ownership, etc.

Also, along the route were school houses, such as are seen all over the country, where the children assemble to get a good common school education to equip them for the duties of life.

Finally ahead of us there loomed up a big farm house— big enough for a hotel, where our companion lives and where we stopped. The occasion of our visit was to attend the eighty-sixth birthday anniversary of George Kirby, the father of our host, whom we had not seen for more than fifty years. We were kindly, even cordially received.

George Kirby was born in Madison county, Illinois, December 20, 1812, and came to Clary's Grove, Menard county, in 1820. We doubt if there are a dozen people now living who were here when he came. The county was wild. then. Venison, wild turkey and other game supplied the board tables in the rude cabin of his father, Cyrus Kirby. It was before any of the great inventions of the age had been made. There were no railroads, no telegraph, no telephones no bicycles. It must have been a lonesome time for young George, growing up at that time, but he did grow up. He received a common school education, and with his good common sense made a success in life while others with just as good or better advantages made dismal failures. He married Dorcas Atterberry in October, 1834. She died a few years ago. His son, George T., (our host), now conducts the farm. He is a "chip off the old block"-a fine specimen of the middle-aged men, sons of the pioneers of this country.

Among the guests were the venerable Squire D. Masters and wife, Mrs. Lucy Watkins, (sister of George Kirby), James Senter, (a son-in-law) and wife, and others. Mrs. Watkins has passed her ninetieth year.

A royal feast was spread. The fatted calf had been killed, and Mrs. George Kirby, Jr., and her daughters, left nothing undone to make the guests feel at home.

After

dinner all repaired to the sitting room, where a blazing fire in the old fashioned fireplace, the first we had seen in many years, made everything look cheerful. "Uncle George" and Squire Masters regaled the party with anecdotes and incidents of early days, and upon comparing notes we found that there were three of us who had never drank liquor or used tobacco in any form.

"Uncle George" Kirby's success as a farmer is attested by his ownership of 1,200 acres of fine farm land. The home place is well kept and well stocked by the son, George T., better known as "Tobe." He is feeding sixty head of cattle and a fine lot of hogs at the present time. He not only feeds all the corn produced on the farm but buys as much more of the neighbors.

"Tobe" has a bachelor brother, Sam, a fine, good looking man in the prime of life. If Sam lived in Mason county some buxom widow or old maid would capture him the first leap year that came around. We feel an interest in him and would help him to get a wife if he would say so.

The men of George Kirby's stamp have made this country what it is. They have left their impress on their sons, who in turn have sons that cultivate the moral and intellectual interests of the physical man. Many of the men we have written about, who lived and died in the early history of the county, contributed but little to its morals.

We came from the Kirby home to Petersburg in the evening. The road was quite muddy, but with "Tobe" for our companion the trip was a pleasant one.

We like to meet these old settlers and as we have leisure now will be glad to do so at any time; and we promise to keep our end of the single-tree up.

CHAPTER XIX.

OLD TIME STORIES

MONG the pioneer settlers of Menard county who have answered death's call within the past year were Dulcena Goodpasture and Parthena Hill. I remember Mrs. Goodpasture from the time of her marriage-a tall, beautiful young woman of majestic carriage. She came from a noble family and was a sister of Jacob and John Williams. As a boy, I had great reverence for her; she was so kind and affable and made one feel at ease when in her presence. I had not seen her for nearly fifty years until about a year ago I met her at McGrady Rutledge's in Petersburg. She had changed greatly, of course, but there was the same kindly greeting as in the olden times. I saw her again at Old Salem Chautauqua and the signs of declining health were plainly visible. The end came in a few months and this uncrowned queen of earth was re-united with her husband. When the roll is called up yonder, no purer, brighter spirit will answer than Dulcena Goodpasture. She had

It was in 1837 that I first saw Parthena Hill. just been married to Samuel Hill, the Salem merchant. Her maiden name was Nance, and she was a sister of Hon. Thomas Nance. She stood high in the circle in which she moved. She joined the Presbyterian church and was a devoted christian as long as she lived. Mr. Hill died and many years of her life were spent in the loneliness of widowhood. I made it a point to call on her when I visited Petersburg, and was always warmly welcomed. She loved to talk over old times and more than once spoke about my plat of Salem

and the article about the village which I furnished The Democrat in 1892. She had preserved them in a scrap book.

These two noble women outlived their generation. Like ripened shocks of grain they have been gathered into the heavenly garner and the world is better because they lived.

When a boy I helped Abraham Goodpasture farm the bottom land along where the C., P. & St. L. railroad crosses the river south of Petersburg. The land was new and very fertile and the corn grew so high that I had to bend the stalks down to gather the ears. The bottom land between Petersburg and Salem, though it has been farmed a long time, appears to still produce abundant crops. I saw corn on the old Able farm two years ago that would make sixty bushels to the acre.

Goodpasture and I ran a thrashing machine one year. Not a steam thrasher. Oh, no. It was a horse power of the primitive kind. We scraped off a round spot of ground about twenty feet in diameter and when we had ten acres of wheat to thrash we would haul a couple of loads and lay it down on this ground and I would ride the horses around on it until we would get dizzy; then I would turn them and go the other way as long as I and the horses could stand it. Then Brother G. would say: "While you are resting take my fork and stir up the grain." I thought it was a queer way to rest, but generally obeyed. I think we could thrash and clean about one acre a day. Goodpasture was from the hilly part of Tennessee and commenced farming in the Sangamon bottoms. He was a fair preacher; not of the sensational kind, but of the doctrinal sort.

The history of Menard county would be incomplete without an extended notice of Hardin Bale, the eldest son of Jacob Bale. As early as 1836 he was running the carding machine in Salem. He was an expert machinist. The main building was a frame about forty feet square. A shed on the north covered the incline wheel which was forty feet

in diameter and stood at an incline of twenty-five degrees. On this wheel two oxen furnished the motive power. A large siil operated by a lever in the side of the mill held the wheel still, and it was set in motion by letting the brake loose. The cogs in this machine were all made of wood. With this. rude machinery all the carding machines were run. First was the picker, which made the wool ready for the first machine. After going through this it was left in bats ready for the finisher, and came out in rolls. It was then done up in bundles and tied up. Hardin took toll out of the wool after it had been run through the picker. In 1841 he moved his machine to Petersburg and established it on Main street, four blocks south of the present court house. Great improvements were made. The buildings were larger, the wheel was nearly fifty feet in diameter, iron cogs were substituted for the wooden ones, and horses and mules were used instead of oxen.

In the course of a few years steam took the place of horse power and machinery for fulling cloth was added; then a spinning jenny with one hundred and sixty-eight spindles; then weaving machines. Samuel Hill, who always took a great interest in machinery and Hardin Bale, became partners and a pair of French buhrs were added. The mill now assumed large proportions and was successfully run till firedestroyed it in 1865. The ground has since laid vacant.

Hardin Bale came out of the fire considerably worsted, but he was not inclined to give up. He secured a large building across the branch by the coal bank and there carried on the business for a number of years. Among the men who worked for him many years were Hurd, the fuller, and Caleb Carman, the carder. These men and their employer have gone to the country from whence no traveler has yet returned.

Hardin Bale married Esther Summers in his early manhood and raised quite a family. His father-in-law, Len