Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1892-06-22
said. with : .igh of nl,ef

anguage
A. 10 was growing DARK. I bought IN.
heechnuts Tor "a siollah Ina xvs~nl. ek-
OF i've IN gray and In order to rvt ..scL
the more valuable pail she accompanied
me TO the camp lhsve heard of act.
of discouris-y On the part ~ our men.
Principally frum the other side, but I
must confess that never saw one. Nv
men cOuld not wholly conceal the AL
nnraton that showed itself In their
brOnx-d fsc.s when this mountain
beauty apl-arel In their midst: but To-
yond calamity raising their hats when.
ever they caught Saddle fcrguson's eye,
they tired. like gocd boys. 10 seem in
different To her pr,~.nce.
After this Transaction was completed
the girl did not seem In hurry 10 leave.
She begged some tobacco Tor her father
and mother. 90 rather she offered to
buy u AMI got u for nothing. Then she
came 10 me again. and ! felt fattered
by her disposition to talk. slow longs
You uns s-gwine 20 Ia stay hsri whar's
yon uns gwine whin You uns hight outy
Watts You uns heah foT- Thee and
scCrc- % questions % the same Kind Mis-
Saddle rattlei Of with all the artlcssne~s
of n curious child And when AZ length
she lcft. u SEEMED a. ~ darkness at once
settled over the camp
The bssChnuts were not the least Part
" our supper that evening. Alout an
hour after dark AMI when our hor-c-
bad grsse,i hare IN. margin II the
stream Cor thr-c hundred yards below
the camp. We saddlci up and pushed
into the hills Tor about mile. 80 a. a.
throw the enemy Of the scent II their
scouts had BEEN watching us
~ this s-ccnd place was a. near %
the ferguSon cabin a. was IN. camp
wherc Saddle visited us. I decided a.
take cue 10 the men and pay the father
a visit n h. WIRE a Union man, r,a-
scns,l that h. might b. % service. A.
". nearrd the cabin the yellow cur,
never absent from such plsc,s, an
nounccd cur approach. Then the door
was thrown oTsn. and framed In 1, We
could 80 the gsunt fOrm of man lean
ing with bpth hands On a long stick.
We wvrV yet hf,y yard. away. when the
man In the door csil~i out:
"IIullo. thar, Who's that
"friendsr' replied
Moth or ~iuthY-
"NeiiheEf-
HI don't YOU un. i.'-
I'm not lying we'y Cor the Union'-
''Oh. wal. that's bout the same'-
moth aid the old san In the door.
with morv cOuhdence IN his Voic.,
ca entering the cabin | was disap
polni-l at finding Saddle al-eni. thoagh
am very surv she had nothing a. do
with my coming tn. old man hal
l.eu tall. rawtuned and powerful In hi
time. snl might have l-sn still bat for
the rheumatism. llis wife. short,
dark eyed woman. Wa nO; inclined Ia
D. gracious. but at In n corner by the
IN, smoking and no, icigning 90 make .
comment. The Oh man explained the
r,a.un f1r this sulleun~ss after We w,rc
srais,i GA the rude b.nch by saving:
"Nancc- N l.,in,s,i IN. long stick a,
th. womanl and Inc don't ~. 1-out the
wah. I'm II -luah g. the Union and
h-r AMI Sa.ldis's HI l-ni g. thu -Iuih.
We uns h.E tWo aus II Ina Misiah sIsn-
c,f's criiicr company hght'n 90 the gov.
msnt. but uo~' ~ the young men here
aways : IL 10 the 'f~isAcy-
P1ksVille. the county -.at % Bl~i~os
county. APPEARED o. u sam f,rgu~ons
Ultima Thule. lie hal never t--,n In a
larger town. though many YEAR ''t-fo'
ths Wah- b. and soms % his Deighlors
-hai - thar minds o. 40 WAY up a.
Cha,t'noOga,- bat be- "wuE hlccgci Ia
siay hack kaze tho other, ~, skccri o
the trip-
could 80 that the oil man would
have spoken with morv fTvs-lon II u hal
Mt b.yn f0r the prrscncc Il his wife. AT
whom h. frequently looked Ia half
iimii WAY. We staid In the hut about
fifteen or twenty minute. AMI when W.
re o. ~ b. hobblcd outside after n.
After W. had gune about ten yar'is he
came a. a halt. and. glAnciug hack over
az shoulder. a. II anxious not a. have
his wife overhsar. h. askcd In a WHISPER;
"whar doss YOU uns low ~ stay al
night
We are In ,he woods about hat
mile from h~rc replied
eco, uuf mem
Il think wc have al W. ne,,l.-
The rcasou why I'm AKIN he said.
81. a. NV vuu uns waruin." Then IN
lower WHISPER and after another hack
warl glance. The mountains l. chuck
fun % whcelsT's crOwdG
3D. y0u know. - your own knowl-
s,lge. that there arr any clo~e by j
asked
.Yrs. 20 shuAh! Wv. 10, ten minutes
lcfo' YOU uns cume In. Mart Hall-he's
a rebil - l. soft On Sildie-he showed
az. and he aid ~ bow they'd gohble
every id one q Won uns or git YET
ss.,lt- l.fo' mawnin. - watch out.
AMI with this sam Ferguson-he was
cousin. a. ~ afterward learned, OF the
notorious guerrilla Champ Ferguson
-wave,l ms hand g. NJ and hobblei hack
believed thu. Information a. L. rcli'
able. Int hal al-o learned. from long
,st-ri.ncc. the tendency - thc~s noun
tain.,rS "a exaggvrate nuinl-rS.
Twas NJ, ant here @ hght, unless It
was unavoidable. but o. watch and re-
Port. AMI a. the position We now held
hal l-.u d-cid.-l CA that afternoon. !
determined ,o stay where W. w-re TIL
morniug At one o'clySk visited the sh
pickct Iosts-l had only forty men-and
then came hack. hoping 10 get a few
hours sleep About half pas, four our
little camp Wa amused by yells and the
di.char.e ~ carbines. and thrcc II the
tsek.t. cam. running Ina. ~ the others
dil not rrIort eut out ten men 10 learn
the cause. The-s men were fired on ~
. mail force. a. | could tell by the dis
charge. ami they hurried hack without
firing a shot.
m m. enemy hal be,n present In any
strength ami intended a night surprise,
thew would have followed up the hrs'
a,,ark: lnt a. they did not do -. IN
f.rr,,l that the shooting was done 10y
ru.rrillas. who. despite our precauilon'
b.l learned ~ our whereabouts. We
untiel the hal,ers anil siood Ia horse
until daylight. then a search was made
FOR the three missing men. We found
them dead: two 81 them shot, and one
with q heavy knife. manufactured from
+. file. still buris-l in hi- heart.
We buried this men as bet we could
.pd then rule down the hill 10 TIE
-. I'LL, - The rafinn. In