Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1872-10-17
Mike Fink.
The King of the F1ntboatmen.
A Tale of Early Times On the
Mississippi. ~

ns
The goodness of the ancient
race of river menswas only fully
manifested when they slept. A
more reckless, Merry set of mel
never existed. The old keelboat.
men, the oarsmen of the ancient
batteaux and pirogues, We're not
the men to finch in. the hour of
dancer or shrink any yduty imposed
upon upon them. They were a
strange race of beings, presenting
striking peculiarities and strong
characteristics Of their own, but
long since become extinct-faded
from the earth.
The lapse of time, however,
seems to justify an attempt to res
cue from oblivion the memory of
some of the more prominent of
the ancient stock IF river men.
We have selected one man that
might form a picture in many
sketches Of the life led by the
semi,civilized men who conquered
the West. @ - A
MIKE FINK.
Mike Fink fourished toward
the close Of the last century. He
Was a famous baekwoodsman and
Iudian fighter before he came to
be keelboatman. The Indians
roal ued through the wilderness of
Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. Ken
tucky was still dark and bloody
ground ; the lurking placeof wild
beasts and still wilder men. 1t.
was the custom in those days for
the government to employ skilled
backwoodsmen to hang about the
border for the purpose of observ-
ing the movements among the
savages. The men usually selec-
ted for thin dangerous service were
themselves almost sayages. Dis
carding all the insignia OF civiliza-
ton, dressed in skins of animals,
sometimes mounted, sometimes on
foot, these men went about
through the wilderness singly,
subsisting on the raw flesh Of the
game they killed Sometimes
they had firfce encounters with
savageS, and were not unlrequent,
ly wounded; but so tough and
hardy had they become that these
wounds seemed, &c 2 ,neal a;.hout
trVubl', and they were re~dy a
gain to plunge into the wilderness
beyond the border. Prominent
among the border rangers of 1870
was Mike Fink, an athletic despe,
RADIO, destitute of fear, destitute
of principle, and destitute of mer-
oy. Cool, daring, revengytul and
treacherous, there seems to have
been few traces of the noble traits
often ascribed TO his class left to
Mike Fink.
On one occasion Mike was lurk- |
ing around an Indian camp in In
diana. The forest was dark and
still in the clouded day: A fine
buck suddenly appeared before
him, and stood gazing at the in
lruder into the forest solitude, his
native haunt. Mae raised his
gun, be knew the peril TO- which !
the report of his rifle would ex-
pose lin, but he cared nothing for
that. just as he was in zthe act
of pulling the trigger, he saw
robust savage taking a position to |
fire at this buck. He recognized
this Indian as one be had before
encountered, and his savage ma
ture exulted in the prospectof an
opportunity to take vengeance on
his foe. Instantly and instinc
lively he shrank behind tree and
watched the movements of the
Indian. The son of the forest
brought his rifle to a poise. HeI
took aim. Mike did the same !
The Indian fred. The deer fell,
and so did the Indian. The re-
port of Mikes rifle was mingled
with that of the lndian-apd the
ball from his gun sped with uner-
ring aim TO crush the brain Of his
foe. The ranger then quietly
loaded his rifle and lurked about
the place. No one appearing he
stole from his covert, cut from the
dead buck as much of the choice
portions as be could carry, visited
the fallen savage, took his gunE
and ammunition and stalked a. |
way through the dim aisles OF the
forest in triumph. @
But Mikes days Of border war.
fare drew to a close He a6an-
doned the woods and became q no.
ted waterman. He was the same
reckless untamed desperate in his
new calling. Dead men tel! no
tales, and more than one man
Ill A..,.11I a. H.