Small town and farming news 121 years ago

WASHINGTON COUNTY JOURNAL November 2, 1901 A Hitching Rack An Inexpensive and Serviceable Device Described by its Inventor Many places in farming communities require hitching racks, but my observations are that good ones are rarely furnished.

(A good post described) Bore a hole through each post near the top, run one wire through these holes from end to end of the rack, and another outside the holes. They should be stretched loosely at first, as they must be twisted. This must be done all along the line at once, lest some of the posts be drawn out of place. A number of men can twist them tightly by means of sticks being turned in opposite directions. The wires should be twisted until they are firm enough to resist untwisting when they ought to be drawn tight if done properly. When done the holes left by the sticky in twisting will serve as rings for the hitching straps.—A. Franklin Shull, in Orange

Judd Farmer.

Upriver at the Stillwater Prison 134 Years Ago THE PRISON MIRROR January 4, 1888 For the Mirror. A Tragedy. (Continued from last week).

Background: The writer meets a young man in New York City on his way home from college, who becomes a fast friend and invites the writer to visit him in the country, which the writer later does by train. Arriving at the friend’s country estate, he attends a betrothal dinner for the friend, where the bride asks the groom to drink. The man does, later succumbing to peer pressure a second time after being called a “baby” and arriving home to his mother drunk).

So I ran as fast as I could, but not fast enough to prevent one of the saddest and darkest tragedies.

He reeled into the house and began to abuse his mother. He who loved and worshipped her and would have promptly resented an insult to her, began to beat her, and she with gentle remonstrance that none but a loving mother can use, tried to persuade him to lie down.

She might as well have spoken to a dumb animal, as it seemed that it encouraged him in his devilish work and monstrous treatment of her … (chokes mother in drunken stupor)…As soon as he saw me enter he pointed to his mother and said: “See what I have done, I, her only child, have killed her, but I shall not survive here. Tell (my fiancé who pressured me) that she is the cause of all this; tell her also that I cursed her… (dies by own hand)…May God have mercy on his soul: he did not know what he was doing…(fiancé later dies three weeks after hearing news).

Dear reader, see what a glass of wine did. It wrecked three lives, and not only wrecked them, but all three died from the effect of it. So let this be a warning to all young men and women who frequent ball rooms and places where liquors are drank freely.

Frank X. Beaudin, December 29, 1887 *** There is no such thing as a hopeless life. The soul could no more exist without hope than the body without breath.—Ex.

*** One of the prison geniuses informs us that there is a reward of $100,000 offered to the one who discovers a means of utilizing the power of Niagra Falls. As the aforesaid genius claims to have solved the difficult problem, he is desirous of ascertaining to whom he should apply to secure the above reward. Any information on the subject will be thankfully received at the Mirror Office.

*** There is a large difference between the animal known as the hog and the animal known as man. The former is born with instincts which make him want to appropriate everything in sight to himself, regardless of the rights of others of his own species and other species as well. The animal known as man recognizes the common brotherhood of the human family, and is never green with envy and hate whenever he sees a neighbor enjoying some of the legitimate pleasures of life. In starting out the new year it is well to ally yourself to the human race. You will be happier even if you don’t succeed in putting as much metaphorical fat on your ribs as do the porcine species.—Glencoe Enterprise.

Next County Up Almost 157 Years Ago THE TAYLOR FALLS REPORTER April 8, 1865 HOME MATTERS Logs coming in. The River Blocked by 20,000,000 feet of lumber— danger of property.

The log excitement has prevailed to its fullest extent this week. Last Monday night, the rapids above this place being clear of ice, the logs commenced running to such an extent as to form a jam underneath the bridge, which continued to augment, until noon of the next day, when the rear reached the ruins of the St. Croix Grist Mill. The hope that, as the river rose, the logs would go out by themselves, being harbored by many, no attempt was made to clear a passage for them until Wednesday morning, when matters appeared to be growing worse, the rise in the water only tending to pack the logs closer together, a small force of men and teams were engaged to open the channel. In the afternoon a large crowd of men, women and children began to gather until the bridge and banks of the river were lined with a dense human mass, all eager to see the “jam break.”

They were soon gratified.

Territorial Dispatch 170 years ago THE MINNESOTIAN March 27, 1852 The Mankato Fur Company.

A part of the “Organization” (establishment politicians) are branching off, up the Minnesota river, where they have land claims, and a trading post, and begin to be known as the “Mankato Fur Company,” while the “Winnebago Fur Company” have their headquarters at Watab, up the Mississippi river; but the chief of each company lives at St. Paul. There will soon be strife, which of these companies is “The… party.” It will be like a trial about the right of property in a calf, which lately took place at Burlington, Iowa. The difficulty lay in the color of the calf’s tail; the witnesses of the plaintiff swore the tail was white, those of the defendant, that it was black. The Court was occupied two days with the case, the jury staid out till midnight and could not agree, and a new trial is to be had; the costs already amount to $300.— Pioneer.