Part 30 (1/2)

Van a.s.selt to Puget Sound, have been dead many years. Arthur A.

Denny has been gathered to his fathers, along with many others of the old pioneers of King County and Was.h.i.+ngton. Van a.s.selt is the last of that hardy race that opened the wilderness on Puget Sound and made it blossom like the rose.

”The news of the death of Van a.s.selt was received as a sad blow among the people of Van a.s.selt, where the aged pioneer spent the greater portion of his days in the house which still stands as a monument to his rugged pioneer days. In Van a.s.selt the people speak the name of the pioneer with reverence on account of the many charities he extended to the poor during his lifetime, and also on account of the many acts which he did in pioneer days to save and maintain the peaceful relations with the savages.

”The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Van a.s.selt was celebrated in this county, on Christmas evening 1862. All of those present at the wedding have now pa.s.sed away with a few exceptions.

”Mr. Van a.s.selt leaves a wife, Mrs. Mary Jane Maple Van a.s.selt; a son, Dr. J. H. Van a.s.selt; two daughters, Mrs. J. H. Benadom, of Puyallup, and Dr. Nettie Van a.s.selt Burling, and a grandson, Floyd Julian, son of Mrs. Mary Adriane Van a.s.selt Julian, who died in 1893. Mr. Van a.s.selt also leaves a brother, Rev. Garrett Van a.s.selt, of Utrecht, Holland, and several sisters in Holland.

”The following were selected as active pallbearers: William P.

Harper, Dexter Horton, D. B. Ward, O. J. Carr, Isaac Parker, M.

R. Maddocks. The honorary pallbearers were: Edgar Bryan, Rev.

Daniel Bagley, F. M. Guye, Joseph Foster, William Carkeek, Judge Orange Jacobs.

”As ill.u.s.trative of the regard and esteem in which this pioneer was held by those who knew him best, Dexter Horton, the well known banker and capitalist, who met Mr. Van a.s.selt in 1852, said last night:

”'Mr. Van a.s.selt was a man of sterling character. His word was as good as a government bond. I knew him almost from the beginning of his life here. He was one of the kindliest men I ever met.

”'For fifteen years after I came to Seattle I conducted a general merchandise store here. There were mighty few of us here in those early times and we were all intimately acquainted. I dare say that when a newcomer had resided on the Sound, anywhere from Olympia to the Strait of Fuca, for thirty days, I became acquainted with him. They dropped in here to trade, traveling in Indian canoes. There never was a man of them that I did not trust to any reasonable extent for goods, and my losses on that account in fifteen years' dealing with the early settlers were less than $1,000. This is sufficient testimony as to the character and integrity of the men who, like Van a.s.selt, faced the privations and dangers of the Western Trail to find homes for themselves on the Pacific Coast.

”'Mr. Van a.s.selt located on a level farm in the Duwamish valley on his arrival here. He was a man of great energy and thrift, and soon had good and paying crops growing. He used to bring his produce to Seattle, either by Indian canoe, or afterwards, when a trail was cut under the brow of the hill, by teams. This produce was readily disposed of, as we had a large number of men working in the mills and few to supply their necessities.

”'I remember that after he had lived here for several years he moved to town and established a cabinet maker's shop. He was an expert in that line of work. I have an ancient curly maple bureau which he made for me, and Mrs. A. A. Denny has another. They are beautifully fas.h.i.+oned, Van a.s.selt being well skilled in the trade. Doubtless others among the old-timers here have mementos of his handicraft.

”'Van a.s.selt was of the type of men who blazed the path for generations that followed them to the Pacific Coast. His integrity was unchallenged, and his charities were numerous and unostentatious. He used to give every worthy newcomer work on his ranch, and many an emigrant in those days got his first start from Henry Van a.s.selt.'

”Samuel Crawford knew Mr. Van a.s.selt intimately since 1876. He said last night:

”'Henry Van a.s.selt, or Uncle Henry, as we all called him, spent the winter of 1850-1851 with my great-great-grandfather, Robert Moore, at Oregon City, Ore., or more properly speaking, on the west sh.o.r.e of the Willamette, just across from Oregon City. Mr.

Van a.s.selt told me this himself. Moore kept a large place, which was a sort of rendezvous for the immigrants, and many a man found shelter at his ranch. He gave them work enough to keep them going, and Van a.s.selt found employment with him that winter, making s.h.i.+ngles from cedar bolts with a draw knife.

”'Mr. Van a.s.selt was one of the best men that ever lived. His word was as good as gold, and he never overlooked a chance to do a friend a favor. While he spoke English with difficulty, on occasion he could make a good speech, and he always took a deep interest in public affairs. There was probably no important public question involving the interests of Seattle and the Puget Sound country but that Mr. Van a.s.selt had his say. He did not care for public office, however, but preferred to go along in his quiet way, doing all the good that was possible. He firmly believed in the future of Seattle, which he loved dearly, and I remember many years ago of his purchase of two blocks of ground on Renton Hill, in the vicinity of the residence where he pa.s.sed the last years of his life. This was nearly twenty years ago.'

”Thomas W. Prosch had known Mr. Van a.s.selt for many years. He, too, paid a tribute to his fine character, and rugged honesty.

'Six years ago,' said Mr. Prosch, 'I went to talk with Mr. Van a.s.selt regarding his early experiences on the Sound. He told me of his long and arduous trip across the plains in 1850, and of his escapades with the Indians then and afterward. He said himself that he believed he led a charmed life, as the Indians took many a shot at him, but without avail. He was a dead shot himself, and the Indians had great respect for his skill. He was a very determined man, and undoubtedly had a great influence over the savages.

”'Mr. Van a.s.selt told me that he met Hill Harmon, a well known Oregon settler, in the spring of 1851, and together they crossed the Columbia and came to Olympia. From there they went with two or three others to Nesqually, where they met Luther M. Collins, one of the first settlers in King County. Collins endeavored to persuade them to locate near him, but they wanted a better place.

Finally Collins brought them to the Duwamish valley and located them here. One of the party bought Collins' place at Nesqually, and he came here to locate with Van a.s.selt and the others.

Collins' family was the first white family to establish a home in King County.'”

CHAPTER VIII.

THOMAS MERCER.

Thomas Mercer was born in Harrison county, Ohio, March 11, 1813, the eldest of a large family of children. He remained with his father until he was twenty-one, gaining a common school education and a thorough knowledge of the manufacture of woolen goods. His father was the owner of a well appointed woolen mill. The father, Aaron Mercer, was born in Virginia and was of the same family as General Mercer of revolutionary fame. His mother, Jane d.i.c.kerson Mercer, was born in Pennsylvania of an old family of that state.