This is a very cool publicity campaign, using — dare I say it — scientific literacy in an effort to raise awareness about some rare genetic disorders (full disclosure-time: my own family has one of them). Basically, next Friday’s date — 15/11/13 — neatly matches the chromosomal region (15q11-q13) affected by three overlapping disorders: Angelman Syndrome, Prader-Willi Syndrome, and Dup15q Syndrome (otherwise known as Chromosome 15q Duplication).
So, here we go, welcome to next Friday: International 15q Day!
Awareness here is really important precisely because the three disorder overlap in ways that regularly cause confusion among physicians, including frequent misdiagnoses. And this is important because the non-overlapping features of the conditions can be quite striking, and the specifics of best-practice intervention will vary across them.
But, as I say, the really cool part of this campaign is the assumption that ordinary people will ‘get’ the principle of 15q11-q13. You see, you really can explain chromosomal disorders to people by referring to, well, chromosomes…
And moreover, while these conditions are outwardly striking in terms of symptomology, their genetic basis is critical to understanding them scientifically. Without detracting from the importance of early behavioural and medical intervention with these kids, it is just as important to remember that understanding how these conditions emerge at a genetic level will, in the long term, help develop even better interventions, and even maybe some kind of ‘cure’.
So, anyway, I nearly forgot to raise YOUR awareness. Here we go. Let me start with the geeky-chromosomal stuff. I’ll take it as near-general knowledge that humans generally have 23 pairs of chromosomes in each cell of their body, which collectively contain the genetic ‘blueprint’ from which their body develops. Scientists number the first lot of these from 1 to 22, with the 23rd pair being the X and Y chromosomes, which are often referred to as the ‘sex chromosomes’ because they determine the holder’s sex. Each time a woman and a man reproduce they pass on just one of each of the pairs of chromosomes to their offspring. This new individual has a unique combination of the genetic variations found in mommy and daddy (instead of being an exact replica of either mom’s or dad’s chromosomes). However, the child may also have new genetic variations – changes in DNA that occurred during the formation of sperm or egg but that are not found in other cells of mom or dad. These naturally occurring random differences can be of several types.
Essentially, the 15q11-q13 conditions arise because, at the point of conception, the copy of chromosome 15 contains a type of random change that affects the new child’s genetic blueprint in a particular way — a way that produces sets (or syndromes) of symptoms that society calls a ‘disorder’. Here is a graphical representation of the different ways mutations in chromosome 15 cause the three 15q11-q13 conditions.
For example, the light blue zone depicts the four ways that abnormalities in this part of chromosome 15 cause Angelman Syndrome. These are: chromosome deletion (where region q12 is not present); UBE3A mutation (where this UBE3A gene has mutated in chromosome 15); paternal uniparental disomy (where chromosome 15 contains two copies of dad’s chromosome 15, instead of one of dad’s and one of mom’s); and imprinting centre deficit (a bit of the q12 section is not the same as in mom’s). It is perhaps worth remembering that all humans exhibit lots of DNA-related mutations. It is basically a matter of luck whether our particular mutations lead to physical or behavioural features that cause us difficulty in later life.
Finally, not unrelated to their overlapping genetic origins, the three conditions also share overlapping symptoms. Here is another graphic, this time showing the ways these symptoms interweave.
All this is of interest not only because it helps scientists to understand the nature of the conditions themselves, but also because it helps them understand the way genes and chromosome are involved in ordinary physical development (i.e., by seeing how differences in chromosome 15 affect people with Angelman, Prader-Willi, or Dup15q, we can begin to understand what chromosome 15 actually does in everyone). You see? Science.
Go check out the International Prader-Willi Syndrome Organisation, the Angelman Syndrome Foundation and the Dup5q Alliance for more info, and maybe do the awareness campaign some justice by giving them a ‘Like’, +1, or retweet.
And do think of them next Friday…
* * *
[Thanks to @aoifemcl for her advice on some particulars!]


1 Introduction and Overview.
1.1 Preamble: What do ‘Reliability’, ‘Risk’ and ‘Robustness’ Mean?
1.2 Objectives and Prospective Readership.
1.3 Reliability, Risk and Survival: State-of-the-Art.
1.4 Risk Management: A Motivation for Risk Analysis.
1.5 Books on Reliability, Risk and Survival Analysis.
1.6 Overview of the Book.
2 The Quantification of Uncertainty.
2.1 Uncertain Quantities and Uncertain Events: Their Definition and Codification.
2.2 Probability: A Satisfactory Way to Quantify Uncertainty.
2.3 Overview of the Different Interpretations of Probability.
2.4 Extending the Rules of Probability: Law of Total Probability and Bayes’ Law.
2.5 The Bayesian Paradigm: A Prescription for Reliability, Risk and Survival.
2.6 Probability Models, Parameters, Inference and Prediction.
2.7 Testing Hypotheses: Posterior Odds and Bayes Factors.
2.8 Utility as Probability and Maximization of Expected Utility.
2.9 Decision Trees and Influence Diagrams for Risk Analysis.
3 Exchangeability and Indifference.
3.1 Introduction to Exchangeability: de Finetti’s Theorem.
3.2 de Finetti-style Theorems for Infinite Sequences of Non-binary Random.
3.3 Error Bounds on de Finetti-style Results for Finite Sequences of Random.
4 Stochastic Models of Failure.
4.2 Preliminaries: Univariate, Multivariate and Multi-indexed Distribution Functions.
4.3 The Predictive Failure Rate Function of a Univariate Probability Distribution.
4.4 Interpretation and Uses of the Failure Rate Function – the Model Failure Rate.
4.5 Multivariate Analogues of the Failure Rate Function.
4.6 The Hazard Potential of Items and Individuals.
4.7 Probability Models for Interdependent Lifelengths.
4.8 Causality and Models for Cascading Failures.
4.9 Failure Distributions with Multiple Scales.
5 Parametric Failure Data Analysis.
5.1 Introduction and Perspective.
5.2 Assessing Predictive Distributions in the Absence of Data.
5.3 Prior Distributions in Chance Distributions.
5.4 Predictive Distributions Incorporating Failure Data.
5.5 Information from Life-tests: Learning from Data.
5.6 Optimal Testing: Design of Life-testing Experiments.
5.7 Adversarial Life-testing and Acceptance Sampling.
5.8 Accelerated Life-testing and Dose–response Experiments.
6 Composite Reliability: Signatures.
6.1 Introduction: Hierarchical Models.
6.2 ‘Composite Reliability’: Partial Exchangeability.
6.3 Signature Analysis and Signatures as Covariates.
7 Survival in Dynamic Environments.
7.1 Introduction: Why Stochastic Hazard Functions?
7.2 Hazard Rate Processes.
7.3 Cumulative Hazard Processes.
7.4 Competing Risks and Competing Risk Processes.
7.5 Degradation and Aging Processes.
8 Point Processes for Event Histories.
8.1 Introduction: What is Event History?
8.2 Other Point Processes in Reliability and Life-testing.
8.3 Multiplicative Intensity and Multivariate Point Processes.
8.4 Dynamic Processes and Statistical Models: Martingales.
8.5 Point Processes with Multiplicative Intensities.
9 Non-parametric Bayes Methods in Reliability.
9.1 The What and Why of Non-parametric Bayes.
9.2 The Dirichlet Distribution and its Variants.
9.3 A Non-parametric Bayes Approach to Bioassay.
9.4 Prior Distributions on the Hazard Function.
9.5 Prior Distributions for the Cumulative Hazard Function.
9.6 Priors for the Cumulative Distribution Function.
10 Survivability of Co-operative, Competing and Vague Systems.
10.1 Introduction: Notion of Systems and their Components.
10.2 Coherent Systems and their Qualitative Properties.
10.3 The Survivability of Coherent Systems.
10.4 Machine Learning Methods in Survivability Assessment.
10.5 Reliability Allocation: Optimal System Design.
10.6 The Utility of Reliability: Optimum System Selection.
10.7 Multi-state and Vague Stochastic Systems.
11 Reliability and Survival in Econometrics and Finance.
11.1 Introduction and Overview.
11.2 Relating Metrics of Reliability to those of Income Inequality.
11.3 Invoking Reliability Theory in Financial Risk Assessment.
11.4 Inferential Issues in Asset Pricing.
11.5 Concluding Comments.
Appendix A Markov Chain Monté Carlo Simulation.
A.1 The Gibbs Sampling Algorithm.
Appendix B Fourier Series Models and the Power Spectrum.
Appendix C Network Survivability and Borel’s Paradox.


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in the West
Biblical Locations of
the Lost Ten Tribes
by Yair Davidiy
Biblical Geographical Evidence
Isles of the Sea in the West
Isles of the Sea
The Bible says that the Lost Ten Tribes will be in the Isles of the Sea meaning Isles tot he West of the Land of Israel and referring mainly to the British Isles. This indication must be taken in context with other geographical signs of direction.
The Bible describes Ephraim as
the "Firstborn" and also connects
him with "the ISLES":
(Jeremiah 31; 9-10)
Similarly, Isaiah connects Israel
with Isles in the same passage of Isaiah that speaks of the Brit-Am 'Covenant
of the people', and is connected with colonialism and the settlement of North
America and Australia.
a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn. Hear the word of the LORD,
O ye nations, and declare it in the ISLES afar off, and say, He that scattered
Israel will gather him and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock".
(Isaiah -49;1 6)
0 ISLES unto me. Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified...
to bring Jacob again unto him... to raise up the tribes of Jacob... a covenant
of the people [in Hebrew: "Brit-am"] to establish the earth... to inherit
the desolate heritages... these from the north and the west; and these from
the land of Sinim".
references also appear to indicate that the Lost Tribes, (or part of them),
are in the "Isles":
"The name of the Lord God of Israel in the ISLES of the sea"
ISLES shall wait for his law".
(Isaiah 51;4 5)
unto me, MY PEOPLE...O my nation...mine arms shall judge the people, the
ISLES shall wait upon me".
the ISLES shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy
sons from far" .
Isaiah 11:11 in the Hebrew also
mentions the Isles of the Sea:
"IN THAT DAY THE
LORD WILL EXTEND HIS HAND YET A SECOND TIME TO RECOVER THE REMNANT WHICH
IS LEFT OF HIS PEOPLE, FROM ASSYRIA, FROM EGYPT, FROM PATHROS, FROM ETHIOPIA
[Cush], FROM ELAM, FROM SHINAR, FROM HAMATH, AND FROM THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA"
These are the exiles of Judah and
Israel: The places spoken of are areas to which the exiles were taken and
from there went elsewhere. They are not necessarily places from which the
exiles will return.
ASSYRIA: the Lost Ten Tribes were exiled
by Assyria. Some equate Assyria WITH GERMANY.
EGYPT in Hebrew is Mitsrayim. Some
of the Lost Tribes were exiled via Egypt and so too were many of the Jews.
The Celts of Britain and Ireland had early contacts with Egypt. Egypt (Mitsraimin
in Hebrew) in some contexts can also equal Russia.
PATHROS is a place in Egypt though
some say a place on the Turkish border.
ETHIOPIA in Hebrew is "Cush".
Cush could mean 'Africa' in general; Sudan, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, India,
Central Asia. In connection with the Lost Ten tribes we believe in most cases
that Cush applies to Central Asia. This was referred to as 'India' in Dutch
Frisian sources and was the area they said their ancestors went to after
leaving Israel and before moving to the west.
Cush was equated with Ethiopia. Homer
spoke of an Ethiopia in the east and another far to the west.
F. de Rougemont, "L'Age du Bronze,"
(Paris 1866), pointed out that in North African Berber dialects Ethiopia
can mean People of Joppa. Joppa is Jaffa in southern Israel that was bequeathed
to Dan but conquered by Ephraim from the Canaanites. According to their own
traditions many of the Berbers of North Africa descended from Canaanites
who had been expelled by the Israelites. The Phoenicians and several Arab
groups originally spoke a Berber-type language. The Israelites, Phoenicians,
and North Africans all had links with Ireland.
ELAM is an area in southwest Persia.
Elam was once an important country. The bulk of the Ancient Persians were
probably of Elamite origin. Elamite was the most common spoken language amongst
the Persians. Archeological findings reveal a connection between Elam and
the Sacae of Central Asia who became the Anglo-Saxons. Elam was descended
from Sem. Craig White and others
trace people of Yugoslavia to Elam.
SHINAR meaning Babylon but also applied
to the northern shores of the Black Sea. Babylon was an important dispersion
point for the Jews of Judah.
HAMATH: Daphne of Antiochea was a suburb
of Hamath and it was connected with the Lost Ten Tribes. An Irish tradition
says that their ancestors and those of the British Celts were taken as slaves
by Phoenician agents of the Assyrian based in Hamath to Spain and from there
they moved to the British Isles. This agrees with historical and archaeological
BIBLICAL LANGUAGE: It is important
to remember that the Prophets spoke in their language according to terms
familiar to them. They spoke the truth. The names given by the Prophets to
different places in connection with future events may be the same places
that had those names at that time; OR they may be different places to which
descendants of the same people moved; OR they may have had names that sounded
similar to the names the Prophets employed, e.g. Hamath was an important
city in northern Syria, but you also had Ecbatana (the capital of Media),
known as Hamadan, and according to Daat Mikra also referred to in the Bible
COASTLANDS OF THE SEA: Everywhere else the KJ translates the Hebrew used here, "Iyai
HaYam" as 'ISLES OF THE SEA' AND THIS IS MORE CORRECT and is referring to the British Isles.
Shlomo Koshlavski, "VeAsher Tavonah Yagidu", Jerusalem, 5764, p.211:
"The Isles of the Sea in Biblical Terminology refer to Provinces by the Sea, that is places far away over the sea. The intention is to the Exiles of Israel in the Continent of Europe as explained in the Commentary of the Radak [Kimchi],
and alsop to the Exiles of Israel in the Continents of America and Australia, and in other areas that are over the sea as far as the Land of Israel is concerned...THE OUTCASTS OF ISRAEL [Isaiah 11:12] are the Ten Tribes."
The connection we have made between
Isaiah 11:11 and the Lost Ten Tribes is confirmed by the Zohar
(VaYechi), as we explained in our work "Ephraim".
The Lost Ten Tribes who will be
found gathered together in specific areas. THE DISPERSED OF JUDAH i.e. the
Jews who are scattered all over the world.
WILL RAISE AN ENSIGN FOR THE NATIONS, AND WILL ASSEMBLE THE OUTCASTS OF
ISRAEL, AND GATHER THE DISPERSED OF JUDAH FROM THE FOUR CORNERS OF THE EARTH.
OUTCASTS OF ISRAEL"
JEALOUSY OF EPHRAIM SHALL DEPART, AND THOSE WHO HARASS JUDAH SHALL BE CUT
OFF; EPHRAIM SHALL NOT BE JEALOUS OF JUDAH, AND JUDAH SHALL NOT HARASS EPHRAIM."
of Geographic Proofs
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Background Raynaud’s phenomenon is a symptom complex characterized by episodes of pallor or cyanosis with tingling of the peripheral extremities, particularly the finger and toes that is caused by a vasospasm of small arteries and arterioles. This spasm is induced by sudden change of temperature or by stress. Raynaud’s phenomenon affecting the oral cavity is a rare but known symptom in patients with connective tissue disease. There are only few reports about oral manifestations of Raynaud’s phenomenon. To our knowledge this is the first report of this symptom in children.
Results An adolescent girl, aged 11 years, presented herself 6 weeks after developing Raynaud’s phenomenon on fingers, toes and her tongue at our consultation (image 1). This symptom appeared typically after sudden change of temperature or in stressful situations. She didn’t describe pain, only a fizzy sensation on the tongue. After some minutes, the coloration went back to normal. Physical examination revealed a heliotrope rash on the face and arthritis of 10 joints. In the first place, blood exams were performed, suspecting connective tissue disease. These tests revealed high level of anti-nuclear-antibodies (ANA >5120 U/ml) and presence of anti-RNP 68 (>100U/ml) and anti-U1-RNP (>100U/ml) but no sign of inflammation. The capillaroscopy did not show any signs of desertification or megacapillaries. In the first place, Hydroxychloroquine was introduced as patient had only few complaints. As articular condition got worse, Prednisone and Methotrexate were introduced with resolution of the articular complaints and decreasing frequency of Raynaud’s phenomenon.
Conclusions Primary Raynaud’s phenomenon involves mainly distal extremities. Presentation of this symptom involving the tongue is highly suspect for a secondary Raynaud’s phenomenon, in our case mixed connective tissue disease. Therefore, patients presenting with this manifestation need to be referred promptly to a (pediatric) rheumatologist.
Disclosure of Interest None Declared


SCHOOLS OF NORTHERN, CENTRAL, AND SOUTHERN ITALY. During the eleventh and twelfth centuries sculpture was the least important of the fine arts in Italy. The sterility of four centuries of figured compositions could not easily be broken. In Italy the artistic revival centred on the development of architecture far more than in other European countries, for public structures became the representatives of that intensely local pride which distinguished the free Italian cities. Hand in hand with the development of municipal institutions and local independence went the erection of cathedrals and town halls. Architecture in these works relied less for decoration upon the aid of sculpture than upon that of painting.
At the same time, in certain parts of Italy, especially Lombardy in the north and Apulia in the south, sculpture was used as an integral part of architecture, in the decoration of portals and other parts of the facade, very much as it was employed-in France and in Germany. But, studying Italy from one end to the other, we find sculpture in this period confined usually to independent works, especially church furniture that could be executed in sculptors’ workshops, and not in connection with the erection of buildings. Such were pulpits, sepulchral monuments, paschal candle-sticks, altar-fronts, and altar-tabernacles.
For purposes of study, Italy’s schools of sculpture during this period may be regarded as corresponding quite closely to her general political divisions. The Lombard school is by far the most important. Although extremely rude in the beginning, it contains a germ of strength and character that appears in full force in the school of Parma toward the close of the twelfth century. The earliest in date are the schools of Pavia and Milan. Somewhat later is the school at Verona, established toward the close of the eleventh century, and possessed of less crudity and more symmetry and delicacy. Finally, the group of cities to the southeast of the provinceParma, Borgo S. Donnino, and Modenashow the highest excellence of any Italian Romanesque school. In them sculpture is employed with more freedom and on a monumental scale, and the association with architectural forms is more organic. We feel here the influence of France. The sculptures on the facade of the Cathedral of Borgo S. Donnino are attributable to Benedetto Antelami. Inside and outside the baptistery at Parma are the finest works before Niccola Pisano. The Byzantine influence visible in Antelami’s works is even more evident in the Pisan school, especially in the reliefs on the portals of the baptistery. Venice also was under the artistic rule of Byzantium when the revival of sculpture took place. S. Marco is decorated with numerous sculptures of the eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth centuries which are almost as purely Byzantine in style as the mosaics and the architecture of the church. In metal work this influence of Byzantium is even more widely extended. Throughout a large part of the south of Italy are scattered churches with inlaid bronze doors, made either in Constantinople by Greek artists or in Italy by their imitators, who quickly passed to work in relief, as in the case of Barisanus of Trani.
In Tuscany hardly any sculpture seems to have been executed during the eleventh century, but in the twelfth several local schools were founded, and in many cases the artists’ names have been preserved. Pisa is represented by Bonusamicus, Biduinus, and especially Bonannus : to Lucca belongs Robertus; to Pistoja, Ridolphinus and Enrichus. In the latter half of the century Gruamons of Pisa threw off some of the early rudeness and was more symmetrical and artistic. Still, Tuscany lagged behind the rest of Italy in sculpture, her productions being neither as monumental as the Lombard nor as symmetrical as the Venetian.
In the south of Italy the provinces that were strongly impregnated with Byzantine influence paid but slight attention to sculpture. It was developed almost exclusively in the province of Apulia. Sicily and the Neapolitan province devoted them-selves entirely to the development of mosaic decoration. The style of Apulian sculpture was so strongly Lombard as to lead us to suppose that its artists belonged either to local Lombard guilds or were artists from Lombardy itself.
Rome was perhaps the last of the great art centres to revive sculpture, but the revival, early in the thirteenth century, was of considerable importance, because it was directed, more than was the case with the other schools, to the production of statuary instead of bas-reliefs.
REVIVAL OF SCULPTURE AT PISA, At the time when Italy was feeling in its architecture the influence of the new Gothic style, shortly before the middle of the thirteenth century, there began a revival in sculpture which brought it back for the first time into the rank of an art possessed of aesthetic qualities. It is customary to give the entire credit of this revival to the school of Pisa and Tuscany founded by Niccola Pisano (1206 1280 ?) ; but although this school certainly acquired paramount influence throughout Italy, yet in this case, as in other vital movements, the revival was almost simultaneous in different parts of the peninsula. This was especially the case with the southern school in the time of the Emperor Frederick II., and in Rome at the same time. In both of these schools, as in the Pisan school, we find a decided return to the study of antique models. The southern sculptures at Ravello and Capua are distinctly an effort at an imitation of Greek types. So are the coins of Frederick II. We know that one of the Roman sculptors had set up in his workshop a Roman statue of Asculapius, which he used as a model, and at whose base he carved his name. Certainly, the Roman school was the centre of the revival of classic forms in architecture and decoration as well as in sculpture, and this movement in Rome and the South may almost be called a proto-Renaissance movement.
The style of sculpture in Lombardy and in Tuscany in the middle of the thirteenth century, when Niccola Pisano founded his school, is well exemplified by the pulpit in the church of San Giovanni at Pistoja. It is signed by a Lombard, Guido da Como, and dated 1250. The general scheme of composition is the same as that used by the later Pisan school, but the figures are still heavy and lifeless. Niccola Pisano had already begun his work at that time. His early style, as exemplified in the Cathedral of
Lucca, culminated in his great pulpit in the baptistery at Pisa in 126o. The novelty of his genius consisted in the invention not of new subjects, but of powerful individual types of humanity, and he was thoroughly successful only in his heads and in some of his nude figures. For while his drapery was, fine in itself, his draped figures were usually far too heavy. His art was purely humanistic, and not religious, and as the time had not yet come for divorcing art from religion Niccola failed to impose his style upon the school. In fact, the Roman types which he created are found in their original form only on the Pisan pulpit. In later works, like the pulpit at Siena, in which he was assisted by his school, we find a return to a more religious style. Niccola was succeeded in the leadership of the school by his son Giovanni Pisano (1250-1320?), and by this time the school had acquired supremacy throughout Tuscany. As soon as Giovanni was released from his father’s superintendence, he showed himself to be animated by the facile, dramatic, and naturalistic element of the Gothic movement. He seems to have felt the influence both of the Rhenish school (Strassburg) and the school of northern France (Amiens). His work was hardly equal to the best productions of either of these schools. In Giovanni’s earlier work, after his father’s death, he was still dignified, calm, and broad. In this style are the Virgin and Child of the Cathedral of Florence and the tomb of Benedict XI. at Perugia. He became possessed more and more, how-ever, by over-dramatic tendencies, and this extravagant manner of his is admirably illustrated in the pulpit at Pistoja. Gothic sculpture in both France and Italy is essentially allegorical and symbolic, wherever it does not attempt purely historical compositions. Giovanni seems to have been the first to intro-duce this element very strikingly into Italian sculpture, and he introduced it permanently. His greatest successor, Andrea Pisano (1273 ?-1319), developed and perfected this element in the school, and was a master of broader conceptions, more perfect technique, and more creative imagination than Giovanni. He did for sculpture in this respect what Giotto did at the same time for painting. Under his leadershipbetween 1310 and 1335the Gothic school of sculpture reached its highest point of perfection in Italy. Its two greatest works in Tuscany are the four piers of the facade of the Cathedral of Orvieto and the series of reliefs on Giotto’s Campanile in Florence, both of which are important, not only for the beauty of their execution but as the greatest cycles of connected subjects which the school produced. Andrea’s best work, and the most exquisite single production of the school, is his bronze door for the baptistery at Florence, which served as a model to Ghiberti for his first door nearly a hundred years afterwards. The mantle of Andrea Pisano fell upon the shoulders of Andrea Orcagna (1329?-1368), a universal geniusarchitect, sculptor, and painterand one of the strongest artists that Italy produced. Unfortunately, he appears to have devoted only a small part of his artistic energy to sculpture. His masterpiece is the shrine in Or San Michele at Florence.
THE REVIVAL ELSEWHERE. In the mean time other schools had been founded outside of Pisa and Florence under the auspices of these schools. Agostino di Giovanni and Agnolo di Ventura (1330) were leaders at Siena. The style was carried to Milan by Giovanni di Balduccio (1300134) of Pisa, a pupil of Andrea, who established the Lombard branch. Tino di Camaino (13151336) of Siena carried it to Naples. At the same time, there still remained some local schools which were more or less outside of this Pisan and Florentine influence. The most important of these appears to have been in Lombardy, with its centre at Verona. This school extended during the fourteenth century to many cities even outside of Lombardy, especially to Padua and Venice. Its development can best be studied, in Verona itself, in the monuments of the princes of the Scaliger family. The most notable family of artists of this school is that of the Campionesi. It showed great originality in the development of different types of sepulchral monuments, many of them on a scale of great magnificence. The Campioni family worked at Bergamo, Pavia, Milan, and Monza. An independent branch of this school was established in Venice, shortly after the middle of the fourteenth century, under the leadership of the Massegne family (Jacobello and Pietro Polo).
The great mass of works produced by the different sections of this Lombard school is composed of sepulchral monuments with reclining figures and overhanging canopies placed against church walls. They hardly vary in type throughout the entire territory permeated by this style.
THE NEAPOLITAN SCHOOL produced during the fourteenth century a great number of sepulchral monuments of a different style, but very few of them rise to any degree of merit, notwithstanding their ever-increasing size, elaboration, and multitude of figures. The Roman school came to an end shortly after 1300, in consequence of the removal of the Papacy to Avignon and the consequent decadence of the city. But during the sixty or seventy years before this time it had taken an important share in the early revival. The artists that stand out with especial prominence are two of the same name and family, Vassalletto I. and II. (fl. 1220-1276), and Giovanni Cosmati (fl. 1290-1304). This Roman school created the type of sepulchral monuments which was adopted by the Pisan artists. The best early example is the tomb of Pope Hadrian V. at Viterbo, in which we see that combination of sculpture with architecture and brilliant mosaic ornamentation which was the specialty of the Roman school. Giovanni Cosmati was its last prominent representative, and he consummated the interweaving of Gothic forms into the earlier Roman style, which up to the middle of the thirteenth century had been purely classic.
MATERIALS. Marble and stone were the favorite materials of the Italian sculptor. Italy had not yet regained with any degree of perfection the knowledge of metal-casting which had been lost during the dark centuries that had gone before. The earliest works in metal are either made up of small hammered plates fastened with nails to a background, as in the earliest Greek work, or consist of inlays upon metals copied from Byzantine originals. Reliefs in bronze were the first attempts at casting. The chief worker in bronze at the close of the twelfth century was Bonannus of Pisa, but Andrea Pisano (fl. 13301350) carried the work of relief-casting to great perfection. In the casting of figures in the round, success was not attained until the Renaissance. Nor did Italian sculptors develop sculpture in gold and silver to as high a degree of perfection as did the artists of the north of Europe. Not until the middle of the fourteenth century do we find a general production of works in enamelled gold and silver gilt and in this work the Florentine and Sienese schools appear to have had the monopoly. Ivory was used especially at Venice, but to a very small degree as compared with the schools of northern Europe. Stone and marble were used not only as in the north of Europe, when the sculpture was an integral part of the construction, but also in those free objects of church decoration for which metal was the favorite material, i.e., baptismal fonts.
SUBJECTS. Until the advent of the allegorical school, shortly before 1300, Italian sculpture showed itself singularly unimaginative. It confined itself to historical and legendary subjects of the traditional, time-honored scenes of the Old and New Testaments, and to the legends of local scenes. This naturalistic and purely psychological character of Italian sculpture is quite in harmony with the national character and with the subsequent development of the sister art of painting. The fourteenth century, with its predominant mystical, allegorical, and often pessimistic tendency, is an abnormal period in Italian history. In its sculpture at this time Italy was more in touch with the development of the rest of Europe than at any other period, and parallels to the greater part of the allegorical subjects employed in her schools can be found plentifully in the French cathedrals. It is probable that we have here one of the centres of that strong philosophic, mystical, and literary influence exerted by the French, through the University of Paris, upon the principal Italian thinkers and leaders of the Gothic period.


Summary contributed by Ryan Khurana, a graduate of UofT’s Rotman School of Management in the Master’s of Management Analytics program.
*Authors of original paper & link at the bottom
The automation impacts of artificial intelligence have been the subject of much discussion and debate, often hampered by a poor demarcation of the limits of AI. Agrawal, Gans, and Goldfarb have provided a framework that helps us understand where AI fits into organizations and what tasks are at risk of being automated. They argue that AI is fundamentally a prediction technology, and prediction is one of the key aspects of a decision-task, though not the only one. Things like judgement and action are also critical parts of decision-making and are not susceptible to direct automation by AIs. This does not mean, however, that they will not be affected by improved prediction, since the value of judgement and action may change as predictions become cheaper, better, and faster. Using this framework they identify four possible ways AI can affect jobs: replacing prediction tasks, replacing entire decision tasks, augmenting decision tasks, and creating new decision tasks.
A job is highly susceptible to automation when the work is mainly one of prediction. Tasks like responding to emails done by executive assistants, case summaries done by paralegals, and demand forecasting done by operations staff are all capable of being done by AIs either now or in the near future. These jobs, however, often have non-prediction tasks as well, and being able to redesign workflows to emphasize the uniquely human tasks is critical for enabling them to continue to provide value. Another possibility is judgement and action tasks being automated because predictions make them easier. They give the example of self-driving cars which can process the environment, anticipate the behavior of other actors, and predict the outcomes of different maneuvers with higher accuracy and speed than a human. Under these conditions the expert judgment required in good driving may become less valuable. Another possibility is that better predictions can enable humans to do their jobs better, such as in emergency rooms, where faster and higher quality assessments improve the ability for medical staff to prioritize patients and give them even better care. Finally, there may be new tasks that the rise of AI creates that were previously too costly or unnecessary. We already see this with the rise of data labelling. By providing this framework the authors help us have a more nuanced assessment of the impacts of automation, allowing policy makers, educators, and business leaders to understand what tasks should be emphasized and what initiatives can help workers prepare for AIs impact on their jobs.
The automation impacts of artificial intelligence have been the subject of much discussion and debate, often hampered by a poor demarcation of the limits of AI. In this paper, Agrawal, Gans, and Goldfarb build upon the framework that they introduced in their book Prediction Machines, that AI is fundamentally a prediction technology, and as it improves it will decrease the cost of prediction resulting in wider use of the technology in prediction tasks. The effect this has on labor then depends on the relative importance of prediction in a given job. They identify four possibilities.
The first is that many job tasks are pure prediction, for example forecasting work within operations departments, legal summary work done by paralegals, and email response work done by executive assistants, are all tasks that can be substituted by AIs as is, and possibly with greater efficiency, threatening these jobs if they do not have other high value-add tasks to do. A second possibility is that while a task may have a decision-component beyond prediction, this would no longer be important if predictions were better and cheaper. They give the example of autonomous vehicles, as driving is a common task that involves both prediction (what is happening in the environment around you and the potential payoffs of each decision) and judgement (what is the right action to take given this information). This judgement component may only be important because humans cannot make as fast and accurate a prediction as an autonomous vehicle. Should understanding the environment and the outcome of each action be nearly instantaneous and highly accurate, picking the one with the highest expected reward given a certain set of rules may result in the human judgement having reduced importance. In these contexts, even decision tasks could be substituted by AIs when the predictions are fast, cheap, and high quality enough.
The third possibility is that AI results in greater labor need as expert judgement becomes an important complement to better prediction. For example, in emergency medicine should diagnostics become better, faster, and cheaper through better AI, medical staff are now able to have a more accurate understanding of their patient needs, being able to prioritize workloads better and make targeted interventions. This increased productivity could in turn make hospitals more efficient, requiring more staff to provide even more care. Finally, the possibility exists that new types of tasks are created by the advent of AI. We can already see this appear somewhat in the data labelling industry that has arisen to support the models being deployed. As prediction becomes better and cheaper there may be more tasks that were simply unfeasible when prediction was poor and costly that are now able to be done.
This paper provides a valuable framework for decomposing the impacts of AIs on jobs and provides a language for understanding the different effects it can have on workers depending on their specific circumstances. This theoretical understanding can provide the basis for more nuanced quantifications of the employment impact of new AIs, help policy makers and educators understand the skills that will have stable demand, and help businesses prepare for worker transition by identifying which employees require skills support.
Original paper by Ajay Agrawal, Joshua S. Gans, and Avi Goldfarb: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3341456


Maps of Costa Rica show the country's position on Earth by showing it relative to the large bodies of water on either side, the Caribbean Sea to its north and the Pacific Ocean to its south. Additionally, maps show its borders with its two international neighbors, Nicaragua and Panama.Continue Reading
Within the land mass of the country itself, maps show that Costa Rica is divided into seven provinces, highlighted by the province of San José, home to the country's capital, which is also called San José. To the northwest of the capital province are the provinces of Guanacaste and Alajuela, which lie on the south side of the Nicaraguan border. Bordering Nicaragua immediately north of the capital are the provinces Heredia and Limón. Maps of the country also show that Limón forms Costa Rica's entire coastline on the Caribbean Sea, as well as a narrow portion of the country's border with Panama. Slightly inland from Limón lies the province of Cartago, and opposite San José, containing most of the coastline on the Pacific Ocean, is the province of Puntarenas.
Maps of Costa Rica highlight the country's largest cities, which, in addition to the capital, include Alajueta, Heredia, Cartago and Puntarenas (the largest cities in the provinces of the same names), as well as Liberia and Puerto Limón.Learn more about Geography


Traité de mécanique céleste
Heralds of Science 14. Dynamical Astronomy
A treatise on celestial mechanics in the tradition of Newton's Principia. Here Laplace applied his analytical mathmatical theories to celestial bodies and concluded that the apparent changes in the motion of planets and their satelites are changes of long periods, and that the solar system is in all probability very stable. He gave methods for calculating the movements of translation and rotation of heavenly bodies and for resolving problemsof tides, from which he deduced the mass of the moon.


Common Core Standard 4.MD.A.1 Questions
Know relative sizes of measurement units within one system of units including km, m, cm; kg, g; lb, oz.; l, ml; hr, min, sec. Within a single system of measurement, express measurements in a larger unit in terms of a smaller unit. Record measurement equivalents in a two-column table. For example, know that 1 ft is 12 times as long as 1 in. Express the length of a 4 ft snake as 48 in. Generate a conversion table for feet and inches listing the number pairs (1, 12), (2, 24), (3, 36), ...
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questions on Common Core standard
Select one or more questions using the checkboxes above each question.
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A world without fatal or serious occupational accidents is possible, the organizers of the XX World Congress on Safety and Health at Work have appealed, as the largest global occupational safety event opened in Frankfurt, Germany today.
Nearly 4,000 occupational safety experts, politicians and scientists from 139 countries will, until Wednesday evening, be discussing ways of making work safer and healthier. The triennial Congress is co-organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Social Security Association (ISSA), and is hosted this year by the German Social Accident Insurance (DGUV).
According to the ILO, 2.3 million people worldwide die annually as a result of occupational illnesses and accidents at work. In addition, there are 860,000 occupational accidents every day, with consequences in terms of injuries. The direct or indirect cost of occupational illness and accidents at work is estimated at US$ 2.8 trillion worldwide.
"These figures are unacceptable and yet these daily tragedies often fail to show up on the global radar. Clearly, there is still much to be done. Serious occupational accidents are, firstly, human tragedies but economies and society also pay a high price," said ILO Director-General Guy Ryder. "The right to a safe and healthy workplace is a basic human right - a right to be respected at every level of development and in different economic conditions. Respecting this human right is an obligation - as well as a condition for sustainable economic development. Prevention is possible, it is necessary and it pays."
"Investment in risk prevention has led to remarkable socio-economic benefits," declared ISSA President Errol Frank Stoové, referring to a recent ISSA study that calculates the return on investments in prevention as averaging more than twice the amount invested. "However, with a dramatically changing world of work, the health and well-being of workers remain a concern, in particular due to mental and ergonomic strain. This requires that we develop new, integrated strategies for prevention, which connect the safety, health and well-being of the individual."
"Vision Zero is no ivory tower idea. It's feasible," is the view of Dr Joachim Breuer. The Managing Director of the German Social Accident Insurance (DGUV) pointed to the occupational accident statistics for DGUV. "A hundred years ago in Germany there were 10,000 deaths a year at work. Last year the figure was less than 500 deaths for the first time." The number of reportable accidents had been halved in the past 20 years alone. "This success is not just specific to Germany - it's repeatable. Experience and many examples from our international cooperation efforts have shown us this," Dr Breuer stated.
Dr Walter Eichendorf, President of the 2014 World Congress, added: "Solutions to occupational safety problems are being developed worldwide. There are examples of best practice, with measures being tested and evaluated in the most diverse of countries. The exchange of ideas at the World Congress prevents anyone from having to start again from zero."


Definition of Kumina in English:
A Jamaican religious ceremony involving music, dancing, and supposed possession by spirits.
- African-Caribbean religious practices such as revivalism, Kumina, and Rastafarianism have especially significant African influences.
- Another important point is that in this text myal is a combination of various religious practices, including Myalism and Kumina, which aims to exorcise sources of evil from both within and without the community.
Perhaps from a Kimbundu word meaning 'possession, to see'.
What do you find interesting about this word or phrase?
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|Dayton lies on the western border of the county, and is the second town from the north. East is the town of Persia, and south the town of Leon. On the north is Perrysburg from which Dayton was erected on February 7, 1835, to embrace all of township 5, range 9, of the Holland survey. The area is 23,137 acres whose surface is less broken than that of most other towns. The northern and eastern parts of the town are elevated and irregular, the summits of the hills being a few hundred feet higher than the general level. In the central, southwestern, and western parts of the town, the surface is mainly level, and in some places not enough undulated to afford natural drainage. This forms a swamp, whose outlet is Connewango Creek, a very sluggish stream. Along the water courses, the town was originally heavily timbered with forests of pine and hemlock, a considerable portion of which yet remains. On the uplands, the timber was chiefly maple and beech, and was not so heavy as on the flats; but while the work of clearing the ground was less, the soil is not so strong and productive as on the lowlands. These were at first not esteemed valuable for farming, but since the lands have been improved, constitute the best part of the town. The soil here is a loam, more or less admixed with clay. On the hills it is a light loam, with a mixture of gravel or clay. The principal products are oats and hay; and at present dairying is the controlling industry. The streams of the town, draining north, are tributaries of Cattaraugus Creek, and are no larger than brooks. The affluents of Connewango Creek, flowing from the east, northeast, and northwest, unite in the southern part of the town to form what is usually known as the east branch of Connewango Creek. The volume of this stream is great, but is has but little fall, and such low banks that little power is afforded. Nor do the banks restrain the water in times of freshet, rendering useless much of the land bordering on these streams, on account of untimely overflows. The proposed improvement of the lower||
Connewango would greatly promote the current of the headwaters, whereby a large portion of this land might be redeemed for farming purposes. In that event, the southern part of the town will become the richest and most productive section, although the last settled.
THE PIONEER SETTLEMENTS
were made in the northern and eastern parts of Dayton. A list of the lands owned in 1819 contains the following names:
Some of these resided on their lands at this time, and nearly all became actual settlers in the course of ten years. A few of the first only can be noticed in detail. In the fall of 1810, Simeon BUNCE and his brother-in-law, Silas NASH left Otsego County to find a home in the western part of the State. They had heard of Chautaugua County and determined to locate there; and when they took up their lands on Lot 64, they believed them to be in that county. Each articled 100 acres, at eighteen shillings per acre, and at once made substantial improvements, NASH building a log house the same year, the first in the town of Dayton, which his family occupied. In this humble pioneer home occurred the first birth in the town, in June, 1811,-a son who was named Aras. Here, also the following year in the month of February, came the angel of death to claim his first sacrifice, - Dewitt, another son of Silas NASH; and thus the house of rejoicing became a house of mourning. Silas NASH put up the first sawmill in town in 1817 and continued for many years a leader among the early settlers, holding many positions of honor and trust in Dayton. His descendants also became active, energetic citizens, some of them attaining prominent places in the affairs of the county.
Simeon BUNCE was a native of Connecticut, having been born at Hartford in 1788. To this State he returned in 1813 and brought on his father's family to the home he had made on Lot 64 in Dayton. He had three children, one of whom survives, a son who occupies the old homestead-and here BUNCE lived until his death in 1875.
Timothy M. SHAW came from Herkimer County in 1814, and located a piece of land on Lot 31. To this place he brought his family, consisting of wife and one child, the following year. He was accompanied by Heman and Anson C. MERRILL from Onondaga County. The former settled on the same lot as SHAW and Anson C. on Lot 30. Both occupied these places until their death, leaving many descendants in the county. SHAW died in 1872. A son, James S., lives in Dayton and another son, C.H., in Perrysburg.
Ralph JOHNSON from Connecticut, came in the latter part of 1815, and settled on Lot 30. He was a tanner and currier by trade, and followed this business in town until 1865. He was also an early innkeeper, and the first postmaster of the Dayton office. He remained in town until his death a few years ago. Joshua and Caleb WEBB, from Madison County, came the same year, 1815, and settled on Lots 55 and 56, being the first in that locality.
At the house of the former was held the first religious meeting the following year. Ten years later, they became innkeepers at what is now called the Cottage neighborhood. The WEBB farm was sold in 1833 to John H. RICE.
At South Dayton on Lot 58, Leman H. and James P. PITCHER were the first settlers in 1816. They did not remain in town very long but sold their interests to M.C. NICKERSON, who afterwards became a Mormon. This farm is now owned by Asa BARNUM.
In the spring of 1816, Azariah DARBEE settled on Lot 54, where he made preparations to bring on his family the following year from his native place Rutland County, VT. The journey hither was made by ox-team. He set out on his place the first orchard in town, getting his trees from Hamburg, Erie County. His son, Azariah, now occupies this farm and is the oldest settler in town, residing on the original purchase.
In March 1817, Samuel K. STRICKLAND came from Central New York and located on Lot 40, bringing with him his wife and son, Robert O. The streams on the way were crossed on the ice and many hardships were endured.
The same year, Thomas NEWCOMB settled on Lot 46; William BLASDELL on Lot 30; and Nathaniel BLASDELL on Lot 37. Peter and Luther ALLEN, the latter a minor, came from Onondaga County, in 1818, and after some removals, settled on Lot 23. Luther ALLEN returned to Onondaga County for a wife and brought her to his home in Dayton on an ox-sled. In 1834, he put up the first frame house where the village of Dayton now is, and which is still standing. He removed to Gowanda where he died in February, 1847. In 1820, his brother Asahel came and located on the same Lot, No. 23, settling on the place now occupied by Norman M. ALLEN, who was born in this locality. Asahel ALLEN died in town about 1858.
After this period, so many settlers came that it will be impossible to enumerate them all here. The REDFIELDS, PARSALL, SMITH, HUBBARD, BACON, PARK, AUSTIN, HAMMOND, JUDD, and many other prominent families came before 1830.
The condition of the settlements can better be seen from a carefully-compiled list of actual residents and owners of improved property in 1833.
The valuation of the buildings here given may be less than their actual worth, but the relative measure of the improvements is the same in each case.
|Name||No. of Lot||Value of Buildings ($)||Name||No. of Lot||Value of Buildings ($)|
|Isaac Wait||1||50||Jonathan Palmer||31||25|
|David Milks||1||45||Heman Merrill||31||110|
|Peter Kellogg||2||35||Hale Matteso||32||45|
|Ephraim Dutton||2||100||Jonathan Milks||38||90|
|Jonathan Milks||2||45||R.E. Knight||38||50|
|Daniel C. Bassett||3||40||Garrett Parsall||40||35|
|Eleazer Hillibert||3||60||Samuel K. Strickland||40||40|
|Norman L. Bacon||4||40||John Parsall||40||50|
|P. Collins||4||40||Thomas Newcomb||46||30|
|D. Loomer||6||35||William B. Smith||47||50|
|Wyman Hulet||7||35||Ebenezer Roberts||48||50|
|Daniel Guptel||8||45||John Hammond||51||40|
|Chapel Judd||9||30||Asa H. Nichols||52||20|
|Ezekiel Seekins||9||40||Alvah Cole||52||80|
|Leander Bacon||11||40||Stephen Sowle||53||45|
|Constant C. Bacon||11||40||Simeon Dryer||53||95|
|Peniwil Bacon||11||40||Lemuel Webster||54||35|
|Avery Park||11||57||Azariah Darbee||54||45|
|Abel M. Bacon||12||45||James Cadwell||54||45|
|Deloss C. Burdick||14||65||Caleb Webb||55||125|
|Horace C. Adams||15||40||William B. Smith||55||120|
|Artemas Coon||16||10||John H. Blish||56||100|
|Sidney Park||19||45||Goodale & Wheeler||56||130|
|Russell J. Burdick||20||40||Thomas Newcomb||56||35|
|John Wattenpaugh||22||45||Isaac P. Hubbard||56||35|
|Asabel Allen||23||35||M.C. Nickerson||58||130|
|Luther Allen||23||40||George Passmore||59||20|
|Reuben Robertson||23||90||Tilly Sandord||59||40|
|William Farnsworth||24||40||Sylvester James||60||50|
|E. Dutton||29||45||Isaac Holbrook||61||35|
|Ralph Johnson||30||250||Nathan Bumpus||62||35|
|Anson C. Merrill||30||225||Silas Nash||64||190|
|Gile Johnson||30||45||Simeon Bunce||64||100|
|Timothy M. Shaw||31||30||Daniel Whelpley||64||80|
In addition to the foregoing there were half a dozen tracts of improved land in town owned by parties living in adjoining towns. In 1835, there were 4,313 acres of improved lands in Dayton, three sawmills, and one tannery. The population in 1860 was 1,294; in 1875, 1,402.
The town records are so imperfect and so few in umber that the compilation of a full and satisfactory civil history is impossible. From sources outside of the records, it has been ascertained that the first annual meeting was held at the schoolhouse near Ralph JOHNSON's, the last Tuesday in February, 1835; and that Silas NASH was chosen supervisor, Ralph JOHNSON, town clerk, and Luther ALLEN, justice of the peace. Since this period, these officers have been as follows (excepting, perhaps, some irregularity in the list of justices, arising from the obscurity of the data available):
The act setting off Dayton from Perrysburg provided for the division of the unexpended public money. Dayton received as her share twelve and a half cents.
The finances of the town have been well managed, and Dayton is now entirely free from debt. Many thousand dollars were raised by the town to aid in suppressing the Rebellion; and in addition to this there were liberal contributions by individuals to stay the government in the hour of peril.
These embrace many miles of highways, and two railroads. Some of the former were early located, one of the first being the road from southern points by way of South Dayton to Perrysburg, passing through the western part of the town. On this there was travel as early as 1817. What is popularly known as the "Jamestown Road" has been the principal road of the town, being to the eastern part what the other road is to the western. The reference in the records to these and other roads are so vague that we cannot produce them here. The roads at the present are well ordered, and in most instances are in a fair condition.
The Erie Railroad passes through the northeastern part of the town along the divide of the streams in this section, and has a station at Dayton Village. This is on the summit between the Connewango and Cattaraugus Valleys, and the elevation is more than a thousand feet above the lake at Dunkirk. In July 1874, the Buffalo and Jamestown (now Buffalo and Southwestern) Railroad was completed through Dayton. Its course is nearly described by a line passing diagonally through the town, from the northeast to the southwest corner. At Dayton Village, it passes about thirty feet below the road bed of the Erie, and forms a junction with that road, by means of a back track, from the main line of the Buffalo and Southwestern Railroad, a quarter of a mile from the Erie Station. There are, also stations at Markham's in the central part of the town, and at Pine Valley on the Chautauqua County line. This railway has proved very beneficial to the town, and shows that the ten thousand dollars appropriated by Dayton for its construction was money wisely expended.
Owing to the limited water power in town, but little manufacturing was carried on as long as this was the only motor. Silas NASH was the pioneer manufacturer. In 1817, he put up a sawmill on the stream at West Dayton which he operated a number of years. In a rebuilt condition the mill was continued until 1856, among the later owners being J.R. RICE and David SAUNDERS. About 1853, John KNOWLTON got in operation a steam sawmill at West Dayton which has been improved and the capacity increased. It is at present the property of John CRANDALL.
On Lot 30, Colonel Ralph JOHNSON began the business of tanning soon after his settlement in 1815. His first vat was hollowed out of a large log. Gradually, his facilities were increased until he had, about 1830, a pretty fair tannery, which at a still later period contained 12 vats. The tannery was carried on until about 1865.
About 1830, Ralph JOHNSON and Anson C. MERRILL put up a sawmill in this locality, and on its site, a mill is yet operated by Henry MARKHAM. It has a capacity of three thousand feet per day. MARKHAM also operates a shingle mill, put up in 1862 by Henry WOLF. Five men are employed in the manufacture of fifteen thousand shingles per day. Gorham DART was an early shingle manufacturer, building in all three mills in the "swamp," and manufactured a large portion of the timber there growing. Some of these mills were removed to other parts of the town, and afterwards operated by Moses DART and C.L. WATKINS. The same may be said of sawmills. After being operated a period in one locality, they were removed when the timber supply was exhausted, to a more favorable place. In 1873, WATKINS & TARBELL removed their mill from the East Leon neighborhood to Dayton, and in 1877, the mill operated at the Jamestown crossing was removed by Henry WOLF to Lot 22, below Dayton Village. Here it was continued until June 12, 1878, when it was demolished by the explosion of the boiler. The disaster was accompanied by the loss of four lives, killing almost instantly, Henry WOLFE and his son William, Joseph HARBINE, and the engineer, a Norwegian named FRONDS. Two others employed in the mill had a narrow escape.
William WOLFE has a combined saw and shingle mill below MARKHAM'S and in the same locality Jacob DURSEY has at present a shingle mill in operation.
At Dayton Village are C.L. WATKIN'S planing mill, sash and door factory, established in 1874. The motor is from a fifteen horsepower steam engine, which also operates a small feed mill and, in season, a cider mill. These industries occupy a large shop a short distance from the railroad depot. Here is, also, Fernando SMITH'S stave and heading factory. Work was begun in 1875, and employment is given to fifteen men in the manufacture of from two hundred thousand to three hundred thousand staves per year, most of which have been worked into barrels on the ground. The product last year was fifteen thousand apple, and six thousand flour barrels. The power is furnished by a good forty horsepower engine.
At Pine Valley, a shingle mill was built in 1852 by WALLACE and William RANLETT, and operated by them six years. Machinery was then supplied to saw lumber and about that time, John WICKHAM became interested in its operation. Other changes of ownership followed, and it is at present the property of BURKHALTER & WICKHAM. It has a forty horsepower engine, and can cut six thousand feet of lumber per day. Planing and matching machines have been added, and it is now a complete lumber manufacturing establishment, employing ten men.
At the railroad depot, Jesse PILE erected a lumber mill in the spring of 1878, which is supplied with a twenty-five horsepower engine and saws, capacitating the mill to cut eight thousand feet per day.
Farther down the railroad track, C.J. BABCOCK & Company established a stave and heading factory in 1878 which is yet operated by them; and the same year PALMER & HALL put up another factory at which one thousand heads and ten thousand shingles are made daily. Box material is also manufactured.
A small broom factory is in operation at Pine Valley, and several good carriage shops are also there carried on.
THE DAIRY INTERESTS OF DAYTON
The dairy interests of Dayton have become so important that they constitute the leading industry of the people. Formerly large private dairies were maintained, but at present, the greater portion of the milk is manufactured at the different creameries in town, at this time seven in number. One of the largest, the East Leon factory, is in the southeastern part of the town and partly in Leon, in whose history it is fully noted.
The West Dayton Cheese Factory was erected about 1866 by Andrew BRAINARD. It is a good building, thirty-four by one hundred and twenty feet, two stores high, and is supplied with three vats. William MC ADAMS is the present operator, employing the cheddar process in the manufacture of from ten to twelve cheeses per day, which bears an excellent reputation in market.
The Dayton Creamery was put up in the village of Dayton in 1866 by Porter WELCH, of Gowanda. It is thirty-three by one hundred feet, three stories high and is one of the most complete and best appointed factories in the county. When first operated, it had a large number of patrons, and consumed the milk of five hundred cows. Owing to the establishment of other factories in the northern part of the town, this creamery has not been operated the past year.
Seth BARTLETT'S Cheese Factory, at MARKHAM'S Station, a two-story building, whose dimensions are thirty by eighty feet was put up in 1875, and is now successfully operated by JOHNSON & BARTLETT. It has a good patronage and the usual complement of cows.
JENKS AND ROSS' Factory, on the MC FARLAND farm, has been operated since 1877. It consists of a good-sized main building and a wing. The milk of from one hundred and fifty to two hundred cows is here manufactured.
The East Dayton Factory, at HOWARD'S corners, was built in 1874 by HALL and PARK. It is now the property of Rowlain HALL, who manufactures butte rand cheese from the milk of three hundred cows, owned by fifteen patrons.
The Lang, or South Dayton Factory, on the south side of the swamp on the Jamestown Road, was put up in 1872 by Isaac LANG and has been operated by him since. There are sixteen patrons. Full cream cheese is manufactured from the milk of two hundred cows.
HAMLETS AND VILLAGES
The oldest hamlet in town is West Dayton. On account of its location on one of the principal highways, it was in early times, a place of much more importance than at present, although it is yet entitled to a respectable position among the many hamlets of the county. It contains a sawmill, store, shops, a Methodist and a Union Church, and about twenty-five dwellings. The post office is called Cottage, and was established after 1850, having John H. BLISH as the first postmaster. N.M. ALLEN was the next appointee and the subsequent ones have been I.H. ALDEN, L.W. DAY, Charles BLAIR, and D.S. ALDEN, the present incumbent. The first mail was supplied from SMITH'S mills, Chautauqua County, and afterwards from Perrysburg, the present from MARKHAM'S Station.
John H. BLISH was the first to engage in trade sometime about 1845. Four or five years later, John KNOWLTON opened a store. S.W. DAY, Barzilla MERRILL, and I.H. ALDEN were afterwards in trade. The present merchant is D.S. ALDEN.
The first public house in town was opened at this point in 1824 by Joshua and Caleb WEBB. In after years, the former had another tavern on the BLISH place. John H. BLISH, J.H. RICE, Daniel WHELPLEY, L. & G. FLOWERS, and others followed as the keepers of public houses; FLOWERS being the last to have a tavern.
In the southeastern part of the town, at the junction of the Jamestown and other roads, a hamlet sprung up about 1830 which received the name of Sociality.
This name was also applied to the post office, which was established before 1833, with Ephraim DUTTON as postmaster. It was the first office in town, and was continued until the Erie Railroad was completed through this section of the county, when other offices were established so that the business of the Sociality office became too meagre to warrant its longer continuance. Nelson HILLEBERT was the last postmaster. At this place, William H. LELAND opened the first store in town in 1833. He had also a public house and continued the keeper of both about ten years. Franklin PHILBRICK afterwards kept a store and Harry HOWARD the tavern, and as "HOWARD'S Corners" this place is yet locally known. After HOWARD's retirement from this house, Leander BACON became the keeper, and others, for short periods were here as landlords; but the suspension of travel on the Jamestown Road, after the railroads were built, caused the house to be used for other purposes, and the only place of business at present is a grocery store by C.W. HALL. In the huddle are a few mechanic shops, a cheese factory, and a very neat Methodist church.
North of the centre of the town is another hamlet, generally known as MARKHAM'S Corners.
It derived its name from Joshua MARKHAM, who became a resident here in 1834, and soon after opened a tavern which he continued about thirty years. In this vicinity, Colonel Ralph JOHNSON had another public house, from 1845 on, continuing a number of years, and the building is at present occupied by Leonard METSKER for a grocery store. Near here was formerly a post office which was removed to Dayton Village. In 1876, a new office was established having John WALLACE as postmaster. The name of this office is like the station, MARKHAM, of which WALLACE is also agent. Since 1875, he has had a small store near the railroad. The place contains a cheese factory, several sawmills, and half a dozen houses.
Dayton, a station on the Erie and Buffalo and Southwestern Railroads, is in the northeastern part of the town, principally on Lot 23. It has grown up wholly since 1851 and largely since 1872. It contains a few hundred inhabitants, a Catholic and a Methodist church, several factories, half a dozen places of business, and two hotels.
The first here to engage in business was A.W.W. CHAFFEE, in 1851. He put up and occupied the building in which is now kept the post office, and in which afterwards James H. CHAFFEE, James S. SHAW, A.M. DE LONG, H.N. HOOKER, Spencer HORTON, Frederick MOORE, and N.A. CHAFFEE were in trade. The latter has continued since 1868.
James RICE had the next place of business, a grocery, near the cheese factory. In 1866, Henry WAGNER erected a store building, which was occupied by James CURRIN. After its destruction by fire, it was rebuilt by him, but has been occupied by a general store since 1874, by A.M. HALL. Since 1870, Fernando SMITH has been in trade, handling general merchandise, and for the same period, M.P. ROBERTS has had a drug store. The hardware trade was established in 1874, in a building put up by the Buffalo and Southwestern Railroad for a supply store by LANGMAID & CHENEY. They were succeeded by John MARVIN, and he by John VOLK, who is at present in trade. The first furniture store was opened by J.M. PARMELEE, and is at present carried on by Marcus RHODES. G. FITZMORRIS has had a boot and shoe store a number of years, and a few smaller stores in the same branch of trade have been kept a short time in the village.
The first public house in the village of Dayton was erected in 1852 by Colonel Ralph JOHNSON, and was kept four or five years by T.W. JOHNSON. This is at present continued by George VOLK. Nearer the railroad station is another hotel built by Charles SISSON, and now owned and kept by William EGGLESTON.
The post office was established about 1836 at the house of Ralph JOHNSON, near MARKHAM'S, and was kept there until 1851, when it was removed to the village and James RICE appointed postmaster. His successors have been James H. CHAFFEE,, Jonathan SHEPARD, Spencer HORTON, A.M. DE LONG, and since 1868, N.A. CHAFFEE. There are four mails per day.
Dr. Samuel REDFIELD was the first physician in town. He came in 1821 and located on Lot 39, following his profession until his death about 1835. Drs. SILL, JOHNSON, CANFIELD, SHUEY, and others were physicians a short time. Since 1852, Dr. M.P. ROBERTS has been located as a practicing physician at Dayton Village, and since 1877, Dr. D.A. DYE at MARKHAM'S.
No regularly-admitted attorney lived in town until 1864 when N.M. ALLEN commenced practice at the village of Dayton, and has since continued there, having a fine office and a large practice. In 1872, W.S. THRASHER, one of his students, formed a partnership with Mr. ALLEN, which is yet continued. Other graduates from this office are I.R. LEONARD and E.A. HAYES.
Pine Valley is a flourishing village in the southwestern part of the town on the Buffalo and Southwestern Railroad, six miles from Dayton junction. The locality was formerly known as South Dayton, and the post office is yet known by this name. This office was established about 1860 with E.O. BEACH postmaster, who appointed John WICKHAM deputy. The latter kept the office at his residence, and had the mail brought from West Dayton twice per week. Henry T. RICE was next appointed, and M. L. RANLETT is the present incumbent. The mail service is twice per day. In the neighborhood where the post office was on the West Dayton Road, the village had its beginning as a hamlet and did not improve much until 1875. That year, the Buffalo and Southwestern Railroad located a station, one hundred and twenty rods southeast from the post office, and Robert F. EWING platted thirty acres of the WICKHAM farm for a village, extending from the station westward. This was the beginning of Pine Valley proper, and on this plat, N.L. ROWE put up a small store building that year. The following season, EWING put up the first large building on the new plat, and many residences were erected the same season.
John WICKHAM platted an addition of thirty acres to EWING'S Pine Valley in the fall of 1875, and since that period the place has had a rapid but healthy growth, containing at present seventy-five buildings, many of large proportions and fine architecture. It is the largest shipping point on the railroad between Jamestown and Buffalo, and has an increasing trade, which makes its future promising and very auspicious.
In this locality David BARRETT was the first in trade, keeping a grocery store on the West Dayton road about 1862. In the same building John WICKHAM opened a store in 1872, but the following year occupied a new building, which is now the business place of RANLETT & CHASE.
At the station, besides A.L. ROWE, EWING & WHIPPLE are engaged in general merchandising and nearby a hardware store was opened in 1878 by WILSON & WADE. The first tavern was in a house changed for this purpose by A.B. CHARLESWORTH, and was kept a number of years. It is again a farm house and the only hotel is the "WICKHAM House," at the station, which was erected in 1877 and occupied in 1878. It is sixty by sixty-two feet and three stores high, and presents an attractive appearance.
THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS
In 1835, the Commissioners of Common Schools, James CADWELL, Russell BROWN, and W.B. SMITH reported four whole and five fractional districts in town in which an aggregate of forty-three months of school had been taught, in terms of from three to seven months in each district. The number of children taught was three hundred and sixty-five, and the money apportioned to the town by the county was $121.15.
There are at present nine school districts, owning buildings and lots valued at $3,600; in these two hundred and seventy-seven and four-fifths weeks of school were taught at a cost of $2,246.35 for teachers' wages; the apportionment from the county was $1,170.68, and the amount raised by taxation $1,222.39. The number of children of school age was reported as four hundred and eighty-five, and the average daily attendance a little more than two hundred and seven.
In most districts, good school houses have been provided and the reputation of the schools will bear comparison with those of other towns.
District No. 2 is the owner of a fine grove near Dayton Village, which is locally known as "Educational Grove." It contains about five acres of well-drained ground, covered by a magnificent growth of maple trees. It is a favorite place for picnics and public outdoor
gatherings. It was and is the purpose of the purchasers to have the school buildings erected on these grounds the present year, 1879.
It is generally believed that the Rev. Elnathan FINCH, a Baptist missionary, held the first religious meeting in town in 1816 at the house of Caleb WEBB at West Dayton. It does not appear that any society was organized in consequence, immediately or in the years following. It seems that the settlements were too sparse to maintain a church organization, and no effort was made in this direction by the Baptists. But in the fall of 1818, a class of four Methodists was formed, and met for worship at the house of Caleb WEBB. The members were WEBB and wife, Daniel and Clarinda BRAND. The meetings were led by a Mr. WHIPPLE, living at Kent's Mills; and occasional preaching was supplied by Revs. Dennis GODDARD and Samuel R. BROCKWAY. Soon the class was augmented by members from the WEBB, DARBEE, and PROSSER families, and shortly after a log meeting house was built on the land of Daniel PROSSER, in southwestern Perrysburg which was used until 1845. From this class was formed
THE FIRST METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN DAYTON
or what is now known as the Cottage Methodist Episcopal Church. The incorporation was effected October 31, 1845, at a meeting over which Daniel PROSSER and John H. BLISH presided. The trustees elected were Gile JOHNSON, William HOWLET, and John B. REED. The membership of the church at this time was about sixty, under the pastoral direction of the Revs. W.S. WARALLO and T.H. CUMMINGS, preachers in charge of a circuit which embraced appointments in Dayton, Perrysburg and other towns.
A church edifice was erected the following year, 1846, at West Dayton, which was replaced by the present structure in 1872. It is a very attractive place of worship, with a capacity to seat 300 persons, and cost to build $2,500. A parsonage and two acres of ground were secured for the use of Dayton circuit about twenty years ago, at West Dayton.
This property is valued at $1,500, and is occupied by the preacher in charge of the circuit, which embraces other appointments in the town of Dayton. The pastorate is at present filled by the Rev. A.H. BOWERS. Others who have served Dayton circuit have been the Revs. W.W. WARNER, Peter BURROUGHS, T.G. WHALON, T.P. WARNER, and L.A. CHAPIN. The names of the ministry previously connected with the church can be found in the history of the Methodist Church of Perrysburg. The present membership of the church is not as large as it was at the time it was formerly organized. A Sunday School is here maintained.
THE SECOND METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN DAYTON
The second Methodist Episcopal Church in Dayton which was constituted of members living in the eastern part of the town, was duly incorporated Marcy 8, 1848. A board of trustees was chosen composed of Avery PARK, Nelson HILLIBERT, Norman L. BACON, Esek B. NASH, Aaron P. KNOWLES, Jonathan PRINCE, and Benjamin J. ALLEN, to attend to the temporal affairs of this body; but no church building was erected, and after a few years, the society was allowed to disorganize. A class of Methodists continued to exist, and meetings were held statedly, the preaching being supplied by the pastors of the neighboring churches.
On the 21st of April 1875, a meeting of these members was held in the school house at HOWARD'S Corners, over which the pastor, Rev. J.H. WHALLON, presided. A new organization was formed, to be known as the
EAST DAYTON SOCIETY OF THE METHODIST EPISCOPALCHURCH,
and B.J. ALLEN, O.J. NASH, Ansel A. NASH, Esek K. PARK, Charles W. HALL, L.O. HALL, and A.G. PARK were elected trustees.
Rice and Ellen Rice
In the summer and fall of 1875, a very attractive church edifice was erected by this society at HOWARD'S Corners. It is a frame, 30 by 45 feet, with a well-proportioned front tower, and cost two thousand dollars. In January, 1876, the church was dedicated with appropriate services, conducted by the Rev. J.T. EDWARDS, of the Chamberlain Institute. Here thirty-five members at present worship, and are under the ministrations of the clergy of the East Leon Circuit, which embraces this as one of its appointments.
A Sunday School, having forty members, is conducted under the superintendence of Ansel A. NASH.
At Dayton Village was also, many years ago, a class of Methodists, which was organized into a church society in 1864 by the Rev. W.W. WARNER, at that time in charge of the Dayton circuit. On the 15th of May, 1875, the name of this body became
THE SOCIETY AT DAYTON OF THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH
It yet remains a part of the Dayton circuit, and has always been served by the ministers from the Cottage Church. The present pastor is the Rev. A.H. BOWERS, and the members number about forty.
In 1870, a comfortable church edifice was erected at a cost of nearly three thousand dollars, which was consecrated to the worship of the Divine Being the same year by the Rev. C.C. CARRUTHERS, presiding elder of the district. The property yet bears a neat appearance, and is estimated worth two thousand five hundred dollars. It is controlled by a board of trustees composed of E.C. BARTLETT, James RICE, A.T. GREGG, J.M. RICH, and A.M. HALL.
THE FIRST FREE-WILL BAPTIST CHURCH OF DAYTON
The Free-Will Baptists held meetings in the eastern part of Dayton and the southern part of Dayton soon after those sections were settled.
The organization of a church followed these occasional services, May 4, 1831. Seven persons constituted the original membership, which covenanted itself according to the rites of the church of which they now became a part, and which was represented by the Rev. Amos C. ANDRUS, the organizer of the new body. John SEEKINS was chosen the first clerk, and the following year the Rev. Stacy SMITH became the first regular pastor. His connection did not extend beyond a year, the Rev. Hiram WHICHER becoming the spiritual tutor of the church in 1833. The same year, William BARTLETT was chosen clerk. In 1834, the Rev. F.B. TANNER was the preacher of the church, and in 1835, the Rev. Freeman DARTE. The latter year, Lyman JUDD became the church clerk.
In 1847, the church had forty-two members, and the Rev. MC KOON pastor; John SEEKINS, deacon; and William SEEKINS, clerk. In two years, Rev. Horatio PLUMB became pastor and the church was so prosperous that it was soon after determined to build a meeting house, the services up to this time having been held in private places and school houses principally in District No. 8. Here the society was duly incorporated February 16, 1852, with William WALDRON, Jonathan WAIT, Harrison JUDD, Daniel BROWN, Ezekiel SEEKINS, and John SEEKINS, as trustees.
The church edifice, a plain frame structure, whose seating capacity is two hundred, was not completed until 1854, and was consecrated that winter by the Rev. J.H. BALL, of Buffalo. It is in the southeastern part of the town, near the Leon line and is now reported worth eight hundred dollars. When the church was built, Rev. George DONOCKER was the pastor, and about this time, Daniel BROWN was here licensed to preach. Subsequently he became the pastor of the church, and now minister of it. Among others who filled the pastoral office since 1855 have been Revs. J.H. LOVELACE, S. CROSBY, L.D. HOWE, J.C. STEELE, and Jerome HIGBEE.
In 1878, the church had thirty-two members, George H. MOSHER, Frank JUDD, Walker INGERSOLL, Richard EASTON, Collins SPENCER, W.S. EASTON, trustees, and Harrison JUDD, church clerk.
ST. PAUL'S CHURCH (ROMAN CATHOLIC)
St. Paul's Church at Dayton Village, was formed as the result of missionary meetings held here in 1863 by Passionists from Dunkirk. In 1864, a small church, capacitated to seat one hundred and fifty persons, was built in the southern part of the village in which about ten families met regularly for worship, and were under the spiritual tutelage of Passionists, until Dayton became a parish with Father Charles C. GEPPERT as the first resident priest.
In 1876, a fine church edifice, forty by seventy feet, with a handsome tower eighty feet high was erected on an acre of ground at a cost of nearly four thousand dollars. The tower contains an excellent bell, weighing six hundred pounds. A part of the church lot is used for cemetery purposes.
There are at present fifty-three families and three hundred communicants connected with the church which has for its resident priest, Father WELCH. A Sunday school of thirty members, and a parish school for religious instruction are also maintained.
THE GERMAN UNITED PROTESTANT ST. PETER'S CONGREGATION
The German United Protestant St. Peter's Congregation was incorporated September 3, 1864, and had for its first trustees Charles KOEPPEL, William BORNEMAN, and John OCHSER. Previous to this period, a small but neat house of worship had been built about four miles south of Dayton Village. In the house, meetings have been held statedly by the Revs. SHONSTEIN, FEGALE, and others, the congregation having no regular pastor. The membership in consequence is small, and the society not so prosperous as under more favorable circumstances.
THE FREE UNION CHURCH
The Free Union Church was erected at West Dayton in the fall of 1878, and consecrated October 31st by the Rev. Dr. HALL of Buffalo, and Rev. Mr. COOK of Cherry Creek. It was built by the people of Cottage and vicinity for the accommodation of any
persuasion, irrespective of creed, which may choose to worship in it, and in its appearance and arrangement is a very creditable edifice.
At Pine Valley, the Methodists hold meetings, with prospects of organizing as a church; and in other localities meetings are held by various denominations with a view to form organic religious societies.
Summit Lodge No. 72, A.O.U.W., was instituted at Dayton Village, February 24, 1877, with twelve charter members, and the following officers: E.O. HAYES, M.W.; L.D. BARTLETT, G.F.; J.L. FENTON, O.; D.J. PIERCE, R.; A.M. HALL, F.; N.A. CHAFFEE, Rec. There are at present thirty-six members and the meetings are held in VOLK'S Hall.
The principal offices were filled in 1878 by M.H. MERRILL, P.M.W.; John LOCKE, M.W.; M.W. JOHNSON, G.F.; James L. FENTON, O.; and the three last-named officers of 1877.
Valley Lodge, No. 704 K. of H., was instituted at Pine Valley, August 1, 1877 with eleven charter members. The first principal officers were B.H. LAMB, D.; J.S. Shults, P.D.; T.R. SIMPSON, R.D.; A.B. CHARLESWORTH, V.D.; George YOUNG, Jr., R.; E.A. CHASE, F.R.; Charles BERWALD, T.; D. RANLETT, G. Sixteen members were reported in November, 1878.
The Valley Lodge Building Association was organized in April, 1878, with the following members: J.C. SHULTS, Charles BERWALD, Joseph LE BARRON, John LE BARRON, W. FOLEY, B.H. LAMB, E.A. CHASE, George YOUNG, Jr., John OAKS, D. RANLETT, George BURKHALTER.
The object of the association is to provide a suitable hall for lodge and other purposes at Pine Valley. In the fall of 1878, a building 22 by 50 feet, two stories high, was erected at a cost of about one thousand dollars. To this place, the meetings of Valley Lodge will be transferred at an early day.
There have been temperance societies and other secret orders in town, but the meetings have been discontinued, and their history, in consequence, cannot be here given.
The subject of this sketch is in a large and emphatic sense, a "self-made" man, and he is recognized as a prominent and distinguished citizen of this county, and is worthy of such recognition.
Norman M. ALLEN was born in the town of Dayton, this county, December 24, 1828. His father, Luther and his mother, Huldah (BENEDICT) ALLEN, were natives of Onondaga County, N.Y., being born in the town of Fabius, from which place they emigrated in an early day to Cattaraugus County, and settled in the town of Dayton.
He was left an orphan at an early age, his mother dying when he was but ten years of age, and his father when he was seventeen. He was thus thrown upon his own resources at this early age, and was without adventitious aid; but by the force of his own talents, aided by an indomitable energy, he has made for himself a successful career, and has become distinguished in the affairs of this county, district, and State.
To his native talent, self-culture, and untiring energy, his success may be largely ascribed. His educational advantages were extremely limited, the merest rudiments of an English education being acquired by a few years' attendance in the common schools of his native town, prior to the death of his father, after which event he was compelled to commence the "battle of life" in earnest. His school days were ended at this early age, but not his hours of study. All the leisure moments he could find were, for many years, devoted to study, and he is still a hard student.
For several years after his father's decease, he taught in common schools in his vicinity in the winter, and worked at farming in the summer. He continued this course until his health became impaired so much that for three years he was unable to perform active outdoor labor. This period of his life was given to hard study, and his success was more remarkable from the fact that he had the aid of no teacher in his pursuit of knowledge; his thirst for knowledge was his only inspiration. Although he cannot claim a scholastic training, yet by his own unaided efforts, he has achieved an intellectual culture of which many college graduates might be proud.
At the age of nineteen in 1848, he married Huldah MERRILL, daughter of Heman and Amelia (HAWKINS) MERRILL. She is a native of Dayton, her parents having removed hither from Onondaga County, N.Y., and being among the pioneer settlers of the place.
He was admitted to the practice of law in 1864 at Albany, N.Y. During ten years prior to his admission to practice, he had been a diligent student of all the law books he could purchase with his scanty means, or that he could obtain in his vicinity. And from the fact that he pursued his legal studies in this manner, in no office and without an instructor, his success seems the more remarkable.
From the outset of his legal studies, he began to obtain employment in legal affairs, and became, almost at once, the legal adviser of his friends and townsmen, did much of their law business, drew writings, and tried causes for them in justice's court. His legal knowledge, business, and reputation continued to increase, until 1864, while serving his first term in the State Senate, he made the acquaintance of the Hon. Amasa J. PARKER, on whose motion he was admitted to practice as a lawyer in all the courts of this State.
From the time of obtaining his majority until 1855, he was in politics a Democrat; but since that date he has been a Republican. He has held varied and important political offices in his town, county, senatorial district, and State, the duties of which have been discharged with rare fidelity and integrity. For nineteen successive years, he has been elected supervisor of his town (Dayton), during fifteen of which he has been the chairman of the Board of Supervisors of this county.
In 1855, he was elected county superintendent of the poor upon the first Republican ticket nominated in the county, and held that office until 1857, when he resigned to accept the office of school commissioner, which office he held during the years 1858-60. His services in behalf of the common schools of this county, and his assistance and aid extended to teachers, are held today by many in kindly remembrance.
In 1861, he was appointed to the position of United States mail route agent, and held and discharge the duties of this position until February, 1863 when he resigned to accept the office of paymaster in the army, to which he had been appointed by President Lincoln, which station he only filled for a short time, resigning it to accept the office of assistant provost-marshal of the 31st Congressional District, which position he held up to the time of his first election to the Senate in the fall of 1863. In the election of that year, he was the candidate of the Republican party and was elected to the Senate over John C. DEVEREUX, Democrat, by 6,114 majority, being the largest majority received by any candidate of the Republican party in the district. Mr. Allen was again elected to the Senate in 1871, over Frank L. STOWELL, Democrat, by 4,276 majority. In the Senate of 1864 and 1865, he served upon the committee on literature and other important committees, and in the Senate of 1872 and 1873, upon the judiciary and other committees, and by virtue of his office as Senator was a member of the court of impeachment that tried and removed Judge BARNARD from office. In 1867, he was elected a member of the Constitutional Convention, receiving all the votes in his own town, save one, of all parties. That convention was composed of one hundred and sixty delegates, many of whom were then or have since become distinguished in the nation, embracing such names of William M. EVARTS, William A. WHEELER, Francis KERNAN, Samuel J. TILDEN, Amasa J. PARKER, Horace GREELEY, George William CURTIS, etc.
In the year 1866, Mr. ALLEN was appointed State Assessor, and held that position for four years. The duties of this office required him to visit all parts of the State in company with his two associates, and it is but justice to all of the members then constituting the board, to say that their equalization reports were accepted with less criticism and objection that the reports of that body have usually been received.
In 1868 and again in 1876, he was one of the candidates for elector upon the Republican electoral ticket.
During the years of the late war of the Rebellion, he did good loyal service in helping in the formation of regiments and in sustaining the cause of the country; and when the remains of the murdered President Lincoln were brought to Albany on their way to the great West, Mr. ALLEN was one of the pallbearers appointed by the Senate who attended the remains of the dead President during their stay at the capital of the State.
Mr. Allen is esteemed by his neighbors and acquaintances as few men are, and in a way of which any man may well be proud. Some of the reasons for it seem to be found in the fact that he is courteous and obliging to all, kind and generous towards poor men, never oppressive, and charitable to all deserving charities.
The family of Mr. Allen embraces four children: Mary A.F., now the wife of W.S. Thrasher, who is associated with him in legal copartnership; Kate C.D., the wife of W.W. BRAND of Dayton; Carlton W. ALLEN and Hoyt M. ALLEN, both being at home.
We cannot better sum up the salient points of Mr. ALLEN's character than by quoting the words of one of his political opponents, Col. J.T. HENRY, as given in his recently-published "Recollections" in the Olean Record:
"Mr. ALLEN is among the few representative men of this Senatorial district who have escaped sharp criticism and calumny in office. No suspicion of wrong has ever been breathed upon his record. He was ever conscientious, high-toned, faithful, and honest in all his public life and acts, and without a cloud or color as a private citizen. He was a member of the last Constitutional Convention,- Hon. George VAN CAMPEN of Olean, being his colleague,- where he attained distinction for his wise counsel and solid worth.
.....He has administrative ability of a high order, and discharges all his public duties with faithfulness and rare intelligence. A man who has seen so much of public life, and escaped political slander and vituperation, is an exception to the almost universal rule. Mr. ALLEN has accomplished this in ample measure. He has not only been unassailed, but has so conducted himself in public as to be entirely unassailable. He is yet in middle life, in the enjoyment of excellent health, a large practice, and enough of this world's wealth to keep "the wolf from the door," and insure his declining years from care or anxiety on this account."
Ralph Johnson and Mariah Johnson
Gile JOHNSON, the fourth son of John and Althea WATKINS JOHNSON, was born in Stafford, Connecticut, in the year 1804, and soon after removed with his parents to Herkimer County, N.Y. When seven years of age, he, with his five brothers and a sister became orphaned by the death of his father. His mother unable to provide for so large a family with her limited means, found a home for him in the family of a Mr. GRISWOLD, a farmer of that county, with whom he lived until he was twenty-one years of age. In 1826, he came to Cattaraugus County, N.Y. and bought a farm, adjoining his brother Ralph's, in the town of Dayton which, like the entire surrounding county, was a dense forest, and which by his energy and industry, was soon cleared up and with an occasional addition of fifty or a hundred acres, occupied by him till his death, which took place December 7, 1872. Two years after purchasing his farm, he married Philena SALISBURY, daughter of Calvin SALSBURY of Herkimer County, N.Y., who died in 1839, leaving three little boys. He soon after married Milley, daughter of Calvin and Hannah RICH, of New Albion, who died in 1858, deeply lamented by her numerous friends and acquaintances, especially by her family, consisting of two sons and four daughters, besides the sons of her adoption, all who are now living, excepting his eldest son who died from disease contracted in the army. He afterwards married Rosalinda HUBBARD of Dayton who lived but a few months; and in 1860 he married his present surviving wife, Mrs. Sarah Ann BAILEY, daughter of Nathaniel HURD of Perrysburg, whose portrait is given elsewhere, who now lives on the old homestead, honored and respected by her husband's entire family. Her residence is soon in the engraving near where the subject of this sketch lived and died. Her son, by a former marriage, also makes his home there when off from duty, being a naval officer.
In early life, he became connected with the Methodist Episcopal Church of Dayton of which he remained a faithful member through life, and had the satisfaction of seeing nearly all his family honored members of the same. Besides being a constant officer in the church, he also was twice elected to the office of supervisor, and often held other responsible offices in his town.
Like most men who accumulations depend upon their own industry, he was prudent and economical; yet he would not on any account take advantage of the necessity of others. At an early day, during a period of scarcity of wheat, many of his neighbors were suffering for want of it; and when it could be sold for several dollars per bushel, he would sell his wheat for one dollar per bushel, and would sell but a few bushels to each individual; and also during periods of scarcity of hay, when his neighbor's cattle were starving for want of it, and when it could be sold for a fabulous price, he would sell his hay for ten dollars per ton, and divide it among his neighbors, according to their necessity. He was conscientiously honest in all his dealings. In regard to his farm work, his motto was "drive your work, and not let your work drive you." In all business transaction, he was punctual and prompt to meet all contracts and engagements. He took a deep and lively interest in the welfare of his family, and was a kind and affectionate husband; and his example in life was in perfect harmony with his Christian profession.
Sarah Ann Johnson
Dayton Town Page
1879 History Page
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