Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1856-04-24

as far as could penetrate, but he kept on
and I lost sight of him in moment, and
whether he can talk at all or not, is moro
than I can tell
did you look at his feet, Henry?' inter
rupted one of the party. Il expected it was
old
Never mind what you expect-hear me
out he continued. Il followed the trail
which wound about, it seemed to me, towards
all the points of compass, for an hour or more;
when at last it led me out into a prairie,
which I thought I recognized. 1 stopped,
and was looking around to make out the
landmarks, when a horse with a saddle on
burst from the woods behind me, and tore
off across the prairie, as if he too had seen
the devil
What color was hep exclaimed half-a.
dozen voices in breath.
sHe was too far off for me to distinguish
more than that he was dark horse-say
about as much so as mine. l could distin-
guish the pummel of the saddle and the
stirrups Ayingv
sStoner's horse was dark bay was buz-
zed around the table in low tones, every one
looking seriously in his neighbor's face.
sYesn said the Squire, rising and step
ping uneasily to the window. 'Stoner's horse
was good deal like yours; he must have
got away from him. But then the nag was
a very fine creature, and we'll trained. I
wonder it should have behaved so"
Don't believe 'bay' would have done it,
Squire said one of the men. Something's
gone wrong, think Was the bride down,
Mr.. Henry?'
1T was too far off for me to tell. fol-
lowed in the direction the horse took, and
soon found myself here 'and expected to find
it here too"
NO! Stoner's is beyond here,' said the
Squire. That wagon trail you were turning
and twisting about in, is a road had open
cd to number of broad trees we cut and
rived out there; you might have followed it
for hours and not been more than mile or
so from the place you started from. That
ghost of yours, by-the-way, may be some
crazy fellow, who has wandered off into these
parts, with mischief in him! Did you hear
no gum?
Il thought did-about an hour after
parting with that man, or devil, or whatever
he was-but the sound was so faint and dis
tant, that, for fear I might be mistaken, I
did not 90 to it; and the road had turned so
frequently, I could not tell whether it was
in the direction he went off or not
Here the driver interposed, saying that
he had heard a rife about that time on the
right, but supposing it to be Henry or stoncr,
he thought nothing of it. And half-laugh-
ing discussion followed as to the probable
character of the wood-ghost Henry had re-
ported of-some asserting that he was quiz
zing us-for these men were too much &C
customed to the exigences of hunters life
to be for more than moment seriously af-
fected by the circumstance of Stoner's non-
arrival In the midst of this, horses
feet were heard galloping up to the door,
and loud sEilloa! followed. The Squire
rose hastily and went out. In moment af-
ter he entered, looked pale and excited.
Tom Dix-one of Stoner's neighbors-
says that his horse has come home without
rider, the reins upon its neck, and cot of
blood upon the pummel of the saddle! Boys,
he's been shot. Just as I suspected from
the first
Everybody rose at this announcement
looking in the face of him opposite with a
blank pallid stare.
The crazy man. calculated several
Strange "-'Very mysterious business said
others.
Il tell you what said the Squire after a
pause, 'has struck me from the first. 1t is
that this strange-looking fellow Henry saw,
mistook him for Stoner, until he looked into
his face, for Henry's horse and general ap-
pearance are not unlike his, and when he
found that he was wrong, he got out of the
way and went on till he met Stoner himself,
and has shot him.
NO doubt of it, said several.
but it is very mysterious affair, con-
tinued he-G know of no such looking man
i'll this region as Henry describes; but at any
rate he will be hunted down tomorrow, for
Stoner was one of the Regulators, and IIinch
is perfect bloodhound? lie can hardly
escape him, crazy Or not crazy?'
This seemed to be the most satisfactory
solution of the difficulty, and as it was too
dark for us to do anything that night we re-
sumed our seats to discuss over and over
again these details; while the Squire sent
off messenger summoning Hinch and the
Regulators to be on the ground early in the
morning!
Before sunrise in the morning, Hinch ar
rived with six men. I was walked by his
loud clustering and swearing. He was raw
ing, as I afterwards understood, about Hen
ry; calling his story about the meeting with
the remarkable personage-all humbug-
and asserting his belief that if a murder had
been committed, Henry was its author. Our
host quieted him in some way, and when we
came out to join them he greeted us with a
snarling sort of civility. He was thick
set, broad-shouldered, burly-looking wretch,
with blood-shot eyes, and face bearing all
the marks of riotous debauchery! Our
search was for several hours entirely unsuc-
cessful, until Henry by accident found the
place where he had encountered the Bearded