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man in Covington. After the wnr was over he returned with his family to Pearlington. He helped his father build the Hur-sey Mill there and hr gained experience from it that was to prove valuable to him. Alter his father?s death in 1871 he ran the family mill until it was sold to Poitevent and Favre.
On March 22, 1873, Asa Ilursev II married Laura fane Orr. As their children became old enough to go to school he joined with Captains Poitevent and Favre in employing a competent teacher for their children. There were no public schools in those days. Asa himself took lessons at night from the children?s teacher. This inspired in him a strong desire to better educate himself. He bought books on the subjects he was interested in?engineering, drafting, surveying, etc. He became a well educated man for his time.
In his work as a millwright Asa found that he often needed tools which were not available?not even made back then. He would send a design of the tool he wanted to a machine tool company in Philadelphia. They would make the tool and send it to him, always stamped ?patent applied for? in their name. He never tried to get patents for himself, his only interest being in getting the tools he needed for his own use. Because of the great untouched forests and the great increase in saw-milling these tools became universally used. Mrs. Crawford had a list of the tools he made but has misplaced it.
Asa Hursey was highly regarded for his unusual abilities by employers. One Christmas they drove a fine horse pulling a magnificent carriage, complete down to the quirt, up to his front gate and presented this outfit to him as a Christmas present.
Asa was a kind, thoughtful, lovable and most useful man. No one died in Pearlington, white or black, without his going to the bereaved and offering his services. Usually he would prepare the body for burial or give instructions to others for rendering this serv ice. He would then return to his shop at the sawmill and make the coffin or have it made by his workers. Resides talking to Mrs. Crawford I have talked to a number of old people who lived in Pearlington GO to 80 years ago. Without exception they
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all praised Asa Hursey for his great service to his community.
Asa Hursey was the treasurer of several lodges that carried insurance policies on their members. He knew the ones who paid and the ones not able to pay. In many instances he paid out of his own pocket for unfortunates who could not. Often those delinquent would reimburse him but others could not. One man insisted that Asa drop the payments for him since he did not see how' he could repay them. To Asa?s great sorrow the man died three months later leaving his family penniless. Years later after Asa died his widow moved to Slidell. Several of his lodge brothers there paid her money that her husband had paid for their dues when they could not pay.
Asa Hursey was a great friend to boys and young men. Sam Russ of Picayune said, "He was the best friend I had when I was growing up.? Mrs. Crawford said, "He would take boys into the mill and teach them a trade. Mr. Ab Toume was such a boy. When Asa died in 1912 Mr. Toume walked from Kiln to Pearlington to attend his funeral. This was the quickest way as going by water would have taken too long. On arriving at the Hursey home he went directly to the widow and told her, ?All that I am in life today I owe to your husband. He gave me my chance.? ?
Asa Hursev was a diligent worker. He worked from ?kin to kaint? in the mill. He would then work in his garden as long as he could see. His children would help him by holding a lantern for him to see by. Very often he had to work all day on Sundav putting the mill into condition to run the following week. His wife would say, ?Papa, why don?t you stay with me and the children on Sundays?? His answer was always, ?Mama, if I don?t work on Sundav, there?ll be families in Pearlington go hungry next week.? He got no extra pay for this extra work. This was <10 to 70 years ago before the forty hour week and time and a half for overtime.
Captain John Poitevent died in 1899. After that the business was run bv his sons. The Favres sold their interest in the mill to the Poitevents and organized the J. A. Favre Lumber Co. at
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