The following are selected articles from a Newspaper titled, "The Higbee News" which was issued out of the town of Higbee, in Randolph County, Missouri from the years 1888 through 1953. The editors were W. H. Welch and his son H. Scott Welch. This paper covered the Higbee area and also a great deal of the northeastern part of Howard county. The copyright notice at the end of this transcript is there for the sole purpose of keeping this work free to the public, and to ensure that it is not harvested by a fee-based corporate genealogy site, or published in any format for profit. If you decide to use the information from this transcription, PLEASE LIST ME AS THE SOURCE, rather than the paper. My transcription is another generation removed from the microfilm, and would thus be a third generation copy of the original paper. For proper documentation, a researcher should obtain a photocopy of the microfilm for their own permanent records, and use my transcript as a guide or index. The microfilm is available for interlibrary loan through the State Historical Society of Missouri, and a copy is also on file at the Moberly Public Library, generously donated by the Higbee Historical Society. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday, 2 Sep 1926, Vol 40, No 18, Pg. 8, Col 1,2,3&4--OUR HUNTSVILLE LETTER--By W. T. Dameron (edited by compiler)--I tried to get my old widower friend, Roger Eubank, into a special "Chicken calling" contest, but he was a little shy in making his "calls" so public. Some of the boys told me that Roger had been practicing on "chicken" calling here of late. I asked Roger what ages of chickens he preferred to "call," friers, pullets or middle-aged hens. "Fries," he said, "is mighty good, but a young pullet would be might fine, though a young hen would not be objectionable." I want to say that Roger is a fine game "rooster," owns his own "dung hill" and is not too old to crow. That hog and chicken contest reminds me of my old grandfather, Allen Mayo, who was certainly an expert in calling stock. Many and many a still morning I have heard distinctly his clear voice two miles away, that is from our old home to his. Every morning, in certain times of the year, just about sun-up, he would pick up his basket and start to the horse lot and as he did so would commence calling his stock, and go down the line and wind up on a chicken call. he would make three of four calls for each species of stock, commencing with the horses, then cattle, hogs, sheep and wind up on "Chicke-e." He kept that up year after year as long as he lived. He died in 1874, at the age of 92. A grand old man was he. Our old friend, Mike Strieff, on Union township was one of the county's "progressive," farmers who attended the picnic. Mike is a fullblood Frenchman, a fine fellow, and a Democrat from away back. Mike landed in Randolph county in 1872, and went to work in the Russell coal mine, near Higbee, and made Higbee his home for several years, when there were only a few houses scattered around about there. In 1876 Mike was married on the old Joel Smith farm by a Sanctified preacher by the name of Fann, I think. While the connubial knot has stood the test of time, Mike himself never embraced any of the officiating ministers "holiness." Some time after his marriage Mike with his bride moved to Huntsville, where he reared a large family of children, and was one of Huntsville's leading miners until he purchased and moved to a 120-acre farm near old Milton, several years ago, and where he and his wife live happily. While talking to Mike on the picnic grounds he pointed in the direction of a cornfield and said, "Right over there was once a lake, and I and a lot of fellows used to come down here on fishing sprees, and we most generally brought a keg of beer with us, and we caught fish and drank beer to a fareyouwell. them was great times, and none of us got so full of beer that we could not catch enough fish for a big fry. I always thought fish caught right out of a lake or river and cooked on the spot tasted better than when we had to buy and cook them at home." Mike said he, Uncle Hade Rutherford, Jim Stamper and Jim Robinson went up on the Chariton river fishing one time in the late '70's and caught two wagon loads of fine fish with a seine, that they caught 500 pounds of the finny tribe at one haul, and they had no beer with them either, but might had had a little "snake medicine" with them, but the other three fishermen were teetotalers. Mr. Strieff showed me a photograph of himself taken by "Guild" back in the late '80's. Mr. Guild was a resident photographer in Huntsville at that time. The photo shows Mike seated with his legs crossed, exposing the bottom of his foot, or shoe, with "How Firm a Foundation" plainly photographed on his foot. Mike has a pretty large foot, and has to wear a large shoe. The late Dr. W. H. Taylor wrote the words on the shoe quoted above, and agreed to pay for a dozen of the pictures if Mike would sit for a photograph, and, of course, Mike did so. He gave me one of the pictures as a curio. Rev. George W. Smith, colored, better known as "Fessor" Smith, died at his home here Wednesday, of bladder trouble. The 'fessor was born in Virginia and came to Huntsville many years ago. He served in the Spanish-American war. The 'fessor was quite a character, and he was the subject of many a newspaper joke at my hands. While he was the subject of many jokes he was no fool by any means, nor a "bad" man, though indiscreet in some things. He was well posted in scripture, that is, he could quote more scripture off hand than most ministers I have known, white or black. I met him on the street a few days before he died, and he had nothing but good words to speak of me. He had something to say about county politics. the 'fessor was a good Democrat during a primary, but when a national election rolled 'around he was very much a Republican. Early on the morning of the day on which he died he told his wife he would pass out before sundown. He read a passage from his bible and then preached a sermon, and in the afternoon died. His funeral and burial took place Friday and was largely attended by colored people. Rev. Chinn, a former pastor of the colored Baptist church here, preached the funeral. Mrs. Henry Turner and daughter Miss Marion, of Kimberly, Idaho, arrived here last week on a visit to Mrs. Turner's sister, Mrs. G. P. Dameron, and family. They will also visit relatives in Clark and vicinity. Miss Marion is a bright young lady of 17 years. She will enter school at the State University of Columbia before her mother returns home. The Turners have prospered financially since moving to Idaho many years ago. Mrs. Turner is a banker of his home town and owns a fine farm near the city. The Johnston family reunion picnic at the Randolph Springs Thursday of last week was not as largely attended as some former meetings of the family and connections, only 52 being present, though all the immediate family now living were present, namely: Rev. Wm. H. Johnston, Callao, Mo., age 76; Joseph B. Johnston, Ethel, Mo.,73; Rev. Jas. M. Johnston, Petersburg, Ill., 71, and Heber C. Johnston, Huntsville, Mo., who was host of the family, 67. A delicious and sumptuous dinner was spread on a long table in a grove on the grounds and served. After all had finished eating, Rev. John M. Johnston delivered an "after dinner speech," which was appropriate and touching. He was followed by his elder brother, Rev. W. H. Johnston, who made a good talk. Mrs. Henrietta Bagby, Huntsville, and aunt of the Johnstons, was the oldest person present, being in her 88th year. The great-grandmother of the Johnston family was born in Germany in 1757, emigrated to Kentucky in early life, and was married to their great-grandfather, Capt. Wm. H. Johnston, who was born in Kentucky in 1776, and who served with distinction in the war of 1812. The family moved to Boone county, Mo, in 1841, and he died in that county in 1850. Their grandfather, Robert Johnston, was born in Kentucky, and came to Boone county with his parents in 1841, and their father, Capt. Wm. H. Johnston, was born in Boone county in 1830, and married Miss Sarah Davis, a daughter of the late Rev. Samuel C. Davis, of this county, in 1848, and they later settled near Old Boomington, Macon county. As indicated in last week's NEWS, their father was killed in action at the siege of Vicksburg, Miss., May 29, 1863. The death of their grandfather and great-grandfather was a little singular. Their great-grandfather rode horseback away from home one morning on business, and in the evening his horse came home alone with saddle and bridle intact. A search was made and the old gentleman was found dead by the road side several miles from home, evidently having been stricken with apoplexy and having fallen from his horse. The grandfather started to Fayette one morning and when he did not return that day a search was made and his body was found on the road side near Fayette, he having died of cholera, which was raging in Boone and Howard counties in the early day. The Johnston family are all Democrats, and all those of voting age at the reunion are Democrats except one, "Aunt Henry" Bagby, who still claims she is Republican. The next of 1927 reunion, will be held at the home of Rev. Jas. M. Johnston, Petersburg, Ill. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright notice: All transcriptions in this email are copyrighted by their creator. They may not be reproduced on another site or on any printed or recorded media, CD, etc. without specific written permission from Kathy Bowlin. Although public information is not in and of itself copyrightable, the format in which it is presented, transcriptions, notes & comments, etc. is. It is however, quite permissible to print or save the files to a personal computer for personal use only. Permission is granted to public libraries, and genealogical and historical societies to print and bind for the use of their patrons. Kathy Bowlin Additions, corrections, comments welcome.