USA > Georgia > Colquitt County > History of Colquitt County > Part 6
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this, in most cases, so that she could avail herself of her daughter's assistance in raising the younger children.
And, by the way, it is in such domestic duties and scenes that romance flourishes. Guided by an instinctive notion that this is true, the girl of that period did not hesitate to exhibit to her young man friend the products of her skillful hands, including a brave display of quilts and counterpanes, along with entire meals of victuals prepared by her exclusively. And it is here asserted with entire confidence that a pretty girl never appears to better advantage to men than when she is engaged in the discharge of such domestic duties. Maud Muller, as every one knows, came near landing her "judge" as it was; and to us it seems a certainty that she would have gotten him for life, had he chanced on her in the kitchen, with her sleeves rolled up, and flour on her elbows.
CHAPTER XIV A Friendly Custom
FOR SOME SIXTY YEARS after the opening of the Jackson ces- sion to white settlement, and the organization of this territory into counties and militia districts, there were contests or fights between individuals at the Justice Courts and other gather- ings; and naturally this resulted in the evolution of "cham- pion fighters," for such subdivisions. Just "fist and skull" fights, with no holds barred. The truth is that, as Judge Long- street has told us in his "Georgia Scenes," this custom was state-wide.
In a few years after the close of the Civil War, John Sloan, who lived on the present site of the Country Club, in south- west Moultrie, was considered Colquitt County's champion fisticuffer; and as such, had been invested with "The Belt." Finally, there moved to east Colquitt, from some point in Alabama, a man named Ab Nolan, who had been something of a fighter, where he came from. One Saturday, Nolan had come to Moultrie and bought some groceries. Additionally, it is just possible that he was slightly "lit up." He was about to go home, when someone called his attention to Sloan, and his record as a fighter. Ab decided on immediate action: and so he drove over to Sloan's house, called him out and told him that he had heard that he had "The Belt," and thal he wanted to contest for it, then and there. Sloan instantly agreed; and they pulled off their coats, and went at it. Soon, Nolan had Sloan down, and was romping on him in great shape, when Mrs. Sloan came out of the house. Now, Mrs. Sloan's policy had always been never to suffer her man to be abused by anyone except herself; so she ran in the house, got the shotgun, and was in the act of drawing a bead on her
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husband's tormentor, when Nolan, seeing her, got up and ran off, leaving, not only "The Belt," but also his next week's groceries, and his coat.
Away back before the Civil War, when Uncle Dick Norman was sparking his pretty neighbor, Miss Fariba Tillman, he attended a dancing party one night, where his Dulcinea was in attendance.
Also, a champion fighter of the Tallokas District, in Brooks County, was there, with his second; and being one of the young folks present, he was in no time turning the corners with "Firby," which Uncle Dick coming in, saw, with a dis- tinct sense of dissatisfaction; and so, when the set was danced out, he approached his rival, and asked him to step out doors with him for a minute. When they were on the outside, Uncle Dick explained, "I want you to fight me-you have danced with 'Firby,' and she is my girl."
"Alright," said the man, "I didn't know she was yours; but come on a little piece down the road. This is my second. Have you a second?"
Uncle Dick called his brother Joel; and so down the road they went, as friendly as anyone ever saw. When they got a proper distance, the man stopped, drew out a bottle, and said, "Gentlemen, suppose we take a little drink before the fight."
This little amenity having been properly attended to, the Tallokas man said to the seconds, "Now, gentlemen, it is un- derstood that no holds are barred, and no weapons except fists and hands are to be used. If one of us should get the other one down, the top man is not to be pulled off, till the bottom man hollers. Is this agreed to by everybody?"
About this time, Uncle Dick, who had some considerable local reputation as a fighter, but who at that particular time
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was getting more and more disposed to take a less war-like view of things in general, said, "Hold on there a minute. It's awful to think about a fellow being under there, when he might not be able to holler, and nobody know it; and so I think we had better take another little drink apiece, and drap this matter, and go back to the house."
Which was done without protest; they went back, and Uncle Dick danced the next set with "Firby"; and spent more than fifty years afterwards in her agreeable society.
The fights we have spoken of hereinbefore were in a way local social institutions. Differing from them slightly are the following:
Another famous fighter in Colquitt was Henry Gregory, who lived up towards Worth County, and who, so to speak, was born fighting. He was talked of as a fighter when we first came to Colquitt, although he had gone from Colquitt never to return. John M. Norman, oldest son of Uncle Joe Norman, used to regale us with the story of how "Griggory" went to Albany once, back in the eighties, and ran berserker. The first policeman that tackled him went down, which an- other seeing, ran up, and went down in his turn beneath "Griggory's" terrible fist; and it was not long before he had half of the force hors du combat. However, one man can't be expected to fight an entire police force-at least not out of the books-and so they finally reduced him, and put him in the calaboose.
Next morning he came before the recorder in due form, and John M. and some other Colquitt County friends were there to watch for an opening to help. John M. said the policemen, every one of them, seemed to have the warmest admiration for the fallen Samson from Colquitt. They spoke up and told the judge that he "fout fair" with his two fists alone, and that it was a fine fight." The judge gave him
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thirty days or $75. John said that "Griggory" was confused, and looked at the judge helplessly, and asked him if there wasn't a fine connected with the sentence; and how much, and that he seemed much relieved when the judge said, benevo- lently, "Yes-seventy-five."
Gregory lived about four miles from J. J. Norman, the father of John M. and Spencer Norman. Spencer told us that one night Gregory was at a dance at the residence of James Frazier, not far from the J. J. Norman residence; and that three good-sized men plotted together, while they were out in the yard, to beat him up; and that they sent a man into the dance room, who approached Gregory, and told him that the three men, naming them, wanted to see him in the yard. Gregory understood the meaning of the request perfectly; but he instantly said, "Alright-I'll come right now." Which he did, and the three commenced on him at once. So Henry squared himself and commenced knocking them down; and when they would get up, he followed the excellent procedure of knocking them down again; and when he had finally grounded two of them to stay, the third one ran up behind him and cut Henry several times in the back before he was knocked down. So Mrs. Frazier got him in the kitchen and washed the blood off him and then he walked home, which must have been four miles.
"The next day," says Spencer, "he came over to our house, and was telling Pa about it: 'You know, Mr. Norman,' he said, 'that was the worst fight I have ever had in my life. You see, three is really too many to fight at one time. When you are at work on one in front of you, another will slip up at your side, and maybe the third one will be doing something to your back. And so a man is kept busy a-whirlin' around.' "
Another man of tremendous strength in the nineties was Bob Register. His mother was Nancy Tucker, who was the
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daughter of George Tucker, and the granddaughter of Elder Crawford Tucker.
Jim Monk once regaled Mayo Kendall, Jack Strickland and this writer with an account of Bob Register's prowess:
"It was at a dance one night, at old man Bill Key's, and I was standing by Bitha Key, waiting for the music to com- mence, so as to dance the next set with her. Just then, Bob Register come in at the door. He was engaged to Bitha; and so when he saw us, he made for me. I backed off a little, and got ready for him; and in the meantime, the other boys commenced running in between us. Bob commenced knock- ing 'em down. He used both fists, and so made two piles of 'em. Finally, Bitha's Pa ran in, and Bob fetched him an uppercut, which sent him through the open door, going out at the top of the door." Just here, Jack Strickland took up the story, saying :
"Yes, I was out there in the yard with a crowd that was around a fire which had been built out there; and when old Bill dropped down out of the elements, it liked to a-scared us all to death; and old man Bryant, who was crippled in one leg, saw him drap down into the fire, he run around the end of the house into the clay-hole that they had made when they were digging up clay to daub a stick-and-dirt chimney. It hadn't been there long, and was full of water, and we had to pull him out, or he would uv drownded, maybe."
After this had had time to soak in, Jack said, reminiscently, "Bob Register was an awful man; and I have wished that he could have lived later, and got into the boxing business. I saw Sam Gay drive up to Pa's once, in a buggy, and Bob was in the yard. They seemed to have been at outs with each other just then, and so just as soon as Sam got out of the
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buggy, he went for Bob, and they went at it. I really never saw such fighting in all my life; it was like mules a-kickin'. Sam was much of a man himself, in them days; and so he kept goin' up inter Bob's face for it; and finally he got it, and went down. But it was pretty while it lasted. I doubt if any of the younger generation will ever see anything like it. They have quit makin' 'em like Bob and Sam, long ago."
CHAPTER XV Early Occupations
FROM 1820 To 1890, the raising of cattle, sheep and hogs was the principal industry in the Colquitt territory. As a preliminary to success in this industry, it was necessary at first to exterminate the wolves with which this, as well as all other sections of the country, was infested. These wild dogs ran, hunted and fed in packs; pulling down even grown sheep, together with calves and pigs. The difference in wolves and ordinary dogs was found in their gregarious habits, and in the fact that the eyes of dogs are round, while the eyes of the wolf are elongated ovals. The first problem of the pioneer has always been to get rid of the wolves. For the most part, this was accomplished by constructing "wolf-pens," or "wolf- pits." And here is how: A big pit was dug, some ten feet in diameter, and some six feet deep. It was then covered by a camouflage of a light nature, above which, in the middle, arose a firmly planted stake, to which, at its top, was fastened firmly a good size chunk of raw meat. The wolves would lunge at the meat; and, of course, would fall into the pit, and be killed by the owner. Probably, not a county in the United States that did not, at its first settling have some of the pits. Colquitt had three or four, at least. Vagrant packs of wolves, however, made visits to Colquitt as late as the early eighties. About that time, strychnine was put out, along the Warrior Creek; and the wolves came no more.
The early settler in Colquitt was surrounded by nearly 900 square miles of wire grass and wild oats land. Practically none of this extensive area was under fence; but was what was called "commons," over which the cattle, hogs, and sheep "used" at will. Ownership was determined by marks
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and brands. The "marks" were notchings and croppings made in the ears of the animals; while the "brands" con- sisted of symbols or initials seared into the hides by impres- sions of red-hot irons. Each owner was required by law to register with the ordinary his individual mark or brand. And in this way these animals roamed the wilds. A little salt was put out for them by their owners, in the neighbor- hood of their homes.
As the young were dropped, in the spring, it was the custom for several adjacent live stock owners to take a few days off and drive all the animals within a given area together, and separate the mothers from the others. Then, the new calves would be turned loose, one at a time; and, as each calf would run unerringly to its mother, it would be seized, and put in its mother's mark.
Sheep were herded together in exactly the same way as the cattle, and the ownership of the lambs determined in the manner of the calves. At the same time the adult sheep would all be thrown down on the ground and their wool clipped off by experienced "shearers." Shearers were numerous who could take a pair of shears and clip off the entire covering of wool with one hand, while the animal was kept in posi- tion by the other hand. And so a lot of the older residents of Colquitt County understood fully what was meant when the newspapers advertised the fact that the father of the Dionne quintuplets is a professional "sheep shearer."
These Colquitt County herds of cattle went right along with very little feed. Mr. Wesley Weeks, a grandson of a pioneer of Colquitt, told us, the other day, that the rule as to feeding cattle was to approach one with a basket of corn shucks, and threaten it with a single shuck. If, in springing off, the cow fell, she was to have as feed the basket of shucks. If she did not fall, she got no feed at all. Seriously, if the winter was unusually hard, it was necessary to feed some,
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and it was done. Otherwise practically no feed was given. Of course, the cattle got rather thin, sometimes; but as long as they did not get "on the lift," they were allowed to make it over till the coming of a new crop of grass.
The upkeep of sheep cost just exactly nothing, in the old pioneer days, as sheep were not fed at all. This was due to the fact that a sheep could get along with what he could get on the commons. There were more things on the menu of a sheep which were accessible on the commons; and, too, sheep were not called on to eat for the purpose of keeping them- selves warm.
The weight of the fleece of an ordinary sheep would run from two to three pounds; and the price for the entire fleece would average one dollar. This means that the owner of a thousand sheep had an assured income of one thousand dol- lars per annum. Practically every head of a family had some sheep; and we know of numerous flocks that ran from two hundred to one thousand. James T. Norman ("Sonny") was the owner of the rise of two thousand. As there was no danger of the wool crop deteriorating, this was a good busi- ness, and it brought in nice money.
Of course, too, there was nice money in cattle. Annually, there was a considerable percentage of the herd that was cut out for sale as beef cattle. These were herded together and driven to Columbus, or some other river or gulf port to be there sold to local dealers, and by them shipped alive to the West Indies. Hides were also things that found ready sale, as they have since the days of Abraham.
Of course, the average herd furnished plenty of milk and butter, during the spring and summer season; and, in the winter, some of the best milkers were kept up, and fed, in order to guarantee a supply of milk. Sometimes, the "busy housewife" made cheese and sent it to market, along with
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other commodities; but cheese and butter making was never anything except "the women's business," which at times brought in a little pin money.
Some of the pioneers butchered for home use as many as three to five beeves a week. It is to be understood in this con- nection that the range cows did not grow to be as big as those now butchered by the big packing houses, and which are fed on the farms of the northwest.
CHAPTER XVI A Notable Wedding
THE COURTHOUSE of Colquitt County was destroyed by fire in 1881, with practically all the records kept therein. How- ever, in a small black book in the present ordinary's office may be found a record showing that on the 14th day of Oc- tober, 1873, Henry Gay, ordinary of Colquitt County, issued a marriage license to James T. Norman and Susan Jane Tucker. This license was returned into that office with a showing at the bottom that the ceremony was performed on the 23rd day of October, 1873.
Susan Jane Tucker was the oldest child of John Tucker, oldest son of Elder Crawford Tucker, already referred to in this book, and his wife Susan A. Stevenson. This same Susan A. S. Tucker was one of the notable women of Colquitt County, as demonstrated by the character of children that she turned into the body of the citizenship, numbering ten. We shall meet her further on in this book.
The father of the bride was a conspicuous leader in Col- quitt, in 1873. He was the son of Elder Crawford Tucker, Colquitt County pioneer and patriarch. He was the owner of forty-three lots of Colquitt County land, each containing 490 acres, more or less; and his holdings of live stock were of greater value than his lands. He served as Colquitt's representative in the General Assembly of Georgia, at the ses- sions of 1873-4. He was accordingly the most important man in Colquitt County; and he was "feeling his oats."
James T. Norman, the bridegroom, known by his intimates as "Sonny," was the oldest son of Jeremiah Bryant Norman, who was one of the seven sons of James Mitchell Norman and Ruth Tillman Norman, who came to Colquitt County about
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the same time that Elder Tucker arrived. J. B. Norman, Sr., was himself the owner of much land and live stock; was politically inclined, and was going to represent Colquitt in the House of Representatives of Georgia more than once be- fore his death.
For all these reasons, John Tucker decided to give Susan Jane a wedding that would set up an all-time record in Col- quitt.
There were no such things as engraved invitations, inno- cent of initials, and spelling out each name in full; but messengers on horseback carried a most cordial invitation by word of mouth to every family in Colquitt to come to Susan Jane's wedding.
And, according to all accounts, they responded to the in- vitation, from Little River to the Mitchell County line, and from the Worth boundary straight south to Thomas. They came in families, the busy housewife bringing along her 'numerous brood," and grandma with her snuff. Twelve hundred guests, according to the stories related to us in the present year, by Messrs. J. A. Owens, Dan J. Strickland, Henry Monk and Linton Hancock, all of whom are now octogenarians, and all of whom were guests.
And from these "Merrie gentlemen" comes a fairly unani- mous account of whole carcasses, selected from the flocks and herds of John Tucker, barbecued to a turn, and served with all the "trimmin's." And every one of them, when the subject is mentioned, will immediately speak of coffee cook- ing in the yard in a 90-gallon syrup kettle, and chicken pilau a-simmering away in another kettle of the same ca- pacity.
The opening rite of weddings, in those old days, was the "charge," a term applied to a procession of horseback riders made up of the unmarried men friends of the contracting
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parties. This procession rode two abreast, and was headed by the bridegroom, who was flanked on his right by his mounted "waiter," and on the left, by his "torchbearer." Such procession was accustomed to gallop about sundown in middle gear, down the road, straight by the home of the bride, and after getting a mile or so beyond it, they would stop, turn the procession around, and return to her home, in a walk, reaching which, they would stop, and friendly hands connected with the bride's establishment, would take charge of the mounts of the groom and his attendants, and tie them up, while all the other members of the procession would per- form that office for themselves. In the meantime, the groom and his flankers, as their mounts were taken away, would go immediately into the yard, and pass through the front door into the "front room," where they would find the bride sitting, and sitting by her her own "waiter" and "torchbearer." There would be plenty of merry talking, of course. The groom and his attendants taking seats by the bride and hers, while torches were being lighted for the "torchbearers." The bride and the groom would then go out into the yard; the waiters would come next, and last would come the "torch- bearers." Since there were no electric lights in those days, and since marriages were usually performed at "early candle- light," and since every one present on the whole premises wanted to see the ceremony, and "how the bride looked" on such occasions, the "torchbearers" were a necessary adjunct. We can find several surviving guests, including the ones al- ready listed, who will say that "Sonny's charge had at least seventy-five young couples in it, and both, horses and riders made a very brave show indeed."
After the wedding ceremony, the immense feast, prepared for this wedding by the Tuckers was served to the hundreds of guests, the hospitable suggestion made by the host being, "Eat till you bust.""
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As has been said, the ordinary lighting by tallow candles was quite insufficient for such great gatherings; and so a scaffold was generally erected in front of the house, and on it was spread a good covering of dirt, upon which a big pile of fat "lightwood" was kept blazing, this furnishing abundant light for the dance by the young folks, which invariably fol- lowed the close of the wedding rites. And the aforenamed surviving guests assure us that, in relays, the young folks fiddled and danced at Susan Jane's wedding all night long, and
"When music arose, with its voluptuous swell, Soft eyes looked love to eyes which spake again, And all went merry as a marriage bell."
This is written in August, 1936, and so it will soon have been sixty-three years since "Sonny" and Susan Jane got married. Some of our readers will want to know how their marriage turned out. And so, it is a pleasure to say that, by the united testimony of a whole country-side, this couple were ideally happy, every moment of their married life, till "Sonny's" death in 1896, leaving Susan Jane to carry on alone in the rearing of their eleven children. How well she succeeded will be shown in a separate chapter herein, en- titled "Noted Colquitt County Women," and for the present, we close the account of the pastoral romance of "Sonny" and Susan Jane by expressing the hope that our unmarried readers may find as much happiness in their marriages as the hero and heroine of this story did in theirs.
CHAPTER XVII Colquitt Courts
WHEN COLQUITT COUNTY was created, in 1856, several Jus- tice Courts had been functioning in that area, as follows: Dis- tricts Numbers 1151, 799 and 1020, all of which had been established while the area of Colquitt was still parts of Lowndes and Thomas counties. In these courts the Justices of the Peace issued criminal warrants, and held preliminary investigations based on such warrants. They also had juris- diction to try civil claims not in excess of one hundred dol- lars. Too, they drew deeds, mortgages and other legal docu- ments from such forms as were accessible. Also, they per- formed marriage rites; and, what was not the least of their doings, they gave free advice in many a local trouble among the citizenry. In appeals from their own verdicts they pre- sided over juries of five; but were without authority to charge a jury.
On account of a fire that destroyed Colquitt County's court- house with all records deposited therein, in 1881, little is known of the early Justice Courts. However, Spencer Nor- man, a grandson of James Mitchell Norman, pioneer settler in the Colquitt territory, has in his possession a small docket of the Justice Court for the 1151st District Justice Court, of Thomas County, which was presided over by him, the same showing some of the business of said court as far back as 1846. The oldest entry of this kind is that of a panel of "juroys," drawn by Judge Norman for the December, 1849, "tirm," of said court. A cut of this portion of the minutes is inserted here:
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1641
1
2 % r
71
1
This, beyond doubt, is the oldest existing court record of Colquitt County. We also insert, along with it a record of the "juroys" drawn from Box No. 2, on February 9, 1850. This is done for the purpose of showing the copperplate nature of the handwriting, as well as the excellence of the ink in use by Judge Norman, as it appears after 86 years.
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