Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1878-01-16
A Strange Story.

Notwithstanding the most strenuOu.
efforts on the part of his friends to keel
the matter a secret it is known to be {
fact that Reuben Proctor is still in the
land of the living, although his exact
whereabouts are unknown, unless to d
very few. When a rumor to this effect
first reached my ears | set about q
course of cautious inquiry and investi-
CATION. and by means and through per
sons l will not now divnlge, learned
full particulars OF the affair. Reuben
Proctor's life was saved by the hasty
and awkward manner in which the mob
did their work. The rope used was a
thick, heavy one, and the knot was 50
clumsily tied that his neck was not bro
ken, and, indeed, the rope was not
drawn tight enough to prevent breath
ing, but the intense agony of his situa-
tiOn threw him into faint so deepas to
closely resemble death. In the hurry
and excitement of the affair no critical
examination of his condition was made,
but when his struggles ceased he was
pronounced to be dead. The inquest
held upon his body was a hasty one.
1t will be remembered that the mob
made no attempt at disguise or conceal
ment, and yet a jury summoned on the
spot and of men who either witnessed
or participated in the hanging returned
a verdict that he was hung by persons
to the jury unknown. As the object
of the inquest was to discover nothing
and implicate no one it was loosely con-
Quoted and hurried through with, and
at its close the body of Reuben Proctor
was taken in charge by his friends. He
was taken home, and as he was believed
to be dead was laid out upon the bed
and member of the family kept watch
by his side. This person fell asleep
for few hours and upon waking OBJ
served that the features of the supposed
corpse had undergone no change, and
were not rigid and fixed as in death
He felt the arms and legs and tOund
them limp and not without a slight de-
gree of warmth Putting his ear in
the region of the heart, he thought he
could hear il family beating He then
took mirror and holding it to the lips
a slight moisture became visible on the
glass. lie rubbed this away and held
it there again and with like result.
Again and again he repeated this ex-
pertinent and always with the same re-
suit until he became satisfied that the
moisture was the result of respiration.
He then reused the rest of the family
from sleep by shouting the announce
ment that Reuben was still alive. but
not until they had examined for them
selves could they be convinced of the
fact. This unlocked for position of af
fairs threw the whole household into a
tumult of excitement and for time they
knew not what TO do. They dared not
send for medical aid. fearing that the
mob might learn Of it and return to
make sure work secOud time. Al
length with such methods as suggested
themselves they set about the work of
resuscitation. They rubbed the body
vigorously. They threw cold wafer
upon the face For some time they
seemed to accomplish nothing, but at
last feeble groan escaped his lips: the
eyes opened, closed again, as if dread
ing to see. They spoke to him. told
him he was with friends and need have
no fear. lie again opened his eyes,
and looked around in curious, wan
dering way, and after few attempts
spoke, but with great difficulty. He
did not seem To be conscious of the
events of the day, and inquired what
had happened. They told him, and a.
his memory was awakened 10 the terri
bic ordeal he had undergone, a convul-
Sive tremor shook his whole frame. In
aginatiOn seemed TO transform his sur
roundings into the scene of his fearful
suffering, and again and again he clos
ed his eyes TO shut out the dreadful vi
sion. During the period OF returning
consciousness he must have suffered u
bllf AtltblN VI lhf
His breathing became difficult. and il
seemed at times "a if each breath would
be the last. His face grew livid ~ il
again the moose was tightening around
his neck. So vivid and realistic was
the horrid fancy that the constant as
surance of his friends were long gpower-
less to dispel it. True it is that all the
ingenuity of the inquisition could not
devise such powers of torture as exist
in mans own mind. To influences with
out he can oppose the resources of his
mind, courage. fortitude and resolution,
but when the mind is itself the instru-
ment of torture, when the means of de-
fense are made the weapons of assault.
he suffers helpless, hopeless victim.
will not dwell on this uninviting top
ic, and what remains may be briefly
told. 4 mock funeral was agreed upon.
As was natural the house was Stunned
by the neighbors and this contributed
to the scheme there in progress. A
coffin was procured, filled with dirt and
was duly consigned to the grave. a
few days after Reuben Proctor, so dis
guised that his own mother would not
recognize him, left his home never to
return. Whittier he went | know not,
nor did | care to learn. Guilty or not
guilty of the terrible crime of which he
is charged, he is accompanied by me-
mories that will destroy his peace for
ever, and from them neither accident
nor ingenuity can rescue him. Those
who hate him most cannot wish him
worse than to be left to himself, prey
TO his own imagination. And thus let
us leave him.
Forrest and the smiths
A writer i'm the indianapolis Herald
says: Some thirty years ago. and during
my proprietorship of the City Hotel on
Fourth street, in Cincinnati, Mr.. G. I.
Smith, a member of the ''sixty-foot"