USA > Ohio > Logan County > The historical review of Logan County, Ohio > Part 17
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The committee originally appointed by Governor Dennison consisted of General Isaac S. Gardner. James B. MeLaughlin. William G. Kennedy. James Kernan and James Walker.
The committee organized by making
General Isaac S. Gardner chairman and James B. MeLaughlin secretary.
This committee in time appointed local or township committees to assist them in the work.
The winter of 1861 and '62. being a very severe one, and our soldiers in the field being only moderately supplied with clothing and blankets, great suffering fol- lowed. Governor Dennison called upon the patriotic people to come forward with contributions for the relief of the soldiers in the camps and in the fiekls.
The people of Logan county came for- ward with most liberal supplies and blan- kets. underclothing, hose and all things necessary for their comfort were most lib- erally contributed.
The military committee selected from their number William G. Kennedy and James B. Mclaughlin as a committee to take these articles and distribute them to the Logan county boys in the camps of Virginia and Kentucky. The goods were boxed and shipped and a careful distribu- tion was made by them in both Virginia and Kentucky, and thus great relief and comfort was carried into the military camps of the Logan county soldiers on these outposts.
Mr. Kennedy took a severe cold by reason of exposure during the trip and upon his return home was taken with pneumonia and died as the result there- from.
Mr. R. H. St. John was appointed by the Governor upon the committee instead of Mr. Kennedy, deceased.
Governor Todd afterwards added Ralph E. Runkle. John Underwood and Aaron Mitchell to the committeee.
The committee continued to have charge
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of all matters in Logan county connected with the war until the declaration of peace.
THE SQUIRREL HUNTERS.
To omit the distinguished services of the squirrel hunters from the war history. would be like playing Hamlet without the gloomy Dane.
In 1863, when the Rebellion was at its height, and the rebel forces most aggress- ive, there was a threatened invasion of our cities bordering upon the Ohio river, and the rebel forces under General Kirby Smith, one of the most distinguished of the con- federate leaders, were supposed to be en- route towards Cincinnati. There was a hur- rying to and fro preparat ary to defense.
As our boys were mostly at the front. and our available militia had long since be- come regular soldiers in the field. it became necessary to resort to extraordinary meas- ures for the purpose of repelling the in- vasion.
The Governor of Ohio in this emer- gency called upon those who were at home. without reference to age, and appealed to them to come to the defense of the state. bringing such arms as they could procure and to rendezvous at Cincinnati.
To this call there was a most generons out-pouring of loyal and devoted citizens who were, because . i the equipments and the arms they bore, called Squirrel Hun- ters.
Fortunately General Kirby Smith, either frightened by this rush of loyalty to the frontier, or by reason of having changed his plans, did not venture an attack upon our border cities and our patriotic citizens returned home with the assurance that they had in large measure been the means of de- fending the state from invasion.
A regular discharge was issued by them by Governor Todd. the centraal femme of which was a squirrel with tail curled up as if exhultant over the comparatively easy and bloodless victory which had been won by these veterans of our homes and fire- sides.
THE KNIGHTS OF THE GOLDEN CIRCLE.
Another organization during the Rebel- lion was one of conspicuous disloyalty. It was called the Knights of the Golden Circle and had for its object the giving of aid and comfort to the enemy in the field, the dis- couragements of enlistments at home and the placing of all possible obstructions in the way of the prosecution of the war.
It was as much a part of the rebel army as it had the courage and the daring to le, and was ready to do anything possible for the defeat of the Union army. It held its meetings in secret and plotted and plan- ned for the Government's destruction.
Fortunately there was a great brained and courageous man in the Governor's of- fice at Columbus, and Governor John Brough at once took occasion to obtain all possible information concerning the Knights of the Golden Circle, and to enter into their counsels : and no single meeting was held of this organization in Logan county that was not attended by one of the Governor's chosen representatives, who was supposed to be a member of the organization; and every morning succeeding such meetings. Governor Brough at Columbus was given full information by reports from those meet- ings, containing full accounts of their pro- ceedings, and a complete list of the mem- bers of these treasonable organizations.
No necessity was occasioned for arrests. and none were made, but the archives at
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Columbus contain full accounts of these treasonable organizations.
THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR.
The militia of Ohio had for some years been kept upon a substantial and regular ba- sis, and was well officered, well uniformed and well drilled.
The Seventh Regiment had its headquar- ters in Bellefontaine for several years, with Colonel Frank S. Case as commander. Col- onel Case had served throughout the war of 1861 to '65 as Captain of the Second Ohio . Lucius C. Bennett, together with a number of recruits, all of whom served in the Phil- ippines. These officers were recognized as most worthy and efficient.
Cavalry, and was one of the most compe- tent and popular officers m the milia ser- vice.
One company of this regiment, "C" Company, had its headquarters in Bellefon- taine, and for several years, Captain W. W. Kautzman served as its commanding of- ficer. Captain Kautzman having been pro- moted to Major of the regiment. he was succeeded by Captain Lucius C. Bennett, a young man of marked ability. The lieuten- ants were Ransford Graham and Will C. Green.
This regiment, which had been originally the Seventh, had been remimbered the Sec- ond. and Company C. under the new organ- ization, had become Company F. of the Sec- ond regiment. At the beginning of the Spanish-American war this company went into the field with its regiment, after filling up its ranks with recruits, being a most thor- cughly equipped. well drilled and well dis- ciplined organization.
It got no farther than the camps at Chattanooga, but had opportunity offered it
would have proved its efficiency in the ing. to make comparisons of conditions sur- field.
Upon the recall and muster-out of the troops from Cuba and Porto Rico, the Gov-
ernment made another call for troops to serve in our new possessions, in the Philip- pines, and a number of men from Logan county volunteered for this service and went to the Philippines, but no company or- ganizations were either tendered or received as the government organized the new reg- iments upon the same footing as the regular arniy.
In this new organization Logan county furnished two officers for service, Captain Worthington W. Kautzman and Captain
Captain Kautzman not wishing to con- tinue in the regular service returned to his home in Bellefontaine.
Captain Bennett was upon his muster-out of service tendered and accepted a First Lieutenancy in the Regular Army, and is now connected with the Thirty-first United States Infantry.
CHAPTER XH.
EARLY AND MODERN TIMES COMPARED-STOVES-GAME AND WILD ANIMALS-AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS AND TOOLS - CRADLES FOR CUTTING WHEAT- FIRST REAPER AND BINDER-FIRST THRESHING MACHINES-FIRST THEFSHER AND SEPARATOR- MODERN IMPLEMENTS-TRAVELING TRAMPS AND SHOEMAKERS.
It is not only interesting. but instruct- rounding the early settlers of Logan county with the conditions which surround the peo- ple of today.
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It is also well to remember that while yard, cotton cloth ( muslin) one dollar, and the people of early times had but little, their dress goods were proportionately expensive, silks and satins almost unknown. wants and necessities were also compara- tively smail.
Money was almost unknown, the conti- mental currency had become worthless and silver coin was almost the only medium of money exchange. It was a day of trade and barter, neighbor exbanged his surplus for the surplus of his neighbor's production. The labor was exchanged for labor, and the end of all this exchange was a comfortable and very satisfactory condition of affairs in the community.
The prices which prevailed were depress- ingly low, if we compare them with prices of today. Wheat was not raised until 1808 or 1810, and the earlier crops were almost worthless. as the ground being new the wheat grew rank and was watery, of a poor quality, and of such condition as to produce sickness when used.
It was not until some years later when the country became more open and better cleared, that wheat became a marketable commodity. The nearest markets were the lake and the river, each distanced over a hun- dred miles. The roads in winter and spring were almost impassable. The market value of wheat at home was about twenty-five cents per bushel: a load of wheat over the early roads was about twenty-five bushels; the time consumed in making a round trip was never less than ten days: the load back was composed of salt and other necessaries.
Salt was one of the prime necessities. and it was about ten dollars per barrel in the distant markets : you can readily estimate the purchasing power of wheat and the com- manding power of salt.
I have frequently heard Mr. John Enoch say that Kitty MePherson was the first per- son in Logan county to wear a silk dress. and that the number of yards in the dress were not near so many as those required for a modern garment.
A day's wages for a workman on the farm was twenty-five cents, and this was generally paid in some of the farm produc- tions, and the hours of labor were from sunrise to sunset.
Harvest hands received twenty-five cents and in pay for their day's labor were given a bushel of wheat.
Corn was a staple production then, as it is now, and probably ever will be, and it was worth twelve and one-half cents per bushel, while oats were worth six and one- quarter cents; pork was worth two dollars per hundred and beef about the same.
At one of the early meetings of the coun- ty commissioners the pay of a two-horse team and driver, for county work, was fixed by them at eighty-seven and one-half cents per day.
Broad-cloth, silks, satins and dress- goods were beyond the reach of the ordinary citizen, and linsey-woolsey and home-spun supplied the dames and their daughters with the finery for personal adornment.
The majority of articles used for apparel were manufactured at home.
Flax was one of the early crops grown and was manufactured into all kinds of goods for home consumption.
The flax was broken, beaten. and hack- led. dressed and spun, and finally from the
Dry goods were comparatively high, cal- ico from seventy-five cents to a dollar per threads of linen, came the shirts, pants,
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dresses, sheets and a hundred other articles necessary for the householdl.
The wool was clipped from the sheep. washed, scoured, carded and made into rer's. and then the good wife of daughter spin it into yarns of thread and from these again were woven the materin for winter wear.
Gradually the stores came to be im- portant centers and to thein were brought the articles of exchange. Butter, eggs, beeswax. ginseng, dried apples, venison, ba- con, and such things as the industrious farmer and the careful housewife could command.
With the clearing up of the country came better health uel better opportunity. and with these there came more indepen- dent and niore opulent citizens.
Roads were cut from all important points , and efforts made to improve them. but winter time stopped and hindered all traffic until the snow brought sleighing. With the growth of the population and the improvement of the country came an in- creasing opportunity and greater luxury and independence: with railroads, canals and public highways, trade, commerce and travel were opened to other sections of the country.
With schools, churches and colleges, came a broader and better culture and re. finement, and with them the progressive in- dependence of a most intelligent people.
The great northwest, in which had been planted the seeds of a hardy and promising citizenship, had brought forth a rich harvest of the new world's best and bravest women.
STOVES.
Stoves for heating purposes were brought into the county as early as 1822 cr 1823. These were mostly of the seven
plate pattern, which were manfactured at Mary Ann furnace in Licking coenty by Robert Patterson.
The first cook stove was brought into the county by Dr. John Elbert. of Zane township. in 1830. Before that time and for long years afterwards the cooking was done upon the open hearth or in Dutch ovens. These were deep skillets with legs about two and one-half or three inches long. and a top having a protecting edge about it some one and one-half or two inches high. The bread or other article to be cooked or baked was placed in this oven. the lid put on, some coals were drawn out of the hearth and the oven placed over these, and a shovelful or two of coals were placed on top of the lid. The baking done in these Dutch ovens as I remember them in my boyhood days could not be excelled by any other method.
It may be that hunger lends zest to a boy's appetite, but I can get see these Dutch ovens of my grandmother, when the lid was removed and the smoking bread came forth to be broken and dis- tributed, and I can think of nothing more appetizing and inviting than this.
A great iron crane hung over the fire- place, and from it swung hooks and chains, and to these were hung the pots and kettles in which were placed the vege- tables and other articles for the family meals: and these steaming receptacles were an appetizing inducement to the vis- itor or traveler, accompanied. as they al- ways were, by the hearty and wholesome invitation of the man of the house and his good wife to partake of the hospitality and good cheer of the household.
In the evening, with the crane swung
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out of tthe way, and with a back-log in the great fireplace. filled with crackling sticks and hickory wood. the family and their neighbors gathered to find the com- fort and the enjoyment of their healthy and hardy companionship.
Apples and cider found a common means of feasting and entertainment, and the boys and girls of the neighborhood found in the spelling bees and corn husk- ings plenty of opportunities for the court- ships which in due time bound families with the ties and blood of kinship. .
It was a most healthy and wholesome condition of affairs which was in time to give way to a new order of things.
With the opening of communications to the outside world, the building of high- ways, the coming of steam and electricity and the bringing into easier and speedier communication the more distant markets and centers of trade and traffic, the coun- try began a rapid development which ex- tended to all kinds of business and to all classes of industry.
It is almost impossible now in the very midst of the improvements of a single cen- tury to comprehend the wondrous strides which have been made since the early set- tlements upon this frontier.
The coming generations may look and wonder at the marvelous growth of Amer- ica and speculate upon its future progress, but the cornerstone of its grandeur was laid upon the sturdy citizenship of its pio- neers, and the men and women who set- tled the great northwest have added un- told and uncounted millions to its wealth and have been the bone and sinew of the mighty citizenship of the republic.
GADIE AND WILD ANIMALS.
In early times when the Indian occu- piel this frontier, game was abundant. Deer, bear, will turkeys, pheasants, squir- rel, mink. muskrat. foxes, 'coon and many other smaller animals were found to be in all parts of the country, while the snap- ping. snarling and dangerous but cow- ardly wolves were almost everywhere pres- ent. The Indians had found game so plentiful that it was a comparatively easy matter to supply their wants, and with the fish in the lakes and streams. there was but little to do save hunt and fish ; with the cultivation of a small amount of "samp" or corn, which was regarded as a luxury as well as a necessity.
The early settlers were compelled to depend very considerably upon the game for their living until they conkl clear away the forests and get their lands in condition for the raising of grain.
The wild game was depended upon for every-day use, and the pioneer was gener- ally. by experience or from necessity, a fairly good shot.
Shooting. running, jumping, wrestling and manly exercises were the sports in- dulged in on gala ad festive occasions, and by reason of them these backwoodsmen be- came not only athletes, but marksmen as well.
Many of these frontiersmen were noted as great marksmen and hunters and were frequently useful for this especial pur- pose. Colonel William McCloud was a great hunter, and had great fame among the early settlers by reason of this accom- plishment. He was engaged in the war of 1812 as the chief hunter for Hull's army and was charged with seeing that the army
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of three thousand persons was supplied with game while on its march to Detroit : General Simon Kenton was a famous marksman and his quick eye and steady hand served him in good play upon many most adventurous and dangerous occa- sions.
Hunting. too, was a most profitable employment, for the skins of the bear. fox. deer. mink, 'coon. otter. muskrat and other animals were merchantable com- modities, and generally commanded fair prices.
The wolves were a source of great an- noyance as well as danger in the commit- ity. They were prowling thieves, robbing sheep pens, pig stys and carrying off any- thing that might furnish them food, and frequently, when driven to desperation by hunger, attacking persons going from place to place. The State finally offered a reward of five dollars per head for their destruction. but as they generally commit- ted their depredations at night. it was dif- ficult to kill or entrap them.
Moses Bell once told me that during the sugar making season he had fre- quently encamped alone in the woods for six weeks or two months at a time. cut- ting and hauling wood. gathering and boiling sugar water and giving attention to his sugar camp, and that every night the wolves would come about the encamp- ment and frequently became so threaten- ing that nothing but a brand prepared of hickory bark and red with flames and fire would hold them in check. They had a great feir of fire and the burning brand would drive them back into the darkness until the morning's light would come to make them slink away to their hiding places in woods or swamps.
Deer were plentiful, while the venison was especially palatable as a table luxury. the skins were most useful for shoes, mac casins and clothing. and for a hundred other purposes about the cabins and the camps.
Bear meat was regarded as a substan- tial table delicacy, and the skins brought a good price in the market.
I have never been able to discover that elk were at any time a part of the wild animals of this section of Ohio. The old- est inhabitant never saw any elk. and 1 have been i formed by old inhabitants that the Indians did not remember to have scen elk in this section of the country. John Enoch. Jr .. who came with his father as early as 1803 to Ohio, has informed me that he never heard of an elk. nor had he heard of anyone else who did. Notwith- standing these facts. there must have been a time when elk were either a part of this section of die in passing from one part of the country to another they left their bones to be a reminder of their passage.
I have in my hallway two pairs of ant- ler- from the elk, both of which were taken from Silver like some years since. and are in a good state of preservation. They were dragged up by fishermen whose lines caught and became entangled in the prongs of these splendid specimens of a species that. like the Indian, has gone to the far westward. Another pair of antler- was dragged from Braden's lake some years since.
How long these were under the waters of these lakes, how many years or cen- turies ago they were drawn down into the nitid, and the animal gave his life in the attempt to quench his thirst or perhaps driven by wolves, he lost his life in the
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attempt to save it. still leaves him as a query to speculate upon in generation- to come and are matters which we have not been able to solve.
It is certain, however, that the bear and deer were the largest of wild animals found by the early settlers of this section of Ohio. A few years since the fairly well preserve l hones of a mastodon were found m the mud at the outlet of Rushcreek lake, and another specimen was found upon an earlier occasion a little farther to the north. These bones, which evidently had been buried for centuries, were veri- table relics of an animal which must have had a place in this section of the country many centuries ago. These bones were carefully preserved and I believe are now within the care of the Ohio State Univer- sity at Columbus.
At a later day squirrel became very plentiful, and were frequently annoying as depredators upon the fields of corn. Within my time I have known them to be reasonably abundant. The "big woods." lying north of Bellefontaine and extending into the fallen timber of the rortheast cor- ner of the county, was for many years filled with gray and black squirrels by the thousands. Sometimes they migrated and great armies of them would travel like a marching column of soldiers from one sec- tion to another. They were an important element in the food of the early settlers and supplied a large part of the meat of the settlers' tables.
A BIG IIUNT.
was a famous hunter in Logan county and James Mourne, of Kentucky, a nephew of the Taylors, who owned large bodies of land in this county, was somewhat noted as a sportsman: Mourne frequently came to this section to hunt and spend his vaca- tions. He was an engineer by profession and took his outings in these back woods.
Mourne challenged Barringer to a squirrel hunt. The time was limited to a single day, from early morning to late at night. and the loser was to give a great squirrel supper to the winner and his friends. They were to hunt unassisted and alone. They both started from Belle- fontaine before daylight. and long after dark Mourne came dragging into town about seventy-five black and gray squir- rels. the result of the day's hunt in one section of the "big woods." He was very exultant and regarded his victory as as- sured. An hour or two later Barringer came into town, and with him a man whom he had hired to help carry his game, and swung from a long pole carried upon their shouklers were more than a hundred and twenty-five of the black and gray squirrels. which he had gathered from another see- tion of the big woods.
Mourne was a grand good fellow and he swung his hat in cheering the quiet and unprete itions Barringer, who had so com- pletely beaten the Kentuckian.
The feast which followed was a royal one, and no one seemed to enjoy it more than the Kentuckian himself, at whose expense it was given.
I distinctly recall the fact that one of the first publie speeches I ever made was when standing in the middle of the table.
.As late as 1860 they were fairly abund- ant in the "big woods." I now recall a hunt that was somewhat famous for that day: David Barringer. of Bellefontaine, after that banquet, at which there had
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been not only a feast of squirrel, but all the good things possible to obtain.
The days of hunting are now on the wane, and with the exception of duck, quail and rabbits, there is little to attract the hun- ter. the time being limited and the game comparatively scarce.
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS AND TOOLS.
The first settlers brought with them from the east a small assortment of such articles of husbandry and tools as were af- forded in these earlier times. An axe, a broad-axe, a hee. a grubbing hoe, a rude plow. a home-made maul. and an iron wedge for splitting all kinds of timber, were perhaps the most important of all the im- plements of the frontiersman. With these lie felled the trees, split them into any de- sird form. built his cabin, made puncheon floors for it. formed and fashioned the doors and windows, made the clap-boards for the roof and rails for his fences, and cut the wood for his fire: and in short these did a thousand things for and about his clear- ing and his household. He brought with him also a few tools of the simplest char- acter and a few agricultural implements necessary for the rude cultivation of the soil.
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