The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1885-07-16
confess, I told them the same story

confess, 1 told them the same story
as before.
But this did not have any effect
on them, and they unanimously
agree that l must swing.
No one who has not yet thus fac.
ed death, can realize the situation
All my past life, my friends in thu
east, and thousand other things,
came up in moment before me.
plead for life but they were merci-
less; and at word from the leader
they pulled on the rope, and / hung
suspended in the all.
But after they had pulled me up,
the leader ordered them to let me
down,and see if l would.not confess
now; but as | had nothing to con
fess, | told them the same straight
forward story as before. After
this they had a consultation togeth-
er; and the leader said l might be
innocent; at least that / tod my
story alike each time, and that il
might be true. That he had a new
plan, anyway; that there were some
old empty hogsheads lying down
in the edge of the woods, about
half mile from the road; and that
his plan was to take me down and
head me In one of those hOgsheads,
and leave me to my fate. The rest
agreed to this plan, which they i'm
mediately put into execution, and
after they had placed me in the
hogshead, and securely headed it
up, they left me to my fate.
At first feeling of relief came
over me, to think that had escap-
ed DEATH but after had LAIN there
till the next afternoon, and the
pangs of hunger began to be seri-
ously felt, | gave up hope. AS l
had nothing with which to cut my
way out, l could not see but that l
must die there by slow degrees of
starvation.
l lay in this position until some
time the next night, when 1 was
surprised TO hear steps cOming to-
wards me. At first l thought that
it was some person, and / called at
the top of my voice, but the sound
of my own voice, shut in as 1 was
nearly deafened me. 1 then laid
still and listened; the steps contin-
ued to come nearer to me; but /
soon conluded that it was some an
imal. There was a good sized
bunghole to the hogshead left open,
or kshould shave suffocated; and
throuh this l could see that it was
very large black bear. At first an
involuntary feeling of security came
over me that was safe from the
bear, but soon the sickening
thought returned to me that /
might better take my chances with
a bear than die by slow degrees
where l was.
The bear came up to the hogs
head and began shifting around.
He Immediately smelt me and want
ed to get at me, as he continued to
sniff and walk around the hogs
head. In some unaccountable
manner, as the bear was working
around the hogshead he managed
to get his tail inthe bunghole of
the hogshead. Immediately froze
to that bears tail. You never saw
bear as frightened as that bear
was. He started as fast as he could
possibly run, with the hogshead af-
ter, and me hanging onto his tail
for dear life.
He took me lin less time than it
takes.t to tell it) over the rocks, and
knocking and humping against
trees, down into a ravine two or
three hundred feet below. never
want to take another such a ride |
again. But it knocked the hogs
head to pieces and released me, and |
the last | saw of the bear he was
running as if the evil one was after
him, up the Oppsite hill, some half
a mile away. Immediately got up
and started for the east, never stop
ping to look for my valise. 1 walk
ed to the nearest railroad station,
and there got ticket for the east,
and have never since even had a de-
sire to go west.