USA > Iowa > Early settlement and growth of western Iowa; or, Reminiscences > Part 8
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ANOTHER CASE
Two fugitives from slavery were arrested by some persons (who were willing to do their owner a favor, or were eager to get a reward, or per- haps were prompted by both these motives com- bined) and lodged in the Linden jail for safe keeping. While there the weather was very cold, and they begged of the jailer a pan of live coals to keep them from freezing. When comfortably warm other possible benefits from the fire were suggested. With the pan of coals they managed to burn a hole through the floor large enough to
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effect their escape. As they proceeded up the Mis- souri river bottom a furious snow storm overtook them, and in the blinding blizzard they got sepa- rated from each other, and nearly perished in the cold. One of them found his way to Tabor, and stayed at Mr. G. B. Gaston's several weeks, hoping that his companion in bonds would make his ap- pearance. Accustomed to active life he disliked to be idle, and asked for work. Mr. Gaston set him to cutting wood in the woods and for weeks he ' repaired daily to the work after breakfast in the morning, carrying with him a lunch for noon, and returning home in the shadows of the evening. After some weeks his companion in travel and trib- ulation came along, and they proceeded on their way to freedom.
Slavery had to foster a race prejudice in order to maintain its haughty and oppressive assumption of lordly power. Anglo-Saxons were created to rule, Africans to serve. This doctrine was so as- siduously inculcated that it had its influence in shaping legislation and modifying public sentiment even in the free states. Hence the law which in Iowa discriminates against persons of color and forbids them to locate in the state until they give bonds that they will not become a public charge. But the baneful influence of slavery manifested itself in other ways.
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CASE OF KIDNAPPING
About the year 1860, as John Williamson, Henry Garner, and his sister Maria, were on their way from Percival to Omaha, a covered carriage with two or three men in it overtook them. As the Garners and Williamson were riding quietly along, not suspecting any danger, the carriage drove up behind them, the men jumped out hastily, and one of them with a stick or club struck Henry a crushing blow on the cheek, not only stunning him but breaking the cheek bone. All three were taken and hurried away into Missouri. But Williamson managed to make his escape after some days. Henry and Maria were lodged in a slave pen in St. Louis, awaiting the day of sale in the slave market of that city. News of the kidnapping of the Garners no sooner reached Dr. Blanchard than he dropped all else, and made it his business to recover them. Mr. Gaston was informed of the occurrence, and together they spent days in diligent search through northwestern Missouri, and down as far as St. Joe. After obtaining some reliable trace of them and learning that they had been taken to St. Louis, Mr. Gaston returned home and Dr. Blanchard followed on to that place. He suc- ceeded in tracing them to the prison, and stated to the keeper the wrongful manner in which they had been seized, and that they were really free negroes.
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The keeper proposed to test the truth of the doctor's story by bringing him into their presence and noting the effect of their seeing him. When Dr. Blanchard entered, Henry, suffering severely yet from the blow he had received, and apparently in utter despair of any relief in the future, did not look up. But Maria no sooner looked up than she jumped up and ran and threw her arms around him, exclaiming, " Oh! Dr. Blanchard ! where did you come from?" The testimony was indisput- able. After proper legal steps Henry and Maria were set at liberty, and the kidnappers were placed in the custody of proper officers, brought to Coun- cil Bluffs, and there imprisoned to await their trial. But before the time for their trial they broke jail and effected their escape.
The principal in this kidnapping was a man by the name of Hurd, who had been in Kansas, and came away in not very good repute. He had been hanging about Dr. Blanchard's for several weeks apparently watching his chance. He was after- ward heard of in Kansas, and in a year or two after this kidnapping scrape, it was reported that he was hung for horse stealing. "The way of the transgressor is hard."
CHAPTER X JOHN BROWN'S PREPARATIONS
CAPTAIN BROWN-RESUMED
C APT. JOHN BROWN, as we have seen, went east late in the autumn of 1856, where he spent the winter counselling with and rallying the friends of freedom in Kansas. He returned again to Tabor August 7, 1857, where he remained several months, and until after the fall elections in Kansas, the result of which he watched with intense interest. He boarded in the family of Jonas Jones, who then occupied the house on the northeast corner of Center and Orange streets, where President Brooks now resides. Colonel Forbes arrived two days later and re- mained until the 2d of November, and being an expert as a military tactician, he seemed to be teach- ing the captain military science. Owen Brown, son of the captain, was also here that summer. Part of the time they practiced shooting at a tar- get with Sharps rifles. In the point of one of the prairie ridges which run north and south and just north of Dragoon hollow, they dug a hole of sufficient dimensions to contain a man comfortably.
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A sheet-like white cloth with a black spot in the center, suspended on two stakes, was placed on the north side of the hole, in which one of their num- ber placed himself with his back to the marksmen, fronting the target, and deep enough in the ground to be safe from any balls that might be fired. There with a long pointer in hand terminated by a black knob about the size of a man's fist to render it more readily distinguishable, sat the indicator awaiting the report of a Sharps rifle half a mile or more away south, whither Colonel Forbes and Captain Brown had repaired to try their skill as marksmen. No sooner was the report of the dis- tant rifle heard than the black knob on the end of the pointer was placed on the hole where the ball perforated the target, which the marksmen, with the aid of a field glass, could readily see and mod- ify their subsequent attempts accordingly. A book on military science entitled, " The Patriotic Volun- teer," of which Colonel Forbes was the author, formed a text book for study, while target prac- tice afforded them ample exercise in the open air. Thus passed the summer and autumn of 1857, and when Captain Brown learned that the elections in Kansas had passed quietly, unmolested by ruffians from Missouri, he proceeded to gather up the free state stores that had been deposited in Tabor and ship them away. Though very reticent and little disposed to publish his projects, Captain
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Brown was understood by his friends to be intend- ing, in case the elections were interfered with again, to raise, clothe, arm and equip a company of mounted men and pitch in and fight it out in Kan- sas; but as the elections passed off quietly, he gath- ered all together and took his departure.
Colonel Forbes took steamer at Nebraska City for the east November 2, 1857, and Captain Brown took the emigrant road to Kansas, in a wagon driven by one of his sons. His chief object in going to Kansas seems to have been to gather about him a company of young men, whose object culminated in the Harper's Ferry tragedy. Later in the season there met at Tabor, Captain Brown, Owen Brown, A. D. Stephens, Charles Moffit, C. P. Tidd, Richard Robertson, Colonel Richard Realf, L. F. Parsons, Wm. Leaman and Captain Cook. These had intended to go to the Western Reserve to winter, but Forbes had betrayed their plans to the government authorities, and they, for this reason, together with limited finances, concluded to remain in Iowa through the winter. Here I quote from Captain Cook's confession : " We stopped some days at Tabor making prepa- rations to start. Here we found that Captain Brown's ultimate destination was the state of Vir- ginia. Some warm words passed between him and myself in regard to the plan, which I supposed was to be confined entirely to Kansas and Mis-
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souri. Realf and Parsons were of the same opin- ion with me. After a good deal of wrangling we consented to go on, as we had not the means to return, and the rest of the party were so anxious that we should go with them. At Tabor we pro- cured teams for the transportation of about 200 Sharps rifles which had been taken on as far as Tabor one year before, at which place they had been left awaiting the orders of Captain Brown. There were also other stores consisting of blankets, clothing, boots, ammunition, and about two hun- dred revolvers of the Massachusetts Arms patent, all of which we transported across the state of Iowa to Springdale, and from there to Liberty, at which place they were shipped for Ashtabula county, Ohio, where they remained till brought to Chambersburg, Pa., and were from there trans- ported to a house in Washington county, Md., which Captain Brown had rented for six months, and which was situated about five miles from Har- per's Ferry."
These two hundred Sharps rifles (twenty boxes and ten in a box) were stored in the parson's cellar for about a year. So you see how nearly the parson was implicated in the Harper's Ferry insur- rection. Captain Brown and his ten young men spent the winter of 1857-8 in Iowa, in the study and practice of military tactics, under the drill of A. D. Stephens. In the early summer of 1858
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he was again in southern Kansas, throwing his power on the side of freedom in the strife between freedom and slavery. The country at that time was in a state of great excitement and turmoil, con- stant raiding, and fighting and murdering between the border ruffians and free state men. The great- est vigilance was required to live at all. In this state of things, Captain Brown and his faithful clan endeavored to be prepared for any emer- gency. Two hundred Missourians were collected in Missouri, eight miles from the Kansas line, for the purpose of invading the territory. At this juncture, early in January, 1859, Captain Brown began to talk of offensive operations and proposed to invade Missouri. While yet undecided, a slave who was to be sold with his family down the river next day came to Captain Brown and besought him to deliver them from this calamity. Accord- ingly Captain Brown took twelve men and went up one side of the Osage river, and Kagi with eight ascended the other side, for the purpose of freeing slaves. The former freed not only the family that asked aid, but others, too, ten in all, with team and wagon as remuneration for the years of unpaid toil. Kagi's party obtained but one slave, in securing which they killed the master, who was attempting to take the life of one of the party in defense of his property. Thus Missouri was invaded, and slaves taken by force from their
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masters, even at the cost of life. After a short stay in Kansas, Captain Brown with his company of eleven slaves, which, by the way, had become twelve by the birth of a young John Brown, set out for the Queen's Dominions about the 20th of January, 1859, and arrived safely in Tabor with their escort early in February. They came the latter part of the week and remained several days.
The small house across the street directly east of the public school building then stood where Dr. Sanborn's present residence stands, and had been used for a primary school room. In that a cook- ing stove was placed and there the freedmen made their home during their sojourn in Tabor.
The following paper was handed the parson on Sunday morning at the beginning of the morning services : " John Brown respectfully requests the church at Tabor to offer public thanksgiving to Almighty God in behalf of himself and company and of their rescued captives in particular, for His gracious preservation of their lives and health, and His signal deliverance of all out of the hand of the wicked hitherto." " Oh, give thanks unto the Lord; for He is good; for His mercy endureth forever."
The parson preached at Glenwood in the even- ing and from there went directly to Quincy in Adams county, where he remained a week or more assisting Brother Penfield in a series of meetings.
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Before the Sabbath was past it was reported in Tabor that Missouri had been invaded and life had been taken to procure these slaves, and con- sequently that Captain Brown might be heard in his own defense, and that all persons interested might hear and judge for themselves, a public meet- ing had been called for Monday morning to hear Captain Brown. A traveling Missourian chanced to stop for the night at the village hotel, and learn- ing of the meeting, concluded to attend. This fact came to the ears of Captain Brown, who refused to speak in the presence of the Missourian and demanded that he be required to leave. The audi- ence were unwilling to grant this, and leading per- sons present strongly insinuated that if no wrong had been done the actors ought not to be ashamed or afraid to let any and everybody know what they had done. The Missourian remained and Cap- tain Brown withdrew, greatly grieved that his Tabor friends refused to approve his course.
After Captain Brown left the meeting at the school house that Monday morning, the citizens proceeded to adopt some resolutions expressive of their views of the captain's invasion of Missouri. They could not approve of an armed invasion of a neighboring state with which we were ostensibly at peace.
With mingled surprise and indignation Captain Brown repaired to the residence of Brother Geo.
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B. Gaston, whose hospitality he had been enjoy- ing, apparently feeling that if friends deserted him he must "trust in God and keep his powder dry." In feeble health from continued exposure, beset with a persistent ague, he seemed to feel forsaken; he carefully examined and grasped more firmly his weapons and curtailed his stay in Tabor. By way of Chicago and the lakes, he reached Canada in safety with his company in due time, and appeared in Tabor but once again. About the first of Sep- tember, 1859, he came to the residence of Jonas Jones on the Sabbath, less than two months before his capture at Harper's Ferry, and when taking leave on the same day, as Mr. Jones stepped out on the porch, he said very impressively, " Good- bye, Mr. Jones. I don't say where I am going, but you'll hear from me. There has been enough said about 'bleeding Kansas.' I intend to make a bloody spot at another point and carry the war into Africa." From our present standpoint, this daring deed of Captain Brown seems to have been one link in the long chain of events which hastened the final overthrow of legalized American slavery.
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CHAPTER XI SEEKING THE STRAY SHEEP
A BOUT the year 1855 the General Assembly of the Presbyterian church, in session at St. Louis, resolved to take measures to plant Presbyterian "churches in new settlements in advance of all others." This evidence that young America was coming to the front in that body naturally led other denominations to look to their laurels, and see that no undue advantage should be taken of them by any haste to occupy new ground. Accordingly several of the older and stronger Congregational churches of eastern Iowa, in the spring or early summer of 1857, wrote the parson requesting that he would take a trip up and down among the settlements along the Mis- souri river valley, in search of the Congregational element, and organize churches where circum- stances seemed to warrant such a course, they promising to defray all necessary expenses. This the parson consented to do, and so set out on horseback on Friday, the 17th of July, booted and spurred, saddle and saddle bags, prepared to hunt up and fold all Congregational sheep. He dined at Glenwood, and supped, lodged, and conferred with Rev. R. E. Gaylord in Omaha-next day he
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proceeded on through Saratoga and Florence. At that time there was comparatively a small space from the north side of Omaha to the south line of Florence, a distance of six miles, which was not laid out in city lots. Crossing the Missouri river again to the east of Florence, he dined at Crescent City, which was largely a settlement of Mormons. In the afternoon he passed on to Magnolia, and stopped with Brother H. D. King and his estimable wife over the Sabbath, preaching at II a. m. In the afternoon two Mormon apostles, who had just set out on a mission from Preparation, a place fif- teen or twenty miles north of Magnolia, where a branch of the Mormon church had established themselves, and had for some time been preparing to send forth twelve apostles, held services. Their worship was similar to Christian worship in general, but when they presented their distinguishing doc- trines, they taught the transmigration of souls, and held that some of their adherents remembered dis- tinctly their previous life on earth, and one even remembered the particulars of his former death, declaring that a horse ran away with him and dashed him to death. Such statements, if sub- stantiated, might strongly confirm the theory of " the Conflict of Ages."
On Monday, July 20th, Brother King accom- panied the parson on his way, by Butler's Mills and Harrison City on the Boyer river, eleven miles
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from Magnolia, thence to Olmsted, five miles, where they found Mr. Henry Olmsted, recently from Connecticut, busily engaged with numerous hands in the work of building a residence-Mrs. Olmsted not yet having arrived. Several Congre- gationalists were found here from Connecticut, who afterward became the nucleus of the Congre- gational church at Dunlap. On the next day, Tuesday, July 2 Ist, they went to Denison, twenty- three miles, and lodged with a Mr. Goodrich, one mile beyond the village. The day following they went by Wellington to Judge Morehead's at Ida Grove-the only grove of any consequence in Ida county, covering about a quarter section. There were then but twenty-five persons in the county, all told. At Morehead's, an old stage station, they met a Mr. Hubbard, of Cherokee, a Yankee settlement, twenty-five miles north of this place, from whom they learned that Cherokee was the only settlement in the county, and consisted of four families, including twelve men.
Thursday, July 23d, they rode together down the Maple river, as far as Mapleton, where they parted; Brother King returning to Magnolia and the parson proceeding to Smithland, a village on the Little Sioux river, where he preached in the evening. Here were found families of liberal edu- cation and fine culture from the vicinity of Boston, who had brought their pianos with them, and who
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informed him that in the previous winter of 1856-7 they had been so blocked by snow drifted by driv- ing winds that they drew flour from a point forty miles east of there on a hand sled, and to avoid starving some had to subsist on bread made of bran. While they were ready to perish, the peo- ple in Fremont county were having plenty, and receiving high prices at Council Bluffs for every kind of farm produce taken to that market.
From Smithland to Sargent's Bluff is about thirty miles, and for the last twenty of that thirty miles the road was on the Missouri bottom, which in this vicinity is about twenty miles wide. This portion of the road was, at this season of the year, impassable in day time by horses, unless well cov- ered, on account of the prevalence of a species of green-headed flies, from which, if unprotected, the horses would be killed. The parson, therefore, waited on Friday, July 24th, at Smithland, until 7 o'clock p. m., when he set out for a thirty mile ride, twenty miles of which must be passed in the night-the road a single track, through tall grass, with a few branch roads to lead astray, and no person of whom to inquire the way, nor dwelling house in twenty miles. Silently plodding the lonely way, the parson proceeded, surrounded by a chorus of frogs, too modest to sing in the immediate presence of a nocturnal traveler, but ready to re- sume as soon as he had passed along-interluded
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by the incessant humming of myriads of mosqui- toes, that never dreamed of modesty-eager to sing in the face of a king, nor were ever known even to blush in the presence of royalty. So the parson passed on hour after hour in sombre sus- pense, uncertain whether the outcome would be Sar- gent's Bluff or some other destination, until the barking of some faithful watch dog, or the dis- tant glimmer of some friendly lamp occasioned a sigh of relief, and assured him that he had not missed his way. Between hope and fear the gaunt- let has been successfully run, and he has safely reached again an inhabited land. As " necessity knows no law," orderly habits are forgotten and the rider retires to his couch at one o'clock a. m. of the 25th. After rest and refreshment, the itin- erant is again in the saddle and completes the journey to Sioux City-eight miles-by II a. m., takes quarters at the Pacific House, and improves the remainder of the day in hunting up the wan- dering sheep.
On Monday, July 27th, search was continued for the flock in city and suburbs, and a number of Congregationalists, as was supposed, were found, some of whom proved to be of other denominations. But having found some, and having arranged to organize two weeks hence, the parson crossed the river and turned south, through the settlements in Nebraska,-Dakota City, Omadi, Omaha Reserva-
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tion, Decatur, Tekama, Cumming City, De Soto, Calhoun, etc., finding some professing Christians in every flourishing settlement, but nowhere a suf- ficient number of Congregationalists to warrant an organization.
After a week or more at home, the parson set out on a second tour to Sioux City on the 4th of August, 1857, passing up through Glenwood, Council Bluffs, Crescent City, Magnolia, Prepara- tion, Belvidere, Smithland, and Sargent's Bluff to Sioux City. Desirous to get through with an unpleasant task, he left Smithland earlier in the afternoon than he had done on the first trip, so that he reached the Missouri bottoms before the sun was entirely gone, when, as he ventured for- ward, the flies so covered and crazed the horse that after fighting them for a time it seemed to give up in despair, and so set forward on a keen run, until the shadows of night came to its relief. Sargent's Bluff was reached at 10 p. m. on Friday, and Sioux City at 10 a. m. on Saturday, August 8, 1857, and lodgings taken at the Pacific House. On Sunday attended Methodist meeting at II a. m., and announced a meeting and organization of a Congregational church at 7:30 p. m., but at that hour a violent thunder storm and sweeping rain took the precedence, and no meeting was had. On Monday morning the parties interested were convened, Articles of Faith and Covenant were
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agreed upon, adopted and formally assented to, and the church duly formed. Crossed the Mis- souri river at Sioux City as on the previous trip, and returned home as before through Nebraska.
Still there remained that portion of Nebraska south of the Platte river to be visited. Accord- ingly the pastor set forth again on the 20th of August, 1857, crossed the river at Kenosha, where were found Bela White and wife, Festus Reed and wife, Congregationalists. Next day he pro- ceeded by Eight Mile Grove on Bachelor Creek, crossing from there to Cedar Creek, about seven miles without any road or trail, where he found Mr. Tozier and wife, who had been years be- fore members of the Congregationalist church at California City or Florence. In the after- noon he returned toward Plattsmouth, lodged with Mr. Maxwell, a Presbyterian, and next day passed on to Rock Bluff, crossed the river and re- turned home, not having found any material to justify the organization of a church. Thus ended that special effort to hold our own as Congrega- tionalists in the Missouri valley. Nebraska City was occupied before this time by a Presbyterian organization. The parson preached for some time at Sidney, but as Presbyterians predominated there, when Father Bell came on from eastern Iowa and started a ladies' seminary there, he yielded the ground to him.
CHAPTER XII AMITY OR COLLEGE SPRINGS
T HIS place like some others had the misfor- tune or inconvenience, in the outset, of hav- ing one name for the village and a different one for its postoffice. It was named Amity by its citizens, but as that name was already appropriated elsewhere, the postoffice department named it Col- lege Springs, which is rapidly superseding " Am- ity."
Under the shadow of Knox College, in the city of Galesburg, originated the idea of founding and endowing a college in some of the frontier settle- ments farther west. Rev. B. F. Haskins and William J. Wood were the prime movers in the matter. The plan proposed was in brief this: A company was organized and officers chosen-a president, secretary and treasurer. Persons by the payment of one or more shares became mem- bers, and when a sufficient sum was secured to promise success, a location was to be selected and a lot of land entered. A village was to be laid out in a central and desirable place for a college. The lands and village lots were to be appraised at not less than twice the government price, and
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