The Dalles daily chronicle. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1890-1948, 1892-01-06
A FIGHT TO THE DEATH.
A FIERCE AND BLOODY KNIFE DUEL
IN A MOUNTAIN TOWN.


ing Feud. and Was Precipitated by
Cur Dog-Sanguinary Results of Un-
bridIed Ferocity.
1t was Saturday and trading day."
and the little mountain town was filed
with scores of both white and colored
people from up and down the valley.
There was considerable drinking, but
everybody seemed good natured to me.
could not see the slightest sign of un-
easiness, but by and by the captain came
to me as stood in front of the postoffice
and said:
s'Looks mighty like thar was gwine
to be bloodshed yere!'
''Why, everybody seems peaceful and
serene, SO far as I can see."
''Yo' doan know these folks. See that
yere gatherin over by the harness shop?
That's the jackson crowd See that
other gatherin over by the drug store?
That's the Berry crowd. They're jist
eyin each other like two bulldogs, and
leetle mo- whisky'll bring on a fout."
SIS there any feeling between the two
crowds?' / asked
Powerful bad. l dun goes clar back
to the wah. The Jacksons was Union
and the Berry's was Confed. Thar was
houseburnin and robbin and shootin,
and they doan forget. It's the fust time
the two crowds hev bin in town together
fur more'n a var, and / doan like the
looks of things"
Cant the officers of the law keep
them quiet?'
"Oficers of the law! Why, man, if
them crowds We're to break loose fifty
officers of the law couldn't prevent blood
shed!'
The leaders of the respective factions
were men who must have been mere boys
when the war broke out. Each had
about a dozen adherents, who were ali
more or less closely related.
HOW THE FIGHT STARTED.
They did not seem at all anxious for a
conflict and might have gone their ways
without blow but for the action of
dog He was mean looking cur AMI
belonged to the Jacksons. Ip wander
ing around he got into the Berry crowd
and one of the men sliced about six
inches of his tail off The dog rushed
back to his master, while the Berry
crowd Knocked his yelps of pain and
fright.
All of sudden Steve jackson stepped
his hat and shouted:
''Tom Berry, eff yo' hain't coward
come out yere and fight me!'
The challenge was instantly accepted
and within sixty seconds a ring was
formed and 300 people were looking on.
The men were pretty evenly matched as
to height ard weight and age. 1t was
not to be battle with fists, but with
long, keen hunting knives, and you could
tell at a glance that it was to be a fight
to the death. At first there was much
jostling and moving about, accompanied
by shouts of encouragement to the men,
but after few moments it was quiet
painfully quiet think there were at
least thirty women among the onlookers
and fully that number of boys and girls
from ten to eighteen years of age.
BOTH DUELIsTS KILLED.
It was the first and only time ever
saw men fight with knives, and it was a
horrible thing TO see. AS soon as their
friends fell back they rushed upon each
other with the greatest fury. EacE
griped the other with his left hand and
stabbed and thrust, and each was
wounded four or five times. before they
broke loose. Not person in the crowd
1 spoke ABOVE d Whisper. Livery eye IOl-
lowed the men as they feinted and
lodged like prize fighters, and men and
women shivered and gasped for breath
;ss one or. the other of the knives drank
! blood.
The road was dry, but without dust
Presently it was dyed with blood The.
men slipped a little now and then as
they lodged about. Blood ran off their
finger tips, down their legs. trembled
like leaf. felt a horrible disgust, and
yet l could not move away. I felt
must see the end.
When the fight had lasted quarter oi
an hour, and one man had eight stabs
and the other nine they suddenly
chnched each other, as at first. Neither
uttered a cheer, curse or groan.
They stood square up to each other
and hacked and cut ard thrust unit
both sank down from sheer weakness
Jackson died within ten minutes; Berry
lived about thirty. The one had thirty
three wounds, the other twenty eight
AS they were picked up by their friend.
and carried into the drug store to breathe
their last, the hogs running about tn,
village came and disputed with tn,
dozen dogs over possession of the bloot
pools.-Detroit Free Press, 49,
boarding school Supper.
A teacher in a large boarding schoo
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