The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1886-10-20
A STORY OF HIGH WATER.
A HUMOROUS ACCOUNT OF A MANS
EXPANSIVE IMAGINATION.
Jim McBryar's Various Stories of
his Fording the Raging waters
Of Coon Creek In Missouri.

Jim mCBryars Various Stories OF
his Fording the Raging Waters
Of Coon Creek in Missouri.
A number Of years ago Jim McBryar,
who now lives near Estelline, resided in
Northern Missouri. One day he crossed
Coon Creek at an old ford and when
be arrived in town told the story as
follows:
81 give ther new bridge ther shake ter
day and come In by Lon Chapman's old
ford
Was the water very deepp
1T was only bout a couple o foot"
A year later he was talking with a
group of friends when some one referred
to the creek and McBryar said
~ es, [ calc late ther water was pertty
mid lin high on Crook Creek last spring
Forgot ther time l wus IN a hurry and
cut acrost at the old fordl"
THE water was pretty high, wasn't
itin
''You bet it werel It come right up
ter ther wagon box and my off hOss had
ter swim little, but made it all right
Some five years after he was one day
sitting in front of grocery store and
told the story like this:
You know that spring of '6S when
ther water were so blame high over In
Coon Creekln
eyes"
''It Just billed you remember. Well,
sir. the day ther bridge went out l come
to town and crossed where ther want no
ford neither
Wasn't it dapgerousln
tsNEa11 ehr7rlf ir1cr raCtxpu II WIN I
don't know how deep the water might o
been but there want no bottom. The
old sorl and bay had ter swim bout a
hundred yards. 1 stood right up in ther
wagon and then got pretty wet. tell
you 1 don't want any more such speri-
ences."
Some years after old Jim moved to
Dakota. He had been here but short
time when one day he got a crowd around
him on the street corner In Estelline and
said:
Gentlemen. 1 thought one of yer
spoke of high water in ther Big Sioux.
\ es, [ lowed heerd it. Well, now I'll
tell yer yer don't know nothing bout
high water up n this country. l had a
little sperience with water down in Mis-
souri, that wuz Just bout all l wanted
Chow was itin
''W'y, it wuz the spring of '62, after
the hard winter, and crossed the Grand
river after er doctor. The bridge was all
gone and houses wus floating down like
steamboats,. had fine team O. hosses
and had ter get acrost. so l Just drove
right in and made 'em swim. 1t were
uigh on half mile and it were raj in
and the waves were a-rollIn', but Just
stood right up n the wagon and swung
the whip and got acrost at last.
One day this week Jim came into the
Bill office and said
young man, reckon you never had
40 sperience with high water."
''Not very much"
4 lowed YOU hadn't Well, have.
swum a four boss team and a stage full
Of pas'ngers 'crost the Missouri River
once't.n
rs that fact2"
''You bet it are. You see was drivin
a stage the spring Of 81, after the deep
snow, and there come up big storm and
didn't get to the river till after dark,
but l wus bound to cross. The river
were foaming and leapin' and the waves
was runnin' high and it were full of logs
and ice and the houses and men and cat
tie that it washed away, but Just says
to my pas'ngers: Ladies and gen 'lemen,
we crosses herr and l drove in. 1t
were two miles TO the other shore
and dark as the inside of a cow
and the rain and hail were pour
ing down and the hghtnin' strikin'
all Ground us, but l stood up and
whooped a couple o. times and in we
went. tell you it were powerful bad
place ter be- aud the pas ngers were
mighty skeered, but Just KEEP whoopin'
and goin' through Hadn't gone fur
when one hoss was struck by lighnin'
and fioatin' trees and buildin's and cakes
o. ice and cattle and men were rushin'
GROUND US and maxim the cussedest
noise you ever heered I KEEP whoopln'
and larrupin' the hosses, but every little
while one Of 'em would get struck by
hghtnin'. The current took rs down
bout four miie but the hosses KEEP er
swimmin' ana l KEEP er whoopn'. and
at last we got over. It we're tough now
! tell you, young man; ana since then il
lust makes me sick to hear some of these
fellers that never see nOthin bigger n a
trout stream talk bout high water -
III nj