[newspaper clipping... no date, but probably in the Warsaw Daily Times
1940's]..... think you'll find this interesting reading... marge p.
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LIFE HISTORY OF "THE IMMORTAL J.N." WHO FREQUENTLY VISITED WARSAW, BROUGHT
OUT BY CHICAGO PUBLICATION
Old timers in Warsaw and Kosciusko county, to a large number will
recall "The Immortal J. N.," who in the seventies and early eighties made
perennial visits to this section of the middle west. His name was Jacob
Newman Free. With his long flowing gray hair at first glance he gave one
the resemblance of "Buffalo Bill," although not so neat in his appearance.
Frequently he would gather a crowd on the street corner and made a fairly
good address on various topics. He rode on railroad trains, he stopped at
hotels--and he never paid a cent. In fact he never carried money. Being a
"little shy in the upper story," old acquaintances frequently took pity
upon the aimless wander and fed and lodged him for a "short spell."
"The Immortal J. N.," however, never lingered long in one place. A
supper, a lodging, a breakfast--and away he'd go.
More About "J.N."
"Letters," a publication sponsored by Time magazine, contains this
communication from D. M. Hoover of Elkhart, Ind., concerning "J.N.:"
"During the period of 1898-1902, I was a teacher in the schools of
Elkhart county, Ind. Several times in this period "The Immortal J. N. "
appeared at our county teachers' meetings. He was a large man of striking
appearance, kind of a cross between Buffalo Bill and a Southern Colonel.
"He would enter some session of our meetings and would sit quietly and
austerely expecting to be called upon for an address. In this he was never
disappointed. He would talk for some five or six minutes in a rambling but
forceful and eloquent manner. There was very little point or sense to his
remarks.
"The legend concerning him was that he had been an able lawyer in an
eastern metropolis; that he had been employed to defend a man who was
accused of murder; that he believed his client to be innocent, his
sympathies were aroused, he took a great personal interest in the case and
devoted himself and all his talent unreservedly to his client's cause, and
that his argument to the jury was sublime. He won his client's acquittal.
That the accused thereafter thanked him for his masterful defense and wanted
to pay him his fee, but he also revealed the fact that he was actually
guilty of the crime. That he then refused to take pay for his services;
that something "snapped" in his head; that he brooded, lost all interest in
his profession and gradually developed into the strange and irresponsible
character that we knew, and was described in your "Letters."
A Letter From Ohio
Francis W. Shepardson, of Grandville, Ohio, writes"
"J. N. Free, a familiar character in the central states 50 years ago,
was from New Lexington, Ohio, where his brother Major Free lived, the latter
an officer in the Union army during the Civil War. 'J. N.' had a head
injury when a youth--so that an unusually brilliant intellect was wrecked.
" 'J.N.' was tall, dignified in appearance and in deportment, wore long
hair. He was well-informed on all questions of the day and could make a
better-than-ordinary speech upon them, his rounded sentences often, however,
being punctuated by references to 'this eternal pressure.' He was a frequent
visitor at our printing office in Grandville, Ohio, seeking copies of
'esteemed contemporaries.' His pockets always were stuffed with newspapers.
He never paid railroad fare. The 50-50 story was told in every community
with an individual setting. The Grandville setting was:
"Mr. Buxton (proprietor of the local hotel): 'J.N., you have been here
at the hotel for a week now, and you have entertained my guests with your
stories and your conversation. So I am going to throw off half the bill for
the week.'
" 'J.N.': "Thank you, Major. That is very generous. As I will not
allow any many to outdo me in generosity, I'll throw off the other half and
call it square."
"An incident comes to memory. There was a great soldiers' reunion in
Columbus half a century ago, when Charles Foster was Governor of Ohio. Only
a few could get admission to the Opera House where the distinguished guests
were to speak. 'J.N.' took up his position on the west steps of the State
House--half a block from the Opera House--and began to speak. He was holding
the attention of a crowd of several thousand with an interesting address (I
was close to him and heard it) when, from the Opera House across the block,
there came a sound of cheering. 'J.N.' stopped short in his address and
said: 'Listen to that cheer! They are cheering Charlie Foster. He and I were
in the same regiment during the Civil War. We were both Captains in the
Stay-at-Home Guards.'
"As the Democrats had dubbed Governor Foster 'Calico Charlie,' alleging
that he had sold dry-goods to the wives of soldiers at extortionate prices
while their husbands were at the front, 'J.N.'s' sally went over big."
"Letters" Follow up Trail
Then the publication quoted from proceeds:
"To Readers Hoover, Shepardson and others who touched on the same
ground, thanks for picking up the trail of The Immortal J.N. Letters
followed it to Chambersburg, Pa., where Jacob Newman Free was born in 1828
to an influential family in which there was said to be a strain of Indiana
blood. He died 76 years later near Sandusky, O., lies buried in
McCutcheonville, Ohio, where his father was a minister. Most widely
accepted is the story that shortly before the Civil War, Lawyer Free lost a
murder case in Cincinnati because of inability to find a certain witness.
Mentally and emotionally upset, he traveled every state in the U. S.
searching for the witness.
" 'The Immortal J.N.' was never known to carry money. If a conductor
asked his fare, he would proffer a handful of pebbles from his pocket.
After being put of the train, he would simply flag the next one. Railroads
grew so weary of having their schedules disrupted by 'J.N.' that most of
them gave him free passes.