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Merry Christmas everybody! Hopefully you and yours are enjoying a wonderful day. Today’s WebXtra is a little different than usual. For your enjoyment we have two stories about one of those pioneer characters that populated our town in its early years.
Our character? Zack Taylor. Much was written about Zack in Fairfield’s Pioneer history of Lassen County, which includes several rather humorous stories about the adventures of ‘Old Uncle Zack’.
Our first story concerns Zack's 'appropriation' of a Christmas turkey in 1859. If you own a copy of Fairfield’s history the stories begin on page 494. If you would like to read the book online you can click here to view the digital copy at Google books.
Our second story about Old Zack is from the book “Comstock Club” written by C.C. Goodwin and published in 1891. Enjoy the stories and have a great Christmas day.
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From Fairfield’s Pioneer History of Lassen County
A. W. Worm, who came to Susanville in 1859, tells the following about his first Christmas turkey in California.
"Uncle Zack Taylor, who used to come into my little store on Main street after a free drink and tobacco, promised to bring me a turkey for Christmas, as I kept bachelor's hall with three others in a room back of the store. Well, Christmas came but no turkey. I met Uncle Zack in the afternoon and began to quiz him about it. He assured me that the turkey would be coming, and seeing that he was quite boozy, I passed on.
About dusk he came into the store carrying something under his coat-cape, and passing right into the kitchen he set a platter with a fine roasted turkey on the table. He said, "There is your turkey. I knew you had no way of roasting it, so I took it up to Brannan to have it roasted for you." After getting a bottle of whiskey he passed out. Well, the boys soon gathered in and we devoured the luscious turkey, dressing and all.
We heard later that he had 'swiped' the turkey from a ranch, sold it to Mike Brannan, who was giving a party and a Christmas dinner, and then slipped into the pantry after it was roasted, stole it again and brought it to me.
The joke was on Mr. Brannan, who not only lost the turkey, but many a 25-cent drink to the boys who joshed him about it." Mr. Worm says further, "But Uncle had some good traits of character. He kept a poor widow with three children, who lived in the Woodstock house outside of town, from starving by stealing food and giving it to them.”
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From the Comstock Club written by C.C. Goodwin, 1891
In the summer of 1860 Susanville began to be vexed by the evident presence of a mysterious thief. If a hunter brought in a brace of grouse or rabbits and left them exposed for a little while they disappeared. If a string of trout were caught from the river and were left anywhere for a few minutes they were lost. Gardens were robbed of fruit and vegetables; blankets, flannels and groceries disappeared from stores.
The losses became unbearable at length; everybody was aroused and on the alert, but no thief could be discovered, though the depredations still went on. This continued for days and weeks, until the people became desperate, and many a threat was made that when the thief should finally be caught, in disposing of him the grim satisfaction of the frontier should be fully enjoyed. Old Zack was especially fierce in his denunciations.
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One morning a horseman dashed into town, his mustang coming in on a dead run. Reining up in front of the main hotel, he sprang down from his horse and to the people who came running to see what was the matter, he explained that a half a mile from town, around the bend of the hill, in the old deserted cabin, he had found the widow of the man killed weeks before; had found her and her babies, and none of them with sufficient food or clothing.
When the story was finished, men and women, half the population of Susanville, made a rush for the cabin. It was nearly concealed from view from the road by thick bushes, but they found the woman there and four little children. The woman seemed like one half dazed by sorrow and despair, but when questioned, she replied that she had been there alone for five weeks. “But how have you lived?” asked a half dozen voices in concert.
Then the woman explained that she and her children would have starved had it not been for a kind old gentleman who brought her everything that she required. “Indeed,” she added, “he brought me many things that I did not need, and which I felt that I ought not to accept, but he over-persuaded me, telling me that I did not know how rich he was; that his supplies were simply inexhaustible.”
When asked to describe this man, she began to say: “He is a heavy-set old gentleman; wears blue clothes; his hair is white as snow, but his eyes are black, and…” but she was not allowed to go any farther, for twenty voices between weeping and laughing cried “Old Zack!”
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The widow and her children were taken to Susanville, a house with its comforts was provided for them, and there was, thenceforth, no more trouble from the ubiquitous thief.
Living on charity himself, with the wreck of a life behind him and nothing before him but the grave, which he was swiftly nearing, this great-hearted old heavenly bummer and Christian thief had taken care of this helpless family, and done it because despite the dry rot and the whisky which had benumbed his energies, his soul, deep down was royal to the core. It is true that he had robbed the town to minister to the woman and her babies, but in the books of the angels, though it was written that he was a thief, in the same sentence it was also added, “and God bless him,” and these words turned to gold even as they were being written.
When Old Zack was asked why he did not make the facts about the family known, after waiting a moment he replied, “You see I've been tossed about a powerful sight in my time; have drank heaps of bad whisky; have done a great many no-account things and not a great many good ones. Since I wus a boy I have never had chick or kin of my own. I met the woman and her babies up by the cabin; they wus as pitiful a sight as ever you seen; and besides, the woman wus jist about to go stark mad with grief and hunger and anxiety and weariness. I seen she must have quiet, and that anxiety about her children must be soothed some way. Then I did some of the best lyin' you ever heard. I got her to eat some supper and waited until the whole outfit wus fast asleep. I watched 'em a little while and then I got curus to know what kind of a provider I would have made for a family had I started out in life different, and that wus all there wus about it.”
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For instant CalTrans road conditions click here or call
1-800.427.7623
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Today: Snow showers likely. Cloudy, with a high near 26. Northwest wind around 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.
Tonight: Scattered snow showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 11. West wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Friday: A 20 percent chance of snow showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 25. West wind around 5 mph.
Friday Night: A 20 percent chance of snow showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 16. West wind around 5 mph.
Saturday: A slight chance of snow showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 35. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Saturday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 28.
Sunday: A slight chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 40.
Sunday Night: A slight chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 28.
Monday: A slight chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 40.
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765 Subscribers
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Welcome to the daily SusanvilleStuff WebXtra.
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This week at the Sierra Theatre and Uptown Cinemas: thru 1/1/09
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Bedtime Stories
The Curious Case
of Benjamin Button
Marley and Me
4 Christmases
The Tale of Despereaux
Yes Man
The Spirit
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