Volume 12 , Issue 15

Duchess Mountain Spring Domain

Spring temperatures have sprung up here in southwest Colorado and the pile-up of snow is melting throughout the San Juan valley. We had to hang the bird feeders higher to keep the raccoon and skunk raiders out.

They tell me up at Vallecito Reservoir that Weaselskin creek is running fast with the snow melt going on in the San Juan mountains. As you can see from the photo on the right.

Just to forewarn you, our NW Techie has been working to convert/merge our Okielegacy MSAccess (OLD) database to our NEW OkieLegacy MySQL database for the past weeks. Mike is still working, refining the NEW so that we can publish, comment through the NEW mysql database. We are still publishing this week's OkieLegacy ezine through the OLD database. Let us know if you have any other problems receiving, viewing the OkieLegacy Ezine -- or not receiving it!

Early this week we snapped a shot of the Albert Squirrel that had some how gotten into the middle of a hanging feeder and was raiding the wild bird seed. As seen in the photo on the left. Have not seen any of those pesky raccoons or skunks, though!

We have been doing some research on political parties of the 19th century and things that happened back in April, 1912 and 1861.

One of our research finds were two groups of Democrats (Barnburners and Pro-abolition democrats) which eventually joined the Republicans sometime around the 1860's.

We always wondered how our maternal great grandfather, Henry Clay Paris, was named. What we did find was that our Great grandpa Henry Clay Paris was born 5 Jul 1844, in Foxtown, Madison county, Kentucky. G-Grandpa's first/middle names bore the name of the Whig party leader, Henry Clay, of Kentucky.

The Whigs became the Republicans in 1854 and eventually broke off into the National Union Party in 1864. There were other political parties during that time, also. You can read some of their legacies in this week's OkieLegacy features.

It was 98 years ago, April 10, 1912, the RMS Titanic sank on its maiden voyage from Southhampton to New York with only approximately 700 survivors out of 2000 passengers and crew members.

It was 139 years ago, April 12, 1861, South Carolina fired on the Fort Sumter, and the Civil War began.

It was between 1943-45 that Anne Frank, a Jewish teenager (age 13 years) during World War II, hid from the Nazis and poured out her heart to the only true friend she had left -- her diary.

As to who was the greatest U.S. President of our time, some historians state that President Abraham Lincoln (Whig, Republican, National Union party) was the greatest president of our time. BUT -- Radical Republicans strongly opposed President Lincoln throughout his presidency.

The Republican party back in 1854 was known as a Northern Altruists. To get a better idea of the ideology of the Republican back then, we looked up Altruism on Wikipedia -- "Pure altruism is giving without regard to reward or the benefits of recognition and need. A selfless concern for the welfare of others. The term "altruism" may also refer to an ethical doctrine that claims that individuals are morally obliged to benefit others.

If a Republican was known as an altruists, someone disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others, back in 1850s -- It sure does not sound like the Republicans of today! So -- Exactly when did the Republicans and Democrats switch ideology? Sometime after the Civil War and after the death of President Abraham Lincoln?

Good Night and Good Luck!
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