Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1890-01-27
,1r rATs coat 10 LIVE.
The strange story ofs Johnseswn Floot
vSCtim at Tacoma, Washingtou.

The strange story ofe JohneeoWn I1ood
victim at Tacoma, Wsshlngtou.
A half demented hermit, who is sup
posed 10 be victim Of tho Johnstown flood,
has been found living In hpvel In gulch
near the Carbon Hill bunkers, not mr. nom
TScoma, Washington. His name II Jeopex
Milton, and he declares that son coal u all
Jsspsfs homo, II such II can be called, IL
neither house nor hole, but comnin,t!Cn
Of both. Il 10 located half way up tlse hll1.
aide. and IL both difficult and dangerous Of
aCcees, A narrow, winding, rock-strewn
path, twisting In and out among the dwarf
pines and over fallen logs, leads nom tie
Visible half o7 the dwelling H. built of
boards, weatherbeaten and stained by time.
A rank growth Of grass and bright 9reen
moss grows on the roofand In the Joints on
the sides and end. There . no window or
other means Of aamitting snt Sna e,r .i- sa
hung on bootleg hinges. In fatr weather
the old hermit sits with the door open, but
whom the cold winds blow In from the
sound he crouches over small nre OF
sticks, built on the sarthen noor Of nis
uroiectins % from the roof Allows some of t6s
smoke to escape when the wind !. n the
rieht direction. Jasper IL feeble old man
of70 or thcreabouts, with suow-white hair
and whiskers.
"vv0 grown 20 tuin p,uc1 uuo nOut
he wined, as he frightened the strap an
other hole, "that can't wear suspenders
any more. My shoulder blades are 10
sharp they cut the suspenders IN two"
The old man made this remarkable state
ment with an air Of great sincerity. fol-
lowed by burst Of msnlscn Snnrsd ".sniSI: .s h;:
folly, cursfng the while like pirate.
"Were you shipmate with Noahs" his
visitor finally asked.
town flood I'm thinking about. The burst.
me forever. I was one Of the richest men
in the valley" he went on excitedly, put
now I'm Q beggar. Folks say I'm RICH
got gold hidden away-but It's lis. There's
nothing here but coal, andFve had hard
struggle to get that, because they watcn tne
"At the time Of the disaster" continued
old Jasper, after long pause, had
thousands Of money in my house when
the food came rushing down: Before !
knew what was up me and the house went
floating down the tide. sixteen million
tons of water had broken loose from the
reservoir. 1t went leaping and toaming
down the valley, leaving death ana ruin on
every hand. / lost my money, amily-
everything; then came West. Ii can
get what coal need I'll stay here until
die" -.
"How much coal do You need :"
"But very little now; my teeth amt
what they used to be-"
"You don't mean to say that you eat
coalY"
ITO be sure. Coal and slugs Is what !
live on. Coal for breakfast, dinner and
supper. Coal on Thanksgiving Day and
on the Fourth Of July. Ever eat any
yourself? Not Finest kind of diet when
you get It fresh I lived altogether on
anthracite, Lehigh Valley small egg being
my favorite. Sometimes clinkers found
their way to my table. But now my teeth
are gone. and Pm content with soft coal.
South Prairie screenings is what I use
when can get at the bunkers. There's
enough in that can by the door to last me
two days. Every Sunday l try to have a
mess of gashouse coke for dinner, but the
weather has been so bad Of late that
couldn't go after It," re his
Coal and the Conemaugh flood a.s.,n0
two great hobbies and he talks of nossnittoe sa to
else. Several attempts have been mauo
draw from him his history, but without
avail. 1t is not exactly known when ne
came to Tacoma, but he was first seen In
the gulch along in the summer. He makes
regular trips to the bunkers for "provis-
ions, /" and can be seen almost any. after
noon creeping stealthily about, picking up
bits of coal and putting them In his pockets.