Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1857-05-21

Kinters and the Dobbinses.
Dobbins threw down the fence some fft
times during the pendency of the suit, be
cause she meant to be boss on his own land
if the d stood at the door" and Kin
ter put it up as often, "because he know
the line and his fence was has fence, and i
should stand thar as long as there was Kin
ter above ground that could peep; and if b.
died, he'd will his property to some one poi
condition that he'd keep up that ere fence =
Kinter's hogs and sheep came home will
their tails chopped off, and Dobbin's came
home with their tails chopped off little
higher up. Kinter's horses died suddenly
with strong symptoms of poison and Dob
bins horses died suddenly, with like symp
TOMS Kinter's stack of wheat was burned
and Dobbins' went off by combustion soor
after. Kinters' young timber was girdled
and Dobbins' was girdled too. Kinter, in
fact, lost one half of his live stock, and Dob
bins lost as much. The very dogs-the
Kinter dogs and the Dobbins dogs-had
caught the spirit of war that ragged around
them, and growled as they passed each 9th
er-and all about what happened in that
church-meeting--and yet the question was
unsettled, 'Who killed Jones dogT
Kites, one of the worthy soldiers in the
Buzzardtown fight, made descent upon Jim
Snifer, another worthy soldier, because
Sniffer said $50 Aunt Farwell told himO that
he (snlher) shouldn't be tall s'prised if
Kites kill'd that ere dog his SELF Where.
upon, Kites sued Snifer before Squire Bum
bleton 'to recover that ere little balance Of
thirty one cents that Snifer owed him on
that ere note agin him-and, also, where
upon Snifer, in defence, plead a set off,
'three dinners that Kites had eaten at his
table'-by invitation, to be sure, at the time
but, then, as Sniffer said, 'la' is Ia, and if
Kites wanted to go in for the last copper,
he'd find him on hand and doin' about as
air-ly in the morning as the next man?
At last Jones concluded he had found his
man-the villain who had killed his dog
and he owed it the peace of the community,
as we'll as himself, to prosecute before Squire
Bumbleton, and thus settle the vexed ques-
tion. 1t was quite clear that Buzzardtown
would blow itself all to pieces, like bomb
she'll, unless something definite was DONE
The evidence upon which he relied was cir
cumstantial- in circumstances, in fact,
than in proof-but Jones thought it would
do to start upon, particularly, as he had con-
cluded to offer reward of ten dollars to any
man, woman or child, who would furnish
conclusive evidence of the fact-the person
so furnishing the evidence to be released
from all suits and actions of every name and
nature arising out of the transaction. This
reward and release was afterwards reduced
to writing, and publicly circulated all over
Buzzardtown, and, finally, filed with Squire
Bumbleton, with the ten dollars, for the
benefit of whom 'it might concern"
This man was Hoscraft-Jo Hoscraft-
between whom and Jones feud long exist
ed, as bitter as that between the Egyptians
and Israelites. Jones knew that Hoscraft
"must- -have-kill d-that- -'ere dog" and
Jones declared this with great emphasis. He
had no legal proof against Hoscraft--but,
"then, of course, Hoscraft killed the dog
nobody else could have killed his dog, and,
therefore, he employed Mike Briar, Buz-
zardtown pettifogger, to bring the suit against
Hoscraft before Squire Bumbleton and suit
was accordingly brought, Jones pledging
himself to carry it into the Supreme Court of
the United States-but "he'd nail him if it
cost twenty farms"
Mike Briar was character was cri-
er, apettifogger, horse-trader, politician, gen.
eral counsellor, &c., &c.-a kind of walking
omntum gatherum. His dress was full fthe
man-his clothes seemed to have caught a
part of his soul-and had become electrified
from its sparks through his body. His hat
rim turned up in front, and ran off behind
like roof-his eyes shot up on line with
his hat rim, and when he walked, his whole
body seemed to be pushing after his eyes, as
if he was in danger of going out of his sus-
penders. He moved and spoke by jerks,
and was as busy all over the settlement, day
and night, as the old fellow is said to be in
thunder storm.
We have already spoken of Squire Bum
bleton, of his qualities, and the weight of
his grunt. But the Squire was very stubborn
on the 'bench,' withal, and was never known
to be moved from his position. Reasons he
never gave. His decisions were brevity it.
self-as for instance, 'motion's squash'd !!
shat are s rul'd down ! Election amt good!
won't hear that proof! 'taint legal p that's
all stuff! but he never was known to cut
short an argument, if it was opened upon
him for the fftieth time,. during which he
slept and smoked by turds.
The great Buzzardtown law suit, at last,
came off. 1t did not seem as if Jones' dog
was about to have justice done him. The day
was dedicated, by man, woman and child, to
the occasion, and Squire Bumbleton's Office
was packed, inside and out, long before the
hour had arrived. The Jones men and the
Hoscraft men were on the ground, scocked
and prim'd,' to use their own language.
Several side ghts occurred, as kind Of
preliminary exercise to the action in pros
pect, between different factionists, about mat
ters in controversy and not in controversy.
One very serious one upon the point: whe-
ther the ball entered the near side or the off