M'arthur Democrat. (McArthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1853-1865, 1857-02-12
grlrttrO Stories.
JOHN TAY OR,
THE TIMON OF TUE BACK WOODS
BAR AND PULPIT.

/ can never forget the first vision Of
John Taylor. 1t was in the court
house at Lewisburgh, Convey coun-
ty, Arkansas, in the summer of 1898.
The occasion itself possessed terrible
interest. A vast concourse ofspecta-
tors had assembled to witness the tri-
al of a young and beautiful girl on
an Indictment for murder. The
Judge waited at the moment for the
sheriff to bring in his prisoner, and
the eyes of the impatient multitude
all centured on the door, when sud
denly a stranger entered whose ap-
pearance riveted universal 'atten-
ton.
Here is his portrait--a figure tall,
lean, sinewy, and straight as an arrow;
face sallow, bilious, and twitching
necessarily with nervous irritability;a
brow broad, soaring, and massive
scanned with wrinkles but not from
age; for he was scarcely forty; eyes
reddish yellow, like the watchtul ca
gle, as bright and piercing; and final
" a mouth with lips ofcast iron, thin,
curled, cold, and sneering, the intense
expression of which looked the living
embodiment of an unbreathed CURSE
He was habited ina suit Of new buck =
skin, ornamented after the fashion of
Indian costume, with hues Of every
color of the rainbow. Elbowing his
way through the crowd, and apparently
unconscious that he was regarded as a
phenomenon, needing explanation,
this singular being advanced, and
with the naughty air of a king ascend
ing his throne, seated himself within
the bar ,thronged as it was with the des.
ciples of Coke and Blackstone, several
of whom, it was known, esteemed
themselves as far superior to those
old and famous masters. The con-
trast between the outandish garb and
disdainful countenance of the stranger,
excited, especially, the risibility Of
the lawyers; and the junior members
began asupprcssed litter, which grew
louder, and soon swept around the
whole circle. They doubtless sup.
posed the intruder to be some wild
hunter of the mountains, who had
never before seen the interior of a
hall of Justice. Instantly, the cause OF
the laughter perceived, he turned his
head gradually, so as to give each
laugher a look: his lips curled with a
killing smile of infinite scorn; his yel-
low eyes shot arrows of lighting; his
tongue, protruding through his teeth,
Utterly writhed like a serpent, and
calculated its aSp-likc poison in sim
gle word:
"Sayages 81"
No pen can describe the defiant
force which he threw into that term;
no pencil can paint the internal .f,u0'
of his utterance, although it hardly
exceeded whisper. But he accent.
ed every letter as if it were seperatt
emission of fire that scorched his
quivering lips; laying horrible empha,
sis on S, both at the beginning and
end of the word" "SavdgeS!"
1t was the growl of a red tiger
and the hiss of a rattle snake. "Sq0
ages!"
The general gaze, however, was
Immediately diverted by the advent Of
the fair prisoner, who then came in sur,
rounded by the guard. Theapparitior
was enough to drive q saint mad
For hers was a style Of beauty
to bewilder the tamest imagination
and melt the coldest heart, leaving il
both the imagination and heart 6
cleaning picture erameled in fire and
fixed in a frame of gold from stars
Il was the spell of an enchantment tc
be FELT as well as seen. You might
feel it in the fash of her countenance,
clear as the iris; in the contour Of hei