Shot in the Neck? No Problem

March 18 1881

Notices:  The M.E. Church of Lawrenceville had preaching every alternate Sabbath with Sunday school at 3:00. The Lawrenceville Christian Church had preaching every 3rd Lord's Day in each month with Sunday school every Sunday at 3:00. The Edwards Dobbins Lodge #164 A. F. & A. M. met in their hall every second and fourth Saturday nights monthly according to A. Lewis and WC Gilbert.

As the weather was liable to be some better, the editor asked why it would not be a good idea to commence cleaning up and repairing some of the sidewalks that were in many places almost impassable after a rain. One strip in particular from the Buchanan House and running West to the railroad seemed to need some little attention. The walk had been laid flat upon the ground and the bank next to the fence running almost the entire distance had caved down over the walk by the freezing and thawing process of winter, leaving the walk most of the way covered with from one to three inches of mud and water most of the year. Sam Day, editor, wanted to submit the matter to the street commissioner in the mildest possible manner, if he thought it was better to let the walk that was already built, rot for the want of a little attention when needed, or build a new one. 

Deaths Adam C Stoltz of Christy Township February 10th aged 32 years and nine months; CM Bosley of Lawrence Township February 27th, age 56 years and six months. Mrs. Phil Moses died of a ruptured tumor and Joseph Gibson died of consumption both of Russellville, no dates or ages were given.

The City Hall received a new roof that week.  The Board of Supervisors had the jail repaired.  (Hallelujah).  Contracts would be taken to furnish brick anywhere in the county by Anthony Shassers of Bridgeport. Rumor had it that Mister Shassers was thinking of starting a Brickyard in Lawrenceville that summer.  The editor noted the county should arrange with him to put up a new first-class jail.

One of the local physicians stated that no one ever had cholera who habitually used cistern water. In other words, he asserted that pure soft water was a prevention of that disease. The editor was of the opinion that very few potatoes were planted on Saint Patrick's Day March 17th because the ground thereabouts was not as dry as the average gardener would wish. It would soon be time for the youth of the county to seek the mossy banks of the Embarrass and fish all day long. The bites would be mostly at the wrong end of the pole, he added.

Charlie Borden's new and neat little cottage in the West End of town was nearing completion and the editor believed when springtime came Charlie would take some good- looking young lady to board with him. Charlie had also purchased the livery and feed stable of Justin Struble paying $2500 for it. W T Buchanan was appointed administrator of the estate of Joseph Irwin. And to one of his correspondents, Mr Day noted that his shoes fit well enough or at least that writer would think so, should one of them come in contact with the lower part of his anatomy.

And then a distressing note by the editor that if you had a dog or any other dumb animal you wanted crippled or maimed, Lawrenceville was the best place in the world to get lots of hands to help you do the work free of cost. It seemed to be a sport in which all the boys as well as a great many men took delight in indulging and to their hearts content.  (How sad!)

 Persons desiring photographs and biographies of celebrated horses or jacks would do well to visit the Rural newspaper (Don’t ask me why. I know why breeders might want photos and pedigrees, but what was the newspaper office doing with that information?)

The latest trick calculated to deceive and swindle was called the dress pattern scheme. A man representing an eastern silk house would call at a private residence with a lot of samples of silk and a lottery box in which nearly every chance was a prize for a valuable dress pattern. The chances were sold at $0.50; the victim of the petty fraud almost invariably won a fine silk dress.  Her name and address were taken, and the prize was to be delivered in a couple of weeks. The agent, of course, was never seen again, and the dress pattern was never delivered.

Some weeks ago, a meeting was held and arrangements were made to give a supper with the proceeds going toward fixing the city cemetery, building a new fence, levelling up the ground, etcetera. As a cemetery then stood, hogs, horses and cattle, a great portion of the time, were allowed to roam at large and over the graves. A great many of the stones had been knocked over and the place was in a general state of decay.

Bridgeport news: Bridgeport was suffering from a measles outbreak; George Kilgore had them at that time. 23 applicants for teacher certificates were examined by the County Superintendent but not one of them was successful. Soap making was in order. FW Cox had his agricultural warehouse almost completed and a few new plows already stored in it. James Mayo was kicked by a horse belonging to James Duke, but Doctor Fraser patched him up in good shape. Barnes and Abernathy were moving their stock of dry goods to Bridgeport.

At Sand Barrens, school would be out on April 4^th. The infant son of David Winkle was buried last week. The correspondent from St Francisville or French town as he liked to call it, said that it appeared times were rather dull and items scarce since St Francisville had been resting from its whiskey trials.( See blog about March 11 in Lawrence County) Winter had been the cause of a great many deaths. Ezekiel Barnett’s little child fell against a hot stove and burnt itself pretty badly but was recovering.  Mrs. Dean received her pension and acted the sensible part in purchasing a good home for herself and family for which she was sorely in need. The reporter from Bond Twp said that health was reasonably good at the present, but owing to the late freezes, the wheat was not looking very well. Reverend D Y Allison a Baptist minister who lived near Bird Station (aka Birds) died March 5 at the age of 74 years. George W Clark an old citizen of Denison Township also died on March 5 at the age of 72 years.  He was born February 7, 1807, a resident of that township for over 40 years and was known as an upright church man.

The harmony at Russellville had often been annoyed by the Jones family, who resided in the lower part of town. (If Russellville had had a train, they would have lived on the other side of the tracks.) The family riot occurred when Old Lady Jones armed with woman's successful war ammunition, the shovel, attacked George J, her husband, while yet in bed, and colored the sight of his smeller. Georgia arose and reciprocated, injuring one of the old woman's mandibles slightly. Thereupon the old lady applied to the town judiciary to imprison George for battering her.  The town ‘dads’ drew up an article of agreement, in which they, George J and ex-wife, each agreed to separate their welfares for all the future and fight no more.

The Lawrenceville blacksmith, Fred Pierce, leaving his shop for supper about 6:00 pm, was shot by a 22 pistol or target gun. The ball hit him in the right side of the neck and entered his windpipe from which place he succeeded in extracting it.  (Really! by himself?  with what?) The noise was heard by several parties (did they hear the shot or the SCREAMING?) It was thought to be a deliberate attempt at assassination. At last account the patient was resting easy, and no arrest had been made. There you have it, all the news of the country for this week, 135 years ago.