The Cadiz Democratic sentinel. [volume] (Cadiz, Ohio) 1854-1864, 1855-07-18
~ Il NJ Q Il s
A Coon hunt in a fency Country

Really It's astonishin' what a monstrous
sight of Mischief there is in a pint of rum!
If one Of 'em was to be submitted to analy-
cation, as the great doctors call it, it would
be found to contain all manner of devilment
that ever entered the head of man, from
cusin' and stealth up to murder and whip
PIN his own mother, and nonsense enough
to turn al! the men in the world out Of their
senses. If a mans got a badness in him,
it will bring it out, just as sass4fraSs tea
does tho measles; and il he's a goOl for
nothin' sort of a fellow, without no bad
traits in petikler, it'll bring out allhis great
ness. 1t affects different ways-some it
makes see double, and some it makes so
blind that they can't tell themselves from a
side of bacon. One Of the worst cases OF
rum ~foolerv that I've heard of for a long
time, TUX place in Pineville last fall.
ALL Sweeny AMI Tom Culpepper is the
two greatest old coveys in our settlement
for coon h%unlin'. The fact is they don't do
much of any thing else, and when they
CAM catch nothin' you may depend ont
coons is scarce. Well. one night they had
everything ready for a reg'ar bust, but ow-
in to some extra good fortin'. Tom had got
a pocket pistol, as he called it, Of regular
old Jimmakey, to keep off the rumatics.-
After takin' a good starlin' horn, they went
out on their hunt, with their light wood
torch blazin' and the dogs a barkin' and
yelpln' like forty Thousand. Every now
and then s'oppin' to wait for the dogs, they
would drink one another's health, till they
began to feel very comfortable, and chatted
away bout one thing and another, without
mindin' which way they was g'wiue. Bim-
eby they cum to a fence. Well. over they
got, without much difficulty,
"Who's fence is this??" said Bill.
"Taint no matter" SEE Tom, ''let's take
somethin' to drink"
After takin' a drink they went on, won-
ueIlh Wldt oh dlitu H@u CuuA vi thS uoSS'
Next thing they cum to was a terrible mud
dy branch. After pullin' through the bria,s
and gettin' on t'other side, they TUX anoth-
er drink, and after g'wine Il little ways, they
cum to another fence and a monstrous high
one this time.
"Whar upon airth is we got to, Culpep-
per-" seq Bill. Il never seed SIGH a heap
of branches md fences in these parts"
"Whv," SEE Tom, 'it's all old Sturlid IS
doins-you know he's always buildin' feu
ces snd maxim internal improvements, as
he call 'em. But, never mind, ives through
'em now"
"Reckon we isn't" seq Bill, "here's the
all-Gredist fence yet"
Sure enough, thar they was, right agin
another fence. By this time they begin to
be considerable tired and timber in the
joints, and it was such a terrible high fence
Tom dropp d the last piece of the torch,
and thar they was in the dark.
"Now you is done it" SEE Bill.
Tom know'ed he had, but he thought it
was no use to grieve over split milk. SC
says he. Never mind. old boss, cum ahead.
and III take you out and the next minnit,
kerslash, he went in the water.
Bill hueg on the fence with both hands
like be tho't he was slewin' round to throw
him off.
~"IIello, Toni" sez he, "whar in the worlC
is you got to-"
"Here | is" scz Tom, sportin' the water
out Of his mouth, and coughin' like he'd
swa lowed somethin'-'look out, there's
another branch here"
"Nam O sense whar is We?" SEE Bill -
"Ifthis isn't a fancy country. dad fetch my
buttons"
"Yes. and a branchy one, too" tez Tom,
"and the highest and deepest and thickesI
that I ever seed in my born days"
(which way is you?" seq Bill.
"Heie, right over the branch"
"Cum ahead" SEE Tom, ''let's go home .
"Cum thunder, | in such a place as this,
whar a man amt got his coat tail unhitched
from a fence, fore he's over his head and
ears in water"
After gettin' gut and feelin' about in the
dark, they got together agan. Afer 'akin'
another drink, they sot out for home de.
~nouncin' the fences and branches, ard help
in, ono another up nov and then; bu: they
hadn't gone more'n twenty yards fore they
brung to a halt by another fence.
"Dad blame my picture, SEE Bill, "if !
don't think we is bewitched. Who upon
airth would build fences all over creation
this way?"
1t was about an hours job TO get over
this one; but after they got on the top they
found the ground on the other side without
much trouble. This time the bottle was
broke, and they cum monstrous near having
a fight over the catastrophe. But it was q
very good thing. it was; for. after crossin'
two on three branches. and climbin' as ma
ny more fences, it got to be daylight, and
they found that THKT HAD DEEM cLiMBIN' TnE
SANE FENCE ALL NIGHT not more'n q hun
dred yards from whar they first cum 10 it.
Bill Sweeney SEE he can't stccount for il
in no other way but that the Ticker sort n
turned their heads; and he sez lie does only
believe If 1t hadn't GIN out, they'd been
olimbin' The same fence and wadin' the
same branch iii nov. Bill PROMISE bis
wife N line the Temperance Society. II She