Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1874-06-20
A LETTER FROM GUTHRIE.
GUTHRIE, KY, June 18th 1874


written to you for some time for the
simple reason that I had nothing new
to tell you, and the weather was SO hot
that | was too lazy to write. To-day
! concluded to drop you a few lines
(coDfdentially) and give you a short
history of Ingram's adventure in this
country, NOT many years ago. Do not,
under any circumstance, let this get to
Doaks ears.
On the : day of - 1874, he ar
rived here on the $40 train from
GAINESVILLE, said he wanted to go to
Mrs. Ms house, about five miles dis
iant. was very anxious to procure a
horse, but not being able TO do SO he
started out foot back" under burn
ing sun with his valise on his shoulder.
He had not gone far before his resolu-
ton failed him, and dropping down
under the shade of huge oak, he Bit
terly repented his rash undertaking.
In the mean time, Mr.. A., of this place,
came riding along, and greeted him
with, "Halloi Ingram, what in the
= are you doing out here? The boys
have been looking for that wild mulatto
about here so long that they would be
glad to capture any one that would at
all answer his description, so | would
advise you to dig ont instanter." In
gram replied to him as he rode off, that
if he was not known in that country in
person that he was by reputation. Mr..
A.. remarked that that only increased
his danger. Crawling into hollow
log and painting like lizard for an
hour, he finally summoned courage
enough to try it again. He had not
gone more than half mile when he
came to the house of Mrs. P, where
he felt certain he could geta horse, but
upon arriving at the house and finding
no one at home he concluded that his
acquaintance with her would justify
him in borrowing horse Cher fayorite
mare in her absence, so he brought
the old mare out, bridled her, finding
no saddle, made Hoop in each end of
rope, threw it across her back and
mounted, and as he rode off admiring
his shadow, which did not show the
stirrups, imagined himself the very pic
ture of Caesar on the eve of crossing
the Rubicon, and wondered to himself
why man of his parts should have
ever pursued the low calling of city
editor. But the spell was soon broken
by sudden noise in the rear, and
looking back he saw a long, lean,
cadaverous looking mulatto negro with
hay fork on his shoulder, coming at
double quick. ingram thought GER
tainly that was the Identical wild negro
that he had published so many ques-
tionable truths about in his paper, and
that if he caught him he would fully
glut his vengeance. On he sped, faster
and faster, losing some of his quarter
master stores at every jump-first his
valise containing the MS. of an able
article that he had just written on the
subject of ice, how and where to keep
it, &C., next his hat, then his stirrups,
and almost his unmentionables. By
this time being Invested of all surplus
weight, he began to take fresh courage,
although he could hear the "yarler"
devil behind him crying. catch him,
kill him, stop him, &c. He has stole
old Miss mar. The neighbors being
around, joined in pursuit of what they
supposed to be a horse thief One
fellow remarked, that he thought from
that mans looks when he passed his
house that he had stolen that horse.
Another said, he thought he wasavery
suspicious looking character. Ingram
by this time began to see and realize
that he was not being chased by a
wild negro" whom he had slandered,
but by the whole neighborhood, who
supposed him to be a horse thief. This
changed his fears into another direc-
ton, and at the same time increased
them. He had felt satisfied that he
and "old Miss mar" could out run a
wild negro, but if those fellows ever
caught him stealing a horse in Ken
lucky, or even suspicioned him, if they
didn't lengthen his neck they would
send him to Frankfort before dis
patch could reach GAINESVILLE to let his
family know where he was going. He
saw that his only safety lay in leaving
the road and taking the bushes. So
in he went The first thing he came
to was a gully, ten feet across. ''Old
Miss mar" cleared it, but Ingram
cleared her and went to the bottom of
the gully. The mare was soon captured
but he made his escape Surprising
they were still after him, he travelled
all night, stopped at the house of Mr..
l.. the next morning to breakfast, pass
ed himself off as White, of the Leba-
non Herald (Said every one would
know he was an editor from his face
That night at Mrs, NJ. s, on pond river,
fifteen miles above Elkton, he was
Frank Duffy, of the Huntsville Vidette;
afterwards Flood, Of the Dover Record,
Neblett, Of the CHRONICLE, Archie
Thomas, of the Springfield Record,
WestbroOk, of the Brownsville Bee.
1t is said that he solicited subscribers
for the papers represented by the above
named gentlemen, but don't think he
got any cash as he turned up two days
afterwards at St. Bethlehem, barefoot
Q |, and pawned his reputation with
Garter Rawlins for a pair of Shoes, "a
good joke on Rawlins.) There is to-day
an Indictment ag inst White, at Elk
ton, with all of his aliases for horse
stealing, and ingram is responsible for
the whole thing, and should be forced
to go there and have the indictment
duashed by proving that it was a mar,