Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 22, 1977)
University Library Gather ye wisdom while ye may By JOCK HATFIELD Of the Emerald “And the truth shall make you free,’’ says the library entrance. The other entrance adds for effect, “Ye shall know the truth.’’ And for all its pretension the University Library has a lot to offer ye. Placed in the middle of campus, the library stands, in its brick majesty, as the bulwark of liberalism. No matter how mutable the outside world, once one enters the library everything seems secure. Its marble walls are shored up by platitudes carved in rock: “It is a responsibility to tear down errors of the past and to put in their place new ideals. It is a greater responsibility to hold fast to the truth of the past, undistrubed in the complex experimental present." The place oozes cosmic truth. The library encloses the bowels of the monster. Behind its doors, in the gurgling womb-like warmth, stacks of books curve and twist back and forth, carrying the excre tions of thousands upon thousands of writ ers. (Continued on Page 13) Emerald Photo Librarians rescue early Oregonian s memoirs By JOCK HATFIELD Of the Emerald He knew Bing Crosby’s great grand father, Tyrone Power’s brother, Kit Carson, and the fur trappers of Oregon. But until recently, James Neall was himself un known. Only his memoirs, “A Down Easter in the Far West,” written for his niece, served to preserve his experiences. When these memoirs were donated to the University lib rary by Neall's great-granddaughter, Martin Schmitt of special collections saw their sig nificance. “We get hundreds of journals every year, and most of them we file away,” says Schmitt. “But I recognized right away that this one was something special.” He im mediately contacted University archivist Keith Richard and together they decided to edit the memoirs for publication. The result, after one year of labor, was a 120-page bound book selling for $29. Three hundred and fifty copies were produced. The book is important, Schmitt believes, because it tells of a time in the West of which historians know very little — 1845. “Not only that, ” says Schmitt, “but the book is written by a merchant who has gone west, not the farmer or the gold miner.” Neall first came to the West via the cape in a ship captained by Nathaniel Crosby, an ancestor of Bing. Neall passed most of the voyage in the steerage, where he describes himself “crawling down the booby hatch way over sacks of potatoes, cabbages and onions and every other description of ships’ stores to find a bunk where I could bundle in clothes.. .and cover myself to keep from freezing.” During the voyage, a conspiracy was hatched against the reclusive Neall. After having his pants stolen, and nearly being thrown overboard, Neall was saved by an understanding Nathaniel Crosby. Bing would have been proud. After the voyage, Neall landed in Port land. “It was near night as we approached Portland. The city then consisted of one log house and a few immigrant camps.” Port land, Neall explained, was then called “Chiselville” because of the local store owner’s tendency to scalp the public. On shore Neall was chased around some more by Crosby's crew, and finally settled in what is now Fall Creek, in Polk County. “Grouse were plentiful and fat,” recalls Neall, “some of these magnificent birds weighing as much as three or four pounds. In due time we had a nice large airy cabin some 16 by 20 feet, with a chimney.” Neall lived here for a year with trapper Judge Osborn Russel, author of “Journal of a Trapper.” Neall described the Willamette Valley, then but a wilderness: “(There was) an entire absence of anything like brush or undergrowth in the forests of fir timber that had sprung up in the midst of the large plains. The plains covered with rich grasses and wild flowers looking like our vast culti vated fields. The ground fairly carpeted with clean fallen pine needles." In the spring of 1848 Neall decided to move on. Just past the Rogue River his caravan was attacked by Indians. "We pro ceeded along somewhat straggling as we passed the rocky point of a high hill_We were made alive to the situation by having a horse shot with a heavy Indian arrow. We rushed around the point after throwing a few rifle shots into the brush to intimidate the hidden savages —The sinners ran up the rocky mountain and gave us a touch of war whoop music by way of defi ance _We could only pull the arrow from our poor horse and proceed." It was on this trip that Neall encountered Kit Carson and unsuccessfully tried to shoot a buffalo, “to say that I had shot one. " After going around the Cape again, this time with John Power as captain (the great, great grandfather of Tyrone), Neall set up a merchandise store in San Francisco. Hav ing some merchandising experience back East — selling rubber boots that melted on first use — he achieved success. He so'd and traded most every kind of mercha i dise, from revolvers ("we called the m Allen’s pepper boxes, more dangerous to the holder than the enemy”) to dried peaches. Neall was quick to capitalize on gold rush inflation. ‘ Calling for my bill, amounting to $8.50,1 paid it, and with the reflection that if two stale eggs and four rotten, and two slices of toast was of this value, I should have no compunctions of conscience against raising the price of a paper of tacks to two dollars.” Although not mentioned in his memoirs, Neall was also the founder of the San Francisco Vigilante committee, accord ing to Schmitt. "As he grew older he must have become ashamed of his part in it,” says Schmitt. "They hanged people without trials, but Neall never took part in an actual hanging.” The book ends with the destruction of Neall’s business by a fire in 1850. Schmitt and Richards checked out most of the names and dates mentioned in the book through county histories and historical quarterlies. Schmitt spent one day in San Francisco checking through old city direc tories. The research found Neall's information "most accurate." In 1885 Neall commented on his life. “I think .. .I have had about as varied an experience without intense suffer ing as falls to the lot of man." On May 28, 1903, Neall died after being trampled by a horse. 1 the first place to look IN THE RENTAL-SALES GALLERY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF OREGON MUSEUM OF ART you will find an exceptionally wide variety of original works by Oregon artists all at very reasonable rates. If you want to live with a painting or sculpture before you decide to invest in it, come in and select your choice to brighten your home and office. Rental fees range from $ 10 to $20 for a three month period Gift certificates are available. THE RAINBOW GIFT SHOP is another delightful area within the museum where you can browse at your leisure. The Shop specializes in folk art and toys from around the' world, fascinating jewelrv, books, cards, museum publications, and one of a kind objet d art, all at excellent prices. The next time you are in the museum, visit the shops and treat a special friend, or youself, to a unique gift! The Museum is open daily from 12 noon to 5 p.m. Closed Mondays and
