Lawrence democrat. (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) 1884-1925, 1890-06-20


emily had plenty of money, for he lived
we'll and bought considerable land.
"All of sudden, without giving any
notice, Pipkin shet up his saloon and
went to work to build cider mill. 1t
want no ono-horse mill, neither. 1t
wur big affair, with cooper shop and
every thing complete. At the same time
Pipkin built himself large, two-story
house, and set to work with hull lot Of
help (all strangers) to farm his land. He
had the biggest farm in Wood County
nigh on to 1900 acres, though more'n
half of it wer woods.
Inside of two years Pipkin wer doing
the biggest cider and vinegar business
In Northwestern Ohio; only what puz-
zled the neighbors wus where on earth
he got all his apples-for Wood County
warnt much Of apple section then
days. However, nobody cared much about
Pipkins affairs. The women gossiped
considerable, but the men folks let him
alone. Pipkin warn't inclined to be
noways neighborly; he never gave any
one round them parts q job, and he done
all his trading way off. All his help
was strange, and even the teamsters he
hired he fetched from Toledo. Once
old Uncle jeff Smiley, as wer kinder
old and inquisitive like, did undertake
to ask Pipkin whore he got his apples,
but he didn't get no satisfaction for his
pains. We all took the hint and didn't
bother Pipkin, and it got to be that no
body so much as passed the time O. day
to the surly codger ~
"But apples or no apples, friends or'no
friends, Pipkin run that there cider mill
of his'n full blast, and jist everlastingly
kept three and four teams a-hauling
cider and vinegar in barrels to the rail.
roads. He shipped the stuff all over
to Cleveland and Pittsburgh and Toledo
and Detroit, and even as far as New
York City.
"Well, sir, by tho end of the fourth
year Sam Pipkin must have made pile
Of wealth, and 1t wer about thet there
time that my old uncle, Seth Sander
son, died. Uncle Seth had lived for
years in Sandusky, but owned land in
Wood County, which her being sortei
miserly, wouldn't sell for no price
There was nigh on to two hundred
acres, and Uncle Seth willed it to me
This lot, mostly in timber was west o.
Pipkin's limo, and, being SORT of mar
row strip, ran out clear to big. WOOD
County swamp nigh on to two miles
First thing knew PipRfa came tt
me and wanted to know my price fo
Uncle Seth's strip, But as I hadn'
thought it over put him off for week
and tho next day, with Levi Ransom
set out to kinder inspect my new be
longings. We got polsing around in tn,
sile, and purity soon Levi he run hi
hickory stick In some rery soft earth
and then struck something real hard
and curious like. Then we both of u
scraped and scratched, and at last w
managed to clean off two or three fee
length of iron pipe-small pipe, such q
city folks use for gas pipe.
"Wal, I'm durnedp says Levi, an,
says 1: We'll, I'm burned.
1--WE speckerlated and guessed till W,
was tired, and at last says Levi: 4 hav,
it. says he; III run home for drill
(Levi being blacksmith, and he went
He wer back in an hour, and in o fe,
minutes he had little hole drilled
Then up spurts steady stream, taller'r
man, of pure, strike-yer-dizzy schisky
Yes, sir, whisky, aud no foolin'!
"Well, sir, you might have knocke
me and Levi over with straw. and W
had to both of us sample the liquor jes
to brace up our nerves. But we didn
60 off half-cock by no means. Lev
plugged the pipe with small stick c
wood, covered up the hole and W
started off for Toledo When we cam
back we brought with us the supervise
and two or three deputy United State
marshals.
Next m morning, bright and early, W
tracked that pipe line, sir, right throug
Uncle Seth's strip way into the swamp
and brought up at a big pretty vel
built shanty The marshals capture
the place and two men, and discovere
one of the finest whisky stills yo
ever heered tell onl Then we followe
thet pipe back again for more'n fiv
miles, and we landed right into PiplSin
cider mill.
"'Well, sir, it wer considerable of
joke on us Wood County sleepyheads
think thet ther feller Pipkin had foole
I us for years, now, waren't it?"
"Cider? Ha, har'
Vinegar? Ha, ha, har'
We'll, Pipkin didn't get ahead of Ii
| revenue men to any large extent an
r he put in about ten years at Columbu
Yes, sir, these pipe lines are might
handy things, but you see the StandaI
amt the first to lay one in this sectiol
Here comes your train.n-W II.
Atkinson, In Detroit Free Press,