The History of Des Moines County, Iowa: Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, &c., a Biographical Directory of Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics, Portraits of Early Settlers and Pro

Excerpt from The History of Des Moines County, Iowa: Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, &C., A Biographical Directory of Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics, Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men, &C

IN the preparation of a work of this character, the writer labors under peculiar embarrassments, which arise from the fact that the lapse of time has not mellowed harsh colors and softened bold lines in the panorama of events. While the newness of the region herein described enables us to secure many valuable bits of history which would be lost in the current of time, the presence of the chief participators in the occurrences which constitute the history of this county, acts as a constant check to a free presentment of incidents and a full expression of opinions.

Many things have been left unsaid which might have been inserted here, and for no other reason than that the writer felt the delicacy of his position. When men are dead, volumes can be written concerning them - and with impunity for then the writer cannot be accused of mercenary motives, nor can the subject of eulogy be calumniated by jealous minds. We have refrained from saying that which may truthfully be said of the distinguished men of this county, because we feel that the time for such words has not yet come. We have endeavored to condense in the form of one volume the scattered fragments of fact which have floated about so long. Some will say the work is well per formed, while others will condemn it. The future generations, however, will surely say that this work is a valuable one.

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