USA > Ohio > Guernsey County > History of Guernsey County, Ohio, Volume I > Part 38
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The war of 1812-15 had a stagnating effect. All efforts toward im- provement were checked. The men flew to arms for the protection of their families and firesides, but uncertainty and distrust reigned among those who were left behind to await the results of the arbitrament of war.
"The blast of war had blown." "Peace hath her victories no less re- nowned than war," and a new life seemed to open upon the frontier settlers. and the click of the axe and the whack of the mattock meant war for civiliza- tion, for home and native land.
The country was now a purely protected one. Cambridge was a pro- tected town; consumer and producer stood side by side. The inhabitants could not say, "No pent up Utica confines our powers, the boundless universe is ours." They were shut in, so far as traffic was concerned. A then resi- dent said "that his boys made a quarter apiece every Sunday, trading pen- knives." So it was the trade went on, but the capital stock remained the same. There had to be a reciprocity, a looking out for new fields for trade and traffic, and the hopes of the people were exultant when the projected "Cum- berland road," fathered by Henry Clay, sprang into life and began to make its way through the wilderness. New life, new vigor, inspired the citizens of Cambridge. The labor in building this road made a market for surplus that had a money value, and the citizens began to prepare for better homes.
Among the first, after the completion of the National road in 1830, was our home, where twenty and more years of our life of boyhood and young manhood centers, as the ever memorable "halcyon days of youth." The Cambridge then platted contained one hundred and forty lots. On Main street. north side, thirty-four lots, south side, thirty-six; on Steubenville street, on the north side, thirty-six, on the south side. thirty-four. The cross streets, from east to west, were named Walnut, Spruce, Pine, Market, Chest- nut. Mulberry and Lombardy.
The old court house stood in the square, and the old log gaol, the terror of evil-doers, stood by its side. From the one, justice, tempered with mercy, flowed; in the other, punishment, shorn of wrath, was administered to all as equals before the law.
There were on the lots and streets forty-eight dwellings and shops. Of the dwellers and their avocations begins the story of three score years of life in Cambridge.
We begin at the west end, south side. The first three lots contained the Beatty tanyard. The old house on the corner of the alley is a part of the
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original house. Christopher Duniver, the head tanner, lived in this house. Of this family, there are now living in Cambridge Mrs. Lemuel Bonnell and Mrs. George D. Gallup. "Chris" Duniver had been the wagoner of Capt. C. P. Beatty's company in the war of 1812. And when a war-cloud again rose in the northwest, and the call to arms was made by Governor Robert Lucas in 1835, drum and fife, in martial strains, inspired the latent patriotic spark to blood heat, "Chris" again kept step, as a recruit, to go and hurl the invading "Wolverines" from Ohio's sacred soil. This war cloud blew away, but its heroes still live in history.
On the next three lots Col. Z. A. Beatty, one of the proprietors of the town, had chosen his home, where the McPherson home now is. He built the first frame house in Cambridge. There he lived and died in 1835. O1! the lots were planted apple, peach and pear trees, the earliest in the town, and the garden and lawn, fronting the street, was adorned with the choicest shrubs and flowers of the day.
The National road was a complete and perfect bed of limestone, made so by rolling and filling in the ruts with the displaced stone, until it was impervi- ons to water and as smooth as a pavement. It was the only pavement to walk on for many years in the history of Cambridge.
EARLY DAYS ON WILLS CREEK.
(Jeffersonian, December 12, 1895.)[ ...
The northwest part of Guernsey county was perhaps the scene of more exploits among the Indians than any other locality in the county. From the place where Bird's run flows into Wills creek, now Bridgeville, the creek makes a long, circuitons route, and flows a distance of fourteen miles to where the waters of Marlatt run are discharged into it. The distance between the mouths of these two tributaries in a straight line would not exceed three miles. This shorter route was much traveled by the Miami, Delaware and other Indian tribes during the Indian war of 1790-95, when their anxiety was to reach the settlements at Marietta. Only a few years ago their trace could be noticed in many places from Marlatt's run to the mouth of Bird's run, thence up to Indian Camp, Wills creek and Trail run, thence over the divide, and down Duck creek and the Little Muskingum.
As early as the year 1810, one James Miskimins, a native of Virginia, settled on Wills creek, and took up a large quantity of land near the mouth of Marlatt's run. Having made his location, he returned to Virginia and operated a large distillery, until he had accumulated enough means to make
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him comfortable. He then returned to his land on Wills creek, being one of the first settlers. As it was his custom to make money, he was soon engaged in a good business in buying fur from the Indians, rather trading with them. His only market then was at Zanesville. For the purpose of carrying his fur to market, and his corn to a horse mill, he made a large canoe, in which he could float down the creek and river to Zanesville, do his trading and return with his corn meal and a good supply of whiskey. For the purpose of keep- ing things dry, he built a commodious warehouse on the bank of Wills creek, where he could store his fur and whiskey, and it soon became famous as a trading post among the Indians, as well as the few white people who had set- tled there.
On one occasion he was longer in making his trip to Zanesville and return than usual, which induced Doughty, the Indian chief, in company with others of the tribes, to start down the creek to see what had become of "Skimmer," as they called him. They met Miskimins on his return near the mouth of White Eyes creek, and beckoned him in a friendly way to come on shore, and let them have a drink of fire water (whiskey). At their request, Miskimins landed his canoe, and treated the Indians with one drink each, then hastened on his journey up the creek, as he wished to reach his warehouse before night. Just as he was working his canoe back into the middle of the stream, one stalwart Indian who had not had enough drink, became unruly and threatened to shoot Miskimins if he did not return to the shore. Doughty told Miskimins he had better land, as the Indian was bad, and would shoot him if he did not. Miskimins again landed his canoe, and walked right up to the pesky Indian, jerked his gun from his hands, knocked him down with it, then threw the gun into the creek where the water was deep. He then started up the creek with his canoe, and reached home the same evening, without further molesta- tion from the Indian.
The next morning when Miskimins got up, he found six burly Indians standing against his cabin, three on each side of the door. He expected to have an uneven encounter with them, but that did not deter him from inviting them in. They very good-humouredly went in, and then told him that the Indian he had knocked down the day before was a bad Indian, but he had a big family to maintain, that he now had no gun and nothing to buy one with, and that he ( Miskimins) must give the Indian a gun, and all would be right. To this demand Miskimins readily assented. After receiving the gun and a drink, the Indians departed in peace.
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SARCHET GIVES SOME HISTORY.
(Times, November 12. 1903.)
The late reception by the Methodist Episcopal church to Doctor Wallace and Rev. W. B. Winters and their wives, calls up this history of how recep- tions were given to the preachers of the long ago. There was then no know- ing who was to be the preacher or preachers in advance of their coming to the charge. In 1819 Rev. Thomas A. Morris, afterward an honoured bishop, was sent as the senior preacher by the Ohio conference to Zanesville circuit, of which Cambridge was one of the appointments. He moved to Cambridge, where he resided the two years he was on the circuit. He lived in a house on the now Margaret Thompson lot on East Steubenville avenue. The preach- ing place was in the grand jury room in the old court house, which was reached by two flights of stairs from the old court room below. It was seated with slab benches, with here and there a chair brought by a member for his or her special use. Reverend Morris preached his first sermon, and at its close stated that Rev. Charles Elliott, the junior preacher, would preach in three weeks. The day for the junior preacher came. The little congrega- tion was assembled, and patiently awaiting his advent. The time passed slowly on, past the appointed hour, and no preacher came. Then, after some consultation, it was decided that as it was the spring of the year, and the roads very bad, he would be unable to get there, and that before separating they would have a prayer meeting. One of the brothers took the stand and an- nounced a hymn. The congregation rose, and sang the hymn, the leader timing out two lines at a time. While they were singing, a rough, uncouth- looking man stood at the head of one of the stairways. When the singing was finished, and they knelt in prayer, with the leader, the strange, uncouth man knelt also. When the prayer was over, and the congregation resumed their seats and the leader was about to give out another hymn, the strange man walked forward to the stand, and standing with his back to the congre- gation, began to disrobe. Laying down his riding whip, taking off his great- coat, which was all bedraggled with mud, and his leggings and overshoes of buffalo-hide, he turned, facing the congregation, and said, "I am the junior preacher, Charles Elliott," and opening the Bible, he read as a text Judges third and twentieth, "I have a message from God unto thee."
After the sermon, closing hymn, and prayer, the congregation gathered around the stand, greeting the young preacher, and giving their names. The most of them were the French Guernsey settlers. He was taken in charge by Thomas Sarchet. His horse, which was tied to a stump in the square, was (27)
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taken to the stable by one of the Sarchet boys. The greeting and reception was over, and the young preacher had found a home, where he continued to stay while on the east end of the circuit. A young boy present at this recep- tion went home, and told his parents "that a man came in while they were singing, and knelt at the head of the stairs, during prayer, and that everybody thought he was a hog-driver; but behold, he turned out to be the preacher!" This supposed "hog-driver" preacher became one of the prominent men of western Methodism, and as editor of the Pittsburg Advocate Journal and Western Christian Advocate sent out weekly messages to the homes of west- ern Methodists.
GENERAL JACKSON'S VISIT TO CAMBRIDGE.
(C. P. B. Sarchet, in Times, March 22, 1906.)
When General Jackson, then President of the United States, passed through Cambridge in the fall of 1831, on his way east to Washington City. the new bridge over Wills creek, now the old bridge on Dewey avenue, was just receiving its second coat of paint inside and out, also the roof. It was somewhat barricaded with scaffolding and the general travel had to be directed to the old Beatty and Gomber toll bridge, located a short distance west of the new bridge.
General Jackson was travelling in a private carriage, with a colored driver and a colored servant mounted on top as a postillion. Behind the car- riage there followed a colored boy mounted on the General's old white war horse. The cavalcade stopped at the old "Bridge House" tavern, kept by David Ballantine. There the General changed his dress of travel into the full suit of a major-general of the United States army. The old war horse was fully caparisoned with military saddle, saddle blanket, bridle and housing, all of these bespangled with shining stars and fringed with red trappings.
At the "Bridge House" he was met by an improvised drum corps and a number of the old soldiers of the war of 1812, and his Democratic adherents of the town and nearby country. The Whigs and Democrats of that day were like the Jews and Samaritans of old, politically they had no assimilations with the Democrats, and especially for Andy Jackson, who had beaten the Whig idol of Ohio, Henry Clay.
Major James Dunlap, an officer of the Pennsylvania militia in the war of 1812, then a citizen of Cambridge, was marshal of the parade, assisted by Ancil Briggs, his son-in-law, who was later the first governor of the state of Iowa. The Major had two sons, George Washington and Andrew Jack-
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son. These were conspicuous in the parade. George beat the base drum and "Fat Jack," dressed in his best bib and tucker, walked by the side of his father, at the head of the procession.
When all was in readiness, the marshal headed the column, followed by Old Glory flaunting in the breeze, followed by the drum corps. Then came General Jackson, mounted on the white war horse, with the trappings and stars and spangles glittering in the morning sunlight, followed by the car- riages, soldiers and, citizens.
The Cambridge postmaster, Jacob Schaffner, was conspicuous in the drum corps, playing the snare drum. As the column moved through Wheeling avenue, General Jackson, with his three-cocked hat, surmounted with a long white plume, in his hand, waved it right and left to the onlookers, whilst his long white locks fluttered in the breeze. At the top of the east hill the change was made back to the regular traveling mode.
"FROM HEN TO MOUTH."
Old Major Bute, grandfather of J. B. Ferguson, Esq., of this city, was a frequent horse-back traveller on the old pike. These horse-back travellers usually got up early at the tavern where they spent the night, and rode five or more miles to another tavern early in the morning to take breakfast. The Major told this story :
He had ridden some miles in the early morning, and reached a tavern where he stopped to feed his horse and eat his breakfast. After washing and getting ready for breakfast. he took a seat on the porch in front of the tavern. While seated there the hall door was opened, and he heard a boy call, "Mother. the old hen is on!" The landlord came out, and took a seat by the Major. After waiting some time, the Major asked the landlord if breakfast would soon be ready. The reply was, "Yes, in a short time."
Then the Major heard the boy call, "Mother, the old hen's off, and I've got the eggs." The landlord went in, but soon came out and invited the Major to breakfast. On the table was "ham and egg."
The Major remarked that he had often heard of people living from hand to mouth, but that was the first time in his experience he had heard of anyone living from "hen to mouth."
THE OLD PIKE AND EARLY INNS.
(From Reminiscences published in the local press by Colonel Sarchet.)
A few miles west of Fairview old Billy Armstrong kept a notable tavern and wagon stand. on the top of the hill, then known as the "Taylor Hill," on
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the old pike. He kept a team on the road. He was a jolly old Irishman. It was a famous place and the wagoners often drove late at night to reach Arm- strong's, as did other travelers.
It was said that an Irishman, traveling on foot, stayed there over night, and in the morning after breakfast told old Billy that he had no money to pay his bill. "Why didn't you tell me that last night ?" said old Billy. The Irish- man said: "And faith, I'm sorry enough to tell you this morning." This Irish wit so tickled old Billy that he gave him a parting drink and bade him proceed on his journey with good luck.
Old Billy was a great Jackson man and a Democrat, and would argue that Jackson did more for the old pike than did Henry Clay, its great cham- pion. His Democratic friends of Oxford township for his party loyalty ele- vated him to the high and honorable dignity of esquire. He was now no longer called old Billy, but "Squire Billy." Toward the end of the palmy days of the old pike, he was further rewarded by his party and was elected from the Guernsey-Monroe district to the Senate of Ohio.
In the Senate at that time was a leading Democrat named Aiken. He was fond of a joke and concluded to play one on old Billy. His name on the Senate roll came just before Armstrong's. He conceived the idea that old Billy always voted as he did on all questions, whether political or local. One day a measure came up to be voted on of some political character. Aiken's name was called and he voted with the Whigs. Armstrong's was called and he voted the same way. After the vote was completed the Democrats gathered around Aiken's desk to know why he had voted with the Whigs. He replied that he was setting a trap. The next morning, after the journal was read, Aiken rose up and asked to change his vote to the Democratic side, which was granted. Then old Billy, who sat some distance away, rose up and asked that his vote be changed to the Democratic side, which was granted. And now with the Whigs old Billy came to be known as "the follower of the file leader."
At the old Hoover tavern, then kept by David Holtz, the writer first saw old Pete Jackson, colored, who was later a historic darkey of Cambridge. He married "Tempy" Mitchell, and Pete and Tempy had many warm times. Pete would get drunk and try to clear the kitchen and break the dishes, and Tempy would drive Pete off. When he was asked why he did not stay with Tempy, Pete would say: "Oh, there is a coolness now, but it will warm up again when the moon changes."
Pete worked a good many years at the old Cambridge foundry, carried on by Clark Robinson and B. A. Albright. They finally disagreed and dis-
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solved partnership, and had many lawsuits. Pete was one of the witnesses. In one of the cases a question was prepared by Billy Hillyer, a pettifoging attorney engaged in the case. He stated the question to Pete and said, "Now you must answer the question by yes or no." Pete studied a little and then said: "I wouldn't believe that lie if I swore to it myself."
Some distance northwest of Middleton lives old Isaiah Parlett. He was one of the very "old timers" wagoning to Baltimore, which is more than three hundred miles from where he lived. The usual average day's drive was fif- teen miles, and in winter and bad weather was less, so that almost a month and a half was taken to make a trip.
At Middleton and near it were a good many old wagoners. Many of these hauled east to Cumberland, Maryland, after the Baltimore & Ohio rail- road had been completed that far west. Among these were William Parlett. William and Andrew Moore, William and Thomas Dunn. The most of these only hauled east as far as the Ohio river at Bridgeport and Wheeling and west from there to the towns along and adjacent to the old pike, as far west as the Ohio canal. The teams in Ohio, west of the Ohio river, that east of Wheeling would have been called "sharpshooters" were called "militia teams."
That the old pike was a first class highway was evidenced by incidents given of wagoners who left it with loads for the adjacent towns.
We give this incident taken from the "Old Pike:" Daniel Barcus agreed to deliver from Baltimore in 1838, a load of merchandise weighing eight thousand three hundred pounds, to Mt. Vernon, Ohio, in good condition at the end of thirty days at four dollars and twenty-five cents per hundredweight. He left the old pike at Jacktown, west of Zanesville. From Jacktown to Mt. Vernon was thirty-two miles, the whole distance being three hundred and ninety-seven miles. At Mt. Vernon he loaded back with tobacco in hogs- heads, seven thousand two hundred pounds, at two dollars and seventy-five cents per hundredweight. On the way back before reaching Jacktown, he upset, without any damage except the detention. The expense of getting his wagon turned up and re-loaded was a jug, ten cents, and one gallon of whisky, thirty cents. Barcus says that when he struck the National road at Jacktown he felt at home again.
Barcus says that he often stayed at the Wallace tavern near Brownsville. Pennsylvania, and one night after taking care of his team, he accompanied the two daughters to a country party, where they danced all night, till broad daylight, and walked home with the girls in the morning. These social par- ties were frequent on the old pike both east and west. Many of the old wagon- ers were good fiddlers. Most of the old tavern keepers kept a fiddle.
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Major James Dunlap, who was the first marshal of the incorporated vil- lage of Cambridge, and one of its prominent and respected citizens, kept a tavern on the old pike east of Washington, Pennsylvania, called the "Mt. Vernon House." He was keeping that house as early as 1816. This is what the "Old Pike" says of him: "Major Dunlap was a prominent man of his day, and brigade inspector of the Washington county militia, an officer of no little consequence in the history of Pennsylvania. He later kept the 'Jackson House' in Washington."
The writer has heard Major Dunlap and Joseph L. Noble, who kept a tavern on what was known as "Egg Nog Hill," and who was later a citizen of Cambridge, tell of the winter frolics at the old taverns in the mountains. There was a noted tavern called the "Three Gals' House." It was kept by three maiden ladies, and thus its name. One of the "gals" played the fiddle, and fandangoes and hoedowns were of frequent occurrence at the Three Gals' Tavern. Old Sam Smith was a wagoner and kept a tavern at Elizabethtown on the old pike east of Washington. He was one of the celebrated Smith families, tavern keepers, stage drivers and wagoners on the pike, east of the Ohio river. These Smiths followed the fortunes of the old pike west into Ohio. Part of the old Smith tavern is still standing as a relic of its past glories. It was a place where tobacco was brought in from the south by the "militia teams," to be re-loaded for the east, and was a well-patronized tavern. Teams of some character were to be seen day and night in the Smith wagon yard.
After the busy days of the old pike were over, and Sam Smith slept in the village grave yard, old Billy Richards lived in the old tavern. He had a boy that was not bright. The late Dr. J. T. Clark told this story :
Richards burnt wood for his fires and had a large wood yard in front of his house. The wood had been cut up in the yard, leaving many chips to be gathered up. The Doctor said as he was passing one day on his professional business, he noticed the Richards boy going to the house with a big arm load of chips. When he reached the door, he threw down the load and said: "Damned if I carry chips." Moral-don't quit too soon.
Samuel Jackson, known in the early history of Cambridge as General Jackson, was an old wagoner on the road east of Wheeling before the Nation- al road was constructed. He drifted west along with the old stone bridge builders, the firm of Kinkeade & Beck, who built the celebrated "S" bridge on the pike west of Washington, Pennsylvania. Near this bridge was the celebrated tavern of the widow Caldwell. Cumrine, in his history of Wash-
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ington county, gives many of the enlivening scenes that took place at the Caldwell tavern.
In the opening chapter of "The Old Pike," by the Hon. L. B. Seabright, the Hon. James G. Blaine, who was a student at Washington and Jefferson College, says: "Caldwell's tavern (we did not use the high-sounding 'hotel,' but the good old Anglo-Saxon 'tavern'), with its wide open fireplace in the cheerful bar-room, and the bountiful spread in the dining room, and the long porch for summer loafers, and the immense stabling with its wealth of horse- flesh, and the great open yard for the wagons! How real and vivid it all seems to me at this moment! All the reminiscences of the old pike, for which you are an enthusiast, are heartily shared by me."
This firm of Kinkeade & Beck built the crooked stone bridge east of Cambridge, and did the stone work of the old bridge over Wills creek on Dewey avenue of this city and the crooked stone bridge over Crooked creek west of this city.
With these bridge builders General Jackson came to Cambridge as a wagoner, and first resided in a log cabin which was located on the high ground south of Wills creek and east of the old bridge. After the completion of the National road west to Cambridge, he began again wagoning to the East on the pike, which he continued for many years, and was followed in his old days by his son, Samuel, who took for a wife Miss Phoebe Valentine, daughter of John Valentine, a noted tavern keeper of West Alexander, Pennsylvania.
Of him the "Old Pike" says: "If he had a predecessor or successor in this house, his name is totally eclipsed by that of John Valentine." This fam- ily of Jackson, father, mother, son and wife, rest in their graves in the old "Hutchison" graveyard, in Adams township.
Some time ago, in a conversation with Rev. Dr. Milligan, he inquired if we had read a book in the Cambridge library, entitled "Claysville on the Old Pike." We replied that we had not. He then said, "You ought to get it and read it, I think it would interest you." So we took his advice and with his assistance in finding it in the new library room, we took it out and read it with a good deal of interest. It was written by Rev. Dr. Birch, of New York. It was a history of the old Claysville Presbyterian church, and in it the author gives some of the enlivening scenes of the old pike, as witnessed in his boyhood and while a student at Washington and Jefferson college.
There was much in it that we had heard in our boyhood about the old pike. He gave the names of many of the wagoners, and described their old broad-wheeled wagons, and the names of many of the old stage coaches, stage drivers and descriptions of some of his stage rides on top of the coaches with
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the drivers from Washington to Wheeling. He gives a reminiscence of old Joseph Lawson, father of Mrs. Isaac Lofland, of this city, and his famous tavern in West Alexander, and calls up from the dead past the celebrated "Gretna Green" and the old justice of the peace, Joseph F. Mayes, who mar- ried nineteen hundred and eighteen eloping couples, from 1861 to 1881, and in all, from 1835 to 1885, more than five thousand.
He speaks of the old Reed tavern at "Coon Island." The point is now Vienna station on the Baltimore and Ohio railroad. Think of an old stage driver or wagoner going back to "Coon Island" to find himself "a mere looker-on in Vienna." He speaks of the relay house at "Rooney's Point" and of the "Clay monument" and other historic points on the west end of the old pike. Among the stage drivers he mentions is the redoubtable Archie McNeil. whom the writer knew in boyhood.
His father, Archibald McNeil, carried on blacksmithing at the old Sarchet salt works on Wills creek, five miles north of Cambridge. Around the salt works and his father's shop, young Archie spent his boyhood days. He was a great lover of horses and would run away from the blacksmith shop and sneak off with a bridle or halter to the large bottom farm of the writer's father, Moses Sarchet, who at that date kept a large number of colts, aged from one to three years. Archie would drive them into a log stable and catch the first one he could, without regard to age, and ride it about the pasture field. So while Archie continued around all the colts, year after year, were broken to ride. Archie finally drifted to Cambridge, and began to lead extra stage horses from station to station on the old pike, and at times ride back and forth with the stage drivers on the box. He soon began to handle the reins and be- came a noted driver. He drifted east on the old pike, east of Wheeling.
This is what Hon. T. B. Searight says of Archie in the "Old Pike:" "Archie McNeil was of the class of merry stage drivers and enlivened the road with his quaint tricks and humorous jokes. An unsophisticated youth from the back country, of ungainly form and manners, sauntered into Wash- ington, Pennsylvania, to seek employment, with an ambition not uncommon among young men of that day to became a stage driver. He fell in with Archie McNeil and made known the object of his visit. Archie, ever ready for a joke, encouraged the aspirations of the young 'greenhorn.'
"Opposite the 'National House' there was a long shed into which empty coaches were run for shelter. Archie proposed to the young fellow that he furnish a practical demonstration of his talent as a driver. to which he readily assented. He was directed to climb up on the driver's seat; then Archie fastened a full set of reins to the end of the coach tongue and handed them
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to the young fellow, and also a driver's whip and told him to show what he could do.
"The coach bodies, be it remembered, were placed on long, stout and wide leather springs, which caused gentle rocking when in motion. The young fellow, fully equipped as a driver, swayed himself back and forth, cracked the whip first on one side and then on the other of the tongue, rocked the coach and manipulated the reins, with great pomp, and continued to exer- cise himself in this manner for a time, without evincing the slightest con- sciousness that he was the victim of a joke.
"A number of persons, the writer included, witnessed this ludicrous scene, and heartily enjoyed the fun. Among the spectators was James G. Blaine, then a student at Washington College.
"McNeil was a son-in-law of Jack Bayliss, the old stage driver from Washington to Claysville."
James Bayliss, an old stage-driver here at Cambridge, was a son of Jack Bayliss. Henry Bayliss and the Misses Bayliss, of this city, are children of James Bayliss.
This is an old song that the writer heard William Sheets, an old stage driver and wagoner, sing in the tavern of George W. Hoan, at Fairfield, Iowa, a half century ago. G. W. Hoan was a former tavern keeper at Cambridge.
"Oh, the songs they would sing and the tales they would spin,
As they lounged in the light of the old country inn,
But a day came at last when the stage brought no load
To the gate as it rolled up the long dusty road.
And lo! at the sunrise a shrill whistle blew
O'er the fields-and the old yielded place to the new-
And a merciless age with its discord and din
Made wreck, as it passed, of the pioneer inn."
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