Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-02-02
AWAITING HIS INEVITABLE
FATE
A Hunter Kills a White Deer, ah'
Knows That He Will Soon Die.

A Hunter Kills White Deer, anu
Knows That He Will Soon Die.
A correspondent of the New York
World says that Silas Rohrbacher, OF
Hunters Range, Luzerne county, Penn
sylvania, has sold his property and re-
moved to another county because OF his
superstition that the killer of a whlte
deer is sure to die soon or meet other mis-
fortune. Rohrbacher and his son discoV-
cred a white doe in the woods on Tuesday
of last week. 1t was lying PROSTATE on
the ice and unable to gain a hold by
which it might recover its footing. Rohr-
bacheF resolved to rescue the deer from its
position and at the same time give 1t
place Of security until the snow had
melted in the woods. His son went home
and returned with an empty teed-oag ana
two pieces of rope. The bag was drawn
over the does head, and her feet were tied
with the ropes. She was then lifted ana
carried to Rohrbacher's clearing, where
it was turned loose in the cattle shed
with a COW and yoke of steers. 1t soon
became reconciled to its position, and fed
with the cattle.
On Thursday last ROhrbacher went to
the shed to throw down hay to his cattle.
As he opened the door a gust of wln1
NNh6ub IL anu thlC0 II NANAS NHSH'
doe caught a glimpse Of the woods through
the open door and sprang towards it. AS
the deer went past him, Rohrbacher me-
chanicalIy raised the long-tined hayiork
he had in his hands and thrust it at the
deer. The tines struck it in the side, and
were buried to the handle i'll its body.
The tines broke off as the deer leaped out
Of the door and remained in its side. The
doe jumped the high log fence around the
cow yard. and ran for a hundred yards
down the road, when it staggered to one
side and fell heavily on the snow. ROhr-
bacher ran to the spot and found the doe
dead Almost craZed, he hurried away
to where some choppers were at work in
the woods, and told them what mad hap
pened, and said that he had sealed his
doom. One of the men took the deer's
body into the woods, removed the skin
and threw the carcass in a swamp, the
meat being unfit for food at this time.
The skin he sold f1f $40. Two days later
ROhrbacher left the neighborhOod.
White deer are exceedingly rare, not
more than dozen having ever been seen
in the mountains of that region. They are
always does and are said to be larger than
the red doe. The last one killed IL North
ern Pennsylvania previous TO the above
mentioned one was shot by three hunters
in 1872, and the believers in the white
deer superstition refer to that killing as
positive proof of their belief. The hunt
ers were Hornbeck Sinner, of Wilkes
barre; Charles Haney. of Luzerne coun-
ty, and Lyman s. Beyens, of Port Jervis,
N Y. They started the white deer on the
Shohola creek, and each shot at it and hit
it, killing it. Sinner at that time was
proprietor of the Exchange Hotel in
Wilkesbarre, wealthy and the picture of
health. Bevans was prominent mer-
chant in his town and Haney was largely
interested IN coal mining. Sinner died
bankrupt after a painful and lingering
sickness about year afterwards; Bev-
ans failed in business and blew out his
brains, and Haney died from smallpox,
poor man and alone.