with troops gliding gracefully up the river, and halted opposite the village. Their cries of alarm were changed to merry meetings, and their quakings of fear to delightful measures. Immediately upon receipt of news from Gov. Cass, Gen. Atkinson marched with a force of 600 men, and formed a junction with the Galena volunteers. The Indians had by this time concluded that it was useless to longer contend for supremacy, and surrendered their chiefs-Red Wing among the rest, who was imprisoned at Prairie du Chien, where he was kept as a hostage for the good behaviour of his nation; but his proud spirit, broken by the indignities to which he was subjected, precipitated an illness which caused his death. The tribe made peace at the treaty of the Portage and grim-visaged war smoothed his wrinkled front and hung up his bruised arms for monuments, without having inflicted upon the settlers serious loss of life.

Thus ended the Winnebago war, but its effects were experienced for years, it might be said, after the dusky warrior resigned the contest, and ceded to the whites possession of the territory for which he had so fruitlessly contended. With the first alarm, miners, speculators, prospectors, and the host of immigrants and adventurers who always make a new country of promise the base of their operations, with one accord fled to places of security. The pick and gad were left idle; the ax which had been laid at the root of the forest tree was cast one side; the plow remained idle in the rich furrows of the prairie, and desolation usurped that prominence which but a short time previous had been accorded to industry and prospective prosperity. Very many, as already observed, remained in the country, and became factors in the forces enlisted for the common defense; a limited number essayed individual protection, and hunted the lairs of the foe singly and sclus. But while this was the case, a majority of the body politic sought at military points elsewhere the safety they imagined was denied them at home. And this was by no means the only discouraging effect visible. The development of the mines, notwithstanding the flattering inducements therein offered, was temporarily delayed; and it was not until the summer sunshine again kissed the horizon, the flowers again decked the prairies, and the summer birds once more caroled their refrains, that new life, activity, industry and fortune combined to induce the results which long, long years ago stamped La Fayette County as a point of irresistible attraction. Through the succeeding winter but little was accomplished. The dreams of youth, the chastened wish of manhood, the hope of one day resting from labors of so diligently pursuing Fortune's smile, that an interval of reflection might be interposed between old age and the tomb, lay dormant.

THE FIRST WINTER.

Through the long and inhospitable winter, as has already been observed, there was nothing to encourage the hearts of those who remained, or give token of the prosperity which was reserved for La Fayette County in the future. The inclemency of the weather, coupled with an undefined apprehension of the Indians' return, had the effect of checking improvements and suspending operations in the mines and fields. Those who had fled upon the approach of danger, hesitated to return, and those who remained to accept the gauge of battle offered by the savage hosts, were weakened by the prospect and refused to be comforted. The old year floated away into the past, carrying with it the remembrance of sorrows, and the new year dawned upon the scene, birnging little of hope or encouragement. The past was written ineffaceably, never to be forgotten; the future was hidden behind clouds that bore no silvery lining, obscuring days unborn. Indeed, the parting knell of days long gone had been rung, and the advent of what in the future proved happier hours, had been chimed by the hand of old Father Time. The visitor to the country comprehended within the geographical limits of La Fayette County as he bowls over the avenues that intersect each other in all directions, or gazes upon the fields of ripening grain, ready for the sickle, or views the evidences of skill, industry and taste which greet his gaze, must not be unmindful of the labors, the trials and the education which has been employed to accomplish these excellences.

Churches and schools have brought the fullest fruition of their objects to the county, and the founders of these agencies for the amelioration and improvement of the race of which they were prominent exponents. To the leading spirits who revived the discouraged hearts and

checked the fading hopes born of disappointments and apprehensions that were the most prominent figures in the days that passed away half a century ago, are the present conditions of affairs wholly due. Long may they survive the foundations of their works laid when the heart of man was almost stilled by the then almost hopeless prospect.

The winter dragged its weary days tardily as if to mock at the calamities which seemed impending with the rising of each day's sun. Immigrants occasionally came into the territory only to retrace their steps to neighboring towns and settlements, there to wait until the unsettled condition of affairs should be reversed and the promise of trouble yield precedence to the realizations of peace and good will. The one encouraging feature of this dismal outlook was to be found in the character of those who composed the inhabitants. Nearly all were young, but few had passed on life's highway the stone that marks the highest point, and all were fitted by the rough experience to which they had been subjected, to work for the "golden dawning of a grander day," long delayed, 'tis true, but coming even before the older men had fallen by the wayside and sunk into that dreamless sleep, the warp and woof of which is woven into the mystery of death.

The condition of affairs as regarded by those immediately affected thereby was indeed discouraging, when the first streaks of light announcing the dawn of 1828 broke over the eastern horizon. As the year advanced, and the spring, which was early, unfolded the wealth and attractions of La Fayette County, it had the effect of attracting settlers, who no longer were regarded as transient, but came to stay, bringing with them their families, in some cases, in addition to the means of gaining a livelihood either by tilling the soil or mining. At the date of which mention is made, the apprehensions arising from impending difficulties with the Indians had been generally dissipated. The power of the savage tribes had been materially diminished, and the treaty which was concluded at the Portage, held them in check through fear of the consequences should its provisions be violated. Many of the Winnebagoes removed to the vicinity of the present city of Fond du Lac, also settling along the west shore of Lake Winnebago, in the neighborhood of what is now the city of Menasha. Those who remained in La Fayette County were rendered incapable of offensive utterance by the respected presence of the military, as also that of the inhabitants, and, when the season of 1828 had well advanced, the influx of population was numerically large.

A GLIMPSE OF PIONEER CHIVALRY.

Among those who appeared upon the scene, and contributed by his enterprise and worth, was John Ames, who came almost before the forests renewed their foliage or the earth had been released from winter's icy grasp. He was a Kentuckian, it is said, and a fair embodiment of the most chivalrous type of those who first saw light within the limits of that section of the country. While passing through St. Louis, en route to his distant abiding-place of the future, he became the transient guest of a Gallic Boniface, who kept open house for travelers on the levee in that city. His capacity for entertainment, limited at best, was materially increased by the presence of his wife, a genial, chirrupy, fascinating little French woman, who ministered to the comfort of his guests, and was subjected to the unvarying abuse of her legal protector. The host, possessed of an irascible disposition, frequently levied upon the devotion of his wife and inflicted punishment upon the defenseless woman as unchivalrous as it was undeserved. Neither time nor occasion found him remiss in his attentions in this behalf, and frequently his abuse was manifested in the presence of travelers, who, while they severely condemned the conduct, studiously refrained from interference. One day his ungovernable temper found expression in a severe beating, and the poor woman, wearied of this constant discipline, appealed to the by-standers for protection. No one seemed disposed to resent the assault or defend the victim from his blows, until the cries for help assailed the hearing of Ames, who hurried to ascertain the cause. Upon reaching the scene of her brutal castigation, and without waiting to be informed in the premises, he threw himself into the midst of the fray, and, hurling the cowardly Frenchman from his point of vantage, rescued the woman and tendered her his protection. This she willingly accepted, and, with words of womanly scorn for the graceless

vagabond who had exercised his cowardly privilege, shook off the "protection" he had pledged in happier days, and left the house. Ames, conscious of having vindicated his manhood according to the most approved methods, retired from the stage of action and began preparations to resume his journey to the lead mines. While thus occupied, the Frenchman's wife emerged from her hiding-place, and, seeking out the whereabouts of Ames, besought him to permit her to become his wife, with an eloquence and success that only attends the petitions of lovely women. But he was averse to disturbing the household and advised her to remain and seek a remedy through the uncertain channel of the law. This was not heeded, however, but had the effect of only increasing the volume and conviction of her oratory. She is represented to have been a woman of pronounced attractions and intelligence, and it would seem strange in the young Kentuckian, but recently from a land where the opposite sex are regarded with a deference bordering upon the reverent, had he been able to resist the fascination of her charms or sympathy for her afflictions. Scarcely any but an anchorite would have declined the trust, and Ames proved no exception to the rule. He renewed his endeavors to persuade her to a conclusion adverse to the plan she had projected, and, failing to accomplish this object, consented to accept her defense. This conclusion reached, the woman who subsequently became Mrs. Ames, de jure, as she then regarded herself de facto, quietly got herself in readiness and became, with her protector, a passenger on the first boat to Galena.

One bright morning the twain disappeared from the scenes that had witnessed her trials and subsequent triumph, and, sailing out of the port of St. Louis, left the brutal Gaul in ignorance of the turn affairs had taken. They reached Galena in due course, and, continuing their journey, finally halted at a point on what is now known as Ames' Branch, about three miles from Darlington, near the present farm of John Mathews, where a home was erected and she became one of two women who first settled in the county north of Gratiot's Grove.

The boat containing the subjects of this romantic episode had scarcely reached the middle of the river opposite St. Louis when the husband was brought to a full knowledge of the state of affairs as they then existed, by an officious friend. When he realized the misfortune that had befallen his house, he hurried to the river bank, and, by gestulations and actions expressive of his chagrin, sought to recall the woman who had been driven from his care; but she was deaf to entreaty, and continued her trip without dropping a tear at the memory of what might have been, compensated for her life of troubles and abuse in the knowledge that her affinity had materialized, and her happiness had been consulted by a special dispensation. One would think that, thus rebuked, the fractious Frenchman would have become resigned to his lot. and, securing another spouse, endeavor to supply the absence of his unforgiving Traviata. Not so, however, but, placing his affairs in a condition that enabled him to obtain a temporary leave of absence, he started in pursuit of the departed pair, in the hope that he might secure her return. Upon reaching their domicile, all possible means were employed to quicken her old love into renewed life, and the blandishments he submitted to intensify that fading affection must have been convincing. She finally consented to forgive and forget, and, preparing herself for the trip, began the voyage home. Upon reaching Galena, either her heart failed or he was guilty of a repetition of that which caused her to fly him in the first instance, and, relenting of her expressed determination, revoked the consent then given, and went back to her modest home on Ames Branch. The sequel attending his visitation was as unexpected as it was humiliating, and but emphasized his disappointment in being unable to enforce his legal demands or obtain redress for his alleged wrongs. He returned to St. Louis. He returned to St. Louis. He remained there only a brief period, and, disposing of his interest, once more became a resident of La Fayette County, remaining there until the Indians put a period to his life temporal, and released his wife from subjection to his annoyances. He was buried on the banks of the Branch, and his mortal remains, after slumbering in undisturbed serenity for nearly half a century, were resurrected in the spring of 1880 and re-interred in a neighboring churchyard.

During 1828, Charles Gear, Moses Eastman, Benoni R. Gillett, Ahab Bean and Col. Moore came into the Territory, locating in Belmont; Noah De Vee, James Collins, the Hulings family,

Hugh R. Colter, Ephraim F. Ogden and others settled in White Oak Springs; Mr. Duke began mining in Fayette; Thomas Kendle settled in Kendall, where he subsequently built a mill on what was called Bonor Branch-one of the first in the county; Benjamin Funk and Thomas Wiley made their homes in Monticello; Col. D. M. Parkinson prepared for farming at the mouth of Wood's Branch, in Willow Springs, and was followed into the same township, during the same year, by James Smith, William Tate, John Tate, John Ray and S. F. M. Fretwell, all of whom farmed or mined. Here, too, came, in 1828, George Carroll, who opened the first farm in the township. He was from Maryland, and a nephew of the distinguished Charles Carroll, of Carrollton, and for many years aided in the efforts universally employed to procure the settlement and development of the country. Col. Moore opened the Prairie Springs Hotel, in this township-one of the three hotels then maintained in the county, these being that of Fretwell's, that of Berry & Ransom and Col. John P. Moore's, at Prairie Springs. Elias Shook, Samuel Paxton, Robert Paxton and wife, John Fowler and wife, Benjamin Million and wife, Aaron Hawley and wife, Ezra Lamb, James McKnight and some others came into Wiota, where they began to break up ground for farms, and, by 1830, had become prosperous husbandmen. In all the townships, lead having been once more taken in the direction of the mines, settlements were made this year. The apparent determination of the authorities to enforce the provisions of the Portage treaty gave confidence that settlers would be protected from attack, and, as soon as this was assured, the wealth that lay hidden beneath the surface ef La Fayette County was eagerly sought. The tide of emigration thus flowing into the county was made up of miners generally, whose permanence was measured by the quality of success which greeted their efforts, and, as a rule, the improvements they made were of the most primitive character, consisting of comfortless cabins, and, in some instances, "burrowing" in the ground. If success attended their efforts, it was not always the case that they remained; if, however, they did, they increased their facilities for securing permanent and pronounced comfort. Farmers, on the contrary, came into the territory to become fixtures. The cultivation of the soil was an art to which they paid undivided attention, mining being an incident of their lives, not a necessity. The result of all this seems to be, that, while comparatively few of the miners amassed wealth or even the means of enjoyment for old age, the farmers, almost without exception, are the owners of a broad domain, on which the decline of life is passed amid ease and comfort, not to say luxury, that is justly their portion.

THE HARDSHIPS OF PIONEER LIFE.

Pioneer life in these wilds is represented to have been attended with unlimited hardships and privations, but possessing a compensating number of blessings and privileges. The record of days passed in recreating the country is not without interest and instruction. One can see the pioneer surrounded by labors and trials in his conversion of the wilderness into fields that blossomed with the harvest. One can in imagination sit by his cabin fire and partake of the cheerfully granted hospitality, or listen to accounts of the embargoes he encountered and disposed of in the effort inaugurated for the establishment of homes in regions remote from civilization and unsought theretofore save by wandering Indians and ferocious beasts. From small beginnings, the historian traces the progress made through mighty achievements of industry, daring enterprises and untiring energy, to the results that are visible to-day. The waste places are seen rejoicing under the kindly care of the husbandmen, fruitful farms are to be seen at every point of the compass, villages and cities have arisen and "civilization on her luminous wings sails Phoenix-like to Jove.' The marts of trade and traffic, and the workshops of the artisan are thronged; a common-school system that increases in value with each year has sprung up as if by magic, and children of the rich and poor press forward to participate in the benefits thereby afforded. Churches have been built and a Christian ministry established for the cultivation of a religious reverent, life, the promotion of piety, morals and virtue. The press, the Archimedean lever which moves the world, sends forth floods of light to illuminate the land and benefit the sons of men. Railroads are completed to facilitate the acquisition of independence, and the electric telegraph bridges broad intervals of space for the convenience of mankind.

The first important act of the settler upon his arrival was to build a home for the protection of his family. Until this was accomplished they lived upon the ground in tents, or sought protection from the elements beneath an inverted wagon-box. But the prospect of a home was one that lightened toil and encouraged the most exacting of labors. The style of the house to be erected did not partake of the essence of the contract; what was attempted to be guarded against was exposure from the weather for themselves and their families. Without money or the mechanical appliances to aid in its construction, he was content with a cabin of the most unpretentious dimensions or luxuries. It was often little more than a "wike-up" composed of rude logs about fourteen feet square, roofed with bark or boards split out by hand, and, in some instances, with sod, and floored with puncheons or mother earth. For a fire-place, a wall of stone or earth was fashioned into shape in one corner of the building, extending outward, and planked on the exterior with bolts of wood fastened together. For a chimney, any contrivance that would answer the purpose was improvised. Some were made of sod, cemented into place with clay; others were made of clay and sticks, and met reasonable expectations. Upon a winter's night, when the wind howled with delight across the barren prairie, or through the leafless trees, even these rude cabins were cozy homes.

For doors and windows, contrivances that were recommended by reason of their simplicity were impressed into service. The furniture varied in proportion to the skill of the occupant, unless the settler brought with him a little of the conveniencies he enjoyed at home, and this, owing to distance and the absence of facilities of transportation, were extremely rare. Chairs and tables were improvised from huge logs, which were fashioned into stools; sometimes benches served the purpose. A bedstead was of exceptional occurrence, and this indispensable article of domestic economy was often "hewn out" on the ground. A stake was driven into the earth diagonally from the corner of the room, and at a proper distance supplied with "forks" upon which poles were laid, the opposite ends resting between the openings in the logs or driven into auger holes. Barks or boards were used as a substitute for cords, upon which the straw tick or feather bed was laid and covered with the whitest drapery. In this "prairie schooner" the settler slept as comfortably as does the wealthy sybarite upon his couch of down.

The first year's farming consisted of the "garden-patch," planted with vegetables, and often the year's crop required an exercise of the closest economy to supply the demand. Flour, bacon, tea, coffee and other domestic luxuries were difficult to obtain, when the invoices the settlers brought with them had became exhausted. During the long winters that were experienced, these supplies were often disposed of, and the plentifulness of game aided in driving absolute want from the door. Even when corn was abundant, great difficulty attended its preparation for food. The mills were so few and far between that almost any expedient was availed of for reducing it to meal. Some grated it on what was known as a "grater," made by punching small holes through a piece of tin or iron and fastening it upon a board in concave shape, with the rough side out. Upon this the ear was rubbed, and a very coarse quality of meal resulted. A very common substitute for meal was hominy, a palatable and wholesome diet, made by boiling corn in a weak solution of lye until the hull was separated from the kernel, when it was again boiled, and fried as needed. Another mode of preparing this staple was by pestling. A mortar was made of a block of wood which was hollowed out, into which the corn was thrown, where it was pounded by a pestle, fashioned from a club, one end of which was tipped with iron.

When bread-stuffs were needed, they could only be obtained at a great distance. Owing to the lack of proper means for threshing and winnowing wheat, it was always mixed with smut, dirt and other foreign substances. With this hotch-potch, a trip to mill to Galena, Wiota or Benton, was necessary, and was by no means the least hardship to which the heads of families were subjected. The slow mode of travel by ox teams was rendered still more difficult by the total absence of roads and bridges, while a ferry was an unknown quantity in the system of improvements in the country. The distance to be traveled was long, though in dry weather by no means difficult, was exceedingly troublesome and dangerous during the floods incident to the breaking-up of winter. To be stranded in a "slough" and suffer a delay of many hours, was an