New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1888-08-29
ON THE PATH BELOW.

/
ing, having, as usual, blundered
about the trail. The cabin stood
just off the road, and all around it
was silent and dark. Tt has always
been a wonder that his dogs did not
attack me. He had three, and they
We're as cross and Grabbed as old
bears. They came running down the
trail to meet me, growing and bark
ing ing but assoon as they came up they
made friends. They we're playing
around me when I stood in front of
the cabin and called:
Hello! you! Hello! Hello!''
In about in a minute a voice an
| sWered:
Who is yer, an what's wanted?''
Stranger in search oflodgings."
| He seemed to doubt it for he made
no Immediate reply. After a long
minute I heard a woman arguing:
q tell you he must be all right. If
| he WASH them dogs would hev de-
voured him!"
| Wall, come in!' called the man,
and | stumbled along to the cabin to
/ find him in the half open door with
his rife. in his hands. My explana-
lions soon satisfied him that was all
right, and he struck a light, piled
some blankets in a corner, and said:
| Stranger, that's the best lop I
kin fix ye off-hand. Jist tumble
down and doan' worry about moth
| in'.''
q was soon fast asleep, having
nothing to keep me awake. Right in
the heart of the grim old mountain
among people whose faces had only
glanced among men who settle
their disputes with knife or bullet
entirely at their mercy and in their
power if they wanted to rob or kill
and yet there was no cause to be
afraid. When you are the guest of a
mountaineer you are safe.
| Next morning I found the family
to consist OF husband, wife and three
children The oldest of the three
children was boy of twelve, who
had killed his bear and was a dead
shot. AS soon as / adlooked around
me knew that a distillery could be
found near by. After breakfast Bur
ton pumped me for a few minutes,
sized me up in his mind as 80, X, =
and said:
Come up with me and see the
boys And [ want to tell you that
we've been expecting visitors for the
last two days, an we may hev a
scare befo' night
/ what sort of visitors?'
Omitted States chaps artes our
/ still. They've had a spy in we're
trying to locate it. We saw him
twice yesterday
There were three other men at the
still, which was hidden away in a
dark and rugged ravine, approached
by footpath which could be am
pushed at every rod All the corn
was s'toted'' on the mems backs over
this path, and the kegs of whisky
were slung to a pole and carried be-
tween two men. The still was perfect,
but small, and in the five. or six
months it had been in operation the
men had not made the wages of
mechanics. [ asked one of them how
long since he had had a five dollar
bill, and hesquinted his eyes. counted
his fingers, scratched his head and
finally replied:
Wall, stranger. you may remem-
I Der the battle Of Stone River?''
eyes"
"a right smart ago, WASH It it"
Yes; twenty-five years ago
| Wall, just arter that fight I had
a five dollar bill, and that's the fust
and last time"
| What money they made by illicit
distilling went for boots and shoes,
clothing of the plainest kind, tin
ware, tobacco and tea. One Of them
had had three pounds of brown
sugar in his house within a wear.
The others had not had an ounce;
one had not tasted tea, coffee, sugar,
white bread or fresh meat (outside
of wild meat) for over two years.
The still was about a mile from the
house.
If any stranger came by the trail
one of the dogs was sent up the ra-
vine with a piece ofcloth tied to his.
neck. Half way between the two, as
/ discovered later on, was another
path intersecting. This came out of
another ravine, and was used by the
men only occasionally. The boy was
stationed at this intersection to
watch both paths and give an alarm
il danger threatened. 1t was about
IL O'Clock in the morning when he
came running in and said:
Spy coming, pop!''
Then an instantaneous and terrible
change took place in the bearing of
the men. We had been lying about
AT ease every man sna,,oinorJvy bo ,,;,oe