This company has always paid dividends of seven per cent. on its capital

stock of $39,000, and for the last ten years a majority of its

stockholders have been women.

The rate of toll was two cents a mile for horse and buggy and one-half

cent per mile for each additional horse, one cent for a horse and rider

per mile, and one-half cent for a led horse.

The toll houses were small frame structures and the gates simply heavy

poles to raise and let down after the manner of the beam that lowered

and lifted up "the old oaken bucket that hung in the well."

Going westwardly from the Ohio State line, in Indiana, the first tavern

was that of James Neal, at Sycamore Valley. Of Neal but little can be

gleaned beyond the fact that he kept tavern at this point for several

years.

The next tavern was Clawson's, a brick building, erected about the year

1818 by Robert Hill. It stood a little distance north of the road, and

near the western end of the line before mentioned, as having been

located but not used, and was subsequently torn down and rebuilt on the

traveled line. It is said that Robert Hill's daughters hauled the brick

for their father's house in an ox cart. Clawson was a tall, muscular

man, and beyond these facts concerning him, he is lost to the memory of

the oldest inhabitant of Indiana. West of Clawson's the first toll gate

in Indiana was encountered. It stood near Glen Miller Park and almost

within the suburbs of Richmond. This gate was moved several times, but

never over a mile from Richmond.

The city of Richmond is the first large town on the line of the road

within the borders of the State of Indiana, and the road forms its Main

street. It is four miles from the Ohio line, and the county seat of

Wayne county. Its present population is 25,000.

The first tavern of the road in Richmond was kept by Charles W. Starr.

It was a regular old pike tavern, with extensive stabling and drove

yards attached, occupying one-fourth of a square on the northeast corner

of Eighth, formerly Fifth street. The building was of brick, known in

later years as the Tremont Hotel. It is still standing, but not used as

a hotel or tavern. Charles W. Starr was a man of medium size and of

Quaker faith. He wore the Quaker garb, had Quaker habits, and was

esteemed a good citizen. Some of his descendants are still living at

Richmond, and three of his sons are prominent and active business men of

that place.

A short distance below Starr's, and between Sixth and Seventh streets,

stood Sloan's brick stage house, and its proprietor, Daniel D. Sloan,

was at one time postmaster of Richmond. This tavern was headquarters for

two stage lines, one running to Indianapolis and the other to

Cincinnati. The Cincinnati line had opposition, and by cutting rates the

fare was reduced by the competition and during its continuance, from

five dollars to fifty cents for the round trip, distance seventy miles

direct. A portion of Sloan's old tavern still remains, and adjoins

Roling's hardware store. Sloan was heavy set, fleshy, and well poised

for a tavern keeper.

On the south side of the road, between Seventh and Eighth streets,

William Nixon kept a tavern on the site of the present Huntington House.

He was a spare, sinewy man, of the Quaker faith. He kept the tavern at

the point named from 1840 to about 1843.

A noted tavern was Gilbert's, on the northeast corner of Sixth and Main

streets. Joseph W. Gilbert kept this house for many years. It was a

two-story frame building, pebble coated. Gilbert was tall and slim,

polite and affable, and had many friends. He suffered the misfortune of

going blind, and died at Richmond in 1890, in the ninety-second year of

his age. When barely able to distinguish large objects he walked much up

and down the streets, asking persons he met to tell him the time of day,

always pulling out his watch and holding it up for inspection. At one

time when Gilbert was moving a part of his tavern building, Charles

Newman, on passing along, inquired of the old landlord, whose house was

noted for its cleanliness, how many bed bugs he found. Gilbert replied

with indignation, "Not a single one." "I believe you, Joseph," said

Newman, "for they are married and have large families." Most of the

early taverns of Richmond were in the western part of the town.

It is related in the latest history of Indiana, that Jeremiah Cox, one

of the earliest settlers in Richmond, regarded with disfavor the scheme

of building up the town; and is said to have remarked, that he would

rather see a buck's tail than a tavern sign, and his sincerity was made

evident by the fact, that he did not make his addition to the town plat

until two years after the date of Smith's survey, or two years after

Philip Harter had a tavern sign swinging near a log building on lot 6,

South Fifth (Pearl) street.

Another early tavern of Richmond was kept at the northwest corner of

Main and Fifth (Pearl), sign of the green tree, by Jonathan Bayles, and

another, of later date, on Fourth (Front) street, near the southwest

corner of Main, by Ephraim Lacey. Harter soon afterward kept a tavern at

the corner of North Fifth (Pearl) and Main, where the Citizen's bank

afterward stood, then called Harter's corner.

Another tavern was kept on Gilbert's corner, northwest corner of Main

and Sixth (Marion), first, it is believed, by Abraham Jeffries, and

continued afterward by several other persons at different times.

Richard Cheesman, an early settler, lived on South Fourth (Front)

street, kept a tavern several years, and subsequently removed to Center

township, where he died. William, a nephew, remained in Richmond, and

married a Miss Moffitt. He died some years ago, but his widow is still

living.

John Baldwin, an original Carolinian, kept a tavern and store at the

Citizen's bank corner. He went west, and became a trader with the

Indians. Their savage nature having at one time been excited by liquor

which he had sold them, they scalped, or partially scalped him, but he

survived the operation and returned to Wayne county, where he died, six

miles north of Richmond, in 1869. After Baldwin, William H. Vaughan kept

this tavern for several years, and until it ceased to entertain the

public. Vaughan had previously kept the Lacey tavern on Fourth (Front)

street.

Patrick Justice, at an early period, kept a tavern on North Fourth

(Front) street, near Main. He afterward kept a public house which he

built in 1827, near the extreme limits of the town, now the southeast

corner of Main and Fifth streets.

Benjamin Paige, a New Englander, father of Ralph Paige, once a merchant

on Main street, kept a tavern previous to 1830, at the corner originally

owned by John C. Kibbey, an early inn-keeper, and known as Meek's

corner, northeast of Main and Sixth (Marion).

Abraham Jeffries had a tavern on Gilbert's corner, which he kept a

number of years, and was succeeded by Joseph Andrews, his

brother-in-law, who died soon after taking charge.

The last westward tavern in Richmond was kept by Christian Buhl, who

came from Germany, and his house was a three story stone structure where

Minck's brewery now is.

At the west end of Richmond the road crosses Whitewater river over a

handsome and expensive bridge. This bridge has seven arches, and is a

combination truss and arch design, capable of sustaining an immense

weight. On the west side timbers and wool sacks were sunk into a

quicksand upon which to rest the foundations of the abutment.

Toll-gate No. 7 was erected at the fifth mile post west of Richmond and

afterwards moved to a point near Earlham college. This gate was kept by

William Fagan for twenty-three years, and afterwards by Mr. Gardener for

nearly ten years. Mr. Gardener is a New York man and was one of the best

gate-keepers on the road. His wife is a cousin of the late Hon. William

B. Windom, who was Secretary of the Treasury in President Harrison's

administration.

There was a tavern between gate No. 7 and gate No. 8, which was near the

Center township line and East Clear creek. West of this point there is a

curve in the road caused by the refusal of Thomas Croft to remove his

house, which was on the surveyed line. He was offered $500 to remove his

house and declined to take it. The road was then of necessity made

around his house, and so near it as to loosen its foundations, and it

toppled and fell down, causing him to lose his house, and the sum

offered him as damages besides.

At the seventh mile stone, a little beyond West Clear Creek bridge,

stood the shop of Jeremy Mansur, who manufactured the first axes made in

the county of Wayne. When Martin Van Buren made his trip through

Indiana, many persons denounced him as an enemy of the road, and some

one in Richmond, to inflict chastisement upon the distinguished

statesman for his supposed unfriendliness, sawed a double-tree of the

coach in which he was traveling nearly through, and it broke near

Mansur's ax-shop, causing Mr. Van Buren to walk to the top of a hill

through thick mud. The author of this mishap to Mr. Van Buren

subsequently boasted that he had put a mud polish on Gentleman Martin's

boots to give him a realizing sense of the importance of good roads.

Near the ninth mile stone from Richmond were two celebrated taverns,

Eliason's and Estepp's. Both were brick houses and well kept. Joshua

Eliason was a man of medium size, jovial disposition, remarkably

industrious, and a zealous member of the Christian church. His tavern

was on the north side of the road, and, in connection with it, he

maintained two one-story emigrant houses to accommodate families moving

west. The emigrants carried and cooked their own provisions, and paid

Eliason a certain sum for the use of his buildings. Drove yards were

also a profitable feature of Eliason's tavern. He sold grain to the

drovers, and after the cattle were turned out, put his own hogs in the

vacated field to eat up the remnants and refuse.

[Illustration: BRIDGE OVER WHITEWATER, RICHMOND, IND.]

John Estepp's tavern was on the south side of the road, nearly opposite

Eliason's. He had one emigrant house, and did an extensive business.

He was a man of the lean order, but always on the alert to turn an

honest penny.

A short distance beyond Estepp's, Centerville comes in view, near where

Daniel L. Lashley kept the principal tavern. He was a large man, and had

a large patronage.

Centerville boasts of having been a nursery of great men. Here Oliver P.

Morton, when a young man, worked as a hatter, and Gen. A. E. Burnside

pursued the humble trade of a tailor. Gen. Lew Wallace and Gen. Noble

went to school in Centerville, and possibly the germs of Ben Hur had

their origin in this rural village. Hon. George W. Julian, of free soil

notoriety, was at one time a resident of Centerville, and Judge Nimrod

Johnson, of the State Supreme Court, and John S. Newman, ex-president of

the Indiana Central Railroad Company, were among the noted personages

who lived there. Centerville was for many years the county seat of Wayne

county, and the removal of the offices and archives to Richmond produced

a feeling of jealousy between the inhabitants of the places which

lingers in a measure to this day, although Richmond has far outstripped

her ancient rival in growth and improvements.

West of Centerville the road crosses Nolan's Fork, a small Indiana

stream, and a short distance beyond, and near the Poor Farm, a toll-gate

was established, and there was also a tavern at this point. One mile

west of the Poor Farm, Crum Fork is crossed by means of a bridge, and

between this stream and Germantown there was another toll-gate and also

a tavern. There is a bridge over the stream between Germantown and

Cambridge city. West of Cambridge City, and near Dublin, there was a

toll-gate, and a short distance west of Dublin, the road passes out of

Wayne county.

The road forms the main street of Dublin and is called Cumberland

street, by reason of this fact. The first tavern established in Dublin

was by Samuel Schoolfield, an old Virginian, pleasantly remembered on

account of his staunch patriotism. He displayed on his sign-board the

motto: "Our country, right or wrong."

The railroad absorbed all passenger and freight traffic in the year

1852, after which date and to the close of the civil war, outside of

home travel, the main vehicles on the Indiana division were "Prairie

Schooners," or semi-circular bedded, white-covered emigrant wagons, used

by parties moving from Virginia and the Carolinas to Illinois.

Indianapolis as before stated is on the line of the road, but her

proportions as a city are the outgrowth of other agencies. In the early

days of Indiana's capital the National Road was her only commercial

artery, and her pioneer citizens regarded it as a great advantage to

their aspiring town. The railway era dawned so soon after the road was

located through Indianapolis that but few memories cluster about its

history in that locality like those east of the Ohio river.

The last and only remaining large town of Indiana on the road is Terre

Haute, a city like Indianapolis that has outgrown the memories of the

road, and is probably little mindful of the time when her early

inhabitants deemed it a matter of high importance to be located on its

line. Though remote from the active centres of the historic road, Terre

Haute is more or less associated with its stirring scenes and former

prestige.

There was a striking similarity in the habits, manners and pursuits of

the old inhabitants of the towns along the National Road, notably

between Baltimore and Wheeling. The road was a bond that drew them

together and united them as neighbors. There are many persons still

living who remember when Frederic, Hagerstown, Cumberland, Uniontown,

Brownsville, Washington and Wheeling derived their main support from the

road, and their chief distinction from their location on its line. This

feature was also true of the towns on the Appian Way, on authority of

the classic author, Anthon.

Any one familiar with the National Road in its prosperous era, whose

business or other engagements required a divergence from it, invariably

returned to it with a sense of security and a feeling of rest and

relief. This feeling was universal and profound. An illustration is

furnished by Hon. William H. Playford, of Uniontown, who was born and

reared on the road. After his college graduation he went South to teach,

as did many other graduates of northern colleges. When his term as a

teacher ended his heart of course yearned for home, and homeward he set

his sails. He struck the National Road at Terre Haute, and the moment

his eyes flashed upon its familiar surface he felt that he was among old

friends and nearly home. It was the first object he had witnessed since

his departure from the paternal roof that brought him in touch again

with home.

Before the road was completed beyond the western boundary of the State

of Indiana, the steam railway had become the chief agency of

transportation and travel, and our grand old national highway was

practically lost amid the primitive prairies of Illinois, so that

whereas its splendor was favored by the rising, it was dispelled beneath

the Setting Sun.

[Illustration: GEN. GEORGE W. CASS.]

CHAPTER XLII.

_Superintendents under National Control--Gen. Gratiot, Captains

Delafield, McKee, Bliss, Hartzell, Williams, Colquit and Cass, and

Lieuts. Mansfield, Vance and Pickell--The Old Mile

Posts--Commissioners and Superintendents under State

Control--William Searight, William Hopkins, and Earlier and Later

Commissioners and Superintendents--A Pennsylvania Court Wipes Out a

Section of the Road._

Down to the year 1834, as has been seen, the road was under the control

and supervision of the War Department of the General Government.

Brig.-Gen. Gratiot was the chief officer in immediate charge. The town

of Gratiot on the line of the road in Muskingum county, Ohio, was named

in his honor. Captains Delafield, McKee, Bliss, Bartlett, Hartzell,

Williams, Colquit and Cass, and Lieuts. Mansfield, Vance and Pickell,

all graduates of West Point, were more or less identified with the

construction, management and repairs of the road. These army officers

were all well known to the people along the road sixty years ago. Gen.

Gratiot was probably dead before the beginning of the civil war, or too

old for active service. Mansfield fell at Antietam, a major general of

the Union forces. Williams was killed at the storming of Monterey in the

Mexican war. McKee fell while gallantly leading a regiment in the hot

fight at Buena Vista. Hartzell, promoted to the rank of major, fought

through the Mexican war, and died soon after returning to his home in

Lexington, Kentucky. Bliss and Delafield both died within the current

decade. Colquit, a near relative of the Georgia Senator of that name,

died in the Confederate service. Capt. Geo. W. Cass, while on the road

as an engineer in charge of repairs, married a daughter of the late

George Dawson, of Brownsville, located at that place, and transacted

business there for a number of years. He subsequently went to Pittsburg

as president of the Adams Express Company, and later became president of

the Pittsburg, Ft. Wayne & Chicago Railway Company. He was prominent and

influential in the politics of Pennsylvania, and on several occasions

stood second in the ballotings for the Democratic nomination for

Governor. He died in the city of New York. He was twice married. His

widow surviving him, is a sister of his first wife.

The iron mile posts, so familiar to the traveler on the road, were

turned out in foundries of Connellsville and Brownsville. Major James

Francis had the contract for making and delivering those between

Cumberland and Brownsville. His foundry was at Connellsville,

Pennsylvania. Col. Alex. J. Hill, a well known and popular coke

operator, and Democratic politician of Fayette county, Pennsylvania, is

a son-in-law of Major Francis, the old foundryman. Those between

Brownsville and Wheeling were made at Snowden's old foundry, in

Brownsville, John Snowden, contractor. They were hauled along the road

for distribution in wagons drawn by six horse teams. Within the last two

years they were re-set and re-painted, between Brownsville and the

Maryland State line, under the direction of Commissioner Ewing Searight,

and stand erect in their original sites, silent witnesses of the great

procession that passed in front of them for so many years, and if they

possessed the attributes of speech and memory, could narrate the story

of a great highway, which in incident and interest is without a rival.

WILLIAM SEARIGHT was a commissioner of the road for a number of years in

its prosperous era. His jurisdiction extended over the line within the

limits of Pennsylvania. He was of Irish lineage, and Presbyterian faith.

His parents located in Ligonier Valley, Westmoreland county,

Pennsylvania, about the year 1780. Upon reaching his majority he came to

Fayette county to work out his destiny. He learned the trade of fulling

and dyeing, and started in business on his own account at Hammond's old

mill on Dunlap's creek, long since demolished and forgotten. He

subsequently pursued the same business at Cook's mill, on Redstone

creek. His education was such only as could be procured in his boyhood

by persons of slender means, but his natural endowments were of the

highest and best order. He was honest and industrious. On March 26th,

1826, he married Rachel, a daughter of Thomas Brownfield, proprietor of

the old Swan tavern in Uniontown. At Searights, on the National Road, he

laid the foundation of a considerable fortune, and died in the

sixty-first year of his age. He was a leading Democratic politician of

his day in Fayette county, and in 1827 rode on horseback from Searights

to Harrisburg, to aid in nominating General Jackson for the presidency.

He was a trusted friend of the late Gen. Simon Cameron, when that

unrivalled politician was a leader of the Democratic party in

Pennsylvania. At the date of his death he was the nominee of his party

for the important State office of Canal Commissioner, and would have

been elected, had not death interposed and called him from the active

duties of this life to the realities of another. William Hopkins,

another old commissioner of the road, was nominated to the vacancy thus

made, and elected by a large majority. The death of William Searight

occurred at his home, near Searights, on August 12, 1852. He was a man

of generous impulses and charitable disposition, ever ready to lend his

counsel, his sympathies and his purse, to ameliorate the sufferings of

his fellow men. Although death plucked him from the very threshold of

earthly honors, it caused him no regret. His work was well done, and he

was ready to go. The kingdom he was about to enter presented higher

honors and purer enjoyments. In looking forward and upward he saw--

[Illustration: Wm Searight]

"No midnight shade, no clouded sun,

But sacred, high, eternal noon."

A more emphatic eulogy than pen could write, or tongue express, was

furnished by the immense concourse that attended his funeral. The

patriarchs and the youth of the country came to testify their

appreciation of his worth. A few days after his death, a large meeting

of citizens, irrespective of party, convened in the court house at

Uniontown, to give expression to their sorrow for his death. Hon.

Nathaniel Ewing presided. Hon. Daniel Sturgeon, then a United States

Senator, and Zalmon Ludington, esq., were the vice presidents, and Hon.

R. P. Flenniken and John B. Krepps, esq., secretaries. On motion of Hon.

James Veech, a committee was appointed to formulate the feeling of the

meeting, which reported through its distinguished chairman (Mr. Veech)

the following preamble and resolutions, which were unanimously adopted:

"When a valuable citizen dies, it is meet that the community of

which he was a member, mourn his loss. A public expression of their

sorrow at such an event, is due as some solace to the grief of the

bereaved family and friends, and as an incentive to others to earn

for their death the same distinction. In the death of William

Searight, this community has lost such a citizen. Such an event has

called this public meeting, into which enter no schemes of

political promotion, no partisan purposes of empty eulogy. Against

all this, death has shut the door. While yet the tear hangs on the

cheek of his stricken family, and the tidings of death are unread

by many of his friends, we, his fellow citizens, neighbors,

friends, of all parties, have assembled to speak to those who knew

and loved him best, and to those who knew him not, the words of

sorrow and truth, in sincerity and soberness. Therefore, as the

sense of this meeting:

_Resolved_, That in the death of William Searight, Fayette county

and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania have lost one of their best

and most useful citizens. The people at large may not realize their

loss, but the community in which he lived, over whose comforts and

interests were diffused the influence of his liberality and

enterprise, feel it, while his friends of all classes, parties and

professions, to whom he clung, and who clung to him, mourn it.

_Resolved_, While we would withhold our steps from the sanctuary of

domestic grief, we may be allowed to express to the afflicted widow

and children of the deceased, our unfeigned sorrow and sympathy in

their great bereavement, and to tender them our assurance that

while to their hearts the memory of the husband and father will

ever be cherished, in ours will be kept the liveliest recollections

of his virtues as a citizen and a friend.

_Resolved_, That among the elements that must enter into every

truthful estimate of the character of William Searight, are a warm

amenity of manner, combined with great dignity of deportment, which

were not the less attractive by their plainness and lack of

ostentation, elevated feelings more pure than passionless, high

purposes with untiring energy in their accomplishment, an ennobling

sense of honor and individual independence, which kept him always

true to himself and to his engagements, unfaltering fidelity to his

friends, a liberality which heeded no restraint, but means and

merit; great promptness and fearlessness in the discharge of what

he believed to be a duty, private or public, guided by a rigid

integrity which stood all tests and scouted all temptations;

honesty and truthfulness in word and deed, which no seductions

could weaken, nor assaults overthrow, in all respects the architect

of his own fortune and fame. These with the minor virtues in full

proportion, are some of the outlines of character which stamped the

man whose death we mourn, as one much above the ordinary level of

his race.

_Resolved_, That while we have here nothing to do or say as to the

loss sustained by the political party to which he belonged, and

whose candidate he was for an office of great honor and

responsibility, we may be allowed to say that had he lived and been

successful, with a heart so rigidly set as was his, with feelings

so high and integrity so firm, and withal an amount of practical

intelligence so ample as he possessed, his election could have been

regretted by no citizen who knew him and who placed the public

interests beyond selfish ends and party success. As a politician we

knew him to hold to his principles and party predilections with a

tenacious grasp, yet he was ever courteous and liberal in his

intercourse with political opponents.

_Resolved_, That in the life and character of William Searight we

see a most instructive and encouraging example. Starting the

struggle of life with an humble business, poor and unbefriended,

with an honest aim and a true heart, with high purposes and

unflagging industry, he gained friends and means, which never

forsook him. He thus won for himself and family ample wealth and

attained a position among his fellow men which those who have had

the best advantages our country affords might well envy. That

wealth and that position he used with a just liberality and

influence for the benefit of all around and dependent upon him.

Though dead he yet speaketh to every man in humble business: "Go

thou and do likewise, and such shall be thy reward in life and in

death."

[Illustration: COL. WILLIAM HOPKINS.]

WILLIAM HOPKINS was one of the best known of the old commissioners. He

was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania, September 17th, 1804. He

was of Scotch origin, on the paternal line, and his mother was a native

of Ireland, so that he was a genuine Scotch-Irishman. He figured

conspicuously in the public affairs of Pennsylvania, for many years. At

the age of twenty-three he was a justice of the peace, holding a

commission signed by Governor Shultze, one of the early German governors

of the State. In 1831 he was a county auditor. In 1834 he was elected to

the State Legislature, and re-elected four times, consecutively. He was

speaker of the House in 1838, 1839 and 1840. In 1842 he was secretary of

the land office of Pennsylvania. During his first term as speaker, the

public commotion occurred, known as the "Buckshot War." Troops

surrounded the State house, and a bloody collision seemed inevitable.

Speaker Hopkins, on this trying occasion, behaved with distinguished

wisdom and firmness, and he is credited with having averted the horrors

of civil war. In 1852 Colonel Hopkins, as he was invariably called, was

nominated and elected Canal Commissioner, as before stated. In this

important office he fully sustained his high reputation for honesty and

ability. In 1861 he was again elected to the State House of

Representatives, and re-elected in 1862. In 1863 he was elected a State

Senator. The experience of his previous legislative career gave him a

great advantage over others less favored in this regard, and he became,

by common consent, "the Nestor of the Senate." In 1872 he was elected a

member of the convention to revise the Constitution of the State. He was

chairman of the committee to devise and report amendments to the bill of

rights, and author of the preamble that reads thus: "We, the people of

the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, recognizing the sovereignty of God,

and humbly invoking His guidance in our future destiny, ordain and

establish this Constitution for its government." If there was nothing

else to his credit, this alone would immortalize him. While a member of

the Constitutional Convention, he made a visit to his home, and on the

cars contracted a cold which developed into pneumonia, and terminated

fatally, March 5th, 1873. His funeral was one of the largest and most

impressive ever witnessed in Washington.

Rev. Doctor Brownson, the distinguished Presbyterian minister of

Washington, grouped together the leading traits of Colonel Hopkins in

the following terms: "Such a man could not but be extensively known and

respected. In fact, his mental force, discriminating judgment, urbanity,

integrity and kindness, joined with his facility as a writer and

speaker, rising above the defects of early education, were a continual

pledge of public favor and success. He was very firm in adhering to his

own views, but considerate also of the feelings and opinions of others.

In co-operation or in opposition, he commanded respect. In private life,

also, it was impossible not to realize the power of his politeness, and

his delicate regard to the sensibilities of all about him. His fondness

for children seemed to increase with his years, showing itself both in a

desire for their enjoyment and their good. His fine business capacity

was often taxed for the benefit of others, especially widows and

orphans. In the hallowed circle of home, he was the central object of

uncommon reverence and affection, answering to his own peculiar love and

tenderness within his domestic relations. But, better than all, is the

witness he leaves behind him, in his confession and life as a disciple

of Christ, and in the repose of his heart upon the divine promise, when

called down into the valley and shadow of death."

The late Judge Black, one of the most eminent men of his day, spoke of

Colonel Hopkins as follows: "I do not underestimate the very high

qualities of my associates in this body (the Constitutional

Convention). I do not think, indeed, that any man here appreciates

their various abilities and virtues more than I do; but I devoutly

believe that there is no man in this Convention, that we could not have

spared better than him who has gone. I do not propose to give an

analysis of his character, and it is not necessary to repeat his

history. I may say, for I know it, that he was in all respects the best

balanced man that it was ever my good fortune to know. His moral and

personal courage were often tested; he was one of the most fearless men

that ever lived, yet all his measures were in favor of peace, and every

one who knew him testifies to the gentleness and kindness of his

manner."

Mr. Biddle, a Philadelphia member of the Convention, said: "I well

recollect being struck with the commanding figure and strongly marked

countenance, in the lineaments of which were unmistakably written

simplicity and directness of purpose, integrity and unswerving firmness.

He has rounded off a life of great moral beauty, of great usefulness, of

great dignity, by a fitting end, and he has fallen before decay had

begun to impair his faculties."

One who stood very close and was very much endeared to Col. Hopkins,

brings out his great character in form of metaphor, as follows: "There

was a remark in your paper which has given me a great deal of mental

exercise of a reminiscent character. The wheel of time turns only one

way. At the moment I read this, and in the multitude of times it has

since come into my head, my mind ran at once to a point in the

revolution of that wheel which you never could guess. That point is

marked with the year 1838. I had been turned up far enough out of the

darkness of the wheel pit to get a view of the top of the wheel, where

stood a group of men who have over since been 'the heroes I loved and

the chiefs I admired.' In the center of this group, and the most heroic

figure in it, stood WILLIAM HOPKINS. The various members of that group

have gone down beyond sight, as the wheel of time kept turning steadily,

but their virtues and their public services remain fresh in my memory.

They rendered Pennsylvania as great a service as Washington and his

compeers rendered the United Colonies."

Such a man was William Hopkins, once a commissioner of the National

Road, familiar with every mile along its line, and in daily touch with

its moving masses. The writer of these pages had the honor of knowing

Col. Hopkins personally and well, and can and does testify that no word

of eulogy herein quoted concerning him is in the least overwrought.

An act of the Pennsylvania Legislature, approved April 4, 1831, named

William F. Coplan and David Downer of Fayette county, Stephen Hill and

Benjamin Anderson of Washington county, and Thomas Endsley of Somerset

county, to be Commissioners of the Cumberland Road for the term of three

years from the passage of the said act, after which time the right to

appoint said Commissioners shall vest in the Governor of the

Commonwealth. In 1834 the Governor appointed these same gentlemen

Commissioners for another term of three years. In 1835 an act was passed

reducing the number of Commissioners to two, and under this act Stephen

Hill of Washington, and Hugh Keys of Fayette county, were appointed on

May 7th, 1835, until their appointments were suspended or annulled. On

the 9th of January, 1836, the Governor appointed George Craft of Fayette

county, and Benjamin Leonard of Washington county, to act in conjunction

with the other Commissioners appointed in pursuance of an act approved

April 1, 1835. Thompson McKean of Fayette county, and Robert Quail of

Washington county, were appointed Commissioners by the Governor on the

29th day of January, 1839, until appointments were suspended or

annulled. Robert Quail's appointment was suspended by an act of 1840. An

act was approved March 28th, 1840, reducing the number of Commissioners

to one, and William Hopkins was appointed for a term of three years, but

served less than two years, and resigned, to take the position of

secretary of the land office. William Searight was appointed by the

Governor on May 3, 1842, for a term of three years, and on April 19th,

1845, William Hopkins was again appointed. On the 8th of April, 1848, an

act was approved authorizing the courts of Somerset, Fayette and

Washington counties to appoint trustees for the road, with power to

appoint Commissioners. Under this act William Searight was again

appointed, with jurisdiction limited to the line through the counties of

Fayette and Somerset, and served until 1851, when David Hartzell of

Somerset county was appointed. William Roddy of the same county

succeeded Hartzell in 1852. James Marlow succeeded Roddy and died in

commission. Robert McDowell was appointed in 1856. Under the act of

1848, above quoted, Joseph Lawson was appointed for Washington county,

and was succeeded in 1852 by Mark Mitchell, in 1856 by Alexander

Frasher, and in 1858 by John Long. In 1861 the act of 1848 was repealed

in so far as it related to the appointment of Commissioners in Fayette

and Somerset counties, but continued in force as to Washington county,

stripped of the intervention of trustees. In 1862 John Long was

appointed Commissioner for Washington county by the court. In 1864 G. W.

Botkins was appointed; in 1866 John Long was restored, and continued

until 1871, when T. W. Beatty was appointed. In 1872 Joseph Doak was

appointed, and was succeeded in 1876 by George W. Smith. In 1877 the

appointing power, as to Washington county, was restored to the Governor,

and Samuel Kelley was appointed. In 1881 Peter Hickman was appointed, in

1887 James W. Hendrix, in 1890 Marshall Cox, in 1891 John McDowell,

present incumbent. In 1862 the Governor of the State appointed Redding

Bunting Commissioner for the counties of Fayette and Somerset. Bunting

was the famous old stage driver and stage agent, mentioned in previous

chapters. He served as Commissioner until 1864, when the Governor

appointed Sebastian Rush, the old tavern keeper before referred to. Rush

served until 1870, when Solomon Crumrine was appointed, and served

until 1872, when Rush was restored. In 1875 Charles H. Rush, a son of

Sebastian, was appointed, and served until 1881, when William Endsley

was appointed. In 1883 George W. Daniels was appointed. In 1887 David

Johnson was appointed, and in 1891 Ewing Searight was appointed.

As before stated the road east of Cumberland was owned by associations

or companies. Allen Darsie was one of the leading stockholders and

general superintendent as early as 1835. He lived at Poplar Springs,

twenty-six miles west of Baltimore, was the proprietor of a large and

fertile tract of land, and a slave owner. Allen Darsie, jr., succeeded

his father in the superintendency of the road, and remained in charge

down to the date of the civil war. Thomas Bevins of Hancock succeeded

the younger Darsie, and Denton Oliver succeeded Bevins. West of

Cumberland, in the State of Maryland, the superintendents were: Thomas

Thistle, the old tavern keeper near Grantsville; Jonathan Huddleson,

another old tavern keeper, Nathan Dudley, John Swan, Benjamin B.

Edwards, George Cady, Henry Atkinson, Robert Welsh, Edward Doneho and

William Hall. William Otterson was an old Commissioner in charge of the

road through Virginia, and among his successors appear the familiar

names of Moses Thornburg, Lewis Lunsford and Abram Bedillion.

In the year 1888 the court of quarter sessions of Somerset county,

Pennsylvania, condemned that portion of the road lying within the

borders of said county, decreed it exempt from tolls, confiscated all

its belongings, and turned it over to the tender care of the township

supervisors, under authority supposed to be conferred by an act of

assembly, approved June 2d, 1887.

CHAPTER XLIII.

_Old Contractors--Cost of the Road--Contractors for Repairs--Stone

Breakers--An Old Stone Breaker Convicted of Murder--The Measuring

Ring--The Napping Hammer--An Old Stone Breaking Machine--A Second

Table Showing Heights of Mountains and Hills._

The first contracts in sections for the first ten miles of the road west

of Cumberland were signed April 16th and May 8th, 1811, and were

finished in the fall of 1812. The next letting was in August, 1812, of

eleven miles, extending west as far as Tomlinson's, and these contracts

were completed early in 1815. The work was let from Tomlinson's to

Smithfield, eighteen miles, in August, 1813, and completed in 1817. The

delay was caused by the scarcity of laborers during the war, war prices,

and apprehension of failure of some of the contractors. The next letting

was in September, 1815, embracing the work six miles and a half westward

from Smithfield. This was awarded in sections to John Hagen, Doherty,

McLaughlin and Bradley, and Charles McKinney. In May, 1817, the work was

let to Uniontown, the successful bidders being Hagan and McCann,

Mordecai and James Cochran, Thompson McKean, and Thomas and Matthew

Blakely. From Uniontown to Brownsville, portions were let in September,

1815, to Kinkead, Beck & Evans, who soon thereafter undertook the

residue to Brubaker's. This firm sub-let many sections of the work. Bond

and Gormley had the contract from Brubaker's to Brownsville, and their

work was completed in 1818. George Dawson had the contract for the heavy

stone walls in Brownsville. John Miller and John Kennedy, of Uniontown,

took contracts in the mountains. Miller was a son-in-law of Jacob

Beeson, one of the founders of Uniontown. Mr. Kennedy was the

grandfather of Hon. John K. Ewing, of Uniontown, and after his

experience as a contractor, one of the justices of the Supreme Court of

Pennsylvania. The whole line of the road, for purposes of construction,

was laid off in two divisions, called Eastern and Western. David Shriver

was superintendent of the eastern, and Josias Thompson of the western

division. The dividing line between the two divisions was Brubaker's,

near, and east of, Brownsville. Mr. Shriver lived in Cumberland, and was

the father-in-law of Hon. Andrew Stewart. Mr. Thompson was a Virginian.

In March, 1817, the greater part of the work, from a point two miles

east of Washington to the Virginia line, was let to Thomas McGiffin,

Thomas H. Baird and Parker Campbell, the latter one of the foremost

lawyers of his time. In 1819 the same gentlemen contracted to do the

work, from the point first above named, to a point two miles west of

Brownsville. The work east of Hillsboro was turned over by the

contractors above named, to William and John H. Ewing, who were returned

to the authorities at Washington City as original contractors, and they

finished the work for $6,000 per mile. The remainder of the work west of

Hillsboro was sub-let by McGiffin, Baird and Campbell, to a number of

small contractors.

The road was completed from Cumberland to Uniontown at a cost, including

all expenses of survey and location, salaries, bridges, and some

repairs, of $9,745 per mile. The average cost of the entire road to

Wheeling was nearly $13,000 per mile, showing the Eastern division much

less costly than the Western. This was charged to some prodigality of

work and too liberal contracts, for which Superintendent Thompson was

"investigated" and superseded.

Daniel Steenrod, the old tavern keeper, and Col. Moses Shepherd, were

extensive contractors for construction on the Virginia line of the road.

Colonel Shepherd built Feay's bridge, near Wheeling, one of the best on

the road, and also the bridge over Wheeling creek, near Mrs. Gooding's

old tavern. Capt. Valentine Giesey, a veteran of Brownsville, who is

well remembered by the old citizens of that place, was a large

contractor on the work of taking up the original road bed.

The foregoing were all contractors for work on the original construction

of the road. Among the contractors for repairs, after the road was

completed, and during its prosperous era, the following familiar names

are recalled: Abram Beagle, James McIntyre, William Hastings, John

Whitmire, James Dennison, Henry Masterson, Hiram Freeman, Thomas Egan,

John Robinson, William Paull, Charles Stillwagon, Jacob Stillwagon,

Jacob Dougherty, Anthony Rentz, Henry Murray, James Thompson, Thomas D.

Miller, Daniel Canon, Hugh Graham, Morris Whalen, Perry White, Anthony

Yarnell, John Whollery, Thomas McKean, John Risler, Isaac Nixon, Robert

Brown, Thomas McGrath, Matthew McNeil, Edward Kerven, John Bennington,

William H. Graham, Henry Showalter, John Dickey, John McDonough, Morris

Purcell, Daniel Ward, Daniel Valentine, Jacob Probasco, John Bradfield,

William Reynolds, Thomas Brownfield, Peter Lenhart, James Marlow, John

W. McCollough, Nicholas McCartney, John W. McDowell, Robert McDowell,

James Snyder, Lewis M. Snyder, Samuel Shipley, Elias Gilmore, Samuel

Rush, German D. Hair, Jackson Brown, William C. Stevens, John Gadd,

Robert S. Henderson, Joseph Lawson, Michael Thomas, Charles Rush,

Nicholas Bradley, John Bradley, Daniel Bradley, Henry Show, William

Griffin, Robert McDowell, esq., Adam Speers, James Speers, William

Hatfield, Thomas Brown, Thomas Moxley, Hiram Miller, Matthias Fry, John

Wallace, John Hardin, William Hardin, John G. Burnworth, Henry Sampey,

Henry Clay Rush, Alex. McDowell, Benjamin Miller, Jefferson Miller,

John Worthington, E. W. Clement, John Snider, Hiram Mitchell, John

Mitchell, William Endsley, Daniel Augustine, John M. Oliver, and many

others, some of whose names appear in the accounts of the old

Commissioners in the Appendix to this volume.

[Illustration: DANIEL STEENROD.]

The average result of a stone breaker in a single day was eight perches,

and the price paid was twelve and a half cents per perch. Tradition has

it that Robert S. McDowell, still living in Dunbar, Fayette county,

Pennsylvania, was the speediest stone breaker on the road. He is the

eldest son of "Gate Bob," elsewhere mentioned. In the year 1848, when

Colonel Hopkins was commissioner, Robert S. McDowell broke in one day

sixteen perches and two feet. This was done on a bet, and in a contest

with Capt. Elias Gilmore. A string of stones one rod in length made two

perches, under the gauge in use, and McDowell's string measured eight

rods and two feet. Captain Gilmore, who was one of the most vigorous men

on the road, gave up the contest about the middle of the afternoon, and

yielded the palm to McDowell. Peter Kelley, who lived at Searights, was

one of the best and speediest stone breakers on the road. His

occupation, for many years, was breaking stone on the pike, and near the

close of his life he became an actor in a tragedy, which lost him his

liberty, as well as his former good name. He was not a vicious man, but

on occasions would indulge in immoderate drinking. On one of these

occasions he killed William Thornton, father of the Hon. J. Russell

Thornton, member of the Legislature of Pennsylvania for the county of

Fayette. Kelley and Thornton were returning from Brownsville after

nightfall, and quarrelled. When near the old Brubaker tavern, Thornton

was struck by Kelley, and killed. Kelley was tried, convicted and sent

to the penitentiary for a long term, and never thereafter returned to

the familiar scenes of the old pike. Alexander Campbell, of Somerfield,

was one of the fastest stone breakers on the road, and Robert Hogsett,

the well known millionaire of Fayette county, Pennsylvania, broke stones

on the road when a boy.

In the early work on the road, there was a requirement that stone for

the lower stratum or bed should be broken so that the pieces would pass

through a seven-inch ring, and for the upper stratum, which was six

inches in thickness, would pass through a three-inch ring. Old

contractors provided rings of these dimensions, respectively, and

enforced a strict compliance with the regulation mentioned. Subsequently

the rings fell into disuse, and were ultimately abandoned, but the

stones spread over the surface of the road were always broken to small

pieces. The hammer of the stone breaker was a very simple contrivance.

It was of iron, round as an apple, weighing probably one pound, with a

hole through the center for the insertion of a handle. The handle was of

hickory wood, slender in the middle, with a thick end for the grasp of

the hand. There was also a larger hammer, with a longer and stouter

handle, used for breaking stones thrown into holes. In using this hammer

the breaker stood on his feet, and in using the smaller one, sat on the

stone pile, moving his position as his work advanced. In hot weather

the stone breaker, in many instances, used a ready-made, movable bower,

to ward off the scorching rays of the sun. About the year 1848, some

person whose name is forgotten, supposing himself endowed with inventive

genius, constructed a machine for breaking stones. It was operated by

horse power, proved a failure, and was laid aside to rot on the summit

of Laurel Hill.

The following table showing the heights of mountains and hills on the

road is copied from the sketch by Mr. Veech, accompanying the map of

Fayette county, Pennsylvania, before mentioned. It will be seen that it

differs somewhat from the measurement of the Commissioners who ran the

original lines of the road, but it will be remembered that their

measurement was from a point in the Potomac, near Cumberland, whereas

the table below gives heights above the Atlantic and above Cumberland.

This table also gives heights of hills, west of Uniontown, and the

heights furnished by the old Commissioners, are of mountains and hills

between Cumberland and Uniontown. As to the accuracy of, and authority

for, this table, the author of this volume is not informed, but it seems

to have been sanctioned and adopted by Mr. Veech, whose reputation as a

local historian is unimpeachable.

THE TABLE.

Above the Atlantic. Above Cumberland.

Cumberland 537 feet

Wills Mountain 1003 " 466

Frostburg 1792 " 1255

Big Savage Mountain 2580 " 2043

Little Savage Mountain 2480 " 1943

Red Hill 2437 " 1900

Meadow Mountain 2550 " 2013

Little Crossings 2000 " 1463

Negro Mountain 2825 " 2288

Keyser's Ridge 2843 " 2306

Winding Ridge 2534 " 1997

Smithfield 1405 " 868

Barren Hill 2450 " 1813

Woodcock Hill 2500 " 1963

Laurel Hill 2412 " 1875

Monroe 1065 " 528

Uniontown Court House 952 " 415

Colley's Hill 1274 " 737

Brownsville 833 " 296

Krepps' Knob 1040 " 503

Beallsville 1010 " 473

Hillsboro 1770 " 1233

Egg Nog Hill 1532 " 995

Washington 1406 " 869

West Alexander 1792 " 1255

Wheeling Hill 850 " 313

Wheeling City 748 " 211

CHAPTER XLIV.

_Two Noted Old Tavern Keepers--Thomas Endsley and William Sheets--The

Latter the Driver of the First Mail Coach Out from Cumberland--A

Wedding Party Surprised, and a Marriage Prevented--William M. F.

Magraw, a well known Man of the Road._

A prominent and widely known man of the road was Thomas Endsley. He was

born near Richmond, Virginia, in 1787. He was the only child of parents

who came from Switzerland and settled in Virginia at an early day. His

mother was of an old family of Gilberts, who were Quakers, well known

and much respected in their day and generation. His wife was Mary

McCloy, to whom he was wedded in the year 1805. The offspring of his

marriage consisted of eight children, five sons and three daughters. The

sons were John, Thomas, James, William and Andrew Jackson. The three

last named are still living, James and William in Somerfield, and Andrew

Jackson in Somerset. The daughters were Mary Ann, who became the wife of

Redding Bunting, the noted old pike boy heretofore mentioned; Nancy, who

was the wife of J. Squire Hagan, another old pike boy; and Julia, who in

1842, married P. R. Sides, and is now living with a son in New Mexico.

Her husband died in Missouri in 1877, or thereabout. Mrs. Hagan died in

Uniontown in 1849, and Mrs. Bunting died in the same place about five

years ago. Nancy Endsley and Squire Hagan were married in 1834. Mrs.

Endsley, wife of Thomas, the subject of this sketch, died in the stone

tavern at Somerfield in 1832, and her husband died in the same house in

1852.

Thomas Endsley was an old wagoner before the Cumberland Road was

constructed. In the years 1812, 1813, 1814, 1815, 1816, 1817 and 1818,

he hauled goods and merchandise from Baltimore to Nashville, Tennesse,

to points in Ohio and to Brownsville, Pennsylvania. He owned two

six-horse teams, one of which he drove himself, and placed the other in

charge of a hired driver. In spring and fall he was frequently compelled

to remain with his teams at the old Smith tavern, near the present town

of Somerfield, for several days awaiting the subsidence of freshets in

the Youghiogheny river, so that he could ford that stream, there being

no other means of crossing at that time. The road was frequently in such

condition by reason of mud, deep cuts, and other obstacles, that a whole

day's progress did not cover a greater distance than three or four

miles. To pass through Jockey Hollow it was often found necessary to

attach twelve horses to one wagon.

In the year 1819 Thomas Endsley moved from Virginia to Frostburg,

Maryland, and at that place commenced a career of tavern keeping, which

terminated only with his death. He leased the old Frost House in

Frostburg, and conducted it for three years. In 1822 he went to the

Tomlinson House, a prominent old landmark twenty-one miles west of

Cumberland. He occupied the Tomlinson House for two years, and while

there enjoyed the patronage of one of the stage lines. In December,

1823, he bought the old Smith farm at Somerfield, lying on both sides of

the road. On this farm was erected the large stone tavern house, at the

eastern end of the big stone bridge which spans the Youghiogheny river.

For this property he paid $8,000 cash down, which shows the enhanced

value of the property at that day by reason of contiguity with the

National Road. He took possession of this property on the first day of

April, 1824. The land was poor, the fences were dilapidated, and the

general outlook unpromising. But Mr. Endsley was a man of great energy

and good judgment, and going to work with determination, soon changed

the aspect of things, and had flowers blooming and grass and grain

growing, where before the eye had rested on nothing but briars, weeds

and rocks, with here and there a scant appearance of sickly oats and

buckwheat. It is said that he was the first man who ever attempted to

raise corn and wheat in the neighborhood of Somerfield, and old settlers

jeered him for trying it. It was not long under his judicious management

until his farm yielded thirty-five and forty bushels of wheat to the

acre, and crops of corn equal to the best of the adjoining county of

Fayette. This farm continues in the possession of the descendants of

Thomas Endsley. The northern portion of it is owned and occupied by the

heirs of Thomas Endsley, jr., deceased, except the stone tavern, which

with the southern portion of the farm, is owned and occupied by William

Endsley.

While assiduous in bringing up his farm, Thomas Endsley was by no means

neglectful of his tavern. He was always attentive and courteous to

guests. His table was spread with well cooked victuals, and his rooms

were clean and neat, so that altogether his house was one of the most

inviting on the whole line of the road. The Stockton line of coaches

stopped at the Endsley House during its entire career on the road, with

the exception of a short time, when it was withdrawn by reason of a

temporary estrangement between Mr. Stockton and Mr. Endsley. Stockton

was of a fiery temper, while Mr. Endsley was not slack in resenting a

supposed wrong, and at one time in going over their accounts they

disagreed, and each gave utterance to expressions not taught in the

Sunday schools. As a result, Mr. Stockton removed his stock from

Endsley's tavern and passed and repassed the house thereafter for awhile

without casting a glance of recognition toward it. It was not long,

however, until Mr. Endsley was surprised to see Mr. Stockton enter his

house, extend his hand, and hear him say: "This foolishness has lasted

long enough; my coaches must stop at this house." "When?" calmly

queried Mr. Endsley. "To-morrow," said Mr. Stockton, and the old terms

of friendship between them were restored, and continued as long as Mr.

Stockton lived. As stated in another chapter Mr. Endsley was a slave

owner, and frequently aided in the capture and return of fugitives. Two

of his slaves, Peter and Phebe Butler, after acquiring their freedom,

settled in Brownsville, and died there. They were well known by the old

people of Brownsville, and held in high esteem. Thomas Endsley, in

1834-'35, in connection with James Black, of Somerfield, had contracts

for taking up the original road bed on Winding Ridge and Negro Mountain,

and proved himself as efficient in this line as in every other line of

business he engaged in. He was imposing in personal appearance, well up

to six feet in height, and weighed about two hundred pounds. He was an

habitual reader, and a subscriber for the _Cumberland Civilian_ and the

_National Intelligencer_, from the time he lived in Frostburg to the

date of his death. He carefully and studiously read the long and prosy

editorials of the _Intelligencer_, as well as the speeches it published

of Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, John C. Calhoun, Thomas H. Benton, and

other noted statesmen of that era.

In 1828 a military company called "The Addison Blues," was organized,

drawing its members from Somerfield, Petersburg and the surrounding

neighborhood, of which Thomas Endsley was elected captain, and ever

thereafter known and hailed as Captain Endsley. At all the old battalion

parades in Somerset, Bedford and Uniontown the "Addison Blues" bore off

the palm for soldierly bearing, and especially for the stalwart size of

its rank and file, all of whom were hardy mountaineers, and known and

honored as "frosty sons of thunder."

WILLIAM SHEETS was a prominent character of the road, more widely known

as a tavern keeper, than in any other relation. He was a remarkable man

in many respects, and in none more than relates to his extreme

longevity. He was born February 2d, 1798, near Martinsburg, Berkeley

county, Virginia, and died May 4th, 1892, in Jefferson county, Iowa. He

was a wagoner before the Cumberland Road was made, and hauled goods from

Baltimore to points west, over the old Braddock road. He also had some

experience as a stage driver. His first venture as a tavern keeper was

at or near the Little Crossings, where he remained but a short time, and

did not do a paying business. Leaving the Little Crossings, he went to

Negro Mountain and took a house there. His first experience at Negro

Mountain was attended by only limited success, and he abandoned tavern

keeping and moved to a small house on Jennings' run, about two miles

west of Uniontown, and near the old Moxley tavern, then kept by William

Cox. In that vicinity he engaged in various pursuits, mostly of a

precarious nature, with a downward tendency, accelerated by too much

indulgence in drinking. This was between the years 1835 and 1840, and

probably a little earlier. He seemed to realize that his fortune was on

the wane, and resolved to retrieve himself. He accordingly, by some

means not ascertainable, secured a new lease on the Negro Mountain house

which he had left, and returned to it. Beginning life anew, as it were,

he quit drinking and devoted himself energetically to business. It was

not long until he established a good reputation and did a large and

profitable business. His house was a favorite stopping place for hog

drovers, and in the latter part of his career on Negro Mountain, the

number of barrels of corn he bought and sold would count up to hundreds

of thousands. The weary and hungry hog drover (pig pelter the pike boys

termed him), as he trudged along the road in snow and slush, urging

forward the lagging, grunting porkers, apparently reluctant to move on

to the sure slaughter awaiting them, would cry out at intervals, and in

despairing tones: "Suboy, suboy, forty cents a day and no dinner; how

far is it to Sheets'?" For many years William Sheets fed the hungry

hogs, and their no less hungry owners and drivers, and while his profits

were small, his business was so large that his accumulations in a few

years aggregated a sum which made him a comfortable fortune. William G.

Beck, the old stage driver living in Fairfield, Iowa, before referred

to, avers that William Sheets drove the first mail coach out from

Cumberland that ever passed over the National Road west of that place.

This was in the year 1818, and on Kinkead's line of coaches. Kinkead was

an uncle of William G. Beck, and a member of the old bridge building

firm of Kinkead, Beck & Evans, and an owner of the first stage line on

the road, as before stated. The wife of William Sheets was Sarah

Wiggins, a sister of Isaac Wiggins, late of South Union township,

Fayette county, Pennsylvania, deceased, and an aunt of James H. Wiggins,

a prosperous and well known farmer of that township. She was an

attractive girl, and had many suitors. One of her lovers was a man by

the name of Bradley, an employe of Kinkead, before mentioned. She gave

her hand to Bradley, and consented to become his wife, and went so far

as to appear upon the floor with Bradley to have the knot tied by the

Rev. William Brownfield. The relatives and friends of Miss Sarah were

stoutly opposed to her alliance with Bradley, and a moment before the

old and renowned Baptist parson began the ceremony of marriage, Col.

Cuthbert Wiggins, an uncle of the would-be-bride, and father of Harrison

Wiggins, the old fox hunter of the mountains, appeared on the scene and

carried Miss Sarah from the floor, thus abruptly terminating the pending

nuptials, to the great astonishment of those in attendance, and causing

much comment and town gossip. This unusual incident happened in a house

on Morgantown street, in Uniontown, about the year 1821. No subsequent

effort was made by the parties most interested, to consummate the

forbidden marriage, and the fair Sarah, in a short time thereafter,

forgetting her affection for Bradley, became the wife of William Sheets.

The after career of Bradley is unknown. He seems to have passed from the

memory of men without making a sign. In the year 1855 William Sheets

took final leave of Negro Mountain and the scenes of the National Road,

and moved to Jefferson county, Iowa, where he made his last

settlement, and died at the date above given. At his death he was the

possessor of a large estate, chiefly in lands, which descends to his two

surviving sons, Isaac and Joseph, and to the heirs of deceased sons and

a deceased daughter. He had six sons and one daughter. Bazil Sheets, one

of his sons, was an old wagoner, well remembered by the old citizens

along the line of the road.

[Illustration: W. M. F. MAGRAW]

One of the smartest, best known and most picturesque men of the road

forty years ago was WILLIAM M. F. MAGRAW. He was probably little known

west of Brownsville, as his business was for the most part on the line

east of that point. He was a native of Maryland, and belonged to an old

and influential family of that State. His brother, Harry, practiced law

for several years in Pittsburg, and served a term as State Treasurer of

Pennsylvania from 1856 to 1859. The Magraws were intimate friends of

James Buchanan, and Harry was a leader in the movements that led up to

the nomination and election of that old time statesman to the

Presidency. W. M. F. Magraw became identified with the National Road as

many others did, through a matrimonial alliance. His wife was a daughter

of Jacob Sides, who owned the Tomlinson tavern. His first business

engagement in the vicinity of Uniontown was with F. H. Oliphant, the old

iron master of Fairchance. Soon after engaging with Mr. Oliphant that

gentleman put on a line of teams and wagons hereinbefore mentioned, to

haul freights between Brownsville and Cumberland, and Magraw was placed

in charge of the line as its general road agent. This put him in

communication with the people along the road, and established him in the

ranks of the pike boys. He was a large, fine looking man, always well

dressed, attracting attention wherever he appeared, and making friends

by reason of his agreeable manners. He was not fleshy, but broad

shouldered, tall and erect, of ruddy complexion, light hair, and

habitually wore gold rimmed spectacles on account of some defect of

vision. He was generous almost to a fault, and lavish in his personal

expenditures. He spent much of his time in Uniontown, making his

headquarters with his friend Joshua Marsh, of the National House. His

habits of living were different from the majority of the old pike boys,

especially in the matter of eating, and he enjoyed a good supper at

midnight, better than any other hour. He brought in game of all kinds

from the mountain and had it served in savory style at the National

House. He kept a carriage, and often had it ordered out as early as

three and four o'clock in the afternoon, to go to the mountain, but

lingered about the town, chatting with friends, until nightfall. He

seemed to delight in driving over the mountain in the night. Leaving

Uniontown about the dusk of the evening, he would reach the Tomlinson

tavern about daybreak the next morning. He called up the old tavern

keepers along the road, all of whom knew him, chatted a while with them,

took a mint julip, or something stiffer, and pushed on, and this was his

habit as long as he remained on the road. He was a southern sympathizer

during the war, and participated as a Confederate partisan, in some of

the irregular skirmishes in Missouri, in the incipient stages of the

long struggle. Notwithstanding his southern sentiments, he was well

liked by his northern acquaintances, and had many warm friends among

them. There was no bitterness in his heart. He was clever and courteous

to all. He had no stauncher friend than Redding Bunting, the good old

stage driver, who was a pronounced Union man. Sometime near the close of

the war, Magraw appeared in Harrisburg. Upon being questioned as to the

object of his mission, he said he had come to see the Governor on behalf

of the appointment of his old friend, Red Bunting, to the office of

Commissioner of the Cumberland Road. He knew the Governor (Curtin)

personally. In fact, he knew nearly all the public men of his time. He

called on the Governor, and was cordially received. "What brought you

here," queried the Governor. "I came," said Magraw, "to solicit the

appointment of Redding Butting as Commissioner of the Cumberland Road."

"How does it come," further queried the Governor, "that all you

copperheads are for Bunting?" "Oh!" said Magraw, "Bunting is a good man,

the right man for the place, and a good Republican." "Well," said the

Governor, "I guess I'll appoint him," and he did. Mr. Bunting was not

aware that Magraw intended to go to Harrisburg in his behalf, which

shows the disposition of the man. During the administration of President

Pierce, Magraw had a contract for carrying the mails from the Missouri

boundary to western points beyond the plains. He suffered much loss by

reason of Indian invasions, and preferred a claim to Congress for a

large sum of money to reimburse him. While his bill was undergoing

consideration by the committee, he appeared before it and emptied upon

the floor a number of bags of mules ears, as evidence of his losses. His

bill was passed. Magraw died suddenly, in Baltimore, a number of years

ago, much lamented. His wife is also dead. He had a daughter, Miss

Sallie, well remembered by the older citizens of Uniontown, who is

living in Kansas City, a widow, in affluent circumstances.

CHAPTER XLV.

_Dumb Ike--Reminiscences of Uniontown--Isaac Johnson--Squire Hagan--A

Musician Astride of a Hog--Anecdote of Judges Black and

Williams--Morgan Miller, an Old Tavern Keeper--Philip Krishbaum, an

Old Stone Cutter--Crazy Billy--Highway Robbery--Slaves Struggling

for Liberty--William Willey, an old Friend of the

Slaves--Unsuccessful Attempts at Suicide by an old Postmaster and

an old Drover--Tom Marshall, of Kentucky, appears on the Road and

amuses the boys._

The National Road had its variety, as all the ways of life have, and

this variety added spice to it, and gave it much if not all of its

flavor. There were high types, and low types, and queer types of life on

the road. Every section of the road had its noted character. There was

Marion Smith (Logan), who made his headquarters, for the most part, at

Searights, but a familiar figure all along the line between Uniontown

and Brownsville. He stood ever ready to fetch the gear pole and insert

it between the spokes of the hind wheels of the big wagon, the moment it

was driven upon the yard at the old tavern in the evening, to rest for

the night. He was likewise prompt in carrying the hay and grain to feed

the big six horses that stood with their heads to the long, strong

trough supported by the wagon tongue, and when this little job was done,

his compensation was replete, and his topmost ambition realized in the

big drink he took with the driver at the bar. And Logan was further

noted as an imitator of the rooster, and gave many a long, loud crow

over Democratic victories in the olden time. Bill Hickman will be

readily recalled by the reader who is familiar with the history and

traditions of the road, as an eccentric character. He gravitated between

Chalk Hill and Jockey Hollow, and Billy Brubaker afforded amusement for

the men of the road near Brownsville. It would scarcely be doing justice

to the nomenclature of the old road, without writing this name

"Bluebaker." There were many others of this class, but time and space

will not permit a reference to them, and besides, this sketch is devoted

especially to "Dumb Ike." His name was Isaac Griffin, or Toner, and he

belonged to the queer type in the above enumeration. He was not in fact

dumb, but everybody called him "Dumb Ike." He was opaque and bright by

turns. Dr. Hugh Campbell once asked him why they called him dumb, and he

said "he didn't know, unless because they were dumb themselves."

Isaac was born and reared in Springhill township, Fayette county,

Pennsylvania. The sound of the glories of the old pike reached his ears

at his rural home, and he resolved to cast his lot upon it. It was

previous to the year 1840 that he made his appearance in Uniontown, and

for the first time beheld the National Road. When he shook the dust of

Springhill from his feet, it was with a high resolve to never engage in

hard labor, a resolution he never thereafter broke. His ambition was to

become a stage driver and it was irrepressible. He reached his goal. He

obtained employment as a driver on one of the stage lines and approved

himself a good one. Not given to absolute steadiness of habit, his

employment was not continuous, but he was held in reserve, as it were,

to take the place of regular drivers in cases of accident or emergency.

He could handle the reins and crack the whip equal to the best of

drivers, and took good care of his team. He not only drove stage but was

a driver on the express line, and perched on the high front seat of an

express wagon, drawing the reins over four stout horses, was the

personification of a proud and happy man. A little incident in the old

National House on Morgantown street, when that popular old hostelry was

kept by the kind-hearted and gentle Joshua Marsh, goes to illustrate the

eccentric ways of Isaac. It was in the bar room. Samuel McDonald, a

prominent citizen of the town, had occasion to call there, and among

those in the room at the time was "Dumb Ike," with whom McDonald was

well acquainted, as was every other citizen. McDonald invited Isaac to

take a drink, a proposition quite agreeable to him, and which he

promptly accepted. Standing at the bar with glass in hand, well filled,

Isaac felt it a duty to compliment his entertainer, and said: "McDonald,

I respect you," and hesitating, continued, "and probably I am the only

man in town that does." Isaac intended to be complimentary, and McDonald

knowing this, joined in the loud laughter of the bystanders over Isaac's

bull.

During the prevalence of Asiatic cholera in Uniontown in 1850, some one

was speaking to Isaac in reference to the fatality of the epidemic, and

was much astounded to hear Isaac say it was not cholera. "What then is

it?" queried the other party. "It is death," retorted Isaac. When Isaac

wished to express indignation against a person he thought was putting on

airs, he called him "The Great Nates," and of conceited persons he said

they were "great in their own _estimashing_." The writer has in his

possession a boot jack made and given to him by "Dumb Ike" in 1852. It

is a clumsy specimen of mechanism, but prized on account of the maker

and donor. Isaac's patriotism was accelerated by a drink, and often

under its influence he exclaimed with emphasis of voice and violent

gesticulation of his right arm, "I am going to the District of Columbia

to see the Goddess of Liberty." When the war against the South assumed

the shape of open and active hostilities, "Dumb Ike" volunteered as a

soldier, and proudly marched to the front under the flag of the stars

and stripes. He was assigned to duty in the transportation service, for

which his experience eminently fitted him, and he died in the faithful

discharge of duty, and was buried where he died, near the capitol of

the Republic beneath the shadow of the Goddess of Liberty, at whose

shrine he was a devoted worshipper. At his death a small sum of money

was on deposit to his credit in the old bank of Fayette county, which

was absorbed by claims for nursing and other services in his last

illness. He left neither widow or heirs to survive him. His

administrator was Nathaniel Brownfield, his old friend of the Swan

tavern in Uniontown, where he made his headquarters for many years, and

where he was living when he enlisted as a soldier. There were worse men

and better men than "Dumb Ike," but no one who knew him will begrudge a

good, kind word for his memory.

Isaac Johnson, a former well known and respected citizen, who died at

his residence near Uniontown a number of years since, had occasion to

visit the East in the year 1833, and on his return home walked the

entire distance from Baltimore over the National Road. His mission

carried him as far east as New Castle, Delaware, and from that point to

Frenchtown he rode on the first passenger cars propelled by steam in the

United States. He was a native of Greene county, Pennsylvania, and the

father of David D. Johnson, of Fayette Springs, who was Commissioner of

the road during the administration of Governor Beaver.

Squire Hagan, who died in Uniontown a few years ago, much lamented,

father of Miss Maggie, the popular clerk in the Uniontown postoffice,

was a "Green Mountain Boy," born in Vermont, near Montpelier, the

capital of that State. The fame of the old National Road was carried on

the wings of the wind to the snow-capped hills of his native land, and

he yearned for a share of its glories. His first appearance on the road

was at Somerfield, where, in the year 1834, he owned and conducted a

general store. The leading trait in the character of Squire Hagan was

amiability, and the trend of his mind was toward philosophy. He was

widely known along the line of the road, and highly respected.

William Hunsucker was a hog drover from Greene county, Pennsylvania, and

the boys called him "Suboy Bill." Upon being asked who owned the hogs he

was driving, and where they came from, he replied in words that jingled

thus:

"Mr. Lindsey is the owner,

They call me Suboy Bill,

The hogs came out from Greene county,

Near the village of Blacksville."

It is said that Joe Williams, a wit, musician, comedian, lawyer, and in

his riper years Chief Justice of the Territorial Court of Iowa, once

straddled a big black hog in a drove, and rode it through the main

street of Uniontown, playing a clarionet. Judge Williams was born in

Somerset county, Pennsylvania, and was a brother of Mrs. William Murphy,

who lives near Uniontown. Hon. Jeremiah S. Black, of national fame, and

Joe Williams were cronies in their boyhood days. Williams visited New

York after he became Chief Justice, and it happened that Judge Black

was in that city at the same time. A morning paper stated that Judge

Black was a guest at the Astor House, and this falling under the eye of

Williams, he proceeded hastily to the hotel to see his old friend. He

walked into his room, to discover that he was out, and seeing writing

material on the table, indited the following lines, which he left in the

room for Judge Black's perusal, on his return:

"The salutations of the Chief Justice of Iowa, to the Chief Justice

of Pennsylvania:

"Oh, Jerry, dear Jerry, I have found you at last!

How memory, burdened with scenes of the past,

Restores me to Somerset's mountains of snow,

When you were but Jerry, and I was but Joe."

Morgan Miller kept a tavern on Morgantown street, Uniontown, as early as

1830, and probably before that time. His house was a dingy frame

structure, painted red, which time and storm made a dead red. The

location was on the hill near the old Baptist church, in that day called

"Prospect Hill." At this old tavern many persons of the neighborhood

were accustomed to spend their evenings in drinking and gossipping.

Among its patrons were Philip Krishbaum, a stone cutter, and Abram

Brown, a farmer. Krishbaum had some aptitude in making rhymes, a talent

he found useful in his business of chiseling tomb-stones. After spending

an hour or two, one evening, in alternate drinking and gossipping with

his friend Brown, he rose from his chair and remarked that he must take

a drink and go, as he had to finish some lettering on a tomb-stone.

"Stay awhile," said Brown, "and write an epitaph for my tomb-stone, and

I will treat." "Agreed," said Krishbaum, who, taking up a pen, wrote

this:

"Here lies the body of Abram Brown,

Who lived three miles from Uniontown.

The more he got, the more he craved,

Great God! can such a soul be saved!"

Brown paid for the drinks. Seeing that Krishbaum had made a success of

the Brown epitaph, Miller, the landlord, requested him to write one for

his tomb-stone, which he did, as follows:

"Here lies the body of Morgan Miller,

Who has drunk the whisky of many a 'stiller.

He once lived up on Prospect Hill,

And sold his whisky by the gill."

[Illustration: CRAZY BILLY.]

The well known character brought to mind by the name of "Crazy Billy,"

was at no time in his strange life engaged in any pursuit connected with

the National Road, but his long stay at Uniontown, covering a period of

fifty years and more, entitles him to a place in this history. He was

well known to many of the stage drivers, wagoners and tavern keepers of

the road, and to every man, woman and child in Uniontown. His name

was William Stanford, and he was horn in England. It was evident that he

had been well bred, and had received some education. He was often heard

quoting from the liturgy of the Church of England. He was brought to

Uniontown about the year 1829, and closely confined in the county jail.

His first appearance in Fayette county was in Springhill township,

whither he wandered without any apparent object, and no one knew whence

he came. On a certain day of the year above mentioned, he was discovered

alone in the house of one Crow, in the said township of Springhill. The

Crow family had all been absent during the day, and upon their return in

the evening were surprised to find an occupant within, and the doors and

windows securely fastened. After reconnoitering the premises the family

discovered that it was the manifest intention of the strange intruder to

"hold the fort." In this state of the case Mr. Crow proceeded to a

neighboring justice of the peace, made complaint, and obtained a

warrant, which was placed in the hands of the township constable, who

with the aid of the local _posse comitatus_ hastily summoned, entered

the beleagured dwelling, arrested the intruder, took him to Uniontown,

and lodged him in the county jail, in and around which he remained from

that time until the date of his death, which occurred on the 26th day of

January, 1883. Soon after his incarceration one John Updergraff was

committed to the jail for disorderly conduct on the streets, and after

the keys had been turned, "Billy" fell upon the new prisoner, and killed

him outright. He was indicted and tried for murder, but acquitted on the

plea of insanity, and remanded to jail. Henceforth, and to the time

hereafter mentioned, he was heavily ironed and chained fast to the jail

floor. William Snyder was elected sheriff in 1847, and a few months

after his induction to the office, his wife, who was a good and

discerning woman, observed some redeeming qualities in the nature of the

chained lunatic, and concluded that it would be wise and safe, as well

as humane, to remove his fetters. Accordingly with the aid of her son

James, who was a sort of general deputy about the jail and office, she

released "Billy" from the chains which had so long bound and chafed him,

and permitted him to walk about his dingy cell, untramelled. Gradually

he gained the confidence of the sheriff's family and after a season was

permitted to enter the official mansion, and move about at pleasure. He

showed an inclination to care for the sheriff's horses, and was

permitted to feed and clean them, exhibiting much skill in this line.

About this time, James Snyder having occasion to visit Monroe, told

"Billy" that he might go with him if he chose. Pleased with the

opportunity, "Billy" placed saddles and bridles on two horses, mounted

one himself, and Snyder the other, and off they sped to Monroe. It was

an agreeable trip to "Billy"; the first time in many years, that he had

enjoyed the privilege of seeing the country and snuffing the pure air of

liberty. After this, he rode out frequently with the deputy to various

parts of the county; but his mind was never fully restored. He was

incoherent, and given to unintelligible mutterings. As time wore on, the

people of the town became familiar with "Crazy Billy," and as before

stated everybody knew him. He carried letters, and performed errands for

the county officers, for many years, and up to the date of his last

illness, and his fidelity was proverbial. Nothing could divert him from

the faithful execution of any little mission he undertook. In addition

to his constant mutterings before alluded to, he was a habitual

scribbler. He entered any of the offices in the court house at pleasure,

and invariably sat down and began to scribble. He wrote a fairly good

hand, but there was no intelligence in his writing, or rather no

connected thought. One of his favorite lines was this: "I am a bold boy

in his prime." He would write this as often as a dozen times a day.

Another of his favorite screeds was this:

"He drew his sword and pistol,

And made them for to rattle,

And the lady held the horse,

While the soldier fought the battle."

The garb in which "Billy" from day to day appeared, was of the shabby

order, and he paid little heed as a rule to personal cleanliness. His

ablutions were periodical, but when he did indulge in them, they were

thorough. He had a habit of rubbing his head with both hands, and would

sit engaged in this exercise as long as an hour at a time, with great

energy. He never would submit to an interview. He talked much, but

always on the run. If approached by anyone with a purpose of conversing

with him, he invariably walked off muttering in loud tones as he moved

away. He wore a full beard, which in his latter years was quite gray. He

had a small foot and hand, and many marks of intellectuality. After his

death his body lay in state in the court house at Uniontown, and was

viewed by thousands. He was buried in Oak Grove Cemetery, near

Uniontown, with the rites of the Episcopal Church, under direction of

the late lamented Rev. R. S. Smith. A section of one of the stone

columns of the old Uniontown court house is made to serve as a monument

over his grave. Maj. Jesse B. Gardner of Uniontown, who attended "Billy"

in his last illness, gives the following pathetic narration of his

closing hours. Until the last ebb, he continued to utter the sonorous

and unintelligible mutterings so familiar to those who knew him, but in

the final throe, he turned his eyes upon his attendant and exclaimed:

"Oh, Gardner, if I could only see my mother!" This was not a lucid

interval, in the ordinary meaning of that phrase, but an expiring

thought, a final flash of affection, a wonderful testimonial to the

sweetest of all names, and a most forcible and striking illustration of

the ineffaceable impression made by a mother's care and love, and all

the more, since at no time before, during his long sojourn at Uniontown,

was he ever known to have mentioned his mother, or his father. A poor,

unfortunate lunatic, separated for more than a half century from the

parental roof, a stranger in a strange land, tossed by the billows of a

hard fate, and lying down to die, light flashes upon his long

distempered mind, and his last and only thought is "MOTHER."

The year 1823 developed one of the most extraordinary examples of grand

larceny that ever occurred on the road, and excited the people all along

the line from Baltimore to the farthest point west. During the early

spring of the year mentioned a merchant whose name was Abraham Boring,

doing business in an Ohio town, took passage in a coach of one of the

regular stage lines for Baltimore to purchase a stock of fresh goods. At

Tomlinson's tavern, west of Cumberland, John Keagy and David Crider,

merchants, of Salisbury, Somerset county, Pennsylvania, took seats in

the same coach that was conveying Boring, destined also for Baltimore,

on a like mission. It required considerable time to reach Baltimore, and

passengers in a stage coach became acquainted, one with another. The

three merchants not only became personally acquainted with each other,

during their long stage ride, but formed strong friendly relations.

Reaching Baltimore they stopped together at the same hotel and talked

over their business, the quality and quantity of goods required by each,

forming the leading topic of their conversation. They went out among the

wholesale stores of the city and bought the goods they desired, the

stock purchased by Mr. Boring being much larger, finer and more varied

than the stock bought by the Somerset county merchants. Upon completing

his purchases, Mr. Boring's first thought was to have his goods safely

shipped upon the best terms obtainable. Messrs. Keagy and Crider kindly

tendered their services to aid him in engaging a trusty wagoner to haul

his goods to Ohio, and introduced one Edward Tissue as the right man for

that purpose. Tissue was engaged, but one wagon bed would not hold all

the goods, and Tissue brought in and introduced another wagoner by the

name of Edward Mitchell, who was engaged to haul the remnant that could

not be handled by Tissue. Mr. Boring having arranged for the

transportation of his goods, said good-bye to his friends Keagy and

Crider, and left for his home in Ohio. His goods, not arriving when due,

he supposed some accident had caused a delay, and that they would be

forthcoming as soon as practicable. But days and weeks passed and Mr.

Boring began to feel uneasy about the long delay, and wrote the

consignors in Baltimore for an explanation. They replied that the goods

had been carefully loaded in the wagons of Tissue and Mitchell,

according to the agreement, and they knew nothing of their destiny

beyond that. Boring then took to the road to find his goods. He went

first to Baltimore and learned that Tissue and Mitchell had left the

city with the goods in their wagons, and proceeded westward. He traced

them as far as Hagerstown, and at that point lost his clue. He proceeded

to Cumberland without tidings of his lost goods. From Cumberland he went

on, making inquiry at every tavern and toll gate, until he reached

Somerfield, but heard nothing of Tissue or his companion, Mitchell. He

put up for the night at a tavern in Somerfield, and while at supper

discovered an important clue. The waiting maid at the table wore a

tortoise shell comb, resembling very much those in a package he had

bought in Baltimore. In polite and delicate terms he inquired of the

girl where she obtained so handsome a comb. She replied, "In a store at

Salisbury." In an instant Mr. Boring recalled his fellow merchants and

recent fellow travelers, Messrs. Keagy and Crider, of Salisbury, but

concluding that they had purchased the same quality of combs in

Baltimore, went to bed, with a purpose of continuing his researches

along the National Road. During the night he changed his purpose, and in

the morning returned to Tomlinson's tavern, and thence directly to

Salisbury. Reaching Salisbury he entered a store, and to his amazement

saw upon the counters and shelves various articles, which he recognized

as belonging to his stock. Investigation disclosed a remarkable example

of criminal conduct. Keagy, Crider, Tissue and Mitchell entered into a

conspiracy to steal Boring's goods. The acquaintance formed in the stage

coach constituted the initial point of the scheme, and Keagy and Crider

found ready confederates in Tissue and Mitchell. There was of course to

be a division of the spoils, but in what proportion never was made

public. The wagoners to avoid identification changed the color of their

wagon beds, and upon reaching Hagerstown diverged from the National Road

and took the country by-ways. The goods were placed at first in a large

barn in the vicinity of Salisbury, and thence carried in small lots to

the store of Keagy & Co. A portion of the goods consisting of fine china

ware, thought to be too expensive for the Salisbury trade, was broken up

and buried under ground. There was a third owner of the Salisbury store

by the name of Markley, who did not accompany his partners on their tour

to raise stock. Boring, after thoroughly satisfying himself that he had

found his goods, proceeded to Somerset and swore out a warrant against

the parties accused. The warrant was placed for execution in the hands

of ---- Philson, the sheriff of Somerset county. Keagy was first

arrested and promptly gave bail for trial, but goaded by the weight of

his offense, soon thereafter committed suicide. Tissue fled the

jurisdiction and was never apprehended. Crider also fled and located in

some of the wilds of that early day in the State of Ohio, where he

married and raised a family, and, it is said, has living descendants to

this day. Markley essayed to flee, but made a failure of it. Giving out

the impression that he had followed in the wake of Tissue and Crider, he

concealed himself in the woods not far from Salisbury, and was supplied

with food by a devoted wife. One Sloan, however, happened to fall upon

his hiding place and he was arrested. Markley owed Sloan a sum of money

and proposed to settle if Sloan would release him from custody. To this

Sloan assented. Markley had no ready money, but owned property and

proffered his note, which Sloan agreed to accept. But no means were at

hand to prepare a note. After canvassing the situation for a while a pen

was made from a stick of wood, ink obtained from stump water, and Sloan

producing a scrap of paper, a note was prepared and duly signed by

Markley for the sum he owed Sloan, and the money subsequently paid by

Markley's wife. Sloan promised Markley that he would not make known his

hiding place, but it leaked out and he was arrested by the sheriff. He

requested permission of the sheriff to go to his house to change his

clothes, which was granted him, and taking advantage of the sheriff's

indulgence, fled to parts unknown. His wife rejoined him in after years

at some point in the West.

Mention was hereinbefore made of the tragical death of Atwell Holland,

killed by a fugitive slave on the 4th of July, 1845, at an old tavern in

the mountain. In this connection it is proper to state, that fugitive

slaves were frequently captured on the National Road, and returned to

their masters. Capt. Thomas Endsley, an old tavern keeper, mentioned

elsewhere, once had a terrible conflict with three powerful fugitive

slaves, at his barn near Somerfield. Without assistance and against most

determined resistance, he succeeded in capturing two of them and

returning them to their owner or master. The third escaped and became a

free man. Capt. Endsley was himself a slave owner as before stated. He

owned and used slaves when he lived at Frostburg, and also during his

incumbency as landlord at the old Tomlinson tavern, and brought eight

with him when he located at Somerfield in 1824. Like all other old slave

owners, he thought there was no wrong in owning slaves and considered it

a conscientious duty to aid in capturing and returning fugitives. His

sons, however, probably from witnessing the struggles of the slaves to

gain their freedom against the efforts of their father, all grew up to

be abolitionists, and abide in the anti-slavery faith to this day.

One of the most untiring and devoted friends of escaping slaves, was

William Willey of Somerfield. He was a shoemaker without means, yet it

is said that he secreted, fed and otherwise aided more fugitive slaves

than any other man on the National Road. He is known to have harbored as

many as eight and ten in a single night, in his lowly tenement. He was a

native of Baltimore, and reared a Democrat. Those of his friends who

survive him regard him as a philanthropist, worthy of a granite

monument. The wife of William E. Beall, the well known manager of the

Uniontown steel mill, a most excellent lady, is a daughter of William

Willey, the old friend of the escaping slaves.

In the year 1829 the postoffice at Somerfield was in the brick house, on

the south side of the street, known as the Irvin house. John Blocher was

postmaster. The old line of coaches, carrying the mail, stopped at the

Endsley House. It was customary for the driver after reaching the tavern

to carry the way mail pouch on his shoulders to the postoffice. One

evening Charley Kemp drove the mail coach in from the west, and upon

going to the office with the mail, found the door locked, and was

unable, after repeated efforts, to gain admittance. Going around to a

window, he looked through the glass into the office, and was horrified

by seeing Blocher, the postmaster, lying on the floor, weltering in

blood, and forcing his way into the room discovered that his throat was

cut. Dr. Frey was summoned, and applied agencies first to arrest the

flow of blood, and then sewed up the gash, and to the surprise of all,

the man recovered and lived for many years thereafter.

In 1834 John Waters, a cattle drover of Ohio, fell sick at Frazer's

tavern, in Somerfield, and languished for many weeks. His mind becoming

affected by reason of his severe bodily suffering, he rose from his bed

one evening when alone, opened his pocketbook and tore into small

fragments a number of good bank notes of the aggregate value of $800. He

then deliberately cut his throat. When discovered he was lying on his

back on the floor, and small pieces of bank notes were seen floating in

blood all around his body. Dr. Frey was summoned on this occasion also,

and under his treatment the much dejected old drover was restored, and

afterward took many droves of cattle over the road to Baltimore. The

fragments of notes were gathered up, carefully cleaned, dried and fitted

together with mucilage, so that the loss of money was inconsiderable.

Some time during the year 1840 or '41 a rather tall and cadaverous

looking individual, presenting the appearance of a man on a protracted

spree, was observed coming down the hill into Somerfield from the east,

walking and leading a beautiful bay horse, equipped with a handsome

saddle and bridle. The quaint looking and quaint moving stranger halted

to converse with a cluster of boys, who were sitting on the pavement in

front of Endsley's tavern, near the stone bridge at the Big Crossings.

He told the boys so many amusing stories, that they reckoned him to be

the clown of a coming circus. That man was Tom Marshall, one of the

brightest of Kentucky's many bright sons, a brilliant lawyer, orator and

statesman, who carried off the palm in every intellectual combat he ever

engaged in save one, and that was when he locked horns with Henry Clay.

The horse led by Marshall was a favorite animal which he kept and used

in Washington, while attending the sittings of Congress. He frequently

passed over the road in the manner described, and often tarried several

days and nights in Uniontown. Many of the surviving pike boys remember

Marshall with distinctness.

CHAPTER XLVI.

_The Arrest, Trial, Conviction and Sentence of Dr. John F. Braddee,

the Notorious Mail Robber--George Plitt makes the Information--Bill

Corman turns on his Chief--Braddee gives Bail--His

Bondsmen--Strayer and Purnell--The Witnesses--The Indictment--The

Jury--The Verdict--The Defendant Dies in the Penitentiary._

There is no doubt that Dr. John F. Braddee was the most notorious

individual that ever lived in Uniontown. The exact date of his advent to

that place seems to be unascertainable, but it was more than fifty years

ago. The culmination of his remarkable career occurred in 1841. Of his

early life but little is accurately known. It is certain that he came to

Uniontown from Virginia. Tradition has it that he was born in Kentucky.

The story goes that when quite a youth he engaged himself as a stable

boy, in the service of a gentleman who dealt in horses in the town of

Paris, State of Kentucky. His employer was accustomed to drive horses to

the eastern market for sale, and on one of these occasions young Braddee

was taken along as an assistant. The horses were driven over what was

called the "North Western Pike of Virginia." At some point on this old

road Braddee fell sick and was left behind. Alter his recovery he made

his way to Uniontown, stopping for a while in, or about Morgantown.

Notwithstanding his robust appearance, which will be remembered by his

old acquaintances, it is said that when a boy he was delicate and

inclined to consumption. This is the story, whether true or not is

immaterial in view of his subsequent history. When he reached Uniontown,

he was not known to be the owner of a single dollar, that he might call

his own. Without education or professional training, he announced

himself a physician, and commenced the practice of medicine. His success

was remarkable. He had a commanding personal appearance, a good address,

and by these means alone impressed himself upon the confidence of the

common mind. He gathered around himself a large circle of friends and

admirers, some of doubtful, but not a few of unquestioned reputation.

His fame as a doctor extended far and wide, patients flocked to consult

him from all points. Many came hundreds of miles. Fifty horses have been

seen hitched around his office at one time.

He possessed and cultivated a fondness for fast horses, probably the

result of his early education in the stable at Paris, Kentucky. He

always kept a number of race horses in training for the turf, and often

matched them against others on the race course. In this line his success

was varying, sometimes he won and as often lost, but losses did not

diminish his love for the race course. The accumulations received from

his large practice of medicine, and his winnings on the race course did

not satisfy his greed for gain, and he conceived and carried into

execution an extraordinary scheme for increasing his gains. It was

nothing less than a carefully organized plan to rob the United States

mail. His success as a physician had enabled him to acquire property,

and he had not been living in Uniontown long until he possessed himself

of one of the most handsome and valuable properties in the place, viz:

the property known as the "Old National House," on Morgantown street. He

bought this property from Hon. Thomas Irwin, who afterwards sat as one

of his Judges in the famous trial to be hereafter mentioned. When

Braddee bought this property, it contained only a single building, the

three story brick on the southern side of the lot. He added the wing to

the north, and here he established his headquarters, carrying on his

business, professional and unprofessional, with a high hand. His office

was convenient, in fact immediately adjoining Stockton's stage yard and

coach factory. Into this stage yard, coaches were driven every day.

Stockton had the contract for carrying the mails. The old pike was in

full blast then, and as many as thirty coaches were driven along it both

ways every day. Among the coaches carrying the great and lesser mails,

one William Corman was a driver, and Braddee cultivated his acquaintance

and secured his confidence. He assured him that money could be made

easily by rifling the mail bags, and promised Corman that if he would

hand him the bags, he would "go through them" and divide profits with

him. Corman consented. It was of course soon discovered that the mails

were tampered with, and United States detectives were set upon the

tracks of the offenders. They were not long in ascertaining the guilty

parties. Corman was arrested and told the whole story. Braddee had other

accomplices, viz: P. Mills Strayer, and Dr. Wm. Purnell. Strayer was a

saddler, who carried on a shop in Uniontown, and died only a few years

ago. Purnell was a sort of body servant of Braddee, and for many years

after Braddee's death peddled Braddee's medicine through Fayette and

adjoining counties. Braddee was arrested on information made by Wm.

Corman, and his arrest caused more excitement than any event that ever

transpired in Uniontown.

THE INFORMATION.

_Pennsylvania, Fayette County, ss_:

George Plitt, agent of the P. O. Department, being duly sworn, says that

the United States mail from Wheeling, Virginia, to New York, traveling

on the National Road, has been stolen, to-wit: The mails made up at

Wheeling on the 13th, 19th, 23d and 29th of November, 1840, and on the

5th, 12th and 18th of December, 1840, and that he has reason to suspect

and does suspect and believe that Wm. Corman, who on those days drove

the mail stage containing said mail from Washington to Uniontown,

Pennsylvania, is guilty, with others of stealing said mails.

GEO. PLITT, _Agt. P.O. Dept._

Sworn and subscribed this 6th day of January, A. D. 1841, before me.

N. EWING,

_Prest. Judge 14th Judicial District, Pennsylvania_.

Same day warrant issued, directed to the Sheriff of Washington county,

and to all other Sheriffs and Constables within the Fourteenth Judicial

District.

* * * * *

George Plitt, agent of the P. O. Department, being duly sworn, says that

the United States Mails from Wheeling, Virginia, to New York, traveling

on the National Road, has been stolen, to-wit: The mails made up at

Wheeling on the 13th, 19th, 23d and 29th of November, 1840, and on the

5th, 12th, and 18th of December, 1840, and that he has reason to

suspect, and does suspect and believe that John F. Braddee, William

Purnell, and Peter Mills Strayer, with others, are guilty of stealing

the mails.

GEO. PLITT, _Agt. P.O. Dept._

Sworn and subscribed this 7th day of January, A. D. 1841, before

N. EWING,

_Prest. Judge 14th Judicial District, Pennsylvania_.

Same day warrant issued to George Meason, Esq., Sheriff of Fayette

county, and to all constables.

* * * * *

_The United States of America vs. John F. Braddee, William Purnell, et

al._

William Corman, being duly sworn, says that more than one year ago John

F. Braddee repeatedly urged him to let him, the said Braddee, have some

of the mail bags from the mail coach, and that he would divide the money

taken from them with said Corman. Said Braddee said he had frequently

known such things done, and that lots of money had thus been made, and

it had never been detected. While said Corman was driving the mail coach

between Smithfield and Uniontown last winter, the said Braddee sent

Peter Mills Strayer frequently in a sleigh after him to get a mail bag

containing a mail--that at length he, said Strayer, took one from the

coach, which was then on runners, while he, the said Corman, was

watering at Snyder's, east of the Laurel Hill. That Braddee afterwards

told him that there was nothing in it.

That he knows of no other mail being taken until within about two months

past, when he, the said Corman, was driving between Uniontown and

Washington, and when at the instance and after repeated and urgent

requests of said Braddee he commenced leaving a mail pouch or bag in the

stage coach, when the coaches were changed at Uniontown, and continued

to do so at intervals of (say) a week, ten days or two weeks, until

within a week or ten days before Christmas. That the said mail bags were

taken from the coach by said Braddee or some one under his direction.

That Braddee after the taking of said mails would sometimes say there

was nothing in them, and again that others had but little money in them.

One he said had but fifteen dollars. The last but one gotten, as before

stated, he said had a large amount of money in it, but he was going to

keep it secretly--bury it until the fuss was over. That said Braddee

said he had a secret place out of doors where he could hide the mail

bags so that they could not be found. That said Braddee from time to

time gave him three dollars or five dollars as he asked for it, and once

ten dollars; and loaned him forty dollars when his (Corman's) wife was

going away. That William Purnell several times after a mail bag had been

taken, would take him, said Corman, aside and whisper to him that the

bag had nothing in it. That on the day before yesterday he was several

times at said Braddee's house and Braddee wished him to leave a mail bag

in the coach for him when he, said Corman, should return from Washington

last night. That said Braddee very often wished him to leave a mail bag

when he did not. That he, Braddee, requested him to leave the large mail

bag in the coach for him, but he never did do it.

WILLIAM CORMAN.

Sworn and subscribed this 8th day of January, A. D. 1841, before me

N. EWING,

_Pres. Judge of the 14th Jud. Dist., Pa._

Dr. Howard Kennedy also made a preliminary affidavit, which is given in

a previous chapter.

WARRANT OF ARREST.

_The United States of America to George Meason, Esq., High Sheriff of

Fayette County, Pa., and to all Constables of said County_:

WHEREAS, John F. Braddee, William Purnell and Peter Mills Strayer have

been charged before me, the President Judge of the Fourteenth Judicial

District in the said State, on the oath of George Plitt, an agent of the

Post Office Department, with stealing the United States mails from

Wheeling to New York, these are therefore to command you, and each of

you, to take the said John F. Braddee, William Purnell and Peter Mills

Strayer, and bring them before me, or some other Magistrate having

jurisdiction, to be dealt with according to law.

Witness the hand and seal of the said N. Ewing, President Judge as

aforesaid, at Uniontown, the 7th day of January, A. D. 1841.

N. EWING, [SEAL.]

_Pres. Judge of the 14th Jud. Dist., Pa._

* * * * *

_Pennsylvania, Fayette County, ss_:

The examination of Dr. John F. Braddee, of the borough of Uniontown,

Fayette county, Pa., taken before me, N. Ewing, President Judge of the

Fourteenth Judicial District of Pennsylvania, the 8th day of January, A.

D. 1841.

The said John F. Braddee being brought before me by virtue of a warrant

issued by me, on suspicion of stealing the United States Mails from

Wheeling, Va., to New York, made up at Wheeling on the 13th, 19th, 23d

and 29th days of November, 1840; and on the 5th, 12th and 18th days of

December, 1840, says: I know nothing about the alleged stealing of the

mails.

his

JOHN F. × BRADDEE,

mark.

Taken and subscribed before me,

N. EWING,

January 8, 1841. _Pres. Judge 14th Jud. Dist. of Pa._

* * * * *

_Pennsylvania, Fayette County, ss_:

The examination of Peter Mills Strayer, of the borough of Uniontown,

Fayette county. Pa., taken before me, N. Ewing, President Judge of the

Fourteenth Judicial District of Pennsylvania, on the 8th day of January,

A. D. 1841.

The said Peter Mills Strayer being brought before me by virtue of a

warrant issued by me, on suspicion of stealing the United States Mails

from Wheeling, Va., to New York, made up at Wheeling on the 13th, 19th,

23d and 29th days of November, and on the 5th, 12th, and 18th days of

December, 1840, says: I know nothing about the mail bags or the stealing

of the mails.

P. M. STRAYER.

Taken and subscribed before me,

N. EWING,

_Pres. Judge 14th Dist. of Pa._

January 8, 1841.

* * * * *

_The United Stales of America, Fayette County, Pennsylvania, ss_:

The United States of America vs. John F. Braddee. January 8, 1841,

ordered that John F. Braddee enter into security himself in fifty

thousand dollars, and two sufficient sureties in $25,000 each. Prisoner

remanded until Monday, the 11th instant, at 10 o'clock A. M., to afford

time to procure bail.

The same vs. Peter Mills Strayer, January 8th, 1841, ordered that Peter

Mills Strayer enter into security himself in $15,000, and two sufficient

sureties in $7,500 each. Prisoner remanded until Monday, the 11th

instant, at 10 o'clock, to afford time to procure bail.

The same vs. William Purnell. January 8th, 1841. Ordered that William

Purnell enter into security himself in $10,000, and two sufficient

sureties in $5,000 each. Prisoner remanded as above, etc.

January 11, 1841. Monday, 10 o'clock, A.M. Prisoners ordered before the

Judge. Prisoners say they are not provided with bail and ask further

time, until say three o'clock P.M. Three o'clock, P.M., no bail being

offered the defendants are committed to the custody of the Marshal of

the Western District of Pennsylvania.

N. EWING,

_Pres. Judge, 14th Jud. Dist., Pa_.

MITTIMUS.

_The United States of America, Fayette County, Pennsylvania, ss_:

The United States of America to the Marshal of the Western District of

Pennsylvania, Greeting: WHEREAS, John F. Braddee, of the borough of

Uniontown, in the County aforesaid, hath been brought before the Hon.

Nathaniel Ewing, President Judge of the Fourteenth Judicial District of

Pennsylvania, by virtue of the warrant of the Hon. Nathaniel Ewing,

President Judge as aforesaid, charged upon the solemn oath of George

Plitt, agent of the General Post Office department, with stealing the

United States mails made up at Wheeling, Virginia, for New York, on the

13th, 19th, 23d and 29th days of November, 1840--and on the 5th, 12th

and 18th days of December, 1840.

These are therefore to command you the said Marshall to receive the said

John P. Braddee, and keep him in safe custody until he be delivered by

due course of law. Hereof fail not.

Witness the Hon. Nathaniel Ewing, President Judge as aforesaid, at

Uniontown, the eleventh day of January, Anno Domini 1841.

N. EWING,

_Pres. Judge of the 14th Jud. Dist., Pa_.

* * * * *

_The United States of America vs. John F. Braddee, William Purnell,

Peter Mills Strayer and William Corman, charged on oath of several

robberies of the U. S. Mail._

George Meason tent in $1,000; William Crawford tent in $1,000; William

Freeman tent in $1,000; James McCune tent in $1,000.

On this condition, that the said George Meason, William Crawford,

William Freeman and James McCune shall be and appear at the next Circuit

Court of the United States, to be held for the Western District of

Pennsylvania on the third Monday of May next, and give testimony in ----

of the said United States against the said John F. Braddee, William

Purnell, Peter Mills Strayer and William Corman, and not depart the

court without leave, otherwise the recognizance to be in full force and

virtue.

GEO. MEASON, [SEAL.]

WM. CRAWFORD, [SEAL.]

JAS. McCUNE, [SEAL.]

WM. FREEMAN. [SEAL.]

Taken and acknowledged this 13th day of January, A. D. 1841. _Coram_,

T. IRWIN,

_Dist. Judge of the U. S., Western Dist. of Pa_.

U. S. COMMITMENT.

_United States of America, Western District of Pennsylvania, ss_:

The United States of America to the Marshal of the Western District of

Pennsylvania and his deputies, to any constable of the County of

Allegheny, and to the jailer of said County of Allegheny, Greeting:

WHEREAS, John F. Braddee, William Purnell and Peter Mills Strayer are

now brought before me, the Hon. Thomas Irwin, Esquire, Judge of the

District Court of the United States for the Western District of

Pennsylvania, charged on the oath of George Plitt, William Corman and

others, with stealing the United States mail made up at Wheeling on the

13th, 19th, 23d and 29th days of November, A.D. 1840, and on the 5th,

12th and 18th days of December, 1840. These are therefore to command

you, the said marshal, constable or jailer, or either of you, to convey

the said John F. Braddee, William Purnell and Peter Mills Strayer to the

said jailer of Allegheny county, and you, the said jailer, are hereby

commanded to receive and keep safely the said John F. Braddee, William

Purnell and Peter Mills Strayer in your jail until they thence be

discharged by due course of law. For so doing this shall be your

warrant.

In testimony whereof the said Hon. Thomas Irwin, Esq., has hereunto set

his hand and seal, this 13th day of January, A. D. 1841.

(Signed)

TH. IRWIN, [SEAL.]

_District Judge, U. S._

* * * * *

PITTSBURG, PENNA., 25th of Jan'y, 1841.

Howard Kennedy, special agent of the Post Office Department, in addition

to the testimony given by him before His Honor Judge Ewing, in the case

of the United States against Braddee, Purnell, Strayer and Corman,

relative to the probable loss of money, drafts, &c., in the stolen

mails, further deposes, that since that time he has received reports

from various persons and places in the West of letters mailed at dates

which would have by due course of mail been in the bags stolen,

containing bank notes, scrip, certificates, drafts and checks, amounting

to one hundred and two thousand dollars and upwards; that every mail

brings him additional reports of losses, and that he believes the

amounts reported will not constitute more than one-half of what has been

lost in the mails between the 16th of Nov., and the 18th of Dec., 1840,

on the route from Wheeling to New York.

HOWARD KENNEDY,

_Special Agent P. O. Dep't._

Sworn and subscribed before me the 25th January, 1841.

T. IRWIN,

_District Judge_.

PETITIONS FOR HABEAS CORPUS.

_To the Hon. Thomas Irwin, Judge of the United States Court of the

Western District of Pennsylvania_:

The petition of William Purnell respectfully represents that your

petitioner is now confined in the jail of Allegheny county, in obedience

to a warrant of commitment, a true copy of which is prefixed to this

petition. Your petitioner humbly prays your Honor to award a _habeas

corpus_, that he may be bailed by sufficient sureties, according to the

first article and ninth section of the Constitution of the United

States, January 29, 1819.

WILLIAM PURNELL.

_To the Hon. Thomas Irwin, Judge of the Court of the United States for

the Western District of Pennsylvania_:

The petition of Doctor John F. Braddee respectfully represents that your

petitioner is now confined in the jail of Allegheny county, in obedience

to a warrant of commitment, a true copy of which is prefixed to this

petition.

Your petitioner humbly prays your Honor to award a _habeas corpus_, that

he may be bailed by sufficient sureties, according to the first article

and ninth section of the Constitution of the United States.

The United States _vs_. John F. Braddee.

his

JOHN F. × BRADDEE.

mark.

Petition for _habeas corpus_ granted, and issued January 28, 1841.

The same _vs._ Wm. Purnell, _alias_ William Purnell, January 29, 1841.

* * * * *

_United States vs. Braddee._

Let a _habeas corpus_ issue in this case according to the prayer of the

petitioner, returnable forthwith.

THOMAS IRWIN,

_District Judge_.

E. J. ROBERTS, Esq., _Clerk_.

January 26, 1841.

_United States vs. Purnell._

Let a _habeas corpus_ issue in this case according to the prayer of the

petitioner, returnable forthwith.

THOMAS IRWIN,

_District Judge, Western District of Pennsylvania_.

E. J. ROBERTS, ESQ., _Cl'k D. Court_.

THE WRIT AND JAILER'S RETURN.

_Western District of Pennsylvania, ss_:

The President of the United States to the Marshal of said District, and

the jailer of Allegheny county, greeting:

We command you the body of John F. Braddee in your custody, under safe

and secure conduct before the Hon. Thomas Irwin, Judge of our District

Court, at his chambers in the city of Pittsburgh, together with the day

and cause of his said caption and detention, forthwith then and there to

be subject to whatsoever our said Judge shall consider in that behalf,

and have you then there this writ.

Witness the Hon. Thomas Irwin, Judge of the United States for said

District, at Pittsburg, the twenty-eighth day of January, A. D. eighteen

hundred and forty-one.

E. J. ROBERTS, _Clerk_.

The body of the above named John F. Braddee I have brought before your

Honor, together with day and cause of his being detained, in obedience

to the writ.

So answers Jas. McCune, jailer of Allegheny county.

To the Hon. Thomas Irwin.