USA > North Carolina > Western North Carolina; a history, 1730-1913 > Part 60
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65
ISRAEL PICKENS was born in Cabarrus county, N. C., Jan- uary 30, 1780; moved to Burke county, receiving limited school- ing; State Senator in 1808 and 1809; elected as Democrat to 12th, 13th and 14th Congresses (March 4, 1811-March 3, 1817); ap- pointed Register of Land Office of Mississippi territory in 1817; Governor of Alabama, 1821-1825; appointed from Ala- bama to United States Senate to fill vacancy caused by death of Henry Chambers, serving from February 17, 1826, to No- vember 27, 1826; died near Matanzas, Cuba, April 24, 1827.2º
JAMES GRAHAM was born in Lincoln county, January, 1793; graduated from University of North Carolina, 1814; ad- mitted to bar and practiced; moved to Rutherford county, which he represented in the House of Commons 1822-1823, 1824, 1828- 1829; elected to the 23d, 24th, 25th, 26th and 27th Congresses, and served from December 2, 1833, to March 3, 1843, excepting from March 25, 1836, to December 5, 1836, when a Democratic house declared the seat vacant, but at a new election Graham was again elected; defeated for the 28th Congress; elected as a Whig to the 29th Congress (March 4, 1845, to March 3, 1847); died in Rutherford county, September 25, 1851. 2 0
THOMAS L. CLINGMAN was born at Huntersville, July 27, 1812; graduated from University of North Carolina, 1832; studied and practiced law; elected to House of Commons in 1835; moved to Asheville in 1836; elected State Senator in
645
POLITICAL
1840; elected as a Whig to 28th Congress (March 4, 1843- March 3, 1845); defeated by James Graham to 29th Congress; reelected to 30th, 31st, 32d, 33d, 34th and 35th Congresses (March 4, 1847-December 6, 1858) when he resigned; appointed in 1858 United States Senator as a Democrat to fill vacancy caused by resignation of Asa Biggs; was elected to United States Senate and served from May 6, 1858, to January 21, 1861, when he with- drew; was formally expelled from United States Senate July 11, 1861; appointed May 17, 1862, brigadier general in the Con- federate service, and commanded a brigade composed of the 8th, 31st, 51st, and 61st North Carolina infantry; delegate to the Democratic national convention of 1868; was a delegate to the State Constitutional convention of 1875; explored and measured mountain peaks and developed mineral resources of several regions; died November 3, 1897; buried in Asheville.
ZEBULON BAIRD VANCE, born in Buncombe county May 13, 1830, attended Washington College, Tennessee, was clerk at hotel, Hot Springs, North Carolina; attended University of North Carolina; admitted to bar in January, 1852, when he was elected county attorney of Buncombe; member of House of Commons, 1854; elected as a Democrat to 35th Congress to fill vacancy caused by resignation of Thomas L. Clingman; reelected to the 36th Congress, and served from December 7, 1858, to March 3, 1861; entered Confederate Army as captain in May, 1861, and made colonel in August, 1861; was elected governor August, 1862, and 1864; was member of Democratic national convention of 1868; elected to United States Senate November, 1870, but was refused admission, and resigned in January, 1872; he was defeated for United States Senate in 1872 by Hon. A. S. Merrimon; was elected governor over Hon. Thomas Settle in famous campaign of 1876; elected to United States Senate in 1879; reelected in 1884 and 1890, serving till his death in Washington, D. C., April 14, 1894 2 0
ALEXANDER HAMILTON JONES was born in Buncombe county July 21, 1822, was educated at Emory and Henry Col- lege; he was a merchant, a strong Union man during the Civil War, and in 1863 joined the Union Army and was captured in East Tennessee while raising a regiment and im- prisoned at Asheville and at Camp Vance below Morgan- ton, and at Camp Holmes and at Libby Prison at Rich- mond, Virginia. He made his escape November 14, 1864,
.
646
HISTORY OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
and joined the Union Army at Cumberland, Maryland. After the war he returned to Hendersonville and was elected a delegate to the State Convention to frame a new constitu- tion in 1865. He was elected a representative to the 39th Congress but was refused a seat. He was reelected to the 40th Congress and was admitted July 6, 1868. He was re- elected to the 41st Congress and made his home in Washing- ton, D. C., till 1876, and in Maryland till 1884, when he came to Asheville, where he resided till 1890, going thence to Oklahoma, where he remained till 1897, when he moved to Long Beach, California, where he died January 29, 1901. He married Sarah D. Brittain, daughter of William and Rachel Brittain of Mills river, in 1843, of which marriage five children were born: Col. Thad W. Jones, U. S. A., Otho M. Jones, and Mrs. J. P. Johnson, Mrs. Thomas J. Candler, and Miss Charlotte Jones, spinster. His widow died in January, 1913, aged 92.
GEN. ROBERT BRANK VANCE. He was born in Buncombe county, April 24, 1828, and was the eldest son of David and Mira Vance. When 21 years of age he was elected clerk of the county court, and reelected till 1858, when he retired voluntarily. He was a Union man and voted against seces- sion, but went into the Confederate Army when war was declared. He was first captain, but soon afterwards elected colonel of the 29th North Carolina Infantry, becoming brig- adier general in 1863, after the battle of Murfreesborough. He was captured at Cosby's creek, Tenn., in January, 1864, and kept a prisoner till the close of the war. He was elected to the 43d Congress in 1872, and thereafter till 1885. He succeeded in securing daily mails in every county in his dis- trict, and many money-order offices. He was appointed com- missioner of patents in 1885, and obtained an appropriation for dredging the French Broad river between Brevard and Asheville, a small steamer having been operated there a short time in 1876. He was in the State Senate in 1893. He was a sincere Christian, and the most useful congressman who ever went from that district. He died at Alexander, ten miles below Asheville, November 28, 1899.
EDMUND SPENCER BLACKBURN, born in Watauga county, September 22, 1868; attended common schools and academies; admitted to the bar in May, 1890; was reading clerk of North
647
POLITICAL
Carolina Senate, 1894-1895; representative in State Legisla- ture, 1896-1897; was elected speaker pro tem of this Legisla- ture; appointed assistant United States Attorney for western district in 1898, and assisted in the prosecution of Breese and Dickerson in the First National Bank case; elected as republican to 57th Congress (March 4, 1901-March 3, 1903); reelected March 4, 1905; and died at Elizabethton, Tenn., March 10, 1912. Interment at Boone, N. C. Edmund Blackburn was the first of his family to settle in Watauga, then Ashe county, and married a relative of Levi Morphew, who is still living on the New river, well up in the nineties. Edmund's children were Levi, Sallie, and Edmund, Levi hav- ing been the grandfather of E. Spencer and M. B. Blackburn of Boone. Levi Morphew is a son of Sallie Blackburn. Among the first Methodist churches in Watauga was the one built by the Blackburn family on Riddle's Fork of Meat Camp creek, called Hopewell, the Methodists having worshiped in Levi Blackburn's house prior to that time. Henson's chapel on Cove creek was probably the first Methodist church in Watauga. The first church built in Boone was built about 1880.
ROMULUS Z. LINNEY. He was born in Rutherford county December 26, 1841; was educated in the common schools of the country, at York's Collegiate Institute, and at Dr. Mil- len's school at Taylorsville; he served as a private in the Con- federate army until the battle of Chancellorsville, where he was severely wounded, and was discharged. He then joined a class in Dr. Millen's school at Taylorsville, of which Hon. W. H. Bower was a member; studied law with the late Judge Armfield; was admitted to practice by the Supreme Court in 1868; was elected to the State Senate in 1870, 1872, 1874, and again in 1882; was elected to the 54th, 55th and 56th Congresses as a Republican, receiving 19,419 votes against 18,006 for Rufus A. Doughton, Democrat, and 640 for Wm. M. White, Prohi- bitionist. He married Dorcas Stephenson in Taylorsville. In 1880 he became interested in Watauga so much that he bought property there, and in September, 1902, he bought a tract of land he called Tater Hill on Rich mountain, where he built two rock houses. He was influential in getting a wagon road built along the top of the Rich mountain range from the gap above Boone to a gap just north of Silverstone. He contrib-
648
HISTORY OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
uted $500 to the Appalachian Training School. Above the front door of the chief building of this college is written in marble the following quotation from one of his speeches de- livered July 4, 1903 : "Learning, the Handmaid of Loyalty and Liberty. A Vote Governs Better than a Crown." He died at Taylorsville, April 15, 1910. His mother was a sister of the late Judge Jolin Baxter.
THOMAS DILLARD JOHNSTON was born at Waynesville, North Carolina, April 1, 1840. His father was William Johnston and his mother Lucinda Gudger, a daughter of the late James Gudger and a grand-daughter of Col. Robert Love of Waynesville. He went to school to the late Capt. James N. Terrell in a log school house in Waynesville, when about ten years of age. In 1853 he entered the school of the late Col. Stephen D. Lee, in Chunn's Cove, where he remained till the summer of 1857, when he entered the State University; but, his health failing, he returned to Asheville to which place his family had removed, and were living in a brick house that stood on the corner now occupied by the Drhumor Block. He began the study of law with the late Judge James L. Bailey at his law school near the foot of Black Mountain, where he remained till the summer of 1861, when he obtained license to practice in the County Court. In May, 1861, he enlisted as a private in the Rough and Ready Guards, the second Asheville company to enter the service of the Confederacy. He was desperately wounded three times at Malvern Hill, and for a long time his life was despaired of. Recovering, however, he became quartermas- ter to Col. W. C. Walker's battalion and Capt. J. T. Levy's battery of artillery. In 1866 he was admitted to practice by Chief Justice Pearson. He was defeated in 1867 for county solicitor by Col. V. S. Lusk, and in 1868 Col. Lusk defeated him for circuit solicitor. In 1869 he was elected mayor of Asheville, and in 1870 he was elected to the House of Repre- sentatives. He canvassed the Ninth Congressional District in 1871 in favor of a State convention to amend the Constitu- tion, but the measure was defeated. He was a candidate for elector in 1872 on the Greeley ticket. In 1875 he again advo- cated a similar convention, which was called. He was elected · to the Legislature again in 1872 and in 1876 to the State Senate. On the 10th of July, 1879, he married Miss N.
649
POLITICAL
Leila Bobo of South Carolina. In 1884 he was elected to Congress, defeating H. G. Ewart, and again in 1886, defeating W. H. Malone. In 1888 he was defeated for Congress by H. G. Ewart. He died June 23, 1902. He gave the United States the site of the present postoffice in 1888, and assisted in the education of a number of worthy young men. Of him it has been said that "his word was better than his bond, and his bond was as good as gold."
JAMES MONTRAVILLE MOODY. He was born February 12, 1858, in Cherokee, now Graham, county, but while he was yet an infant his parents moved to and settled on Jonathan's creek, Haywood county. He attended the neighborhood schools and at seventeen years of age went to Waynesville Academy under the tutelage of John K. Boone, after which he went to the Collegiate Institute at Candler, Buncombe county. He was admitted to the bar in 1881, and in 1886 was Republican nominee for solicitor, and defeated Judge G. S. Ferguson for that position, serving four years. In 1894 he was elected to the State Senate from the 34th District, then composed of Haywood, Buncombe and Madison. He was appointed major and chief commissary and served on the staff of Major General J. Warren Keifer in the Spanish- American War of 1898. In 1900 he was elected from the Ninth District over W. T. Crawford, Esq., a member of Con- gress, and was renominated in 1902 by the Republicans, but was defeated by Mr. J. M. Gudger, Jr., two years later. On May 20, 1885, Mr. Moody married Miss Margaret E. Haw- kins. He died February 5, 1903.
WILLIAM THOMAS CRAWFORD. He was born on Crabtree creek, Haywood county, N. C., June 1, 1856. He attended the public schools of this neighborhood, and in 1882 the old Waynesville Academy. In 1885 and 1887 he served as a member of the House of Representatives in the State legis- lature. In 1888 he was Presidential elector on the Demo- cratic ticket, and in 1889 he served as engrossing clerk of the House. In 1889 and 1890 he studied law at the University of North Carolina. In 1890 he was elected to Congress. In 1891 he was admitted to the bar. On the 30th of November, 1892, he was married to Miss Inez Edna Coman, daughter of J. R. Coman and wife, Laura McCracken, daughter of David V. McCracken. J. R. Coman's father was that scholarly and ec-
650
HISTORY OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
centric gentleman, Matthew J. Coman, son of James Coman, of the city of Raleigh, N. C. Matthew J. Coman was a class- mate of President James K. Polk at the University of North Carolina, was a fine classical scholar, and was born in Raleigh in 1802. In 1892 Mr. Crawford was again elected to Con- gress, defeating Hon. Jeter C. Pritchard. He was defeated for the 54th Congress. Was re-elected to the 56th Congress, but was unseated by Hon. Richmond Pearson by a majority of one vote. He was defeated for re election to Congress in 1900. He was Presidential elector on the Democratic ticket in 1904. He was elected to the 60th Congress (1907 to 1909). He practised law in Waynesville till his death, November 16, 1913. Even his political rivals admitted that he had more strength before the people than any man since the death of his near kinsman, the late Col. William H. Thomas, for whom he was named. His widow and seven children survive.
JAMES LOWERY ROBINSON. He was a son of James and Matilda Lowery Robinson, was born September 17, 1838, married Miss Alice L. Siler, daughter of Julius T. and Mary Coleman Siler, October 12, 1864. He died July 8, 1887. On his mother's side he was descended from the Lanes and Swains, his mother having been a niece of Gov. D. L. Swain. He attended Emory and Henry College of Virginia, volun- teered as a private in the Confederate army and was pro- moted to a captaincy, fighting gallantly till discharged be- cause of a wound he carried all his life. He represented Macon in the House from 1868 to 1872, inclusive, when he was elected speaker, to which position he was reelected in 1873 and 1874. A silver service presented at the end of his ser- vice as speaker was inscribed : "From the Republicans and Democrats of the House : a testimonial of ability, integrity and impartiality." From 1876 to 1879, inclusive, he served as State Senator from the then 42d District, composed of Jackson, Swain, Clay, Macon, Cherokee and Graham coun- ties; and on November 20, 1876, was elected president of the Senate by a vote of thirty-six to six. He was nominated for lieutenant governor by the Democrats in 1880 and elected, serving as governor in September, 1883, during the absence of Governor Jarvis from the State, and many important grants and State papers bear his signature as "Acting Gov- ernor." His first official act as governor was to pardon James
651
POLITICAL
J. Penn, sentenced from Cherokee for perjury. But his great work was in his efforts to secure the construction of railroads through the western part of the State. He was appointed Inspector of Public Lands. From 1886 to 1887 he was Spe- cial Indian Agent. He was a good man as well as being a statesman.
NOTES.
1Constitution of the Watauga Association.
"From Asheville's Centenary.
"Hill, p. 43.
"Ibid., p. 152.
'Polk.
"Hill, 249.
Col. Byrd, in his Writings, calls fire hunting driving game to a central point by means of fires set around a circumference,
Gazette News, November 30, 1912.
"Handbook of North Carolina, by L. L. Polk, p. 22.
10Hill, 263.
11Address of Judge Walter Clark at Burnsville, July 5, 1909, unveiling statue to Cap- tain Otway Burns. 12Hill, p. 264.
1ªCapt James W. Terrell in The Commonwealth, Asheville, June 1, 1893.
""From "Thirty-Ninth Regiment" by Lieut. Theo. F. Davidson in Vol. II, of "His- tories of the Several Regiments and Battalions from North Carolina," p. 699.
"'According to Wheeler's "History of North Carolina" there were only 4,669 slaves in 1850 in this entire mountain region.
""From Ch., 37, of Hill's " Young Peoples' History of North Carolina."
17In "The Last Ninety Days of the War," Ch. 16, when Federal General Gillam was approaching Swannanoa gap Love's regiment and Porter's battery went there and forti- fied it; and "Palmer's brigade was ordered to meet them there; but," Gen. Martin adde, "I regret to say the men refused to go."
18Hill, 357, 358.
10Polk, 22.
"The Biographical Congressional Directory states that he died in Asheville, which is erroneous.
.
APPENDIX
DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
ARDEN CHAPTER. On the 31st of October, 1899, at Arden House, Arden, Buncombe county, was formed the Arden Chapter of the D. A. R. Mrs. Maria Beale, regent and acting historian; Mrs. Mary E. Child, vice-regent and sec- retary; Miss Bertha F. Beale, corresponding secretary; Mrs. Ella H. Morrison, treasurer; Mrs. Jane Banks Amiss, regis- trar.
DORCAS BELL LOVE CHAPTER, OF WAYNESVILLE, was organ- ized by Miss Mary Love Stringfield, a great-granddaughter of Robert Love, and Miss Lucy Biddle Lewis, January 9, 1899. The first officers follow: Mary Love Stringfield, regent; Annie E. Gudger, secretary; Elizabeth Briscoe, treas- urer; Nora Welch, historian; Bessie Love, registrar; Love B. Gilmer, vice-regent. The present officers (January, 1913) follow: Mrs. Marietta Welch Way, regent; Maria Love Mitchell, vice-regent; Florence V. Camp, secretary; Sarah Stringfield, treasurer; Jessie Howell Rogers, register; Love B. Gilmer, historian; Ella B. Atkins, treasurer. The first annual State Conference of the national society was held at Waynesville, July 2 to 5, 1901, upon invitation of the Dorcas Bell Love chapter. On the 23d of August, 1902, this chapter unveiled a bronze tablet to the memory of Robert Love, the son of Dorcas Bell Love, in the court house at Waynesville. 1760 1845
In Memory of COL. ROBERT LOVE. Founder of Waynesville. Soldier, Statesman, Benefactor. Erected by the Dorcas Bell Love Chapter, D. A. R., August 23, 1902.
Dorcas Bell was the daughter of James Bell, of Augusta county, Va., and the wife of Samuel Love.
EDWARD BUNCOMBE CHAPTER OF ASHEVILLE was or- ganized October 12, 1903, Mrs. Thomas Settle, regent; Mrs. J. M. Campbell, vice-regent; Miss Lelia May Johnston (now
(652)
653
APPENDIX
Mrs. Duncan Cameron Waddell, Jr.,) secretary; Mrs. Theo- dore S. Morrison, treasurer; Miss Nan Erwin, registrar; Mrs. J. E. Ray, historian. Its officers in January, 1913, are: Mrs. Theodore S. Morrison, regent; Mrs. E. C. Chambers, vice- regent; Miss Hattie M. Scott, secretary; Miss Maria T. Brown, treasurer; Mrs. Chas. A. Moore, registrar; Mrs. M. E. Child, historian; Mrs. T. Woolridge, chaplain; Mrs. J. Edwin Ray, honorary chaplain. This chapter was named for
EDWARD BUNCOMBE, of whom Wheeler's History of North Carolina contains the following account: "Colonel Edward Buncombe was a native of St. Kitts, one of the West India islands. He inherited land in Tyrrell county and built a house, now in the possession of his descendants.
"With his regiment, he joined the army of the north under Washington; was wounded and taken prisoner at the battle of Germantown, in 1777. He died of wounds received in this battle, at Philadelphia, while on parole. He left one son, who died without issue, and two daughters; one, who mar- ried John Goelet, Esq., of Washington, N. C., and the other Mr. Clark, of Bertie, a daughter of whom is now the wife of John Cox, Esq., of Edenton.
"Edward Buncombe was distinguished for his manly ap- pearance, indomitable bravery, unsullied patriotism, and open-hearted hospitality. Over his door was this distitch-
"To BUNCOMBE HALL, Welcome All."
UNITED DAUGHTERS OF THE CONFEDERACY
ASHEVILLE CHAPTER. This was formed April 9, 1907, with Miss Fannie L. Patton, president; Mrs. E. C. Chambers, first vice-president; Mrs. Henry Redwood, second vice-presi- dent; Mrs. J. E. Dickerson, recording secretary; Miss Willie Ray, corresponding secretary; Mrs. W. D. Hilliard, treasurer.
MONUMENTS. A monument designed to honor the dead infantry of Buncombe county was erected in Newton ceme- tery in 1903. For the keeping of this plot and the annual decoration of the graves the chapter is chiefly indebted to Miss Julia Hatch and Miss Mary McDowell, as leaders.
GEN. THOMAS L. CLINGMAN'S MONUMENT. This stands in the court house lot and is thus engraved: "Erected by Robert E. Lee Chapter, Children of the Confederacy, and
654
HISTORY OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
Friends; In Honor of Gen. Clingman, Colonel of the 25th N. C. Reg .- Brig. Gen. Confederate army-U. S. Senator. Clingman's Dome - Smoky Range, 6660 ft. - Next to Mt. Mitchell 6714 ft., highest East of the Rockies."
THE ROBERT E. LEE CHAPTER was an auxiliary of this chapter, and was organized in April, 1894, under the super- vision of Mrs. Edward McDowell. Mrs. E. B. Glenn followed Mrs. McDowell in fuller enlistment of interest as a study circle and choir. The historical department is under the direction of Mrs. J. E. Ray. Among those who have been active and helpful from the organization are Mrs. J. P. Sawyer, Mrs. Duffield, Mrs. Stockton, Mrs. W. W. West, Miss Mary C. McDowell, Mrs. Betty Child, Mrs. William Breese, Miss Carrie Furman, Mrs. Martha C. Kepler, president from Jan- uary, 1899, to November, 1907; Mrs. Henry Redwood, presi- dent from 1907 till November, 1910; Mrs. C. E. Chambers, who has served since as president. Mrs. Edith C. L. Cain, Mrs. E. W. West, Mrs. Daisy S. Cleminger, Miss Pearl K. Stevens, Mrs. B. K. Bassett, Miss Nancy Grant, Mrs. Eph- raim Clayton, Mrs. Malcolm Platt, Miss Ethel Ray, Mrs. F. B. Dickerson, Mrs. E. W. West.
THE MEN OF BUNCOMBE
By J. P. ARTHUR
(Read at Centennial Celebration of Buncombe County, August 11, 1392)
More than a hundred years ago, over the mountain walls, Over the trackless forest-path, over the water-falls;
Over a hundred miles of swamp, over the sandy plain,
Our fathers came to this fair clime to build them homes again. Away from the glistening sad sea-shore, away from the haunts of men, Away from the busy marts of trade, away from brake and fen; Away from the glare and grind of life, away from grasping greed, Into this wilderness they came and planted deep their seed. Driving their kind-eyed cows along, trusting their faithful dogs, To Swannanoa's stream they came and built their home of logs; With a Bible on the mantel-shelf and a rifle over the door, The Men of Buncombe started life a hundred years ago. Look out on these everlasting hills and towering mountains blue, Look out on these verdant, smiling plains, bright rivers winding through; Look up at the grand ethereal vault, the arching, heaven-kissed dome- Look out, look up at land and sky our fathers chose for Home! Italian lands with sunsets grand, bright noons and rosy morns, Match not the gorgeous draperies of our opalescent dawns; And famed Arcadia holds no nook one half so fair as this, Nor the "Island Vale Avillion" airs which breathe so soft a kiss!
·
655
APPENDIX
Kings Mountain's fight and Cowpens' fray, Guilford and Alamance The story of their valor tell with halo of romance; But now, their swords to ploughshares turned, their strife with man is o'er; They battle with harsh nature's moods and conquer as before. The forests girdled by their axe in burning log-heaps glow, While, pulsing 'neath its brood of grain, the mother-earth smiles through! Many an idle stream is bound and harnessed to a wheel, And thousands herbs and weeds are made their secret balms to yield. The martins, nesting in the gourd, like sentinels kept ward For robber hawks, while timid fowl strutted the wide barn-yard; Lithe, antlered red-deer roamed the hills, close followed by their fawns, Cropping the dainty, crisp young grass in dew-bespangled dawns. The anvil's clang, the saw's hoarse snore, the bellow's wheezing lay The scythe's long swish, the hammer's ring made music all the day; The furrow-scoured ploughshare bright, the sharp lip of the hoe, The mattock, flail and reaping-hook were friends of the men of yore. The wild deer furnished food and clothes; and, on a thousand hills, Their cattle grazed knee deep in grass, their sheep browsed by the rills; Myriads of gold-enameled bees winged their swift flight in glee, And, honey laden, homeward hummed to hives beneath the tree.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.