The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1874-04-09
BALD MOUNTAIN.
" Saw bones" Eiucidates the Cussodncss
Of Newspaper Humanity,

Ht N'NNphpcT
NEAR THE VOLCANIC REGIONS, March
10" HI ahoat in the mountains p
"Oid Badly" Preparing to Eruct =
Volcano Smoke Fire The Earth
Quaking Things Trotting" heard
all this, and could not stand it. | had
never seen n volcano, ~ | mounted my
horse and put out for "Old Bald. The
news got worse the farther went. AS
| approached tho mountain | met the
natives gettin' men, women, children
and dogs. They begged NC to turn
back. and sung, "Turn, sinner, turn,"
and / think some of them prayed for
me. 1t beat old Mrs. Wards saloon ut
Greenville. 70 get out of the fuss |
pushed on. struck leading spur of
old Bald, and rode M, up as far as /
could ride. Then I dismounted, hitched
my horse and walked on. Where the
spur joined the main mountain, my way
was obstruced by perpendicular rocks.
| could see smoke from tho top, but /
could not hear the rumbliug. climbed
mp and around the mountain to avoid
the rocks. After proceeding for some
time, / began to hear the rumblirg. 1t
appeared to be below mo aud farther
around the mountain. | got on a high
point, from which there was a COM
manding view below. The rumbling
from this point was terrible and Un0c.
countable. just here | saw a sight that
astonished me more than if the earth
yawned at my feet. ! saw wagon, with
four mules, driven furiously around the
side of the mountain. 1t had on it m
old-fashioned wagon-bed, and from the
noise, there was few loose rocks in
it. How the thing held together, bounc-
ing about over the rocks, is unaccounla-
bic. 1t went few hundred yards, and
turned round. 1t stopped about ten
minutes as if to rest the mules, then,
here it came again. The road Gf it
could be called road was Nbont four
hundred yards long. 1t would turn and
rest the mules at each end. saw it
make several trips. Then I took a
drink from my flask, and scrambled
down to this Devils turnpike. placed
myself by the side of the road, to wait
for the wagon. In II few minutes here
it came. The driver did not see me
until he was within fifty steps of me.
He appeared astonishcd, stood up in
his stirrups Chc was riding one Of the
mulcs), and tried to bluff me by yelling
out
"Get out of the way, you ID
fool !"
As soon as he spoke ! knew him. 1t
was George Skies. He used to live
over in Buncombe when Madison was
part of BuncomOc. 7 picked mp
couple of rocks and placed lnJe"lt in
the middle of tho roN1. Thcn he stop.
ped and Iwcnt for him. Said !, George,
if You don't want to be lifted from that
mule with one of these dorncks, talk
fast"
"Talk what ?" said he.
"Volcano," said |,
"Now look here, SAwbOncs Che al
ways called me Sawbones), "yOu know
that / am poor man. ! am paid by
the editors to do this"
"But how about the smoke and iire?'
He said one of his boys wGs on top
and with sticks and wet leaves he kept
up n smoke. At night they built fire.
elbow about the the blow out ?"
Here George laughed outright. He
said the natives were very skittish when
they heard the rumblng, but when "the
blow up" came, they in"ontinently tod
died He had buried keg Of powder
about eight feet deep, inserted a tin
tube in the keg, trGmped in tho dirt,
lit slow match and then she blew out!
"They say they hear this rnmbling
to Ola Fort y
go, yes They hear it there They
will hear it in New York soon, the now5
is spreading mighty fast Sawbones,
for God sake give me all the tobacco
Won have about you-go home to your
family and keep your mouth shut. :"
Ibid come home to my family. The
old quilt saw me coming and ran to
meet me. The first word was "voIca-
no I" told her the volcano was all
right, but that the cussedness OF hui
man nature was breaking my heart, and
that if she didn't get III the house anC
make me strong cup OF coffee, there
would be volcano right there. Sh'
went-not being a strOng-mindcd cru
sader, she consequently does what | as!
her to do.
If you are in the "volcano" bushes
Won can suppress this. l do not wan
to iniure any mans business; and thi
volcano no.earthquake news is mighty OK
citing reading.