Show ja aa HA lik A kand ama IT 1 jbara Iii al 51 altif A ER DIR L lma i 2 j 1 l r 1 S the tae story ator of a frontier and a agrest great frontiersman life in 1854 the year peter dillman first saw light was unsettled and uncertain there nas wa trouble brewing between the north and the south war was inevitable and was already spreading its crushing wings oner the ittle indiana town that sheltered shelter sd khe dillman family petes pete father was a carpenter and the family then si small liall lived near bloom ill amston ton indiana but there was vot rot enough going on then top fod a carpenter to buy expensive land a house bouse and make a home lur lor his family so when pete third child of tie tae faa family rily was aly a year old they moved to a lion bon estead 45 mile south of drs des moines Moin fes iowa on this homestead father biliman built for his family a home and there reared three lus LOS and thice girls the oldest biere daug daughter liter died when verb very young gilcre the family wied raisins urn corn ind and hogs the boys wor iad li it the fields the girls in the home but all attended school and then war broke out pete says he can remember when lie he aad to be very nery careful what he af a ad d about abraham lincoln and about Elij even in run fun for robert alto l ta or jeff davis the president of the south after they fron from the north there was great 1 tension and greit en th tasa asiain ni anti hope mr air dillman tried to enlist but poor heath prohibited th and in 1865 jut just at the end of 0 the war he died and let left his widow wadow and six youngsters to tight fight tor for themselves immediately after the war things moved rapidly and there were boom unies times only a year later to be thrust down into a depression much worse than I 1 have ever ince says fays pete corn sold lic bir se a bushel when it sold there was nothing left for the young dillman boys to do but to get out and work and try to help their mother and the rest of the family petes older brother and his younger one stayed home to run the farm and pete went out to work to try and earn a few dollars to help out at home from theotime the time he was 12 years old until he left home he worked summers and between school hours and every cent he earned was turned over to his mother she was good to bilm and all tiled to let him go to school as a 1 X oat r 1 1 V 6 1 P 1 AA J gw V 01 R pete dillman much as she could and pete wanted to go to school it was a mee me e word of encouragement that made this youngster who was always full of mischief and pranks realize his desire tor for knowledge lie he went to a school which about thirty other children of all ages attended the teacher was not well trained and could set got little cooperation from her group particularly ticul arly arIy pete DI dillman lIman the leader 0 of the garag one day pete got disgusted disgust od and decided he was going to strike one friday pi id ay he got the older girls in the class to say they would stay away from school and keep their little brothers sway away ile he promised to stay away and keep iris lio brothers and sisters home all agreed and i a school strike was planned the girls took their books home that friday night and stayed when monday morning came pete went to school to get his books sat in his seat and decided hed stay until noon As the minutes passed away the teacher paced anxiously up and down looking out ot of the windows for the phylls who were not forthcoming pete felt asha toed and to co coven V v liis his red face lie he kept it down in his arithmetic book and studied all that morning just before noon the te teacher acier called on her lone one pupil to recite his hia arithmetic lie ile knew several pages and two or three lessons ahead perfectly she was surprised and said to bi him peter those girls will never be in y your 0 ur class again it if ion keep on like this and from froin that time on pete kept on ile he loved and he and its hia teacher would I 1 puzzle out problems together it lie he do one perhaps she could and vice versa in this way pete grew very fa fond ad of her and saw her as a human being struggling along like everyone else to learn something ile he became great ly absorbed in geography and physiology and excelled in these thieo thice subjects but the time always came when lie he have enough won inon ey and lits ills mother needed things and the house needed things co 0 o often lie he would have to leave school chool and go out and husk lowan corn for or a adew blew months before returning to school this he kept up from the time he was twelve years old until he finished normal school when finally lie he had had 2 years at normal school and I 1 the way was not possible for him to go again he took up husking corn steadily and earned corned a dollar a day in the corn fields rit 1 it one day lie he sprained his writ wr it at weakened ened it severely seve iely and I 1 li t was a long tinie before he be could go back to shucking it was this one little incident this sprained that led to petes advani lurous life in the tar far tap far lie ile had to earn a living yet what could lie he do true he was an excellent shot and he I 1 loved d shooting just a few days before lie who had bad never been allowed to 0 o own a gun borrowed one and entered in a shooting match for or turnkeys turg keys there in the to the amazement ot of all the onlookers and especially people wh knew him he shot and won the first turkey and only lost the second one by half the width of a bullet but gee walz you earn a living shooting turkeys or anything else tor for that matter so pete turned to music twice a week tor for over ten years he had bad attended the singing school held in the evening for anyone who was interested in attending ending tt and had learned a little littie of 0 something about music ilia 11 is next occupation was to become lucacher of the sinking school ile he had several students and this was tiding him over until the sprained wrist mended and he be could go get back to huskin husking one evening old josh boyd a parent of one of 0 his pupils attended class ile he took a liking to pete ile he had heard of 0 his fine character and his hard bard working qualities ive got use fou foil you on oil my any place adare young dillman Dil linan I 1 can call only pay you lyou a day and it you got a better offer take it but it if you dont you can stait with me just as early in the spring as you can make it iris place was wa s located 76 75 miles from the dillman homestead so when pete went he be was to plan to stay and save what money lie ho could and go lack back to school As spring came on pete decided to take up josas offer ind and go down to work tor for him lie ile liked the fhe work at boyds aad then of an evening and in the early morning he could slip down it in the corn holds fields and shoot it at the big geese that came over from the missouri river lie ile S shot I 1 10 t them bliem with a rifle and never td ed a goose but he been in his new quarters quarter very long when an adventurous new life loomed up beloro ham old josh boyd hal heard a rd tales of gold in the west at the supper table and at wo wok k in the corn these tales were repealed to pete lie ile was a mason I 1 him ile iio found gold in the dear bear river country but know what it was until he got ot on out to california when lie he lear learned neI of its value ile he tried to return to the land of gold to 1 I to get more ot of the rich mineral ll 11 but get back in from the west because of the indians ns had to go way south and come in t f oni om the east again but before he ever got back he be died 1 audi and so the stories were told joah hoyd boyd decided he was going west w est and the next step was to find someone to go with him his 1113 1 son ion in law an old doctor friend two of the neighbors boys an a rid eld mountaineer were ready to join josas party but he needed kno someone meone else lie he thought of pete just the man young string courageous ou brave honest and he the best shot in iowa N why arst that lay day lie he had shot and killed a tiny snow bird at a distance of steps surely he was just the man to take along that young DI biliman lIman and so the question was put to pete the vivid tales of the gibat country the adventurous stories of indians the great wealth that lay ready for anyone to claim it what a country and the red blood in petes veins flowed faster yes lie wanted to po 90 mabbe alay be not to stay but he wanted to see what it was likel like and maybe find gold and return to iowa but what ot of his mother how would she get alon along oh well she could marry again perhaps she would be happier and better provided tor for if she retrial ried anyway pete knew there would be objections from his family so he wrote and told his mother just before they were planning to leave beffie she could have time to ansbe his letter but they were delayed in starting and Ms his older brother came down to warn him against such tolly folly gain nothing by going west you have a good start here bere stay and make something of yourself only get out there and get killed or else stranded sti and have to write home for money to get back on but pete heard not tor for his s mind was filled with ideas of a h glorious open free country with plenty of game plenty of land plenty of adventure and plenty of life read westward ho appearing next week and continue on with the adventures of pete Di dillman liman 1 |