the effects of "fire water" which they had obtained from the traders at Muscoda. He remarked many times that he always got along pretty well with the Indians until they got some whisky, and then they were inclined to be very troublesome. A brief description of the interior of Coumbe's cabin may be interesting. The walls, of course, were formed of the rough logs which made the framework. The entire house was put together almost wholly without the use of nails, for they were expensive and difficult to obtain. The floor was covered with uneven boards hewn out of the trunks of great trees, for there were no sawmills in those early days. Coumbe built a sort of rude counter across one end of the house, behind which he kept his supplies. At one end was an immense fireplace where logs eight feet long might be burned. There were some pegs driven into the wall to the left of the fireplace. It was here that the pioneer always placed his trusty gun when indoors. On the particular night of which we were speaking, one of the tallest bucks of the party approached the spot where the gun rested. He was twice told by the host not to touch it, but the half-drunken redskin continued to meddle with the flintlock. Quick as a flash the powerful white man sprang upon him, seized him by the hair with one hand and the breech clout with the other, and pitched him head first out into the darkness. The other braves recognized the justice of the action, and expressed their approval by loud shouts of laughter. Afterwards the settler said that if he had discrimi nated against any of the orderly members of the party, they would all have been upon him in a moment. Sometime after the incident just related, Mr. Coumbe took his plowshare, or lay, to Muscoda to have it repaired. He crossed the river and took the Indian trail on the south side, which led through tall grass as high as his head. Just as he had covered about half the distance (five or six miles), there in the narrow path directly in front of him stood the very Indian whom he had thrown out of his lodging so unceremoniously but a short time before. He was an unusually large buck of powerful stature, and towered high above the head of the white man. He asked Mr. Coumbe for some tobacco, but the latter said curtly, "Got none!" and walked on without so much as turning around to see what the Indian was doing, although he fully expected an arrow in his back the next minute. Such bravery could not but strike this savage with awe and admiration. He is reported as having remarked later to another settler: "Coumbe, heap much brave.” During the three years John Coumbe was living a lonely life in his solitary cabin on the site of Tippesaukee, he often made excursions into the wilds north of Wisconsin River. Before starting on these journeys, he always put all of his tools in the cabin and secured them by a strong hasp. This was necessary, for prowling Indians would carry away everything on which they could lay their hands. One day when he was returning from one of these exploring trips, and was within a half-mile of the cabin, he beard a noise below him on the edge of the trail near the river bank. Soon he could see an Indian hiding behind the trees. He called to the Indian to come out, but the savage continued to skulk under cover. At last, after repeatedly commanding him to come forward, Mr. Coumbe succeeded in getting him to show himself. The Indian presented the appearance of having rolled in an ash heap, and the pioneer's suspicions were aroused. He then asked the savage where he had been and what he was hiding under his blanket. The Indian answered, "Me good Injun. Smoke peace pipe." This Mr. Coumbe refused to do until the red man showed what he had under his blanket. The Indian tried all kinds of artful dodges to escape detection; but seeing that his questioner was deeply in earnest and was handling his gun in a threatening manner, he complied with the white man's request and drew forth several loaves of bread. He had climbed to the top of the chimney of the fireplace and had gained entrance through this sooty opening to the room below. Mr. Coumbe gave the Indian a severe lecture on the evil of his way, and then compelled him to return the bread to the cabin. It must be kept in mind that bread was precious to that lone pioneer, for his meal and flour had to be brought from Galena. The journey thither was a long and fatiguing one, which he aimed to take once each year when he hauled his flailed wheat to mill. This usually took place in winter, when the ice afforded a bridge upon which to cross the river. Sometimes, when he was unable to cross the river on the ice, he was obliged to carry his wheat to mill in the summer. In order to cross the river it was necessary for him to take his wagon-load of grist up stream a mile by ox team. At this point the wagon was unloaded, taken to pieces, placed on two Indian canoes, and poled to the opposite bank. The return trip was then made and the wheat loaded onto the canoes, to be transported in like manner. Then the oxen were forced to swim across the river, where the wagon was again set up and the journey resumed along the blazed trail to Galena. The process was repeated in crossing the river upon his return. By continuing his practice of always treating the Indian squarely, the young man managed to remain on his claim; he lived alone in his hut and worked constantly, clearing the land and preparing it for cultivation. It was not an enviable situation, to dwell miles from any other white men, alone in the midst of a wild country. Had he not been inspired by a purpose and possessed of indomitable courage and will power, he would soon have given up his project and returned to the comforts of civilization. It was three long years before other settlers followed him to the region. His brother Edward was among the first to come, and soon afterward two of his sisters, Lottie and Mary Coumbe, migrated to the new country. Lottie was later married to Captain Andrews, who operated a large boat on the river and founded the village of Port Andrew, which still bears his name. Mary became the wife of Judge J. T. Mills of Lancaster, a learned and eminent gentleman. After the burning of his second cabin, Mr. Coumbe built a more pretentious log house not far from his last hut. After having lived in the new country alone for nine years, he was married, May 31, 1849, to Sarah Ann Palmer, daughter of Thomas Palmer, who was also a pioneer of Richland County. In this new house they began their wedded life.1 The Coumbe homestead is situated on the hilltop before alluded to, about one-half mile west of the village of Port Andrew. 1 Seven children were born to them-three girls and four boys. The eldest son, Thomas, a talented young man, died at the early age of nineteen. The youngest child, Lottie, died in childhood. Sarah Sophia, commonly known as "Pet," died at her home in Blue River, Wisconsin. Will Coumbe lives at present in Kansas City, Missouri, where he is engaged in the real estate business. Robert Coumbe, of Blue River, is a banker. Warner Coumbe, a physician, lives at Richland Center. Mrs. Mary Powers, the only living daughter, now occupies the old homestead. She has in her possession many Indian relics and souvenirs of by-gone days. The beautiful elevation on which it is built affords a splendid view of the Wisconsin River. It needs no stretch of the imagination to picture the noted pioneer sitting on the broad veranda and gazing out over the rippling water of the river studded with green islands, or watching the changing shades on the distant hills. These bluffs, which are often seen through a blue haze that seems to enhance their loveliness, complete the panoramic view. One cannot help thinking of Irving and his immortal pictures of the region along the Hudson, and wishing for some modern dreamer who could gaze into the vistas of former years and crystallize the stories of those brave pioneers. John Coumbe was a man of high ideals, keen intellect, and nobility of character. He was always on the side of right, and championed the cause of the weak and the oppressed. Many a poor settler has Mr. Coumbe to thank for having rescued his claim from the hands of fraudulent land sharks. He raised his family in a remarkable way, considering the times, for he sent all of his seven children away to school and college. His tastes were those of a cultured English gentleman, and he brought into the home he founded in the new country many of the refinements of the most civilized parts of the world. Music and art found a liberal patron in him. It was a great day when the large, square rosewood piano, the first in the county, was brought into the parlor of the big white house on the hill, and all the neighbors from far and near came to view the wonder. He was always a hard-working man. In later years he rode a fine riding horse when overseeing the estate and his outlying farms. This venerated pioneer died, at the age of seventy-four, in his home on the bank of the river he loved, having carved for himself a unique and highly honored place in the history of Richland County. DOCUMENTS THE SPEECH OF HONORABLE JOHN E. CASHMAN, PROHIBITING THE USE OF PUBLIC SCHOOL TEXTBOOKS CONTAINING The history of a nation is its proudest asset. It includes the record of its great men, their ideals, sacrifices and achievements. To preserve that history in all its original purity and teach it to the rising generations is a nation's first duty. To pollute that history, rewrite it from a foreign viewpoint, malign the nation's founders and defenders, assail their ideals and question their integrity, and teach that to the children in the schools, is treason to the nation; it poisons the wells where the children drink, destroys their patriotism and love of country. No nation since time began has a grander or more sublime history than ours. The bravest and most liberty-loving people from out the mother land of Europe laid the foundations of this republic. The Dutch settled New Netherlands, now New York, the English settled many of the colonies, the Swedes settled Delaware, the Germans were numerous in Pennsylvania, the Irish in Maryland and in all the colonies, the French were the trail blazers of civilization. But all these different peoples braved the long voyage of the Atlantic and the hazards of an unknown wilderness inhabited by wild men and wild animals, in order to escape civil and religious persecutions in the lands where lay the bones of their fathers for a thousand years, in order to be free. We owe much to the countries whence they came. Back of the common law of England was the civil law of old Rome, adopted in continental countries. To Holland we are indebted for the written ballot, and for town and county representation 1 Delivered March 1, 1923, in the Wisconsin State Senate. |