The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1889-06-06


summer Of 1855, had the good for
| tune to make the ascent o: Mitchell:
High Peak, and while sp' nding the
night Oh lis summit | had one ad
venture which | shall endeavor 10 re
late.
Nv brother and | started one even
ing in the latter part Of July from 'ths
station t. 20 3 distance II five miles
| to Il guides hou.e near the foot of tbs
mountain. Our intention was IT, spenc
the night there and get an early start
| the next morning for nine mile
| climb To the summit. As usual we
carried our sketch boxes, and as VI
were both fond Of this kind Of work
we made il 4 source not only of pleas
ure but also of profit.
About nightfall we reachea Ii,
guides house. It was dilapidated
though roofry, log house On the bank;
| Of roaring mountain stream, the
Swannanoa, Astounding III trout of the
| speckled or E,ountain variety We
found there two boys from Tennessee
who expected themselves to make the
ascent the next day, and were glad tt
share with us the guides fee.
In entering the house, we had no
ticed lying on the porch, with hi:
head against a post, q short, hump
shouldered man OF about sixty or
seventy years of age, with a wrinkled
face and grizzled gray beard. bare
footed and wearing an old slouch hat
and coarse shirt, @ith string suspen
ders He had very narrow brow
at the wrist altogether he was 3
strange looking figure.
The sister of the guide told US, while
we ate our supper Of "wlreet bread ;
and muddy coffee, that he was al
idiot, and being harmless they allow
ed him to stay with them and sleep on
the floor near the fire.
"Ther' amt no harm in him at ali, ;
she said, in the usual mount ain jargon
''but he hain't nowhere TO stay, unlesI
we let him stay here, All it looks hard
ter drive him away
"You see, sir she continued, "ht
hain't but one hand Some two OF
three years ago he wus walkiu on
the railroad down here at Roun
Knob, wher' ther' ther' is stone
trustle, an he had somebody's little
child along with him.
"Wall, they started to walk acros
the trustle, but they hadn't got more'r
half way when the train come in sigh
| round the cut n they didn't know
what ter 30. Wall, the little ga
managed to git off III time, but John
thar, he hung down outside the trustlt
N put his hand over the rail an tn,
the train cut it off.
"Sence that, John hain't had no US,
! fer the train, but stays round her,
purity much all the time, n some
times he goe: up on the mounting witt
the others. They's always glad te
have him ter carry bundles fer 'em
Johns always willin.'"
We watched him walking aro md il
his bent, shutiiing fashion, sometime
"writin " on scrap of dirty pape
with stub Of a pencil ''Keepin' hi
counts" the woman told us, with Il no,
and smile.
|
| before the sun had reached the valley
and ate our breakfast, in that dew,
coolness that charactizes the atmos
| phere OF mountain Cove"
From the guide we procure,
blankets, bread, ground coffee and
piece of dried bacon, which articles "
divided into packs and distributed be
tween us-gi7ing a part to John, h
having announced his intention of go
ing with us. Then, bending to tn
task, We set out in the best OF spirits
Oar path foliowe,! up the clear Swan
nanoa, continually crossing and re
crossing it. John shuffled along be
| hind US talking to himself about
bar" that he had seen up. in TIA
"cove." Upon our asking the guild
how old he supposed John to be, h
replied that he "reconed he wus nigl
unto sixty year, though he says hin
self as he will be sixteen in June am
March
We had made about two miles i
this way when we came upon part
| of ventursome young people from Nes
| cOiScy, HOuultu, anu cNiueItiJ INTEL
on making the same journey that "
had started upon.
/ Among the guides whom this part
had employed, we noticed half -bree
Indian, who had struggled off-w
were told-from rowing band {
Cherokees, of which tribe there re
mains still quite number in tn
southwestern counties of Cherokee an
Swain.
/ He was crafty looking fellow, AN
wore leather mocasins and leggin
and a "coon-skin" cap, all ornamente
after the Indian fashion with beads
| Our guide further told US that b
often accompanied parties going up o
! the mountain, for the purpose, oster
sibiy, of getting baIsam canes and fisl
ing rods, which. he pretended to SELL.
In consequence of the circumstane
Z, which / am about To relate, have a
ways had vivid recollection of til
appearance of this fellow.
/ We soon began to climb in earnes
/ for the grade, which up to this poir
was easy, now became very steep. TIL
J path ia xeH mark f.s} hnt yfsrv crook o1