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Archiver > BRETHREN > 1998-07 > 0899584045


From: <>
Subject: some names: Mohler/Merkey/Hamit
Date: Sat, 4 Jul 1998 16:27:25 EDT


In Aunt Kate Bower Boyd's book of reminiscences, "As I remember" I find these
presumably Brethren names in the section recalling World War I. At the time
the family was living at Cordell, OK. Kate was married to Abraham Lincoln
Boyd, a Brethren minister:

"Then World War I came and took Bruce Tharrington and Luther Hamit. H B
Mohlers came to our neighborhood, as agents for Wearever Aluminum, and boarded
with us. Dora Cripe, a music teacher, was staying with us too. When
automobiles began to come around, we got a Reo because it was larger--good for
a big family. It also had curtains for bad weather. Sometimes when we got to
church, we could count seventeen people getting out of that car.

"Then the World War was causing lots of trouble. Government agents were
searching the farmers to see how much flour they had on hand. Farmers usually
exchanged wheat for flour for their winter's use. But if you had a few fifty-
pound sacks too many, you had to give it up...We had a few extra, so we
decided we could make a lot of noodles and cookies...

"The conscientious objectors were treated very badly. Brother Mohler, who was
staying at our house, and A. L. Boyd could talk some German. So the German
boys (C.O.'s) came to them for help. One day a young man from Pennsylvania
who had heard the plotting that was being done in town came and told us that
mob biolence was going to come to us--and it did. About midnight there was a
knock on our door. Daddy opened the door and saw a masked man and two others
back of him. Dad said, "You, Mr. Betts, go back home,' and shut the door.
Well, that beat the fellow to think that Dad knew him and called his name. So
they went back to their car and down the road to where there were a dozen
other cars full. Dad was going to call our neighbors by phone, but the wire
was cut. Pretty soon all those cars came up to our house and all the men came
to the door and knocked again. Daddy opened the window upstairs and asked
what was wanted. They said, "Come out; we want to talk to you." Well, we all
were going down to hear--Mohlers too.

"When they talked, Mohler started to answer, but they hollered, "We don't want
anything from him." Boyd said, "He has a right to talk; he's in my house." I
don't remember much; but they were told to go back home, to come by daylight,
and to act like United States citizens. This made them still madder. Every
bank in town and the city officials were represented. They wanted Boyd and
Mohler each to give bond. Finally they left. Later we heard they had the tar
and feathers along for Mohler. Well, we were sadly disturbed. Several of the
boys (Merkey boys, Bruce and Floyd, Luther Hamit, and several German boys) who
wouldn't take up arms were treated in a very mean way."

I know who Bruce Tharrington was because he married into the Boyd family. But
does anybody recognize this Mohler or the Merkeys or Luther Hamit?

Jan T

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