Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-01-09
IN VIRGINIA wILDs.
Gov. Mckinney Had Some Interesting Adj
ventures In the Border Counties.

Gov. Mckinney Had Some Interesting Ad-
ventures In the Border Counties
From the Richmond State.
"By the way" remarked the governor, 81
see the papers today publish sensational items
about the man Tall Han, who is being carried
back to Wise county. understand that the
people there declare they will lynch him. Its
an awful country down there, and we who lise
hundreds Of miles away can hardly realize Its
roughness and lawlessness In the extreme
southwestern part OF the state is the Pond
river, which. though marrow, is unfathomably
deep. II twists and turns, and in one place,
after running ten miles, IL curves back to .
stones throw Of the starting point
THE state Of Virginia in the extreme SOUTH
western portion Is angular shaped and a good
long-range gun can shoot from one state into
two others--kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia
coming together there. Like all border coun-
try this section is wild and 'awless,
Il never saw an example Of their lawlessness
but once. II was while 1 was electioneering
for governor. Mr.. Alexander with me.
We spoke in a building that was used for both
school and church. There was no pulpit, but
platform with q table on il. While the speak
ing was going on 1 noticed three men in a cor
ner, each with Winchester rifle in his hand
As the room had four windows on each side
this was the only place where they could not
be shot from the outside
Il had finished speaking and Alexander was
almost through, when heard o rapid fusiade
outside The shooting was directly in front of
the building. the only place il could not have
been seen from the inside.
1--WE started to go out, but the men in the
room formed a ring around us and told us not
to; that il would be over in a few seconds
"A little later We went out Three men were
lying on the ground. They pointed out an old
man as being the worst wounded of the lot and
almost sure to die. He was shot directly
through the body. / went up to him, and. TAX
told him that was sorry to see him IN such a
bad fix. He looked up in my face, saying. oh,
that's all right. governor The id radical
doesn't live who can keep me from voting for
you. This was Saturday, and understand that
he did vote on Tuesday,
The men who did the shooting" continued
the governor, must have been strangers TO
that section, for they were easily caught They
started off on a run, but being hard pressed
took TO the lowlands without knowing it. In
few minutes they found the Pond river IN a
circle in front of them and their pursuers on
the hilltop behind. Being mountain men they
could not swim a stroke, and the canoe was on
the other side. A command to ground their
arms was accordingly complied with, ana they
were taken into custody.
THAT night We spoke at Wise Court House.
The next morning the sheriff came into my
not unintelligent Governor he said, had
TO kill another one of them last night
II asked him what he meant He replied
that it was too dark to bring the prisoners TO
the court house the night before and he had
stopped at a log school house with them. In
the middle of the night they were awakened by
a party of rescuers armed with Wlnchesters,
He said he realized that some one was Obliged
to be killed and quick at that Pulling his re-
volver, he slapped it to the side Of the man
nearest to him and killed him.
Il asked him how he knew that he killed
him when many shots were fired. lie
answered that he felt the mans heart beating
on the pistol when no pulled the trigger.
while in this country" the governor went
on, Il noticed one morning line of smoke
curling up from the foot OF the mountain. L
thought would walk down and see what it
was. There were no paths, and suppose 1 had
to climb half dozen fences. 1 never saw SO
many fences in my life When / got to the
bottom 1 found IT was NV host firing up his
still. Such location for such a purpose could
not be equaled. The still was located on the
bank OF the river, upon natural dam A
shove Of the shoulder would put it in fifty feet
of water On the opposite side was a cliff that
a man not used to the mountains could no
more climb than you could the Lee monument.
Alongside the still lay a canoe with a paddle in
1t. such supply Of dogs and horns l never
saw.
IF revenue man came to the house the dogs
or women would see him. The latter would
blow the horns and the former bark. Even If
they did not no mortal man could climb all
those fences without being discovered by the
shoulder and the still was in the bottom OF the
river. Into the canoe, a few strokes OF the
paddle and the moonshiner would be on the
other side, where no man could follow