T he J acksonville M iner
Lhe Drummer
//// R. C lay C happell
3
JACKSONVILLIflNS WAX JOURNALISTIC
In the dear dead days beyond re­
cull Jacksonville was known in
other ways than as an old mining
town.
Up and flown the coast it was re
Dissertation by a Country
puled to lx* the livlieat burg along
Schoolmarm
the line. Not really bad, mind you,
but just wild and reckless and full
Yes, it’s good for the farmers,
of the old Nick.
And good for their crops,
There wus a whole flock of sa­
And good for the miners,
loons and some of them, in their
And good for the lots.
appointments and service und their
stock of plain and fancy refresh­
But who could get lyrical
ments, would have gracefl any city
And pronounce rain a miracle
in the west. For those who wished
When they trudge down a road
to woo the tiger in his lair there
Without hat or galoshes
were opportunities in plenty, for in
And it rains down your neck
the big gambling hall adjoining the
Ami off of your lashes.
Bunquet saloon one could pick his
favorite method of getting skinned,
And each day you start
from faro or roulette on down to
Hopefully out on your way
the more plebian gurries of draw or
Gazing souifully up
stud. And the young men-about-
At the small clouds at play,
town with the traditions anti the
And you say to yourself,
romance of the old west tingling "This’ll be a good day!’’
in their veins fitted into this en­
vironment like the kernels on a
But oh me! and oh my!
corn cob anti when these boys were
Such profane thoughts enter,
in the mood and really stepped out
When as evening comes on
tilings did happen anti the town was
And you start home to dinner!
lively.
Incidentally, when it came to
First it drops,
lovely women and girls Jackson­
Then it sloshes;
ville stood without a peer on the
There you are again
whole Pacific slope. Ix*ustw4.-e that
Without hat or galoshes
wus the verdict of the drummers,
And such a big string
or traveling salesmen, who period­
Of awful By Goshes!
ically visited us. Their opinion was
worth while, too, for even although
they might not !.now much about the particular drummer, whom this
the goods they sold, they did know | tale concerns, alighted from Bar-
their women and their wine.
' num’s special, as the diminutive
In those days the drummer was train that connected us with the
looked upon by us untraveled small­ main line was railed.
town yokels as almost a prince. He
He was a new man on this route
it was who brought to us a glimmer but his colleagues had filled him
of the great outside world and a re­ full of wild yarns about Jackson­
flection of the bright lights of the ville and he was all agog to go
great cities. He brought, too, the places and see things and so he lost
very latest fashions in whiskers anil no time in rushing down to the old
haircuts and clothes, and he could U. S. hotel and securing lodgings
be depended upon for the newest for the night.
gags and a bunch of clever stories
The best was none too good for
that were erroneously supposed to him and he was assigned to the
be for male ears only. But best of corner room which overlooks the
all, his pockets seemed to hold an main square of the town. It was,
inexhaustible supply of coin which perhaps, in the light of future
he knew how to spend with a re­ events, just as well that he did not
sounding fanfare of trumpets.
know that a man had hung himself
Naturally all this made him a in that self-same room only a few
very welcome guest ami his coming years before.
usually meant a hot time in the old
These arrangements made, he
town.
sallied forth to beard the west in
But towns, like individuals, are its native heath. But in this quest
temperamental and have their he was foredoomed to bitter disap­
moods and moments and no matter pointment for a quaker’s meeting
how much pep and spirit they may had nothing on the old town this
have, or how much feminine pul­ particular night.
chritude they may claim nor how
As he wandered from saloon to
many gilded halls of pleasure they saloon he could, for the life of him,
may boast, there are times when find nothing more exciting than a
they seem to crave peace and quiet. game of seven up or cribbage or a
Jacksonville was especially that group of loungers quietly drinking
way and, usually, her hectic out­ and gossiping at the bar and de­
bursts of wild revelry were suc­ spite* his liberality in setting up the
ceeded by periods in which she drinks and springing his funniest
was as gentle and lamb-like as old yarns he couldn’t raise a spark of
Dobbin ever dared to be.
life.
Twas o i a night like this, when
By this time he was thoroughly
the town was enjoying one of these i disgusted and it was in the Banquet
peaceful, but deceptive, lulls, that where he was drinking with Bum,
the owner; Big Bill, the city mar­
shal, and a few of their cronies
that he finally declared himself:
"Why, feilows,” said he, “how on
earth do you stand a dull hefle like
this?” “If I had to live here three
PAINTING
days I’d go nuts for it’s honestly
PAPERHANGING
as dead as a smoked codfish and
you boys ought to get busy and
ETC.
bury the poor old place before it
begins to smell.”
Estimates
Of course, the boys tried to wise
him up to the fact that it was not
Gladly Given
always thus but, thinking that he
Phone 13 or Drop a Card to
had been bunked enough, he would
P. O. Box 51, Jacksonville
have none of it, and a few moments
(Continued on page six)
RAIN!
R.C.CHAPPELL
The Place to Get Good
Home-Cooked Meals
Hot Dinner Sandwiches
*
HEADQUARTERS FOR
T he J acksonville M iner
THE NUGGET
Sandwiches, Fountain Drinks, Candy, Cigars
Barber Shop and Pool Hall in Connection
SOUND HORN FOR CURB SERVICE
PHONE 162
Miner Readers Express
Views on Varied Topics
COUNTY SHOULD ELECTION LEADS
HELP MUSEUM LOCAL INTEREST
CAMP BAKER
ALICE APPLEGATE SARGENT
When Abraham Lincoln made his
immortal call for “three hundred
thousand more” the ringing appeal
reached far away Oregon, and
echoed down the timbered slopes
and into the wilderness of the
Rogue River valley.
Oregon was required to organize
two regiments—one of cavalry and
one of infantry. Camp Baker was
established in 1862 and garrisoned
by the 1st Oregon cavalry. The
camp was named in remembrance
of Col. Edward D. Baker, who was
killed in the battle of Ball’s Bluff
in 1861.
The site of Camp Baker lies one-
half mile west of the town of Phoe­
nix, or Gassburg as it was then
called, and one-half mile from the
Pacific highway. The officers’ quar­
ters, soldiers’ barracks, hospital and
other buildings were built solidly
of hewn pine logs. Between the
mess hall and stables ran Coleman
creek.
Today only a few mouldering
logs mark this historic spot where
once the Stars and Stripes floated
from the flagstaff and the boom of
the sunset gun echoed from the sur­
rounding hills; where once the
thunder of horses’ hoofs and the
clank of sabers responded to the
trumpet’s call of “Boots and Sad­
dles;” where once the trumpet sang
“Reveille” at early dawn and
sounded “lights out” at night.
'Gone are the days when the old
(Continued on page four)
By R. E. WILSON
By GEORGE LITTLE
I
The most important topic of to­
Because it is one of southern Ore­
gon’s most important drawing day is the coming primary and gen­
cards, ranking with Crater lake and eral election.
the Oregon caves, the Museum of
Under the existing conditions the
Southern Oregon should receive fi­ people are Hable to be misled by
nancial aid from the Jackson county the radical element.
court to help defray expenses | We should be very careful and
necessary to proper handling of use our best judgment in every
crowds which come to view the val­ | j issue.
uable collection. From the middle
The radical comes out with half-
of last May till the first of Febru­ truths
which are very misleading.
_
ary this year more than 4000 per­ Let us not be made to think that
sons from every state in the union because their may be some crooks
registered in the institution’s books m office that all of our officers
and many more were unable to be are crooks.
taken through the building.
Stop and think if all of the offi­
Under the present arrangement
cers
are crooks why we did not find
it is necessary for some business­
this
out before election time and
man to neglect his own affairs to
conduct throngs of tourists to the use our right to recall.
Thei whole nation is in an un­
museum and explain the many ex­
hibits. The county could, and settled condition and a radical
should, have some indigent being change at this time would not bet­
cared for stationer! at the collec­ ter conditions.
tion or appropriate funds for this
It would take a whole new set of
purpose. It is almost certain that, officers at least a year to get or­
if the three county commissioners ganized and much could happen in
could be persuaded to come to Jack­ that time. This talk of cleaning
sonville and have the entire situa­ house is the bunk.
tion explained to them that definite
We have officers who have
action would be taken to insure the served us for many a year and
museum, which always comes in for given complete satisfaction. Why-
much praise by the hundreds *of trade them for new and untried
tourists, of a regularly employed men ? Campaign promises are like
curator who would be able to prop­ the grass of the fields—they soon
erly handle visitors.
wither and die.
It is striking that no visitor who
We will admit that all of our of­
has been taken through the mu­ ficers have made some mistakes,
seum and had the exhibits ex­ but on the other hand we do not
plained to him has ever failed to Hhink you can show us a man in
Drive Over After
express surprise, pleasure and en­ office or common life that never
Your Theater Party
thusiasm for the collection, which made a mistake if he did anything.
is unique in its great variety. And,
If you know of any officer that
PRIVATE DINING ROOMS
with the town itself, it forms a has failed in his duty it is your
Pool Hall in Connection
very true reproduction of the glam­ duty to vote against him, but in­
orous days which have passed. It vestigate and find if this is the A
would be well for the county judge case.
to make a personal visit and see at
AH of the records of the differ­
first hand the valuable collection, ent offices are open to you for in­
which was unselfishly titled the vestigation. Do not take some of­
CARPENTERAND
fice-seeker’s word but satisfy your­
Museum of Southern Oregon.
self of the truth.
CABINET WORK
I know the majority of the pres­
ent local officers and office seekers
Screen Doors, Window
and I think most of them are good
Screens and Built-ins
true citizens and would work for
the best interest of the people.
a Specialty
By J. S. BYRNE
have been a resident and a vot­
“Death Closes Brave Fight er I of
Jackson county for 28 years
Estimates Cheerfully Given
Against Poverty-Illness.” This is and it has been my policy to vote
the heading of an article appearing for the man rather than the office.
in the Medford Daily News of April
Here is hoping for a good, sane
30 recounting the death of Mr. Cas­ election and a return of confidence
Box 193, Jacksonville
tile. It states, among other things, and prosperity.
the fact that our local government,
or relief agencies, offered to send
Mr. Castile and his sister to the
pnorhouse, but he declined and was
finally submerged in the battle of
life.
How elevating it is to think of
going to the poorhouse. Dear read­
er, don’t you just love the word
poorhouse, and all it implies?
These are very uncertain times.
You, who are well and strong to­
day, and have plenty of this world’s
goods, did you ever stop to think
that, through reverses, you your­
self might see the shape of the
poorhouse coming over the horizon.
Would you care to go there your­
self?
The Jackson county poor farm is
a good and well conducted place,
but there is a very small percent­
age of our populatoin that would
be pleased to go there.
We are a proud race of people.
Can you imagine the thoughts that
must run through the minds of our
old people when they are relegated
to the poorhouse? I would like to
have seen Mr. Banks include the
N every room in your home there are many
question of old age pensions in his
little objects and articles that should radi­
questionnaire. I would like to know
ate
color ... and harmony!
just how our public servants to be
stand on this important question.
Why not brighten your surroundings. The
The last time our legislature was
cost
and trouble are little ... you can do it
in session I wrote to our represen­
yourself.
tatives at Salem urging them to
support the old age pension bill
Use Rasmussen paint products for com­
coming up at that time. Their re­
plies were not very satisfactory to
plete satisfaction. Let us show you the
my way of thinking.
attractive Rasmussen color card.*
We realize that finances are in a
bad way, that the state of Oregon
Rasmussen & Company
could not pension all its old people
now, but now is the time to work
on and study this important and
»
humane measure. I believe in an old
age pension system by our govern­
ment. There are no sound argu­
MEDFORD
ments that can be advanced against
Phone 300
it. We are a very wealthy nation. 131 West .Main Street
(Continued on page four)
Leonard’s
Rendezvous
Cafe
Old Age Pensions
Thos. Laughead
Keep The
“LITTLE
THINGS**
Colorful!
I
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