Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1861-09-04
Jed Crouch's Gun-And How he Shot aud
Strung the No outrreIa.

Jed Crouchs Gun-And How he Shot aud
Struns the SQUIRRELS.
"That ar gum" said Jed, setting down
his glass and giving it an affectionate ca
ress-'that ar gun has travelled around
and around with me more'n any other
mans shadder. Why, Susy-thats what l
calls this ere Weeping of death--Susy,
night arter night in the big woods yonder,
has laid alongside ONE like she'd bin o
born human. And she kan talk, and what
she says makes an impression as is deep
and lastin'. Why, onct laid bet Of o
barl O whisky that could shoot the head
off n a humble bee on the wing at hun
dred yards 'thout injurin' or scorchin the
material natomy of his wings the leastest
mite. Well, | won that ar bet. let the
bee fly up, and blazed away. Wen we ex-
amined that ar bee, thar were his body and
thar were his wings, but his head were TUX
off as clean as eft had a knife to it,
"Ya-as, jed" interrupted old Sam Stri-
ker, wiping from his chin a small Niagara
oftobacco JUICE, portion of which had spread
into bayou upon his shirt front-"yaas,
that's peart shootn' iron, considerin' it
kerries no moren about fourteen to the
pound"
"Wby, Sam Striker, didn't I tell you
about this ere gun and that ar squad of
squirrels l shot?'
"Not as l remembers. Turn it up ag'in
to keep it from spilin',"
"Wal, it's nigh upon more'n two months
gone since l shot them nine squirrels"
"Why,' broke in the landlord, "the last
time you told that squirrel yarn, you only
had seven squirrels"
oval hadn't shot two since?r
"Ya-as"
GAS | was sayin' about two months ago,
was goin along the edge of the woods like,
and l seed a settin' ON the top rail of Joe
Mortons diyidin' fence, ten of the fattest
squirrels
"Nine," cerrectively suggested the land
lord
"Landlord eff you kin tell wot this ere gun
have did better'n L kin, you'd better go on
"Jed, you fust said nine squirrels now
you says ten"
'Yes, edzactly; thar war one didn't see
at fust, which hoped up from behind a big
silver. As | was sayin', seed these squir-
rels a setin' On the top rail, end for end, in
row. Jest then idea struck me to try
experiment. l thought l might as well
string EN- at the same time l shot EN-. So
takes and drills hole through bullet
and iastens to it a long twine which l had.
Then ! tux the loose end of the twine and
fastened it around the muzzle of Susy.
Then put the powder inter the barl, then q
light wad, and then the bullet. After which !
l jest gently teched it down with the lam
rod. l stopped, bro't Susy up to my shoul-
der, TUX q far-squar aim. draw'd hair
bead on them ten squirrels all in a row,
ard-bang! No sooner did l fire than the
gun war jerked out'n my hands quickern
creased lightnin; | war skeert. When l
looked ] seed the squirrels a hangin' one
above t'other on the string to beech tree
fifteen feet from the place war they'd bin
sittin'. They war stun dead. At one shot
l had killed the whole ten. The bullet had
gone strait thorugh each one on'em and
pulled the string along with it, glanced and
buried itself into the tree, and thar the
squirrels hung as naturally as eff I'd put
'em thar. Wernt that straight, thro'-by-
daylight, shot, eh?'
"Rayther," said the landlord; ''but, Jed,
what was it jerked the gun outn yer
hands ?"
"Um oh ! edzacily! 1t was the strength
Of the powder. l put a little of an over
charge, and the ball went so amazing ferce,
and the string being trihe too short, and
almighty strong, and bein' tied fast to the
barl, and my holt o the gun ben' weak, it
war jerked The gun hangin' at tother
end of the string, kept the squirrels from
slippin' off-that shows thar's o destiny,
which shaves all our ends"
"That'll do Jed, let's whisky"
"On that pint" said Jed-''on that pint
l never disputes with nary one"
And the party drank-deep