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4A COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL January 7, 2015 O PINION Offbeat Oregon History The Roseburg ‘Champagne Riot’: Probably not what you’re thinking BY FINN J.D. JOHN For the Sentinel I t was Christmas Day in 1866. Offi cially, the Civil War had been over for a year and a half. Unoffi cially, though, not every- body agreed that its outcome set- tled things ... especially in Doug- las County, Oregon. At the time, Douglas County was like a microcosm of the Unit- ed States. There was a Republican majority in the more populous and powerful northern part of the state, which had voted itself into full control of county government, much to the fury of the resentful, disenfranchised Dixie-friendly ma- jority in the south of the state. And like Washington, D.C., between the warring North and South, the county seat at Roseburg was lo- cated almost directly between the two regions. Approval or disapproval of the outcome of the war, and the sub- sequent reconstruction program in the South, split the Roseburg community right down the middle, with Southern Democrats bitterly resentful and Republicans (and pro-Union Democrats) gloatingly triumphant. Douglas County wouldn’t re- ally be at peace until the following year, with the outcome of an event that?’ been described — only part- ly in jest — as the last battle of the Civil War. It’s known today as the “Champagne Riot,” although it was more a drunken brawl than a riot, and there was almost certainly no champagne involved. The Champagne Riot started out as a Christmas party — or, rather, two Christmas parties. Feelings were so sore in the Roseburg area that the two sides each threw their own. The pro-Southern citizens threw their “Christmas ball” at Goode’s Mill, near Roseburg; the Unionists had theirs at the home of Joseph Champagne, in the tiny now-long-gone hamlet of French Settlement, six miles west of Roseburg. Everything was fi ne and jolly and festive until about 3 a.m., when the pro-Southern party wound its way to a close, and the dancers and rev- elers started heading home to bed. But a small group of them, young hot-blooded men from old South- ern families, decided the night was still young enough for some more action. They further decided that the place to go for that action was Joseph Champagne’s place, where the damn Yankee sympathizers were celebrating their recent vic- tories. Armed to the teeth and well for- tifi ed with holiday spirits, these young troublemakers set out on horseback for French Settlement, four miles away. The primary purpose of the visit was for one of the fi ve, Solomon Culver, to settle a score with one of the Unionists, George Bennett. Culver’s cousin, John Fitzhugh, came along, and three of Culver’s friends — Abe Crow, Bob Forbes and John Hannon — rounded out the little war party. Fitzhugh was a particularly in- teresting character. Reportedly a distant relative of Robert E. Lee, he was a prominent Demo- cratic leader in Roseburg and the founder and former publisher of Roseburg’s fi rst newspaper — the Roseburg Express, which he launched in 1860, just before the Civil War broke out. It didn’t last long; after the shooting started, federal authorities went looking for “copperhead” newspapers and shutting them down, and the Ex- press — along with the Albany Democrat, Corvallis Union, Table Rock (Jacksonville) Sentinel, Eu- gene Herald and Portland Daily News — was suppressed. What the erstwhile journalist did after that, for the duration of the war, isn’t clear. But there’s one thing we know he didn’t do, and that’s give up on his pro-Southern beliefs. Fitzhugh and his four comrades arrived at the rival gang’s party around 4 a.m. Upon their arrival, they got busy right away. Cul- ver found Bennett, whipped out his Dragoon revolver and pistol- whipped him across the face with it, breaking his nose. Then the party’s host, Frank Barringer, hurried to the scene, apparently to try to defuse the situation, and — presumably af- ter a heated exchange of words, although the newspapers don’t say — Fitzhugh pulled a derringer and shot him through the heart. Bar- ringer slipped to the fl oor and died without speaking another word. Then fi sts, knives and pistols started fl ashing and fl ying as the fi ghting became general. The fi d- dle player, Ash Clayton, set down his instrument, grabbed a knife and used it to let some air out of Solo- mon Colver’s left lung. Abe Crow took offense to this and, pulling his revolver, shot Clayton twice with it (once in the leg, and once across the scalp) and then slashed Please see OFFBEAT, Page 7A Readership survey yields insightful info about Cottage Grove's news needs R ecently, the Cottage Grove Sentinel asked its readers to evaluate its work as the primary news source for this community. Two recent editions of the Sentinel have included a readership survey consisting of nine questions aimed at delivering an insightful look at how readers access the newspaper, the other sources that deliver news that impacts their lives and their needs and desires for local news cover- age — be they needs that the paper is currently fi lling or, in some cases, is not. The Sentinel received 34 online responses to its survey and three handwritten submis- sions, and the staff wishes to extend its most sincere thanks for comments and suggestions that were at once informative, on-topic and polite. Our read- ers are the only reason we do what we do, and we appreci- ate the chance to know how we may do it better. We’ve distilled the re- sponses down to a few short sentences where possible, to offer a straightforward and useful look at things, though we of course realize that the opinions of 37 readers do not a complete picture of our readership make. According to the results of our survey, Cottage Grove Sentinel readers mostly re- ceive their paper through an ongoing subscription. They are an older crowd, the ma- jority over age 50 who gen- erally read the newspaper to keep up-to-date on communi- ty happenings, to read about people they know or follow a particular issue. In addition to the Sentinel, readers also utilize a variety of sources to get their news — many also read the Eugene Register-Guard; watch local television news broadcasts and occasionally national news broadcasts; listen to local radio and NPR and ac- cess a wide variety of Internet news sources. Readers also provided poignant comments regarding their news habits; for instance, one reader noted that, “no news service is per- fect, so I use several sources and try to read between the lines.” Another shared that “friends share the type of news that impacts me the most.” Many also access in- formation through Facebook. Sentinel readers would like to see more pictures and sto- ries about interesting locals in their local newspaper, in addition to more crime and court reporting, detailed re- ports of meetings and opin- ion from newspaper staff and community members. More specifi cally, comments indi- cate a desire to read a more in-depth police and fi re ac- tivities log, know about com- munity events BEFORE they happen and read about more controversial topics. One commenter noted that, in sit- uations where the individual had “fi rst-hand knowledge of an event, I have found the Sentinel’s coverage to be a bit ‘thin’ and sometimes one- sided,” continuing that “It’s not anyone’s fault ... you just need a few more reporters.” Readers have also stated a preference for “hard-hitting news that adheres to the facts, however unpleasant they may be.” We’re not sure how much the chance to win a raffl e prize from a local business played into the decision of many of our readers to respond, but for those interested, we'll be drawing the name of one lucky winner on Friday. In many cases, it appears that the information received from our survey closely co- incides with what we’ve al- ready come to believe about our work and our readership. To wit, we’ll attempt to pro- vide an in-depth response to many of the facts we’ve gleaned from the survey. It’s a process that promises to be a trifl e wordy, so we’ll pick up where we left off in next week’s paper. Thanks again, and Happy New Year! Are 'natural' and low-glycemic sweeteners healthful alternatives to sugar? BY JOEL FUHRMAN, MD For the Sentinel A dded sugars come in several forms other than sugar, evaporated cane juice and high fructose corn syrup. Calo- rie-containing sweeteners such as maple syrup, honey, agave and coconut sugar are marketed as “natural” and often touted as healthier al- ternatives to regular sug- ar. Is there any truth to these claims? $ PUUBHF ( SPWF 4 FOUJOFM 116 N. Sixth Street · P.O. Box 35 · Cottage Grove, OR 97424 ADMINISTRATION: JOHN BARTLETT, Regional Publisher Ext. 212 • cgnews@cgsentinel.com GARY MANLY, General Manager...................541-942- 3325 Ext. 207 • publisher@cgsentinel.com SPORTS DEPARTMENT: MATT HOLLANDER, Sports Editor............541-942-3325 Ext. 204 • sports@cgsentinel.com ADVERTISING: ROBIN REISER, Sales Representative.........541-942- 3325 Ext. 203 • robin@cgsentinel.com PATRIC CARLILE, Sales Representative.........541-942- 3325 Ext. 213 • patric@cgsentinel.com CUSTOMER SERVICE CARLA WILLIAMS, Office Manager..........541-942-3325 Ext. 201 • billing@cgsentinel.com LEGALS......................................................541-942-3325 Ext. 200 • legals@cgsentinel.com NEWS DEPARTMENT: JON STINNETT, Editor..............................541-942-3325 GRAPHICS: RON ANNIS, Graphics Manager (USP 133880) The Cottage Grove Sentinel is published every Wednesday in Cottage Grove, Oregon. Our offices are located at 116 N. Sixth St., P.O. Box 35, Cottage Grove, OR 97424. Subscription Mail Rates in Lane and Portions of Douglas Counties: One Year (auto pay):............ $34.50 One Year (manual pay):....... $36.15 One Year (e-edition only):.... $33.55 10 Weeks (auto pay):...........$8.55 10 Weeks (manual pay):......$9.10 Subscription Mail Rates Out of County: One Year (auto pay):............ $44.25 One Year (manual pay):....... $46.35 One Year (e-edition only):.... $43.00 10 Weeks (auto pay):...........$11.00 10 Weeks (manual pay):......$11.70 In foreign countries, postage extra. Subscription rates are subject to change upon 30 days’ notice. Periodicals postage paid at Cottage Grove, Oregon. Postmaster: Send address changes to P.O. Box 35, Cottage Grove, OR 97424. Local Mail Service: If you don’t receive your Cottage Grove Sentinel on the Wednesday of publication, please let us know. Call 541-942-3325 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Advertising ownership: All advertising copy and illustrations prepared by the Cottage Grove Sentinel become the property of the Cottage Grove Sentinel and may not be reproduced for any other use without explicit written prior approval. Copyright Notice: Entire contents ©2014 Cottage Grove Sentinel. Similar to sugar, these are low-nutrient concentrated sweeteners; they add substantial calories to the diet while con- tributing very little nutritional value. Maple syrup and honey elevate blood glucose similarly to sugar (sucrose), leading to disease-causing effects in the body. Agave and coconut sugar rank lower on the glycemic in- dex but are still empty calories and may have other negative effects. Repeated exposure to these excessively sweet tastes dulls the taste buds to the nat- urally sweet tastes of berries and other fresh fruits, which perpetuates cravings for sweets and can undermine weight loss. Since some natural sweeteners undergo fewer processing steps than sugar, they may retain some phytochemicals from the plants they originate from, but their nutrient-to-calorie ratio is still very low, and they contain minimal or no fi ber to slow the absorption of their sugars. The negative health effects of added sugar and high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) are well docu- mented, including increased risk of weight gain, diabetes, cardio- vascular disease and cancers. Agave nectar is marketed as a low-glycemic sweetener due to its high fructose content (agave is approximately 90 percent fructose). Sucrose is half fruc- tose and half glucose, made up of one fructose molecule linked to one glucose molecule. HFCS contains 55 percent fructose and 42 percent glucose. All sweet- eners (and fruits) contain some combination of glucose, fruc- tose, and the two bound together as sucrose. Maple syrup con- tains about 90 percent sucrose, so it is very similar to regular white sugar. Coconut sugar con- tains 70-80 percent sucrose, and honey contains 49 percent fruc- tose and 43 percent glucose. Fructose and glucose are broken down differently by the body. When fructose is ab- sorbed, it is transported directly to the liver, where it is broken down to produce energy. Fruc- tose itself does not stimulate in- sulin secretion by the pancreas. However, much of the fructose is actually metabolized and con- verted into glucose in the liver, so it does raise blood glucose somewhat (although not as much as sucrose or glucose). Despite its low glycemic index, added fructose in the form of sweeten- ers still poses health risks. Fruc- tose stimulates fat production by the liver, which causes elevated blood triglycerides, a predictor of heart disease. Elevated tri- glycerides have been reported in human studies after consuming fructose-sweetened drinks, and this effect was heightened in the participants who were insulin- resistant. Fructose, when used as a sweetener, also seems to have effects on hunger and sa- tiety hormones that may lead to increased calorie intake in sub- sequent meals. When you ingest any caloric sweetener, you get a mix of dis- ease-promoting effects: the glu- cose-elevating effects of added glucose and the triglyceride- raising effects of added fructose. Sweeteners, unlike whole fruits, are concentrated sugars without the necessary fi ber to regulate the entry of glucose into the bloodstream and fructose to the liver. All caloric sweeteners have effects that promote weight gain, diabetes and heart disease, regardless of their ratio of glu- cose to fructose, or what type of plant they originate from. Dr. Fuhrman is an author and board certifi ed family physi- cian specializing in lifestyle and nutritional medicine. His new- est book, The End of Dieting, debunks the fake “science” of popular fad diets and offers an alternative to dieting that leads to permanent weight loss and excellent health. Visit his infor- mative website at DrFuhrman. com. Submit your questions and comments about this column directly to newsquestions@ drfuhrman.com. The full refer- ence list for this article can be found at DrFuhrman.com. Letters to the Editor policy The Cottage Grove Sentinel receives many letters to the editor. In order to ensure that your letter will be printed, letters must be under 300 words and submitted by Friday at 5 p.m. Letters must be signed and must include an address, city and phone number or e-mail address for verifi cation purposes. No anonymous letters will be printed. Letters must be of interest to local readers. Personal attacks and name calling in response to letters are uncalled for and unnecessary. If you would like to submit an opinion piece, Another View must be no longer than 600 words. To avoid transcription errors, the Sentinel would prefer editorial and news content be sent electronically via email or electronic media. Hand written submissions will be accepted, but we may need to call to verify spelling, which could delay the publishing of the submission.