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W.B. Flippin
Early Marion County History
Articles from the Mt. Echo newspaper
Mountain Echo, Friday, May 9, 1899
EARLY HISTORY
Marion County as She Was When Settled In 1836. (By. Hon. W. B. Flippin.)
A number of relatives living in different counties in the state of Tennessee and some in Indiana held a council and agreed to concentrate and move in a body west to some new state and form a colony.
Those who agreed to go were the Goodmans, Rutherford and the Flippin's from Tennessee and a number of the Goodman's from Indiana. Jessie Goodman who lived near the Key Corner on the Forked Deer River had been Keel Boating on the Forked Deer River, a narrow, muddy, deep crooked stream that emptied into the Mississippi river agreed to furnish a Keel boat to take all the women and children who wished to go, the men, a number of them, could go over and (sic) take the stock to meet at a point to be agreed on. This was in the fall of 1836, so the company selected three men, Jessie Goodman, Wright and Rutherford two teachers, members of the Christian Church, and John Rutherford to go and select a country somewhere in the west that seemed to be a desirable place to locate, as they passed through a portion of southeast Missouri, at that time sparsely inhabited. Sometimes from ten to twenty miles not a house to be seen, until they came to White River, in Arkansas, a broad shallow stream clear as a crystal coming down from the Ozark mountains with shoals in every bend, running with a velocity that beggars description.
You would suppose I was jesting or telling falsehoods, if I relate what at that time, in 1836, was a stern reality. The water was so clear you could see a Buffalo fish, by being elevated a few feet above the fish the whole distance across the river which will average 300 yards in width. I have stood on a perpendicular bluff from 400 to 500 feet high and saw Buffalo fish on the opposite side of the river playing on the shallow, gravely bottom, something near one fourth of a mile distant. Let me farther(sic) state, that two men who are accustomed to running a canoe with poles can run almost any kind of a fish that will weigh 5 lbs., until he will tire down and become an easy prey to the fishermen. This statement will no doubt be questioned by many persons, nevertheless it is a fact, and can to this day be demonstrated, although the river, since the bottoms have been cleared, has become murky which is the case with all clear streams after the country in their vicinity has been settled and the land cultivated. The soil washing into the streams, and stock of all kinds, particular in summer, are constantly wading into the streams. Duck river in Tennessee, when I last saw it might be called a dark colored stream, but the pioneers say, when they first saw it, it was as clear as a crystal.
But to return to my fish tale I have myself, with one other man, run down and caught hundreds of fish. Would you like to know how this is accomplished? In a clear stream an ordinary fish cannot run faster than two men, experts, can push a light canoe; a large fish cannot swim as fast as a canoe can be poled. The fishermen keep below the fish and make him run against the current and press him to his utmost speed. If he becomes very tired, which he soon will, he may turn suddenly down stream, which for him is very dangerous, as he will have to pass near the fishermen in the canoe and ten to one he will get a harpoon thrust through him by one or the other of the fishermen, if they miss him they turn the canoe, or simply turn themselves and run the canoe backwards, for as a fisherman's canoe is so constructed as it makes little or no difference which end is before. They run over the fish in going down stream in a very short distance, here he runs another risk of losing his life by a thrust from .......[end of page and too dark to read] ......shore in hope of finding some log or brush washed up against the bank, if none should be found, which is generally the case on White river, the fishermen knowing what he is compelled to do, keep close in his rear all the time. When he finds nothing to hide him he is compelled to go either up or down the bank of the river, for the fishermen have turned their canoe sidewise and if he attempts to run out into the river, he would have to pass under the canoe which would be almost certain death as both of the fishermen would have a fair chance to spear him. The fish hardly ever runs, when pushed to the best, over from 150 to 200 yards before he begins to tire and go slow, when the spearmen rush on him and put a quietus to him with a harpoon.
But [back] to my story: when Jessie Goodman saw White river, as he thought so far superior to Forked Deer, where they could not see a fish in water a foot deep and from all appearance such a fine keel boating stream, and seeing the river filled with hundreds, yea thousands of such fine fish, and going out into the country, to see so many wild deer that would hardly flee from him, and the quantity of honey taken from the forest trees, and immense flocks of turkeys almost as gentle as barnyard(sic) fowls; the stories of the squatters, as they were called, who did not own a foot of land that they could legally call their own, paying no taxes and generally having only from 5 to ten acres cleared and in cultivation; the summer range up to their doors and the river and creek bottoms covered with dense cane brakes for their stock to feed on in winter. When the parties returned, they gave such an account you would have thought they had found in the mountains of North Arkansas, a country that surpassed the fabulous stories of the honey pond and flitter trees.
All hands were jubilant for the Eldorado of the Ozark mountains, except one individual, a little over sixteen who had been accompanying a dark eyed, bewitching nymph to the singing school until he had sat down and wrote, what he called poetry in laudation of her form and beauty. The verses were not equal in the estimation of some persons to those penned by the bard of the plowshare in his description of highland Mary or Byron's Mary Charworth. But they were equal in admiration and desolation to the Charming Angel of my youthful days, Elizabeth Petty was her name. I went the evening before the company was to start to the land of Bear, Deer, Fish, Honey, Turkeys, Panthers and Wild Cats; but my thoughts were not placed upon them, far from it, but upon that nymph like angel, the center of my inmost affections. We separated, but my father refuses to record the scene, but it will remain indelibly stamped on my inmost soul while life lasts.
But ere this, Jessie Goodman had gone to Louisville, Ky., and bought a 30 ton keel boat and a large stock of merchandise that he thought would be necessary for the colony, and a supply of old peach brandy, Spanish brandy, rye whisky, cherry and mint cordial and etc. for his friends that he had promised while exploring their country. I forgot to mention that he had bought a farm and a ferry on White river, known for and wide, as Talberts Ferry; the only one at that time above Batesville, Ark., which was 80 miles below. By this time, it was toward the middle of February 1837. The keel boat came down the Mississippi to the mouth of White river, thence up White river a distance said to be by the way of the river over 100 miles. Several of the party went in wagons overland, were a long time on the road. Every stream we came to on the route, seemed to take a rise just before we reached it. So we had to wait until the water subsided which was sometimes several days. My recollection is, we were six weeks on the road, for there was only at times a bridle path. I remember that once, we were 2 days without seeing a house or the face of a man. We arrived at our destination sometime in March. We had heard nothing from the boat.
At last a messenger came, requesting all the males that could be spared, to come down the river and assist in pushing the boat up the river. He also requested that we rig canoes and bring supplies of meat and meal. We could only get two small dug cuts, so we cut down a large hickory tree and built a fire and warmed it so the bark would peel off more easily, and with our axes split the bark on one side and peeled it off very easily, the natives assisting us, and made a bark canoe and loaded it with provisions; the men getting into the two canoes, one of them was so small it could carry only two men. We met the keel boat a short distance above Batesville.
(Continued next week)
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Friday May 12, 1899
EARLY HISTORY
Marion County as She Was When Settled in 1836. (By Hon. W. B. Flippin) (Continued from last week.)
I saw so many, to me, laughable circumstances take place, that it would nearly wear out a faber, and take a quire of paper to record them. I will venture to record one or more.
When we reached within a few miles of our destination, the inhabitants, for miles, hearing of the big keel boat coming up the river, loaded with dry goods and groceries, came in droves to see the boat, as there never had been one that high up White river before, and such a thing as the inhabitants call a store was unknown to the denizens of that region. Among those visiting the boat was James Montgomery, who kept the ferry, and Goodman knowing him to be a good steersman, asked him to take hold of the helm and steer the boat, as he wished to mix with the people on board and get acquainted with them. So Montgomery took the helm, and Goodman entered the crowd, when a mischievous youngster who was one of the hands on the boat sung out in stentorian tones:
"The captain has gone ashore,
And put a monkey at the oar,"
Montgomery left in a bad humor forthwith, and the captain had to return. There came two men to the boat who said they lived neighbors -- one was a tall rough looking man by the name of Carter, the name of the other was Roper; I noticed that both seemed to like a dram of old rye whisky very well. One remarked that if his mother had suck like that, he never would have been weaned. When they got pretty well filled with old rye, Roper said to Carter, I understand you have been speaking very disrespectfully of my family. Carter flushed up crimson and the tears came coursing down his cheeks like rain, all the while denying the charge and begging Roper not to believe it; he seemed to be so distressed and so sorry, I was about the(sic) interpose; Roper was holding a tin cup of whisky in his hand. Well, says Roper, if you did not say it, let us drink together and still be friends. Quick as thought, Carter's features changed into a radiant smile of joy and burst into a joyous laugh. I saw in a moment I was sold. I never saw before or since a man, who had such complete control of his emotions so sudden and natural enough to deceive the most critical observer on his guard.
One more, and I will give a rest. Montgomery, after becoming a little pacified came down on the guards of the boat to show us that he could use a pole and knew how to push on a keel boat. In less time than it takes me to pencil it, it was arranged that I was to be the next man before Montgomery. (Those familiar with pushing on a keel boat know that it makes the foremost man opposite his next man, when pushing.) We were nearing a roaring shoal, foaming and seething over the pebbly bottom of the river. I was to pretend that my pole slipped, and fall across Montgomery's which would let him go head foremost into the surging and boiling waters. The hands on the boat cared no more for being in the river than they did for being on "Terra firma". I, boy like, agreed to do so, when we got to the worst looking and deepest part of the shoal, just as I was almost in the act of falling off on his pole and seeing him go down the river, to the delight of the boatman, his pole broke in-two and he went head foremost to the bottom of the boiling mass of troubled waters. I cannot describe the loud hzzahs(sic) and guffaws that burst forth from the boatmen; but Montgomery gave us no more exhibitions of his knowledge of dexterity in keel boating.
We landed and stowed the goods in a warehouse that was on....farm Goodman has purchased..[cut off at end of page]...of the arrival of the boat with a large supply of merchandise for which the proprietor proposed to take peltries in payment. Several persons came 30 or 40 miles to buy goods. The country was sparsely settled, only on the creeks and river. It was thought by the inhabitants that the uplands and small prairies was unfit for cultivation. When we came, there was not a family living between White river and Crooked creek, and but one cabin, which had been erected by John Tabor, who is yet living. The story as I have it, which caused the cabin to be built, was that Tabor had persuaded one of James Magness' daughters to emigrate to Lee's prairie against the will of Magness; but as usual, this state of affairs did not last long. The truants were invited to return to their father's domicile.
Soon after landing George Goodman, Thos. H. Flippin, Allen Flippin, Thomas Rutherford and Dr. James Rutherford, settled the Lee's prairie region, now called Flippin Barrens. The pioneers, who were the first settlers after the Shawnee Indians left, was a rude, whole souled, chivalrous generous class, few of them wore hats or coats. A large handkerchief for a covering for the head, Indian style, and hunting shirt and Moccasins, and frequently dressed deer skin pantaloons. The Indian village where Yellville now stands, called after Gov. Yell, who promised to give the locators 50 dollars for the name, was killed at the battle of Buena Vista and never redeemed his promise.
The Indians called the village Shawneetown. Two of the couising(sic) of Tecumseh (who was said to have been killed by Dick Johnson) lived on White river below the mouth of the Buffalo Fork, John and Peter Cornstalk, who said they were by Tecumseh when he was killed and that Johnson did not kill him, but that a smooth faced boyish looking man shot him in the breast. Tecumseh turned and said: "Fight boys, fight," and aimed to sit down on the root of a tree and fell over on his face. Then we run.
When the Indians left Shawnee-town there were a number of cedar cabins vacated. Old Ben Wood (a brother of the first county Judge, Nick, (named dancing bill) occupied with his family, one of the cabins. He was ever known as Old Cedar Wood. Judge Wood had not up to that time, an opportunity of reading Blackstone or Chitty, made some slight mistakes in the settlement of an estate. One of the heirs went to Carrollton and employed a lawyer to come down and assist the Judge in settling the estate in accordance with the law. There was no lawyer nearer at that time than Carrollton. The judge gravely turned to the clerk and said: "Mister Clerk, enter an order that after this, we proceed according to law."
In those days we lived in peace -- did not have to buy locks for our corn cribs or smoke houses -- all had plenty -- could kill a bear occasionally in winter, and save his bacon as we did a hog, or we could kill a turkey or a deer whenever we desired, or a large cat fish or buffalo at anytime. All seemed glad for his neighbor to visit him and have an evenings social chat, always ready and willing to assist his neighbor or divide with him when necessary to supply his wants as a specimen, Brown C. Roberts who was our representative in the State Legislature invited my father and family to come down to where he lived, a short distance below the ferry where the widow McBee's Landing now is, and have a social chat, and eat honey. He had a long row of bee gums in front of his cabin. When we got there the lawmaker went to where the bee gums were, and taking one of the largest looking ones brought it close to the house, (he was barehead) and took his axe and split it open. The bees rose enmass and filled his hair on his head full of mad bees. There was scratching and pulling of hair until he got rid of the bees. He did not seem to mind it any more than a bear would when robbing a bee tree, which they do very often. After partaking of a reasonable amount of nice white sealed honey comb, this deponent retired; but Roberts prevailed on my father and mother to remain until morning.
Brown C. Roberts was one of the most inveterate talkers I ever met. He was a giant in size, over six feet tall, raw boned, with a stentorian voice. After they had retired for the night on a bark-woods bedstead; forks supporting poles, or driven in the cracks of the cabin, the representatives kept up the conversation with my father, and in turning over the poles slipped and let Mr. Roberts and his spouse down on a large bear dog with happened to be quietly reposing under the bed. There was a racket raised by the dog and Brown C. equal to a first class bear fight, which my mother seemed never to ...[end of page. Dark and cut off.}
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Friday, May 19, 1899:
It was the last visit she ever paid to the lady, whose husband was a member of the Arkansas Legislature. I have .....that the pioneers were honest, and glad to see people coming into the country to settle, as proof, John Adams who lived a short distance above the mouth of the Big North fork of White river was indebted to Major Jacob Wolf, I do not now know the amount, although I was present when the Major came to buy ...... Adams had a fine lot he had fattened. Wolf told him he did not have enough meat to supply his family the incoming season and as Adams was owing him he would take the hogs in payment of the debt. Adams told him there was two families who had just moved into the neighborhood by the name of Watts, who had no meat and no money to buy with, and he was going to let Watts have his hogs and that (he) Wolf could buy plenty of meat in the country for the money. I know you have the money and you can wait until I get the money to pay you. I expected to hear some sharp words pass between them, but I was mistaken. Wolf turned his horses head with his bridle and rode off without saying a word.
James Adams had a mill 2 miles above where John Adams lived on a small stream that ran into the river. There was a severe drouth the second year after we came in the state, corn on the uplands was almost a failure. I heard the old man Adams give his son Matthew who attended to the mill instructions that if a poor man came to mill not to toll his grist if he has but little corn in his sack, but take a toal dish full and pour it into this sack. These statements are not hear says, I saw and heard them, myself. These two Adams were relatives, but I do not know what kin they were. John Adams name appears first on the list as a delegate from Izard county in the convention that formed the first constitution of the state of Arkansas. James Adams claimed to be a descendant from John Quincy Adams, one of the early presidents of the United States. The family keep up the name in the family unto the present -- there is always a John Quincy among them.
I will not pretend to say that the early settlers were better than other men would be under similar circumstances. At that day we seldom wanted for the substantial necessaries of existence. They generally had a barrel of honey provided for winter and the children would amuse themselves of winter nights by boiling honey down and making candy. Honey was so plentiful that they seldom eat it unless it was made into candy.
On coming to the state of Arkansas I supposed a person was very likely to be devoured by bears or panthers. When it was rumored that the track of a bear had been seen in the vicinity of a settlement either in Tennessee or Kentucky, for I had lived on the frontiers in both states, the women and children would house up an fear to go out far from their domiciles, but when I come to Arkansas I learned a little more about wild animals. They are not likely to attack a person unless very hungry, almost starving. A bear, a panther or a wolf, will fight for their young, but neither of them are as vicious as a wild cat or lynx, you may live for years in a country where bears are plentiful and never see one. They have very small eyes for an animal of their size, but a keen scent and a large ear. If you attempt to approach one and the wind is blowing from you to where the bear is, you will never be likely to see him. He will hear you walk a long distance, and smell you long before you can see him in a wood..
[next line cut off at end of page..] sparsely settled parts of North Arkansas for 62 years, I have never seen a panther in the woods. I have heard them scream and growl in the night, but never saw one, but once, as I recollect until the dogs started him. I am not as afraid of a bear as I am of a wild hog, and they will run if you give them a chance but like a bear, fight to the last when you put your dogs after him. I have written this that I might give you a few stories of bear and wolves.
On the bank of White river at the ford of the river, a small distance below where Tolbert's ferry is located in early times stood a small log chain surrounded by a rail fence in which the calf of the cow that gave milk for the family was kept. A man, his wife and one small child lived here. A bear came to the bank of the river on the opposite side and hearing the baby crying plunged into the river (a bear is a good swimmer and don't stop for a water course large or small) and swam across and made straight for the house where the child was crying. The man was not at home and the woman was trying to quiet the child. When the bear came to the fence the woman shut the door to keep the bear from entering the house; just then the calf happened to come near where the bear was. Bruin seized it, and carried it off into the canebreak, and made a meal of it. The reason, as backwoodsmen will tell you, was that wolves often catch fawns and they bleat a good deal like a young child crying, and a bear if he hears the noise, rushes to the place, drives off the wolves and eats the fawn.
A widow living on White river a few miles above Tolbert's ferry, to get her horse shod-- a large gray animal she kept as a riding horse-- she had killed a beef and took the fresh hide, doubled it under her saddle, it was difficult to keep the green hide from slipping out from under the saddle but she was determined to take it to the blacksmith shop to pay for shoeing Boss, as she called the horse. The blacksmith lived on Fallen Ash, near where Joe Wood now lives. When she got in about three miles of the ship, the wolves smelling the beef hide, wanted to divide with the widow, she hurried up Boss, and the beefhide slipped out from under the saddle. There are but few men but what would have given the wolves possession of the hide, but not so with the widow, she dismounted and fought the wolves with rocks, and took the hide to a log, mounted Boss and kept on her way until she got to the blacksmith's, the wolves following until within a short distance of the shop.
I will now give you my own encounter with a couple of wolves, one a very large yellow one, the other a small black one. I was coming home from the mouth of Big North fork of White river, riding a small Indian pony. I had not been to the state but a short time, had no arms, only a small pen knife. I saw before me in the road what I at first took to be a panther, some 150 yards distant, as it was an open barren place, on coming nearer I saw that it was a wolf. I did not see the small one until close by. I had no other thought, for usually they would run off. The black one did run to a bunch of bushes, some fifty yards distant. But the large one stood in the road looking unconcerned. I thought I would charge him, and he would get out of the road, but no, he bristled up his hair and squared himself for a combat. By this time I was face to face with him only a few paces between us. I knew the wolf could catch me if he wanted to, so it was useless to retreat, as I failed to cause the wolf to do so. We were close together, in a beligerant(sic) attitude. I had read an account some years before of a hunter mistaking a panther for a deer lying on the side of a steep rocky hill. He managed to get a large rock between him and the deer, as he took it to be, so he crawled very near it and looked around the rock and behold! it was a large panther, lying only a few paces, in the very act of springing on him, as the panther had heard him crawling up on him. He could not bring his rifle to bear for want of time, as the panther was in the act of springing on him; so he looked him straight in the eyes, the panther doing the same. This continued for some time, eventually the panther turned his head and walked off, much to the joy of the hunter. So I adopted the hunters plan, and sternly looked the wolf straight in the eye, not more so than he defiantly gazed, without blinking his eyes, straight into mine. Thus we stood for some time, at last the wolf dropped his head, and began slowly to move toward the edge of the road. Now, I thought, was my opportunity, so I moved my pony up toward him....[last line of newspaper black, cut off]
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Friday, June 9, 1899
As I have related several bear and wildcat stories, I will try to give some panther stories also, although I did not see them, I have them from men who were actors, in whose veracity I can confide. Alexander Moreland, who lived on White river, a short distance above the mouth of Crook(sic) creek, concluded one evening late to visit his farther(sic), who lived where Buffalo City is now located. On crossing the creek, just below his farm, he heard a panther scream, a short distance up the creek, but that was no uncommon occurrence in those days. He had not went far until he discovered it by the roadside, ready for a leap at him. He was riding an active, well proportioned horse. When the panther leaped, the horse sprang forward and the panther fell behind him in the road. The horse and rider being badly frightened, started on a run, the panther also trying all the time to get ahead of the horse and succeed(sic) in getting in advance once or twice, every time springing at the rider with the same result as before. It followed Moreland until he got in a short distance of his fathers house. He had a single barreled pistol that he carried in his hand, but was afraid to shoot at the panther, for fear of missing it; so he reserved it for the fight, if the panther succeed(sic) in catching him.
Simeon Tolbert told me, when going home from White river (he lived near where Mountain Home now stands) a heavy rain commenced falling, and while riding along the road, a panther sprang from the limb of a tree, that hung over the road. He said he did not see the panther. The horse leaped forward, and the panther lighted behind him in the road. The horse ran, and he saw the panther no more.
I need not tell of Hudson's encounter with a panther, his victory over the wild beast, come near ending his life but it gave him a seat in the legislature, and all the members were anxious to see the man that whipped the panther. But these were uncommon cases, and seldom happened.
I have lived here over half a century, and never saw a panther, although many roamed the country, and many were killed. I was not afraid of them, when hunting I always went prepared as others did, a trusty dog, a good gun and a large butcher knife. If it was daylight, we courted a fight with either a bear wolf or panther; in the night we stood on the defensive. I have had that to do once from a bear and once from wolves. Wildcats always fled from my dog, who soon put them up a tree, when my rifle would invite them to come down. I have had so many skirmishes with wounded deer that I can only mention one, for fear the deer would consider themselves slighted, if I passed by them in silence.
I went out one day to kill a deer, and rode my favorite hunting mule. I shot at a deer, made a bad shot and disabled it in one hip. I called my dog and put him on the trail. I knew it would only be a short time until he would rouse the deer up, as I was certain it would lay down soon. Sure enough, I soon heard my dog baying it, and I rode leisurely to where they were, as I knew the dog would not let it run off. When I got in sight, I saw that it was what hunters call, a "spike buck," that is a young buck, with only one horn on each side of its head; very dangerous in a fight to man or beast, its keen spike horns are equal to a spear. My dog saw me, the deer had not, I rode up near them, watching their maneuvers, stopped my mule and sat quietly on him. The dog saw that I was not in a hurry, stepped back out of reach of the deer's .....[last line black. Cut off] ... had no time to shoot, so sudden was its charge, that I put spurs to my mule, and made a hurried retreat. My dog was on the look out, and sprang after the deer and stopped the charge by seizing it by one of its hams. The deer turned its attention again to the dog, and I concluded to end the fight. I took aim at him, as near the heart as I could guess, the dog keeping it very busy. I thought it possible that I have missed...deer, a fair broadside, not....thirty-yards; the deer never ...ed, I commenced reloading rap..keeping a lookout at the deer,..at once he seemed to stagger, ..fell dead to the ground. On ..amination, I had pierced its h....with a bullet. I tried this ..kind of a fight with a very ...buck, with a full head of ho... only I did not have to retreat..had leaned better than to ...near a wounded buck in... with dogs. [NOTE: this column is partly obliterated on the right side by what looks like a another column that has been cut out and placed on top of the Flippin article. The remainder of this column is obliterated on the right side.] I was on a hunt .. my brother-in-law, and saw .. deer a long distance from us, ..plain view. We knew that ..could not get close to them, ..was a place void of trees, (a pr...hollow.). My brother-in-law ... he believed, by aiming high, ..lowing for the fall of the bullet could hit a large buck stan..among the group. He was a ..shot, and had a fine gun. He .. five trained dogs, but only thr.. them were with him. He sai.. he could only disable it in... least, he could catch it with dogs. I had also two dogs, ... deliberately raised his rifle ... fired, the deer ran and he sa... broke that buck's fore leg, ... the dogs all loose, and I will ... one to follow the trail; the .. will bring him to bay before, .. runs very far. My father ... with us, he told me to go on.... wished to, and I and your ... will follow the track. You ..hear the dogs baying the deer before we get up, as he may, ...perhaps will turn and run to ... as they are almost certain to ..
[NOTE: Now we are at the top of the next column which is completely covered except for the little bit that follows.] So I left them to follow the trail, and cut across where I knew there was a pond of water in the bed of a dry run. Sure enough, I did not go far, until I heard the dogs baying ahead. I hurried up my steed and found they were in the bed of ..dry creek, in a hole of water about 15 yards long, and this large, majestic looking buck with his hair bristled...[the remainder of this column is covered up with a cut out of another containing deed and land information with names of Wm. Steward and Geo. Partridge, Gabriel Gregory and Sarah Gregory his wife, Benjamin Butler, etc.]
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Friday, June 16, 1899
Long before I came to the country, the Indians had told the White's that there was a sliver mine, just across Buffalo river from the mouth of Rush creek. Thomas D. Wood, and James Montgomery, said after the Indians had emigrated from this vicinity, to the land assigned them by treaty, in what is now called the Indian territory, an Indian came back and promised, that because they had entertained him sometime free of charge, he would show the silver mine to them. He told them they must not tell that he showed the mine, or the Indians would kill him. He remained with them until crop time was over, then they loaned the Indian a horse to ride and supplied the necessaries for the trip, expecting to be gone several days. It was very warm weather, if my recollection serves me, it was in August. They got to where the Indian said the mine was close at hand, and camped. Next morning the Indian seemed to be very dull, had but little to say, and began to make excuses, saying that it had been a long time since he had been at the mine. They hunted all that day, and the next until noon and did not find it. They then told the Indian they would kill him if he did not show it to them, but still continued to hunt. They became very tired, as it was very warm. At last the Indian pointing to a steep hill side, almost too steep to climb, the Indian said he felt sure the mine was up in the side of that mountain, and if they would remain there he would climb the mountain on foot, and if he found it he would hallo, and then, says the Indian "When you hear me, then you be glad." They waited till both died and never heard the Indian hallo or saw his face again.
I got a description of the locality of the mine, and thought by the marks on a pine tree I had seen several times, I could find it without much trouble. So I hied away to where a man lived on the Buffalo fork by the name of Burchat, who lived where the town of Harrison in Boone county is now located, until someone entered his land and he had moved to Buffalo fork some distance below the mouth of Rush creek. I got his son-in-law, a stout hardy looking man, to go with me to hunt the mine. I regret that I have forgotten his name. We took a boy with us to mind the horses while we were hunting the mine. A large dark hound dog followed us. We had neglected to take a gun with us, and had only landed and began the hunt, when the hound commenced making a considerable noise, -- he was running something, as we heard the rocks falling down the side of that ........ [another covered column with a cut out of another article. The next column will suffer the same fate.] who lived not far away, up and down the river, who had several bear dogs that came to the assistance of the hounds. The bear would run off out of hearing, but soon return to the place where it started. There was, and is yet, a bench, or offset in the bluff, some places several feet wide, at other places narrow, but extending clear across the face of the bluff. The bear, after a long chase, returned and took along the face of the bluff, on that narrow offset, the dogs flowing close behind. I happened to be close by when the bear and dogs started across the face of the bluff. I entered the chase, cheering the dogs, and the bear appeared to be very tired. I went some distance on the narrow, when I saw the bear turn, as if to come back. I concluded the pass was too narrow for me and the bear both to have sufficient room to pass, without being rather too much crowded, so I concluded, without insulting the bear, to give him the right of way. I found soon that he only turned back to beat off the dogs, who were biting him behind as soon as he run them back he kept on his way. I kept off that pass afterward. After running sometime, the bear left the bluff, and went into the cane near the river bank. The chase stopped suddenly, and we went down to see what was the matter (the man I had to go with me had a large sized hatchet) the dogs had the bear down, pulling and hauling him to and fro, and seemed perfectly exhausted. My man went up and knocked the bear in the head with the hatchet. So I cannot say I killed a bear with a hatchet, but I was present and saw another man do it. The pass mentioned, where the bear crossed the face of the bluff, is where the furnace stood that...>br>
[here is where the column is covered up with another cut out. The next column appears to be a continuation of our Flippin article.] Flippin. The citizens told him that he would starve if he settled there; he had not built a house or made any improvement, so he left the country. The mountain that overlooks the prairie is also called Lee's Mountain to this day.
James creek was named for James Montgomery, who lived on White River and owned a half interest in what was originally called Talburt's ferry, that is, he owned the land on the south side of the river and Talburt on the north side. The early settlers called the creek James of Jims creek, because Montgomery wintered his horses and cattle on the creek. During winter the creek bottoms had a dense growth of cane in places. I wintered my horses on the creek one winter after Montgomery left the state. The early settlers had a custom which, they strictly observed, each settler would select a bottom on a creek or the river, that had a canebrake on it, to winter his cattle and horses, and no one else would dare to turn stock on it; it was equivolent(sic) to what we now call a homestead. I used to claim a bottom on the Buffalo fork, where I wintered my horses for several winters. I visit the place to salt the stock with others who had claims adjoining, and killed many deer, and found one bee tree, killed a deer, made a honey case out of the hide, and took the honey home with us. There were three or four of us in the crowd. We always regarded it as a pleasure. If it was now possible, as it was then, I had rather take such a trip again with two or three hunters, jovial fellows, than a ride on a steam car to Galveston for a pleasure trip.
T. H. Flippin, George Goodman, Allen Ware, and Thos. Rutherford settled on or contiguous to Lee's prairie. Allen Flippin on Fallen Ash, (named after an old Indian who lived at the mouth of the creek, so the settlers told me,) near where Joseph Wood now lives. Jessie Goodman, the leader remained on the river, on the farm he bought when he came to look at the country, and sold goods our only merchants, (except Major Jacob Wolf who kept a small stock at the mouth of the Big North Fork.) this side of Batesville. Wright Rutherford and John, his brother returned to Tennessee.
There was a man by the name of Burgess, who came with us, but was not a relative, who persuaded a young lady by the name of McCord, to leave home, father, mother, brothers and sisters to follow a man to a wild uncivilized western wilderness. I am sorry now, although it has taken over sixty two years since, that I assisted Burgess, and went with him to the town of Paris, Tenn., where they were married. It was a runaway match. The girl was at a quilting, and was expecting Burgess to come that day. I was with him and we rode up to the fence some distance from the house, the girl was watching for us. She saw us and came to us bare-headed, and got on the horse behind Burgess without any person in the house seeing us. Burgess was a fine specimen of a man, but had no property. He stayed...[last line cut off.]
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Friday, June 23, 1899
Jesse Goodman, as a merchant, failed, and he, with the rest of the Goodman at least twenty of them, became tired of the once praised country that the leader, Jesse Goodman, had led his relatives to. He began to sing the praises of Texas, all the others, but myself agreed to leave and go to Texas. They made ready; my father wished me to go, but I told him to go if he wished, but I positively would not. I had entered forty acres of land, put in cultivation some twenty acres of land (a large amount for the time.) The fields rarely exceeded from five to fifteen acres. I had a fair start of cattle, horses and hogs, and had built me a fair backwoods house, the only one at that time having a plank floor and loft in the Flippin barrens, as it was at that time called, which myself and brother had sawed with a whip saw out of a pine tree we had cut down and hauled from a pinery on Crooked Creek. My father said he would not go if I did not. My uncle Allen Flippin, and Tom Rutherford went with he Goodmans, and left none of the crowd that started to the land of the bear, deer, and turkey, fish, honey, panther, wolves and wildcats, but my father, mother, myself and an only brother.
I have never seen any of the crowd that left, and seldom heard from any of them. They settled near Dangerfield, in Texas. In less than five years, all or most that left had died. Jesse Goodman and wife died and was buried in the same grave. George Goodman and wife died in a short time; Allen Flippin's wife soon followed, Tom Rutherford died and left his wife a widow, and Allen Flippin married her eventually, so I have heard. What has become of the numerous descendants of the Goodman family, I know nothing. I hear of another Flippin family now living that left with the Goodmans.
But to return; shortly after our arrival, there came and settled on the identical spot or very near it, where Felix Huddleston now lives, by the name of James McDaniel who had a wife and one small baby. He was as poor as men generally get to be; his wife had on a course lindsey dress, and the women said, no underclothes, he appeared to have but one ordinary suit. They had neither bed nor bedding, they dug a hole or a place that resembled a grave, but not so deep, and filled it with leaves in which they slept as my recollection serves me, the first winter after their arrival. McDaniel appeared to be a quiet sober man. He did not stay long, but sold out and went to Missouri. Dr. Huddleston tells me that he came to his fathers and worked for him some time.
But one of the novel circumstances that attracted my attention was a man by the name of James M. Cowdrey, who lived near the confluence of the Big North fork of White river, who was an educated physician, a scholar and a gentleman. I was told that he attended the same school where John C. Calhoun received his education. He was very precise in his language, and the backwoodsman could not very well understand him at all times. He would not call a lucky transaction by so tame a name, but say it was a "fortuitous concatenation(sic) of events." I recollect hearing of a circumstance that fits the man, he was called to see a patient, who now lives in Baxter county, then Marion, by the name of Hargrave, the wife of John Hargrave, an early settler, a man of some means and a good citizen. The doctor went to the patient, but after examining the case, said he had forgotten to bring any Nitre with him, and the case needed the drug, and he could not treat the case as he wished without. Hargrave said he would send a boy after it, if he knew where to send, the doctor told him he had the drug at home, but it was about fifteen or eighteen miles from Hargraves to where the doctor was living. The boy was told to hurry, so he did not spare his horse. When he returned the doctor opened the paper containing the Nitre, as the doctor called it, and the boy saw it said, it looks like Salt petre. The doctor, replied, that is what some people call it, and the old man Hargrave said, there is plenty of salt petre here. So there was a ride of thirty miles at least, because the doctor failed to call Nitre salt petre. Sometimes the people would say, doctor if you please, give us your instructions in the language of the pioneer.
But I must give the reader a history of how he came to leave civilization, for the home of the hunter and the Indian; for when he arrived here, the Indians owned the south side of the river, and the whites the north side. The doctor gave me a sketch of his early history after I was married, and as the doctors wife, and mine were cousins, we became great cronies, and spent many pleasant hours together. We soon began to use the phrases of the backwoodsman. I do not remember that the doctor ever used any word in our conversation that I did not understand. But to my tale. While attending school, he and the professor's daughter became attached to each other, as young folks often do, even in the backwoods of North Arkansas, and finally agreed, in the future to become husband and wife. The doctor's father, and his brothers as well, were wealthy. The doctor told me that none of them were worth less than ten thousand dollars. He went into partnership with another man, to sell goods on a large scale; the partner was to take charge of the merchandise business and he went to practicing medicine. In a short time the mercantile business was a complete failure, and the doctor could not think of marrying the profess- [the last line dark. cut off.]
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Friday, June 30, 1899
So he went and informed her of his misfortune, telling her that if they should marry, he would be unable to maintain her in the society in which she had been raised, and if she would agree to it, they would declare their promise to marry off; to which she reluctantly agreed. He then mounted his horse, intending to take up his abode away from civilization with which he had become disgusted, and make his home among the Indians of the wild west without letting anyone know where he was going; not even his father or mother or any of his brothers. They tried to find out where he went or what had become of him. At last there came a man to this vicinity who knew him, and informed his family of his whereabouts. They had come to the conclusion that he was dead, long before they heard of him. He told me that which I doubt if he ever told his family; of the scene that transpired when he bid adieu to the idol of his affections. He said if he died in his senses, that scene would still be as fresh in his mind, as if it had only been an hour since it took place. The doctor married a worthy young lady by the name of McCubbin, with whom he lived a quiet peaceful life until she died. At his death, he left behind him several sons, one of which is now a prosperous merchant in the town of Yellville, doing a large business in dry goods, groceries &ct.
The doctor's wife used to tell a good anecdote on him. She had been at extra pains to have some roasting ears in her garden; the doctor went out one morning into the garden, and remained sometime, finally he came in looking very tired and perspiring freely. His wife was alarmed, and said, doctor, what is the matter, what have you been doing? The doctor replied I've been pulling the ..... off of the corn. She went and shoot off the stalks in her roasting ear patch.
About the year of 1869 or so, a large detachment of Indians came through this country, said to be about three thousand men, women and children, moving west. They were Cherokees and Creeks. I am not certain as to the time, as there has been at least two moves, for some refused to go with the first immigration. Many of the Cherokees were well dressed and riding good horses, fine-looking men from their appearance I judged them to be half breeds, while the majority many of them were poorly clad. Some of the women only having blankets wrapped around them, several carrying papooses wrapped in a blanket or some kind of cloth and fastened to the back of their mothers. Seeing so many, I wondered that I did not hear a scream from a single papoose. I do not think that the women (I mean our wives) if the men would tie their papooses on their backs, and start them on foot a hundred or perhaps two hundred miles, but what they would have music continually that would not be very melodious or charming to listen to. It was winter when they came to White river, ice was frozen over along the banks of the river. As I was to assist the ferryman in setting the host across the river, in a very ordinary ferry boat with two oars to row with. Instead of their stopping to make terms to cross the river in the ferry boat, they never pretended to halt, but waded across the river, women and men, all except the few who had horses or carriages. They did not pretend to let the women who had papooses ride. It reminded me of a drove of cattle crossing a stream. The river was unusually low at the time, but it was over 200 yards wide. I stepped it once on the ice when it was frozen over. They camped shortly after crossing the river, and built up fires and remained all night. The agent, whose name I have forgotten, had come on before them, and bought provisions for man and beast, at least to supply what was lacking.
There came that evening to the camp, a large fine looking man, whom I had seen a few times before, who had recently come to the county. He had a brother that had preceded him several years, they both came from Kentucky. The eldest one was named Erving Hogan, the other Micajah Hogan. He was a gambler, and had come for the purpose of gambling with the Indians which he did that night, and won a considerable amount of money. Next day early the host moved on, but two Indians crossed back over the river. Hogan had returned and put up at the house of the ferryman. I learned that the name of one of the Indians was Benge, a subchief, the other, a tall active looking Indian whose name was Young. He immediately told Hogan his business was to play a game of cards with him. Hogan readily consented. They sat down on a large log and commenced playing what is called "seven up". Hogan kept talking, presently a crowd had gathered to see the game. Young hardly ever spoke, but seemed to watch the game closely. I noticed that Hogan was losing almost every game. They were betting freely, playing out a hand. Hogan came in one of being out, as they called the end of the game. Hogan threw down his cards and cried out, in a loud tone of voice, "out." Yes said the Indian "out of Hell and ..pity for that." Young got up pretty soon after, and said, I am not satisfied I have won back all the money you won from me last night ...age, during the game, kept ....ing in Indian to Young. Hogan ....him to speak in English, and .......Benge, whose eyes fairly ...... fire, returning the compli- ......and drew out a fine silver .......ed pistol. Continued next week. [NOTE: the end of this column was torn on the left side.]
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Friday, July 7, 1899
Hogan told him that he had no arms. Benge said, you shall not have that for an excuse, and pulled out a mate to the pistol he had and offered it to Hogan, but he refused to take it. I expected to see Benge shoot him, but he let fly a volley of oaths, cursing Hogan and the white's saying, they had taken their homes from them, and compelled them to go from the homes of their fathers, to a land they knew nothing of in the far west: Hogan told him he had nothing to do with it. Benge was a large square built man and appeared as vicious as an enraged lion. Benge and Young mounted their horses and rode off. I don't mean to say that Hogan was not a brave man, I have seen him in several fierce contests, and he never seemed to fear the face of any man, but the Indian seemed to get the drop on him.
I was at this time a clerk in my uncle Jesse Goodman's store; he also owned the ferry. I had an opportunity to see many a scene and drunken row that give me a distaste against the too liberal use of what is called in Arkansas "mountain dew." I agree with Harry, in his life of Francis Marion, when his men got drunk and refused to obey his orders, and overtake a squad of retreating tories when they happened on a barrel of apple brandy:
O Brandy Brandy bane of life
Source of tumult and of strife
Could I but half they curses tell,
The wise would wish thee safe
in Hell.
Whisky or ardent spirits, as the term used to designate the distillation of various articles, that causes men to become demons, in many instances when a free use is made of it, costs men, women, children and the general public, more strife, more murderers, thieves, suicides, orphans heart broken women than any other one article that has a name in the whole vocabulary of the English language. And yet it is really surprising to see what length many, other wise respectable men, will go to get a drink or bottle of whisky. We need no missionaries to proselyte the heathen, when so much is necessary to be done to moralize our own blessed land of Liberty, "morality, Christianity, virtue, learning heroism and moralizer of the different nations of the inhabitable globe.
If I was to undertake to give an account of the murders that have taken place since I have been in the state, that I have had knowledge of, it would fill several quires of fools cap. I might mention a few. A man by the name of Hudspeth married a very fine young lady, by the name of Buckhanan. Huspeth(sic) hired to Jesse Goodman to go as a hand on a flat boat, loaded with corn and hogs to New Orleans, he had a neighbor living near him by the name of Farrier, who Hudspeth requested to furnish his wife with any necessaries she might stand in need of during his absence, which Farrier agreed to do. He suggested to Mrs. Hudspeth that there being no man on the place he would loan her his rifle gun to defend herself with, if it should become necessary. On Hudspeth's return, several busy bodies had some stories to tell him, and he became furiously mad with Farrier. One day he let it be known to Farrier's neighbor that he was going to Yellville. Hudspeth ha... refused to give Farrier's gun ...him after his return home, ...managed to let Farrier know th... if he would come to his house ....his absence his wife would ...him his gun. So Farrier we... Hudspeth house to get his..... and asked Mrs. Hudspeth fo... she said it was hidden out... [too dark to read last line.]........and pointed the gun at Farrier and pulled the trigger the gun fired the ball struck Farrier in the breast, he ran out of the house and went about seventy yards down the road toward his home and fell dead. I was at a store with several others on White river, about a mile from where the circumstances took place. The news was brought us in a short time and we went to the place and found Farrier as described above, Mrs. Hudspeth had left the house and went down to the river. We sent a man after her, she did not deny shooting Farrier and told us that Hudspeth had told her to do it. If she did not he would not live with her. Hudspeth and wife was committed to prison, and as we had no jail in Marion county, they were sent to Carroll county, where in a short time their friends released them, and they were said to have went back to Tennessee, where they had recently immigrated from. I never heard of them again. No one seemed to care enough about the transaction to put themselves to trouble about it.
There lived an old man with his son, a short distance up the creek above Yellville, by the name of Murphy. The old man would frequently get very drunk, and when in that condition he was very quarrelsome and very profane. He was one day in that condition in Yellville, raised a quarrel with another man, and they were in the act of engaging in a fight. The Sheriff, Bart Everett, was present and shoved them apart. Murphy struck his heel against a rail and fell backwards upon another rail and broke his neck. That ended the days of one old drunkard, before the sound of his bitter blasphemous curses had scarcely died on the air. I do not like to tell of murders, so I will pass to other things more agreeable.
There was a large family of the Everetts living in the county when I came to it. Ewel Everett was once county judge; a sober quiet citizen. (Continued next week.)
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Friday, July 14, 1899
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...a passable citizen ..... N. Everet rather a kind of free booter in one sense, he ought to have joined the Mormons, and another named Hayne Everet, a confirmed bachelor, and great eater. An anecdote was current, as to the cause of his being a bachelor; he lived in a house of his own and did his own cooking. He saw a fine hearty backwoods girl, and took a liking to her, and was sure if he made the proposal to her, she would agree to become his partner for life. He studied the matter over, and concluded before he tied the matrimonial knot, he would ascertain how much it would cost him to provide for a partner. (He was said to be a very stingy man.) He set his table put the necessary plates, knives and forks, cups and saucers &c., for two and cooked a large amount of provisions, enough he thought, to be sufficient to appease the appetite of a man and wife. He sat a chair on the opposite side of the table for Mrs. Evert to occupy, with all the dishes and implements necessary to use while eating -- in the first place he asked the imaginary Mrs. Everet what she would be helped to, of the viands so liberally provided by her husband. After helping her liberally, he took the same amount on his own plate, this continued until the meal was finished. I have said he was a liberal eater (some called him a glutton) he looked at the pile of provisions Mrs. Everet had piled up in her plate, and said it would break any man, to provide for a woman that was such a consumer of the necessaries required to support life.
Some time in the forties there came to this county, a man from Lawrence Co., Ark., by the name of Simmons Everet, originally from Kentucky; a brother of those already mentioned. He was a tall, raw boned man, with arms nearly as long as Rob Roy, the Highland Chieftain; and as straight as a liberty pole. He stood among ordinary men as King Saul did among the Jews. Ordinarily, he was a very quiet man of few words. He was a farmer and a stone mason. I have been thus particular in describing this extraordinary man, as he and his brother, Jesse N. Everet, who was near the same size, who ultimately figured so conspicuously in the feud that caused the death of so many citizens of the county, called the Tutt and Everett war. Ewel Everet had a son nearly grown, he was large of his age, and a full hand in the feud.
In the western part of Marion county, a number of early settlers lived. There was three brothers of them, Joseph Coker, Edward Coker, and Charles Coker. Edward Coker told me he landed on the place where he lived the day that Jackson fought the battle of New Orleans. He was a man of few words, when he spoke his manner and tone of voice would indicate to you that he meant what he said. As a specimen of his manner, when he once asked if three men could keep a secret he replied "yes, if two of them were dead." He was a stout robust looking man; I would judge him to be fifty years old, when I first saw him. His wife was a Yocham.
Michael Yocham lived at the mouth of the little North fork of White river, who was a farmer and owned a Grist mill, which was the only mill in the county except one at Shawneetown or Yellville as it is now called, and at or near where the village of Lead Hill is now located but is cut into Boone county. He was once selected representative to the State Legislature but could never be made to believe the earth turned over, he said if it did, all the water in his mill pond would fall out."
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Friday, July 28, 1899
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;...jor Wolf found John P. Houston in Little Rock, attempting to go to Texas and join his Brother Sam Houston, but as frequently happens to a drunken sot, he was out of means and came home with Major Wolf and taught a school for him; but continuing to drink to excess, he left Major Wolf's and went to Ervin Hogans, who had a distillery in Marion county, near the mouth of the Little North fork of White river, and lived but a short time until he died, and was buried in the grave yard on the farm of George Pierson. The love of whisky, and its too frequent use, destroyed the usefulness of a man of intelligence, and a scholar. Boys let the whisky gill alone as Burns called it. It brought Burns to an early grave in the prime of life, Scotland's most gifted Poet. My friends Wolf and Adams, long since crossed the river, and as Stonewall Jackson said when "dying, Let us cross over the river, and rest under the shade." I hope they are at rest, as I verily believe they deserve to be. The Hard Shell Church finally or most of them, united with the Missionary Baptists and prospered until Major Wolf died.
I have noticed that churches as well as all other institutions, cannot live without a head or leader. At one time there was a protracted meeting at their camp ground, and many professed religion and united with the church and telling experiences, some of them were very strange, one very intelligent black man, belonging to James Adams named Wat, came at the invitation of the preacher, to be prayed for, with a number of others, white and black. Whilst the prayer was being offered up by the preacher, Wat arose and turned around on the inside of the encampment, sometimes turning suddenly around, giving a loud scream as if he was badly frightened, this he continued to do two or three times, still stopping suddenly and screaming, turning back and running in a different direction. Finally he ran back and fell down among the seekers. Some years after this I had become identified with the Adams family. Wat by this time had become a preacher, one night after supper was over, I went to Wat's cabin to have a talk with him about his strange actions, it had always been a mystery to me. I told him what I had come for, I wished him to tell me if he would, the cause of his strange behavior the night he was converted. I believe you to be a sensible honest man, if you are black and I would as soon believe you as if you were white. Well he said, he would tell me what made him act as he did, when he went up to be prayed for and laid down on the straw, and commenced praying, the devil came up with a long chain in his hand and tried to get it over his head, it had a running noose on the end of it, he sprang up and broke to run, but the devil outrun him, and tried to throw the chain over his head, and get the noose fast around his neck, but he would dodge and turn back and scream his best through fear, this he continued to do, until he ran around the congregation several times, at last he threw the chain before him on the ground, with the noose open he stepped in the noose as he ran, the devil jerked the chain to fasten it around his leg, but he jerked his foot out of the noose before it got tight. The devil then left him and he ran back and fell down where he was when the devil first tried to fasten the chair around his neck. This is substantially what he told me. Did I believe the tale he told me was true? Certainly I did. He was told so many times by the preachers how the devil would chain them, and cast them into outer darkness, among the condemned, that he became so excited that in his imagination he saw the devil come to take one of...[last line cut off.] leave him back to his former avocation.
I must not forget my old friend John Tabor, who came to Izard county, afterwards to Marion county some years before I did. He was the first man that ever erected a cabin between Crooked creek and White river, in which he remained but a short time. Old Bob, an Indian was living on White river, at what is known as the Indian Spring about two miles north of Lee's prairie, now called Flippin. Bob Tabor told me he desired to build a fence to enclose a small field he had cleared and asked the Indians to come and assist him, he also was invited. Bob promised them a dance, and had a place cleaned off in a cool shade in the river bottom, in a circular form, somewhat resembling an old time treading floor for tramping out wheat with horses. After they had finished the fence the dance commenced, the men going around in single file the women following in the same order, dancing to the sound of some one of the Indians beating on the head of a gum with a deer skin stretched over it. They invited Tabor to take a hand in the dance, which was a kind of hop. Tabor was not a dancing master, and had not even attended a dancing school. At last he consented to give it a trial, he said he tried to imitate, as well as he could, the dance of the Indians. He said the squaws soon began to laugh at his awkward movements, and said he could not help but laugh himself, at his awkward attempts to imitate the Indians, but it pleased the Indians for him to join them in their dance.
Bob had two boys nearly grown, who assisted him in hunting during the summer and fall, collecting all the pelts of bear, deer, coons, wildcats and other animals that was marketable in St. Louis, and parking their ponies with the skins they would go to St. Louis to sell them. Bob would ride before on the lead poney(sic) with a bell on him; the two boys would bring up the rear. They frequently had a very respectable caravan of loaded ponies. I have seen Bob's lick log on Jamies(sic) creek, where he used to winter his horses before any person ever settled on the creek. A man by the name of Vanzant, was the first that settled on the creek, where a mill of small dimensions was built by him.
The next sheriff after Tutt, was Bart Everet I think. Everett collected some revenue for the state. As to the correctness of the anecdote I will relate, I know only what is termed heresay, which in my opinion is entitled to a large discount. The report run about this way, the revenue only amounted about $37.50, Everet got a deputy (what use he had for a deputy I cannot imagine, without it was to take the revenue to Little Rock, and settle with the Auditor.) He sent a man, as well as I can recollect, by the name Daugherty, who thought it a great honor to be deputized and sent on so important an errand. When he had settled up with the Auditor, which only required a few minutes, he began to visit and drink freely, and boast of his daring fetes in Marion county. (Continued next week.)
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Friday, August 4, 1899
[Again, the top portion of this article is torn out.]
...loved a jo...........ever becom......with, saw his opportunity .. commenced roasting(sic) and bragging on the prowes(sic) of the high sheriff of Marion county, as Mitchell called him. At length he said to several of the members of the legislature, he would bet five hundred dollars, the high sheriff of Marion county could swim the Arkansas river; it was in mid winter, and quite cool, one of the members said to Mitchell he would take the bet, as he thought no man could do so in such cold weather. Mitchell went to Daugherty, who was yet drinking and boasting, and told him of the bet, and that he knew he could swim the river and if he would, he would give him half the money. Daugherty agreed readily to do it, and said he would swim it easily; (Little Rock at that time was not a very large town.) the news soon flew over the town that the high sheriff of Marion county was going to swim the Arkansas river on a bet of five hundred dollars. The bank of the river was soon lined with anxious lookers on to see the performance, some telling the high sheriff that he would drown, but Mitchell was in the highth of his glory, he was about to play one of his master jokes, and his reputation depended on its success. So they got a skiff to accompany the high sheriff lest some accident might befall him. The high sheriff stripped, warmed up with several drinks of Mike Tanti's best whisky, and plunged into the river amid the shouts of the legislators and citizens as well as Boot Blacks, ...... swearing he would drown while others cheering him with loud shouts; sure enough, he was about to make the opposite shore, and before he had a chance to return he looked and not a legislator, particularly the men that bet the five hundred dollars could be found; they had disappeared as suddenly as a cyclone would tear down a fodder stack. Thus ended the performance of the trip of the high sheriff of Marion county to Little Rock, to pay off the county revenue. As I said at the beginning, this is here say. I cannot vouch for the truth of the story.
But I will relate another of Mitchel's jokes, that I have reasons to believe in the main is true. Bart Everet the sheriff, and Brown C. Roberts representative from Marion county, had a serious falling out during their canvas. While the legislature was in session, Everet went to Little Rock to pay the revenue of the county. Mitchell was there, and knowing the hatred that existed between, Roberts would fan the fire occasionally, at last he persuaded Everet to challenge Roberts for a duel, as he had spoken very disrespectfully of him and unless he done so the representatives of the state would believe it to be true. Mitchel professed to be the friend of both parties. The challenge was sent but Roberts would not accept it. Everet had some hand bills printed charging Roberts with cowardice (that was about the truth, that was his home reputation) Mitchel went to Everet and persuaded him not to post the hand bills. It would seem Mitchel had a sufficient amount of fun not so however, he knew that Roberts went down every night to get his drinks at Mike Tanti's, an Italian, who kept a grocery at the steamboat landing in the lower part of the city, because Mike sold his whisky at five cents a drink, the up town groceries asked ten cents. Mitchel said the night was very dark, he got the representative from Carroll county to go with him, Brown C. Roberts was such a loud talker he could tell when he left the grocery, so Mitchel and his partner hid themselves in the dark on the street Roberts had to come on his return to his boarding house. They did not wait long until they heard the heavy tramp of Roberts no. eleven brogans on the pavement, Mitchel had prepared himself with a flint and his jack knife, as Roberts approached within a few paces of where he had concealed himself, he suddenly spring out in front of Roberts and struck the flint with his knife, which made several large sparks .....ly into Roberts breast; Roberts broke across the street and ran against a post and fell down, but rose and took down a street toward his boarding house. Mitchel told me that Roberts brogans rattled like two clap boards on the brick pavement. Mitchel went in haste to his boarding house and went to bed for he said he knew Roberts would come there in a short time, he had scarcely got in bed until he heard Roberts coming, he pretended to be asleep. Roberts pushed open the door and entered without ceremony. Mitchel professed to be surprised at Roberts for being up so late. Roberts still something nearly out of breath replied, don't you think that dead flint Everet way laid me tonight and snapped a holster pistol to my breast.
Another story on a member of the legislature told me from Stone(?) county by the name of Isem Hodges. he had promised his constituents if they would elect him to the legislature, he would not get drunk while the session lasted. He arrived in Little Rock on Saturday before meeting of the legislature which was Monday following. There were so many jovial fellow members he met with he could not control his appetite for a dram. this was kept up until Monday morning. Hodges had imbibed freely before he started to the state house, he inquired the way for he was so drunk he did not know. Those he asked seeing his condition gave him the wrong directions, finally he arrived at the penitentiary, and knocked at the door. the keeper came to the door and asked him what he wanted. let me in, he replied, I'm a member.
I cannot vouch for the story and have forgotten the name of the author. I know Hodges and from my acquaintance with him, think perhaps a discount of fifty per cent would be about or at least in the neighborhood of the truth.) But in truth, and as my old friend Ball, of Lawrence county used to say, "Give us a rest". I have said very little about politics the principal reason is I in my younger days used to engage in politics myself and being a Whig and still sticking to the principals of our great leader Henry Clay, long after the party was politically dead, if I was successful in a political race I had to overcome a Democratic majority of about one third at least, which I sometimes did. I was called a full hand in telling anecdotes and carried off quite a number of Democrats who would follow me around occasionally to get a good hearty laugh that I generally had cut and dried on purpose for their benefit. (Continued next week.)
Friday, August 11, 1899
I recollect on one of our canvass.... John Swafford was the Democratic candidate, and I figured it up that the vote would be nearly a tie. A very good farmer declared himself a candidate; I knew that would beat me as the votes he would get would weaken me, and Swarford(sic) would be elected. I saw my only chance was to get Sims off. I knew he would not get more than about twenty votes, but I could not make him believe it. In electioneering he stopped at a widow's house up in the hills near the Missouri line. She lived isolated from the public highway, and twenty five miles from the county site, and perhaps never saw the place in her life. Sims toldher he knew she could not vote but she had some sons-in-laws, he wished her to cause them to vote for him, he would be elected, and if there was any thing she wanted done by the legislature, he would attend to it with pleasure. Well, said the old lady, what do you think ought to be done with a man that would commit suicide? Sims replied "he ought to be fined three hundred dollars and made to support the child." I told that story at a speaking in Yellville in his presence. The crowd burst forth into loud hurrahs. Sims appeared very mad and started home swearing. I saw no more of him until after the election. I was elected by, as I recall sixteen votes, about the number he would have gotten had he continued in the canvas. It always was a mystery to me why some men would run for an office when they ought to know there was no chance for them to be elected.
I knew one man to run for the assessors office that only got three votes. They seem to think it an honor to have it to say they had ruan for an office. The reason I suppose that I could not change my politics and ...... to be called a Whig. I was offered by the democrats any office .......gift of the people of the county ...I would join the Democratic party. I told them I would rather suffer defeat than do it. The reason why my old grandfather, Thomas Flippin, who used to tell his children and grand sons what he and the Whigs suffered to gain our Independence, fighting the British the Tories and Indians, to never desert the stars and stripes, but die fighting rather than give up what was achieved by the blood of your forefathers. I have never changed my politics always opposed secession, but affiliated with the Democrats after the war of the rebellion. When the war of 1812 with Great Britain was declared my grand father did not wait to be forced to defend what he had fought for, but summoned his sons and sons-in-law to come to his house. He said to them I understand war has been declared to fight the English as I did in the revolution. I gained the liberty you are now enjoying. You must defend it. I want no excuse three of them was of age and his son-in-law. My father was not, he said to his father, I want to go too, well Tom, said the old man, you shall go, get ready all of you, if you lack anything I'll furnish it as long as I have a dollar. How could I help being a Whig? I kept my grand father's shot pouch and powder horn given me by my father, until my house was burned six years ago. My grand father had no use for any man who was not a Whig. It was Whig for my country and liberty. Tory against it, and to be ruled by a king. That was all the politics he cared for or wished to know anything about.
I have said considerable about the want of education among the early settlers. The first 4th of July we celebrated after I came to the state (there never had been one before) I told the people that we would celebrate the .......[too faded] One young man whose father had been county judge asked me what month the 4th of July came in but they were not idiots, far from it. When the war of the rebellion was declared, a young man who was a clerk in James H. Berry's store at Yellville is now a United Senator. Another who lived in the county and was in the Arkansas legislature before he immigrated to Arizona is now a representative in Congress from Arizona. George Goodman one of the crowd who first came to White river at the recommendation of his brother Jesse, was a hunter. He did not care for rich land if there was not a plenty of bear and deer in the woods. He raised a numerous family in Dyersville, Tennessee. He had when he came here, four sons one or two grown ..he used to say that there was ...[15-20 lines too faded to read] would kill the grass eventually. I have noticed since the prairie has been put in cultivation and the barren grass killed, that the honey dew has fallen sometimes thick on the leaves of the trees, particularly on the leaves of the hickory. (Continued next week.)
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Friday, August 18, 1899
There came to this county, about the year 1843, a large fine looking man by the name of Jesse Moon-.... He soon became popular with the people. Our sheriff's had been backward in arresting the worst characters that seemed to defy the officers, Mooney told the people if they would elect him sheriff he would arrest every man against whom the grand jury found a bill or resign. The voters elected him sheriff as there was some bullies, as they were termed that had defied arrest. In the execution of his promise, Mooney had several narrow escapes, but made good his promise to the people, and ere his first term expired he had let the offenders know they had to submit to arrest or kill the sheriff or leave the county, which some of them did. This had a marked effect on the conduct of the law breaking class, and was a great benefit to the morals of the county. He was elected again for a second term, not without some opposition as to his manner of not proceeding according to the law forbiding(sic) sheriff's having executions for the collecting of debts from bidding for the property offered for sale. It was soon ascertained that although he did not bid himself, he always had a man along with him to bid for the property when it was selling for less than half its value or at a very low price, and he was charged with not being particular in making known the sale, so that sometimes it was not generally known and but few would attend the sale.
Both Searcy and Marion counties were made from territory belonging to Izard county. Major Jacob Wolf was elected to the council, and Brown C. Roberts to the legislature. Roberts got a petition signed by a majority of the citizens of the district desired to be stricken off of Izard county to form a new county, to be named Marion. Wolf was oposed(sic) to it, and Roberts in favor of the prayer of the petitioners. Wolf stetted to the members that he believed that Roberts had forged a majority of the names to the petition. Wolf having served several sessions in the council, was very popular with the members, some member introduced a resolution to expel Roberts upon the statement of Wolf. Roberts being a stranger and an awkward looking man, with very little education if any at all, the members were about to vote for the resolution, when Roberts, at the suggestion of a member prevailed upon the house to stop the proceedings until he could write home for proof of the genuineness of the petition being signed by the persons whose names appeared upon it, which was agreed to.
I am now going to relate what Roberts told me himself, while waiting for an answer to his letter written to his friends, the petitioners, he knew if he failed to get a favorable answer he would be expelled, he was so anxious and concerned about the result that he became almost crazy; and tried to make friends with all the members, as he was not acquainted with but a few. One day as he was passing along the street, he saw through an open door, a man whose face seemed familiar to him, and reached out his hand to shake hands with him, the mad did likewise, he stopped hurriedly extending his when suddenly he heard a crash, and found that he had broken a large looking glass. It was only his own likeness he had seen. I never asked him whether he had to pay for the mirror or not.
Roberts got a favorable report, the bill came up for a final vote. C. F. M. Noland representative from Independence county made a motion to change the name from Marion to Searcy, which was adopted on the final vote. Roberts concluded to retaliate, and introduced resolutions to change the name of Independence county. As soon as the house adjourned, Noland drew his buie knife and caught Roberts by the ear and told him he would cut off his ear, if he did not forthwith withdraw his resolution. Roberts knew that Noland had killed Pope in a duel and that Noland would do what he said. Roberts withdrew the resolution in less time than it takes to write it. The members seemed to get sorry for Roberts, and proposed a compromise, to divide Searcy county and call the north part Marion, which was agreed to. These were the difficulties that Roberts encountered in the formation of Marion county. And on account of his success, was elected several times to the legislature, after the adoption of the territory as a state.
Major Wolf never offered for office any more. His son was elected representative of Izard county once. He told me he had made a mistake, he was not a politician, and knew nothing about politics. His fort(sic) was keel boating up White river, and selling calico to the women. He was a very handsome stout backwoodsman, and universally respected and liked by male as well as female. He married and was the father of several sons and daughters, and finally died of consumption only a little if any past 35 years of age. He had a store, the first one in what is now called Yellville. Mike Matthis had charge of it. It stood where the house owned by Jack Noe now stands.
From this long degression(sic) I must go back to my story of Mooney and Hamp Tutt. Tutt was a man of ordinary size, quick spoken, in fact all his movements seemed as if he was always in a hurry, an intelligent businessman for his day, appeared friendly with .....have been offered.
The millions of dollars that have poured into southwest Missouri in the past four years have done more for the towns in that section than one can easily realize without ocular demonstration.
In the city of Joplin, with a population considerably less than the population of Little Rock, I found three large four story hotels within a stone's throw of each other, yet the day of my arrival there it was simply impossible to procure a room in either of these even at the fancy price of $6 per day except it had been engaged two weeks ahead. People who had business in Joplin, but had failed to take that precaution were compelled to take the electric cars out to the hotels in Webb City, or Galena, Kan., and other suburban towns to find a night's lodging. Fortunately, for me, I carried with me a magic tallisman, which, revealed to mine host, ..roved hearts to me. The first day of my stay in Joplin it poured down rain all day long, yet the streets were crowded with pedestrians, as busy as if it were Christmas times at Fourteen and Broadway, New York.
"My," I said to a rich mine owner, "how I wish something like this would strike Little Rock!" "Well," he replied, ""something bigger than this is going to strike Little Rock and all Arkansas one of these days when you people down there wake up to the fact that the part of the Ozark county which lies within the borders of ..state is even richer in this ..nous factor, lead and zinc, than any part of Missouri, and a ... man can see how rich in... ....valuable .... [the end of this column is cut off]
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Friday, August 25, 1899
After the race Mooney was drunk, and began a tirade of abuse of Tutt to his face; Tutt was a cautious man, and saw that Mooney had a pistol in his overcoat pocket and kept his hand on it. Tutt avoided him as well as he could, Mooney kept following him up. I saw directly, that if it was not stopped some one or the other would be killed. There was a large crowd present, I saw Tutt pass a friend of his, a desperate character by the name of Sinclair, and hand him, slyly, a large bowie knife, when Mooney would go near to Tutt, Sinclair would pass the knife to Tutt. I saw that when ever either of them could catch Mooney off of his guard, as he still held his pistol in his hand, one or the other would plunge that knife into him. As Mooney was my near neighbor, although he was acting? very badly, I hated to see him killed when drunk; had he been sober perhaps I would not have interfered and took hold of him and forced him out of the crowd. He tried all the time to go back. I got his horse and told him to mount his horse, I was going home and if he did not, I would leave him, I finally got him started for home. After we had got some distance from the crowd, he stopped his horse and said he would go back, but I prevailed on him to not do so. I was satisfied if he had not left as I did he would not have been alive an hour longer. This put eternal enmity between the men. Mooney got a heavy ferril on the top of it.
Some time after that, I was at Yellville, there was a crowd in the village that day. Towards evening I saw he was drunk, he began abusing Tutt at a terrible rate, the crowd gathered up close around him. Tutt like a panther, suddenly sprang at him with a stone in his hand. Mooney struck at him with his club, but Tutt was so close to him that he could not injure him with his club, but Tutt was striking him all the time on the head with the stone which he still held in his hand, finally he struck him a blow in the side of the head which knocked him down. Let Parnall drew a pistol, he was a nephew of Tutt's. When Mooney fell the crowd gathered all around him. Old Jack Hurst seeing or believing that Mooney if not dead would be killed in a few minutes pushed his way through the crowd and ran up to where Mooney was lying. Just as he stepped over Mooney, Parnall fired the pistol at Mooney as he lay on the ground at short range and missed his aim, the ball entered Hurst's leg above the knee. The crowd then partially dispersed. Mooney was lifted up and taken to the house only a short distance away. Hurst was taken home by his friends. I have given a lengthy description of this difficulty as I was near the crowd a looker on, and I have given it substantialy(sic) as I saw it at the time.
To show the growth of the difficulty that occurred(sic) between the above named parties later, I have described Tutt who was a keen wide awake money maker. Old Bob, an Indian was said to be the best hand to trail man or beast, belonging to the tribe except Billy John. Bobs horses was running out except those used in hunting by him and his two sons. One night his drove of horses were stolen by 8 men, as he afterwards ascertained. The horses were in the cain(sic) at the upper end of where Henry Lynchs field now is. Bob lived about one half mile below at the lower end of the river bottom. There is at the upper end of the bottom, a creek that enters the river opposite a shoal in the river. Above the shoal there is a long gravely ..... when the river is low it is naked, ordinarily the water is out over 20 inches in depth. The rogues took the horses [last line cut off.] beach then turned up the river on the beach before mentioned, where the water was shallow for half a mile, then turned back, riding as near in the trail they came up as they could until they went below the shoal and went out on land and climbed up the bluff where it was barely possible for an Indian pony to ascend. Next morning after the horses were missing, Bob and his two sons mounted their ponies and soon found the trail and went to where they turned up the river, one following the trail up the river, the others on the bank of the river to see where they came out of it all. They went to the end of the trail in the water and ascertained they had not gone out of the river, they then turned back down the river until they found where they had went up the bluff. Bob could now ride on the trail as easy as a hound could trail a gang of deer. They overtook them on Bennet's Bayou about 10 miles from where they were stolen. Two of them escaped, but they caught one by the name of Justice. One of the others was Morg Carter, a celebrated quarter of a mile horse trainer. They tied a rope or thong around Justice's neck and strung him up to a limb of a tree until they thought he was about dead or near it so, and let him down until he come too, then draw him up again and would ask him, will you ever "steal Indians hoss again?" This they done 2 or 3 times. It is of no use to tell what Justice promised the Indians.
Morg Carter did not pretend to be an honest man. After I came to the state he moved near one of my brother-in-law, Strother Adams, and told him he need not be afraid of his stealing anything from him, that he had more sense than to do than. He always went a long distance off to steal, and if it was not very valuable they would not put themselves to much trouble to find out who the thief was, and would nearly always think it was some of his neighbors that was the guilty party. He said when he went out to steal a horse, he always took shoes and nails with him and would go off 75 or 100 miles and if the horse was shod, he would pull off the shoes when he got him to a traveled road, and nail on a pair of shoes with the marks of the shoes before, so they would think the horse, by looking at the track was traveling the other direction and stop the hunt. Morg told how he stole a horse and could not be traded, the horse was in a lot where there was a very large spring close to the lot fence, just outside the fence was the big road, he shot the horse as above described and led him down the spring branch to where the water run through the fence, and laid the fence down and led the horse out into the big road. On examining the tracks the owner thought the horse went the other way, so he never could get even a start on the trail. (Continued next week.)
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Friday, September 1, 1899
There resided on White river at what is now called the Hull bottom, used to be called greasy bottom by one of the early settlers on account of the large fat coons and possoms he caught there and feasted upon, which he called equal to fat bear meat. He had been there for some years before I came to the state. A man by the name of Isaac Flora, a grown son and family and a son-in-law whose name I disremember, also had a family, all of them had a farm in the same bottom. Flora told me he came from Connecticut, which from his representations must be a famous state for tall pines. He said he saw one pine tree floating down the Connecticut river that the top had been broken off, yet it measured 200 feet in length. He said that he went out one morning to kill a turkey and discovered a large gobbler sitting on a pine tree so tall that he could not hear him gobble, but he knew by his actions he was doing so. He had a byword. "If so be as I am a living soul," I fired off my gun at him and brought him down. I called this pretty good for a Connecticut Yankee. A fine spring of clear water came out of the base of the hill near his cottage, he had planted a number of young apple sprouts in the bottom near the stream of water that issued from this cool spring. He lived there several years after I came to the state. I knew but little about the man, I heard he had left the state sometime after I came, perhaps 4 or 5 years, his land was vacant, subject to entry, but he had never tried to sell his improvements that I heard of. For some cause all three of them left the state, I never knew why. For several years the place was left vacant, the cabins had rotted considerable, his fencing all rotted or burned up from fires in the woods which was sure to visit us every fall, the cattle had destroyed all but two of his apple trees. I concluded to enter a part of the river bottom and did so. I tried to rent the cleared land, but could not. At that time you could not rent land unless it was near a settlement, this was in an unfrequented place. A relative of mine went on the farm and staid there until finally he became tired of walking so far to see a neighbor and left. So things and times passed on for several years, until a man came to the county site and issued a small newspaper. It was circulated abroad that the largest apple tree was growing on the Flora bottom that was ever seen. The editor ascertained that I owned the bottom, came to my house and desired that I go with him and examine the tree and measure it. I knew little about it as I did not visit the place once in a year if that often. So we went down to see the much talked of apple tree, we measured around the body 9 feet, length of limbs 36 from the body to the extremity of the limbs on both sides of the tree, up to first fork, I have forgotten the distance, but very little over six feet. We did not try to measure the height of tree, but it was very low. The only reason for Flora's leaving his possessions on White river, if indeed he ever had any, he was only a squatter. There was a distillery south of Yellville where the old Wickersham mill now stands, where fighting whisky was manufactured is very early times. I do not know who was the original owner of the establishment, it was abandoned shortly after I came to the state Jesse Flora got a barrel of whisky from whom, I do not know, and he and his son went to Shawnee town, now called Yellville after it. They had a common wooden sled and one horse to draw the barrel on. The first day they got about where the old Methodist camp ground stood on the old Yellville road, there they ...[last line unreadable] to go farther that day. The river bottom was very rich, heavy timbered and brush and cane obstructed the rays of old sol, which prevented the bottom from drying up. The chills and fever was at that time as plentiful in the White river bottoms as zinc ore is at the Morning Star mine. So Flora like several others concluded to seek a more salubrious climate. I sold the land to John E. Hull, the father of Alexander Hull, the present secretary of state. Mr. Hull told me he gathered seventy bushels of apples off the big apple tree. The apples was of fair size, and very sour, a fine keeper and very edible about Christmas. (Continued next week.)
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Friday, September 8, 1899
THE TUTT EVERETT WAR (Hon. W. B. Flippin's articles continued)
I must enter on one of the dark chapters of the history of Marion county. But perhaps not more so than in the case even in the state of my birth, Kentucky. Grand and chivalrous(sic) old state of brave men and beautiful and lovely women, with all thy faults I love the still. A very intelligent man, if I may be called a judge, who was stationed at Pine Bluff, at that time I do not know whether he lived there or not. He was an educated preacher, belonging to the Episcopal church, who wrote a history (or at least a part) of Arkansas, who called on me to write a history of the Tutt and Everett War for his forth coming history of Arkansas. I complied with his request and said then I never intended to do so again. "I saw several chapters of the proposed history published in the papers which I considered well done. He proposed to the legislature, which was in session, to loan him the money to publish the history, as he was unable to do so himself, and take pay in the sale of the books. The legislature decided they had no authority to go into the publication of books. This was, if I recollect correctly, in the year 1845, and is the last account I have of the man or the book, which I regret very much, for from what I saw published in the papers of the chapters written. I concluded that it would be a long time before its equal would ever be written.
In the year 1893 William F. Pope, of Little Rock, who was anephew of Gov. John Pope, also the governor's private secretary, wrote me he was writing a history of the early days in Arkansas, and to give him a sketch of the Tutt and Everett war. I wrote him that I had done so once before and that I had forgotten many of the incidents of that unfortunate, not to say disgraceful occurrence, and had said I did not intend to ever do so again, but was willing to try to recollect some of the most prominent transactions of that bloody feud.
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When I first came to the state the county of Searcy, created by territory cut off of Izard county, had been divided and the northern part of the county named Marion. Benj. Tutt was sheriff of Searcy county at the time of the division, and Davis K. Tutt was his deputy, but was cut off into Marion county, both brothers of Hansford Tutt, who was acting as sheriff of Marion county, if in fact we had any sheriff. Hansford Tutt moved to Marion county, from Tennessee after I came to the county. He was a pert, active business man, and seemed a pretty fair judge of men. He soon went into the business of selling fighting whisky to the denizens of the county and as he was the only man engaged in that business in the county, it proved to be a lucrative business. An election was to be held for county officers, R. B. Tutt is said by the report of the secretary of state, R. B. Chism, to be sheriff. I think that a mistake, his brother Davis K. Tutt, his deputy was acting. R. B. Tutt lived in Searcy county. As I before stated R. B. Tutt was sheriff of Searcy county and Davis K. Tutt was his deputy and was cut off into Marion county when Searcy Co., was divided, he could not have been sheriff of both counties. I positively know that Marion county was formed prior to 1838 and not as stated in [left side of column cuts of first 2-3 letters of margin] iam's report for 1890, that it ... formed in 1838. I had been ...ing in Marion Co., two years be.... that date, but let that pass. ...arcely need to say that the ...and Everett families were two ... the most prominent families ... county, and here we have ... arrayed against each other the office of sheriff. I do not ...they cared for any other ... While the Tutts were .... and the Everetts were if, ....[last line cut off.] Democrats. But I do not think politics cut any figure in the race. Tutt was always opposed to an Everett man, and the Everett's always against a Tutt man, be he who he might. During an election the mountain dew was handled about at the speakings by the bucketfull occasionally, and always plenty on the ground, but they generally disposed of all that was available before they got up to the fighting point, but wait until they met at the county site, where there was plenty of the beverage furnished by Hamp Tutt, as he was called, for your dimes. Whisky was cheap in those days, a man could afford to get drunk two or three times to where he can only once in these (shall I call them degenerate days?)
The Everetts was most all of them stout stalwart Kentuckians from 1836 to 1848 T. E. Everett, called Ewell Everett, the eldest one of the family was county judge. Again in 1840 to 1842 and I. B. Everett or Bart Everett, was sheriff. So the Everetts had the county judge and sheriff to 1844. He was the youngest one of the brothers. In 1838 J. N.? Everett had been elected county surveyor. So fierce was the struggle urged by both parties for any man to occupy a neutral position without perhaps being suspected by both parties. Before this date, there had moved into the county Simmons Everett from Lawrence Co., where we had been living for sometime. The Achilles of the whole Everett family; none of the others came near being his equal in an encounter, except perhaps Jess, his brother, a tall, raw boned, long armed, fearless Kentuckian, that reminded me of the famous back woods man, Davy Crochet,(sic) that I have seen and laughed at his anecdotes when making one of his electioneering speeches. There it is, left Everett and gone off to Davy Crockett. He had moved to Texas. The first general fight or skirmish took place at Hamp Tutt's dwelling. Tutt was not present during the fight. It came up suddenly and altogether unexpected. It was led on by Sim Everett, as he was called. He was a very civil man when sober, but when he had imbibed something like the major part of quart of whisky he seemed to court a fisticuff with anyone when desired to engage in that kind of sport, it was called by the attorneys (who happened to be at Tutt's house during the fight, and probably saved the life of one or more by hiding the guns that had been deposited in the house before hostilities commenced.) the June fight in 1844. Sim Everett went through the crowd laying them out right and left, until some one smote him on the head with a weeding hoe. He fell to the ground, and for sometime was thought to be killed, but rallied again. But for the time this stopped the fighting. To explain---at this time there was neither hotel nor boarding house in Yellville. The lawyers generally went and put up at Hamp Tutt's. When the fight began in the yard, a few had left their guns at Tutt's house and the lawyers hid the guns, and before the conclusion of the fight, several ran into the house for their guns. Had they got them, one or more would perhaps never engage in another drunken fight. By referring to Pope's early days in Arkansas, you will find a short sketch of the Tutt and Everett war written by request of Mr. Pope for his book. I am there credited as the author of the sketch furnished Mr. Pope.
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The introduction to the sketch referred to states that in the administration of Gov. John Selden Roane, there occurred in Marion county a serious armed encounter between the Tutt and Everett families, and their respective followers, which is known as the Marion county war. The Tutt's and the Everett's were the leading families of the county, and the strife grew out of disputes as to who should control the offices of the county. The Tutt's were Whigs and the Everett's were Democrats. Soon after Marion county was formed in 1835, Bart Everett became sheriff of the county, and his brother Ewell Everett county judge. About this time Hamp Tutt got up a grocery and sold the natives ....lighting? in the county where whisky could be obtained, and Tutt, who was a shrewd business man, soon became very popular among the whisky drinkers. At every election for county officers after that time, there was a warm contest between the Everett's and Tutt's as to who should have the offices. The Tutt's never offered for office themselves but selected some of their prominent friends. The contest became so hot that not infrequently there was a fight between some of the parties. The first serious difficulty was humorously called by the attorneys, when the parties were on trial in the circuit court afterwards, "the June fight of 1844".
In this fight, rocks, sticks as well as fists were freely used. Simmon Everett a powerful man over six feet in height, was knocked down with a hoe, and for a while it was thought that he would die from his injuries. This riot was quelled by the bystands. But almost every time the Tutt's and Everett's met afterwards there was trouble. Sim Everett was a hard drinker, and he was generally the starter of the trouble. He always sought a fight when drinking, and no man in the county could withstand the ponderous blows of this stalwart six foot, long armed Kentuckian. The Tutt's were Tennesseeans. The Tutt's had no man who was a match for him in a fisticuff encounter, and so they armed themselves with knives, rocks &c., and afterwards with pistols, which caused the Everett's to do likewise.
Later there came to this county a large man of commanding appearance by the name of Jesse Mooney, who eventually allied himself with the Everetts. There also moved to the county a man by the name of William King who had several sons and two of them was drinking fighting men (Jack King and Lomas King). The others with old Uncle Billy King, as the father was called, seemed to be genteel sober men, except the youngest boy, William he would occasionally drink to excess. This family took sides with the Tutts. Mooney afterwards ran for Sheriff, supported by the Everetts and was elected. He gave general satisfaction during his first term. He was elected for a second term. I must here digress a little. I have never known a sheriff in Marion county, who served as long as two terms, if he was a sober man when first elected, but what he became, by the end of his second term, a whisky drinker and quite a different character from what he was when first elected. Difficulties became so common between the Tutt and Everett factions that their animosity against each other was worked up to fever heat all the time, and soon the male population of the county was classed as being the friends of either one or the other of the parties. Finally there was a gathering at Yellville, the county site, the Everetts and their friends making serious threats against their enemies. They came to the village, many of them armed with rifles and others with knives and pistols.
The Everetts: Jesse Everett was still in Texas, Ewell Everett was not in the crowd, but his boys were-- neither was Hayne Everett. The company was led by Sim Everett. Bart Everett and their friends formed in the street in front of Hamp Tutt's grocery, in regular order of battle. Hamp Tutt and his friends stood outside of the grocery, but not in regular order. Angry words were passed between some of both parties. There was an open space between the parties of about 20 or 30 feet. The bystanders were looking for an engagement every moment. I was present among the bystanders, and noticed that some of the Tutt party who were only armed with pistols and large knives, were occasionally, while the wordy war was going on, cautiously stealing closer and closer to the Everett line of battle, evidently to make the fight a hand to had engagement, as they had no rifles. When, strange to say, a dry whirlwind seemed to drop down and come directly between the belligerents, raising a blinding dust which scattered the parties for the time being, and things seemed to quiet down. I, and several of the crowd mounted our horses and started home. After I had traveled several miles, I heard some shooting, but did not think an engagement had taken place between the parties. (I must now depend for my information upon disinterested parties who were present.) Finally the Everetts and most of their friends mounted their horses and started house, but one of their friends, Bob Adams, did not get ready to go as soon as the others, and while he was untying his horse, where he was hitched in the bushes, Charles D. Wood, of the Tutt party, who was called Durrel Wood, and known to be one of the most quarrelsome men in the county, went to where Adams was---they were brothers-in-law--and commenced to abuse him and the Everetts in a loud, boisterous manner. By this time the Everetts were out of sight behind a dense thicket of bushes, which at the time covered most of the town site. Hearing the angry words, they wheeled their horses and came galloping back and alighting, began shooting. The Tutt party, when they saw their adversaries coming, secreted themselves behind trees and bushes as well as they could, and returned the fire with their pistols. Then commenced a hand to hand fight with pistols, knives, &c. Sim Everett and his brother Bart, were killed with pistol shots, and one of the Tutt party, Jack King, was wounded with a rifle ball and died the day following. James King, who afterwards lived (until his recent death) in Lone Oak county, Arkansas, where he was a respeced(sic) citizen, and was a Baptist preacher, was slightly wounded with a pistol shot, and one Watkins, of the Tutt party, was shot on the top part of his head, cutting a furrow through the hair on the top of his cranium, he fell to the ground and for sometime was thought to be killed, but finally rose up, probably a wiser man than he was before the fight began. Another of the Tutt party had his arm broken by a thrust from a rifle gun after it was discharged. Albert G. Robertson, a Kentuckian, who had not been living in the county only a few years, a man of some ability, but a gambler and a drunkard, was one of the men who was generally put forward by the Tutt party as their leader, to oppose the Everetts, but he was not present the day of the bloody encounter. He was afterwards elected representative to the legislature.
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Lumas King, a man from Searcy county, named Sinclair, were styled the leading fighters of the Tutt party. Sinclair was considered a very bad man. He was the man who killed Sim Everett in the fight, and it was said that Lumus King killed Bart Everett. A short time after the fight a posse in Searcy county, was raised to hunt Sinclair, as they ascertained he was in the county. They found him early one morning asleep in a treetop close to where one of his friends lived. He awoke and endeavored to escape to his friends house, but the posse fired at him as he ran, and one ball struck him near the heart--he fell and died in a few minutes-- Writs were gotten out for the arrest of the Kings, and put in the hands of Jesse Mooney, the Sheriff, who was a particular friend of the Everetts. Before this, Jesse Everett, who had moved to Texas some two years before came back and brought with him one man by the name of Stratton, a desperate character. They came to the county [last line cut off] their particular friends. Their object was to kill Ham Tutt. They waylaid the public road between Yellville and Lebanon, then the county site of Searcy county, that is Jess Everett and Stratton did, as they had ascertained from some of their spies that Tutt had gone to Lebanon on business. On his return home, about ten miles from Yellville, he was fired on from ambush by one or both of them; but they missed him. The Everetts took the sheriff Jesse Mooney, and went after the Kings as they had heard by this time where they were. They also got the sheriff of Van Buren county to go with them. They found the Kings and arrested them, the whole family, as well as a brother to old uncle Billy King, named Hosea King, who had not been engaged in the difficulty between the parties. Lumus King was very sick with fever and had to be hauld(sic) in a wagon. They brought them to Searcy county, giving them up to the sheriff. The Everetts all the time acting as a posse to guard the Kings. When they got to the Marion county line, the Kings were delivered up to Sheriff Mooney, still guarded by the Everetts. Late in the evening when they were some ten miles from Yellville sheriff Mooney said he was compelled to go home, and left the Kings in the hands of the Everetts as guards. There were five of the Kings. They had become satisfied from what was transpiring from first to last that it was the intention of the Everetts to kill them, and that sheriff Mooney was to give them a fair opportunity to do so. As soon as Mooney left the Everetts with the prisoners, they left the road and soon commenced shooting the Kings. Three of them, old man Willman King, and his two sons, Lumus and Bill, were killed, James King and Hosea King, his uncle, escaped by flight--the Everetts shooting at them as they fled on horseback. The Everetts and their friends banded together with sheriff Mooney who went to them after the killing of the Kings. A posse was summoned by George Adams, a constable to arrest the Everetts, and went to where they had congregated, but found they were not able to do so, as they were too numerous to be taken with the forces the constable had-- in fact, the constable was one of their friends.
A demand was made on Gov. John S. Roane to order out the militia, which he did, and appointed Gen. Allen Wood to take command. He was a soldier of the Mexican war, and a member of the House of Representatives from Madison county, in 1854. When Wood arrived with his Militia the Everett and many of their friends retreated to Searcy county, where they had some friends and a number of relatives. A camp meeting was going on in Wiley's Cove by the Methodist. Wood ascertained that the Everett's were at the meeting, and swooped down on them by night and captured them. There being at that time no jail in Marion county, they were taken to Smithville, at that time the county site of Lawrence county, for safe keeping. They remained there only a short time until their friends from Marion county went to Smithville, and with crow bars broke open the jail door and let the prisoners out. They came back to Marion county and laid concealed in the woods, and at their friends houses, making every effort they could to kill Hamp Tutt. They waylaid his house of nights, and waited for ..? to get up in the morning so they could shoot him. At last they prevailed on a young Dutchman who had not been in the country very long, a nephew of Daniel Wickersham who used to run the water mill near Yellville, to waylay Tutt and kill him. I was surveying some land, laying off town lots in Yellville, as I now remember, when I heard a gun fire. Soon news came that Hamp Tutt was shot. The road ran near the bluff of Crooked creek, and we found two or three different places where bushes had been cut and blinds made to hide behind. Tutt was walking by the side of a man who had just come from Tennessee, who intended to locate near Yellville, but he turned his wagon around and went back the course he came. The person who shot Tutt waited until they passed where he was concealed, some fifteen or twenty yards, so he could hit Tutt without injuring the man who was walking by his side. Tutt died of the wound in a few days. The Everetts started back to Texas in a short time. Jesse Everett took the cholera on his way back and died. The county then had a long resting spell. Both of the leading parties had left the country. The Dutchman who was accused of the murder had a preliminary hearing before a Justice of the Peace, and was acquitted. The Dutchman shortly after his acquittal left the country.
THE END!
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