Gage County NeArchives News.....Pioneer Days in Beatrice January 31, 1894 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ne/nefiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Debra Crosby http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00010.html#0002467 July 29, 2019, 8:03 pm The Beatrice Daily Express Wednesday Evening Jan 31, 1894 Pg 1 January 31, 1894 PIONEER DAYS IN BEATRICE How Oliver Townsend, J. B. Weston and Joe Saunders Prayed for Coon and Got Venison-- Pap Towle's Hotel and his Bays-- A Story of Ante-War Days--How the Pioneers Put in Their Time The venerable Mr. Samuel Shaw, one of the earliest pioneers of Gage county and Beatrice, but now living in Palma Sola, Fla., writes The EXPRESS the following interesting and entertaining bit of pioneer experience in this vicinity which will be read with the keen enjoyment by presten Beatricians. To the Editor of THE EXPRESS Presuming that a sketch of the early experience of the pioneers of Beatrice would interest your readers and my old friends at Beatrice, is the only excuse I have to offer in writing you again. On the banks of the Blue river there used to stand a little log cabin. It was the only hotel there was in Beatrice at that time. Pap Towle was the proprietor and nearly all the town people boarded with him. But they had to furnish their own grub and do their own washing and mending. At that time we had to get all of our supplies from the Missouri river. We had sent down for supplies, but through high water, bad roads and no bridges the teams were delayed and the lookout for provisions seemed very discouraging. Pap's boarders at that time were J. B. Weston, Oliver Townsend and Joe Saunders. Mr. Saunders told the boys that their stock grub was very low, and wanted to know what they were going to do about it. Mr. Weston Said: "Well boys I saw some fresh coon tracks up the river yesterday, and so I'll just take my gun and try my luck and if I get one it will last over Sunday." So Mr. Weston took his gun and tramped all day long. The day was aful cold and chilly, too cold for coons to be out and he did not get any nor see any but came back in the evening tired and discouraged. The boys felt bad. They ate the last of their grub for supper. This was Saturday night and the outlook for Sunday was very gloomy. The boys took turns in cooking and Sunday it was Oliver Townsend's turn to cook. They all slept in one bedroom and it being Sunday morning they did not care about getting up very early Mr. Weston called Oliver Townsend saying: "Why ain't you up and getting break- fast?" "WelL,"Oliver says, "If you will furnish the grub I'll get up and make it ready." "Well," said Weston, "I tried hard all day yesterday to catch that coon and I couldn't fetch him in. Now, Oliver, the good Book says, 'Ask and ye shall receive.' Ask the Lord now to send us something. "Well," replied Oliver, "Prayer without faith is sin. And I never prayed in my life, so Weston, you will have to do the praying." Weston then turned to Joe Saunders and said: "Joe, the good Book says 'that when two or three are gathered together in My name, there I will be in the midst of them, and that to bless.'" Joe replied: "If you fellows wait to get provisions by my praying for them we'll starve to death. The Lord helps them that helps themselves. Weston, you ought to have started earlier and got that coon while he was hunting his breakfast." "Hang it," said Weston, "Joe, we've got to do some- thing. Now you are a good speaker, you just try it, and ask the Lord to send us something to eat--anything will do. I'm getting hungry and Oliver wants to get down to cooking." "Honest, now boys," returned Joe, "I haven't a bit of faith in emergency prayers while Weston is such a poor coon hunter." "Well then we won't have any breakfast," observed Weston. Then they all rolled over and tried to go to sleep again and think. Pap Towle, in the meanwhile, heard the boys talking and, as good luck would have it, he had just bought a venison from the Indians the day before. It was a nice deer, already dressed. So he just takes one quarter of this deer and creeps up overhead in the garret. The chamber floor boards were all loose, so he just shoved the boards apart and let the quarter of venison drop down on Oliver Townsend's bed. Joe Saunders jumped up and said: "Now, boys, I believe the Bible is true, every word of it. For just look, there was Oliver praying in quiet while we were doubting. Thee's the venison right fresh from Canaan, and it can't have been long in coming either." Well, before they had eaten all the venison the long look for train had arrived, loaded with the needful provisions. Then there was another anecdote worth repeating in regard to Dave Butler and Pap Towle. This I have from Governor Butler himself. The United States authorities had sent Butler out in the vicinity of Beatrice to drum up recruits for the First Nebraska regiments in the early years of the war. He came to "Pap" Towle's one night from Nebraska City. We all called Mr. Towle "Pap" for shorot. Mr. Butler enjoyed the hospitality of "Pap's" hotel that night, and the next morning being Sunday, "Pap" had to go half a mile to get his cow to milk. Butler was on urgent business, that he wanted kept kind of secret, so he kept close to "Pap's" heels all the time talking abot war. Finally he said to "Pap" "now I see Mr. Towle you have a fine large family of boys here. All of them look stout and hearty. Now give us a lift for the First Nebraska." "Why Mr. Butler," said 'Pap. "I haven't got any boys to my name. My boys are all girls." "Thunder," said Butler. "How does it happen that all these young men I see come in here and call you "Pap?" Mr. Towle laughingly explained that the boys had given him the name as a nickname. Then Mr. Butler called Pap to one side an said: "Mr. Towle, for the Lord's sake don't let this get out, keep it to yourself, else if the boys find it out they will bore me to death." Mr. Towle's daughter Kate, was the first girl baby born in Beatrice. Her father had been postmaster for a good many years. He died very suddenly and at his death Kate was appointed postmaster, and kept the office as long as she wanted, then gave it up. Mr. Butler referred to was the first governor of Nebraska if my memory serves me right. Well, when the Kansas war came on I started out with the boys through the Kansas war and stayed long enough to vote three times and bring it in as a free state. I have two scars on me I received in the Kansas war that I will carry to my grave. I enlisted in 1861, went through the Civil Wal and never got a scratch. My motto is Freedom and Union forever. If this is printed you'll hear from me again. Good bye for this time. From your friend, Samuel Shaw Palma Sola, Fla., Jan 25, 1894. [The EXPRESS and its readers will assuredly be pleased to hear from Friend Shaw frequently. His stock of reminiscences of the early history of Gage county will be gladly published--Ed.] File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ne/gage/newspapers/pioneerd31nw.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/nefiles/ File size: 7.4 Kb