Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1849-07-21
SATURDAY, july 2l, Is49.

of the Regulators. for it was now uniyer.
A sally believed aud remarked, that it was
- against them alone that his enmity was
directed. The story of Henry was great
~ improved upon and added to; and, as
some reports had 1t, the Madman,-as
others the Bearded Ghost, was seen in
nall dozen places al the same time
now on foot, stalking with enormous
strides across some open place from thick
el-passing out Of sight again before the
observer could recover from his surprise;-
Then mounted, he was seen flying like the
SHADOW Oi summer cloud over the prai.
RES, or beneath the gloom of forests, al.
ways haggard aud lean, dressed 10 skins
with the hair on, and that long, heavy,
terrible rifle on his shoulder [ noticed
That there was only one class Of men " no
VenInred to assert that they had actually
seen with their own eyes these wonderful
sights, and that was constituted of those who
either had suffered, or from their character
and pursuits, were most likely to suffer
persecution from the Reguators-the class
Oh HuhIer emlgrants. These men were
most industrious in embeIlishing all cir.
cumstances OF character, feats, and relent.
less hatred TO the Regulators, as highly as
the excited credulIty of the public would
bear They never saw him except in the
vicinity of the homes of some one of these
hated tyrants. In their versions this being
was forever lowering around them, wait.
ing the moment 10 strike while they were
alone and far from any help.
Ihey carried this Thing so far as to at
tract attention TO it, and arouse in the cum
ming mind of Hinch .he same suspicion
which had occurred to Henry and myself
namely that all this was the result of pro.
toundly acute and thoroughly organized
scheme OF this class, headed by some man
OF peculiar personalities and consummate
skill, with the object of exterminatng or
driving off the Regulators. 1t seemed i'm.
possible, that, without collusion with MANY
others, the murderer should have been
able to battle all pursuit. Hinch and his
band had been thoroughly cOwed and awed;
! but the moment this idea occurred to them,
the reaction Of their base fears was savage
! exultation.
Here was something tangible their open
and united force could easily exterminate
an enemy who had acknowledged their
weakness in resoTllng to secret combina-
| ton and assassination from the bush p
They forthwith proclaimed 'war to the
| knife with the whole class and during
! the next week several outrages, so revolt. |
ing that 1 will not detail Them, were per-
! petratet upon these men in different parts
oE the country and the fact that, during
this general tumult, nothing was seen or
heard of the mysterious Rtfeman, encour.
aged them with the belief that they had
| succeeded in getting rid of him through
the intimidation Of his confederates.
They had Dow been for nearly fort.
! night IN the saddIe-had glutted them.
selves with vengeance, and as they con
celved, broken down This dangerous con-
spiracy against their power; and if they
had rot succeeded in detecting and punish
ing, had at least frightened off their sIngu
lar foe. They now concluded, they might
safely dlSband. That day, after they sep. !
araled, one of their number. named Rees |
--almost as bad and savage a man as |
Hlnch Elmself-was riding past a thicket, !
10 sight of his own house, when he was
shot from it. His negroes heard the gun.
and seeing his horse galoping up to The
house rIderess and snoring wildly, they
then ran down, and found him stretch
ed in the road dead. He roas shot an the
eye, and the ball passed ou! at the back Of
his head.
When Hinch heard this, he returned
perfectly livid, his knees smote together,
and with horrible oath, he exclaimed,
lis Jack Long, or his ghost, by Cd
come back for vengeancep = 1t was now
perceived, for the first time that all the
men had been shot through the eye, Instead
of in the back part o.: the head, where the
ball had passed out after entering at the
socket. The other heads had been too un.
pleasantly mutilated for examination, and
this fact had been before observed. or
course every body was satisfied now that
this terrible being was III one way or ano-
ther identified with Jack Long for the
notoriety of his favorlte mark and his match.
less skill instantly occurred TO all, as &C.
counting for much that was unaccountable
in these occurrences, This produced
great change in public feeling, The better
sort began to conceive that they understood
the whole matter. The lynching Jack
had received was fresh in their memories,
and they supposed that its severity had
shaken his mental balance and made him
a monomaniac, and that the disease had
endowed him with the marvellous cunning
the staunch, murderous hate-and the
unnatural appearance, which had created
such sensations. They could not under
stand how being SO simple hearted
aud sluggish as he was reputed to have
been, could have been reused or stung to
such deeds by The mere depth and power
of his natural passions. But monomaniac
or not such a vengeance, and the daring
conduct of the whole affair. were very i'm