Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1859-05-11

fortunes, we started, on foot, TO visit re.
latlon OF his, who lived in one of the
| western counties OF Georgiaand from whom
he hoped to receive loan of monsv on
the credit of his future expectations from
his fathers estate. The cautious old gen.
tleman not only refused TO lend him n
dollar, but treated us with such cool civil.
| ty that we turned our backs upon his
house In very short time after we had
entered it,
We were now almost desperate-with-
out money, without credit, and literally
without friends. We concluded to return
to our old haunts in central Georgia. On
our way back we stayed all night in the
neighborhood in which your father lived.
and learned, from the conversation of our
hos!, that he was to start i'm a few days.
on horseback, and accompanied only by
his little son, to Louisiana, to pay for
some lands he had just bought in that
state.
" This was hint enough to put evil
thoughts in the mnd. OF my associate, and
an eyll purpose in his heart Wnen we
retired to our room, he proposed that we
should waylay and rob your father sug-
gesting that it could be done without
much risk Of detection, as he was to go
through the then wilderness of the Mis-
sissippi Territory on his way to Louisiana.
The proposition was extremely revolving
to my feelings. | was poor, needy, dis
sipated, with growing passion for gam
ing but to rob, ana, perhaps, to murder,
was a wickedness that had never so much
as entered my mind, and the bare thought
of il made me shuddcr. Somehow, too,
the remembrance of my mother revived.
and | felt strengthened by the recollec-
ton of her goodness, and the prayers She
had taught me, TO resist the impCrtuni-
ties of my associate.
:" kept silent, and he continued, nearly
al! night long, to refuse my acquiesccnce.
He had. as ! have said, an unbounded in
fluence over me, and, at last, the devil, at
his instigation, entered my SOUL and be-
fore we left our room the next morning |
had consented to assist him in the rob-
berry.
1--WE fingered several days in the neigh
bOrhood, under one pretence or another,
but, in reality, for the purpose Of finding
out the route your father was to travel
the day he was to start, how armed, and
what sort of man he was in point of
courage and nerve. Having ascertained
all these particulars to our satisfaction, we
agreed upon our plan Of operations, and
at once set about is execution.
80 We decided to rob your father far out
in the wilderness TO avoid detection, then
to strike for the Mississippi River, take
the first water-cratt upon which We could
get passage, and 90 to New Orleans. We
knew the general route he would travel
the Indian tribes along it were all friend
ly-and so, about four days before your
father was to start, we set out on foot for
the Mississippi Territory, provided with
a small paper Of lompblck, two light shot
guns, and few trinkets to pay our way
with among the indians, in which pur=
chases VIC completely exhausted our sien-
der supply Of money. Before leaving the
neighbOrhood, however, we managed to
get to see your father several times, at
church and elsewhere, 50 as to know htm
when we met with hin in the wilderness. |
We even found out the color, size, and
general description of the horses you and
he were to ride.
"There were some leading points along
the route which you were to travel that
served TO guide us through the wilderness. |
We spent the nights in the huts of the In
dians, telling them we were merely out on
a big hunt, and to get general look at
the country. We carefully avoided the
white settlements, and keeping a close
watch as we travelled in the day, we man
aged to escape being seen by any but In
dians, who were able to give US all the di-
rections we needed as to the route.
" In the interior Of what is the present
State eff Mississippi there were two noted
stands or trading stations, many miles |
apart, q dense forest stretching almost
from one to the other. About midway be-
tween the two there was, Immediately on
the edge of the trail, thicket of under
close enough to conceal our per-
sons, and yet open enough TO permit an
easy passage through it in any direction.
Knowing that your father must pass di-
rectly by this spot, we selected it as the
place to rob him.
" Although we had four days the start,
tber on horseback, we knew that by this
time he could not be far in our rear. 1t
was in the evening about three hours by
the sun, when we came across tne InlckeJ'
We had stayed the night before at the
cabin of an old Choctaw, some twenty
miles back, and had brought provisions
enough with us to last two or three days,
having determined to spend the nights in
the woods, and to avaid being seen even
hy the Indians, as we expected to rob
your father that day or the next. We
BACKED our faces, and hid in the thici<et
until dark. As you did not come, we re-
tired some three or four hundred yards
rom the trail, and spent the night, sleep
ing by the side of large log, against
which we raked up plle of leaves for
bed.
F" At daylight we got up, put more black
ng on our faces, examined our guns
which we had heavily charged-to see IL
III was right, and then returned to the
thiket near the trail. Neither Of us be-
ieved-at least, | am sure did not my.
,elf--that it would be necessary to kill
either you or your father. We expected
hat, as soon as we presented ourselves,
4. l.. IL fl.s.l