own lawyers, but those from other counties, have met at the bar, and fought for justice, or parleyed over legal technicalities. It is not more than is due these gentlemen that they be given a place in history, to which their pro- fession and labors in the cause of right so undoubtedly and so justly entitle them. WILLIAM EWIN. Hon. William Ewin, of Irish nativity, has, for nearly forty years, been a lawyer, practicing in Tucker since its organization, and living here for more than ten years before. His ability as a lawyer has long been recognized, not only in his own count}'^, but in neighboring counties, and, in a measure, throughout the State. His education and general intelligence have made him prominent in his profession, and he has ever been among the first to investi- gate new subjects and to acquaint himself with them. At the bar, he would not condescend to unmanly abuse or resort to chicanery to gain an advantage over a rival. If he could not succeed by fair, honest and honorable means, he preferred failure. An honest defeat, with him, was bet- THE ST. GEORGE BAE. 199 ter than a dishonest victoiy. Opponents in argiiement and debate were treated with all the respect of colleagues. In this was one of the secrets of his success as a lawyer. It was known that what he said was uninfluenced by prejudice or partisanism, and he was taken at his word. That his legal ability was known and appreciated by the people of his county is attested b}^ the confidence which they have ever placed in him. They have bestowed upon him various offices of trust, feeling fully assvired that no scheme of gain or no party preference could influence him from the field of honor and duty. Confidence placed in him was by him regarded sacred ; and, in all the official acts of his life there is not one instance where he departed or de- viated from the course marked out by his sense of honor. If every bar in the State and country could feel the influ- ence of one or more such men as Senator Ewin, the legal profession would soon enjoy an elevation above that which is consequent upon a scramble and contention for gain, no matter by what means it is to be reached ; there would be one more step gained in the general cause of advancement, which is marking the present era in our history and has marked the eras of the past ; Avliich is separating dignity and honor from infam}^ and fraud, and lifting this noljle profession, the noblest, perhaps, of the world, above that baseness to which the tendency of the age has, at times, seemed disposed to lower it. RUFUS MAXWELL. In the earliest years of Tucker County, Rufus Maxwell was one of the most active members of the l)ar. He had practiced at Weston, in Lewis Count}', before that time, and had there quite an extensive business. AVlien he came 200 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. to Tucker, it Avas a part of E-andolpli, tlie separation not yet having taken place. He was -with those who worked for the n(;w county, and wlien at length, on March 6, 185G, the Act of the Legislatiire creating the county was passed, he was material in assisting to organize the functions of gov- ernment and justice for the new count}'. Owing to some imperfections in the Act, this was a difficult task, and it re- quired mucli labor from those who had undertaken it and who had it to do. Mr. Maxwell was the first Prosecuting Attorney of Tucker County, having been elected in 1850. He held the office four years, and, in the election of 1860, was re-elected over Thomas Eummell, who was at that time a well-known law- yer of our county. In 1861, the war came on, and the ajffairs of our county were in a bad fix. "We were often under neither Federal nor Confederate government ; but each claimed jurisdiction over us, and the result was that at times we were under rule little better than anarchic. Officers had no power to execute the functions of their offices ; and, rather than hold a trust over which they had not jurisdiction, man}" of our county officers resigned, and let things take their course, as they would anyhow. Among those Avho thus retired M'as Eufus Maxwell. He retired not only fvom the office of Prosecuting Attorney, but also from the profession of the law. It had grown distasteful to him, and from that time he had nothing more to do Avith it. A. B. rARSONS. Hon. A. B. Parsons stands before the people principall}" as a land and criminal lawyer, although in chancery practice his business is extensive. He is most successful before a jury. He has studied well the modes of presenting an ar- gument in the most forcible manner, and in this lie has THE ST. GEOEGE BAR. 201 hardly an equal and no superiors in tliis or the neighboring counties. In his early life he "vvas a farmer and school teacher ; but, in 1870, in his twenty-sixth year, he commenced reading law, and was admitted to the bar at St. George in 1872. In 1876 he was elected Prosecuting Attorney and served four years, having succeeded Hon. William Ewin in the office. In 1880 he was instrumental in the organization of the Democratic party in Tucker County. In 1882 he was elected from Tucker and Randolph to the Legislature, by sixty-eight majority over three Democrats and a prominent Republican. The several offices which he has held have not, in a great measure, kept him from his legal profession, although he has filled such offices Avith honor and ability. Scarcely a case comes before the Court in which he is not a counsel for one side or the other. His practice extends through the courts from the bench of the Justice to the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. In the cause of the State against Heath, a well-known case, Mr. Parsons was counsel for the defendant, and gained the suit, which was taken from Tucker to Taylor County. His first case commenced before a Justice and was decided in the Circuit Court. In the Supreme Court his practice has been extensive. His practice extends to the Circuit Courts in several of the counties of West Virginia." LLOYD HAXSFOED. As a lavryer Mr. Hansford has only a short record, hav- ing so recently entered the profession. But, in his qualifi- cations he starts none behind his competitors and col- leagues at the bar. A scholar of finished education, he be- *See Brief BiograplUes. 202 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. gins with fewer disadvantages than many ■whose educations are more limited. He is the only gradiiate in Tucker County from the State Normal School, and was our first graduate from any State school. He graduated in 1879, in his twenty-second year. In 1880 he went to Clarksburg and studied law^ under Caleb Boggess. After six months he returned to Tucker, but still continued the study of law, and at regular times returned to Clarksburg to recite to Boggess. On the first of Januarj^, 1884, he received license to practice law, having been examined by Judges Boyd, Jacobs and Fleming." L. S. AUVIL. As a lawyer, L. S. Auvil is onl^'^ a few months the senior of Lloj'd Hansford, having obtained his license to practice, in May, 1883, after two years study of the law. He" was examined before Judges Ice, Boj'd and Jacobs. He was in his twenty-ninth year when he obtained license to practice. He had, before that time, served several years as County Superintendent of Tucker. Since he entered the profession of law, he has been successful in every particular, and has been counsel in several important cases. He was at one time editor of the Tucker County Democrat, which paper he sold to William Cayton, and turned his attention wlioll}^ to the law. t W. 15. MAXWELL, On August 31, 1871, W. B, Maxwell received license to practice law, having been examined before Judges C. S. Lewis, John Brannon and J, S. Huffman, He had been studying laAv three years, and had made himself thoroughly acquainted with the forms and technicalities of the law be- * For a further sketch of Mr. Uansford see " Brief Biographies." tSee "Brief Biographies." / / W. B. Maxwell. THE ST. GEORGE BAR. 203 fore he presumed to enter into the profession. He had spent several years attending school at Morgantown, Weston and Clarksburg, and, at that time, was regarded as the most finely educated man in the county. Having gained an important case before Justice William Talbott, at the first of his professional life — it was his very first case — he established or Avon a reputation at once as a lawyer of ability. His practice soon became considerable ; and he followed up his first success with a series of others, so that, ere long, he had gained for himself a permanent practice. He has never particularly studied to become a criminal lawyer. It is not to him the most desirable branch of the profession ; although, in numerous cases which have been entrusted to him he has proven himself possessed of the characteristics that go to make up a criminal lawyer of the first class. The main set of his inclination is toward civil cases ; and in this his superior, considering his age, perhaps, cannot be found in West Virginia. To understand and bring into practice the principles of the common law seem natural to him. He has made him- self the master of Blackstone, Kent, Tucker, Minor, Jones, and other lawyers who have penetrated unexplored fields. As a speaker he stands pre-eminent. None of his col- leagues surpass him in this. With a clear voice and a dis- tinct articulation, he speaks Avitli a natural earnestness and force that surpasses all that artificial culture could do. The juries whom he addresses forget the man in the subject, and hear not the words so much as the meaning that is in them. He never appeals to passion or depends upon mo- mentary excitement for success. He relies upon sober rea- 204 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. son to decide for liim. If, in the course of an address, lie finds that his jury have been placed under the influence of furor or undue enthusiasm, it is his first study to lead them back again to a normal mood, then to appeal to their natural reason and understanding. No lawyer of Tucker County has, or ever has had, a more extensive practice than he. His business is large and is fast increasing in the Supreme Court of Appeals of the State. In chancery practice he is eminently successful, and at such business he has no peer at this bar. The suits of the large land-holders are placed in his hands, and the party who can secure his services considers himself fortu- nate. He has never allowed politics to interfere with his profession, although his political ability is scarcely second to his ability in the law. At the age of thirty, he finds him- self not only at the head of the legal profession of his county, but also well established in neighboring counties, and recognized throughout the State. r. LIPSCOMB. The present Prosecuting Attorney of Tucker County has "built for himself a business and worked himself into a practice that speaks plainly of his success in the law. He is a self-educated man ; and, by his own exertions he has built his own business. He first filled the ofiice of County Superintendent of schools for Tucker County, and reduced our school system to more order than it was ever in before. During this time he was zcalousl}' prosecuting his study of the law, and was making good progress. But, it was even several years before this that he obtained license to practice. He established himself at St. George, and was the only lawyer there. Mr. Ewin resided near the town, but not in it. The town, too, was then much smaller than it is now, THE ST. GEOKGE BAE. 205 and there was little business clone. But, Avlien the term of Circuit Court came, business grew more lively, and the law- yers found more to occupy them. Lipscomb did not confine his practice to Tucker County, even at the first. He practiced in the Maryland Court, at Oakland, in Garrett County, and had nearly as much bus- iness there as in his own county. His greatest success has ever been in jury practice. He well understands the argu- ments that will persuade and convince, and he knows just to what men each order of argument is most applicable. In his style of speech he is more practical than theatrical. He speaks to the point, and is not so particular as to the words used. He never fails to arrest and hold the attention of a jury. Of course, a lawj-er of this kind will be more or less suc- cessful in criminal practice ; and, a criminal case seldom comes before the court that is not represented on one side or the other b}" Lipscomb. Li the memorable campaign of 1880, he was elected to the office of Prosecuting Attorney, and held the office four years.* » See " Brief Biograpliies " for additional matter on tlie lawyers of Tucker County. CHAPTER XIIL TnA YELERS. Without official records to show that such is the case, it is still safe to say that no county of West Virginia has, in proportion to its population, furnished more emigrants to the western countr}- than Tucker has furnished. The rea- son of this may be two-fold. If the first would argue that our county's resources are not such as invite development, the second will make it plain that our people are possessed with that energy and industry' that will search the remotest corners of a continent for the most favorable openings for labor. The hills and valleys of Cheat have furnished scores and hundreds of honest men, who are now building up with the Vrest. There is hardl}* a state, probably not a state, west of the Ohio River tliat has not inhabitants from l\icker. These and their descendants, if now brought back to this county, Vv^ould probabl}' double its population iovx times. Eecently at the golden wedding of Abraham Par- sons, Esq., in the Salinas Valley, California, there were present one hundred persons who, or Avhose parents, were from Tucker. Nearly all of them belonged to the Parsons family, and had left Cheat Eiver within the past tAventy years. Yet, this is only an instance that could be equaled by other states. It is not the plan of these chapters to deal at length with Tucker's people now in distant states ; but, as it is intended to give a history of our people, it seems proper to make mention of those Avho have taken up their residence else- where. But such mention must be brief, and will be con- TRAVELERS. 207 fined to those only who are particularly remembered here, or to those whose travels and adventures claim especial attention. It is clearly to be seen that, as travelers and adventurers, the principal characters are found in the Mi- near, Parsons, Harper and Bonnifield families. It will likewise be noticed that Tucker County's travelers traveled for the most part over the Western States and California ; but some have been in the West Indies, Mexico, South America and the South Sea Islands, as well as in British America and on the Alaskan coast. Of the travelers of Tucker, none are more extensively known than Abe Bonnifield. He has been a traveler all his life, although he has never been in foreign countries but once. It is estimated that he has ridden on horseback seventy-five thousand miles. More than enough to take him round the world tliree times. He was bom in 1837, on Horse Shoe Run, and has considered that his home ever since. As is well known to all who will be likely to read this book, he was born without legs. He learned self -loco- motion as young as other children ; and when he was quite small, he could run and ride and swijn as well as tiny of the boys of the neighborhood. His early life r^iu quiet ; and during the winter he attended school, and in the summer trained pet crows to stand on one foot, and iutrnossed liz- zards and crawfish together to see which could pull the hardest. At school, he led his classes, particularly in math- ematics, in which, like his father. Dr. Arnold Bonnifield, he was very apt. It is not the purpose to give a lengthy account of his life; since he has been for j-ears engaged upon his autobiogra- phy, and the book will probably be published soon. These chapters have particidarly in view the collecting of nuxterial 208 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. that seems likely soon to be lost or forgotten ; and, as Mr. Bonnifield will publisli all tliat relates to liimself, it appears unnecessary to give a ver^^ full account liere. He has given the writer access to his manuscripts, and from them the facts here given have been mostly taken. He remained at home till his twentieth 3'ear, except an occasional visit through the eastern and western counties of West Virginia. He began to be moved by a desire for travel. He thought of Missouri, then considered a far western country ; and on January 13, 1856, he left the home of his childhood and went forth into the wide world. His brother David accompanied him. They went to Wheeling, thinking to pass down the Ohio River, thence u]) the Mississippi and Missouri. "While they were making ar- rangements for the descent, they met Mr.. A. J. Mayo, who was the manager of a traveling show that was famous in its da}'. He prevailed on the two Bonnifield bo3's to accom- pany him. This seemed a fair chance to see the world, and Bonnifield accepted it, and gave up the project of going down the Ohio River. From Wheeling, the show went to Zanesville, and from Zanesville to Newark, and from New- ark to Columbus. By this time Bonnifield began to get tired of being hauled about in truck wagons. Accordingly, he deserted the show, and spent some time trapping musk- rats along the rivers, and was nearly down to Cincinnati on the Little Miami. But, at Columbus he joined another shovf and was read}- for more trundling about. This time he was with Carbin and Denoon's Indian Troup. He traveled up and down over almost every mile of Ohio, and then passed into Indiana, and visited all the principal places in that state. He was not favorably impressed with the people whom he met there, if we may judge from his TRAVELERS. 209 letters and journal written on the ground. When he got into Michigan he began to be more fayorably impressed with the country and people. The main feature of the show was the Indians. They soon became fast friends with Bonuilield. and would do whatever he told them to. B}' taking advantage of this, he created a big disturbance in camp one night. The Indians were lounging about on their blankets, some asleep and others not, when he offered three cents to one if he would bite the chief's toe off. The chief was asleep, but his toe protruded from under the blanket. The Indian snapped it up in his teeth, and probably would have gotten it off if the chief had not happened to awake at that moment, and set up a terrible yelling and flouncing about so that he pulled loose from the Indian's teeth. The fight became general, and the war-whoops rang through the town until the jieople thought the world must be coming to an end. He passed over into Canada, and wandered up and down over that desolate wilderness of pine trees. Canada was at that time a great rendezvous for negroes who had escaped from slavery in the United States. Small colonies of these runaways were found at intervals throughout that country. It was a bad place for them. The land was poor and the winters were long and cold. The negroes were not pros- pering. They were too lazy to work much, and were trying to make a living by manufacturing soda from ashes. They lived in miserable log huts, and poverty and forsakenness was written on every door, and was visible about the prem- ises everywhere. " Hello there ! " said Bonnifield to an old negro who was tr3-ing to hoe his patch of corn, that was hardl}^ knee-high at the middle of August. "Hello there! joxi old black scalawag, don't you v^'ish you were back in 210 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. Yirginia twistiiif^ tobacco for your grub?" The negro looked lip and seemed to be startled ; then leaning lazily on Lis lioe-liandle, lie answered "witli a sigli : '■'■'' Deed I does ^ Bonnifield got tired of show-life, and came home. His father was then clerk of the Circuit and County Courts of Tucker, and Al)e took charge of the office. He was at this em]iloyment when the war commenced. He sympathized with the South ; but, he remained at his business in St. George until it began to be unsafe there for a southern man who made no secret of his opinions. On Monday morning, June 10, 1801, just after daylight, about fort}- Yankees came galloping into St. George, and rummaged through the town in search of Rebel flags. They found one, or claimed they did, and with it returned in triumph to Rowlesburg. Bon- nifield was charged "with haying something to do with the flag, and he was warned by friends that he was not safe. The next we hear of him he Avas in the South, accompanied by George and Bax Kalar, "William Talbott and other Tucker County boys. Pie remained in the war till the last gun was fired, and then did not surrender, but escaped on horseback from the Yalley of Yirginia, and when the fighting was at an end he came home. The whole four 3'ears that he was in the army was one continued succession of adventures and dashing marches. He was regarded as among the very best riders in the Confederate cavalry. His weight was about seventy pounds ; and being thus light, his horse, which was a power- ful one, was about the last to give out when it came to a long raid or a long retreat. He remained for the most part in the Yalley of Yiiginia ; but he was frequently in other parts. He accompanied the Imbodens in some of their memorable raids. As he was always in the very front in TRAVELERS. 211 every kind of adventure, lie was often in the hottest part of the battle, and in the foremost rank of the charging col- umns. If he was cut off from his men, and in danger of being shot, he would throw himself from his horse, hang by his hand to the horn of the saddle on the side least exposed to the enemy's fire, guide his horse with the other hand, and thus escape. In the tumult of the battle the foe would not notice but that the horse was riderless ; and thus he often dashed through the very lines of the enemy unseen. Such was the strength of his arms that he could hang by them for an hour without very great fatigue. He was in front of the pursuit that chased Hunter, and was among the few, who, after a terrible night of marching through the wilderness, got in front of the flying army, and gave them the check which w ell nigh resulted fatally to the Federals. Bonnifield was not in the battle of Gettysburg ; but he joined Lee's army in its retreat before it reached the Poto- mac, and was with it a few days. He went back to the A^alley, and was there when General Early, who had been sent to Lynchburg to drive Hunter out, came down the Yalley. He joined Early, and the fifteen thousand men moved off toward the Potomac, and chased General Sigel over the river into Maryland. Earl}^ set out for Washing- ton, and got within five miles of the city, when he was obliged to retreat. Thus, Bonnifield was one of the fifteen thousand Rebels who got near enough to see the flag on the Capitol at Washington, and got aAvay. He escaped back to the Yalley of Virginia. When the war ended, Bonnifield returned to Horse Shoe Run, where he has lived ever since, although he has trav- eled some since then. He visited Washington a few vears 212 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. ago to press liis claim for payment for cattle carried off by Union soldiers during the war. He spent some time at the National Capital, and had the satisfaction of seeing how near he had come to taking it during the war. He has a horse on which he has ridden nearly forty thousand miles. The horse is still living, and is now (1884) over twenty years of age. This horse and its rider are known all over the eastern part of the State ; and they have been out of the State more than five hundred times in the last twelve years. A full history of Abe Bon- nifield will probably soon be published ; and it will surely be an interesting volume. Several of the Bonnifields have been extensive travelers, although their most beaten path is to and from California. Mr. A. T. Bonnifield and his two sons, Henry and "William, are not now residents of Tucker, but they formerly were, and their frequent visits to their old home make them well known here. They have been not only extensive, but romantic travelers. A. T. Bonnifield, a cousin of Dr. Arnold Bonni- field, as well as a namesake, lived on Horse Shoe Run until he was twenty-one years of age. He married a daughter of William Corrick, Esq., of Corrick's Ford, after whom the battle of Corrick's Ford is named. In 1859, the Cali- fornia excitement took a fresh start in Tucker, and quite a number of the young men emigrated to the new State. Bonnifield was among the number. With his wife and three children, accompanied by John Minear, they sailed from New York for Panama. After buying his tickets for San Francisco, Bonnifield had just forty dollars left. This was a small sum with which to go into a strange country ; but it would have to do ; and, Avhen all were on board, the steamer passed from the harbor out into the Atlantic. TEAVELERS. 213 The ship was soon out of sight of land, and then came on the dreaded sea-sickness, which none can .understand with- out experiencing. The first night was probably the most terrible to the emigrants who had never been to sea before. They lay about the decks as helpless as dead people ; and no doubt some would nearly as lief have been dead. The ofl&cers and'crew of the ship took little more notice of the passengers who lay retching, than to roll them in heaps to get them more out of the way. A person when enduring sea-sickness will not and cannot hold up his head, and can- not help himself. For this reason the crew of the ship were much bothered to drag the helpless passengers out of the way. Bonnifield was among the sickest. He lay upon the deck in great agony all night. Men with lanterns came to him, and dragged him to the end of the ship and piled him up with the rest of the sea-sick. There he lay till morning. When it was day, he roused up, and thought he could eat some fruit. He felt for his money. It was gone. He had been robbed, probably by the men who had come to him with the lanterns. The situation in which he found himself roused him from his sickness, and he told his wife that he had been robbed of every cent. He was, indeed, in a hard fix. He had not enough money to buy a dinner when he should land in San Francisco, and a wife and three children were on his hands. It was an unpleasant situation to be placed in ; but, he did what he could to recover his money. ' He saw a sneaking looking fellow on the ship, and he was struck by the thought that the fellow had his money. So he ran to the Captain and had him search the scoundrel, who protested that he never robbed anybody. But the 214 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. Captain searclied liim. Nothing was found to prove that he had stolen the money, and he was turned loose. Bonnifield wanted all the people on the ship searched ; but the Captain would not do it, and thus that part of the mat- ter ended. Bonnifield never got his money. However, he found means of making some money. He had taken, on board a barrel of apples at New York, and he now exposed them for sale at ten cents each. The people, who were beginning to recover from their sea-sickness, bought the apples as fast as they could get them. They brought in a quantity of change. About this time a stand of bees on the ship got destroyed ; and Bonnifield bought the honey, and peddled it over the ship for twenty-five cents a mouthful. It sold fast, and he quickly disposed of his stock and realized a handsome profit. When he reached San Francisco he had barely enough money to pay his way a few miles into the country. He went to work, and gradually accumulated money enough to buy a farm. But, the farm's title not being good, he lost his money. However, he went to work at the bottom again, and in the course of a few years was again com- fortably situated. Thus he lived for seven years. His wife having died, he took charge of his children and kept them together for several years. In 1867 he determined to re-visit West Virginia. He em- barked at San Francisco for New York. Instead of cross- ing the Isthmus of P/inama, he crossed through Nicaragua, in Central America, and took a steamer on the eastern side for New Y'ork. When the ship drew near the shore on the West side of Nicaragua, a cannon was fired as a signal of approach. TKAVELEES. 215 Tills was to give tlie natives notice in time for tliem to bring th^ir ponies to the landing. It was twelve miles across the isthmus, and the passengers and freight had to be carried by land. The ship-company paid all these ex- penses. There was no railroad, as there was at Panama ; but there was a good wagon-road. The women and chil- dren were carried across in ambulances that were formerly used in the United States during the war, but had been bought by the ship-company and taken to Nicaragua, to be used as stages. '^Clie men might also ride in these coaches if they liked ; but they were given their choice of two modes of crossing. They might ride in the ambulances or on the ponies of the natives, which were hired for the pur- j)ose. The majority of them chose to ride on the ponies. The natives were Indians, and kept the ponies on their ranches near about the harbor. They were glad to make a few cents by hiring their ponies to the ship-company for the use of the passengers. They knew about what day the ship would be there, and kept their animals near at hand. Each one was anxious to get his pony used in crossing, for if he did not, he got no pay. So, when the ship was approaching the shore, the cannon w^as fired to call the Indians down to the beach. In a few minutes they were seen coming over the hills from the north, south and east. They were coming in a sweeping gallop, every one trying to be first at the landing, to be sure of getting his donkey a rider. When the ship landed at the dock, the Indians were massed around it like a besieging army. Each one was en- deavoring to impress upon some passenger the necessity of hiring that particular pony, and the jargon, pow-wow and chattering was entirely characteristic of the assembly. 21G HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY. The donkeys were white, and looked not much larger than sheep. The passengers thought it impossible that an animal so small could bear the weight of a man, and so were not much inclined to accept one in preference to the ambulance-carts. But, the officers of the ship assured the passengers that the ponies would carry them all right, and then the bargaining began. As said, the ship-company paid for the animals ; so, the passengers' only care was to select as good a one as they could. Every native insisted that his was the best ; and thus the trading ran high. Meanwhile, Bonnifield was busy getting his family started off in the ambulances ; so, when he turned about to engage a pony, he found that all the best of them were taken, and that none but poor or fractious ones were left. He had to take one of these, or none. He took one. It was small, lean, bony and looked like the refuse of all that is vile and wretched in Central America. The rest of the men were already mounted on the more prepossessing of the donkeys, and were ready to move off as soon as the word of com- mand should be given. Bonnifield took in the situation at a glance and saw that he was in danger of being left ; for he was certain that his bony beast would never keep up with the others. But, he had no time to hunt another, and all that was left for him to do was to make the best use of his means. So, picking up a heav}' club, he mounted the pony, ready to start with the others, whether he could keep up or not. "What are you going to do with that club?" yelled the In- dian who owned the animal, running up and flourishing his fist as though aboiit to strike. " I'm going to knock a whole side of ribs out of this brute if he don't keep up with the rest. That's what I'm going to do. Do j^ou understand TEAVELEES. 217 that ?" Bonnifiekl gave the Indian this answer, and tokl him to stand in the background or he woukl get a little to start with. The Indian took the hint and retired ; and Bonnifield held to his club, for he was determined not to be left in that wild country, and was not in a very good humor any way. His donkey was so small that the rider's feet almost dragged the ground. The word to start was given just as the sun was going down. Immediately the whole cavalcade was one of com- motion and excitement. The two or three hundred ponies that the passengers feared would not be able to carry them across, were now plunging up the road at a sweeping gallop, every one trying to lead the way. The smallest and most bony seemed more fiery and impetuous than those w^hich had been first chosen. The weakest was fully strong enough to carry a man as fast as he cared to go. Bonnifield was soon convinced that he had no need of a club. His donkey was so impetuous that he had to drop his cudgel and sieze the bridle with both hands. The road led through hills and vales, covered with the luxurient vegetation of the Torrid Zone. Cocoanut trees stood thick along the way ; and bamboos and reeds formed a dense copse. It was a splendid ride that evening. The sun went down before they had gone a mile ; but this only increased the beauty of the evening. It got cooler, and the cavalcade thundered on up the road. At times they halted by the wayside to buy sugar, fruit and nuts of the natives, who had built little stores every mile or two. Several of the store-keepers were negroes who had come from the United States, and had settled in that unhospitable country for the purpose of trading with travelers. 218 HISTOKY OF TUCKER COUNTY Boniiitiekl rode forward with the others till awhile after dark. The fruit and sugar that he had eaten caused such thirst that he tried at each store to get a dri]ik; but uo water was at hand, and the shop-keepers were too busy to fetch any, so he rode on. Present!}^ the road turned down a ra- vine, and far below in tiie wilderness and darkness the rip- pling of water could be heard. He said that he must have a drink, live or die. He was told that the woods were full of beasts and venomous snakes, and he would run great risk in going down in the dark. But he would not be pursuaded. Giving the rein of his pony to a companion to hold, he scrambled down the hill. He could hear the water bubbling and was guided by the noise. It %vas too dark to see any- thing. The weeds and thorns were so thick that he had to part them with his hands, and scramble over the tops, and pitch and fall, and slip and slide ; but at last he reached the water and lay down and drank. The water was cool, and when his thirst w^as allayed, he rose up with satisfaction and was preparing to start up the hill. But just then a lion sprang out the thicket and roared. Bonnifield's hair stood on end with fright, and he leaped sheer ten feet over the tops of briers, brush and rocks, up against the bluff, and thence on to the road above, where he mounted his donkey, and bid an adieu forever to the wild beasts of Central America. In an hour longer the travelers reached the Eio San Juan del Sur, where boats awaited to carry them down to the sea coast. The passage down the river was one of romance and magnificence, and is described as one of the finest in the world. The banks of the stream w^ere covered with, groves of tropical trees, and flowers always in bloom. There is no winter there. Birds with feathers bright as TEANELERS. 219 gold and silver flv among the trees, and monkeys cliatter amid tlie thickets of bamboos. Basking in tlie sun along, the water's edge, huge alligators could be seen stretching their ugly carcasses. It was along this river several years before that Capt. E. Harper had so many adventures shoot- ing alligators and chasing -uild beasts and fighting the wild Indians. When the sun was risen on the morrow, the passengers were embarked on boats, and moved gayly off down the river and across the bay. There was a considerable convoy, and it must have looked like an army to the Indians who stood on the shores and gazed wonderingly at the grand procession of boats as it moved peacefully over the shining water. "Get in the boat, you land-lubber!" yelled one of the sailors to Bonnifield who was washing his feet by let- ting them drag along through the water, over the gunwale. " Get in the boat, or the alligators will pepper jowr hash." Thus warned, he hauled his feet aboard ; and looking into the water, he could see hideous monsters swimming along under the boat, waiting for somebody to fall overboard. When the deep water was reached, the passengers went aboard a steamship and stood off for New York. The pas- sage was rough ; but all safely landed there, and Bonnifield soon reached Tucker. He remained there over a year, vis- iting in the mean time Michigan, Indiana, Ohio and lUinois, while his children attended school. He owned the horse on which Abe Bonnifield has since ridden tens of thousands of miles. In 1868, he returned to California, having married in Tucker a daughter of Job Parsons, Esq. In 1881 he again visited the East, and spent the summer in West Virginia and Kentucky. He now resides in California. CHAPTER XIV. TRA YELER8— CONTINUED. Capt. Ezekiel Harper was bom November 28, 1823. His fatlier was Adam Harper whose sketcli lias been given in a former chapter. Energy and adventure is a character- istic of the family ; and of none more than of the subject of the present sketch. His early life was spent on the home farm, and the stir and commotion of the wide world was all a blank to him. The narrow, but beautiful valley of Clover was the field of his youthful adventures, and it was there that he grew to manhood, every inch of him a man. His constitution was of iron, and his will succumbed only to the impossible. From his earliest years he was an attentive and extensive reader; and he kept himself posted on all political ques- tions, and on all the issues that the press brought before the people. When he became a man, the Valley of Clover became too narrow for him, and he began to think of new fields. Thus it was when the Mexican War came on. He had always had a desire to see the southern and western countries ; and this seemed the best opportunity that had been presented. There was no movement made in Tucker to organize a company ; but, in Barbour, Col. Henry Sterms mustered a company and held them ready for service. Harper joined the company ; and as far as can now be ascertained, he was the only man from Tucker who did. He waited anxiously for the call for his company to take TRAVELERS. 221 the field. The newspapers were filled with accounts from the seat of war. He read of the fight at Matamoras, at Monterey ; of the rout of Santa Anna from the gorges of Buena Yista, of the fall of Ringgold at Palo Alto. The battles of Resaca de la Palma, Saltillo, Cerro Gorgo and Contreas passed ofi", and still no orders came for the com- pany to take the field. The President had called for fifty thousand volunteers, and the call had been responded to by over three hundred thousand. So, there were many men who, like Harper, were waiting with more or less impatience for a call to arms. The war, although yet waged to the extremest limit of vengeance and national hatred, was plainly drawing to a close. Mexico was going down ; and defeat on defeat and rout on rout hurried her doom. The roar of the cannon had died on the field of Churusbusco ; and, the greatest and last, the storming of Chapultepec ended the war. Harper was uncalled. It was a disappointment ; but it came on him gradually, and he continued working on the farm, and dealing in cattle. But a new and more romantic field of adventure was opening for him. Scarcely had the Mexican War closed, w^hen the discovery of gold, at Sutter's Mills, in California, filled the country with excitement. Those who can remem- ber, know how the land was filled with wild stories of gold in exliaustless stores, and how the rumors ran from ocean to ocean, and adventurers risked everything in their efforts to be first and foremost on the ground. Those who cannot remember, probably will never know. It was an epoch in the world's history, in the history of America, and in the anuals of Tucker Count3% It did not work such lasting changes as the Crusades or the French Revolution ; but its 222 HISTOEY OF TUCKER COUNTY. changes and results liave left a stamp on tlie chronicles of America that will endure for ages to come. There has never been in the world anything else like it. In the great rush for the gold diggings, people came from every part of the world. Tucker, although a small territory, then not so much as a distinct county, sent not a few. Perhaps no county in America, of not a greater population, has furnished as many emigrants to California as Tucker has. It has sent them from the very first ; and they have generally been among the best of our citizens. Our own wealth and resources have only recently become known ; and, heretofore, people of enterprise could see in our nar- row vallej'S and ru gged hills little to invite exertion or to promise return for capital invested. From this cause, the most ambitious and energetic of our people, in former days, looked to farther and wider fields in Avliich to contend in fortune's arena. Our timber was then next to valueless, and our vast coal regions were then not supposed to be worth the taxes. It was on account of this that so many men of ambition and ability went west and south and north, or just any place where there was encouragement to put forth exertion. The tide has now turned, and is setting toward instead of from us. Instead of the poorest, we have one of the rich- est counties in the State. But this was not known when the rumors from California were alluring away so man}' of our young men. Gold Avas discovered in California in 184:8. The news soon spread from state to state, and it reached West Vir- ginia and Tucker County the same year. None hailed the news more gladly than Mr. Harper, who still remembered his disappointment in not getting to go to the Mexican TKAVELERS. 223 "War, and was m^ aiting for an opportunity to try something else of the same nature. Not a day was lost. He and A. P. Minear, of St. George, were the first to go. But Harper was the first. Minear went by water in 1849. Harper started in 1848, and wintered in Iowa. So anxious was he to get to the mines that he braved every danger in crossing the plains. Iowa was then on the fi'ontier. Between there and California was a wide, desert plain, and the almost im- passable Rocky and Sierra Nevada mountains. Then it was an unknown country. A few explorers and adventurers had crossed, and a few small military' posts, scattered at immense distances apart, served as the only evidence of civilized man. Large bands of wild and warlike Indians infested the region beyond the Missouri Eiver, and were ever ready to fall upon any who should come into their country. Early in the spring of 1849, Harper joined a train of ad- venturers and passed up the Platte River, and crossed the Rocky Mountains. A full journal of the company, with all that happened from day to day, would fill too much space here. Nothing of special importance took place. The routine of camp life, and traveling incidents were the same or similar from day to day. They drove ox teams, hitched to ponderous wagons. There were no graded roads. On the plains they needed none ; but, in the mountains it was often next to impossible to proceed. Sometimes they Avould let their wagons down mountains by ropes and pulleys. Or, they would fell trees, tie them by the tops to the hind axle of the wagons, and the stift" limbs, thus plowing in the ground, allowed the wagons to descend slowly. Along the Humboldt it was a wild, desert country. The hills had no water, trees, grass or shrubs. The valleys be- 224 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. tween the hills were barren and lifeless, and were often covered with salt and alkali. When the emigrants reached this region, their progress became slower than before. They conld find little forage for their cattle, and at times water was not to be had. The Indians, too, were ever hovering over the way, and none could feel safe, unless traveling in large companies. This served to keep the trains together, and, of course, made it harder to find things for the cattle to eat. It was probably the most distressing portion of all the journey ; and it was there, amid the rocky hills and alkaline plains, that many an adventurous man has found the termination of his wanderings. These delays and perplexities were not endureable to a man of Harper's ambition and determination. He was too anxious to be first upon the Calif ornian gold fields to be bothering with lazy ox teams and trundling carts, when the bourne of his dreams was only three or four hundred miles away, was not his nature. He had staid back, and endured the slow traveling until he reached the Sinks of the Hum- boldt River, that mysterious land where a river sinks in the sand, and all trace of it is lost. Here he expressed his determination to proceed in advance of the emigrants. They tried to persuade him from it, and pointed out the great dangers that would beset him if traveling alone through that wild and uncivilized country. But, like M'Clelaud, he said that he could take care of himself. He shouldered his rifle and knapsack and struck forward alone into the rugged hills and snowy mountains. The huge crest of the Sierras lay before him, towering white and ponderous toward the sky, and presenting a wall against the world beyond. It was a fatal region, and few men could have crossed it alone. TKAVELEES. 225 The Indiims li;id made paths through the ravines and gorges, Pxiid boars and panthers had tramped a trail over the ridges. These, the stars and sun, and a slight knowledge of the geograph}^ of the riA^ers, were his only giiides. At day he plodded slov.i}' along among rocks and bov/lders, or over vdde plains, covered v.'ith a crust of salt, or alkaline dust, and across desert prairies, where even the wild Indians sel- dom would venture. At night he would creep into a hole in the rocks and sleej"). Sometimes wolves Avould howl at him, and bears would stop to look at him ; but from mercj'' or fear, thej did not molest him. The Vv\ay up the Sierra Navadas v/as, like the Alps Avere to Napoleon, "barely possible." He wound his Avay from ridge to ridge and from summit to summit. Sometimes the drifts of snow blockaded his ])ath, or a deep ravine forced him to go miles out of his way. But still he went forward, and at last, after days of climbing and Avandering among the rocks and suoavs of centuries, he reached the last summit, and California lay before him. Behind him, for hundreds and hundreds of miles, stretched the dead plains of Nevada and Utah, over Avhicli he had passed. It seemed that his journey Avas almost over. He Avas on the borders of Cali- fornia, the Land of Promise to him. As he stood there, in the ])right sun and keen air of that afternoon, amid ever- lasting snows, he looked afar doAvn upon the rolling hills and boundless plains that lay like an ocean before him, and thought of the throngs that Avere then drifting thither from all parts of the earth to share in the rich harvest of golden sands. He Avas one of the most adventuresome of all. He Avas a 3'oung man, buoyant Avith all the hopes and ambitions of A-outh, and the ransacked Avorld had no impossibilities for him. He Avould yield to none in the general race for 15 220 HISTOEY OF TTU'KEll COUNTY. "we.tltli and romance. He conn ted Ijiuiself, as Le stood alone on tlie l)leak summit of that iev mountain, even tlien a conqueror. And lie "was; for juany a liero Avonld have failed wliero he had triumphed. But the end of his journev was not yet. Down, down, down, over mountains, com])a7('d a\ itli winch the Allegha- nies are molehills, he must j^o hct'ove he would reach the mines of gold. He traveled nine days alone, and ute only coffee and crackers. At the end of that tiiiu^ ;ie reached Placerville, then a small mining camp called Hangtown. He came to the camp late in the evening, witliout money or anything to eat. He went without his sup])er because he had noth- ing with which to huy it, and slt>])t on the ground for the want of a bed. The mines were just then opening, and there were not many miners in the coiintry. He kncAV not Avhere to get his breakfast tlie next morning, and Avith that problem perplexing him, he walked up and down the camp, and came to a small creek where some Spaniards were dig- ging gold. He stopped to look at them. The gold was in £ne grains, mixed through tht* sa.jid and gravel, and was separated by washing and sliaking it. It was a simple process, and when Harper had wa tidied it awhile, he con- cluded that he could do it. He went to the camp of a trader and l)orr()wed a pick and pan, and set to work digging gold to get money to buy his In-eakfast. He succeeded so wtdl that by nine o'clock he thought he had enougli to ])ay for some crackers, and carried it to the trader who paid liim six dollars for it, and offered him his breakfast free. ]>ut the latter part of the offer was declined by Hinper wlio paid for the meal froni the proceeds of his morniiig's worlc. TEAYELEES. 227 He remained at Placeville only long onough to earn a few liundred dollars, and then lie proceeded to Colonra, on the South Fork of American Eiver. Here he was offered five thousand dollars to work on a saw-mill one year ; but he declined the offer, saying that he came to California to dig gold, not to chop logs. We next find him at Eectors, on the Middle Fork of American Eiver. He and five others put in the first flume ever built on that river for mining purposes. They took a river claim that promised to yield abundantly, and made extensive preparations to open their mines. But winter was now at hand, and the annual rains commenced. They worked some in the rain, and waited for it to cease ; but it rained nearly constantly. The waters got so high that all mining had to stop. He was now out of employment, and began to wish that he had taken the contract on the mill. But he would not be discouraged. He bought a rifle and hunted deer to supply the miners with meat. This paid very well, since venison brought an enormous price in the diggings. This was the \ipper cam]) on that river ; and during the winter the Indians were troublesome. They killed several men, and broke up some of the camps. The miners organized for their defense, and a general frontier war was the result. Now commenced Captain Harper's record as a war scout. He soon became known to be a skillful woodsman, and a daring leader, and the camps placed him in command of their fighting force. His band Avas small ; but the men were picked from the chivahw of thirty states, and they knew what it was to be brave. He had the confidence of his men and he was not afraid to trust them. The Indians came down from the mountains and killed people, and fled 228 HISTORY OF TUCKEE COUNTY. back to their strong holds. It was difficult and dangerous to pursue them and hunt them out, and they went unpun- ished for sometime. But when Harper took command of the forces, the tables were soon turned. The Indians had attacked three miners, and killed one. Two were wounded and carried off as prisoners into the mountains. Harper collected his men as soon as he heard the rumor of what had been done, and by daylight he was in hot pur- suit. The savages were making for the mountains to their dens, where they had been accustomed to hide. They, no doubt, expected to get away as they had done before; but they had a different man to deal with. Harper pressed forward with all speed, and forced them upon a flying re- treat over the long, barren ridges that skirt the plains of the American River. They found that he did not turn back for rocks and cliffs. They then shaped their course for the stupendous mountains in the distance, where the snow lay deep on the ground. They evidently calculated that he would stop at the edge of the snow. But he had seen snow- before, and it was nothing more in his way than it was in theirs. Rather, it was a help, for it enabled him to follow them without spending time in searching out the trail. They now realized what kind of man they had to deal with, and they were at their wit's ends how to dodge him or to draw him into an ambuscade. There was nothing left for them but to run for their lives, and they had little time to decide upon it. It was now late at night. The pursuit had continued all da}-, with only rest long enough to eat twice. The Indians, as near as could be ascertained, had not eaten or rested at all. The snow was two feet deep, but in nearly all places it would bear the weight of a man. There was no difficulty in following the savages, and TEAVELEKS. 229 it could be noticed that something was being gained. The fact was, they were the hardest put to it to keep away any longer. They were never before pursued by a man who hung on with such bull-dog determination. Others were accustomed to foUoAv to the rocks, or probably to the snow, but there they turned back. But there was no turn back in the present case, and the Indians found it so to their sorrow ; for late at night they left their prisoners, and sep- arated in as many ways as there were Indians, which, of course, ended the pursuit. The two wounded men were picked up, more dead than alive. The party returned to camp, Avliich they reached the next evening. By this time Harper was considered the leading scout in all that country; and he was kept constantl}' on duty. He roamed among the hills and was sure to discover the trail of any Indians Avho should go toward the mining camps. They hated him, and would have killed him on sight, if they had not been afraid to undertake it. He was a splen- did shot with a rifle, and it was risky work for the Indian who would venture within two hundred yards of him. They sometimes tried to slip in at night ; but he would always jirevent it. It had been a rainy week on the American Eiver, late in the winter of 1849, and the miners had remained for the most part in their tents, amusing themselves with cards or other games. But the rain brought no rest for Harper. He was kept on scout duty all the time. He soon had searched the country for miles around ; and, in a deep val- ley, some seven miles from the mining camps, he found the den of the Indians. He reconnoitred and found them a arge band. Toward sunset he started to camp to report, 230 HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY. and as lie proceeded, he fell upou a trail running in the direction of his camps. The thought struck him that the Indians meant mischief, and he determined to follow them and hunt out their designs. He had not far to go till he espied them huddling around their tire. He took another path, and reached the mining camp about nine o'clock at night. He found everything in uproar and confusion among the miners. News had been received that the Indians had fallen ;ipon a camp of traders, near by but on the opposite side of the river. The river was too much swollen for safe cross- ing, and the traders on one side and the miners on the other were accustomed to talk each day across the stream. On that da}', when the miners went down to the river to talk across, they saw no traders, but instead they saAv a band of Indians tearing down the traders' tents, and breaking open their goods. When the news was carried to camp, it threw all into excitement, and some were in favor of re- treating toward Sacramento and others Avanted to fortify the camp and fight it through. In the midst of this commotion Harper arrived, and re- ported that he had seen a camp of the enemy not far off. He was in for an immediate attack, but some opposed him. But he collected his thirty men, and armed them for a double-quick march upon the camp of the enemy. At midnight he started with his thirty men, and picked his way through the tangled tliickets of snow-brush and manzanita that covered the hillsides. It was a dark night, and the progress Avas slow and tedious. The Indian camp was four miles distant, and so rough was the way that it was not reached till day-break. Harper had planned to sur- round it so that none of the savaiie wretches could break TKAYELERS. 231 awaj'. He sent his ineii l»y several paths to come ii]') on dili'ereiit sides of the eiu-ainpineiit ; and he went iip directly in front with fonr nieii. He ^t^ot near enoiigh to count tive Indians. He waited for the rest of his party to get into position ; but Avheu he had grown somewhat impatient with w^aiting, he saw his party on a distant hill, ^'-her had taken the wrong path and had lost their way. He determined to make the attack a^nyhow. He whispered to his men to lire when he should have raised Ins gun. The}- did so. The almost instantaneous report of tive guns proclaimed tliafc live Indians were in eternity. None were left in the camp. All were killed. In the cam]i was found some of the plun- der taken from the traders. Harper's band then crossed the river, and attacked tlj<'