"Father Time is not always a hard parent and though he tarries for none of his children, often lays his hand lightly upon those who have used him well; making them old men and women inexorably enough, but leaving their hearts and spirits young and in full vigor. With such people the gray head is but the impression of the old fellow's hand in giving them his blessing and every wrinkle but a notch in the quiet calendar of a well spent life."

The above quotation from Dickens applies to the rare personality of the late Enos Rushton, one of the most highly respected, and most prominent men and politicians of Cloud county. He was one of the first commissioners and sat in almost every convention for more than twenty years; was one of the best posted men in the county on parliamentary rules and was usually chairman of the convention. Was chairman of the fifth congressional district at the time of his death, which occurred at Weatherford, Oklahoma, January 14, 1901.

Mr. Rushton was a native of Lafayette, Tippecanoe county, Indiana, born October 22, 1839. His paternal ancestors were of Scottish descent, and his maternal ancestry were of German origin. Mr. Rushton served with distinction as sergeant of Company B. nineteenth Iowa regiment three years. Was captured at Morganza, Louisiana, taken to Tyler, Texas, where he was retained as a prisoner for six months. They were captured on the twenty-ninth day of September, 1864, and after a brief time were marched to Shreveport, where they remained all winter, suffering for want of clothing and blankets, having been robbed of all their possessions. They were taken to Greenwood and from there made an escape on the twenty-sixth of April, 1865. The rebels became alarmed at the near approach of Steele's cavalry, and ordered that all the Union prisoners be hurried off to Tyler, Texas. To attempt to escape in such a country so far from Union lines required a good deal of courage. They adopted the following plan to escape: Dug a hole large enough for two on the level ground, covering it over with brush, dirt and ashes. This last act was performed by a comrade who did not feel strong enough to escape with them; there they remained until the "Butternuts" had left the place when they came out from their hiding and made for Alexandria, where they supposed they would find the Union army, but met the advance. They encountered many narrow escapes from falling into the hands of the rebels again, but in these instances, as in many others, fortune favored the brave. They were then assigned to the duty of provost guards in the third division of the thirteenth corps.

A daughter, Mrs. Joseph Guipre, has in her possession a daily paper which was published at Natchitoches, Louisiana, bearing the date of April 4, 1864. On the margin of the sheet is a message written by Mr. Rushton, which reads as follows: "I am feeling all right again since getting into the Union." She also has a copy of the paper, "The Daily Citizen," published in Vicksburg, July 2, 1863. Mr. Rushton was present when the original copies were printed on the historical wall paper edition. There were not enough for each soldier and a second edition was gotten out, a copy of which was received by Mr. Rushton at the old soldiers reunion held at Fairfield, Iowa. It is a reproduction as found by the Union soldiers when Grant captured the city.

Mr. Rushton was married to Jane Taylor, September 6, 1860, in Wapello county, Iowa, and in 1873 emigrated to Kansas and located on their farm in Summit township, where Mrs. Rushton died June 26, 1898. Their five daughters survive them and all but one are residents of Cloud county: Laura, wife of Alfred N. Macy; Susan, wife of T.N. Collins; Olive, wife of Joseph Guipre; Emily, wife of Fred Guipre, and Nellie, a nurse in the homeopathic hospital of Deliver, Colorado. The Rushton daughters are all accomplished and educated women.

Mr. Rushton was a life long politician. He was county superintendent of Wayne county, Iowa, for four years, and at one time received the nounnation by the Republican party for probate judge of Cloud county. He helped to organize District No. 64, known as "Highland," which was changed after his death to "Rushton," in honor of his memory. At the Cloud county convention, which convened in Concordia, March 18, 1902, to elect delegates to the congressional convention, they offered the following resolution: "Since our last representative gathering, deaths has called to his embrace one who for many years has been the most familiar figure in a Cloud county representative convention, our congressional committeeman, Enos Rushton. We recognize in his death the loss of a citizen of the highest sense of honor, a man of sterling integrity and a friend of every worthy cause.