Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1871-11-29
From Morgan County.


EDITORS CHRONICLE: On Monday
morning last, three horsemen might have
been seen vending their way into this
lovely village, surrounded as it is with its
vine-clad hills, and populated with its
sturdy disciples of lager beer and grape
Juice. Though disfigured with the ele-
ments and mud, the populace soon became
advised of who they were, by one making
his way to the court house and command
ing, Mr.. Sheriff, open court!N and anoth-
er Immediately rising in front, and saying,
" Ii your Honor please, l call on the Clerk
for the execution docket; and the third of
the trio unrolling a large batch of notes,
lifting one up so us to decipheT the native
autograph, enquired, as Henry Thornton
dead ~
Order being established, the Court called
the docket, which consisted of two cases,
one civil. and the other criminal, the first
of which, involving the title to an acre
and-a-half of land that has long been upon
the market at two mills to the square mile
was passed on account of the absence
of the Honorable Mr.. Staley, who, it was
stated would be Mt the next term unless
kukluXed or otherwise eXtinguished before
that time. The other, the criminal case,
was taken up, and, as ii turned upon what
was an army pistol, and that a question of
fact, not Of law, three lawyers were at once
sworn, all of whom testified a satisfacto-
rily rs did cousin Sallie billiard. or Sallie
billiards. cousin, which ever it was, if
either; and the jury was thus left to infer
ence for verdict, and each juror free to
arrive at his own conclusion. The case
was submitted, and, as the defendant was
without lawyer to weaken his case or
raise suspicion Of his guilt, the jury ac-
quilted him in less time than it took the
lawyers to testify, and thus the court was
without suit, except the one he had on,
and "a intellect must needs be employed
both bar and bench resolved to quit the
halls of justice for the time and try their
luck at the occupation of Nimrod even
though Esau's example might be found.
Upon this determination, the original three
TO whom reference has been made, each
secured himself an old-fashioned. flint
lock musket and repaired to the hunting
grounds of the mountaineers, where Elijah
Asher and his fore-fathers had each for
himself stolen hogs so far back and en-
joyed it as right so long, that the memory
of man runs not TO the contrary. The
big man who sat up in the court house
and the lawyers all talked to, was
placed upon rock just in the rear of
an upturned tree-root, while the little man
who rode the big gray horse, and the same
who talked about the execution business
in the court house, and the lawyers who
testified in the pistol case, all set out to
drive, and if possible chase deer past the
big man with the fint-lock musket. and
he said he would kill it, certain.
! remained to see him perform that lit
tie job, and 10! in few minutes the
hounds began 10 yell, when l approached
and told my companion with the musket
TO keep lookout; that / thought heard
the deer, and could see its white tail as ii
skipped before the dogs, / said "You
watch here, and I'll go there. and if it
passes that way III try 10 kill it with this
navy" As | said this / looked at this
modern Nimrod, and discovered he was
turning quite pale and looked a little
frightened, and as started he said, Don't
go! don't gopi And just at this instant
the deer, with the hounds right after it,
sprang along within ten steps of my friend,
who shut both eyes, pulled the trigger,
and bang went the gun, at which he rolled
off the rOck-J mean the man with the
gun. 1t had been heavily charged, and
the result is there will be no court at
Jamestown next week.
Father Finnegan held forth here
night before last, and we all went
out TO hear him, when, contrary
TO what we expected, we found him
a.self assuming .bigot, with far less sense
and Information than Catholic Priests
usually possess. He denounced Martin
Luther by name as a wicked Priest, and
bad man, who was guilty of perjury.
His denunciations applied TO all Protest
ants and Reformers. His discourse was
both weak and wicked. His attempted
defense Of the Instability Of the Pope was
puny IN the extreme. His arguments
could have been answered by any twelve
year old boy of ordinary intelligence
Upon the whole shonld say he made 3
bad impression on the mountaineers, and
especially that portion who hail from Tax
land of Luther, and who have honOreC
Their town with the name of WaTtbur0.