Cooper's Clarksburg register. [volume] (Clarksburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1851-1861, 1854-01-25
Guoper5 Glutksbllrg Negister
A ItENTUCL1AN,s STORY.

SS0ShSN VI SISSClS anu OIdShSlhlCu SlIOPy /
and every" small store, there lives a cha
racter whom we recently met, and whose !
greatest boast was that he "was one of the
five hundred men who killed Packenham
at Orleans"
His person was decidedly unique" en-
pertaining, as lie expressed it, can honest
passion for fgbting.''. In the course of
his knock downs, all the fingers Of his
left hand had been either biz, cut or chaw-
cd off, with the exception Of his fore one,
which was long. lank member, with
big nail on the end of it.
Although deprived of the use of one
p fist, this finger served him a very useful
purpose.
1t may be proper to state, that in this
sect on Of the country, fighting was re-
garded as a mere matter of amusement,
especially when red eye" is about, and
neiglsbors knock down and gouge each
other i'll a, friendly manner. The subject
OF our story had a peculiar fashion for
fighting; being rather short and not very
heavy, he had to take, as he said, all the
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 on
his opponents eye, and hit him at the
same time under the belt 1t was at
o one of those watering places where fami-
. lies congIegate to pass few weeks du-
ring the summer season, that we first mot
him.
He was dressed in the most approved
hunting fashion, having on buckskin pan
falcons, and coonskin cap with a IOx's
tail in it. His face was particularly stri-
king, from the fact, probably, of its ha-
wing been repeatedly struck as it was
covered with scars.
To complete his description he had on
ly one eye, and that lonely orb when we
saw him gave evidences of recent muss.
A crowd of some four or five visitors
had assembled at the spring which guSh-
ed out of the side of hill, and were sit
ting on some wide benches, listening to
his marvellous adventures "by flood and
.6cld," and the innumerable men he had
"fout" and "licked."
One of.the party present, at the risk of
being considered impertinent, ventured to
ask him chow he lost his eye"
Tho old fellow mmediately frightened
up, and sitting upon an empty keg, drew
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 is Il
factand no mistake"
"Some forty years ago, things warn't
invented to skeer game and let foreigners
in.
p Well, about that time hoop poled
my cabin on the side of one of the Lick
ing hills, previous to my going to agricul-
ture. There was a powerful lot of game
then, and fellow could pick and choose.
One day started out on still hunt
TO 'drap bucks and admire natur. Invent
about three miles without seeing deer
fat enough 70 waste powder on. When
came to precipice on the Brushy Fork
of Licking, l stopped and commenced
thinking about Pilgrims Progress and
Robinson Crusoe, when presently seed
big buck lying at the foot Of a preeipice.
which were about four ramrods deep. l
tell you, religion and literature fitted i'm.
mediately, and jest concluded to harness
Chat specimen in nat'ral history and take
him alive.
81 laid down Sweet Betsy-that's
what called my riHe-and shed my
flannel for regular tussel. He was a
layin in the sun at the bottom, 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 jacks sprouting out of the
side Of his head. The deer was a leetle
surprised, and run like h-ll straight up
the holler, through the thickest sort Of
woods. l hung on to the horns, for |
tell you il had let loose the way he war
runnin' I'd lit on the other side Of Lick
ing and no mistake
"Iknow'd l war in for the race, and
war ma king it a heap under two-forty.-
On we went, like the devil beating tan
bark, through the thickets.
81 commenced to get tired by and by,
and thought l would ease myself of by
grabbing some sapling. l seed small
blackjack tree and snatched it with my
left hand, holding on with the other to the
horn of the crittor.
"Something cracked. 1t wafn't the
tree. but ''by gum" the horn Of the buck
had slipped, and thought 1 was goner.
His head must have ached orful, for he
run a heap faster; and them big antlers
OF his'n as he rushed through the bushes
ratified agin his skull like sheled corn in
agourd.
Cali at once somethin' keen hit me in
the left eye, and it got mighty dark Of a
sudden on that side of my head.
81 spose he run about four miles, when
he tainted, and got off, and after rest
ed, tied all four of his legs together before
the influence left him. The blood was
running down the left side of my face,
and l shut my other eye, and d1n me
if didn't see nothing. l went back on
the trail we had run, when seed
bush move, stopped stock still and kept
the other eve on Il -