Washington sentinel. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1855, 1853-10-28
Masbinaton gtntinfl.
A Kentuckian,s story.

| A kentuckian's Story.
In the neighborhood of small town, situated
! in ----- county, Kentucky, and right at the
junction Of cross-road which boasted of agro-
Gerry, blacksmith shop, and every" small
| store, there lives character whom we recently
met and whose greatest boast was, that he "was
one Of the FIVE hundred men who killed Pick
enham, at Orleans"
His person was decidedly unique" enter
tanning, as he expressed it, Fan honest passion
for fighting" In the course Of his knock
downs, all the fingers of his left hand had been
either bit, cut or chawed of, with the excep-
ton of his fore one, which was long, lank
member, with big nail on the end of it.
Although deprived of the use of one fist, this
"inger" served him very useful purpose.
1t may be proper to state that in this section OF
the country, 6ghtingis is regarded as a mere mat
| ter Of amusement, especially when " red eye Z
is about, and neighbors knock down and "gouge"
each other in friendly manner The subject
Of our story had peculiar fashion for fighting;
being rather short, and not very heavy, he had
to take, as he said, all the little advantages to
keep even. His grand point was to walk up to
his man, and by a sudden thrust which long
practice had rendered him perfect in, poke his
long bony finger with unerring precision in his
opponents eye, and hit him at the same time
"under the belt" 1t was at one of those do
mestic watering places, where families congre-
gate to pass few weeks during the summer
season, that we first met him.
He was dressed in the most approved hunt
ing fashion, having on buckskin pantaloons,
and a coon-skin cap, with fox's tail in it. His
face was particularly striking, from the fact,
probably, Of it having been repeatedly struck"
as it was covered with scars.
To complete his description he had only one
eye, and that lonely orb" when we saw him,
gave evidence of recent muss.
A crowd Of some four or FIVE visitors had as
sembled at the spring, which gushed out of the
side Of hill, and were sitting on some wide
benches, listening to his marvellous adventures
"by food and field" and the innumerable men
he had " "fout' and clicked
One of the party present, at the risk ofbeing
considered impertinent ventured to ask him
show he lost his eye."
The old fellow immediately frightened up,
and sitting upon an empty keg, drew a huge
twist Of the native leaf from his buckskin and
said:
"Gentlemen, you won't hardly believe this
story--some folks don't--but it's a fact, and no
mistake
"Some forty years ago, things warn't as they
are now, railroads and turnpikes warn't invent
ed to skeer game and let foreigners in.
"Well, about that time shoop-poled' my
cabin, on the side of one Of the Licking hills,
previous to my going to agriculture. There
was powerful lot of game then, and a feller
could pick and choose.
aOne day started out on a still hunt to drop
bucks and admire natur. | went about three
miles without seeing deer fat enough to waste
powder on; when came to a precipice on the
Brushy Fork of Licking; ! stopped, and COM
menced thinking about Pilgrims Progress
and Robinson Crusoe,' when presently ! seed
a big buck laying at the foot Of the precipice
which war about four ramrods deep. tell
YOU religion and literature fitted Immediately,
and | Jest concluded to harness that specimen
in natral history and take him alive.
HI laid down Sweet Betsy-that's what call
my rife-and shed my flannel for regular
tussel He was laying in the sun at the bot
tom, and never know'd the danger he war in.
made one Jump and lit right across his
back and grabbed both his horns-they war
horns and no mistake, and looked like young
black-iacks sprouting out of the side of his
head. The deer was leetle surprised and run
like hi straight up the boller, through the
thickest sort of woods. / hung on to the horns,
for tell you, if had let loose the way he war
running, I'd lit on the other side of Licking,
and no mistake.
II know'd | war in for the race, and war
making it heap under two forty. On we went,
like the devil beating tan bark, through the
thickets.
II commenced to get tired by and by, and
thought / would ease myself off by grabbing
some sapling / seed a small blackjack tree
and snatched it with my left hand, holding on
with the other to the horn of the critter.
Something cracked 1t warn't the tree,
but by gum the horn of the buck had Slipped
and thought ! was goner.' His head must
haved ached orful, for he run heap faster, and
them big antlers of his'n, as he rushed through
the bushes, ratified agin his skull like shelled
corn in gourd.
aAll at wuns't something keen hit me in the
left eye, but it got mighty dark of a sudden on
that side of my head.
II s'pose he run about four miles, when he
tainted, and got of, and, after rested, tied
all four of his legs together before the 'intiu-
ence' left him. The blood was running down
the left side Of my face, and | shut my other
eve, and - n me if didn't see nothing. !
went back to the trail we had run, when seed
bush move, | stopped stock still and went the
other eye on it."
Here he paused and took another quid.
"Gentlemen," he resumed "it's a fact and no
mistake, if it warnt my left eye hanging on
bush and winking at me-"
Every body was silent-surprise was too deep
for utterance when one of the party, drawing
a flask from his pocket, handed it to the old
man with the request that ne would wash that