Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1885-06-18
The Curious Way in Which Farmer
De Witt Wells Recovered a Stolen

| I've VIII Helis hecOfeTeu Stolen
Mare.
Nine years ago this summer, writes
Scranton, Pa, correspondent 10 the
New York Sun, gang OF horse
thieves infested various parts of Sus
quebanna county. and a fine bav
mare, valued at 5000, was stolen from
the stable Of De Witt Wells. Of Cliff
ford township She was the famiIv's
pet, Mr.. Wells went to considerable
expense in trying TO find her, but he
| had no success. A few weeks AGO
Farmer John Lee bought a mare Of
Johnson Il Miller, Of this city, and
| took it TO his farm in Clifford town
ship. Ziphron Bell, lad of the neigh
borh9od took a notion to her and
coaxed bis guardian, Anson Tingley.
to buy it for Ann. Tingley said he
would buy il on condition that Lee
should refund the money in case any
| trouble should arise. Tingley had
heard that the horse was the one which
had been stolen from Wells in 1876,
but he scarcely believed It, Soon af-
ter young Bell had got possession Of
the mare Wells made up his mind
/ that she was the one lie had lost so
long. Bell said that he'd "oe gol
darned' if he believed that she was
the horse at all, but Wells prevailed
on him to consult Clarence Vail,
Greenfield farmer, VINO owned the
stolen mare when she was a colt.
Vail gave Bell a description of the
colt, and it compared so accurately
with the looks of the horse that young
Bell began to fear that he would have
to give up the property. In order to
further prove to Bell that the mare
had once belonged TO him, Wells said
that if Bell would tern the mare loose
in the road near Wells barn she
would 90 directly to a certain stall in
the stable which he named-that is,
she would if she was the horse that he
asserted she was. Wells agreed not
to say another word about the mare
unless she entered that particular stall
of her own accord. It she did that
she was his property beyond a doubt.
Bell thought this was very fair prop
osiuon, so he turned the mare loose
near Wells barn in the presence of
half dozen farmers, who had met
there to see how the mare would act,
and some of them had bet quarter
apiece that she wouldn't go into the
stable. AS soon as the halter was re-
moved the mare stuck up her ears and
appeared to be familiar with the
place. Then she went directly to the
stable, passed three or four empty
stalls, squeezed her way between a
wagon and moving machine, and
entered the stall which Wells said she
would. Then she began at once to
hose around in the manger in search
Of food, and appearing to be perfectly
at home.
"Now, " said Wells, as he led the
mare from the stable, "T'il show We
something more that she'll do when
tell her, " and ne spoke to her in a low
voice. She at once lay down on the
ground, rolled over two or three
times, got up and shook herself, and
walked up to Wells and put her nose
in his extended hand.
oval, that beats anything | ever
see, said the spectators in unison
Then the Bell boy walked up 10 Wells
and said;
"B' gosh the mares yourn, and
don't we forgit it, but J ack Lees got
to pay me back the money / gin him
fur 'er, or else therel be a row over
in the sugar bush.