History of Green County, Wisconsin. Together with sketches of its towns and villages, educational, civil, military and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens, Part 76

Author: Union publishing company, Springfield, Ill., pub. [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Springfield, Ill., Union publishing company
Number of Pages: 1168


USA > Wisconsin > Green County > History of Green County, Wisconsin. Together with sketches of its towns and villages, educational, civil, military and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens > Part 76


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'.Winds of Summer, Oh whisper low, Over the graves where the violets grow. Blossoming flowers and songs of bees, Sweet ferns tossed in the summer's breeze, Floating shadows and golden lights, Dewy mornings and radiant nights, All the bright and beautiful things That gracious and bountiful summer brings, Fairest and sweetest that earth can bestow, Brighten the graves where the violets grow."


Many of the brave soldiers who battled for the Union, many, very many, have gone before, and they now wait upon the threshold of Para- dise for the coming of those loved ones left he- hind, when they, too, shall have exchanged the feeble pulses of a transitory existence for the ceaseless throbbing of eternal life. Faithful and fearless, on the march, in the strife, at vic- tory or defeat, they at last laid down at the mysterious frontier, leaving the exalted hope


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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.


behind that, though the world was lost forever, there would be unfurled another realm of unim- aginable glory, where they, and all whom they loved on earth, might realize the promise which the great, Ruler of the universe has made to the just.


Wisconsin may well feel proud of her record made in defense of the national existence. Shoulder to shoulder with the other loyal States of the Union, she stood in the front ranks. From her workshops and her farms she poured forth the stalwart men who filled up the organ-


izations which she sent to the field. The blood of those brave men drenched almost every battle- field of the Rebellion, from Gettysburg to the val- ley of the Rio Grande. Establishing at an early day a reputation for gallantry and endurance. Wisconsin regiments always occupied positions where hard fighting was to be done; and those who placed them there never were disappointed in their not performing there whole duty; and no county in the State has reason to be more proud than the county of Green for the part born by her sons in this terrible war to save the Union.


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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.


CHAPTER XXI.


COUNTY OFFICERS -- PAST AND PRESENT.


In a previous chapter, "Green County Formed and Organized," mention is made of the first elections in Green for county officers. These elections were held in 1838. Of the officers elected during that year and succeeding ones, down to the present time (1884), the following is a list, excluding therefrom county com- missioners and supervisors, judgesof the county court, and county superintendents of schools, -- these, with the dates of their elec- tion, being found in the chapters on the "The County Board," on "The Courts of Green County," and on the "Common Schools of the County."


TREASURERS.


Joseph MeCracken, 1838; Abner VanSant, 1839; James Hawthorn, 1840; James Hawthorn, 1841; James Hawthorn, 1842; Hambleton C. Miller, 1843; Hambleton C. Miller, 1844; Asa Brown, 1845; L. Hurlbut, 1846; L. Hurlbut, 1847; Wadsworth Foster, 1848; Francis Emer- son, 1849; Wadsworth Foster, 1850; Francis Emerson, 1852; Edmund Hill, 1854; Edmund Hill, 1856; David W. Ball, 1858; David W. Ball, 1860; William McDowel, 1862; L. Frank- enburger, 1864; L. Frankenburger, 1866; Wil- liam H. Ball, 1868; F. R. Melvin, 1870; F. R. Melvin, 1872; F. R. Melvin, 1874; J. Smith Sinoek, 1876; Sylvester McMannes, 1878; Linus Hare, 1880; Linus Hare, 1882.


SHERIFFS.


John W. Deniston,* 1838; Joseph Woodle,* 1841; Joseph Woodle, 1843; Charles S. Thomas,


1844; John Blunt, 1846; F. F. West, 1848; Charles S. Thomas, 1850; John Moore, 1852; Joseph W. Smith, 1854; A. J. Sutherland, 1856; Charles S. Foster, 1858; H. B. Capwell, 1860; Charles S. Foster, 1862: Horatio G. Cleveland, 1864; Eliakim R. Allen, 1866; Silas Gardner, 1868; Alfred Wood, 1870; Frank H. Derriek, 1872; D. W. Ball, 1874; F. K. Studley, 1876; C. Morse, 1878; F. K. Studley, 1880; Edward Rnegger, 1882.


REGISTERS OF DEEDS.


William Rittenhouse, 1839; William Ritten- honse, 1841; William Rittenhouse, 1842; William Rittenhouse, 1843; William Rittenhouse, 1844; William Rittenhouse, 1845; Willliam Ritten- honse, 1846; William Rittenhouse, 1847; J. V. Richardson, 1848; James L. Powel, 1850; James L. Powel, 1852; Ezra Westeott, 1854; James Bintliff, 1856; J. Jacob Tsehndy, 1858; J. Jacob Tschndy, 1860; D. H. Morgan, 1862; William II. Allen, 1861; Robert McFarland, 1866; Sam- nel Lewis, 1868; Samuel Lewis, 1870; C. E. Tanberg, 1872; C. E. Tanberg, 1874; C. E. Tan- berg, 1876; C. E. Tanberg, 1878; C. E. Tanberg, 1880; C. E. Tanberg, 1882.


COUNTY CLERKS.


William Rittenhouse, 1841; William Ritten- house, 1842; William Rittenhouse, 1843; E. T. Gardner, 1845; E. T. Gardner, 1846; S. P. Con- dec, 1847; T. Richards, 1848; II. B. Poyer, 1819; II. B. Poyer, 1850; H. B. Poyer, 1852; B. F. Hancock, 1854; A. W. Potter, 1856; A. W. Potter, 1858; Mathias Marty, 1860; Mathias Marty, 1862; J. Jacob Tschudy, 1864; J. Jacob Tschudy, 1866; J. Jacob Tschudy, 1868; J. Ja-


* Appointed.


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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.


cob Tschndy, 1870; L. Seltzer, 1872; L. Seltzer, 1874; L. Seltzer, 1876; L. Seltzer, 1878; Her- man L. Gloege, 1880; Herman L. Gloege, 1882. CLERKS OF COURT.


Noah Phelps, 1848; Noah Phelps, 1850; Noah Phelps, 1852; J. V. Richardson, 1854; Edmund Bartlett, 1856; Thomas Lindley, 1858; W. W. Wright, 1860; W. W. Wright, 1862; W. W. Wright, 1864; W. W. Wright, 1866; W. W. Wright, 1868; W. W. Wright, 1870; P. J. Clawson, 1872; Edmund Bartlett, 1874; Edmund Bartlett, 1876; Edmund Bartlett, 1878; Edmund Bartlett, 1880; Theodore W. Goldin, 1882.


DISTRICT ATTORNEYS.


James Churchman, April, 1838, pro tem; William A. Banks, August, 1838, acting. [John Catlin, David Brigham, M. Goodrich and J. P Shields afterwards served as district attorneys, but only for short periods of time. By an act of the legislature of 1843 the office was abol- ished, and the commissioners of the county were authorized to employ an attorney within the county to perform the duties; several times in 1845 and the year following, John W. Stewart was thus engaged by them.] B. Dunwiddie, 1848; E. T. Gardner, 1850; E. T. Gardner, 1852; Hiram Stevens, 1854; Hiram Stevens, 1856; Hiram Medberry, 1858; Moses O'Brien, 1860; E. T. Gardner, 1862; C. N. Carpenter, 1864; B. S. Kerr, 1866; A. S. Douglas, 1868; A. S. Douglas, 1870; A. S. Douglas, 1872; A. S. Douglas, 1874; P. J. Clawson, 1876; P. J. Clawson, 1878; P. J. Clawson, 1880; P. J. Clawson, 1882.


SURVEYORS.


A. VanSant, 1840; Noab Phelps, 1841; J. A. Bingham, 1842; F. F. West, 1843; Thomas Stewart, 1844; Thomas Stewart, 1845; Thomas Stewart, 1846; J. V. Richardson, 1847; Samuel Spangler, 1848; Samuel Spangler, 1850; Hiram Brown, 1852; Ranson Drake, 1854; D. H. Mor- gan, 1856; D. H. Morgan, 1858; D. H. Morgan, 1860; J. T. Dodge, 1862; Albert L. Cleveland, 1864; Albert L. Cleveland, 1866; Albert L. Cleveland, 1868; Albert L. Cleveland, 1870; Al-


bert L. Cleveland, 1872; A. C. Stuntz, 1874; A. C. Stuntz, 1876; A. C. Stuntz, 1878; A. C. Stuntz, 1880; A. C. Stuntz, 1882.


CORONERS.


Amos Harris, 1838; Amos Harris, 1839; Will- iam Woodle, 1841; John Blunt, 1842; John Blunt, 1843; James Hagerty, 1844; Joseph Kelly, 1845; Joseph Kelly, 1846; Jacob Linzee, 1847; John R. Walling, 1848; Asa Richardson, 1850; Rowley Morris, 1852; Charles F. Thomp- son, 1854; J. H. Warren, 1856; Ira S. Dexter, 1858; Harris Pool, 1860; Robert McLaren, 1862; Isaac Williams, 1864; Isaac Williams, 1866; John Hattery, 1868; John Hattery, 1870; John Hattery, 1872; L. Frankenburger, 1874; John Wood, 1876; L. Taylor, 1878; John Wood, 1880; William Green, 1882.


The subject of this chapter is, of necessity, wholly statistical, confined, as the reader has seen, to a simple recital of those who have (with a few exceptions) been entrusted with the management of the affairs of Green county since its organization to the present time. This management has been carried on to the present time, with a single exception, honestly and faithfully. "The exception," says Miss Bingham, in her valuable history of the county, "is Horace B. Poyer, county clerk from the year 1849 to 1855, and forger of county orders. Probably no man in the county was ever more generally popular, more implicitly trusted, than Mr. Poyer at the time he was en- gaged in his forgeries. An investigating committee appointed by the supervisors reported Dec. 27, 1855, as follows: 'The matter is involved in much obscurity, owing to the destruction and mutilation of records and papers. We are therefore unable to make so full and perfect a report as we could desire. We have, however, detected frauds committed from the year 1848 to 1854, inclusive. The aggre- gate amount of which the county has been de- frauded (so far as we are able to state from our imperfect means of ascertaining), including orders altered, orders wholly fraudulent, and


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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.


the same raised for weights and measures, and exclusive of $895,17 of orders, for the issuing of which no bills or resolutions can be found, is $2,541.28; from which deduct $696.80, the amount canceled by Poyer, and there remains a balance now due the county of $1,844.48.' The value of the orders which the report refers to as canceled, was saved for the county by the fact that a year before the forgeries were gener- ally known, A. Ludlow and Asa Richardson be- came convinced that a large number of orders which they had bought were fraud- ulent. Their efforts to ascertain the truth were discovered by Mr. Poyer, who en- gaged two attorneys, to whom he made a con- fession, expressing at the same time a great de- sire to repair the wrong he had done. All the fraudulent orders which had been discovered were immediately canceled, and Mr. Poyer ex- pressed great pleasure in his own reformation. He won the confidence and the deepest sympathy of all who knew his secret. They believed he had been the victim of circumstances which could never mislead him again. After some time, however, it was discovered that the con- fession was less full than it had been represent- ed to be. Other forgeries, even forged certifi- cates of wolf scalps, were discovered, and, after paying his attorneys with a forged land war- rant, Mr. Poyer fled to a distant State, where, under an assumed name, he is said to be leading an honorable life."


BIOGRAPIIICAL SKETCHIES. Capt. Edward Ruegger,


sheriff of Green county, was born in Switzer- land, Oct. 18, 1836. In 1854 he came to America with his parents, who settled in Green . county. After coming to Monroe, he learned the trade of wagon maker, which he followed until 1861, when he enlisted in the 9th Wisconsin In- fantry, as private. Their first rendezvous was at Camp Siegel, at Milwaukee, where at an elec- tion of officers, he was chosen 2d lieuten- ant of his company, and was soon after pro- moted by the governor, to Ist lieutenant.


Dec. 30, 1861, the regiment was sent to Fort Scott, Kan. In June, 1862, he was promoted to captain. His company was on provost guard duty, of the seventh army corps, under Gen. Steele for about eight months. He was in the Camden expedition in April, 1864, and took part in all the skirmishes and battles his army corps was engaged in. He was mustered out at Milwaukee, in December, 1864, since which time he has been engaged in various occupa- tions. In 1861 he was married to Sophia Shober. By this union there are eight chil- dren, four sons and four daughters. Capt. Ruegger is a member of the Masonic order, also of the I. O. O. F., the G. A. R., the Turner society and "Sharp Shooters."


C. E. Tanberg,


register of deeds, was born in Norway, Jan. 14, 1830. In 1853 he came to this country with his parents, who located in Racine Co., Wis., where C. E. took up his trade as painter. In 1857 he moved to Oconomowoc, Waukesha county, and continued in the same business. In 1861 he enlisted in the 15th Wisconsin Volun- teer Infantry, and was first camped at Madison, Wis. He was elected by the company, 2d lieutenant, and received his commission Jan. 14, 1862, and was mustered in during the month of February of the same year. Mr. Tanberg participated in the following engagements: Island No. 10, Union City, Tenn., Perryville, Knob Gap, Stone River, Missionary Ridge, Or- chard Knob, Charleston, East Tennessee, (At- lanta Campaign) Rocky Face Ridge, Resaca, Dallas, Pine Mountain, Lost Mountain, Kene- saw Mountain, Atlanta and Jonesboro, Ga. At the battle of Stone River, he was wounded in the forehead by a minnie ball, was left on the field and taken prisoner. He was then sent to Atlanta and subsequently to Libby prison, and was exchanged in April, 1863. He immedi- ately returned to his regiment, and was soon after promoted to the rank of Ist lieutenant, commanding company D. He participated in the battle of Chickamauga, and was wounded in the


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549


HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.


fleshy part of the left thigh and lost a portion of his little finger. He remained with the regi- ment until they arrived at Atlanta, when, on ac- count of poor health he resigned. In 1864 he came to Monroe, and in the fall of 1865 con- tinued his business of painting. In the fall of 1872 he was a successful candidate for register of deeds, and was re-elected for six consecutive terms. In May, 1857, he was married to Miss A. H. Anderson, by whom he has had twelve children, eleven now living-Emma M., George E., Albert E., Eva M., Charles A., Willis M., Frank M., H. May, Ernest J., Charlotte B. and Orville Clayton. Mr. Tanberg is a member of the Masonic fraternity and of the G. A. R.


Herman L. Gloege,


county clerk, was born at Schoenwerder, in Pomerania, Prussia, Nov. 24, 1840,, where he received a common school education. When fifteen years old he was appointed clerk of the magistrate of the city of Arnswalde, where he spent one year. When sixteen years old, he, with the consent of his parents, emigrated to the United States, leaving his father's home in Ger- many on the 12th day of April, 1857, and arriving at Oconomowoc, Waukesha Co., Wis., June 16, thence in July he went to Janesville, Rock county, and thence in the same month to the town of Sylvester, in Green county, thence late in the fall to the town of Jefferson, where he remained one year. In the fall of 1858 he re- moved to Warren Co., Miss., but -returned to Green county in the spring of 1859. In the spring of 1860 his parents also emigrated to the United States, with whom he located on section 25, in the town of Clarno. During the war he en- listed on the 15th day of August, 1862, in com- pany B, 31st regiment, Wisconsin Volunteer In- fantry, and participated in the siege and capture of Atlanta, Ga., march to the sea, siege and eap- ture of Savannah, Ga., and also in the follow- ing engagements: Chesterfield, S. C., Averys- boro, N. C., and Bentonville, N. C., and was also in the grand review at Washington, D. C.,


on May 24, 1865. While in the service he was detailed in May, 1863, as elerk of the general court martial at Columbus, Ky., remaining in that position four months. From September, 1863, to the close of the war in 1865 he acted as company clerk of his company. He was mustered out on the 20th day of June, 1865, at Louisville, Ky., and finally paid and discharged at Madison, Wis., July 6, 1865. On March 30, 1866, he was married to Sophia Bast, by whom he had eight children-Edward F., Clara L., Oscar H. (dead), Henry W., Martha M., Ida S., Emil H. and Minna L. In the fall of 1866 he came to Monroe and engaged in mercantile business for a short time. In the spring of. 1867 he again located on a farm on section 25, in the town of Clarno, where he remained until the fall of 1880, when he was elected to the office of county clerk, and was re-elected in the fall of 1882. Mr. and Mrs. Gloege are members of the Evangelical Church of Monroe. The parents of the subject of this sketch, Fred- erick and Louisa Gloege, resided in the town of Clarno, where they first located, twenty-three years, but removed to Santa Anna, Los Angeles Co., Cal., in the month of March, 1883, where they now reside.


Theodore W. Goldin,


clerk of the circuit court, was born in Rock Co., Wis., July 25, 1857. His parents were Reuben W. and Elizabeth E. (Bradfield) Goldin. The former was a native of New York, the lat- ter of Ohio. In 1846 Reuben W. Goldin, the father of the subject of this sketch, came to Rock county. In 1860 they removed to Brod- head, Green county, where Reuben W. Goldin died in 1883. Theodore was educated in the high schools and received a liberal education. After leaving school he learned the harness- maker's trade, which he followed a short time. He was married in February, 1881, to Laura Dunwiddie, a daughter of David Dunwiddie, of Brodhead. He was elected to his present office in 1882, which he is filling with honor to him- self and credit to his constituency. He is a


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IHISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.


Master Mason and a Knight of Pythias. In April, 1876, Mr. Goldin enlisted in the 7th Cav- alry regiment of the regular army, and partici- pated in the memorable engagement at Little Big Horn, at the massacre of Gen. Custer and his noble command. After serving two years he was mustered out at Fort Buford, Dak., Nov. 27, 1877. While in the service his com- mand was, for sixty days, on half rations, and for fifteen days had nothing except the game that they killed.


A. C. Stuntz,


county surveyor of Green county, is a native of Erie Co., Penn., born Aug. 24, 1825, and came to this county in 1866. He is a son of Rev. George Stuntz, a native of Frederick Co., Va., born July 4, 1789, and Mary (Randall) Stuntz, a native of Rhode Island, born in 1790. They were married in Erie Co., Penn., where a family of ten children were born, five of whom are living. Mrs. Stuntz died in 1836. She was a mem- ber of the M. E. Church, and highly respected by all who knew her. Mr. Stuntz was again mar- ried in 1837, to Mrs. Sarah Davis, a widow of Samuel Davis, by whom he had one child. Mr. Stuntz was a local preacher and supplied the pulpit for more than fifty years. He was a man of commanding stature, and more than ordinary ability and sterling worth. For many years he married all the couples, and preached all the funeral sermons of the county. His whole life was spent in the service of his Maker. He died at the age of seventy-six years. He had two


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sons who followed him in the ministry, and a number of relatives who were preachers. The subject of this sketch, A. C. Stuntz, grew to manhood in his native county, and obtained his education in the pioneer schools. In 1847 he left Erie county and went to Grant Co., Wis. On his way there, passing through what is now the city of Monroe, and thence to the pineries, where he remained one year. He then commenced studying in the office of his brother, who was a civil engineer and government contractor,, with whom he continued nutil 1854. In 1855 he removed to Lake Superior, where he was en- gaged as government contractor, and remained until 1864. There were plenty of Indians in that country, and he became familiar with their language. In 1863 he was appointed govern- ment agent to look after lands, which position he held until 1868. In 1864 he was elected to the assembly from the northwestern district of the State, comprising six counties. He came to Monroe in 1866, and in 1874 was elected to the office of county surveyor, which position he has since occupied. In 1849 he was married to Nancy C. Bradt, by whom he had four children, three daughters and one son-Samuel E., Isa- dore M., Sylvia and Mary E. Mrs. Stuntz died March 28, 1862. He was again married July 14, 1864 to Lydia A. Sturdevant, a native of New York. By this union there were four children-Nettie, James A., Hattie E. and Stephen C. Mr. and Mrs. Stuntz are members of the M. E. Church, and he is a member of Royal Arcanium.


HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY.


551


CHAPTER XXII.


MISCELLANEOUS EVENTS.


There are many incidents transpiring in every county, as the years go by, which cause consid- erable excitement at the time, and are of much importance, frequently, in shaping the destiny of people, but which, by the large majority, are either entirely forgotten or remembered only as circumstances bring them to mind. The fol- lowing are some such events appertaining to Green county.


FIRST ENUMERATION OF GREEN COUNTY PEOPLE.


When nearly all the territory now constitut- ing this county, ceased to be a part of the county of Crawford, it did not contain over a dozen in- habitants, all told; but when it no longer formed a portion of Iowa county, but was erected into the county of Green, its population had largely increased; but the exact number of its inhabi- tants is unknown. As there was no census taken in Crawford county between the time of the arrival of the first settlers in this county and the date of the erection of Iowa county, it follows that no enumeration of those who had taken up their residence herein was made during that period. But the census of Iowa county was taken by the United States in 1830, which of course, took in all the residents in that part of its territory now constituting Green county. This may be said to have been the first enumer- ation of Green county residents, though they, in fact, lived in Iowa county.


THE EARLY SETTLERS.


The Early Settlers-where are they ? They are falling one by one; A few more years will pass away, And leave but few or none. My memory often carries me O'er a lapse of years, And in my dreams I often see Those happy pioneers.


But they are gone, those sturdy men, And few are left to tell


The hardships they encountered when They first came here to dwell.


A few gray-headed ones still link The present to the past,


And sad it is for me to think That I'm almost the last.


Oft in my wanderings to and fro, Through prairie, field and wood,


I pass the spot where, long ago, Their rude log cabins stood,


I see them not as once they were- Scarce one of them remains,


Perhaps a stable here and there, Bleached by a thousand rains.


Quite rude those habitations were, And few and far between, That stood upon the prairie fair, And some in groves of green.


But now a mound of stone and earth, That mound so rude, so small,


Tells where was once the happy hearth, And this, and this is all.


The Early Settlers-where are they? I miss them more and more; Each year, when it has passed away, Leaves fewer than before, Like leaves of autumn from the trees, One after one there flown, And soon will Death's cold wintry breeze Remove the last, last one.


When I to church now sometimes go, Their seats are vacant there; I miss them, they are gone, I know, But where, O, tell me where? Some in the East, some in the West Are buffeting Life's wave; But far the greater number rest Low in the silent grave.


Ye settlers in the Western world, Though few may now remain, Ye have not labored here and toiled And spent your life in vain. Another race of men may fill The places you have filled,


And other hands these fields may till


Which yours have cleared and tilled.


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HISTORY OF GREEN COUNTY. -


And when ye all have passed away- The last old settler gone, Your deeds will yet survive, for they In living lines are drawn. These lines upon the prairies fair Can never be effaced,


You leave the country smiling where You found it wild and waste.


THOMAS WOODLE.


[From the Monroe Sentinel, June 7, 1854.]


The West Union Iowa Pioneer of the 17th inst. [ult.] contains an obituary notice of the Hon. Thomas Woodle, judge of Fayette Co., Iowa. He died at West Union, on the 12th inst.


Mr. Woodle was formerly a resident of this county; he came here in 1836, and removed to West Union some four years ago. Asa citizen, and in the several social relations in life he was highly esteemed, and many of the old settlers will regret to learn that he has fallen in the prime of manhood and in the midst of usefulness. His relatives, among whom is an aged mother, reside among us, and we truly sym- pathize with them in this sudden and deeply afflictive bereavement. He had for some time held an important and responsible public trust with honor to himself, and much to the satis- tion of the people among whom he has resided. And now that he has gone from earthly re- sponsibilities and dangers, his consistent Chris- tian life leaves to the surviving friends the con- soling assurance of his acceptance with Him who rewards true excellence with his divine ap- proval.


JOIIN G. PERCIVAL.


[From the Monroe Sentinel, Nov. Il, 1855.]


We spent a brief time with the State geolo- gist, on Monday morning in examining the for- mations of magnesium limestone in this vicin- ity. Mr. Percival is now something over sixty years of age. His appearance is that of a man bent with years, but his mind is clear, and habits industrious. To see him at a distance no one would take him for that poetical genius who used to thrill us with his exquisite verse in our young days. But talk with him and you discover that quiet tone and varied expression of eye that indicates the fine and shrinking or-


ganization of the man of genius and the devoted lover of nature. Our mind was carried back to the time when we knew John G. Percival only as the poet whose muse went far into the human soul and laid it open to weeping or worship.




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