Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-07-16
THREE REMARKABLE TURTLES.
A story From the Land of Big Tar
ties and still Bigger Yarns

Ia IL
ties and still Bigger Yarns
81 owned turtle once, said the
Judge to q Philadelphia Tines man
who believed everything he heard,
when I was living at Cedar KEYS.
It was big loggerhead and weighed
about four hundred pounds. 1t was
very fond of the children, and used
to romp and play with them all the
time. School was about a mile away
from my house, ana just about 7
Io'clock every morning, when there
was school, Pomp, the old turtle.
would come a wobblin' up to the door
and the children would get on his
back and off they'd go to school. a
frolickin, and laughin'. You know
how sudden these Florida showers
come up2 Well, you might think
the children get wet. No, no, old
Pomp knew trick worth two of that.
He'd just stop in the road, let the
children off, then ned raise up his top
shell ard they'd all crawl under and
the rain could not touch them. They
used to call 1t his roof and said it was
mighty comfortable and warm LAWN
in there among the gristle and things.
[ traded him off for lot of law books
when | left there forI couldn't bring
him along. And fish! Why you
don't know anything about it. All I
had to do was to hand him the basket
and off he'd GO. I had basket made
purpose for him. It had hole in
the top just big enough to put good
sized fish through. He would swim
out till he struck a school of fish.
then he'd sink down and fill the bas-
ket just as fast as he could. He knew
how to pick 'ena oat, too, and got the
best every time. It was the same
way with oysters. How he was the
best oyster getter in Levy county.
One day I told him to GO after oysters
and he didn't want to go. I insisted
on it, SO he crawled off. When he
came back [ tried the oysters and
found they were milky and and unfit
to eat, so threw them away. Old
Pomp looked at me as if to say: "Now
[ hope yon are satisfied that [ know
more than you do about oysters, and
and then went off and sulked all the
afternoon"
1.-The most sensible turtle I ever
knowed," said the barkeeper, twas
one [ owned when was a~keepin' bar
in Key West. He slept under the bar
and called him Cap. He was a green
turtle, and just about the size of the
one you was telling about, Colonel.
We used to give free lunch nearly
every day, and when we showed up
the turtle soup the bar would be
crowded, all sayin' it was splendid.
About s o'clock in the morning I'd
say: Cap, it's soup day Cap would
march out to the front door and lean
against the sill, and I'd hand a card
around his neck: Free lunch to day
green turtle soup. Then nv old Mig
ger cook would boil up lot of cheap
tripe and sleeps pluck and at 10
Io'clock there would be a smoking hot
treat for the boys. During the morn
ing, folks would come along and read
the card, and Cap would look so sad
and patient-like they'd look at him
and like as not say: Poor fellow, it
seems a shame to kill him; don't it2'
After they passed Cap would turn
around, look at me as much as to say:
These here fellows make me tired.
About II o'clock he'd watch his chance
and slip in behind the bar, and him
and me would have a sociable cock
tail together"
what became of this remarkable
animal?' asked the professor.
"Why, one day was taken sick,
and staid SICK for a week. It was
we'll, gentlemen, to be honest with
you. 1t was the jams, an I had 'em
bad. The boss put new bafkeeper
In my place, one of them fancy fell
lows from New York, and he couldn't
see the gifts Cap had and ordered him
cooked and served up to please a yacht
party that was leaving there"
II had soft shell turtle once" said
| the major, ''that could beat any turtle
on trade ever saw. Where I lived
| the pond on the place was a very
small one. aud in summer time got
pretty low, especially if the season
was a dry one. The summer was very
dry in 1871, and Judas, which was
little fellow-wouldn't weigh over
eight pounds-had a bad time of it..
The feas stung him so badly that he
was in fever most all the time. One
day I was walking down by the pond
when L noticed him and big land
turtle talking very earnestly together.
I stepped behind a tree so they
couldn't see me, and watched the fun
Judas was trying to get the land turtle
to trade shells with him. They
argued long time and was afraid
Judas wasn't going to make it.
Pre- ently q bright idea seemed to
strike him. He whispered to old hard
shall, the latter nodded yes, and then
Judas went into the pond. When he
came out he bad young gosling
that had got killed somehow, and he
had stored it away for his own eating.
He laid it down and I knew the trade
was made. It was the funniest sight
I ever saw when they begen to shuck.
1t was just like two old fellows trying
to swap overcoats, only a tight fit.
When they changed suits and got on
their new clothes I couldn't hold out